Migratory Connectivity and the Conservation of Migratory Animals
Migration is the repeated seasonal movement to and from a breeding area. The linking of individuals or populations of a given species within its range, including its breeding, migration, and wintering areas, is known as migratory connectivity. In this Article, we discuss how new technologies and approaches are enhancing our knowledge of migratory connectivity, which in turn can improve our legal and policy approaches to the conservation of migratory animals. Advances in studying and documenting migratory connectivity require new approaches to the design and implementation of both domestic and international conservation efforts. Understanding migratory connectivity of different populations of species between specific geographic locations can also help build “social connectivity” for conservation—the cultural, educational, economic, and institutional linkages between these same locations that are a necessary foundation for effective and sustainable conservation efforts.
Pattern of non-breeding movements by Stone-curlews Burhinus oedicnemus breeding in Northern Italy
The identification of year-round geographical ranges and the quantification of the degree of migratory connectivity are fundamental to the successful conservation of migratory bird populations. The Stone-curlew Burhinus oedicnemus is a species of conservation concern in Europe, but its ecology and behaviour are relatively poorly investigated. In particular, its migratory behaviour and the locations of the wintering ranges of most European populations are not known in detail because of a lack of specific studies and the scarcity of ringing recoveries. This study aimed to identify the wintering areas of a Stone-curlew population breeding in the Taro River Regional Park (Parma, northern Italy) by integrating the information obtained from ringing recoveries (n = 2), geolocators (n = 7), and GPS data loggers (n = 2). Furthermore, we compared two approaches to inferring the location of an assumed stationary bird using geolocator data. The different sources were quite coherent, indicating that tagged Stone-curlews did not leave the Mediterranean basin throughout the year and passed the winter in Sardinia or in Tunisia. The recorded wintering sites coincided with areas where breeding (and possibly resident) populations are reported, further emphasising the importance of these areas for the conservation of the species throughout the annual cycle. To our knowledge, our study represents the first thorough analysis performed to uncover the movements of a Mediterranean population of Stone-curlews. Furthermore, it proves the great potential of the tracking devices used in this work to provide information on the migration and non-breeding sites of elusive species, for which the application of mark–recapture/re-sighting techniques is hindered by profound limitations.ZusammenfassungMuster des Zugverhaltens von in Norditalien brütenden TrielenBurhinus oedicnemusaußerhalb der Brutzeit Die ganzjährige Identifikation der Aufenthaltsgebiete sowie die Quantifizierung des Zugverhaltens sind elementar für den erfolgreichen Schutz von Zugvögeln. Triele Burhinus oedicnemus gelten in Europa als in ihrem Bestand gefährdet, und dennoch wird ihre Verhaltensökologie unzureichend untersucht. Besonders das Zugverhalten und die Überwinterungsquartiere vieler europäischer Populationen sind im Detail nicht bekannt, da entweder spezifische Untersuchungen oder Ringfundmeldungen fehlen. Das Ziel dieser Studie war es, die Überwinterungsquartiere einer im Gebiet des Flusses Taro „Parco Taro“(Parma, Norditalien) brütenden Population von Trielen, zu identifizieren. Hierfür wurden die Informationen von Ringfunden (n = 2), Geolokatoren (n = 7) und GPS-Loggern (n = 2) zusammengefasst. Des Weiteren verglichen wir zwei Ansätze für die Bestimmung des Aufenthaltsortes eines augenscheinlich nicht ziehenden Vogels mittels Geolokatoren. Die unterschiedlichen Informationsquellen erwiesen sich als weitgehend übereinstimmend und deuteten darauf hin, dass die markierten Triele sich ganzjährlich im Mittelmeergebiet aufhielten und den Winter auf Sardinien oder in Tunesien verbrachten. Weiterhin stimmten die ermittelten Überwinterungsquartiere mit Brutquartieren vermutlicher standtreuer Triele überein. Dies unterstreicht die ganzjährige Bedeutung dieser Landstriche für den Schutz der Triele. Unsere Studie repräsentiert unseres Wissens die erste vollständige Analyse zu Bewegungsmustern einer Mittelmeerpopulation von Trielen. Darüber hinaus belegt sie das große Potenzial von Standortbestimmungstechniken für den Erhalt von Informationen zum Zugverhalten und zu Überwinterungsquartieren schwer zugänglicher Arten, für welche Rückfangmethoden oder herkömmliche Beobachtungstechniken sich als stark eingeschränkt erwiesen.
Tourism in the Amazon: identifying challenges and finding solutions
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the tourism sector in the Amazon regions of Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru, and Suriname and then discuss the manner in which tourism activity assists the protection of the Amazon rainforests. The paper also describes the manner in which the first World Hospitality and Tourism Themes Roundtable on Tourism in the Amazon is organized in 2009.Design/methodology/approach – Teams of researchers from the Ministries of Tourism, the private sector and academia in the Member Countries of Treaty for Amazon Cooperation collaborated to address, in ten‐page papers, the question “Does sustainable tourism offer solutions for the protection of the Amazon rainforest?”Findings – The paper provides valuable information on the current state of tourism policy and practice in the Amazon Member Countries. It also articulates the challenges that attend the development of sustainable tourism as a mechanism for the protection of the Amazon.Practical...