DOCSLIB.ORG

S41467-020-15438-Y.Pdf

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
S41467-020-15438-Y.Pdf ARTICLE https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-15438-y OPEN Downsizing of animal communities triggers stronger functional than structural decay in seed-dispersal networks ✉ Isabel Donoso1 , Marjorie C. Sorensen 1,2,3, Pedro G. Blendinger 4, W. Daniel Kissling 5, Eike Lena Neuschulz1, Thomas Mueller 1,3 & Matthias Schleuning 1 1234567890():,; Downsizing of animal communities due to defaunation is prevalent in many ecosystems. Yet, we know little about its consequences for ecosystem functions such as seed dispersal. Here, we use eight seed-dispersal networks sampled across the Andes and simulate how downsizing of avian frugivores impacts structural network robustness and seed dispersal. We use a trait-based modeling framework to quantify the consequences of downsizing—relative to random extinctions—for the number of interactions and secondary plant extinctions (as measures of structural robustness) and for long-distance seed dispersal (as a measure of ecosystem function). We find that downsizing leads to stronger functional than structural losses. For instance, 10% size-structured loss of bird species results in almost 40% decline of long-distance seed dispersal, but in less than 10% of structural loss. Our simulations reveal that measures of the structural robustness of ecological networks underestimate the consequences of animal extinction and downsizing for ecosystem functioning. 1 Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre (SBiK-F), Senckenberganlage 25, 60325 Frankfurt am Main, Germany. 2 Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, 50 Stone Road East, N1G 2W1 Ontario, Canada. 3 Department of Biological Sciences, Goethe University Frankfurt, Max-von-Laue-Str. 9, 60438 Frankfurt am Main, Germany. 4 Instituto de Ecología Regional, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET) - Universidad Nacional de Tucumán, CC 34, 4107 Yerba Buena, Tucumán, Argentina. 5 Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics ✉ (IBED), University of Amsterdam, P.O. Box 94240, 1090 GE Amsterdam, The Netherlands. email: [email protected] NATURE COMMUNICATIONS | (2020) 11:1582 | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-15438-y | www.nature.com/naturecommunications 1 ARTICLE NATURE COMMUNICATIONS | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-15438-y pecies defaunation, i.e., the extinction of animal species due a trait-based modeling framework to estimate total dispersal to overhunting and habitat loss, has been identified as a distances across all plant species in a community37 (Supple- S 1,2 main trigger for the global biodiversity crisis . Human mentary Fig. 1; Methods). We apply this model to empirical data overexploitation of animals occurs in all types of biomes3,4 and from eight seed-dispersal networks collected across the tropical is especially prevalent in species-rich tropical ecosystems5,6. Andes including 11,572 interactions between 227 plant and 179 Defaunation is often size-selective, targeting especially the largest bird species (see Methods and Supplementary Table 1 for details). species, which leads to downsizing of animal communities7,8. We then implement and compare two animal extinction sce- Since biodiversity sustains essential ecosystem functions, such narios to the modeling framework; one random and one deter- as pollination or seed dispersal by animals9,10, it is pivotal to ministic scenario removing bird species from the largest to the understand how biodiversity loss and concurrent ecological smallest species. This allows us to predict the consequences of downsizing modify ecosystem functioning. random and size-structured defaunation for entire plant com- To assess how changes in biodiversity impact ecosystem munities (Fig. 1a). First, we evaluate changes in structural functioning, recent studies advocate for approaches based on robustness defined as i) the number of lost interactions (Fig. 1b) functional traits that assess what species in a community do and ii) the secondary extinction of plant species (Fig. 1c). Second, rather than how many there are11,12. Linking the actual we quantify functional changes by analyzing how LDD, defined contribution of species to ecosystem functions requires a com- by the 0.95 quantile of community-wide seed-dispersal distances, prehensive framework based on both the number of species varies in response to downsizing (Fig. 1d). We compare to what and their functional traits as key biotic drivers of ecosystem extent changes in structural robustness in interaction networks functioning13. Trait-based approaches consider that species differ differ from functional changes in response to downsizing of in their extinction proneness depending on their vulnerability to animal communities. We find evidence that the consequences of disturbance (i.e., determined by their response traits), but also in downsizing are more severe for seed dispersal than for structural their contribution to ecosystem functions (i.e., determined by robustness, indicating that measures of functional changes are their effect traits)14,15. Understanding whether the most vulner- required to capture the ecosystem consequences of animal loss. able species are also the species that contribute most to ecosystem functioning remains a significant challenge, in particular for real- world ecosystems. Results In ecological communities, species are organized in complex Structural changes in response to animal extinction.We interaction networks16,17. Interactions between species in these simulated changes in structural robustness (in terms of interac- networks are often influenced by the traits of the interacting tion loss and secondary plant extinctions) in response to bird species18,19. In particular, size determines which species interact species loss using two extinction scenarios representing (1) a in ecological networks3,20. Likewise, size matching has been random extinction sequence, and (2) a deterministic extinction described as a crucial mechanism mediating defaunation effects sequence according to body mass (i.e., defaunation-driven on ecosystem functioning21,22. Yet, studies analyzing the con- downsizing). Changes in structural robustness along the extinc- sequences of species loss from ecological networks primarily tion sequences were estimated relative to the original network hinge upon decreases in the structural robustness of ecological including all species. Across the eight empirical networks, the communities. Decreases in the structural robustness are usually number of interactions declined linearly in response to size- measured using network metrics, such as changes in interaction structured extinction (Fig. 2a). Differences between deterministic strength3,23 or secondary extinctions as a consequence of species and random extinctions were weak and only larger for the loss from the other trophic level17,24,25. Measures of structural deterministic extinction sequence after about 75% of bird species robustness, however, only reflect species’ contributions to the had been removed. Further, we found that the number of sec- number of interactions, ignoring that species are not equivalent in ondarily extinct plant species followed an accelerating curve in terms of their functional contribution26. Although a few previous response to bird species loss in both scenarios (Fig. 2b). After studies have analyzed the consequences of defaunation for certain removing 10% of the bird species, the downsizing scenario ecosystem functions1,27,28, it remains unclear to what extent showed more secondary plant extinctions than the random sce- structural changes can represent functional changes in ecological nario (Fig. 2b). Across the eight networks, removal of 50% of bird networks. species resulted in about 50% of lost interactions and about 40% A pivotal ecosystem function is animal-mediated seed dis- of secondary plant extinctions (Fig. 2b). The eight individual persal16, especially in tropical forests where about 70% of plant networks showed similar patterns of interaction loss and con- species require birds to disperse their seeds29. Mutualistic net- sistent trends of secondary plant extinction across the determi- works composed of fleshy-fruited plants and frugivorous birds are nistic bird extinction sequence (Supplementary Fig. 2). essential to maintain the structure and diversity of tropical plant communities. In particular, long-distance seed dispersal (LDD) by avian frugivores shapes the spatial scale of plant demographic Functional changes in response to animal extinction.We processes30 and promotes genetic exchange and connectivity evaluated functional changes along the two simulated extinction in fragmented landscapes in both temperate and tropical sequences with changes in LDD of the entire plant community, ecosystems22,31. Defaunation is expected to lead to changes in defined as the 0.95 quantile of community-wide seed-dispersal seed dispersal by animals7, and changes in LDD could directly distance (see Supplementary Fig. 1 and Methods section). affect the spatial distribution of plants and their potential Downsizing of animal communities led to strong functional losses to colonize new localities in response to global change32,33. in terms of LDD relative to LDD in the original network. Across To estimate such functional consequences of defaunation, seed- the eight empirical networks, we found a large difference between dispersal distances have to be estimated for entire plant com- the downsizing and the random extinction sequence (Fig. 3). munities33. So far, research efforts on estimating
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Megafauna Extinction, Tree Species Range Reduction, and Carbon Storage in Amazonian Forests
    Ecography 39: 194–203, 2016 doi: 10.1111/ecog.01587 © 2015 The Authors. Ecography © 2015 Nordic Society Oikos Subject Editor: Yadvinder Mahli. Editor-in-Chief: Nathan J. Sanders. Accepted 27 September 2015 Megafauna extinction, tree species range reduction, and carbon storage in Amazonian forests Christopher E. Doughty, Adam Wolf, Naia Morueta-Holme, Peter M. Jørgensen, Brody Sandel, Cyrille Violle, Brad Boyle, Nathan J. B. Kraft, Robert K. Peet, Brian J. Enquist, Jens-Christian Svenning, Stephen Blake and Mauro Galetti C. E. Doughty ([email protected]), Environmental Change Inst., School of Geography and the Environment, Univ. of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3QY, UK. – A. Wolf, Dept of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton Univ., Princeton, NJ 08544, USA. – N. Morueta-Holme, Dept of Integrative Biology, Univ. of California – Berkeley, CA 94720, USA. – B. Sandel, J.-C. Svenning and NM-H, Section for Ecoinformatics and Biodiversity, Dept of Bioscience, Aarhus Univ., Ny Munkegade 114, DK-8000 Aarhus C, Denmark. – P. M. Jørgensen, Missouri Botanical Garden, PO Box 299, St Louis, MO 63166-0299, USA. – C. Violle, CEFE UMR 5175, CNRS – Univ. de Montpellier – Univ. Paul-Valéry Montpellier – EPHE – 1919 route de Mende, FR-34293 Montpellier Cedex 5, France. – B. Boyle and B. J. Enquist, Dept of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Univ. of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA. – N. J. B. Kraft, Dept of Biology, Univ. of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA. BJE also at: The Santa Fe inst., 1399 Hyde Park Road, Santa Fe, NM 87501, USA. – R. K. Peet, Dept of Biology, Univ. of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3280, USA.
    [Show full text]
  • Ecosystem Consequences of Bird Declines
    Ecosystem consequences of bird declines C¸ag˘ an H. S¸ekerciog˘ lu*, Gretchen C. Daily, and Paul R. Ehrlich Center for Conservation Biology, Department of Biological Sciences, Stanford University, 371 Serra Mall, Stanford, CA 94305-5020 Contributed by Paul R. Ehrlich, October 28, 2004 We present a general framework for characterizing the ecological historically extinct (129) bird species of the world from 248 and societal consequences of biodiversity loss and applying it to sources into a database with Ͼ600,000 entries. Our scenarios the global avifauna. To investigate the potential ecological conse- (Fig. 3, which is published as supporting information on the quences of avian declines, we developed comprehensive databases PNAS web site) are based on the extinction probabilities for of the status and functional roles of birds and a stochastic model threatened species used by International Union for Conserva- for forecasting change. Overall, 21% of bird species are currently tion of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN). These probabil- extinction-prone and 6.5% are functionally extinct, contributing ities are as follows: 50% chance of extinction in the next 10 years negligibly to ecosystem processes. We show that a quarter or more for critically endangered species, 20% chance of extinction in the of frugivorous and omnivorous species and one-third or more of next 20 years for endangered species, and 10% chance of herbivorous, piscivorous, and scavenger species are extinction- extinction in the next 100 years for vulnerable species. We report prone. Furthermore, our projections indicate that by 2100, 6–14% the averages of 10,000 simulations run for each decade from 2010 of all bird species will be extinct, and 7–25% (28–56% on oceanic to 2100.
    [Show full text]
  • Wkdivextinct Report 2018
    ICES WKDIVEXTINCT REPORT 2018 ICES ADVISORY COMMITTEE ICES CM 2018/ACOM:48 REF. ACOM Report of the Workshop on extinction risk of MSFD biodiversity approach (WKDIVExtinct) 12–15 June 2018 ICES HQ, Copenhagen, Denmark International Council for the Exploration of the Sea Conseil International pour l’Exploration de la Mer H. C. Andersens Boulevard 44–46 DK-1553 Copenhagen V Denmark Telephone (+45) 33 38 67 00 Telefax (+45) 33 93 42 15 www.ices.dk [email protected] Recommended format for purposes of citation: ICES. 2018. Report of the Workshop on extinction risk of MSFD biodiversity ap- proach (WKDIVExtinct), 12–15 June 2018, ICES HQ, Copenhagen, Denmark. ICES CM 2018/ACOM:48. 43 pp. The material in this report may be reused using the recommended citation. ICES may only grant usage rights of information, data, images, graphs, etc. of which it has own- ership. For other third-party material cited in this report, you must contact the original copyright holder for permission. For citation of datasets or use of data to be included in other databases, please refer to the latest ICES data policy on the ICES website. All extracts must be acknowledged. For other reproduction requests please contact the General Secretary. The document is a report of an Expert Group under the auspices of the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea and does not necessarily represent the views of the Council. © 2018 International Council for the Exploration of the Sea ICES WKDIVExtinct REPORT 2018 | i Contents Executive summary 1 1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 2 1.1 Background ........................................................................................................... 2 1.2 Findings from the workshop WKDIVAgg .......................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Tropical Plant-Animal Interactions: Linking Defaunation with Seed Predation, and Resource- Dependent Co-Occurrence
    University of Montana ScholarWorks at University of Montana Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers Graduate School 2021 TROPICAL PLANT-ANIMAL INTERACTIONS: LINKING DEFAUNATION WITH SEED PREDATION, AND RESOURCE- DEPENDENT CO-OCCURRENCE Peter Jeffrey Williams Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd Let us know how access to this document benefits ou.y Recommended Citation Williams, Peter Jeffrey, "TROPICAL PLANT-ANIMAL INTERACTIONS: LINKING DEFAUNATION WITH SEED PREDATION, AND RESOURCE-DEPENDENT CO-OCCURRENCE" (2021). Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers. 11777. https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd/11777 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at ScholarWorks at University of Montana. It has been accepted for inclusion in Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at University of Montana. For more information, please contact [email protected]. TROPICAL PLANT-ANIMAL INTERACTIONS: LINKING DEFAUNATION WITH SEED PREDATION, AND RESOURCE-DEPENDENT CO-OCCURRENCE By PETER JEFFREY WILLIAMS B.S., University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, 2014 Dissertation presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Biology – Ecology and Evolution The University of Montana Missoula, MT May 2021 Approved by: Scott Whittenburg, Graduate School Dean Jedediah F. Brodie, Chair Division of Biological Sciences Wildlife Biology Program John L. Maron Division of Biological Sciences Joshua J. Millspaugh Wildlife Biology Program Kim R. McConkey School of Environmental and Geographical Sciences University of Nottingham Malaysia Williams, Peter, Ph.D., Spring 2021 Biology Tropical plant-animal interactions: linking defaunation with seed predation, and resource- dependent co-occurrence Chairperson: Jedediah F.
    [Show full text]
  • The Extinction and De-Extinction of Species
    Linfield University DigitalCommons@Linfield Faculty Publications Faculty Scholarship & Creative Works 2017 The Extinction and De-Extinction of Species Helena Siipi University of Turku Leonard Finkelman Linfield College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.linfield.edu/philfac_pubs Part of the Biology Commons, and the Philosophy of Science Commons DigitalCommons@Linfield Citation Siipi, Helena and Finkelman, Leonard, "The Extinction and De-Extinction of Species" (2017). Faculty Publications. Accepted Version. Submission 3. https://digitalcommons.linfield.edu/philfac_pubs/3 This Accepted Version is protected by copyright and/or related rights. It is brought to you for free via open access, courtesy of DigitalCommons@Linfield, with permission from the rights-holder(s). Your use of this Accepted Version must comply with the Terms of Use for material posted in DigitalCommons@Linfield, or with other stated terms (such as a Creative Commons license) indicated in the record and/or on the work itself. For more information, or if you have questions about permitted uses, please contact [email protected]. The extinction and de-extinction of species I. Introduction WhendeathcameforCelia,ittooktheformoftree.Heedlessofthedangerposed bybranchesoverladenwithsnow,CeliawanderedthroughthelandscapeofSpain’s OrdesanationalparkinJanuary2000.branchfellonherskullandcrushedit.So deathcameandtookher,leavingbodytobefoundbyparkrangersandlegacyto bemournedbyconservationistsaroundtheworld. Theconservationistsmournednotonlythedeathoftheorganism,butalsoan
    [Show full text]
  • Variable Impact of Late-Quaternary Megafaunal Extinction in Causing
    Variable impact of late-Quaternary megafaunal SPECIAL FEATURE extinction in causing ecological state shifts in North and South America Anthony D. Barnoskya,b,c,1, Emily L. Lindseya,b, Natalia A. Villavicencioa,b, Enrique Bostelmannd,2, Elizabeth A. Hadlye, James Wanketf, and Charles R. Marshalla,b aDepartment of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720; bMuseum of Paleontology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720; cMuseum of Vertebrate Zoology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720; dRed Paleontológica U-Chile, Laboratoria de Ontogenia, Departamento de Biología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Chile, Chile; eDepartment of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305; and fDepartment of Geography, California State University, Sacramento, CA 95819 Edited by John W. Terborgh, Duke University, Durham, NC, and approved August 5, 2015 (received for review March 16, 2015) Loss of megafauna, an aspect of defaunation, can precipitate many megafauna loss, and if so, what does this loss imply for the future ecological changes over short time scales. We examine whether of ecosystems at risk for losing their megafauna today? megafauna loss can also explain features of lasting ecological state shifts that occurred as the Pleistocene gave way to the Holocene. We Approach compare ecological impacts of late-Quaternary megafauna extinction The late-Quaternary impact of losing 70–80% of the megafauna in five American regions: southwestern Patagonia, the Pampas, genera in the Americas (19) would be expected to trigger biotic northeastern United States, northwestern United States, and Berin- transitions that would be recognizable in the fossil record in at gia. We find that major ecological state shifts were consistent with least two respects.
    [Show full text]
  • Memoria 2013
    Estación Biológica de Doñana - Memoria 2013 1 Estación Biológica de Doñana - Memoria 2013 Portada: Experimentación con picudo rojo (Rhinchophorus ferrugineus), especie invasora, actualmente en expasión en España, que ha supuesto una plaga, principalmente para la palmera canaria. 2 Estación Biológica de Doñana - Memoria 2013 ESTACIÓN BIOLÓGICA DE DOÑANA CONSEJO SUPERIOR DE INVESTIGACIONES CIENTÍFICAS MEMORIA 2013 COORDINACIÓN Guyonne Janss Rocío Astasio Rosa Rodríguez RECOPILACIÓN INFORMACIÓN Begoña Arrizabalaga José Carlos Soler Olga Guerrero Carmen Mª Velasco Tomás Perera Antonio Páez María Antonia Orduña Ana Ruíz Sonia Velasco Angelines Soto María Cabot Sofía Conradi FOTOGRAFÍAS Héctor Garrido DISEÑO Y MAQUETACIÓN Héctor Garrido Sevilla, Noviembre de 2014 Estación Biológica de Doñana/CSIC C/ Américo Vespucio, s/n 41092 SEVILLA www.ebd.csic.es 3 Estación Biológica de Doñana - Memoria 2013 4 Estación Biológica de Doñana - Memoria 2013 5 Estación Biológica de Doñana - Memoria 2013 6 Estación Biológica de Doñana - Memoria 2013 Contenidos Presentación 9 Introducción 10 Misión 10 Sedes 10 Organización y Estructura 12 Departamentos y grupos de investigación 12 Organigrama de la Estación Biológica de Doñana 13 Líneas de Investigación 14 Servicios científicos 18 Actividades 2013 31 Actividad Investigadora de la EBD 32 Recursos económicos y humanos 38 Otras actividades a destacar 42 Proyectos de Investigación 45 Publicaciones 103 Congresos 120 Tesis doctorales y maestrias 121 Cursos 124 Premios y distinciones 125 Recursos humanos 127 7 Estación Biológica de Doñana - Memoria 2013 8 Estación Biológica de Doñana - Memoria 2013 Presentación 9 Estación Biológica de Doñana - Memoria 2013 Sedes La Estación Biológica de Doñana consta de un centro de investigación con sede en Sevilla, dos estaciones de campo (El Palacio y Huer- ta Tejada) junto a las Reservas Biológicas de Doñana en Almonte (Huelva) y del Guadiamar en Aznalcazar (Sevilla) y de una Estación de Campo en Roblehondo, en el Parque Natural de las Sierras de Cazorla, Segura y Las Villas (Jaén).
    [Show full text]
  • Rainforest Metropolis Casts 1,000-Km Defaunation Shadow
    Rainforest metropolis casts 1,000-km defaunation shadow Daniel J. Tregidgoa,b,1, Jos Barlowa,b, Paulo S. Pompeub, Mayana de Almeida Rochac, and Luke Parrya,d aLancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YQ, United Kingdom; bDepartamento de Biologia, Universidade Federal de Lavras, Lavras, MG 37200-000, Brazil; cDepartamento de Comunicação Social, Universidade Federal do Amazonas, Manaus, AM 69077-000, Brazil; and dNúcleo de Altos Estudos Amazônicos, Universidade Federal do Pará, Belem, PA 66075-750, Brazil Edited by Emilio F. Moran, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, and approved June 21, 2017 (received for review August 30, 2016) Tropical rainforest regions are urbanizing rapidly, yet the role of and drainage basin, with over 1 million km2 of freshwater ecosys- emerging metropolises in driving wildlife overharvesting in for- tems (21) and more fish species than the Congo and Mekong basins ests and inland waters is unknown. We present evidence of a large combined (22). Human demographic changes in the Amazon il- defaunation shadow around a rainforest metropolis. Using inter- lustrate how the demand for wild meat harvest has urbanized. views with 392 rural fishers, we show that fishing has severely Three-quarters of the population of the Brazilian Amazon lived in depleted a large-bodied keystone fish species, tambaqui (Colos- rural areas in 1950, whereas three-quarters—around 18 million soma macropomum), with an impact extending over 1,000 km people—now live in urban areas (23). Recent evidence shows that from the rainforest city of Manaus (population 2.1 million). There urban consumption of wild meat in Amazonia is commonplace (7), was strong evidence of defaunation within this area, including a as is the case across the forested tropics (5), where urbanization 50% reduction in body size and catch rate (catch per unit effort).
    [Show full text]
  • Assessing Ecological Function in the Context of Species Recovery H
    Assessing ecological function in the context of species recovery H. Resit Akçakaya, Ana S.L. Rodrigues, David Keith, E.J. Milner-gulland, Eric Sanderson, Simon Hedges, David Mallon, Molly Grace, Barney Long, Erik Meijaard, et al. To cite this version: H. Resit Akçakaya, Ana S.L. Rodrigues, David Keith, E.J. Milner-gulland, Eric Sanderson, et al.. Assessing ecological function in the context of species recovery. Conservation Biology, Wiley, 2020, 10.1111/cobi.13425. hal-02383294 HAL Id: hal-02383294 https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02383294 Submitted on 18 Nov 2020 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. Article type: Essay Assessing Ecological Function in the Context of Species Recovery H. Resit Akçakaya1,2, Ana S.L. Rodrigues3, David A. Keith2,4,5, E.J. Milner-Gulland6, Eric W. Sanderson7, Simon Hedges8,9, David P. Mallon10,11, Molly K. Grace12, Barney Long13, Erik Meijaard14,15, P.J. Stephenson16,17 1 Dept. of Ecology and Evolution, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA. email: [email protected] 2 IUCN Species Survival Commission 3 Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive CEFE UMR 5175, CNRS – Univ.
    [Show full text]
  • The Prospect of Global Environmental Relativities After an Anthropocene Tipping Point
    This is a repository copy of The Prospect of Global Environmental Relativities After an Anthropocene Tipping Point. White Rose Research Online URL for this paper: http://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/112256/ Version: Accepted Version Article: Grainger, A (2017) The Prospect of Global Environmental Relativities After an Anthropocene Tipping Point. Forest Policy and Economics, 79. pp. 36-49. ISSN 1389-9341 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.forpol.2017.01.008 © 2017 Published by Elsevier B.V. This manuscript version is made available under the CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ Reuse Unless indicated otherwise, fulltext items are protected by copyright with all rights reserved. The copyright exception in section 29 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 allows the making of a single copy solely for the purpose of non-commercial research or private study within the limits of fair dealing. The publisher or other rights-holder may allow further reproduction and re-use of this version - refer to the White Rose Research Online record for this item. Where records identify the publisher as the copyright holder, users can verify any specific terms of use on the publisher’s website. Takedown If you consider content in White Rose Research Online to be in breach of UK law, please notify us by emailing [email protected] including the URL of the record and the reason for the withdrawal request. [email protected] https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/ The Prospect of Global Environmental Relativities After an Anthropocene Tipping Point Alan Grainger School of Geography, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK.
    [Show full text]
  • A Brief Look at the Ethical Debate of De- Extinction Stanford-Brown Igem 2013 Alissa Greenberg
    1 A Brief Look at the Ethical Debate of De- Extinction Stanford-Brown iGEM 2013 Alissa Greenberg “If extinction is not forever, a lot changes.” -Dr. Stanley Temple, TEDx March 2013 Introduction This year, the 2013 Stanford-Brown iGEM team stepped into uncharted territory. When we brainstormed projects back in April, a combined interest in ancient organisms generated questions on the origins of life and the nature of evolution itself. One screening of Steven Spielberg’s Jurassic Park (1993) later and we developed iGEM’s very first de-extinction project. Hollywood has taken advantage of exploiting scientific disasters. The following paper is meant to strip away the entertaining fiction and facilitate a discussion about the real consequences of de-extinction in the context of our project, both positive and negative. We were still reviewing the task’s objectives when we attended the San Mateo Maker’s Faire in May. All four of our projects were met with enthusiasm. Amidst the excitement, however, were inquiries we had already begun to consider but had not completely explored. Many of the attendees expressed concern over the ethical issues of our de-extinction ideas. Some thought de-extinction had a lot of potential but most appeared weary of our desire to revive what is already “dead and buried.”1 Who are we to manipulate life so vigorously? With the benefit of education and discussion, we feel that the popular fear of de-extinction we encountered is more out of misinformation. The last thing we want to be guilty of is conducting a project without considering multiple perspectives, including the long-term consequences.
    [Show full text]
  • Relation of Minimum Viable Population Size to Biology, Time Frame, and Objective
    Comment Relation of Minimum Viable Population Size to Biology, Time Frame, and Objective J. MICHAEL REED∗ § AND EARL D. MCCOY† ∗Department of Biology, Tufts University, Medford, MA, 02155, U.S.A. †Department of Integrative Biology, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, 33620, U.S.A. Shoemaker et al.’s (2013) estimate of the minimum vi- probability of extinction escalates dramatically over 40 able population size (MVPS) of the bog turtle (Glyptemys generations (Fig. 1). Given the long generation length, muhlenbergii) is 3 orders of magnitude below popu- 20–30 years, of the bog turtle, Shoemaker et al.’s result lation sizes typically viewed as minimally viable (Reed is, therefore, not surprising; but, it is inconsistent with et al. 2003; Trail et al. 2007). Even Flather et al. (2011), typical conception of MVPS, which assumes a population who question the utility of MVPS for conservation plan- will be self-sustaining. Similarly, Brook et al. (1999) con- ning, concede that long-term persistent populations will cluded a high probability of persistence for 50 years for require thousands of individuals. Rather than conclude a population of 18 Whooping Cranes (Grus americana). their result is incorrect, Shoemaker at al. suggest that Because Whooping Cranes can live for 35 years, it is MVPS has been overestimated for long-lived species. Al- unlikely that any pair of birds that can reproduce would though we agree in principle that small populations, es- fail to produce a lineage that persisted 50 years; but, 18 pecially of long-lived species, have conservation value, individuals do not necessarily constitute a viable popu- we do not agree that Shoemaker et al.’s result provides lation.
    [Show full text]