Ashcroft, MB, Gollan, JR & Ramp, D 2014, 'Creating vegetation density profiles for a diverse range of ecological habitats using terrestrial laser scanning', METHODS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION, vol. 5, no. 3, pp. 263-272.
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Vegetation structure is an important determinant of species habitats and diversity. It is often represented by simple metrics, such as canopy cover, height and leaf area index, which do not fully capture three-dimensional variations in density. Terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) is a technology that can better capture vegetation structure, but methods developed to process scans have been biased towards forestry applications. The aim of this study was to develop a methodology for processing TLS data to produce vegetation density profiles across a broader range of habitats. We performed low-resolution and medium-resolution TLS scans using a Leica C5 Scanstation at four locations within eight sites near Wollongong, NSW, Australia (34·38-34·41°S, 150·84-150·91°E). The raw point clouds were converted to density profiles using a method that corrected for uneven ground surfaces, varying point density due to beam divergence and occlusion, the non-vertical nature of most beams and for beams that passed through gaps in the vegetation without generating a point. Density profiles were evaluated against visual estimates from three independent observers using coarse height classes (e.g. 5-10 m). TLS produced density profiles that captured the three-dimensional vegetation structure. Although sites were selected to differ in structure, each was relatively homogeneous, yet we still found a high spatial variation in density profiles. There was also large variation between observers, with the RMS error of the three observers relative to the TLS varying from 16·2% to 32·1%. Part of this error appeared to be due to misjudging the height of vegetation, which caused an overestimation in one height class and an underestimation in another. Our method for generating density profiles using TLS can capture three-dimensional vegetation structure in a manner that is more detailed and less subjective than traditional methods. The method can be applied to a broad range of habitats - not...
Bekoff, M & Ramp, D 2014, 'Cruel to be kind?', NEW SCIENTIST, vol. 222, no. 2974, pp. 26-27.
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Ben-Ami, D, Boom, K, Boronyak, L, Townend, C, Ramp, D, Croft, DB & Bekoff, M 2014, 'The welfare ethics of the commercial killing of free-ranging kangaroos: an evaluation of the benefits and costs of the industry', ANIMAL WELFARE, vol. 23, no. 1, pp. 1-10.
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The commercial killing of kangaroos provides multiple benefits to society, but also causes both deliberate and unintended harms to kangaroos. The ethics of the kangaroo industry is assessed in terms of whether the assumed benefits justify the welfare costs. An analysis of the stated benefits indicates that killing for damage mitigation is beneficial mainly during drought and not at current levels; that there is a commercial value, although considerably lower than previously estimated, and that demonstrable environmental benefits from commercial killing of kangaroos are lacking; and that the commercial kill may ameliorate the suffering of kangaroos during drought. Welfare practices are very difficult to assess and regulate due to the size and remote nature of the industry. A combination of empirical data on welfare outcomes and inferences drawn from behavioural and reproductive knowledge of the commercially killed species are utilised to assess harm. The welfare costs include deliberate and indirect harm to dependent young (a by-product of the commercial kill), and a number of unintended harms to adult kangaroos, including increased mortality during drought, inhumane killing of a portion of adult kangaroos, and a disruption of social stability and the evolutionary potential of individuals. Furthermore, a substantial gap exists between the intended welfare standards of the code of practice governing the kangaroo industry and the welfare outcomes for both dependent young and adult kangaroos. We found that, on balance, the benefits are lower than expected and the welfare costs are likely to be considerably higher than acceptable. More research, particularly at the point of kill, is necessary to verify and assess the extent of harms. A number of improvements are suggested to the code of practice to improve welfare outcomes. © 2014 Universities Federation for Animal Welfare.
Bino, G, Ramp, D & Kingsford, RT 2014, 'Identifying minimal sets of survey techniques for multi-species monitoring across landscapes: an approach utilising species distribution models', INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF GEOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION SCIENCE, vol. 28, no. 8, pp. 1674-1708.
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Monitoring for species occupancy is often carried out at local scales, reflecting specific targets, available logistics, and funding. Problematically, conservation planning and management operate at broader scales and use information inventories with good scale coverage. Translating information between local and landscape scales is commonly treated in an ad hoc manner, but conservation decision-making can benefit from quantifying spatial-knowledge relationships. Fauna occupancy monitoring, in particular, suffers from this issue of scale, as there are many different survey methods employed for different purposes. Rather than ignoring how informative these methods are when predicting regional distributions, we describe a statistical approach that identifies survey combinations that provide the greatest additive value in mammal detection across different scales. We identified minimal sets of survey methods for 53 terrestrial mammal species across a large area in Australia (New South Wales (NSW), 800,000 km2) and for each of the 18 bioregions it encompasses. Utility of survey methods varied considerably at a landscape scale. Unplanned opportunistic sightings were the single largest source of species information (35%). The utility of other survey methods varied spatially; some were retained in minimal sets for many bioregions, while others were spatially restricted or unimportant. Predator scats, Elliot and pitfall trapping, spotlighting, and diurnal herpetofauna surveys were the most frequently included survey methods at a landscape scale. Use of our approach can guide identification of efficient combinations of survey methods, maximising detection and returns for monitoring. Findings and methodologies are easily transferable and are globally applicable across any taxa. They provide guidelines for managing scarce resources for regional monitoring programs, and improving regional strategic conservation planning. © 2014 © 2014 Taylor & Francis.
Brandis, KJ, Koeltzow, N, Ryall, S & Ramp, D 2014, 'Assessing the use of camera traps to measure reproductive success in Straw-necked Ibis breeding colonies', Australian Field Ornithology, vol. 31, no. 2, pp. 99-106.
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Nest monitoring may influence reproductive success and rates of predation. This study compared data from two methods of monitoring nests- repeated visits to nests by investigators and collection of data by camera traps-in Straw-necked Ibis Threskiornis spinicollis breeding colonies in the Murrumbidgee catchment in New South Wales. There was no significant difference in reproductive success between nests monitored by these two methods. These data show that (1) nest monitoring using camera traps is a valid survey method that reduces the need for investigators to engage in intensive and costly monitoring in the field, and (2) there was no detectable interference from repeated visits to nests by investigators on the reproductive success of ibis.
Driscoll, DA, Catford, JA, Barney, JN, Hulme, PE, Inderjit, Martin, TG, Pauchard, A, Pysek, P, Richardson, DM, Riley, S & Visser, V 2014, 'New pasture plants intensify invasive species risk', PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, vol. 111, no. 46, pp. 16622-16627.
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Gollan, JR, Ramp, D & Ashcroft, MB 2014, 'Assessing the Distribution and Protection Status of Two Types of Cool Environment to Facilitate Their Conservation under Climate Change', CONSERVATION BIOLOGY, vol. 28, no. 2, pp. 456-466.
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Strategies to mitigate climate change can protect different types of cool environments. Two are receiving much attention: protection of ephemeral refuges (i.e., places with low maximum temperatures) and of stable refugia (i.e., places that are cool, have a stable environment, and are isolated). Problematically, they are often treated as equivalents. Careful delineation of their qualities is needed to prevent misdirected conservation initiatives; yet, no one has determined whether protecting one protects the other. We mapped both types of cool environments across a large (~3.4M ha) mixed-use landscape with a geographic information system and conducted a patch analysis to compare their spatial distributions; examine relations between land use and their size and shape; and assess their current protection status. With a modest, but arbitrary, threshold for demarcating both types of cool environments (i.e., values below the 0.025 quantile) there were 146,523 ha of ephemeral refuge (62,208 ha) and stable refugia (62,319 ha). Ephemeral refuges were generally aggregated at high elevation, and more refuge area occurred in protected areas (55,184 ha) than in unprotected areas (7,024 ha). In contrast, stable refugia were scattered across the landscape, and more stable-refugium area occurred on unprotected (40,135 ha) than on protected land (22,184 ha). Although sensitivity analysis showed that varying the thresholds that define cool environments affected outcomes, it also exposed the challenge of choosing a threshold for strategies to address climate change; there is no single value that is appropriate for all of biodiversity. The degree of overlap between ephemeral refuges and stable refugia revealed that targeting only the former for protection on currently unprotected land would capture ~17% of stable refugia. Targeting only stable refugia would capture ~54% of ephemeral refuges. Thus, targeting one type of cool environment did not fully protect the other. © 20...
Mirowski, P, Walker, JR & Abboud, A 2014, 'Más allá de la negación. El neoliberalismo, el cambio climático y la izquierda', Mientras Tanto, no. 121, pp. 25-34.
Riley, S & Li, G 2014, 'Internationalisation and Intercultural Skills: Using Role-Play Simulations to Build Bridges of Tolerance and Understanding', Macquarie Law Journal, vol. 13-14, pp. 127-147.
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Although the notion of internationalisation does not have a settled meaning, its main theme focuses on enriching ‘the international dimension’ of the higher education experience. Internationalisation traditionally includes promoting student mobility and embedding international elements in existing curriculum. Yet, in order to achieve true internationalisation, teachers also need to consider how students develop intercultural skills. The literature indicates that it may be difficult to implement learning strategies that achieve these outcomes. In an attempt to fill this gap, this paper evaluates a project that the authors undertook, which utilised role-play simulations in order to build bridges of tolerance and understanding amongst a diverse student cohort. The project reflected an integrative approach that incorporated international elements into the existing curriculum. It was conducted in two stages, commencing with a pilot exercise in an undergraduate law subject taught to business students and concluding with a workshop designed to shed light on some of the challenges underscored by the pilot exercise. In particular, the workshop explored findings that role-play simulations were an effective tool in encouraging students to engage with each other at a disciplinary and personal level, but somewhat less effective in facilitating meaningful intercultural exchange. Both the pilot project and the workshop highlight the need for teachers to build on their role as intercultural facilitators and to innovate and explore all students’ experiences of ‘internationalisation’. Moreover, while educational institutions consider internationalisation to be one of their strengths, more work needs to be done to assist teachers in developing and implementing internationalisation of the curriculum at the subject, course and program levels.
Slavich, E, Warton, DI, Ashcroft, MB, Gollan, JR & Ramp, D 2014, 'Topoclimate versus macroclimate: how does climate mapping methodology affect species distribution models and climate change projections?', DIVERSITY AND DISTRIBUTIONS, vol. 20, no. 8, pp. 952-963.
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Aim: We analyse how and why 'topoclimate' mapping methodologies improve on macroclimatic variables in modelling the distribution of biodiversity. Further, we consider the implications for climate change projections. Location: Greater Hunter Valley region (c. 60,000 km2), New South Wales, Australia. Methods: We fitted generalised linear models to 295 species of grasses and ferns at fine resolutions (< 50 m2) using (a) macroclimatic variables, interpolated from weather station data using altitude and location only, (b) topoclimatic variables, interpolated from field measurements using additional climate-forcing factors such as topography and canopy cover, and (c) both topoclimatic and macroclimatic variables. We conducted community-level analyses and examined the reasons for differences through single-species analyses. We projected species distributions under 0-3° warming, comparing biodiversity loss predicted by topoclimate and macroclimate variables. Results: At the community level, the topoclimatic variables explained significant variation (p < 0.002) in the distribution of both ferns and grasses not explained by macroclimatic variables, resulting in increases of 0.036-0.061 in the pseudo R-squared. Topoclimate performed better (as determined by AIC) than macroclimate for grass species living in cold extremes under topoclimate and most fern species. Models using topoclimatic temperature variables projected different locations of biodiversity loss/retention and in general projected substantially fewer species becoming critically endangered in the study region than models using macroclimatic temperature variables - in one scenario, topoclimate projected 10% of species becoming critically endangered where macroclimate projected 28%. Main Conclusions: How climate variables are constructed has a significant effect on species distribution models and any subsequent climate change predictions. Misleading conclusions may result from models based on fine-resolut...
