Institution
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds
Nonprofit•Sandy, United Kingdom•
About: Royal Society for the Protection of Birds is a nonprofit organization based out in Sandy, United Kingdom. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Biodiversity. The organization has 670 authors who have published 1425 publications receiving 88006 citations. The organization is also known as: RSPB & Plumage League.
Topics: Population, Biodiversity, Threatened species, Foraging, Habitat
Papers published on a yearly basis
Papers
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TL;DR: It is concluded that hen harriers in Britain suffer elevated levels of mortality on grouse moors, which is most likely the result of illegal killing on moors managed for recreational shooting of red grouse.
Abstract: Identifying patterns of wildlife crime is a major conservation challenge. Here, we test whether deaths or disappearances of a protected species, the hen harrier, are associated with grouse moors, which are areas managed for the production of red grouse for recreational shooting. Using data from 58 satellite tracked hen harriers, we show high rates of unexpected tag failure and low first year survival compared to other harrier populations. The likelihood of harriers dying or disappearing increased as their use of grouse moors increased. Similarly, at the landscape scale, satellite fixes from the last week of life were distributed disproportionately on grouse moors in comparison to the overall use of such areas. This pattern was also apparent in protected areas in northern England. We conclude that hen harriers in Britain suffer elevated levels of mortality on grouse moors, which is most likely the result of illegal killing.
30 citations
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Max Planck Society1, University of Stirling2, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology3, Conservation International4, Oxford Brookes University5, University of Liège6, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds7, Royal Holloway, University of London8, Wildlife Conservation Society9, Fauna & Flora International10, World Wide Fund for Nature11, Jane Goodall Institute12, International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources13
TL;DR: The IUCN SSC Ape Populations, Environments and Surveys (A.P.E.S) database as mentioned in this paper was created as a repository for data on great apes and other primate taxa.
Abstract: Even though information on global biodiversity trends becomes increasingly available, large taxonomic and spatial data gaps persist at the scale relevant to planning conservation interventions. This is because data collectors are hesitant to share data with global repositories due to workload, lack of incentives, and perceived risk of losing intellectual property rights. In contrast, due to greater conceptual and methodological proximity, taxon-specific database initiatives can provide more direct benefits to data collectors through research collaborations and shared authorship. The IUCN SSC Ape Populations, Environments and Surveys (A.P.E.S.) database was created in 2005 as a repository for data on great apes and other primate taxa. It aims to acquire field survey data and make different types of data accessible, and provide up-to-date species status information. To support the current update of the conservation action plan for western chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes verus) we compiled field surveys for this taxon from IUCN SSC A.P.E.S., 75% of which were unpublished. We used spatial modeling to infer total population size, range-wide density distribution, population connectivity and landscape-scale metrics. We estimated a total abundance of 52,800 (95% CI 17,577 – 96,564) western chimpanzees, of which only 17% occurred in national parks. We also found that 10% of chimpanzees live within 25 km of four multi-national "development corridors" currently planned for West Africa. These large infrastructure projects aim to promote economic integration and agriculture expansion, but are likely to cause further habitat loss and reduce population connectivity. We close by demonstrating the wealth of conservation-relevant information derivable from a taxon-specific database like IUCN SSC A.P.E.S. and propose that a network of many more such databases could be created to provide the essential information to conservation that can neither be supplied by one-off projects nor by global repositories, and thus are highly complementary to existing initiatives.
30 citations
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TL;DR: In this paper, the authors analyzed the results of a long-term research program into Cambodian vultures that was initiated in 2004 and found that the principal causes of vulture mortality were poisoning (73%), probably as an accidental consequence of local hunting and fishing practices, and hunting or capture for traditional medicine (15%).
Abstract: Summary Asian vultures have undergone dramatic declines of 90–99% in the Indian Subcontinent, as a consequence of poisoning by veterinary use of the drug diclofenac, and are at a high risk of extinction. Cambodia supports one of the only populations of three species (White-rumped Vulture Gyps bengalensis, Slender-billed Vulture G. tenuirostris and Red-headed Vulture Sarcogyps calvus) outside of South Asia where diclofenac use is not widespread. Conservation of the Cambodian sub-populations is therefore a global priority. This study analyses the results of a long-term research programme into Cambodian vultures that was initiated in 2004. Population sizes of each species are estimated at 50–200+ individuals, ranging across an area of approximately 300 km by 250 km, including adjacent areas in Laos and Vietnam. The principal causes of vulture mortality were poisoning (73%), probably as an accidental consequence of local hunting and fishing practices, and hunting or capture for traditional medicine (15%). This represents a significant loss from such a small population of long-lived, slow breeding, species such as vultures. Cambodian vultures are severely food limited and are primarily dependent on domestic ungulate carcasses, as wild ungulate populations have been severely depleted over the past 20 years. Local people across the vulture range still follow traditional animal husbandry practices, including releasing livestock into the open deciduous dipterocarp forest areas when they are not needed for work, providing the food source. Reducing threats through limiting the use of poisons (which are also harmful for human health) and supplementary food provisioning in the short to medium-term through ‘vulture restaurants’ is critical if Cambodian vultures are to be conserved.
30 citations
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TL;DR: It is suggested that the potential impacts of blood parasite infections on over-wintering birds may have been underestimated and using declining populations as model systems within which to investigate these relationships is suggested.
Abstract: Pathogens and parasites can have major impacts on host population dynamics, both through direct mortality and via indirect effects. Both types of effect may be stronger in species whose populations are already under pressure. We investigated the potential for blood parasites to impact upon their hosts at the immunological, physiological and population level during the non-breeding season using a declining population of yellowhammers Emberiza citrinella as a model. Yellowhammers infected by Haemoproteus spp. showed both a reduced heterophil to lymphocyte (H:L) ratio, and an elevated standardised white blood cell (WBC) count compared to uninfected birds, indicating an immunological response to infection. Infected birds had shorter wings during the first winter of sampling but not during the second, colder, winter; survival analysis of 321 birds sampled across four winters indicated that increased wing length conferred a survival advantage. We suggest that the potential impacts of blood parasite infections on over-wintering birds may have been underestimated. Further research should consider the potential impacts of sub-clinical parasite infections on the dynamics of vulnerable populations, and we suggest using declining populations as model systems within which to investigate these relationships as well as examining interactions between sub-clinical disease and other environmental stressors. Q5
30 citations
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TL;DR: This study studied Northern Lapwing Vanellus vanellus breeding success on an island where feral Ferrets Mustela furo and HoodedCrows Corvus cornix were subjected to trial control regimes, providing further evidence that declines in this species are unlikely to be tackled success-fully through predator management alone.
Abstract: The control of generalist predator populations is increasingly adopted as a managementtool to combat declines in ground-nesting bird populations. However, compensatory pre-dation by uncontrolled species frequently occurs, so determining the relative impacts ofdifferent predatory species, and hence the relative benefits of their control, can be diffi-cult. Islands, with their reduced faunas, provide natural experimental units for investigat-ing specific predator–prey interactions in detail. We studied Northern Lapwing Vanellusvanellus breeding success on an island where feral Ferrets Mustela furo and HoodedCrows Corvus cornix were subjected to trial control regimes over 2 years. In both years,Lapwing hatching success was >80%, with neither Ferret nor Crow control selected asimportant predictors. Fledging rates in both years were 0.7 young per pair, despite highlyeffective predator removal, although Crow control potentially resulted in compensatorypredation by Common Ravens C. corax. Neither mustelid nor corvid control producedsignificant immediate benefits for Lapwings. This suggests that mesopredator release ofmustelids in mainland situations is unlikely to be a consistent threat to Lapwing, andprovides further evidence that declines in this species are unlikely to be tackled success-fully through predator management alone.Keywords: compensatory predation, corvid, ground-nesting birds, island, mesopredator release,mustelid, Vanellus vanellus, wader.Many wild bird populations are in decline (BirdlifeInternational 2008), with habitat loss and fragmen-tation and increased predation from both invasiveand generalist predators frequently identified as theprincipal causes (Newton 1998, 2004, Evans2004). Although birds living in open habitats areknown to suffer naturally high nest predation rates(e.g. Martin 1993), populations can still be verysusceptible to any increases in such pressure(Senner & Howe 1984, Suarez et al. 1993, Dowding& Murphy 2001).Changes in landscape characteristics are thoughtto be one of the key elements resulting in increasedpredation risk. These changes act via a variety ofmechanisms, including the creation of additionalforaging opportunities for predators (Newton2004), the reduction in suitable nesting habitatwhich can make nests more easily detected ordisrupt communal defence (Evans 2004), and anincrease in habitat fragmentation which canenhance the accessibility of nests to predators(Marzluff & Neatherlin 2006). Generalist preda-tors can also be subsidized by anthropogenic foodsources in modified landscapes, such as rubbish tips(Boarman 2003) or carrion (Newton 2004). Suchsubsidies can increase the potential for hyperpreda-tion as populations reach densities above thosethat natural prey would ordinarily sustain (Cour-champ et al. 2000).As a consequence of increases in predation pres-sure, control of predators such as corvids and
30 citations
Authors
Showing all 672 results
Name | H-index | Papers | Citations |
---|---|---|---|
Andrew Balmford | 91 | 290 | 33359 |
Rhys E. Green | 78 | 285 | 30428 |
Richard D. Gregory | 61 | 165 | 18428 |
Richard Evans | 48 | 306 | 10513 |
Rafael Mateo | 46 | 238 | 7091 |
Deborah J. Pain | 46 | 99 | 6717 |
Jeremy D. Wilson | 45 | 123 | 12587 |
Les G. Underhill | 45 | 233 | 8217 |
Richard B. Bradbury | 42 | 113 | 8062 |
Paul F. Donald | 41 | 117 | 11153 |
James W. Pearce-Higgins | 40 | 144 | 5623 |
Jörn P. W. Scharlemann | 40 | 84 | 16393 |
Juliet A. Vickery | 39 | 116 | 8494 |
Mark A. Taggart | 38 | 111 | 3703 |
Patrick W Thompson | 38 | 144 | 6379 |