Henipaviruses form a new genus of emerging paramyxoviruses that are the deadliest human pathogens within the Paramyxoviridae family. This volume deals with the many facets of henipavirus biology, and covers our current understanding regarding the ecology, molecular virology, and pathogenesis of henipavirus infections. It is an international effort written by a multidisciplinary panel of experts at the front lines of research into this lethal emerging group of paramyxoviruses. The first section introduces the epidemiology and ecology of Nipah and Hendra viruses in their respective endemic areas, including a first-hand account of the discovery of Nipah virus during its initial outbreak in Malaysia; the next section documents the molecular virology of henipaviruses, and the substantial advances made towards understanding the unique features of henipavirus entry and tropism; and this is followed by accounts of the clinical and pathologic features of henipavirus infections in their human and naturally infected animal hosts. The next sections on pathogenesis provide a comprehensive reference on how henipaviruses counteract the innate immune system, and the relevant pathogenic features in animal challenge models developed to test potential therapeutic strategies. The final sections describe our current and future capabilities for diagnosis and control, including an account of potentially effective immunization strategies that are currently being tested. This book will not only serve as a useful reference for the henipavirus field; it will be useful to basic and animal virologists, ecologists, epidemiologists, physicians, and others interested in emerging infectious viral diseases, as it showcases the multidisciplinary efforts required to understand the genesis, spread and hopefully, control, of a group of lethal emerging zoonotic pathogens.

Ethical Debates in Orangutan Conservation explores how conservationists decide whether, and how, to undertake rehabilitation and reintroduction (R&R) when rescuing orphaned orangutans. The author demonstrates that exploring ethical dilemmas is crucial for understanding ongoing disagreements about how to help endangered wildlife in an era of anthropogenic extinction. Although R&R might appear an uncontroversial activity, there is considerable debate about how, and why, it ought to be practised. Drawing on in-depth qualitative research with orangutan conservation practitioners, this book examines how ethical trade-offs shape debates about R&R. For example, what if the orphan fails to learn how to be an orangutan again, after years in the company of humans? What if she is sent into the forest only to slowly starve? Would she have been better off in a cage? Could the huge cost of sending a rescued ape back to the wild be better spent on stopping deforestation in the first place? Or do we have a moral obligation to rescue the orphan regardless of cost? This book demonstrates that deconstructing ethical positions is crucial for understanding ongoing disagreements about how to help our endangered great ape kin and other wildlife. Ethical Debates in Orangutan Conservation is essential reading for those interested in conservation and animal welfare, animal studies, primatology, geography, environmental philosophy, and anthropology.

After decades of operating off-the-backfoot and protecting and conserving nature perceived as under threat, conservationists are becoming proactive and creative in the face of habitat loss, agricultural intensification and climate change. Beyond Conservation offers a revolutionary agenda for both managing existing wildlands in Britain and for expanding and connecting such lands. Central to this strategy is the imperative to 'rewild' or restore and repair damaged habitat and ecosystems, promote existing biodiversity and reintroduce vanished plant and animal species, while working to reconcile human needs and livelihoods and the needs of nature.

There is no doubt that extensive wildlife ranching in southern Africa has developed rapidly in recent years. However, the last few years have seen the development of intensive wildlife production too. Intensive production of wild animals often happens in small enclosed areas or areas of limited size and requires more intensive management than the extensive production of wildlife. This title summarises the current knowledge on the intensive production of wild animals in southern Africa.

This title was first published in 2000: The noble goals embodied in the Endangered Species Act are colliding with financial and social realities. Citizens increasingly face the costs of current policies, while initiatives which fail to respect liberty and property meet serious resistance at every turn. Despite widespread verbal support for saving species 'at any cost', when trade-offs become obvious, and values compete, support for these policies evaporates. This edited collection examines ethically and materially responsible approaches to this problem, written by leading international figures from a variety of disciplines. The result is the most comprehensive and constructive analysis of the effectiveness and viability of endangered species protection available.

The area where urban lands meet and interact with rural lands, the Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI), is developing into a major battleground on the environmental front. Forests at the Wildland-Urban Interface: Conservation and Management provides information, principles, tools, and case studies that enhance natural resource management, planning, and policy-making for the Wildland-Urban Interface. The text serves as an excellent guide and reference for natural resource professionals and urban planners as they seek insight on effective ways to address the challenges and opportunities associated with WUI issues as related to diminishing forest lands and natural vegetation areas.

Across the continental United States, one can identify 20 distinct forest cover types. Most of these are to be found on federal lands managed by the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management. Those responsible for the management of trees that form the 20 different cover types and the diversity of forest wildlife that reside in them must have a solid grounding in concepts of forest management, especially silviculture, as well as concepts of wildlife management, in order to integrate both as part of any effective natural resource management plan. Forest Wildlife Ecology and Habitat Management provides both foresters and wildlife biologists responsible for managing forest resources with an integrated understanding of the relationship between forests and wildlife. Based on David Patton's 50 years of experience as a forester and wildlife biologist, the book shows readers how to look at forests as ecological systems and wildlife as part of the energy flow and nutrient cycling process within those systems. He offers readers a fundamental understanding of the natural processes that occur in a forest taking into consideration vegetation, water, and the natural effects of climate and time. He then provides a biological perspective on wildlife, discussing reproduction, behavior, feeding habits, and mobility. He also discusses the various influences on forests and wildlife by both natural and human-caused events. Covering those forest types included in the U.S. National Atlas, and associating over 1,100 wildlife species with 20 major forest types in 48 states, Professor Patton provides recommendations for ways to restore and maintain wildlife habitat by direct and indirect coordination. Towards this end, the author - Evaluates various approaches to integrate forestry and wildlife management Offers a number of practical management strategies, emphasizing a progressive holistic approach

Across Russia's easternmost shores and through the territories of the Inupiat and Yupik in Alaska, Bathsheba Demuth reveals how, over 150 years, people turned ecological wealth in a remote region into economic growth and state power. Beginning in the 1840s, capitalism and then communism, with their ideas of progress, transformed the area around the Bering Strait into a historical experiment in remaking ecosystems. Rendered even more urgent in a warming climate, Floating Coast is a profoundly resonant tale of the impact that human needs and ambitions have brought (and will continue to bring) to a finite planet. * Shortlisted for the The Pushkin House Book Prize 2020.

Our future is closely tied to that of the variety of life on Earth, and yet there is no greater threat to it than us. From population explosions and habitat destruction to climate change and mass extinctions, John Spicer explores the causes and consequences of our biodiversity crisis. In this revised and updated edition, he examines how grave the situation has become over the past decade and outlines what we must do now to protect and preserve not just nature’s wonders but the essential services that biodiversity provides for us, seemingly for nothing.

In the past, wildlife living in urban areas were ignored by wildlife professionals and urban planners because cities were perceived as places for people and not for wild animals. Paradoxically, though, many species of wildlife thrive in these built environments. Interactions between humans and wildlife are more frequent in urban areas than any other place on earth and these interactions impact human health, safety and welfare in both positive and negative ways. Although urban wildlife control pest species, pollinate plants and are fun to watch, they also damage property, spread disease and even attack people and pets. In urban areas, the combination of dense human populations, buildings, impermeable surfaces, introduced vegetation, and high concentrations of food, water and pollution alter wildlife populations and communities in ways unseen in more natural environments. For these ecological and practical reasons, researchers and mangers have shown a growing interest in urban wildlife ecology and management.

This growing interest in urban wildlife has inspired many studies on the subject that have yet to be synthesized in a cohesive narrative. "Urban Wildlife: Theory and Practice" fills this void by synthesizing the latest ecological and social knowledge in the subject area into an interdisciplinary and practical text. This volume provides a foundation for the future growth and understanding of urban wildlife ecology and management by:

Clearly defining the concepts used to study and describe urban wildlife,

Offering a cohesive understanding of the coupled natural and social drivers that shape urban wildlife ecology,

Presenting the patterns and processes of wildlife response to an urbanizing world and explaining the mechanisms behind them and

Proposing means to create physical and social environments that are mutually beneficial for both humans and wildlife."

Conservationist Grant Fowlds lives to save and protect Africa's rhinos, elephants and other iconic wildlife, to preserve their habitats, to increase their range and bring back the animals where they have been decimated by decades of war, as in Angola, Mozambique and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. This vivid account of his work tells of a fellow conservationist tragically killed by the elephants he was seeking to save and a face-off with poachers, impoverished rural people exploited by rapacious local businessmen. Fowlds describes the impact of the Covid pandemic on conservation efforts, the vital wildlife tourism that sustains these and rural communities; and tells of conservationists' efforts to support people through the crisis. Lockdowns may have brought a welcome lull in rhino and other poaching, but also brought precious tourism to a standstill. He shows how the pandemic has highlighted the danger to the world of the illicit trade in endangered wildlife, some of it sold in 'wet markets', where pathogens incubate and spread. He describes a restoration project of apartheid-era, ex-South African soldiers seeking to make reparations in Angola, engulfed for many years in a profoundly damaging civil war, which drew in outside forces, from Cuba, Russia and South Africa, with a catastophic impact on that country's wildlife. Those who fund conservation, whether in the US, Zambia or South Africa itself, are of vital importance to efforts to conserve and rewild: some supposed angel-investors turn out to be not what they had appeared, some are thwarted in their efforts, but others are open-hearted and generous in the extreme, which makes their sudden, unexpected death an even greater tragedy. A passionate desire to conserve nature has also brought conservationists previously active in far-off Venezuela to southern Africa. Fowlds describes fraught meetings to negotiate the coexistence of wildlife and rural communities. There are vivid accounts of the skilled and dangerous work of using helicopters to keep wildebeest, carrying disease, and cattle apart, and to keep elephants from damaging communal land and eating crops such as sugar cane. He tells of a project to restore Africa's previously vast herds of elephants, particularly the famed 'tuskers', with their unusually large tusks, once prized and hunted almost to extinction. The range expansion that this entails is key to enabling Africa's iconic wildlife to survive, to preserving its wilderness and, in turn, helping humankind to survive. There is a heartening look at conservation efforts in Mozambique, a country scarred by years of war, which are starting to bear fruit, though just as a new ISIS insurgency creates havoc in the north of the country. What will humanity's relationship with nature be post-pandemic? Will we have begun to learn that by conserving iconic wildlife and their habitats we help to preserve and restore precious pockets of wilderness, which are so vital not only the survival of wildlife, but to our own survival on our one precious planet.

This work presents the state of knowledge on the endangered and threatened species of Thailand. Its pragmatic purpose is to improve Thailand's future by providing access to technical guidance for planning development projects or other land-use changes. This information also should stimulate naturalists, professional biologists, or anyone who wishes to learn about the status of animals in Thailand. Which species are now on the brink of extinction from Thailand, and why? How can the Thai people reorganize themselves to reverse the course of destruction? Can ways be found for both the people and the rest of the fauna to prosper? Another purpose is to present a case study of the effects of longterm development for human use on the biological diversity of a tropical country.

This volume reviews, for the first time, the broad range of issues that affect the welfare of commercially farmed ratites. Although ratites incorporate several families of flightless birds this book focuses on the most commonly farmed ratites, the ostrich, emu and rhea. The readers are taken on a journey through all sectors of the industry, which include breeding, incubation, hatching, brooding, rearing, growth, transport and processing, with an emphasis on husbandry and management protocols that can impact bird welfare and health. Also discussed is the structure and sensory innervation of the skin and digits of the birds, and the potential welfare implications of industry practices on these structures. Each chapter in this volume focuses on a particular aspect of the commercial farming of ratites with contributing authors from a broad range of disciplines.

Illuminating the conditions for global governance to have precipitated the devastating decline of one of the ocean's most majestic creatures The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) is the world's foremost organization for managing and conserving tunas, seabirds, turtles, and sharks traversing international waters. Founded by treaty in 1969, ICCAT stewards what has become under its tenure one of the planet's most prominent endangered fish: the Atlantic bluefin tuna. Called "red gold" by industry insiders for the exorbitant price her ruby-colored flesh commands in the sushi economy, the giant bluefin tuna has crashed in size and number under ICCAT's custodianship. With regulations to conserve these sea creatures in place for half a century, why have so many big bluefin tuna vanished from the Atlantic? In Red Gold, Jennifer E. Telesca offers unparalleled access to ICCAT to show that the institution has faithfully executed the task assigned it by international law: to fish as hard as possible to grow national economies. ICCAT manages the bluefin not to protect them but to secure export markets for commodity empires-and, as a result, has become complicit in their extermination. The decades of regulating fish as commodities have had disastrous consequences. Amid the mass extinction of all kinds of life today, Red Gold reacquaints the reader with the splendors of the giant bluefin tuna through vignettes that defy technoscientific and market rationales. Ultimately, this book shows, changing the way people value marine life must come not only from reforming ICCAT but from transforming the dominant culture that consents to this slaughter.

This volume provides an enlightening and pragmatic approach to preserving biological diversity by gathering a wide range of peer-reviewed scientific content from biodiversity researchers and conservators from around the world. It brings comprehensive knowledge and information on the present status of conservation of biological diversity including floral, faunal, and microbial diversity. A detailed account of recent trends in conservation and applications under changing climate conditions, focusing mainly on agriculturally and industrially important microbes and their sustainable utilization, is presented as well. Over the past five decades, extensive research work has been done on many aspects of biodiversity conservation and sustainable utilization of biological resources. This book examines this crucial issue. Chapters discuss biodiversity concepts, benefits, and values for economic and sustainable development; explores applications and strategies for biodiversity preservation; and considers the role of biodiversity conservation in public awareness services and cultural significance. The volume also examines the process of evolution and the future of biodiversity in conjunction with climate change factors, with special reference to infectious diseases.

Conservation of plant resources is often focused on seed banks and botanical gardens. However, the two authors of this volume present a comprehensive conservation strategy that complements this "ex-situ" approach with practical guidance on "in-situ" management and conservation of plant resources. The book aims to facilitate better management of protected areas and to illustrate new approaches to conservation of plants within their landscapes. It draws on concepts from forestry, the agricultural sciences, anthropology, ethnology and ethnobotany and should be useful to practitioners, academics and policy-makers.

Tucked into one of the most beautiful and conflicted regions of the world are the last of the mountain gorillas. These apes have survived centuries of human encroachment into their habitat and range and decades of intense conflict and violence. The remaining 720 mountain gorillas exist in a fragile habitat, nestled in an area torn by human interests and needs for land, water, and minerals.

With captivating photography and the most recent scientific research, Mountain Gorillas takes you deep into the montane rain forests of Uganda, Rwanda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo to reveal the complex story of the mountain gorillas of the Virunga Volcanos and Bwindi. Gene Eckhart and Annette Lanjouw reveal how humankind affects the gorillas and their habitat, detail the innovative conservation and education efforts undertaken by governments and nongovernmental organizations, and explain how ecotourism and other conservation-focused enterprises support efforts to protect the two mountain gorilla populations.

This perfect blend of intimate photography, thought-provoking scholarship, and engaging stories demonstrates the inexorable ties among the animals, environment, and peoples of the region, and makes clear why the continued existence of the Virunga and Bwindi gorillas is so important. Mountain Gorillas features stunning photos and four appendices documenting key biological and ecological information, habitat vegetation, milestones in mountain gorilla conservation, and travel information.

Natural habitats for wildlife in Texas and the many species they support are dwindling at an alarming rate as an ever-growing population continues to develop the land for commercial, industrial, and agricultural uses. To take stock of our current wildlife and land resources, identify challenges facing them, and offer strategies for future management and conservation, this book presents over twenty-five essays by experts from a wide range of governmental and private organizations involved in wildlife policy and management.

Modeled on the proceedings of a 1982 wildlife symposium published by the Texas Chapter of The Wildlife Society, this book updates and expands the issues involved in wildlife and land use. The chapters are grouped into five sections-perspectives on Texas wildlife resources, future expectations in land use, the public and future demands for wildlife, wildlife management and research, and wildlife management on public lands. The diverse and sometimes competing viewpoints presented here will be important reading for everyone concerned with managing land for wildlife.

This fun-filled, full-colour RHS adventure handbook is full of ideas to help kids discover the great outdoors and get closer to nature. Created with the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), the UK's leading gardening charity. This beautifully illustrated book is packed with fun activities, handy tips and nature facts to encourage children to explore the wonderful world around them. Grow your own strawberries and runner beans Build a hibernation home for outdoor creatures Create a nature scrapbook to treasure Discover more about plants, trees and wildlife Each page is filled with inspiring ideas for discovering and exploring plants and wildlife, with exciting activities for all seasons and weathers.

The world is losing species and biodiversity at an unprecedented rate. The causes go deep and the losses are driven by a complex array of social, economic, political and biological factors at different levels. Immediate causes such as over-harvesting, pollution and habitat change have been well studied, but the socioeconomic factors driving people to degrade their environment are less well understood. This book examines the underlying causes. It provides analyses of a range of case studies from Brazil, Cameroon, China, Danube River Basin, India, Mexico, Pakistan, Philippines, Tanzania and Vietnam, and integrates them into a new and interdisciplinary framework for understanding what is happening. From these results, the editors are able to derive policy conclusions and recommendations for operational and institutional approaches to address the root causes and reverse the current trends. It makes a contribution to the understanding of all those - from ecologists and conservationists to economists and policy makers - working on one of the major challenges we face.

Beneath the coastal waters of the world lie thousands of artificial reefs. Some are old and retired freighters and ships that once plied the oceans of the world but now serve as habitats for marine life. Others are newer reefs that have been designed and built for specific applications. With the field of aquatic habitat technology continually growing, this book responds to the global need for a compendium of consistent and reliable practices with which to evaluate how well artificial reefs meet their objectives.

Artificial Reef Evaluation With Application to Natural Marine Habitats is a comprehensive guide to the methods used to document the performance of artificial reefs in coastal and oceanic waters. It is the first volume to combine the essential disciplines required for proper evaluation, including engineering, economics, biology, and statistics.

This work covers the design of reef studies, multi-disciplinary methods of investigation, data analysis, and examples of applying the methods to reefs built for different purposes. Further, the methods examined in this book apply to other benthic marine habitats, such as coral reefs or "live bottoms", thus expanding the book's relevance to a wider audience and enhancing research efforts in the field of artificial habitat technology.