DOCSLIB.ORG

Implications for Conservation Helena Reis Batalha

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text

Load more

Variation within and among populations of the endangered Cape Verde warbler: implications for conservation Helena Reis Batalha A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy School of Biological Sciences University of East Anglia, UK March 2017 © This copy of the thesis has been supplied on condition that anyone who consults it is understood to recognise that its copyright rests with the author and that use of any information derived there from must be in accordance with current UK Copyright Law. In addition, any quotation or extract must include full attribution. This thesis is dedicated to Cornelis J. Hazevoet, who did so much for ornithology in Cape Verde and for the Cape Verde warbler in particular. ii Abstract In this thesis, I investigate variation among the three remaining populations of the Cape Verde warbler Acrocephalus brevipennis, with the aim of defining conservation units and thus informing conservation. I used neutral molecular markers to assess genetic diversity and infer the evolutionary history and adaptive potential of the populations. I found a gradient of diversity from the largest population of Santiago to the smallest one of S. Nicolau, which has been isolated from the populations of Santiago and Fogo for longer than those have been isolated from each other. I measured differences in male song between the populations and whether individuals behaved differently when exposed to songs from the other populations, to determine if song might play a role in reproductive isolation. While there is high intra- population variability in male song, birds do not react differently to songs of males from other populations. I then investigated which habitat traits determined the presence of the bird and whether this differed between the three islands. Evergreen dense vegetation cover predicted the wider areas occupied by the warbler. Structural vegetation traits did not differ between sites used on the islands, but plant species composition did. Finally, I assessed morphological differences between the three populations. I found that males on S. Nicolau have shorter tarsi and longer, narrower bills. These morphological differences match the pattern of neutral genetic divergence, suggesting that the role of drift in driving these differences has not been overridden by selection. Collectively, my results show small but significant divergence between the three populations, particularly between S. Nicolau and the two other populations. This divergence has implications for this bird’s conservation, as the differences observed warrant considering the populations as different management units. iii Acknowledgements This PhD was a great adventure, both professionally and personally. It would not have been completed without the help of a huge number of people who gave their whole-hearted contribution at specific times. First of all I would like to thank Sara Pardal for sending me that email, back in 2012, telling me about a researcher at the University of East Anglia who was looking for a student to do a PhD on the Cape Verde warbler. Sara, if it weren’t for you, I would have never known about this opportunity and I would have missed what was possibly the most exciting job I had in my life. I am incredibly grateful to you! Secondly I would like to thank my excellent supervisory team: David Richardson, Iain Barr and Nigel Collar. David, you have been a great inspiration and have made me a better person and a better professional. Thank you for your persistence, determination, optimism and support. Iain, thank you for your enthusiasm, great ideas and constant support. Nigel, thank you for always finding time to answer my questions and soothing my anxiety, even though you are an incredibly busy man. All of you are really intelligent, have excellent work ethics and are incredibly professional, which contributed enormously to make this PhD thesis the best possible one. To my friend and colleague David J. Wright, what would have I done without you? You contributed officially to the chapter on genetic diversity, and unofficially to all the other chapters because you helped me with R, you reviewed a lot of my drafts and helped me made sense of incipient ideas. Thank you for your support, your optimism, for having attention to detail, and for always having time for me and an opinion about my work. Paul Donald, thank you for your help with trying to find this little brown bird on S. Nicolau and for suggesting and providing guidance on the the MaxEnt analysis that we used in the habitat chapter. Ricardo Jorge Lopes and Raquel Vasconcelos, thank you for your help and guidance in organising fieldwork and input on the genetics chapter. Gonçalo Cardoso, thank you so much for your help with song analysis and statistics, and for always trying to answer my every question. Sérgio Timóteo, thank you for always taking the time to answer my stats questions. Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, thank you for putting me in touch with the Museum of Oslo and for allowing me to contribute to your book on the Cape Verde birds. Juan Carlos Illera, Martim Melo, Martin Haase, the University of Oslo Natural History Museum and the Seychelles Warbler Research Group for extra CVW samples; Silke Fregin, Urban Olsson, Juan Carlos Illera, Lewis Spurgin for input on molecular work for the genetics chapter. iv Cornelis J. Hazevoet, the person who most studied this bird before we did, thank you for all our meetings at Cister, where we discussed at length the Cape Verde warbler and how it is to live and work in Cape Verde, and for all the emails and papers you sent. Tommy Melo from Biosfera I and Pedro Geraldes from SPEA, thank you so much for helping me get started with my fieldwork in Cape Verde, for getting the Cape Verdean ringing scheme going, for all the advice and for finding me a place to stay – and Pedro, in your case, for letting us stay at your place in Mindelo when you were not there! Aline Rendall, Alexandre Nevsky Rodrigues, João Mascarenhas, Lindaci Oliveira and Emitério Ramos, thank you very much for supporting this project and for helping with everything you could during our fieldwork, especially for finding us places to stay that we could afford with our limited budget! Without your help, we would have been unable to do this much work in the field and this PhD would have not been finished! Also a big thank you to all the Cape Verdean biologists who helped us during fieldwork: Gilson Semedo, Evaldino Pereira, Gabriel Tavares, Herculano Dinis, Maria “Chia” Auxiliadora do Nascimento, Nelson Santana, Franciscana Sequeira, Ivani Duarte, Gilda Monteiro and others. Thank you for your interest, for your help in finding the birds, especially on S. Nicolau, for setting the mist-nets, for your advice and for your friendship and enthusiasm! Celestino Duarte, this work would have been severely impaired without your help. Thank you for letting us stay at your studio for three weeks when we first arrived in Cape Verde, for finding us and renting us that big black jeep, and for always trying to help with bureaucracy. I would like to send special thanks to the fantastic people of Mosteiros, Pai António and Monte Barro, Fogo: Ilda, Fidjim, Nene, Manu, Tony, Rui Fontes, Batinzim, Dona Christine, and so many others. You made us feel home during our time there, made our stay there much cheaper and therefore longer! Special thanks to Nene for showing us all those Cape Verde warbler territories. Also special thanks to Xexe Kifra, our “Christmas miracle”, the man who was on his balcony when we stopped at the ATM machine on our way to Chã das Caldeiras on Christmas day. Thanks to you, our fieldwork group got to spend our Christmas evening on that magical place! Now the part that always brings a silly tear to my eye: thank you very much to my incredible, wonderful, fantastic field assistants! It was a great pleasure to work with you, thank you for putting up with me, for always doing your best and for your friendship. Jaelsa Moreira and Naya Sena, my Cape Verde field assistants, two amazing women and good friends, you will always be in my heart! Jaelsa, thank you for your positive and rational spirit, for giving this project your best, for being a good friend and for partying with me on Brava! Naya, I have no v words, you are such an inspiring woman and great friend, professional, curious and motivated, and always helped me in every possible way, whether it was to find us a place to stay or an extra field assistant. Thank you to Naya’s mum Maria dos Reis “Nunui” for letting us stay at your place for such a long time when we had to work on Santiago, for your inspiring calm and wise words. Gilson Montrond, I only met you during the last field season but you were also great, with your eagle eye that never missed one bird and your tree-climbing abilities. Andrew Power, my first field assistant ever, thank you for meeting me at the airport of Praia at 2am when neither of us knew what was going to happen, for putting up with my very emotional this-is-amazing mood during two months (Torbjörn did not suffer that much haha), for always doing your best and contributing in every way possible to the success of this project. Josh Jenkins Shaw, thank you for your help and professionalism, especially on Fogo and with ageing the birds. Torbjörn Blixt aka “Golden Magnus” thank you for coming with me everywhere, even when we took that hike on Santo Antão on your birthday and did not find anything to eat (only two coca colas to drink) until night time! Thank you for helping define the methodology for the habitat chapter, for being professional, accurate, reliable and always in a good mood, even when you got sea sick, and for making us laugh by astonishing all the villagers who had never seen such long hair and so many tattoos! And finally Jeroen Arnoys who came to help twice, thank you for doing everything you could to make this project a success, from setting mist-nets to buying that thank you gift for Nunui.
Recommended publications
  • A Global Assessment of Parasite Diversity in Galaxiid Fishes

    A Global Assessment of Parasite Diversity in Galaxiid Fishes

    diversity Article A Global Assessment of Parasite Diversity in Galaxiid Fishes Rachel A. Paterson 1,*, Gustavo P. Viozzi 2, Carlos A. Rauque 2, Verónica R. Flores 2 and Robert Poulin 3 1 The Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, P.O. Box 5685, Torgarden, 7485 Trondheim, Norway 2 Laboratorio de Parasitología, INIBIOMA, CONICET—Universidad Nacional del Comahue, Quintral 1250, San Carlos de Bariloche 8400, Argentina; [email protected] (G.P.V.); [email protected] (C.A.R.); veronicaroxanafl[email protected] (V.R.F.) 3 Department of Zoology, University of Otago, P.O. Box 56, Dunedin 9054, New Zealand; [email protected] * Correspondence: [email protected]; Tel.: +47-481-37-867 Abstract: Free-living species often receive greater conservation attention than the parasites they support, with parasite conservation often being hindered by a lack of parasite biodiversity knowl- edge. This study aimed to determine the current state of knowledge regarding parasites of the Southern Hemisphere freshwater fish family Galaxiidae, in order to identify knowledge gaps to focus future research attention. Specifically, we assessed how galaxiid–parasite knowledge differs among geographic regions in relation to research effort (i.e., number of studies or fish individuals examined, extent of tissue examination, taxonomic resolution), in addition to ecological traits known to influ- ence parasite richness. To date, ~50% of galaxiid species have been examined for parasites, though the majority of studies have focused on single parasite taxa rather than assessing the full diversity of macro- and microparasites. The highest number of parasites were observed from Argentinean galaxiids, and studies in all geographic regions were biased towards the highly abundant and most widely distributed galaxiid species, Galaxias maculatus.
  • Dwarf Galaxias

    Dwarf Galaxias

    Threatened Species Link www.tas.gov.au SPECIES MANAGEMENT PROFILE Galaxiella pusilla Eastern Dwarf Galaxias Group: Chordata (vertebrates), Actinopterygii (bony fish), Salmoniformes (salmonids), Galaxiidae Status: Threatened Species Protection Act 1995: vulnerable Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999: Vulnerable Endemic Found in Tasmania and elsewhere Status: A complete species management profile is not currently available for this species. Check for further information on this page and any relevant Activity Advice. Key Points Important: Is this species in your area? Do you need a permit? Ensure you’ve covered all the issues by checking the Planning Ahead page. Important: Different threatened species may have different requirements. For any activity you are considering, read the Activity Advice pages for background information and important advice about managing around the needs of multiple threatened species. Further information ​Check also for listing statement or notesheet pdf above (below the species image). Recovery Plan Cite as: Threatened Species Section (2021). Galaxiella pusilla (Eastern Dwarf Galaxias): Species Management Profile for Tasmania's Threatened Species Link. https://www.threatenedspecieslink.tas.gov.au/Pages/Dwarf-Galaxias.aspx. Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment, Tasmania. Accessed on 29/9/2021. Contact details: Threatened Species Section, Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment, GPO Box 44, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia, 7001. Phone (1300 368 550). Permit: A permit is required under the Tasmanian Threatened Species Protection Act 1995 to 'take' (which includes kill, injure, catch, damage, destroy and collect), keep, trade in or process any specimen or products of a listed species. Additional permits may also be required under other Acts or regulations to take, disturb or interfere with any form of wildlife or its products, (e.g.
  • AFSS 2014 Abstract Booklet

    AFSS 2014 Abstract Booklet

    Oral abstracts Oral abstracts The evolution of ASFB – reflections on 35 years of membership Seeing with sound – the behaviour and movements of fish in estuaries 1 2 1 2 01 Martin Gomon1 04 Alistair Becker , Iain M Suthers , Alan K Whitfield 1. Museum Victoria, Melbourne, VIC, Australia 1. University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia 2. South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity, Grahamstown, South Africa The Australian Society for Fish Biology had as its inception early meetings organised by the ichthyological staff of the Australian Museum and New South Fisheries intended as a mechanism for sharing advances in fish related science and the development of Underwater video techniques have progressed rapidly over the past ten years, and are now used in a diverse range of habitats initiatives leading to the better understanding of the diversity and biology of Australia’s ichthyofauna. Although the enthusiasm from small creeks to the ocean depths. A limitation of underwater video cameras is they rely on high levels of water clarity and and casual nature of this now incorporated body has remained, the various focuses of the Society and its annual conferences have require artificial lighting if used in low light conditions. In systems such as estuaries, turbidity levels often restrict the use of changed over the decades in line with the evolving directions of the institutions and authorities charged with addressing fish conventional video. Acoustic cameras (DIDSON) overcome this problem as they rely on sound to produce near video, flowing studies and management, as well as the transient influences of the many characters that have been the Society’s driving force.
  • A New Subspecies of Eurasian Reed Warbler Acrocephalus Scirpaceus in Egypt

    A New Subspecies of Eurasian Reed Warbler Acrocephalus Scirpaceus in Egypt

    Jens Hering et al. 101 Bull. B.O.C. 2016 136(2) A new subspecies of Eurasian Reed Warbler Acrocephalus scirpaceus in Egypt by Jens Hering, Hans Winkler & Frank D. Steinheimer Received 4 December 2015 Summary.—A new subspecies of European Reed Warbler Acrocephalus scirpaceus is described from the Egypt / Libya border region in the northern Sahara. Intensive studies revealed the new form to be clearly diagnosable within the Eurasian / African Reed Warbler superspecies, especially in biometrics, habitat, breeding biology and behaviour. The range of this sedentary form lies entirely below sea level, in the large depressions of the eastern Libyan Desert, in Qattara, Siwa, Sitra and Al Jaghbub. The most important field characters are the short wings and tarsi, which are significantly different from closely related A. s. scirpaceus, A. s. fuscus and A. s. avicenniae, less so from A. baeticatus cinnamomeus, which is more clearly separated by behaviour / nest sites and toe length. Molecular genetic analyses determined that uncorrected distances to A. s. scirpaceus are 1.0–1.3%, to avicenniae 1.1–1.5% and to fuscus 0.3–1.2%. The song is similar to that of other Eurasian Reed Warbler taxa as well as that of African Reed Warbler A. baeticatus, but the succession of individual elements appears slower than in A. s. scirpaceus and therefore shows more resemblance to A. s. avicenniae. Among the new subspecies’ unique traits are that its preferred breeding habitat in the Siwa Oasis complex, besides stands of reed, is date palms and olive trees. A breeding density of 107 territories per 10 ha was recorded in the cultivated area.
  • AERC Wplist July 2015

    AERC Wplist July 2015

    AERC Western Palearctic list, July 2015 About the list: 1) The limits of the Western Palearctic region follow for convenience the limits defined in the “Birds of the Western Palearctic” (BWP) series (Oxford University Press). 2) The AERC WP list follows the systematics of Voous (1973; 1977a; 1977b) modified by the changes listed in the AERC TAC systematic recommendations published online on the AERC web site. For species not in Voous (a few introduced or accidental species) the default systematics is the IOC world bird list. 3) Only species either admitted into an "official" national list (for countries with a national avifaunistic commission or national rarities committee) or whose occurrence in the WP has been published in detail (description or photo and circumstances allowing review of the evidence, usually in a journal) have been admitted on the list. Category D species have not been admitted. 4) The information in the "remarks" column is by no mean exhaustive. It is aimed at providing some supporting information for the species whose status on the WP list is less well known than average. This is obviously a subjective criterion. Citation: Crochet P.-A., Joynt G. (2015). AERC list of Western Palearctic birds. July 2015 version. Available at http://www.aerc.eu/tac.html Families Voous sequence 2015 INTERNATIONAL ENGLISH NAME SCIENTIFIC NAME remarks changes since last edition ORDER STRUTHIONIFORMES OSTRICHES Family Struthionidae Ostrich Struthio camelus ORDER ANSERIFORMES DUCKS, GEESE, SWANS Family Anatidae Fulvous Whistling Duck Dendrocygna bicolor cat. A/D in Morocco (flock of 11-12 suggesting natural vagrancy, hence accepted here) Lesser Whistling Duck Dendrocygna javanica cat.
  • Deficiencies in Our Understanding of the Hydro-Ecology of Several Native Australian Fish: a Rapid Evidence Synthesis

    Deficiencies in Our Understanding of the Hydro-Ecology of Several Native Australian Fish: a Rapid Evidence Synthesis

    Marine and Freshwater Research, 2018, 69, 1208–1221 © CSIRO 2018 https://doi.org/10.1071/MF17241 Supplementary material Deficiencies in our understanding of the hydro-ecology of several native Australian fish: a rapid evidence synthesis Kimberly A. MillerA,D, Roser Casas-MuletB,A, Siobhan C. de LittleA, Michael J. StewardsonA, Wayne M. KosterC and J. Angus WebbA,E ADepartment of Infrastructure Engineering, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Vic. 3010, Australia. BWater Research Institute, Cardiff University, The Sir Martin Evans Building, Museum Avenue, Cardiff, CF10 3AX, UK. CArthur Rylah Institute for Environmental Research, Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning, Heidelberg, Vic. 3084, Australia. DPresent address: Healesville Sanctuary, Badger Creek Road, Healesville, Vic. 3777, Australia. ECorresponding author. Email address: [email protected] Page 1 of 30 Marine and Freshwater Research © CSIRO 2018 https://doi.org/10.1071/MF17241 Table S1. All papers located by standardised searches and following citation trails for the two rapid evidence assessments All papers are marked as Relevant or Irrelevant based on a reading of the title and abstract. Those deemed relevant on the first screen are marked as Relevant or Irrelevant based on a full assessment of the reference.The table contains incomplete citation details for a number of irrelevant papers. The information provided is as returned from the different evidence databases. Given that these references were not relevant to our review, we have not sought out the full citation details. Source Reference Relevance Relevance (based on title (after reading and abstract) full text) Pygmy perch & carp gudgeons Search hit Anon (1998) Soy protein-based formulas: recommendations for use in infant feeding.
  • Aspects of the Phylogeny, Biogeography and Taxonomy of Galaxioid Fishes

    Aspects of the Phylogeny, Biogeography and Taxonomy of Galaxioid Fishes

    Aspects of the phylogeny, biogeography and taxonomy of galaxioid fishes Jonathan Michael Waters, BSc. (Hons.) Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, / 2- Oo ( 01 f University of Tasmania (August, 1996) Paragalaxias dissim1/is (Regan); illustrated by David Crook Statements I declare that this thesis contains no material which has been accepted for the award of any other degree or diploma in any tertiary institution and, to the best of my knowledge and belief, this thesis contains no material previously published o:r written by another person, except where due reference is made in the text. This thesis is not to be made available for loan or copying for two years following the date this statement is signed. Following that time the thesis may be made available for loan and limited copying in accordance with the Copyright Act 1968. Signed Summary This study used two distinct methods to infer phylogenetic relationships of members of the Galaxioidea. The first approach involved direct sequencing of mitochondrial DNA to produce a molecular phylogeny. Secondly, a thorough osteological study of the galaxiines was the basis of a cladistic analysis to produce a morphological phylogeny. Phylogenetic analysis of 303 base pairs of mitochondrial cytochrome b _supported the monophyly of Neochanna, Paragalaxias and Galaxiella. This gene also reinforced recognised groups such as Galaxias truttaceus-G. auratus and G. fasciatus-G. argenteus. In a previously unrecognised grouping, Galaxias olidus and G. parvus were united as a sister clade to Paragalaxias. In addition, Nesogalaxias neocaledonicus and G. paucispondylus were included in a clade containing G.
  • BB List 2016V1

    BB List 2016V1

    The British Birds list of Western Palearctic Birds Struthionidae Common Ostrich Struthio camelus Anatidae Fulvous Whistling Duck Dendrocygna bicolor Lesser Whistling Duck Dendrocygna javanica Mute Swan Cygnus olor AC2 Black Swan Cygnus atratus Bewick’s Swan Cygnus columbianus A Whooper Swan Cygnus cygnus A Bean Goose Anser fabalis A Pink-footed Goose Anser brachyrhynchus A White-fronted Goose Anser albifrons A Lesser White-fronted Goose Anser erythropus A* Greylag Goose Anser anser AC2C4 Snow Goose Anser caerulescens AC2 Ross’s Goose Anser rossii D* Canada Goose Branta canadensis AC2 Cackling Goose Branta hutchinsii Barnacle Goose Branta leucopsis AC2 Brent Goose Branta bernicla A Red-breasted Goose Branta ruficollis A* Egyptian Goose Alopochen aegyptiaca C1 Ruddy Shelduck Tadorna ferruginea BD* Common Shelduck Tadorna tadorna A Spur-winged Goose Plectropterus gambensis Knob-billed Duck Sarkidiornis melanotos Cotton Pygmy-goose Nettapus coromandelianus Wood Duck Aix sponsa Mandarin Duck Aix galericulata C1 Eurasian Wigeon Anas penelope A American Wigeon Anas americana A Falcated Duck Anas falcata D* Gadwall Anas strepera AC2 Baikal Teal Anas formosa A* Eurasian Teal Anas crecca A Green-winged Teal Anas carolinensis A Cape Teal Anas capensis Mallard Anas platyrhynchos AC2C4 Black Duck Anas rubripes A* Pintail Anas acuta A Red-billed Duck Anas erythrorhyncha Garganey Anas querquedula A Blue-winged Teal Anas discors A* Shoveler Anas clypeata A Marbled Duck Marmaronetta angustirostris Red-crested Pochard Netta rufina AC2 Southern Pochard
  • Cape Verde Warbler Research

    Cape Verde Warbler Research

    CONSERVATION, ECOLOGY AND GENETICS OF THE CAPE VERDE WARBLER Acrocephalus brevipennis Report for African Bird Club on fieldwork in Cape Verde November 2013 to January 2014 © Josh Jenkins Shaw Helena Reis Batalha University of East Anglia April 2014 Project details Supervisors Dr. David S. Richardson (Primary supervisor, UEA); Dr. Iain Barr (Co-supervisor, UEA); Dr. Nigel J. Collar (Case partner, BirdLife International); Dr. Paul F. Donald (Advisor, RSPB). Team leader and report writer Helena Reis Batalha Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Conservation School of Biological Sciences University of East Anglia Norwich Research Park NR4 7TJ Norwich United Kingdom Field assistants Jaelsa Mira Moreira (Cape Verde), Andrew Power (Ireland), Josh Jenkins Shaw (United Kingdom) & Jeroen Arnoys (Belgium). Citation Batalha, H. (2014). Conservation, ecology and genetics of the Cape Verde warbler Acrocephalus brevipennis: Report for African Bird Club on fieldwork in Cape Verde, November 2013 to January 2014. Unpublished report, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK. Work done under the permit 36/2013 issued by the General Direction for the Environment, Achada Santo António, CP 332-A, Praia, Cape Verde Republic. April 2014 Funding and support Table of Contents Project details ........................................................................................................................... 2 Funding and support ............................................................................................................... 2 1. Introduction and
  • Cabo Verde Ramsar Information Sheet Published on 18 November 2016 Update Version, Previously Published on 18 July 2005

    Cabo Verde Ramsar Information Sheet Published on 18 November 2016 Update Version, Previously Published on 18 July 2005

    RIS for Site no. 1577, Lagoa de Pedra Badejo, Cabo Verde Ramsar Information Sheet Published on 18 November 2016 Update version, previously published on 18 July 2005 Cabo Verde Lagoa de Pedra Badejo Designation date 18 July 2005 Site number 1577 Coordinates 15°05'59"N 23°32'12"W Area 666,07 ha https://rsis.ramsar.org/ris/1577 Created by RSIS V.1.7 on - 1 December 2016 RIS for Site no. 1577, Lagoa de Pedra Badejo, Cabo Verde Color codes Fields back-shaded in light blue relate to data and information required only for RIS updates. Note that some fields concerning aspects of Part 3, the Ecological Character Description of the RIS (tinted in purple), are not expected to be completed as part of a standard RIS, but are included for completeness so as to provide the requested consistency between the RIS and the format of a ‘full’ Ecological Character Description, as adopted in Resolution X.15 (2008). If a Contracting Party does have information available that is relevant to these fields (for example from a national format Ecological Character Description) it may, if it wishes to, include information in these additional fields. 1 - Summary Summary The Lagoas de Pedro Badejo wetland is made up of two coastal lagoons on the estuary of two watercourses and the entire basin of one of the watercourses as far as the Poilão reservoir. The lagoons represent an environment of high ecological value for birds, since they contain fresh or slightly brackish water. Since it was flooded, this reservoir has also become an exceptional area for migratory waterbirds and birds endemic to Cape Verde such as the Cape Verde heron (Ardea bournei ) and the Cape Verde swamp-warbler (Acrocephalus brevipennis).
  • Acrocephalus and Hippolais Warblers from the Western Palearctic David T

    Acrocephalus and Hippolais Warblers from the Western Palearctic David T

    Species limits in Acrocephalus and Hippolais warblers from the Western Palearctic David T. Parkin, Martin Collinson, Andreas J. Helbig, Alan G. Knox, George Sangster and Lars Svensson Sedge Warbler Acrocephalus schoenobaenus Richard Johnson ABSTRACT The taxonomic affiliations within the genera Acrocephalus and Hippolais have long been a matter for debate. Recent molecular and behavioural studies have provided a wealth of new data which can be used to analyse the evolutionary relationships of the Palearctic taxa in these genera. In this paper, we make a series of recommendations for changes in species limits, highlight some problem areas and discuss situations where more research is needed. 276 © British Birds 97 • June 2004 • 276-299 Species limits in Acrocephalus and Hippolais warblers Introduction dering array of small and difficult birds (for long period of taxonomic stability fol- example Emei Leaf Warbler Phylloscopus lowed the publication of the ‘Voous List’ emeiensis, Alström & Olsson 1995; the chiffchaff Afor Holarctic birds (Voous 1977), but in complex, Helbig et al. 1996; and the Greenish recent years there have been dramatic advances Warbler P. trochiloides, Irwin et al. 2001a,b,c), in our knowledge of the evolutionary relation- which has led to an improved understanding of ships of birds, leading to a period of activity their evolution, and hence their taxonomic rela- that shows no sign of abating. These advances tionships. This paper draws together some stem largely from new and exciting ways to recent studies which together provide a clearer study birds, both in the field and in the labora- picture of an especially complex group, the tory.
  • A Guide to the Management of Native Fish: Victorian Coastal Rivers and Wetlands 2007

    A Guide to the Management of Native Fish: Victorian Coastal Rivers and Wetlands 2007

    A guide to the management of native fish: Victorian Coastal Rivers and Wetlands 2007 A Guide to the Management of Native Fish: Victorian Coastal Rivers, Estuaries and Wetlands ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This guide was prepared with the guidance and support of a Steering Committee, Scientific Advisory Group and an Independent Advisory Panel. Steering Committee – Nick McCristal (Chair- Corangamite CMA), Melody Jane (Glenelg Hopkins CMA), Kylie Bishop (Glenelg Hopkins CMA), Greg Peters (Corangamite CMA and subsequently Independent Consultant), Hannah Pexton (Melbourne Water), Rhys Coleman (Melbourne Water), Mark Smith (Port Phillip and Westernport CMA), Kylie Debono (West Gippsland CMA), Michelle Dickson (West Gippsland CMA), Sean Phillipson (East Gippsland CMA), Rex Candy (East Gippsland CMA), Pam Robinson (Australian Government NRM, Victorian Team), Karen Weaver (DPI Fisheries and subsequently DSE, Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services), Dr Jeremy Hindell (DPI Fisheries and subsequently DSE ARI), Dr Murray MacDonald (DPI Fisheries), Ben Bowman (DPI Fisheries) Paul Bennett (DSE Water Sector), Paulo Lay (DSE Water Sector) Bill O’Connor (DSE Biodiversity & Ecosystem Services), Sarina Loo (DSE Water Sector). Scientific Advisory Group – Dr John Koehn (DSE, ARI), Tarmo Raadik (DSE ARI), Dr Jeremy Hindell (DPI Fisheries and subsequently DSE ARI), Tom Ryan (Independent Consultant), and Stephen Saddlier (DSE ARI). Independent Advisory Panel – Jim Barrett (Murray-Darling Basin Commission Native Fish Strategy), Dr Terry Hillman (Independent Consultant), and Adrian Wells (Murray-Darling Basin Commission Native Fish Strategy-Community Stakeholder Taskforce). Guidance was also provided in a number of regional workshops attended by Native Fish Australia, VRFish, DSE, CMAs, Parks Victoria, EPA, Fishcare, Yarra River Keepers, DPI Fisheries, coastal boards, regional water authorities and councils.