University of Maine

About: University of Maine is a education organization based out in Orono, Maine, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Ice sheet. The organization has 8637 authors who have published 16932 publications receiving 590124 citations. The organization is also known as: University of Maine at Orono.

An assessment of monitoring efforts in endangered species recovery plans

Abstract: Recovery efforts for threatened and endangered species often must be initiated with incomplete data. The outcomes of such efforts are difficult to predict, which makes monitoring the progress of recovery efforts an integral part of the recovery process. We evaluated the role of monitoring in recovery plans for 181 species listed as threatened and endangered under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. We considered both the extent to which monitoring tasks were proposed as part of the recovery effort and the extent to which the tasks proposed were actually implemented. In general, tasks devoted to tracking the species' population trend were more likely to be proposed and implemented than were other monitoring activities (e.g., those devoted to the species' demographics, its habitat requirements, or the impact of predators, competitors, and exotics). We found that the extent and nature of the monitoring proposed and implemented appeared to reflect taxonomic biases that exist throughout the recovery process and were little influenced either by the level of understanding of the species' biology or by the recovery priority assigned to the species. In particular, monitoring efforts did not adequately address the specific threats affecting species. Proposals for, and implementation of, monitoring progress toward recovery goals were independent of the type of criteria defined in the plans (e.g., population level and habitat extent), although population-related criteria were disproportionately common. Based on these findings, we caution against an overemphasis on focal species monitoring, especially when such an emphasis leads to the reduction or exclusion of other types of monitoring. We also recommend that species-specific attributes factor more prominently in the development of monitoring to avoid monitoring action that is otherwise unnecessary.

Validation of a quantitative food frequency questionnaire for rapid assessment of dietary calcium intake.

Abstract: This study tested the accuracy of a quantitative food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) designed to assess the amount of calcium consumed daily and to useas an educational tool in diet counseling and for prescribing calcium supplementation. The subjects were 26 perimenopausal women, aged 48 to 56 years, who were participants in a longitudinal osteoporosis study. Diets of the subjects were studied during the winter andsummer of one year. Subjects filled out a food frequency questionnaire and the next week completed 4-day food intake records according to instructions from the researchers. The mean daily intake of calcium estimated from the food frequency questionnaire was 928 mg inthe winter and 912 mg 6 months later. Ranges in the winter were 227 to 2,243 mg calcium and in the summer 198 to 3,063 mg calcium. The 53-item FFQ included descriptions of portion sizes and a calcium index for each item and had options for two frequency periods. The calcium level estimated from the questionnaire correlated (r=.73 in winter and r= .84 in summer) with the estimated amount from 4-day records. A seasonal difference was not found. The brief time (

Thinking and managing outside the box: coalescing connectivity networks to build region-wide resilience in coral reef ecosystems

Abstract: As the science of connectivity evolves, so too must the management of coral reefs. It is now clear that the spatial scale of disturbances to coral reef ecosystems is larger and the scale of larval connectivity is smaller than previously thought. This poses a challenge to the current focus of coral reef management, which often centers on the establishment of no-take reserves (NTRs) that in practice are often too small, scattered, or have low stakeholder compliance. Fished species are generally larger and more abundant in protected reserves, where their reproductive potential is often greater, yet documented demographic benefits of these reproductive gains outside reserves are modest at best. Small reproductive populations and limited dispersal of larvae play a role, as does the diminished receptivity to settling larvae of degraded habitats that can limit recruitment by more than 50%. For “demographic connectivity” to contribute to the resilience of coral reefs, it must function beyond the box of no-take reserves. Specifically, it must improve nursery habitats on or near reefs and enhance the reproductive output of ecologically important species throughout coral reef ecosystems. Special protection of ecologically important species (e.g., some herbivores in the Caribbean) and size-regulated fisheries that capitalize on the benefits of NTRs and maintain critical ecological functions are examples of measures that coalesce marine reserve effects and improve the resilience of coral reef ecosystems. Important too is the necessity of local involvement in the management process so that social costs and benefits are properly assessed, compliance increased and success stories accrued.