Population dynamics reveal conservation priorities of the threatened New Zealand sea lion Phocarctos hookeri

Meyer, Stefan; Robertson, Bruce C.; Chilvers, B. Louise; Krkošek, Martin

doi:10.1007/s00227-015-2695-8

Cited by 29 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 59 publications

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“…They also recognize that species with fragmented distributions should not be ignored. These results are in accordance with other studies that have identified these factors as the main causes for classifying species as threatened (Villard and Metzger 2014;Meyer et al 2015). Thus, by identifying as priority criteria the factors that are the major drivers of species declines (Lindenmayer and Burgman 2005), biology students seem to have already acquired relevant information prior to conservation issues being addressed in biology courses.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

Perceptions of nature conservation by future biologists attending private universities in São Paulo State, Brazil

Gheler‐Costa

Soncksen

Santos

et al. 2018

Ecological Research

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As conservation agents, biologists play a central role in nature preservation as information‐gatherers, promoters of environmental education, lobbyists, and members of societies. Consequently, it is important to understand what factors determine their attitudes towards conservation. We aimed to assess which taxa and recovery measures students from biology core courses consider priorities for conservation and to determine the value students associate with conservation compared to other topics. We asked students (n = 122) from two private universities in São Paulo State, Brazil to fill out an anonymous questionnaire. They highlighted rarity, vanishing habitats and endemism as important criteria in prioritizing species. Carnivores were identified as the most threatened mammals and habitat recovery was deemed to be the most efficient conservation action. Students valued healthcare, cultural heritage and science over conservation. Our results reveal a two‐sided perspective of conservation among students from biology core courses; they possess knowledge of conservation issues but are greatly influenced by anthropocentric and utilitarian views of nature.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

Perceptions of nature conservation by future biologists attending private universities in São Paulo State, Brazil

Gheler‐Costa

Soncksen

Santos

et al. 2018

Ecological Research

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“…Robertson & Chilvers ; Meyer et al . ; but see Roberts & Doonan ), our tests for human‐mediated extirpation have highlighted that current levels of anthropogenic mortality on remaining Phocarctos populations have important implications for species persistence.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 94%

Human‐mediated extirpation of the unique Chatham Islands sea lion and implications for the conservation management of remaining New Zealand sea lion populations

et al. 2016

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While terrestrial megafaunal extinctions have been well characterized worldwide, our understanding of declines in marine megafauna remains limited. Here, we use ancient DNA analyses of prehistoric (<1450-1650 AD) sea lion specimens from New Zealand's isolated Chatham Islands to assess the demographic impacts of human settlement. These data suggest there was a large population of sea lions, unique to the Chatham Islands, at the time of Polynesian settlement. This distinct mitochondrial lineage became rapidly extinct within 200 years due to overhunting, paralleling the extirpation of a similarly large endemic mainland population. Whole mitogenomic analyses confirm substantial intraspecific diversity among prehistoric lineages. Demographic models suggest that even low harvest rates would likely have driven rapid extinction of these lineages. This study indicates that surviving Phocarctos populations are remnants of a once diverse and widespread sea lion assemblage, highlighting dramatic human impacts on endemic marine biodiversity. Our findings also suggest that Phocarctos bycatch in commercial fisheries may contribute to the ongoing population decline.

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“…Inferring abundance change from distribution data Many species are declining or facing range retractions (Hayhow et al, 2016), and it is important to monitor their population trends. Species with highly variable population dynamics tend to be at high risk of extinction (Pimm et al, 1998;Vucetich et al, 2000;Oliver et al, 2012) and thus our measure of variability in distribution records has ecological value, with the potential to assist conservation assessments by helping to identify species at risk of extinction or habitats in need of management (Meyer et al, 2015;S anchez-Hern andez et al, 2015). Our multispecies analysis (Fig.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Population variability in species can be deduced from opportunistic citizen science records: a case study using British butterflies

Mason

Hill

Thomas

et al. 2017

Insect Conserv Diversity

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Abstract. 1. Abundance data are the foundation for many ecological and conservation projects, but are only available for a few taxonomic groups. In contrast, distribution records (georeferenced presence records) are more widely available. Here we examine whether year-to-year changes in numbers of distribution records, collated over a large spatial scale, can provide a measure of species' population variability, and hence act as a metric of abundance changes.2. We used 33 British butterfly species to test this possibility, using distribution and abundance data (transect counts) from 1976 to 2012.3. Comparing across species, we found a strong correlation between mean year-to-year changes in total number of distribution records and mean year-toyear changes in abundance (N = 33 species; r 2 = 0.66). This suggests that annual distribution data can be used to identify species with low versus high population variability.4. For individual species, there was considerable variation in the strength of relationships between year-to-year changes in total number of distribution records and abundance. Between-year changes in abundance can be identified from distribution records most accurately for species whose populations are most variable (i.e. have high annual variation in numbers of records).5. We conclude that year-to-year changes in distribution records can indicate overall population variability within a taxon, and are a reasonable proxy for year-to-year changes in abundance for some types of species. This finding opens up more opportunities to inform ecological and conservation studies about population variability, based on the wealth of citizen science distribution records that are available for other taxa.

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Population dynamics reveal conservation priorities of the threatened New Zealand sea lion Phocarctos hookeri

Cited by 29 publications

References 59 publications

Perceptions of nature conservation by future biologists attending private universities in São Paulo State, Brazil

Perceptions of nature conservation by future biologists attending private universities in São Paulo State, Brazil

Human‐mediated extirpation of the unique Chatham Islands sea lion and implications for the conservation management of remaining New Zealand sea lion populations

Population variability in species can be deduced from opportunistic citizen science records: a case study using British butterflies

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