News – WildCRU https://www.wildcru.org Wildlife Conservation Research Unit Fri, 16 Feb 2024 12:48:00 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=5.7.11 https://www.wildcru.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/flavicon.jpg News – WildCRU https://www.wildcru.org 32 32 Exploring the social acceptability of trophy hunting https://www.wildcru.org/news/exploring-the-social-acceptability-of-trophy-hunting/ Fri, 16 Feb 2024 12:48:00 +0000 https://www.wildcru.org/?post_type=news&p=26752 Fierce international debates rage over whether trophy hunting is socially acceptable, especially when people from the Global North hunt well-known animals in sub-Saharan Africa. But how much do we really know about how acceptable or unacceptable members of the public perceive trophy hunting to be? And are some forms of hunting less acceptable or more acceptable than others?

A new paper led by WildCRU’s Morally Contested Conservation (MCC) project investigates perceptions of the acceptability of trophy hunting in sub-Saharan Africa among more than 1200 people who live in urban areas of the United States, United Kingdom, and South Africa.

The team used an online experiment to evaluate whether acceptability of trophy hunting depends on what animal would be hunted, and how meat and revenue from the hunt would be used. Each participant in the experiment was asked how acceptable or unacceptable it would be for a particular hunt to take place. Some involved hunting elephants, others hunting zebras. In some, meat would be left for wild animals to eat but in others meat would be provided to people who live nearby. In some, revenues would help support wildlife conservation locally, in others revenues would help support economic development locally, and in others revenues would help support hunting enterprises.

This approach allowed the team to understand why some hunts were perceived as more or less acceptable than others. Overall, zebra hunting was more acceptable than elephant hunting, providing meat to local people more acceptable than leaving it for wildlife to eat, and revenue supporting wildlife conservation more acceptable than supporting economic development or hunting enterprises. Acceptability was generally lower among participants from the United Kingdom and those who more strongly identified as an animal protectionist, but generally higher among participants with more formal education, who more strongly identified as a hunter, or who would more strongly prioritise people over wild animals.

Overall, participants perceived hunts to be more acceptable when they would produce tangible benefits for people who live in or near hunting areas in sub-Saharan Africa. The study therefore provides evidence that public perceptions are more pragmatic than is often evident in media coverage and social media exchanges that leave little room for context and nuance. This underscores the importance of recognising that ‘trophy hunting’ is a broad term that covers a wide range of activities involving many different species, motivations, and ecological and economic impacts.

The research team proposes that their findings could help inform contemporary decisions over the role of trophy hunting in wildlife management and economic development. These include decisions in African countries on whether to continue, reform, or establish hunting operations as well as decisions on potential trophy import restrictions in North America and Europe. For example, “smart bans” allowing imports from hunts that clearly demonstrate local benefits might better reflect nuances in perceptions of people who do not live in or around hunting areas in sub-Saharan Africa, while incentivising good practice among hunting operators.

The team emphasise that it will be especially important to understand perspectives of trophy hunting among people who live in rural areas of sub-Saharan Africa, who are most affected by decisions affecting wildlife in the region.

Hunting, including trophy hunting, is one of the controversial issues in conservation that the MCC team study in rural communities in Kenya, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe.

The paper can be accessed here: https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspb.2023.1638

 

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Identifying and protecting key wildlife corridors in KAZA https://www.wildcru.org/news/identifying-and-protecting-key-wildlife-corridors-in-kaza/ Wed, 07 Feb 2024 09:44:35 +0000 https://www.wildcru.org/?post_type=news&p=26740 The Kavango-Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area (KAZA TFCA) is one of the world’s largest Transfrontier Conservation Initiatives, spanning 520 000 square kilometres across Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, Botswana, Angola and Zimbabwe. For conservation purposes, this region is divided into 6 key Wildlife Dispersal Areas (WDAs), with the aim of improving sustainable livelihood opportunities and securing connectivity for wildlife – two ideals that form the backbone of the KAZA initiative. 

In 2022, the KAZA Secretariat initiated a project together with KAZA representatives from Namibia, Botswana and Zambia, for the Chobe Zambezi Floodplain WDA. The aim being to identify key corridors that could facilitate the movement of multiple species between Botswana’s Chobe National Park and Namibia’s Zambezi Region to the Greater Kafue area of Zambia. In doing so, the project would evaluate current and future land use plans for the area, and design projects to secure the future of the identified multi-species corridors. 

The Trans-Kalahari Predator Programme (TKPP) was selected as a technical partner to assist in this endeavour, by providing the technical expertise necessary to model the multi-species corridors and provide a toolkit that could assess future impact of land use change or development on their viability. Under direction from the Secretariat and KAZA Desk Officers, the project team engaged with government, non-government and community representatives to identify opportunities and threats to the project, collate existing land use plans, identify land use conflicts and collect wildlife related data from across the region for modelling purposes. 

The project then collaborated with Northern Arizona University (NAU), US Forest Service International Programme (USFS) and NASA on development of the user-friendly toolkit. This will provide longevity to the project, enabling stakeholders to continue assessing the impact of land use change on identified corridors, and incorporate this into land use planning.

After 18 months of data collection and analysis and stakeholder engagement under KAZA secretariat guidance, the project culminated in a multi-stakeholder workshop, with roughly 60 government, non-government and community representatives from Namibia, Botswana and Zambia. Stakeholders were presented with the corridor results for the Chobe Zambezi Floodplain, highlighting which areas were critical to facilitate movement for multiple species across the WDA and introduced to the toolkit.

Participants were then encouraged to collaboratively design projects aimed at improving sustainable livelihood options for local communities and encouraging protection and tolerance of wildlife to secure the corridors. The diverse range of opinions, experience and insights shared were condensed into achievable project plans. The best of these were selected by the Secretariat, and implementation will be supported with funding from the German Development Bank (KfW). This initiative served as a proof of concept for supporting similar projects across the rest of the KAZA landscape.

In 2024 the project team, with members from TKPP, NASA, NAU and USFS continue to support the KAZA Secretariat in identifying and prioritizing multi-species corridors and incorporating these into land use planning across the rest of the KAZA landscape.

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Oxford-led paper exploring impacts of wildlife trade bans wins Unjournal research prize https://www.wildcru.org/news/oxford-led-paper-exploring-impacts-of-wildlife-trade-bans-wins-unjournal-research-prize/ Tue, 30 Jan 2024 06:26:43 +0000 https://www.wildcru.org/?post_type=news&p=26730 A recent paper led by WildCRU Research Associate Takahiro Kubo, with Diogo Verissimo and co-authors has come first in The Unjournal’s “Impactful Research Prizes”. Entitled “Banning wildlife trade can boost demand”, the work provides evidence that trade bans on some threatened species may increase demand for other non-banned species. With reference to ten years of online Japanese trade data for three species (giant water bugs, Tokyo salamanders and golden venus chub), the authors explored whether the regulations created unintended ‘spillover’ impacts on substitutable species. Their results did indeed show this effect, highlighting the need for consumer research, monitoring and enforcement beyond regulated species. They also introduced the potential for minimising costs by applying machine learning technologies and emphasise the importance of international cooperation. Given that trade bans are among the most commonly-used strategies to address illegal wildlife trade, the paper’s results are hugely policy relevant.

The Unjournal judges said the work stood out for its intriguing question, potential for policy impact, and methodological strength. They also applauded the authors’ “open, active, and detailed engagement” with the evaluation process.

The Unjournal, established in 2022, commissions experts to provide public, journal-independent feedback and evaluation on research papers. The organisation focuses on work that is highly relevant to global priorities – especially in economics, social science, and impact evaluation. In 2024, The Unjournal will commission the evaluation of 70 high-profile and high-impact research papers and projects.

Prize winners will be honoured at The Unjournal Prize Inaugural Workshop, to be held in early 2024, where their papers will be presented. This will be part of a broader discussion on the impact of social science research, its robustness and credibility, and how journal-independent research evaluation can best promote these goals.

To learn more about The Unjournal, see unjournal.org.

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Understanding consumer preferences in Singapore’s shark fin trade https://www.wildcru.org/news/understanding-consumer-preferences-in-singapores-shark-fin-trade/ Fri, 26 Jan 2024 06:17:18 +0000 https://www.wildcru.org/?post_type=news&p=26723 Sharks and rays are among the world’s most threatened species, primarily due to overfishing – some of which is driven by the shark fin market. To date, fisheries and trade regulations have often not resulted in positive conservation outcomes for threatened sharks and rays. Therefore, more avenues need to be explored to reduce consumer demand – including novel regulatory and market-based reforms.

Asia is a priority region for shark conservation being home to high species diversity, fishing pressure and consumer demand – yet the details of this demand have not been thoroughly studied. Singapore is among the top importers, re-exporters and consumers in the region, where Critically Endangered species are regularly sold and consumed. It is also a leading market for lab-cultured protein sources – seen as a possible option for shark-fin alternatives. Yet success of such an initiative would hinge on consumer acceptance instead of wild-sourced fins.

A new study led by Christina Choy with Hollie Booth and WildCRU’s Diogo Verissimo investigated shark-fin consumer demographics and preferences in Singapore through an online ‘Discreet Choice Experiment’ exploring price, size, menu type and fin source.

Based on data from 300 respondents, the findings provided welcome evidence that overall, consumers preferred cheaper fins, sourced from responsible fisheries and are also willing to accept lab-grown shark-fin alternatives. This promising news can now inform trade regulations, incentivise investment in responsible fisheries and shark fin alternatives. It can also guide conservation messaging to help encourage consumers to choose more sustainable options. The paper ends with a call to Singapore government, businesses, and consumers to take the lead in testing novel market-based and policy solutions, which could create positive ripple effects on global shark and ray populations and coastal communities.

Choy, C., Booth, H., & Veríssimo, D. (2024). Understanding consumers to inform market interventions for Singapore’s shark fin trade. People and Nature, 00, 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1002/pan3.10590

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Cumulative conservation impact – WildCRU Diploma alumni news   https://www.wildcru.org/news/cumulative-conservation-impact-wildcru-diploma-alumni-news/ Thu, 25 Jan 2024 09:45:56 +0000 https://www.wildcru.org/?post_type=news&p=26715 WildCRU’s Diploma in International Conservation Practice gives conservation biologists and practitioners, often from less developed countries, invaluable skills to increase the impact of their work. Since the course’s establishment in 2009, alumni from nearly 50 different countries have furthered their studies, authored publications, won awards, gained prestigious positions and contributed significantly to global conservation efforts.

Yuri Petrunenko joined the Diploma in 2013 having gained research and conservation experience with the Siberian Tiger Project, the Amur Tiger Monitoring Program and several Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) initiatives. During his Oxford studies he used GPS collar data to explore Amur tiger prey use and habitat selection. This work led on to his PhD on the trophic ecology of tigers which he completed in 2021. One of its pivotal chapters took shape with WildCRU, under the supervision of David Macdonald and Robert Montgomery, and formed the basis of an impactful paper.

We are delighted that his training at WildCRU has launched Yuri on a successful career in conservation. En route, in 2021, Yuri joined the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s SILVIS lab (following in the footsteps of 2016 Diploma alumna from Azerbaijan, Afag Rizayeva) to research the effects on wildlife of the Soviet Union’s collapse, and of climate change on species distribution across the same region.

Now highly qualified, and still determined to use his knowledge to conserve the wildlife of his home country, we congratulate Yuri on securing a research position in the Department of Zoology and Genetics at Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia. He will be teaching zoology and ecology classes and says, “I am thrilled to have the opportunity to impart the knowledge I gained at WildCRU during the Diploma to benefit the younger generation.”

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The Oxford Pakistan Programme and WildCRU Diploma collaborate https://www.wildcru.org/news/the-oxford-pakistan-programme-and-wildcru-diploma-collaborate/ Fri, 19 Jan 2024 07:07:29 +0000 https://www.wildcru.org/?post_type=news&p=26695 The Oxford Pakistan Programme (OPP) has teamed up with WildCRU to offer funding for postgraduate study and training on wildlife conservation practices to talented Pakistani origin conservationists. The OPP and WildCRU’s joint initiative will see an OPP-WildCRU Scholar supported at Oxford each year.

The inaugural OPP-WildCRU Scholar, Bilal Mustafa joined the 2023 cohort of WildCRU’s Postgraduate Diploma in International Wildlife Conservation Practice, taught as a partnership between Biology and Continuing Education departments, with close links to Lady Margaret Hall. Bilal combines his vast knowledge and enthusiasm with valuable scholar skills. From his many visits to libraries in Pakistan and the UK he has amassed an impressive collection of historical pictures and records of gharial crocodiles in Pakistan, documenting their demise but also their extraordinary recent reappearance in the Indus River basin.

As the recipient of the OPP Zaman Scholarship, established with the generous support of Dr Tariq Zaman, Bilal joins the OPP scholars cohort for 2023-24. OPP scholars represent a diverse breadth of disciplines, backgrounds and talents and will now also include biodiversity and conservation studies. OPP said, “It is our hope that Bilal and future OPP-WildCRU Scholars go on to become leaders in biodiversity conservation through academic excellence and the spirit of public service. We look forward to Bilal’s contribution to protect Pakistan’s exceptional wildlife and wild spaces, while working closely with the communities that live close to wildlife.”

Bilal is committed to deepening the OPP and WildCRU’s links with Pakistan, supporting efforts to establish a lecture series in Oxford on wildlife conservation in Pakistan as well as additional support for related research in Oxford.

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Researchers develop hedgehog safety test for robotic lawn mowers https://www.wildcru.org/news/researchers-develop-hedgehog-safety-test-for-robotic-lawn-mowers/ Tue, 16 Jan 2024 06:40:18 +0000 https://www.wildcru.org/?post_type=news&p=26683 WildCRU Research Associate Dr Sophie Lund Rasmussen has led new work assessing how dangerous robotic lawnmowers are to hedgehogs. The authors hope this will lead to a certification scheme that will allow consumers to choose ‘hedgehog-friendly’ mowers.

European hedgehog populations (Erinaceus europaeus) are in decline – increasingly sharing habitat with humans and being exposed to a range of dangers including road traffic accidents, intensive agriculture, and injuries from dog bites and garden strimmers. In recent years, many hedgehog rehabilitation centres have reported a significant increase in the numbers of hedgehog injuries caused by robotic lawnmowers. These machines are becoming increasingly popular, however many are concerned that using them, especially at night when most hedgehogs are active, could pose a threat to European hedgehogs.

Dr Rasmussen, aka ‘Dr Hedgehog’ says, ‘There is an urgent need to identify and phase out models of robotic lawnmowers that pose a threat to hedgehogs. Our new standardised safety test will greatly aid hedgehog conservation, by enabling manufacturers of robotic lawnmowers to ensure their models are “hedgehog friendly” before they are put on the market.’

The safety test was developed through exploring both the reactions of live hedgehogs as well as crash test dummy hedgehogs. Overall, hedgehogs showed three distinct responses: running away from the mower; standing rigidly in front of it partially curled up; or sniffing the lawnmower inquisitively. Generally, younger hedgehogs were bolder than adults.

Dr Rasmussen said, ‘Each hedgehog was tested twice and, interestingly, they tended to act more shyly on their second encounter. This is hugely important, since it suggests that hedgehogs may learn from their first encounter with a robotic lawnmower. Potentially, if a hedgehog survives its first encounter with a robotic lawnmower, it is less likely to be injured in the future because this may cause it to avoid them. So, the more hedgehog friendly mowers out there, the more chance there is that the first mower a hedgehog meets is a hedgehog friendly one. If these hedgehogs meet a mower again later in their lives, they will then likely be more cautious.’

The team intend to make the crash test dummy design publicly available for 3D printing, so that robotic lawn mower companies can use it in the process of developing hedgehog friendly robotic lawnmowers. Ultimately, they hope that the hedgehog safety test using the dummies will become integrated into the official testing protocols approving the robotic lawnmowers for sale on the European market. This could enable a certification scheme that will allow consumers to choose ‘hedgehog-friendly’ models.

Fay Vass, from the British Hedgehog Preservation Society added: “We are pleased to have been involved in funding this important piece of research. The population decline of hedgehogs is alarming and unsustainable so it’s crucial to find out which potential dangers are actually causing problems, and which are not.”

Access the published scientific articles here:
https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/14/1/122
https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/14/1/2

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Impact on species’ online attention when named after celebrities https://www.wildcru.org/news/impact-on-species-online-attention-when-named-after-celebrities/ Tue, 19 Dec 2023 08:45:18 +0000 https://www.wildcru.org/?post_type=news&p=26658 Celebrities can generate substantial attention. So, what happens when species are named after them? Do these species receive more online attention? This question was explored by WildCRU’s Katie Blake and Diogo Verissimo, alongside colleagues Sean Anderson and Adam Gleave.

Using Wikipedia page view data for over 4,000 species pairs, the authors compared whether species receive more page views per day when named after celebrities than when not. This effect was studied across six taxonomic groups (amphibians, birds, invertebrates, fish, mammals, and reptiles), and for increasing levels of celebrity salience.

Overall, there was a high probability (0.96-0.98) that species receive more attention on Wikipedia when named after celebrities. Plus, the effect was strongest for invertebrates, followed by amphibians, reptiles, fish, mammals, then birds. These finding could therefore be of particular significance for taxa generally considered less charismatic than others.

The authors discuss the potential implications of these findings for conservation. The responsible use of eponyms more generally is also addressed, give recent debates on this topic.

Blake, K., Anderson, S., Gleave, A., & Veríssimo, D. (2023). Impact on species’ online attention when named after celebrities. Conservation Biology. https://doi.org/10.1111/cobi.14184.

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Investigating cheetah presence in Tanzania’s Selous–Nyerere ecosystem https://www.wildcru.org/news/investigating-cheetah-presence-in-tanzanias-selous-nyerere-ecosystem/ Mon, 18 Dec 2023 06:57:16 +0000 https://www.wildcru.org/?post_type=news&p=26651 Up-to-date information on species distribution is vital for effective conservation planning. In an effort to fill information gaps on cheetah presence in Tanzania, Lion Landscapes / WildCRU researchers and partners conducted spoor and camera-trap surveys in the Selous Game Reserve and Nyerere National Park from 2020 to 2022. These parks are part of the broader Selous–Nyerere ecosystem which extends over 90,000km2 and is the largest tract of potential cheetah habitat in the country for which data are lacking. The last confirmed cheetah sighting in this landscape was in the 1990s.

The spoor surveys covered 2,786km of road, recording all signs of large carnivores and their prey. Camera-trap grids totalling 319 paired stations covered a combined area of 3,865km2. Although this effort was relatively extensive and representative, no evidence of cheetahs was recorded. Enquiries with photographic and hunting tourism operators, protected area managers, rangers and game scouts also provided no evidence of current or recent cheetah presence.

While confirming absence with complete certainty over an area this large is virtually impossible, the authors believe their results indicate that cheetah persistence is unlikely. They also question whether the landscape ever hosted an independent resident population – postulating that previous records could have been dispersers from elsewhere, or that Selous–Nyerere formed the endpoint of one or more connected populations.

This work was led by WildCRU’s Charlotte Searle and Paolo Strampelli in collaboration with co-authors from Tanzania Wildlife Research Institute (TAWIRI), Tanzania National Parks Authority (TANAPA), Tanzania Wildlife Management Authority (TAWA) and Frankfurt Zoological Society (FZS). The study’s findings were presented at a 2022 meeting convened to revise the IUCN/SSC Eastern Africa Regional Conservation Strategy for Cheetah and African Wild Dog. They have just been published in Oryx.

Searle CE, Strampelli P, Haule L, et al. Cheetahs in Tanzania’s Selous–Nyerere ecosystem: lack of evidence for current persistence, and reflections on historical status. Oryx. 2023:1-5. doi:10.1017/S0030605323001424

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Innovative research on big cat connectivity in Panama https://www.wildcru.org/news/innovative-research-on-big-cat-connectivity-in-panama/ Thu, 14 Dec 2023 06:39:26 +0000 https://www.wildcru.org/?post_type=news&p=26639 Big cats need a lot of space and ways of getting from one safe haven to another. This is why innovative research on how corridors provide routes through landscapes is a key theme for WildCRU’s ground-breaking research in landscape ecology. Jaguars are an especially exciting case given their range stretches the whole length of South America and north to Texas. This makes Panama as crucial for jaguar geopolitics as it is for humans, and that’s why WildCRU set up a unique collaboration with local researcher Kimberly Craighead, co-founder of Kaminando Habitat Connectivity Initiative (kaminando.org).

Research led by. WildCRU’s Sam Cushman, just published in ‘Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution’, means we can now plot the best roadmap for jaguars to chart a route through Panama – the jaguars may have known already, but the policymakers needed to know. This work provides innovative insight into both the theoretical and practical understanding of the functional connectivity of big cats. Authors compared 72 different models of landscape connectivity for jaguars and pumas using both empirically based and expert opinion derived resistance layers. Similarities and differences among the models were evaluated, and factors driving their differences quantified using surface correlation, Mantel testing and agglomerative hierarchical clustering.

Results indicate that the main differences in predicted connectivity surfaces were related to species and resistance modelling approach, with relatively little consistent difference related to dispersal ability and nonlinear kernel transformation. The Canal Zone and Lake Gatun were demonstrated to be barriers to jaguar, puma, and potentially other species movement across Panama and the Pan-American region. Two core habitat areas were identified – one in the west extending to the Costa Rican border, and another in the east extending to the Colombian border, with three weak but potentially critical movement routes connecting them across the Canal Zone. These findings also highlight the significant value of protected and indigenous lands like the Guna Yala territory.

Professor David Macdonald, WildCRU’s founder, who leads the group’s global programme on felid landscapes said, “We are thrilled that important analytical advances have enabled us to join up the dots for jaguars and make important practical suggestions about how to ensure jaguars have safe passage through this critical central American landscape”.

Cushman SA, Craighead KA, Yacelga M, Kaszta ZM, Wan HY and Macdonald DW (2023) Seventy-two models of large mammal connectivity across Panama: insights into a critical biogeographic linkage zone. Front. Ecol. Evol. 11:1250255. doi: 10.3389/fevo.2023.1250255

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