Author
David Obura
Other affiliations: Pwani University College, International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, University of Miami ...read more
Bio: David Obura is an academic researcher from University of Queensland. The author has contributed to research in topics: Coral reef & Reef. The author has an hindex of 40, co-authored 145 publications receiving 9157 citations. Previous affiliations of David Obura include Pwani University College & International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources.
Topics: Coral reef, Reef, Coral bleaching, Coral, Biodiversity
Papers published on a yearly basis
Papers
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International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources1, Indonesian Institute of Sciences2, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration3, Brown University4, University of Costa Rica5, University of Hawaii at Manoa6, University of Tasmania7, Newcastle University8, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute9, National Museum of Natural History10, De La Salle University11, University of the South Pacific12, National Marine Fisheries Service13, Silliman University14, James Cook University15, Zoological Society of London16, University of Warwick17, Conservation International18, Museum of Tropical Queensland19, University of Puerto Rico20, Marine Conservation Society21
TL;DR: The Caribbean has the largest proportion of corals in high extinction risk categories, whereas the Coral Triangle has the highest proportion of species in all categories of elevated extinction risk.
Abstract: The conservation status of 845 zooxanthellate reef-building coral species was assessed by using International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List Criteria. Of the 704 species that could be assigned conservation status, 32.8% are in categories with elevated risk of extinction. Declines in abundance are associated with bleaching and diseases driven by elevated sea surface temperatures, with extinction risk further exacerbated by local-scale anthropogenic disturbances. The proportion of corals threatened with extinction has increased dramatically in recent decades and exceeds that of most terrestrial groups. The Caribbean has the largest proportion of corals in high extinction risk categories, whereas the Coral Triangle (western Pacific) has the highest proportion of species in all categories of elevated extinction risk. Our results emphasize the widespread plight of coral reefs and the urgent need to enact conservation measures.
1,272 citations
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University of Lisbon1, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation2, Virginia Tech College of Natural Resources and Environment3, California Institute of Technology4, Wageningen University and Research Centre5, Cardiff University6, American Museum of Natural History7, BirdLife International8, University of British Columbia9, Food and Agriculture Organization10, Australian Museum11, Leibniz Association12, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds13, University of Maryland, College Park14, Yale University15, Stanford University16, Monash University17, Kyoto University18, Zoological Society of London19, United States Geological Survey20, United Nations Environment Programme21, University of Sussex22, International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources23, Office of Environment and Heritage24
TL;DR: With the first plenary meeting of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) soon under way, partners are developing—and seeking consensus around—Essential Biod diversity Variables (EBVs) that could form the basis of monitoring programs worldwide.
Abstract: Reducing the rate of biodiversity loss and averting dangerous biodiversity change are international goals, reasserted by the Aichi Targets for 2020 by Parties to the United Nations (UN) Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) after failure to meet the 2010 target (1, 2). However, there is no global, harmonized observation system for delivering regular, timely data on biodiversity change (3). With the first plenary meeting of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) soon under way, partners from the Group on Earth Observations Biodiversity Observation Network (GEO BON) (4) are developing—and seeking consensus around—Essential Biodiversity Variables (EBVs) that could form the basis of monitoring programs worldwide.
1,074 citations
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National University of Cordoba1, Leipzig University2, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ3, Indiana University4, United Nations5, University of the West Indies6, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology7, National Autonomous University of Mexico8, University of Minnesota9, BirdLife International10, University of Cambridge11, University of British Columbia12, National University of Río Negro13, National Institute for Environmental Studies14, Chiba University15, Michigan State University16, International Institute of Minnesota17, United Nations University18, Stellenbosch University19, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation20, Simón Bolívar University21, Hungarian Academy of Sciences22, University of Queensland23, Duke University24, Imperial College London25, Natural History Museum26, University of the West of England27, Stockholm University28, Clark University29, IFREMER30, University of Cape Town31, Radboud University Nijmegen32, George Mason University33, Royal Botanic Gardens34, University of Oxford35, University of the Philippines Diliman36
TL;DR: The first integrated global-scale intergovernmental assessment of the status, trends, and future of the links between people and nature provides an unprecedented picture of the extent of the authors' mutual dependence, the breadth and depth of the ongoing and impending crisis, and the interconnectedness among sectors and regions.
Abstract: The human impact on life on Earth has increased sharply since the 1970s, driven by the demands of a growing population with rising average per capita income. Nature is currently supplying more materials than ever before, but this has come at the high cost of unprecedented global declines in the extent and integrity of ecosystems, distinctness of local ecological communities, abundance and number of wild species, and the number of local domesticated varieties. Such changes reduce vital benefits that people receive from nature and threaten the quality of life of future generations. Both the benefits of an expanding economy and the costs of reducing nature's benefits are unequally distributed. The fabric of life on which we all depend-nature and its contributions to people-is unravelling rapidly. Despite the severity of the threats and lack of enough progress in tackling them to date, opportunities exist to change future trajectories through transformative action. Such action must begin immediately, however, and address the root economic, social, and technological causes of nature's deterioration.
913 citations
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Scripps Institution of Oceanography1, University of California, Santa Barbara2, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration3, San Diego State University4, Princeton University5, Florida Museum of Natural History6, United States Fish and Wildlife Service7, Joint Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research8, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute9, Spanish National Research Council10
TL;DR: Protection from overfishing and pollution appears to increase the resilience of reef ecosystems to the effects of global warming, and reefs without people exhibited less coral disease and greater coral recruitment relative to more inhabited reefs.
Abstract: Effective conservation requires rigorous baselines of pristine conditions to assess the impacts of human activities and to evaluate the efficacy of management. Most coral reefs are moderately to severely degraded by local human activities such as fishing and pollution as well as global change, hence it is difficult to separate local from global effects. To this end, we surveyed coral reefs on uninhabited atolls in the northern Line Islands to provide a baseline of reef community structure, and on increasingly populated atolls to document changes associated with human activities. We found that top predators and reef-building organisms dominated unpopulated Kingman and Palmyra, while small planktivorous fishes and fleshy algae dominated the populated atolls of Tabuaeran and Kiritimati. Sharks and other top predators overwhelmed the fish assemblages on Kingman and Palmyra so that the biomass pyramid was inverted (top-heavy). In contrast, the biomass pyramid at Tabuaeran and Kiritimati exhibited the typical bottom-heavy pattern. Reefs without people exhibited less coral disease and greater coral recruitment relative to more inhabited reefs. Thus, protection from overfishing and pollution appears to increase the resilience of reef ecosystems to the effects of global warming.
795 citations
06 May 2019
TL;DR: Diaz et al. as discussed by the authors presented a study on bio-medical vegetables in the context of the University of Nacional de Cordoba and the Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biologia Vegetal.
Abstract: Fil: Diaz, Sandra Universidad Nacional de Cordoba Instituto Multidisciplinario de Biologia Vegetal; Argentina
583 citations
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TL;DR: Preface to the Princeton Landmarks in Biology Edition vii Preface xi Symbols used xiii 1.
Abstract: Preface to the Princeton Landmarks in Biology Edition vii Preface xi Symbols Used xiii 1. The Importance of Islands 3 2. Area and Number of Speicies 8 3. Further Explanations of the Area-Diversity Pattern 19 4. The Strategy of Colonization 68 5. Invasibility and the Variable Niche 94 6. Stepping Stones and Biotic Exchange 123 7. Evolutionary Changes Following Colonization 145 8. Prospect 181 Glossary 185 References 193 Index 201
14,171 citations
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TL;DR: The results demonstrate that phylogeny and function are sufficiently linked that this 'predictive metagenomic' approach should provide useful insights into the thousands of uncultivated microbial communities for which only marker gene surveys are currently available.
Abstract: Profiling phylogenetic marker genes, such as the 16S rRNA gene, is a key tool for studies of microbial communities but does not provide direct evidence of a community's functional capabilities. Here we describe PICRUSt (phylogenetic investigation of communities by reconstruction of unobserved states), a computational approach to predict the functional composition of a metagenome using marker gene data and a database of reference genomes. PICRUSt uses an extended ancestral-state reconstruction algorithm to predict which gene families are present and then combines gene families to estimate the composite metagenome. Using 16S information, PICRUSt recaptures key findings from the Human Microbiome Project and accurately predicts the abundance of gene families in host-associated and environmental communities, with quantifiable uncertainty. Our results demonstrate that phylogeny and function are sufficiently linked that this 'predictive metagenomic' approach should provide useful insights into the thousands of uncultivated microbial communities for which only marker gene surveys are currently available.
6,860 citations
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TL;DR: A meta-analysis shows that species are shifting their distributions in response to climate change at an accelerating rate, and that the range shift of each species depends on multiple internal species traits and external drivers of change.
Abstract: The distributions of many terrestrial organisms are currently shifting in latitude or elevation in response to changing climate Using a meta-analysis, we estimated that the distributions of species have recently shifted to higher elevations at a median rate of 110 meters per decade, and to higher latitudes at a median rate of 169 kilometers per decade These rates are approximately two and three times faster than previously reported The distances moved by species are greatest in studies showing the highest levels of warming, with average latitudinal shifts being generally sufficient to track temperature changes However, individual species vary greatly in their rates of change, suggesting that the range shift of each species depends on multiple internal species traits and external drivers of change Rapid average shifts derive from a wide diversity of responses by individual species
3,986 citations
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TL;DR: In this paper, the main ecological services across a variety of estuarine and coastal ecosystems (ECEs) including marshes, mangroves, nearshore coral reefs, seagrass beds, and sand beaches and dunes are reviewed.
Abstract: The global decline in estuarine and coastal ecosystems (ECEs) is affecting a number of critical benefits, or ecosystem services. We review the main ecological services across a variety of ECEs, including marshes, mangroves, nearshore coral reefs, seagrass beds, and sand beaches and dunes. Where possible, we indicate estimates of the key economic values arising from these services, and discuss how the natural variability of ECEs impacts their benefits, the synergistic relationships of ECEs across seascapes, and management implications. Although reliable valuation estimates are beginning to emerge for the key services of some ECEs, such as coral reefs, salt marshes, and mangroves, many of the important benefits of seagrass beds and sand dunes and beaches have not been assessed properly. Even for coral reefs, marshes, and mangroves, important ecological services have yet to be valued reliably, such as cross-ecosystem nutrient transfer (coral reefs), erosion control (marshes), and pollution control (mangroves). An important issue for valuing certain ECE services, such as coastal protection and habitat-fishery linkages, is that the ecological functions underlying these services vary spatially and temporally. Allowing for the connectivity between ECE habitats also may have important implications for assessing the ecological functions underlying key ecosystems services, such coastal protection, control of erosion, and habitat-fishery linkages. Finally, we conclude by suggesting an action plan for protecting and/or enhancing the immediate and longer-term values of ECE services. Because the connectivity of ECEs across land-sea gradients also influences the provision of certain ecosystem services, management of the entire seascape will be necessary to preserve such synergistic effects. Other key elements of an action plan include further ecological and economic collaborative research on valuing ECE services, improving institutional and legal frameworks for management, controlling and regulating destructive economic activities, and developing ecological restoration options.
3,750 citations
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University of California, Santa Cruz1, Duke University2, University of California, Berkeley3, University of Montana4, University of Cape Town5, University of Wisconsin-Madison6, University of Washington7, University of Florida8, Scripps Institution of Oceanography9, University of Missouri–St. Louis10, Finnmark University College11, University of Turku12, Stony Brook University13, Oregon State University14, Wageningen University and Research Centre15, University of California, Davis16, University of British Columbia17, University of Oulu18, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences19
TL;DR: This empirical work supports long-standing theory about the role of top-down forcing in ecosystems but also highlights the unanticipated impacts of trophic cascades on processes as diverse as the dynamics of disease, wildfire, carbon sequestration, invasive species, and biogeochemical cycles.
Abstract: Until recently, large apex consumers were ubiquitous across the globe and had been for millions of years. The loss of these animals may be humankind's most pervasive influence on nature. Although such losses are widely viewed as an ethical and aesthetic problem, recent research reveals extensive cascading effects of their disappearance in marine, terrestrial, and freshwater ecosystems worldwide. This empirical work supports long-standing theory about the role of top-down forcing in ecosystems but also highlights the unanticipated impacts of trophic cascades on processes as diverse as the dynamics of disease, wildfire, carbon sequestration, invasive species, and biogeochemical cycles. These findings emphasize the urgent need for interdisciplinary research to forecast the effects of trophic downgrading on process, function, and resilience in global ecosystems.
3,130 citations