Shaping global environmental decisions using socio-ecological models

One of the most ambitious ecological studies of the past few decades was the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA), which examined the consequences of ecosystem change for human well-being. The MA developed global ecological scenarios as a process to inform policy options, despite enormous uncertainties. These scenarios were based on an interlocking suite of models that forecast the future. Following the recent completion and publication of the MA, there is now movement towards making the value of ecosystem services an integral part of key policy decisions. Here, we review the MA approach and suggest areas where immediate progress can be made to increase the likelihood that decision-makers will embrace the vision of assessments such as the MA.     

Global indicators of biological invasion: species numbers, biodiversity impact and policy responses

Aim Invasive alien species (IAS) pose a significant threat to biodiversity. The Convention on Biological Diversity’s 2010 Biodiversity Target, and the associated indicator for IAS, has stimulated globally coordinated efforts to quantify patterns in the extent of biological invasion, its impact on biodiversity and policy responses. Here, we report on the outcome of indicators of alien invasion at a global scale. Location Global. Methods We developed four indicators in a pressure‐state‐response framework, i.e. number of documented IAS (pressure), trends in the impact of IAS on biodiversity (state) and trends in international agreements and national policy adoption relevant to reducing IAS threats to biodiversity (response). These measures were considered best suited to providing globally representative, standardized and sustainable indicators by 2010. Results We show that the number of documented IAS is a significant underestimate, because its value is negatively affected by country development status and positively by research effort and information availability. The Red List Index demonstrates that IAS pressure is driving declines in species diversity, with the overall impact apparently increasing. The policy response trend has nonetheless been positive for the last several decades, although only half of countries that are signatory to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) have IAS‐relevant national legislation. Although IAS pressure has apparently driven the policy response, this has clearly not been sufficient and/or adequately implemented to reduce biodiversity impact. Main conclusions For this indicator of threat to biodiversity, the 2010 Biodiversity Target has thus not been achieved. The results nonetheless provide clear direction for bridging the current divide between information available on IAS and that needed for policy and management for the prevention and control of IAS. It further highlights the need for measures to ensure that policy is effectively implemented, such that it translates into reduced IAS pressure and impact on biodiversity beyond 2010.     

Making decisions about the optimal selection environment using Gibbs sampling

The use of Gibbs sampling in making decisions about the optimal selection environment was demonstrated. Marginal posterior distributions of the efficiency of selection across sites were obtained using the Gibbs sampler, a Bayesian method, from which the probability that the efficiency of selection lay between specified values and the variance of the distribution were computed, providing a lot of information on which to make decisions regarding the location of genetic tests. The heritability, genetic correlations and efficiencies of selection estimated using REML and Gibbs sampling were similar. However, the latter approach showed that the point estimates of the efficiencies of selection were subject to substantial error. The decision regarding selection at maturity was consistent with that obtained using point estimates from REML, but Gibbs sampling allowed the efficiencies of selection to be interpreted with more confidence. The decision regarding early selection differed from that based on REML point estimates. Generally, the decisions to make early selections at site B for planting at both site B and A, and to make selections at maturity at each individual site, were robust to different priors in the Gibbs sampling. Received: 19 June 2000 / Accepted: 18 October 2000     

Exploring spatial indicators for biodiversity accounting

In the context of the System for Environmental-Economic Accounting, biodiversity accounting is being developed as a tool to monitor and increase the understanding of human impacts on biodiversity. Biodiversity accounting aims to structurally measure, monitor and map changes in multiple biodiversity components, as an integral part of a larger system of ecosystem accounts. Both indicators relevant for ecosystem functioning and indicators that reflect the non-use values of biodiversity can be included in biodiversity accounting. In this paper we focus on the latter, and we test the potential applicability of a set of species indicators for developing a biodiversity account in Limburg province, the Netherlands. In particular, we map and analyse a range of indicators reflecting species richness, the presence of rare and threatened species and species diversity. We test spatial correlation to identify the minimum set of indicators that would need to be included in the account. We also evaluate individual indicators using eight different criteria. We show that, in Limburg province, a set of indicators covering at least five species groups is required, and that it would be most meaningful to have indicators reflecting the occurrence of threatened species. However, data availability as well as the most suitable set of indicators are likely to differ between areas, and case studies in other countries are required to support the selection of indicators for biodiversity accounting in an international framework.     

Improving national habitat specific biodiversity indicators using relative habitat use for common birds

It has recently been stated that the global goal of halting the loss of biodiversity by 2010 has not been met highlighting the urgent need to monitor trends in biodiversity. Our study suggests that existing indicators of bird biodiversity in Denmark are inaccurate and we present a new objective method for accurately assessing trends in specific habitats using common bird species. Bird species were selected for creating habitat specific indicators by calculating their relative habitat use (RHU) in nine different habitat categories. RHU indicates the degree to which a habitat is preferred (RHU > 2) or avoided (RHU < 0.5) by a species, relative to other habitats. Indicator sets were constructed for each habitat type using species with an RHU > 2 and revealed that existing habitat indicators, based on species lists from the Pan-European Common Bird Monitoring Scheme (PECBMS), often included species that did not in fact have preferences for those particular habitats in Denmark. Habitat specific indicators based on the new species selection method showed significant negative trends in three of nine habitat categories: coniferous forest, bog/marsh and heath. Habitat classes were further combined to create overall indicators for forest, farmland and freshwater. A comparison of these indicators with the existing indicators revealed a negative overall trend for forest habitat, which had previously been overlooked, suggesting that species selection is crucial for the development of informative indicators. The habitat specific farmland indicator confirmed the negative trend in the current farmland indicator. The methodology for indicator species selection presented here could potentially be applied for use in a global context for a wider range of taxonomic groups.     

The Kilum-Ijim Forests IBA in Cameroon: monitoring biodiversity using birds as indicators

McKay, C. & Coulthard, N. 2000. The Kilum-Ijim Forests IBA in Cameroon: monitoring biodiversity using birds as indicators. Ostrich 71 (1 & 2): 177–180.     

Monitoring rangeland biodiversity: Plants as indicators

Abstract As well as being important components of biodiversity in their own right, plants reflect the physical environment, are the primary target of many of the pressures acting on rangelands, and are relatively amenable to measurement. Hence, measurements based on plants have considerable potential to be efficient indicators of the response of rangeland biodiversity to land use. A recent report commissioned by the National Land and Water Resources Audit recommended a core set of 11 indicators, six of which relied on measurements of plants. These were trends in (i) the extent of clearing; (ii) the cover of native perennial ground‐layer vegetation; (iii) the distribution and abundance of exotic plant species; (iv) the distribution and abundance of fire‐sensitive species; (v) the distribution and abundance of grazing‐sensitive species; and (vi) the distribution and abundance of listed threatened entities. Most indicated responses of plants to pressures acting on them. Only two (clearing and exotic plants) related to pressures. We recommend that the set be expanded to include two additional pressure indicators, one for grazing and another for fire, in recognition of their extent and potential influence on rangeland biodiversity. We also recommend that benchmark sites be included in all ground‐based monitoring programmes to provide reference standards for those biotic indicators about which little is known. Assessments of the current state of knowledge about these indicators for two case‐study regions, the Gascoyne–Murchison strategy area and Cape York Peninsula, have shown that it would be possible to monitor most of them directly at regional scales, but that current monitoring programmes fall short of achieving this.     

Making metabolic decisions in Drosophila

Physiology and behavior have historically been treated as separate subjects in the study of Drosophila. The latter is mentioned mainly in the context of neurobiology, while the former has been considered to take in studies of metabolism, cell biology and anatomy, among others. Of late, the line distinguishing physiology and behavior has become thinner, and this is exceptionally apparent in recent studies of nutrient signaling and of the regulation of feeding. This review represents a brief examination of the nexus between these intersecting fields of research in Drosophila. Other recently published reviews1,2 serve as complements to this one.     

Exploring potential biodiversity indicators in boreal forests

The present study evaluates indicators in Swedish spruce forests. We ask whether different species groups co-vary in their occurrence and to what extent species richness and composition is predictable from habitat structures. We studied 10 boreal spruce forest stands constituting a gradient in degree of selective logging. Occurrences of vascular plants, bryophytes, epiphytic lichens and wood-inhabiting fungi as well as habitat structures was inventoried. In addition, in five of the stands, beetles were sampled with windows traps. Total species richness was correlated with several habitat factors, mainly particular substrates and degree of forestry impact. However, the richness of a set of species regularly used as indicators did not correlate with habitat factors. Correlation in species richness among different organism groups were few and scale dependent. Only lichens and vascular plants formed nested subset patterns (i.e. species composition at poorer sites is subsets of the species present at richer sites) among the study sites. The study shows that in this forest type one cannot a priori assume that richness in one group of species correlated with richness in other, and measures of single habitat features may be relevant only to particular groups of species. Instead, monitoring and inventories should be based on a set of factors reflecting important aspects for different groups of organisms and if indicator species are to be used these should be chosen from several species groups.     

Testing indicators of biodiversity for plantation forests

In many parts of the world, plantations make up a considerable proportion of the total forest area. In such regions, the identification of high biodiversity value stands and of management practices to enhance biodiversity is essential if the goals of Sustainable Forest Management are to be achieved. Since complete biodiversity assessments are rarely possible, efforts have been increasingly focussed on the use of indicators. Of particular interest are indicators applicable to individual stands that require no specialist taxonomic or technical knowledge to assess. Candidate biodiversity indicators had been identified in a previous study using data from Irish Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis) and ash (Fraxinus excelsior) plantations but had yet to be tested on independent data. In the present study, the provisional indicators for vascular plant, bryophyte, spider and bird diversity were tested on data from Irish Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris), oak (Quercus petraea/Quercus robur), Sitka spruce and lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta) plantations. Conifer canopy cover was confirmed as an important biodiversity indicator, due to its influence on below-canopy microclimatic and structural conditions. Bryophyte species richness was higher in relatively high canopy cover plantations on poorly drained soils, while bird species richness was higher in more open plantations with high shrub cover. Coarse woody debris was an important substrate for forest-associated bryophytes, with higher species richness at higher volumes of deadwood. Both proximity to old woodland and stand age were confirmed as positive indicators for forest-associated vascular plants. This is related to dispersal limitation in these species, with nearby woodlands acting as important seed sources and colonisation increasing with time. Stand age was also confirmed as a positive indicator for forest-associated spiders and is related to the development of suitable habitat as the plantation matures. All of the confirmed indicators can be assessed without need for specialist knowledge, are ecologically meaningful and applicable to a range of forests managed under a clearfelling system. They can be used to assess the potential value of stands for the taxonomic groups to which they apply, as well as giving insights into management practices to enhance diversity in these groups.     

Essential biodiversity variables are not global

Recent initiatives have focused on biological diversity and the ecosystem services that it provides, and have proposed a series of “essential biodiversity variables,” as a means of describing and characterizing that diversity. Although such variables would shed considerable and interesting light on distribution of biodiversity-related dimensions, here, we examine the feasibility of assembling such data resources for terrestrial systems on worldwide extents, to evaluate whether they can be feasibly characterized globally. We found large-scale, consistent information gaps across five EBV-related dimensions (genetic composition, species populations, species traits, community composition, and primary biodiversity data), most markedly across Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, and Eastern Europe; lesser gaps cover much of Asia and South America. Our results raise concerns that EBV-based initiatives, and the studies and policy decisions that they make, will be constrained from any global inference by these information gaps. Concrete progress towards making EBVs genuinely global will depend on adequate funding, training of high-level personnel, and creation of robust institutions in which to base these initiatives.     

全球生物多样性监测及其进展

全球生物多样性监测及其进展曹志平（中国农业大学资环学院生态系,北京１０００９４）钟晓东（国家环保局国际合作司,北京１０００３５）１背景生物多样性监测最主要的目的是为管理者和决策者服务［１］,为他们在保护生物多样性、制定土地利用规划、评价环境影响等问...     

Trends in Romanian biodiversity conservation policy

Romania's commitment and ability to protect its environment inthe long term is challenged by several problems: insufficient financialmechanisms, monitoring, enforcement, and the information dissemination capacityof local environment protection agencies. History indicates that periods ofeconomic and social transition are very dangerous to biodiversity conservation.The demonstrated tendency during such periods gives priority to short-termincome-generating activities. Romanian conservation policy has had to adapt tothis change of circumstances. New sites have been included in the nationalprotected system and new legislation has been developed. But is this enough? Dothese satisfy progressive concepts and IUCN recommendations? This paper isintended to make recommendations, based on intersectoral participatoryplanning, for nature resources management. It focuses on how biodiversityconservation is being encouraged and developed at a national level.