Conservation practitioners’ understanding of how to manage evolutionary processes

Abstract

Both academics and practitioners consider a lack of knowledge about evolutionary theory to be a general barrier to effectively managing genetic diversity. However, it is challenging to judge practitioners’ level of understanding and how this influences their management decisions. Knowledge built through experience may be difficult for practitioners to articulate, but could nonetheless result in appropriate management strategies. To date, researchers have assessed only the explicit (formal) knowledge practitioners have of evolutionary concepts. To explore practitioners’ understanding of evolutionary concepts, it is necessary to consider how they might apply explicit and implicit knowledge to their management decisions. Using an online survey, we asked Australian practitioners to respond to 2 common management scenarios in which there is strong evidence that managing genetic diversity can improve outcomes: managing small, isolated populations and sourcing seeds for restoration projects. In describing their approach to these scenarios, practitioners demonstrated a stronger understanding of the effective management of genetic diversity than the definitions of the relevant concepts. However, their management of genetic diversity within small populations was closer to best practice than for restoration projects. Moreover, the risks practitioners described in implementing best practice management were more likely to affect their approach to restoration than translocation projects. These findings provide evidence that strategies to build the capacity of practitioners to manage genetic diversity should focus on realistic management scenarios. Given that practitioners recognize the importance of adapting their practices and the strong evidence for the benefits of actively managing genetic diversity, there is hope that better engagement by evolutionary biologists with practitioners could facilitate significant shifts toward evolutionarily enlightened management.

Combining current knowledge of Cypripedium calceolus with a new analysis of genetic variation in Italian populations to provide guidelines for conservation actions

“…On one side of the gap between science and practice are researchers, whose expertise, often restricted to a specific discipline, often prevents them from effectively translating their findings into comprehensive and jargon‐free recommendations (e.g., Britt, Haworth, Johnson, Martchenko, & Shafer, 2018; Hoban et al, 2013; Ottewell, Bickerton, Byrne, & Lowe, 2016). On the other side are practitioners (including local managers to policy makers), who often perceive the few accessible research findings as impractical or unnecessary in the short‐term, especially considering time and financial constraints (e.g., Holderegger et al, 2019, but see Cook & Sgrò, 2019a; Taylor, Dussex, & van Heezik, 2017). However, as the failure to incorporate scientific findings into practical conservation guidelines essentially depends on miscommunication and lack of collaboration between researchers and practitioners (Dubois, Gomez, Carlson, & Russell, 2020; Taft et al, 2020), it can be mitigated by providing clear indicators for policy (Hoban et al, 2020), and by combining efforts and expertise on a case‐by‐case basis (Britt et al, 2018; Cook & Sgrò, 2019b; Hoban, Hauffe, et al, 2013).…”

How much do we know and how much do we care about genetic diversity of threatened plants ? A case study from the French flora

“…Another possible explanation to the conservation-genetic gap is that genetic is not directly considered in IUCN criteria to evaluate species status (Willi et al 2022). Finally, because population genetic studies are costly and time-consuming, the lack of financial resources is also a problem (Taylor et al 2017;Cook and Sgrò 2019). However, as we pointed out above, some biological traits, such as the mating system, can be collected in natural populations without technical requirements or costly technology.…”

Development of an 8K SNP chip to assess adaptive diversity and hybridization in polar bears

“…For species residing in environments such as the Arctic, potential for movement is often limited, and therefore adaptation may be key to prevent declines. The relatively new concept of "evolutionarily enlightened management" aims to both protect species and their ability to evolve to changing environmental conditions (Ashley et al 2003;Sgrò et al 2011;Cook and Sgrò 2019). As such, it becomes critical for conservationists and managers to assess the adaptive potential of populations and species (Harrisson et al 2014).…”