Among the deep-sea marine invertebrates, pycnogonids and crustaceans represent ecologically important and most diverse groups of species. Yet both are still poorly understood. Sampling and exploring operations off the west and east coast of the Americas has significantly increased in the last two decades. However such operations are very costly and limited in number and frequency. In countries like Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico, Peru, the United States of America, and El Salvador a large effort has been made to explore the deep-sea resources and the rich diversity of the communities, resulting in a better understanding of the natural ecosystems on both coasts of America. Pycnogonids and many groups of deep-sea crustaceans have been intensively studied, from the smallest animals, like the mostly unknown benthic copepods to the largest decapods. This book presents new and updated information on various groups of deep-sea pycnogonids and crustaceans occurring off the American continent. Offering a valuable reference resource for scientists interested in this fascinating fauna, it includes review papers and new data on the deep-sea communities occurring off the USA, Mexico, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Colombia, Chile, Peru, Brazil and Argentina, as well as in larger areas in both the East Pacific and the West Atlantic. As such it covers most of the current deep-water research in Latin America.

The sixth mass extinction or Anthropocene extinction is one of the most pervasive issues of our time. Animals, Plants and Afterimages brings together leading scholars in the humanities and life sciences to explore how extinct species are represented in art and visual culture, with a special emphasis on museums. Engaging with celebrated cases of vanished species such as the quagga and the thylacine as well as less well-known examples of animals and plants, these essays explore how representations of recent and ancient extinctions help advance scientific understanding and speak to contemporary ecological and environmental concerns.

As environmental problems grow larger and more pressing, conservationists have had to adapt. With a shrinking window of time to act, they are turning to broad approaches to combat continental- and global-scale crises of biodiversity loss, invasive species, and climate change. Pathways to Success—the long-awaited successor to the classic volume Measures of Success—is a modern guide to building large-scale transformative programs capable of tackling the complex conservation crises we face today. In this strikingly illustrated volume, coauthors Nick Salafsky and Richard Margoluis walk readers through fundamental concepts of effective program-level design, helping them to think strategically about project coordination, funding, and stakeholder input. Chapters in the first part of the book look at all aspects of designing and implementing large-scale conservation programs while the second part focuses on how to use data and information to manage, adapt, and learn from program strategies. In addition, the authors offer practical advice for avoiding pitfalls, such as formulaic recipes and simplistic silver-bullet solutions that can trip up otherwise well-intentioned efforts. Abundant graphics help to explain and clarify concepts presented in the text, and a glossary in the back matter defines technical terms for the reader. Pathways to Success is the definitive guide for conservation program managers and funders who want to increase the scale and effectiveness of their work combating biodiversity loss, climate change, and other pressing environmental issues.

The book presents a collection of large-scale network-modeling studies on coastal systems in Latin America. It includes a novel description of the functioning of coastal complex ecosystems and also predicts how natural and human-made disturbances percolate through the networks. Coastal areas belong to the most populated ecosystems around the globe, and are massively influenced by human impacts such as shipping, mining, fisheries, tourism, pollution and human settlements. Even though many of these activities have facilitated socio-economic development, they have also caused a significant deterioration in natural populations, communities and ecosystems worldwide. Covering coastal marine ecosystems of Latin America such as the NE and SE Pacific, NW Atlantic and Caribbean areas, it discusses the construction of quantitative (Ecopath-Ecosim-Ecospace and Centrality of Node Sets) and semi-quantitative (Loop Analysis) multispecies trophic-network models to describe and assess the impacts of natural and human interventions like pelagic and benthic fishing as well as natural events such as El Nino, and La Nina. The book also features steady state (and/or near moving equilibrium) and dynamical models to support the management of exploited organisms, and applies and quantifies macroscopic indices, based on Ascendency (Ulanowicz) and Local Stability (Levins Loop Analysis). Further, it discusses the determination of the Keystone Species Complex Index, which is a holistic extension of the classical concept of Keystone Species (Paine), offering novel strategies for conservation monitoring and management.

The world is currently experiencing a sixth period of mass species extinction, and extinction of flora and fauna is caused by a variety of factors arising from industrial activity and increasing human population, such as global warming, climate change, habitat loss, pollution and use of pesticides. Most causes of extinction are linked to corporate activity, either directly or indirectly. Around the World in 80 Species: Exploring the Business of Extinction responds to the ongoing mass extinction crisis engulfing our planet by exploring the ways in which accounting, business and finance can be used to prevent species extinctions. From Africa to the Far East and from Europe to the Americas, the authors explore species loss and how businesses can stop mass extinctions through greater transparency, and through closer engagement with their investors and wildlife organisations. The book concludes that global capitalism has led us to this extinction crisis and that therefore the mechanisms of capitalism - namely accounting, finance, investment - can help to pull us out. Businesses must urgently address extinction before it is too late for all species, including ourselves. As the first book to explore corporate accounting and accountability in relation to species on the brink of extinction, this book will be of great interest to both professionals and a wider audience interested in the causes and prevention of extinction.

Invasive alien plants and animals are known for their disruption of ecosystems and threat to biodiversity. This book highlights their major impact on human health. This includes not only direct effects through contact with the species via bites, wounds and disease, but also indirect effects caused by changes induced in ecosystems by invasive species, such as more water hyacinth increasing mosquito levels and thereby the potential for malaria. Covering a wide range of case studies from different taxa (animals and plants), and giving an overview of the diverse impacts of invasive species on health in developed and developing countries, the book is a significant contribution that will help in prioritizing approaches to controlling invasive species and mitigating their health effects. It covers invasive plants, marine species, spiders and other arachnids, ticks and dust mites, insects, mosquitos and other diptera, freshwater species (invertebrates and fishes), amphibians and reptiles, birds and mammals. Key Features Collects together the major health impacts for the first time Covers animal and plant invasive species Examines issues in developed and developing countries The broad spectrum of the analyzed case studies will ensure the appeal of the book to a wide public, including researchers of biological invasions, doctors, policy-makers and managers, and students of invasive species in ecology, animal and plant biology and public health medicine.

"Tiger Moon" is the powerful, poetic story of the two years Fiona and Mel Sunquist spent studying tigers in Nepal-traveling by elephant, avoiding a rhino attack, and learning to recognize individual tigers by roar. A new afterword tells the story of a promising effort to reconnect fractured Nepalese and Indian tiger habitats by developing an arc of protected areas that allows tigers and their prey to move more freely through the large territories they need to survive.

Atlantic Salmon is a cultural icon throughout its North Atlantic range; it is the focus of probably the World's highest profile recreational fishery and is the basis for one of the World's largest aquaculture industries. Despite this, many wild stocks of salmon are in decline and underpinning this is a dearth of information on the nature and extent of population structuring and adaptive population differentiation, and its implications for species conservation.

This important new book will go a long way to rectify this situation by providing a thorough review of the genetics of Atlantic salmon. Sponsored by the European Union and the Atlantic Salmon Trust, this book comprises the work of an international team of scientists, carefully integrated and edited to provide a landmark book of vital interest to all those working with Atlantic salmon.

Coral reefs are an important tourism resource for many coastal and island destinations and generate a range of benefits to their local communities, including as a food source, income from tourism, employment and recreational opportunities. However, coral reefs are under increasing threat from climate change and related impacts such as coral bleaching and ocean acidification. Other anthropogenic stresses include over-fishing, anchor damage, coastal development, agricultural run-off, sedimentation and coral mining. This book adopts a multidisciplinary approach to review these issues as they relate to the sustainable management of coral reef tourism destinations. It incorporates coral reef science, management, conservation and tourism perspectives and takes a global perspective of coral reef tourism issues covering many of the world's most significant coral reef destinations. These include the Great Barrier Reef and Ningaloo Reef in Australia, the Red Sea, Pacific Islands, South East Asia, the Maldives, the Caribbean islands, Florida Keys and Brazil. Specific issues addressed include climate change, pollution threats, fishing, island tourism, scuba diving, marine wildlife, governance, sustainability, conservation and community resilience. The book also issues a call for more thoughtful development of coral reef experiences where the ecological needs of coral reefs are placed ahead of the economic desires of the tourism industry.

Two hundred sixty million years ago, life on Earth suffered wave after wave of cataclysmic extinctions, with the worst wiping out nearly every species on the planet. The Worst of Times delves into the mystery behind these extinctions and sheds light on the fateful role the primeval supercontinent, known as Pangea, might have played in causing these global catastrophes. Drawing on the latest discoveries as well as his own firsthand experiences conducting field expeditions to remote corners of the world, Paul Wignall reveals what scientists are only now beginning to understand about the most prolonged and calamitous period of environmental crisis in Earth's history. Wignall shows how these series of unprecedented extinction events swept across the planet, killing life on a scale more devastating than the dinosaur extinctions that would follow. The Worst of Times unravels one of the great enigmas of ancient Earth and shows how this ushered in a new age of vibrant and more resilient life on our planet.

Large ungulates in tropical forests are among the most threatened taxa of mammals. Excessive hunting, degradation of and encroachments on their natural habitats by humans have contributed to drastic reductions in wild ungulate populations in recent decades. As such, reliable assessments of ungulate-habitat relationships and the spatial dynamics of their populations are urgently needed to provide a scientific basis for conservation efforts. However, such rigorous assessments are methodologically complex and logistically difficult, and consequently many commonly used ungulate population survey methods do not address key problems. As a result of such deficiencies, key parameters related to population distribution, abundance, habitat ecology and management of tropical forest ungulates remain poorly understood. This book addresses this critical knowledge gap by examining how population abundance patterns in five threatened species of large ungulates vary across space in the tropical forests of the Nagarahole-Bandipur reserves in southwestern India. It also explains the development and application of an innovative methodology - spatially explicit line transect sampling - based on an advanced hierarchical modelling under the Bayesian inferential framework, which overcomes common methodological deficiencies in current ungulate surveys. The methods and results presented provide valuable reference material for researchers and professionals involved in studying and managing wild ungulate populations around the globe.

Nearshore hardbottom reefs of Florida's east coast are used by over 1100 species of fishes, invertebrates, algae, and sea turtles. These rocky reefs support reproduction, settlement, and habitat use, and are energy sources and sinks. They are also buried by beach renourishment projects in which artificial reefs are used for mitigation. This comprehensive book is for research scientists and agency personnel, yet accessible to interested laypersons including beachfront residents and water-users. An unprecedented collection of research information and often stunning color photographs are assembled including over 1250 technical citations and 127 figures. These shallow reefs are part of a mosaic of coastal shelf habitats including estuarine seagrasses and mangroves, and offshore coral reefs. These hardbottom habitats are federally designated as Essential Fish Habitats - Habitats of Particular Concern and are important feeding areas for federally-protected sea turtles. Organismal and assemblage responses to natural and man-made disturbances, including climate change, are examined in the context of new research and management opportunities for east Florida's islands in the sand.

In many parts of Africa a 'front line' has developed between humans and wild animals. People are daily and stressfully aware of their vulnerability, whether from predators that eat their stock, or from marauders that trash their crops: elephants, hippos, bushpigs, baboons, cane rats, dense sun-blocking swarms of locusts and quelea finches that can wipe out an entire season's crop and leave a community starving. And a startling number of people in Africa are killed by wildlife each year.

This reality is rarely conveyed to investors in wildlife conservation or to visitors to wildlife sanctuaries. But the battle lines are drawn between communities directly impacted by the remnant wildlife of an increasingly congested Africa, and the paymasters of a first-world population of voyeurs. Can all the players co-exist? This controversial exposé of the conflict between humans and wildlife lifts the lid on the battle for turf: the future of conservation will depend on the relationship established between wildlife authorities and those bearing the brunt along the front line.

Life histories can be defined as the means by which individuals (or more precisely genotypes) vary their age- or stage-specific expenditures of reproductive effort in response to genetic, phenotypic, and environmental correlates of survival and fecundity. Life histories reflect the expression of traits most closely related to individual fitness, such as age and size at maturity, number and size of offspring, and the timing of the expression of those traits throughout an individual's life. In addition to addressing questions of fundamental importance to ecology and evolution, life-history research plays an integral role in species conservation and management. This accessible primer encompasses the basic concepts, theories, and applied elements of life history evolution, including patterns of trait variability, underlying mechanisms of plastic/evolutionary change, and the practical utility of life-history traits as metrics of species/population recovery, sustainable exploitation, and risk of extinction. Empirical examples are drawn from the entire spectrum of life. A Primer of Life Histories is designed for readers from a broad range of academic backgrounds and experience including graduate students and researchers of ecology and evolutionary biology. It will also be useful to a more applied audience of academic/government researchers in fields such as wildlife biology, conservation biology, fisheries science, and the environmental sciences.

This book presents the latest scientific views on resource use conflicts in the Arctic seas. The main areas of focus are the biological resources of Arctic seas vs. exploitation of oil and gas resources, and the conflicts in between. In addition, climate change is presented as a stressor, which both limits and facilitates the economic availability of resources in the Arctic. The book is divided into five parts. Part 1 examines Arctic ecosystems, resilience of the marine environment and possible conflicts between industrial sector and biological world. The focus of Part 2 is on transport infrastructure along the northern routes. Issues such as Arctic maritime operations, black carbon and unmanned aerial vehicles are considered. Part 3 focuses on resource use conflicts in Arctic seas and on the most recent threats in terms of Arctic oil and gas exploration, offshore logistics operations as well as transportation of oil and oil products. Discussions in Part 4 of the book are concentrated around social aspects and involvement of local communities. Tourism development, preservation of indigenous culture, engagement of communities on relevant Arctic issues, search and rescue in the cold marine environment are examples of questions raised. The book reviews Arctic-specific petroleum regulations, the state of preparedness to oil spill accidents in the region as well as the latest developments in oil spill response technologies and their limitations. Search and rescue operations are reviewed and how working in this harsh Arctic environment affects the ability of rescue technicians to perform the required technical skills. Part 5 considers the sustainability challenges arising from the marine resource exploitation. The focus is on the vulnerability of Arctic ecosystems to disturbance - both natural and anthropogenic.

The first book by wildlife photographer and writer Larry Laverty, Power and Majesty features extraordinary images and informative text that capture the life of African elephants. The book focuses on these majestic animals and features stunning photographs from the most remote corners of Africa, from the savannahs and deserts to the rivers and jungles. The text introduces various elephant habitats, explores the magical qualities of elephants, and underscores the immense challenges they face for survival in a world dominated by humans. The photographs and information showcased in this book will help increase our appreciation and understanding of the African elephant's significant place in the animal kingdom, and Larry Laverty will be donating all of his profits to this worthy cause. Their abilities to love, to remember, to function as families, and to survive under some of the harshest conditions will change the way we think about elephants, with the hope that this knowledge will encourage more people to help save those who remain in the wild.

The book offers a comprehensive review of the advances in conservation and the reintroduction of rare and endangered plants in China. It systematically discusses plant diversity, in situ and ex situ protection and plant reintroduction in China, including the reintroduction species list and orchid plant reintroduction up to November 2019. A useful reference resource for students, instructors and scientific researchers in the field of wild plant protection, botany, biodiversity protection, and natural land protection and management, the book also provides valuable insights for government departments involved in plant management.

Wetlands serve many important functions and provide numerous ecological services such as clean water, wildlife habitat, nutrient reduction, and flood control. Wetland science is a relatively young discipline but is a rapidly growing field due to an enhanced understanding of the importance of wetlands and the numerous laws and policies that have been developed to protect these areas. This growth is demonstrated by the creation and growth of the Society of Wetland Scientists which was formed in 1980 and now has a membership of 3,500 people. It is also illustrated by the existence of 2 journals ("Wetlands" and "Wetlands Ecology and Management") devoted entirely to wetlands.

To date there has been no practical, comprehensive techniques book centered on wetlands, and written for wetland researchers, students, and managers. This techniques book aims to fill that gap. It is designed to provide an overview of the various methods that have been used or developed by researchers and practitioners to study, monitor, manage, or create wetlands. Including many methods usually found only in the peer-reviewed or gray literature, this 3-volume set fills a major niche for all professionals dealing with wetlands."

"How to describe the ecstatic song of larks? How the writers and poets have tried..." Skylarks are the heralds of our countryside. Their music is the quintessential sound of spring. The spirit of English pastoralism, they inspire poets, composers and farmers alike. In the trenches of World War I they were a reminder of the chattering meadows of home. Perhaps you were up with the lark, or as happy as one. History has seen us poeticise and musicise the bird, but also capture and eat them. We watch as they climb the sky, delight in their joyful singing, and yet we harm them too. The Soaring life of the Lark explores the music and poetry; the breath-taking heights and struggle to survive of one of Britain's most iconic songbirds. PRAISE FOR JOHN LEWIS-STEMPEL 'Britain's finest living nature writer' - The Times 'Lewis-Stempel is a fourth-generation farmer gifted with an extraordinary ability to write prose that soars and sings' - Daily Mail

In the tradition of Peter Matthiessen's The Snow Leopard, an intimate portrait of the endangered, exotic, and elusive jaguar When the nature writer Richard Mahler discovers that wild jaguars are prowling a remote corner of his home state of New Mexico, he embarks on a determined quest to see in the flesh a big, beautiful cat that is the stuff of legend-yet verifiably real. Mahler's passion sets in motion a years-long adventure through trackless deserts, steamy jungles, and malarial swamps, as well as a confounding immersion in centuries-old debates over how we should properly regard these powerful predators: as varmints or as icons, trophies or gods? He is drawn from border badlands south to Panama's rain forest along a route where the fate of nearly all wildlife now rests in human hands. Mahler's odyssey introduces him to unrepentant poachers, pragmatic ranchers, midnight drug-runners, ardent conservationists, trance-induced shamans, hopeful biologists, stodgy bureaucrats, academic philosophers, macho hunters, and gentle Maya Indians. Along the way, he is forced to reconsider the true meaning of his search-and the enduring symbolism of the jaguar.

The Colobines are a group of Afroeurasian monkeys that exhibit extraordinary behavioural and ecological diversity. With long tails and diverse colourations, they are medium-sized primates, mostly arboreal, that are found in many different habitats, from rain forests and mountain forests to mangroves and savannah. Over the last two decades, our understanding of this group of primates has increased dramatically. This volume presents a comprehensive overview of the current research on colobine populations, including the range of biological, ecological, behavioural and societal traits they exhibit. It highlights areas where our knowledge is still lacking, and outlines the current conservation status of colobine populations, exploring the threats to their survival. Bringing together international experts, this volume will aid future conservation efforts and encourage further empirical studies. It will be of interest to researchers and graduate students in primatology, biological anthropology and conservation science. Additional online resources can be found at www.cambridge.org/colobines.

Hi, I'm Billy Conker! I love to explore our natural world and discover all the amazing creatures living there, from snails and bees in my back garden to polar bears and great blue whales on the other side of the planet. Now I need your help! We're on a mission to find wild animals in their natural habitats. It won't be easy: some are already struggling - or even endangered - and these are the hardest to spot. Are you ready? Come on, then! Follow me and let's get started ... Billy Conker is a young conservationist. He loves visiting different places around the world, discovering all the amazing animals and plants there and finding out how he can help them. Join Billy as he explores ponds and forests, oceans and coral reefs, deserts, prairies, cities and more!

It is more than a thousand years since the exploitation of the elephant began.

This book focuses on the use of molecular tools to study small populations of rare and endangered mammals, and presents case studies that apply an evolutionary framework to address innovative questions in the emerging field of mammalian conservation genomics using a highly diverse set of novel molecular tools. Novel and more precise molecular technologies now allow experts in the field of mammology to interpret data in a more contextual and empirical fashion and to better describe the evolutionary and ecological processes that are responsible for the patterns they observe. The book also demonstrates how recent advances in genetic/genomic technologies have been applied to assess the impact of environmental/anthropogenic changes on the health of small populations of mammals. It examines a range of issues in the field of mammalian conservation genomics, such as the role that the genetic diversity of the immune system plays in disease protection and local adaptation; the use of noninvasive techniques and genomic banks as a resource for monitoring and restoring populations; the structuring of population by physical barriers; and genetic diversity. Further, by integrating research from a variety of areas - including population genetics, molecular ecology, systematics, and evolutionary and conservation biology - it enables readers to gain a deeper understanding of the conservation biology of mammals that are at increasing risk of extinction at local, regional and global scales. As such, it offers a unique resource for a broad readership interested in the conservation biology of mammals and conservation management strategies to better preserve biodiversity.