Question: Although mangrove forests are generally regarded as highly threatened, some studies have shown that mangrove canopies in the Pacific coast of Mexico have been increasing in recent decades. We investigated the possible causes driving this reported mangrove expansion.Location: The mangrove lagoons of Magdalena Bay in Baja California, Mexico. Methods:We used 50-year-old aerial photographs and 24-year-old satellite images to compare long-term vegetation change, surveyed a coastal vegetation transect to analyse flooding levels, compiled six decades of tidal and oceanographic information, as well as hurricane data to analyse changes in storm frequency or sea-level conditions, and used isotopic analysis to date the age of trees along the gradient.Results: A significant increase in mangrove cover has occurred in backwaters of the lagoons during the last 40 years, and especially during the El Niño anomalies of the 1980s and 1990s, while at the same time the mangrove fringe has been receding. Conclusions:The observed change can be attributed to the combined action of the warm surface waters of El Niño events and sea-level rise. Jointly, these two effects are sufficient to flood large areas of previously non-flooded salt flats, dispersing mangrove seedlings inland. The inland expansion of mangroves, however, does not ease conservation concerns, as it is the seaward fringes, and not the inland margins, that provide the most valuable environmental services for fisheries and coastal protection.Oceanographic and sea-level effects on mangroves X. López-Medellín et al.

Information on the current processes controlling the distribution patterns of relict palm populations at the limit of their northwestern distribution in America are poorly known. We explored the importance of post-dispersal seed removal by vertebrates, recruitment, and distribution patterns of the blue fan palm, Brahea armata, in the Northern Baja California peninsula, by evaluating (i) the levels of blue fan palm seed removal by vertebrates at two spatial scales and the initial fate of dispersed seeds, (ii) the spatial distribution and association of seedlings and adults at two spatial scales, (iii) seed removal levels and seedling densities based on density and distance to adult palm trees, and (iv) the population age structure. Overall, seed removal levels were low at all sites, varied at regional but not at local scales, with small rodents apparently being responsible of most removals. Adult density and distribution differed among oases, but seedling densities did differ locally. Whereas seed removal did not vary with distance from seed sources or parent trees, a weak positive association between seedlings and adults at the whole patch level indicated that establishment tended to occur in or near those grid cells where adults had established successfully. However, the analysis showed a negative association between seedling and adult densities within the patches, indicating that within the grid cells where growth was most successful, seedlings established preferentially in relatively open spaces. All life-history categories were adequately represented within each site and populations seemed to be in a fairly good conservation state. We did not find evidence to establish that post-dispersal seed removal by rodents is a main factor defining the recruitment patterns in these oases. In contrast, the effect of flood pulses seems to be significant and may have strong and conclusive effects on palm seedling distributions. We suggest that local biotic (nurse plants) and/or abiotic (canyon physiography, nurse objects) factors at each particular canyon have the potential to affect post-dispersal seed removal activity patterns by rodents, as well as to provide vital protection for palm seedling establishment from the extreme floods. This baseline information will help in further investigations on the possible mechanisms that sustain Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (

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A large amount of birds are harvested from the natural environment for the pet market. This trade is a conservation issue and an economic income for many people, two aspects not analyzed yet as a complex system of causes and effects. Though bird trade is common in Latin-America there are few published studies. Therefore, we reviewed available literature to understand the background of this topic and to identify future relevant research topics. We collected, summarized and discussed literature about bird use as pets in Latin-America, with a detailed approach in México. We searched by keywords in search engines. We got a database of 128 documents. Brazil was identified as one of the main countries of bird use research. Most of the papers focused on parrots (27%) and were conducted at a local geographical level (47%). Half of the papers are focused on the general use of birds, 44% on the use as pets and 5% on other uses. The most common techniques employed for gaining information belong to the social sciences. In Mexico, 82% of the information is “gray literature”, mainly congress abstracts. This literature review shows that wildlife use in general and wild birds use as pets in particular are common in Latin-America. We bring to light that most information is not found in peer review journals and contains only useful bird lists. Finally, we found that social organization and actor’s perception research is scarce so we suggest more research in this direction in order to implement better management policies

Critical aspects of hydrological science need to include historical perspectives about land and water use, and to understand the kind of knowledge policymakers and society require, so that this expertise can be translated into actions directed to water management challenges. We combined environmental perceptions with historical ecology techniques to understand the past and present relationships between people and the riparian environment, and to highlight the overriding influences of historic landuse changes in the region. We analyzed the perceptions of elderly stakeholders who have lived for >50 years in ten localities established inside and outside a protected area along the Amacuzac, one of the largest rivers in Morelos, Mexico. The river was and still is an important part of community life, in spite of its present poor condition. Perspectives of elders living inside the protected area were mostly related to conservation aspects of ecosystem functioning, impact on vegetation, and water problems related to land use. The loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services were recognized as the leading cause of the loss of ecosystem products and of their commercialization, as well as other changes in local economies. We conclude that effectively protected areas can improve the biological quality of watercourses if a decidedly more conservationist focus is placed upon streams and the surrounding territory.

Background The use and knowledge of medicinal plants play an essential role in community health in rural Mexico. Medicinal plants are part of the local heritage and provide a source of economic income. Nevertheless, knowledge of their use has declined due to factors like accelerated urbanization. Some authors have proposed that by reducing natural spaces, urbanization generates changes that impact the recognition, use, and management of natural resources. Here, we evaluate how urbanization affects the knowledge, use, and perception of medicinal plants in a Biosphere Reserve in Mexico. Methods Using a mixed methodology including quantitative and qualitative analyses, we generated a list of medicinal plants, methods of preparation, prevalence of illness, and use in two communities with different degrees of urbanization. Results A total of 217 medicinal plants were identified. The more urbanized community had greater knowledge of, and used, a larger number of introduced plant species, while the less urbanized community used and had more knowledge about wild plants. One of the factors explaining these differences was occupation, with people who work outdoors showing greater knowledge of wild plants. Conclusions Urbanization can lead to a loss of knowledge of the use and management of local wild species, with implications for the conservation of biocultural heritage. Substitution of native medicinal plants by introduced species shows disinterest and disuse in the local medicinal flora, which could be reflected in their ecosystems.

Human wildlife conflicts (HWC) represent a global challenge for the conservation of species. We registered all the available scientific publications on this subject from 1983 to 2017, in order to analyze the HWC research performed in Mexico. Our results indicate that this subject has been scarcely studied, with less than half of the studies published in scientific journals. The reviewed documents focus on the description and quantification of damage by wildlife, with a total of 112 species mentioned including birds, amphibians, mammals and reptiles that damage crops, livestock, poultry, and human health. Of these, nine species made up 41% of the total amount of species that were mentioned. We believe that adequate management and resolution of HWC requires the participation and training of groups of multidisciplinary scientists and technicians. Research in Mexico is scarce and recent and is mostly promoted by the conservation programs and strategies implemented by the federal government.

Background: Use and knowledge of medicinal plants play an essential role in community health in rural Mexico. They are part of the local inheritance and constitute an economic alternative. Nevertheless, knowledge of their use has declined due to factors like accelerated urbanization processes. Some authors have proposed that by reducing natural spaces, urbanization generates changes which will impact recognition, use and management of natural resources. We evaluate how urbanization affects knowledge, use and perception of medicinal plants in a Biosphere Reserve in Mexico. Methods: Using a mixed methodology including quantitative and qualitative analyses, we generate a list of medicinal plants, methods of preparation, prevalence of illness, and use. Results: 210 medicinal plants were identified. The more urbanized community used greater number of introduced plants; whereas the less urbanized used and had more knowledge about wild plants. One of the factors explaining these differences was occupation. People who work outdoors have greater knowledge of wild plants. The more urbanized community knew and used more introduced species. Conclusions: This can lead to a loss of knowledge of use and management of wild species, with implications for the conservation of biocultural heritage. Substitution of native by introduced plants shows disinterest and disuse, which could be reflected in their ecosystems.