Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust

About: Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust is a nonprofit organization based out in Fordingbridge, United Kingdom. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Red grouse. The organization has 156 authors who have published 305 publications receiving 7560 citations. The organization is also known as: games & gaming.

Do parasites make prey vulnerable to predation? Red grouse and parasites

Abstract: An extensive post-mortem survey of grouse revealed that birds killed by predators in spring and summer had significantly greater burdens of the caecal nematode Trichostrongylus tenuis than grouse shot during the autumn. Furthermore, grouse that appeared to have died through the effects of parasites carried greater worm burdens than grouse killed by predators. The proportion of grouse with high levels of parasite infection increased with the intensity of predator control as measured indirectly through keeper density. These two empirical observations suggest that predators selectively prey on heavily infected grouse. The interactions between parasites and predators were examined experimentally by reducing the worm burdens of female grouse with an oral anthelmintic

Structure, function and management of semi‐natural habitats for conservation biological control: A review of European studies

Abstract: Different semi-natural habitats occur on farmland, and it is the vegetation's traits and structure that subsequently determine their ability to support natural enemies and their associated contribution to conservation biocontrol. New habitats can be created and existing ones improved with agri-environment scheme funding in all EU member states. Understanding the contribution of each habitat type can aid the development of conservation control strategies. Here we review the extent to which the predominant habitat types in Europe support natural enemies, whether this results in enhanced natural enemy densities in the adjacent crop and whether this leads to reduced pest densities. Considerable variation exists in the available information for the different habitat types and trophic levels. Natural enemies within each habitat were the most studied, with less information on whether they were enhanced in adjacent fields, while their impact on pests was rarely investigated. Most information was available for woody and herbaceous linear habitats, yet not for woodland which can be the most common semi-natural habitat in many regions. While the management and design of habitats offer potential to stimulate conservation biocontrol, we also identified knowledge gaps. A better understanding of the relationship between resource availability and arthropod communities across habitat types, the spatiotemporal distribution of resources in the landscape and interactions with other factors that play a role in pest regulation could contribute to an informed management of semi-natural habitats for biocontrol. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.