Reintroduction of Top-Order Predators

Reintroduction of Top-Order Predators
Author: Matt W. Hayward
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Total Pages: 480
Release: 2009-05-06
Genre: Nature
ISBN: 1444312022

Large predators are among the most threatened species on the planet and ways of conserving them in the face of increasing human populations and associated resource requirements are becoming critical. This book draws upon the experiences of some of the world’s foremost large carnivore specialists to discuss the numerous issues associated reintroducing large predators back into their natural habitats. Reviews of internationally renowned reintroduction programs for wolves, European lynx and African wild dog reveal the successes and failures of these actions. Experts on tigers, snow leopards and jaguars contend that there are other conservation options of higher priority that will ensure their security in the long-term. Other experts discuss more theoretical aspects such as whether we know enough about these species to be able to predict their behavioural or ecological response to the reintroduction process. Social, economic, political and genetic considerations are also addressed.

Ignoring Nature No More

Ignoring Nature No More
Author: Marc Bekoff
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Total Pages: 450
Release: 2013-06-01
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0226925331

For far too long humans have been ignoring nature. As the most dominant, overproducing, overconsuming, big-brained, big-footed, arrogant, and invasive species ever known, we are wrecking the planet at an unprecedented rate. And while science is important to our understanding of the impact we have on our environment, it alone does not hold the answers to the current crisis, nor does it get people to act. In Ignoring Nature No More, Marc Bekoff and a host of renowned contributors argue that we need a new mind-set about nature, one that centers on empathy, compassion, and being proactive. This collection of diverse essays is the first book devoted to compassionate conservation, a growing global movement that translates discussions and concerns about the well-being of individuals, species, populations, and ecosystems into action. Written by leading scholars in a host of disciplines, including biology, psychology, sociology, social work, economics, political science, and philosophy, as well as by locals doing fieldwork in their own countries, the essays combine the most creative aspects of the current science of animal conservation with analyses of important psychological and sociocultural issues that encourage or vex stewardship. The contributors tackle topics including the costs and benefits of conservation, behavioral biology, media coverage of animal welfare, conservation psychology, and scales of conservation from the local to the global. Taken together, the essays make a strong case for why we must replace our habits of domination and exploitation with compassionate conservation if we are to make the world a better place for nonhuman and human animals alike.

Philosophy and Biodiversity

Philosophy and Biodiversity
Author: Markku Oksanen
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 278
Release: 2004-09-06
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1139455494

This important collection focuses on the nature and importance of biodiversity. The concept is clarified and its intrinsic and instrumental value are discussed. Even though the term biodiversity was invented in the 1980s to promote the cause of species conservation, discussions on biological diversity go back to Plato. There are many controversies surrounding biodiversity and a few of them are examined here: What is worthy of protection or restoration and what is the acceptable level of costs? Is it permissible to kill sentient animals to promote native populations? Can species be reintroduced if they have disappeared a long time ago? How should the responsibilities for biodiversity be shared? This book will be of interest to philosophers of science and biologists, but also to anyone interested in conservation and the environment.

Beavers

Beavers
Author: Frank Rosell
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 512
Release: 2022-01-07
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0192571990

Beavers are represented by two extant species, the Eurasian beaver (Castor fiber) and the North American beaver (Castor canadensis); each has played a significant role in human history and dominated wetland ecology in the northern hemisphere. Their behaviour and ecology both fascinate and perhaps even infuriate, but seemingly never fail to amaze. Both species have followed similar histories from relentless persecution to the verge of extinction (largely through hunting), followed by their subsequent recovery and active restoration which is viewed by many as a major conservation success story. Beavers have now been reintroduced throughout Europe and North America, demonstrating that their role as a keystone engineer is now widely recognised with proven abilities to increase the complexity and biodiversity of freshwater ecosystems. What animals other than humans can simultaneously act as engineers, forest workers, carpenters, masons, creators of habitats, and nature managers? Over the last 20 years, there has been a huge increase in the number of scientific papers published on these remarkable creatures, and an authoritative synthesis is now timely. This accessible text goes beyond their natural history to describe the impacts on humans, conflict mitigation, animal husbandry, management, and conservation. Beavers: Ecology, Behaviour, Conservation, and Management is an accessible reference for a broad audience of professional academics (especially carnivore and mammalian biologists), researchers and graduate students, governmental and non-governmental wildlife bodies, and amateur natural historians intrigued by these wild animals and the extraordinary processes of nature they exemplify.

The Eurasian Beaver

The Eurasian Beaver
Author: Róisín Campbell-Palmer
Publisher: Pelagic Publishing Ltd
Total Pages: 62
Release: 2015-01-19
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1784270407

The Eurasian beaver was near extinction at the start of the twentieth century, hunted across Europe for its fur, meat and castoreum. But now the beaver is on the brink of a comeback, with wild beaver populations, licensed and unlicensed, emerging all over Britain.

The Eurasian Beaver

The Eurasian Beaver
Author: Roisin Campbell-Palmer
Publisher: Pelagic Publishing Ltd
Total Pages: 112
Release: 2015-01-19
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1784270350

The Eurasian beaver was near extinction at the start of the twentieth century, hunted across Europe for its fur, meat and castoreum. But now the beaver is on the brink of a comeback, with wild beaver populations, licensed and unlicensed, emerging all over Britain. As a keystone species, the beaver plays a vital role in the creation of sustainable wetland habitats through its damming activities, providing living opportunities for a broad spectrum of wildlife. Yet as proposals for reintroducing beavers are underway, re-establishing the beaver in Britain is still a controversial issue. This book presents a case for our future coexistence with beavers by providing factual information on this species that has now passed from national memory, covering the biology, behaviour and ecology of the Eurasian beaver in a British context, from their early history in archaeology and folklore to their contemporary field signs in the wild. This book familiarises readers once again, after almost 400 years of its absence, with the Eurasian beaver, providing essential information on its requirements in our human dominated landscape. This book is for those with a specific interest in beavers and their reintroduction, and for anyone with a general curiosity in natural history, ecology or animal behaviour. It can be used as a field guide to identify beaver field signs and observe beavers in the wild by wildlife surveyors or general land users, or as an introductory guide for anyone with an interest in beavers and how to recognise them. The authors have been actively involved in the study of beaver ecology, behaviour and reintroduction for many years. They have a first-hand knowledge of beavers in captivity and in the wild in both Britain and a range of other European countries.

Beaver Protection, Management, and Utilization in Europe and North America

Beaver Protection, Management, and Utilization in Europe and North America
Author: Peter E. Busher
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 184
Release: 2012-12-06
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1461547814

By the end of the 19th century both beaver species had been extirpated from large portions of their native ranges. The global decline in beaver populations was the direct re sult of exploitation by humans. Now, at the end of the 20th century, protection, manage ment, and reintroduction programs, coupled with a decline in the demand for beaver fur and other products, have allowed beaver populations to increase dramatically. Since bea vers actively modify their local environment their activities can conflict with human land use. Because of this, the beaver, once considered a unique and exotic component of wet lands, is now often considered a nuisance species. The history, as well as the current status, of beaver populations in Europe and North America provide insight into how con servation programs work, and into how humans and wildlife interact. The initial plenary lecture of the Euro-American Mammal Congress (July, 1998) was presented by Dr. Michael L. Rosenzweig, a professor at the University of Arizona. Dr. Rosenzweig discussed how humans have used and continue to use natural resources, in cluding wildlife and wildland. He provided evidence indicating that the current model of reservation conservation could not provide a long-term solution to the human-wild life/wildland conflict. Dr. Rosenzweig emphasized that what is required is a move away from purely exploitive activities (I would call this exploitive ecology) and the develop ment of a reconciliation ecology with wildlife.

Biodiversity Conservation: A Very Short Introduction

Biodiversity Conservation: A Very Short Introduction
Author: David W. Macdonald
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 241
Release: 2023-06-27
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0191024694

Very Short Introductions: Brilliant, Sharp, Inspiring Extinction is a natural process. In geological time there have been several periods of mass extinction. One of these periods is unfolding right now but all the evidence suggests that current extinction rates are between a hundred and a thousand times greater than the background rate. To put this in to context, a quarter of all known mammalian species is at risk. The current extinction crisis is unique, because it is caused by the impact of one species, humans, on all others. This acceleration of species loss, and the much more widespread reductions in the populations of many species, is not merely a tragedy in aesthetics, it is also a threat to the quality of human life, indeed to the entire human enterprise. Biodiversity, the diversity of life, is not only fascinating and beautiful, it is the engine of all the world's natural cycles, and the source of many of the resources on which humanity depends. Concern about biodiversity conservation is, therefore, not merely the preoccupation of a few enthusiastic naturalists - it is the lifeline business of everybody. In this Very Short Introduction, David Macdonald introduces the concept of biodiversity and the basic biological processes that it involves - evolutionary, ecological, and behavioral. He considers the various threats to biodiversity, their impacts, and some of the solutions to the problems; concluding by considering the future of biodiversity conservation. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.