MAIISG NEWSLETTER Number 4, April 2021 HELP RESCUING THE DESERTAS CRITICALLY HI MAIISG MEMBERS ENDANGERED LAND MOLLUSCS SPECIES FROM Welcome to the first newsletter EXTINCTION of 2021. By Dinarte Teixeira In this issue, Rui Carvalho talks about the anthropogenic The MAIISG project "Help Rescuing the Desertas Critically impacts of the tourism in local Endangered Land Molluscs Species from Extinction" was selected native ecosystems in the for funding in the fifth round of internal grants of the IUCN Azores, using the artrhopods as Species Specialist Group. a proxy. It targets four endemic land molluscs species, Atlantica E calathoides, Discula lyelliana, Geomitra coronula and Geomitra Vicky Wilkins calls your attention to the usage of DNA grabhami, which were rediscovered in the last 12 years after barcoding in invertebrates decades without a live record. They share similar threats, namely 2 conservation at St Helena, one restricted location (under 100 m ), single populations (>50), of the UK overseas territories. predation by introduced species (mice), habitat loss and degradation due to the grazing goats; making them at the very We are also excited to share the brink of extinction! They all occur in a single location on the same news regarding the approval by island, Deserta Grande, a steep and dry 10 km2 island, and the the IUCN SSC of a conservation largest of three government-owned inhabited islands (Desertas project addressing four islands, Madeira), a Key Biodiversity Area. Critically Endangered land molluscs from the Desertas The project is a collaboration between IUCN SSC MAIISG, the Islands (Madeira, Portugal). Bristol Zoo Gardens (BZG), the Chester Zoo (CZ), the Mossy This effort is lead by MAIISG in Earth (ME) and the Institute of Forest and Nature Conservation IP- collaboration with IFCN IP- RAM (Madeira Government, Portugal). RAM and international International partners will help rescue 4 Critically Endangered partners. endemic land molluscs through a multispecies captive breeding rescue program, engaging stakeholders and resources on the Klaus Groh brings a short Desertas Islands (Madeira); with a multistep conservation action overview of the publications on program to initiate species recovery. recent and fossil Macaronesian terrestrial and freshwater snails A phased plan for species management will be outlined in a for the past 10 years. collaborative workshop in Madeira. It will include habitat restoration, conservation actions implementation, Invase Alien We hope you enjoy this first Species control management measures and green listing to monitor 2021 edition. species recovery. The IFCN IP-RAM (https://ifcn.madeira.gov.pt/) collaboration is vital to the plan's implementation. As they are responsible for the species and habitats management and 1 conservation in Madeira, and so they will ensure the species management plan's feasibility, in the mid-term period, in the Desertas. "International partners will help rescue 4 Critically Endangered endemic land molluscs through a multispecies captive breeding rescue program, engaging stakeholders and resources on the Desertas Islands (Madeira); with a multistep conservation action program to initiate species recovery." A B C D TOURISM AND ITS ANTHROPOGENIC IMPACT ON LOCAL NATIVE ECOSYSTEMS IN THE AZORES, NAMELY ON ARTHROPODS By Rui M. Carvalho Tourism has been an important economic activity in the Azores for several years, but they have been safe from the consequences of mass tourism until 2015. That year a substantial shift took place, and travel media attention increased dramatically, and the archipelago received various awards as the best nature destination. Simultaneously, the regional government allowed for two low-cost airline companies to fly to the Azorean airspace. These new circumstances raised concerns about an anthropogenic disturbance on local native ecosystems through trail networks. In the Azores, as in many other temperate, semi-tropical and tropical islands, historical clearance patterns have typically resulted in lowland clearance. This meant that the last remnants of the pre-human pristine forest, covering the significant parts of oceanic volcanic islands, are in the mountains. With high touristic interest, these mountain forest communities are of critical importance for the protection of current island biodiversity, since they are home to many endemic species of the archipelago. They also provide various ecosystem services (e.g. water storage, erosion control, pollination, pest control, food supply, recreation and tourism), contributing to the local economy and welfare. Could pedestrian tourism be endangering the Laurel Forests ecosystem's integrity? In response to this complex question, a PhD project was proposed. This scientific field is known as recreation ecology, commonly defined as studying the impacts of outdoor recreation and nature-based tourism activities in natural or semi-natural environments. This project aims for a more ecosystem-oriented approach. The Azorean Biodiversity Group has assembled a complete standardized dataset for arthropods and plant species across a whole archipelago. For years this has been intensively used to test the strengths and weaknesses of various ecological theories. 2 Because of this, it was possible to place the forest's ecological responses as a foundation for subsequent management decisions. It was also necessary to monitor the primary groups responsible for this ecosystem's stability. Most of the efforts were placed on sampling arthropods, using spiders as surrogate, and plants in general. We adapted already existing standardized protocols to increase sensitivity to the impacts of recreational activities, E such as trampling. Understanding the relation between touristic use and ecological response was the most critical question but insufficient by itself to inform optimal management options. Therefore, it was necessary to obtain more information about other aspects of touristic impact. In a manipulative experiment, we subjected patches of local vegetation to different periods and intensities of trampling, this allowed use to understand in finer detail F trampling effects on local vegetation. In areas where chronic trail problems cause hikers to trample the surrounding vegetation to avoid mud, we used classical trail building construction methodologies to repair the sections and monitor the surrounding vegetation to evaluate the hiker's response. This will allow managers to know how much ecological damage can be avoided by investing in trail maintenance and which trail building techniques are more advantageous in these specific environments. G This protocol was built to be used in Macaronesian native forests, but it was designed to allow adaptation to other ecosystems. We believe this methodology is valid when the importance of an ecosystem justifies that maintaining its integrity should be the driver of the management actions. This project team is composed of the PhD candidate Rui Carvalho, Paulo Borges, Pedro Cardoso, and Artur Gil. " Understanding the relationship between touristic use and the ecological response was the most critical question but insufficient to inform optimal management options. It was necessary to obtain more information about other aspects of touristic impact." 3 DNA BARCODING – THE POSSIBILITIES FOR INCREASING CAPACITY FOR INVERTEBRATE CONSERVATION By Vicky Wilkins As part of MAIISG's current work in the UK overseas territories, we are starting to look at the possibility of using DNA barcoding for invertebrates to help with survey work and increase capacity on the islands. With limited numbers of people (if any) available to identify invertebrates on some of the islands and the costs of external support very high, so new techniques are needed to help facilitate easy and accessible identification. Currently, DNA barcoding technology is becoming increasingly cheap and more accessible. DNA metabarcoding can be used either directly on samples of invertebrate specimens collected or via environmental DNA (eDNA), where a sample of soil or water contains traces of an animal's H DNA. At the moment, we are looking at the possibility of using metabarcoding to process identifications in invertebrate specimen samples, but this relies on having all (or at least a lot of) invertebrate species DNA present in a reference library; and so, particularly for endemics, any missing species need to be DNA referenced from an accurately identified specimen. We are currently starting the process of filling gaps in the DNA reference library for St Helena with a long- term aim of establishing metabarcoding. The project team are also looking to use DNA to exam the diet of invasive species in the current invasive invertebrate control project. In addition, we will look at similar process for Ascension Island and we are hoping that funding will allow this to start later this year. If you have any interest in this or would like to discuss it further, please contact me. [email protected]. " We are currently starting the process of filling gaps in the DNA reference library for St Helena with a long-term aim of establishing metabarcoding." 4 SHORT OVERVIEW OF PUBLICATIONS ON RECENT AND FOSSIL MACARONESIAN TERRESTRIAL AND FRESHWATER SNAILS IN THE YEARS 2011 TO 2020 By Klaus Groh This compilation focuses on the Archipelagos of Madeira and the Canaries. Undoubtedly, it is not complete for those two groups of islands, missing probably many conference papers, thesis, posters, and data available