Royal Society for the Protection of Birds

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.

At-sea trialling of the Hookpod: a ‘one-stop’ mitigation solution for seabird bycatch in pelagic longline fisheries

Abstract: Bycatch of pelagic seabird species in longline fisheries is recognized as one of the most important and pervasive sources of mortality, contributing to an increased risk of their extinction. Uptake of mitigation measures to reduce seabird bycatch has not been widespread by the industry. Here, we present the results of 18 at-sea trials conducted between 2011–2015 onboard pelagic longliners targeting tuna (Thunnus spp) and swordfish (Xiphias gladius) in South African, Brazilian and Australian waters, using a recently designed seabird bycatch mitigation device. The ‘Hookpod’ is a polycarbonate capsule that encases the point and barb of baited pelagic longline hooks to prevent seabirds from becoming hooked and drowning during line-setting operations. The assessment was based on efficacy (i.e. reducing rates of seabird bycatch without impacting target catch rate) and practicality (i.e. how the Hookpod fitted into fishing operations). We observed 59 130 experimental branchlines over 129 sets and recorded a single seabird mortality on the Hookpod branchlines compared to 24 on the control branchlines, a bycatch rate of 0.04 birds/1000 hooks and 0.8 birds/1000 hooks, respectively. No difference in catch rate of target fish species between Hookpod and control treatments was detected. These findings demonstrate that Hookpods do not negatively affect catch rate of target species and could make an important contribution to halting the decline of many seabird populations if adopted as a mitigation measure by the pelagic longline fishing industry.

The effect of observer experience on English Breeding Bird Survey population trends

Abstract: Capsule Including observer effects in population models is unlikely to improve population trend estimates. Aims We test the hypothesis that the observer's experience has a significant effect on the detection of birds, and subsequently impacts on estimates of abundance and population trends. Methods Two models were used to test the effect of observer experience: (1) assuming that effects of observer naivety operate only in the first year, and express experience as a binomial variable; (2) assuming effects of experience improve year‐on‐year, and express as a continuous variable. For each model, experience was included in annual site‐by‐year log‐linear models with Poisson error terms. Results Significant observer‐experience effects were found for up to half of the species analysed depending on the model. However, there were no patterns in the direction of these negative effects. Importantly, including observer experience in analyses of population trends significantly affected estimates of change in only one ...

Impacts of habitat change and protected areas on alpha and beta diversity of Mexican birds

Abstract: Aims To investigate how habitat change and different levels of protection interact to determine variation in the (alpha and beta) diversity of bird communities in three bioclimatic zones, considering the impacts of non-native species, and the contribution of these effects to global (gamma) diversity. Location Sierra Gorda Biosphere Reserve, central Mexico. Methods We carried out bird surveys in a number of locations which varied according to their underlying vegetation type, their level of protection and the degree to which they had undergone modification by humans. We conducted a range of analyses to determine the impacts of protection and modification on the richness and mean global population trends of the species found in each location. We compared community composition to assess the homogenization effect of habitat modification. Results Human-modified environments in each of three bioclimatic zones held significantly greater numbers of species (alpha diversity) than unmodified habitats. Human-mediated changes to local bird communities altered patterns of beta diversity in opposite directions; communities across bioclimatic zones were more similar to one another in modified areas than in unmodified areas but, on a local scale, modification of vegetation increased community dissimilarity. The changes are likely to contribute to a decline in global (gamma) diversity, given that globally vulnerable (declining) birds were mostly associated with unmodified, strictly protected areas. Main conclusions We highlight that assessment of human impacts and conservation need depends on the metric of biodiversity used and scale considered: small-scale habitat change increased local and regional avian diversity but strictly protected areas are still required to protect globally vulnerable species.

Rat eradication comes within a whisker! A case study of a failed project from the South Pacific

Abstract: To enhance their conservation value, several hundred islands worldwide have been cleared of invasive alien rats, Rattus spp. One of the largest projects yet undertaken was on 43 km 2 Henderson Island in the Pitcairn group, South Pacific, in August 2011. Following massive immediate mortality, a single R. exulans was observed in March 2012 and, subsequently, rat numbers have recovered. The survivors show no sign of resistance to the toxicant used, brodifacoum. Using pre- and post-operation rat tissue samples from Henderson, plus samples from around the Pacific, we exclude re-introduction as the source of continued rat presence. Microsatellite analysis of 18 loci enabled comparison of genetic diversity of Henderson rats before and after the bait drop. The fall in diversity measured by allele frequency change indicated that the bottleneck ( N e ) through which the breeding population passed was probably around 50 individuals, representing a census population of about 60–80 animals. This is the first failed project that has estimated how close it was to success.