IUCN greatly underestimates threat levels of endemic birds in the Western Ghats

Ramesh, Vijay; Gopalakrishna, Trisha; Barve, Sahas; Melnick, Don J.

doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2017.03.019

Cited by 75 publications

(65 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…Given the oft-overlooked caveats with global-scale assessments, such as data inaccuracy or inadequacy and broad generalization of inferences (Ocampo-Peñuela et al 2016, Norman and White 2019), our study demonstrates the utility of carefully designed large-scale investigations integrated with local knowledge and contexts. We present more nuanced distribution maps depicting species occurrences as probabilities within their habitat extent (Brooks et al 2019; figure S2), rather than Minimum Convex Polygons that over-or under-estimate species ranges (Ocampo-Peñuela et al 2016, Ramesh et al 2017. Our approach also rectifies errors in current IUCN distribution maps; spatial mismatch between the two ranged from 167 897 km 2 for wolf (C. lupus pallipes and C. lupus chanco, combined) to 2 123 324 km 2 for red fox (V. vulpes and V. vulpes pusilla, combined).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Opportunities for prioritizing and expanding conservation enterprise in India using a guild of carnivores as flagships

Srivathsa

Majgaonkar

Sharma

et al. 2020

Environ. Res. Lett.

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Conservation interventions in developing countries are frequently thwarted by socio-economic agendas, severely limiting the scope and rigor of biodiversity and habitat conservation. Very few ecological assessments incorporate human interests in conservation prioritization, creating asynchrony between planning and implementation. For conservation actions to be logistically feasible, multiple criteria including ecological, social, economic and administrative aspects must be considered. Understanding how these different dimensions interact spatially is also important for gauging the potential for conservation success. Here, we use a guild of select mammalian carnivores (wild canids and hyenas) in India to (i) generate distribution maps at the spatial scale of administrative sub-districts, that are relevant to management, (ii) examine ecological, social and biogeographic factors associated with their distribution, assess key threats, and identify areas important for their conservation, (iii) use prioritization tools for balancing habitat conservation, human needs and economic growth, and (iv) evaluate the spatial congruence between areas with high conservation potential, and areas currently in focus for protection efforts, conservation investments, and infrastructure development. We find that the current Protected Area system does not adequately cover or represent diverse habitats, that there is immense potential for States to increase financial investments towards alternative conservation strategies, and, most infrastructure projects may be potentially jeopardizing important carnivore habitats where the two overlap. Our framework allowed for identifying locations where conservation investments would lead to the highest benefits for carnivores as flagships, which also benefit other species across habitats. We make a case for re-evaluating how large-scale prioritization assessments are made, and for broadening the purview of conservation policies in India and other developing countries.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Opportunities for prioritizing and expanding conservation enterprise in India using a guild of carnivores as flagships

Srivathsa

Majgaonkar

Sharma

et al. 2020

Environ. Res. Lett.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…We present more nuanced distribution maps depicting species occurrences as probabilities within their Area of Habitat (Brooks et al 2019; Fig. S2), rather than Minimum Convex Polygons that over- or under-estimate species ranges (Ocampo-Peñuela et al 2016; Ramesh et al 2017). Our approach also rectifies errors in current IUCN distribution maps; spatial mismatch between the two ranged from 167,897 sq.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Opportunities for prioritizing and expanding conservation enterprise in India using carnivores as flagships

Srivathsa

Majgaonkar

Sharma

et al. 2020

Preprint

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33Conservation interventions in developing countries are frequently thwarted by socio-economic 34 agendas, severely limiting the scope and rigor of biodiversity and habitat conservation. Very few 35 ecological assessments incorporate human interests in conservation prioritization, creating 36 asynchrony between planning and implementation. For conservation actions to be logistically 37 feasible, multiple criteria including ecological, social, economic and administrative aspects must 38 be considered. Understanding how these different dimensions interact spatially is also important 39 for gauging the potential for conservation success. Here, we use a guild of select mammalian 40 carnivores in India to (i) generate distribution maps at a spatial scale that is relevant to 41 management, (ii) examine ecological, social and biogeographic factors associated with their 42 distribution, quantify key threats, and identify areas critical for their conservation, (iii) use 43 prioritization tools for balancing habitat conservation, human needs and economic growth, and 44 (iv) evaluate the spatial congruence between areas with high conservation potential, and areas 45 currently in focus for protection efforts, conservation investments, and infrastructure 46 development. We find that the current Protected Area system does not adequately cover or 47 48 investments towards alternative conservation strategies, and, most infrastructure projects may be 49 putting important carnivore habitats at risk. Our framework allowed for identifying locations 50 where conservation investments would lead to the highest dividends for flagship carnivores and 51 associated species across habitats. We make a case for re-evaluating how large-scale 52 prioritization assessments are made, and for broadening the purview of conservation policies in 53 India and other developing countries. 54 55 56

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“…Yak are listed as vulnerable; bison are listed as near threatened; and pronghorn, roan, and moose are listed as least concern. We use the Global Protected Areas Database and official IUCN range maps, though we note that these range maps tend to overestimate ranges and can be misleading for conservation work 46 . (At least for saiga, we note that telemetry studies are currently underway to reassess the boundaries of the species’ range.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The global distribution of Bacillus anthracis and associated anthrax risk to humans, livestock, and wildlife

Carlson

Kracalik

Ross

et al. 2018

Preprint

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SummaryBacillus anthracis is a spore-forming, Gram-positive bacterium responsible for anthrax, an acute and commonly lethal infection that most significantly affects grazing livestock, wild ungulates and other herbivorous mammals, but also poses a serious threat to human health1, 2. The geographic extent of B. anthracis endemism is still poorly understood, despite multi-decade research on anthrax epizootic and epidemic dynamics around the world3, 4. Several biogeographic studies have focused on modeling environmental suitability for anthrax at local or national scales5–9, but many countries have limited or inadequate surveillance systems, even within known endemic regions. Here we compile an extensive global occurrence dataset for B. anthracis, drawing on confirmed human, livestock, and wildlife anthrax outbreaks. With these records, we use boosted regression trees10, 11 to produce the first map of the global distribution of B. anthracis as a proxy for anthrax risk. Variable contributions to the model support pre-existing hypotheses that environmental suitability for B. anthracis depends most strongly on soil characteristics such as pH that affect spore persistence, and the extent of seasonal fluctuations in vegetation, which plays a key role in transmission for herbivores12, 13. We apply the global model to estimate that 1.83 billion people (95% credible interval: 0.59—4.16 billion) live within regions of anthrax risk, but most of that population faces little occupational exposure to anthrax. More informatively, a global total of 63.8 million rural poor livestock keepers (95% CI: 17.5—168.6 million) and 1.1 billion livestock (95% CI: 0.4—2.3 billion) live within vulnerable regions. Human risk is concentrated in rural areas, and human and livestock vulnerability are both concentrated in rainfed systems throughout arid and temperate land across Eurasia, Africa, and North America. We conclude by mapping where anthrax risk overlaps with vulnerable wild ungulate populations, and therefore could disrupt sensitive conservation efforts for species like bison, pronghorn, and saiga that coincide with anthrax-prone, mixed-agricultural landscapes. Anthrax is a zoonotic disease caused by the Gram-positive bacterium Bacillus anthracis, a generalist soil-transmitted pathogen found on every inhabited continent14, and several islands including Haiti and parts of the Philippines and Indonesia. Worldwide, an estimated 20,000 to 100,000 cases of anthrax occur annually, mostly in poor rural areas15. In clinical presentations of anthrax, case fatality rates are a function of exposure pathway. Respiratory exposure from spore inhalation is important the context of bioterrorism, but is highly uncommon, and accounts for a negligible fraction of the global burden of anthrax cases. Cutaneous exposure to B. anthracis accounts for the majority of human cases worldwide, and typically presents with low mortality; gastrointestinal exposure accounts for the remainder and presents with intermediate to high fatality rates. Cutaneous and gastrointestinal cases of anthrax are most commonly caused by handling and slaughtering infected livestock, or butchering and eating contaminated meat; untreated gastrointestinal cases likely account for most human mortality from anthrax.14–16

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IUCN greatly underestimates threat levels of endemic birds in the Western Ghats

Cited by 75 publications

References 30 publications

Opportunities for prioritizing and expanding conservation enterprise in India using a guild of carnivores as flagships

Opportunities for prioritizing and expanding conservation enterprise in India using a guild of carnivores as flagships

Opportunities for prioritizing and expanding conservation enterprise in India using carnivores as flagships

The global distribution of Bacillus anthracis and associated anthrax risk to humans, livestock, and wildlife

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