One shark, one global population? We recently highlighted the lack of population genetic studies within marine environments, and noted that the existing ones show exciting results about both barriers and corridors for dispersal. A new paper (open) investigated the global population structure of the blue shark (Prionace glauca). This species has a serious global oceanic…
Tag: Climate Change
What We’re Reading- Dec 15, 2017
Oyster Adaptation to Ocean Acidification Oceans are a large carbon sink, and one of the effects of climate change is that the oceans are becoming more acidic (see here for a description of how this happens). This changing environment presents a problem for marine species that must acclimate or adapt to living in a more…
What We’re Reading- June 16, 2017
Ectotherms and Climate Change Ectotherms regulate their body temperature using external heat sources; for example, turtles bask in the sun or on hot rocks to warm up, then retreat to the shade when they become over heated. Increasing temperatures due to climate change are expected to have physiological effects on animals and plants. Heat shock…
What We’re Reading- May 19, 2017
Genetic Diversity of Snow Leopards Snow leopards (Panthera uncia) are endemic to the Altai, Himalaya, and Tibetan uplifts and adapted to high-altitude environments. They are currently listed as an endangered species by IUCN. This new paper investigated genetic diversity of snow leopards across their range. They found that the cats have low genetic diversity in…
Is Krill the New Palm Oil?
For Earth Day 2016, I wrote about how growth of palm oil plantations has removed habitat for many tropical species, and that plantations are expanding globally as demand for cheap oil increases. But if demand for these cheap oils does not decrease, what other sources are available? Some consider krill oil a potential replacement or…
What We’re Reading: Jan 8, 2016
The Price of African Wildlife We hear a lot about the per kilogram cost of poached rhino horn and elephant ivory but less about the costs of legal trophy hunting. This Bloomberg Business article discusses both the prices ranchers and hunters will pay for buffalo and antelope. Unsurprisingly, males with large horns fetch a lot…
Let’s not forget the scaly, slimy and spineless on Threatened Species Day
September 7th marks the anniversary of a spectacular failure in Australian wildlife conservation. On this day in 1936, the last known thylacine, the largest marsupial carnivore and the only member of the family Thylacinidae, died in captivity in a Hobart zoo. Today, this day is recognised (I cannot bring myself to write “celebrated”) as Threatened…
What We’re Reading: April 17, 2015
Conservation Leadership Leaders have a number of common behaviors that have been studied from a management perspective. This opinion piece (open) discusses key themes for being a conservation leader. First, share a grand vision of desired conservation outcomes with staff; when staff buy-in to a vision, they will work towards the conservation goals of the…
An Australia Day post on Australian wildlife conservation
Today, 26th January, is Australia Day. This is Australia’s national holiday, marking the arrival on this day in 1788 of the British First Fleet at Port Jackson in New South Wales. Of course one might wonder whether the anniversary of the proclamation of British sovereignty over eastern Australia is an appropriate date to celebrate Australian unity and…
What we’re reading: Nov 21, 2014
Captive Breeding and Mate Choice Captive breeding is one conservation strategy both for species preservation but also for potential release of individuals into the wild for increasing population size and/or genetic diversity. This paper examined the breeding patterns of mice which were captively bred for three generations before being released with wild mice. The authors…
What we’re reading: Oct 17, 2014
Plants in a Prickle? Not When Carnivores are Near. Herbivores’ risk-avoidance behavior from predators and plants’ anti-herbivore defenses appear to interact to determine the distribution of trees in African savannas. Thorny trees were found to be abundant in low-risk areas for herbivores while poorly defended trees were more abundant in high-risk areas. Therefore, plants can…
What we’re reading- July 4, 2014
Two salamander species, one habitat, vastly different population structure Salamanders with similar ecological characteristics have different genetic structure in the same landscape. Highlights that similar species might respond differently to habitat change because of small life history differences. Watch out NYC rats, there’s a new predator in town! First time a fisher (Martes pennanti) is…
WildlifeSNPits 