pinecone/core-2020-05-10-deduplication huggingface dataset:
Signal crayfish (Pacifastacus leniusculus) predation upon Atlantic\ud
salmon (Salmo salar) eggs.

1.The signal crayfish (Pacifastacus leniusculus) is a large, polytrophic crustacean which has invaded waterways across much of Europe. Crayfish prey on the eggs of several fish species and egg predation, especially by invasive crayfish, is cited as a likely cause of population decline and a serious concern for the conservation of some fish species including at least one salmonid.\ud
2.Numerically, crayfish populations may be dominated by small individuals, but most studies have investigated egg predation by large crayfish. Evidence for crayfish gaining access to buried fish eggs is equivocal.\ud
3.The ability of signal crayfish of a range of age groups (and hence, sizes) to prey on unburied and buried Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) eggs was investigated in laboratory experiments.\ud
4.Only Age 2+ and older crayfish (24–43 mm carapace length (CL)) significantly reduced egg survival in unburied egg experiments, although some evidence of egg predation was observed with Age 1+ crayfish (16–22 mm CL). Age 0+ crayfish (8–14 mm CL) did not prey on salmon eggs. No evidence of substantial excavations or predation upon buried eggs by crayfish of any size class was observed. Binomial logistic regression of egg survival against crayfish CL indicated that mean egg recovery fell below control levels when CL exceeded 16.3 mm.\ud
5.These results suggest that large signal crayfish are likely to pose the greatest threat to salmonid eggs, but that crayfish larger than 16.3 mm CL have the potential to prey on eggs.\ud
6.Further research is needed before manual removal or harvesting of signal crayfish are used as conservation measures for Atlantic salmon spawning areas in which signal crayfish occur. Restoration of high-quality salmonid spawning habitat might, however, help to prevent signal crayfish predation of salmonid eggs in addition to broader benefits for salmonid conservation.\u
Cetacean occurrence, habitat preferences and potential for cetacean-fishery interactions in Iberian Atlantic waters : results from cooperative research involving local stakeholders

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We wish to express our gratitude to all Galician and Portuguese fishers that took part in the survey for sharing their time and information with us. We would also like to acknowledge the support of the Galician Council for Rural and Marine Affairs (Consellería do Medio Rural e do Mar, Xunta de Galicia), namely the cooperation of the fisheries´ observers (Luis Pérez Miser, Francisco José López, Juan Chapela Portela, Felix Barreiro, Candido Aguiar Couto, José María García Rozamontes, José Manuel Garrido Vispo, José Manuel Pérez Veres, Javier García Romero, Juan González Pérez), the coordinators (Ricardo Arnaiz Ibarrondo, Francisco Filgueira Rodríguez) and the staff (Manuel García Tasende, Jorge Ribó Landín, José Manuel Campelos Álvarez) of the Technical Unit for Inshore Fisheries. Furthermore, we would like to thank Baltasar Patiño and Gersom Costas for provision of background information and logistical support, and Juan Santos and Edward Morgan, for assisting with the interviewing. Interviews in Galicia were carried out in the framework of the project ECOSUMMER (ECOsystem approach to Sustainable Managament of the Marine Environment and its living Resource) with EU funding (projects MEXC-CT-2006-042337 and MEST-CT-2005-020501). The interview survey in Portugal was conducted under the SafeSea Project (Sustainable local fisheries and promotion of a safe sea for cetaceans) and supported by the EEA Grants programme (EEA Financial Mechanism 2004-2009). SG was also funded by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) and the Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT). MBS participation was part of the EU FP7 grant MYFISH (no. 289257) and the LOTOFPEL project (Plan Nacional de I + D + I, CTM 2010-16053). The Whalewatch Project was financed by the Xunta de Galicia (programme PEME I+D e I+D SUMA).Peer reviewedPostprin
Egg drift and hatching success in European river lamprey Lampetra\ud
fluviatilis : is egg deposition in gravel vital to spawning success?

1.The European river lamprey Lampetra fluviatilis (Linnaeus, 1758) is a threatened species, formerly widespread throughout western Europe, for which loss and degradation of habitat is one of the main causes of decline. As with other lamprey species, areas of gravel substrate with moderate flows are considered necessary for spawning and egg development of river lamprey.\ud
2.This study investigated the dispersal of river lamprey eggs downstream of a spawning area and the hatching success of eggs in the laboratory under a range of potential abiotic conditions (substrate type, water flow and dissolved oxygen level) which eggs could experience in nature.\ud
3.Lamprey eggs were found to drift for a minimum of 50 m downstream of spawning excavations, facilitating dispersal in riffle habitat and to bankside depositional zones. Under conditions mimicking natural microhabitats, but without predation, median egg hatching success was 85.0% in 'spawning habitat' conditions, but surprisingly, was 50.2% in 'larval habitat' conditions with natural silt.\ud
4.The study suggests that egg dispersal out of spawning excavations may be common in this species and demonstrates that habitat located downstream of spawning areas, even larval habitat characterized by fine sediment and moderate to low flow rates, could play an important role in larval recruitment. This suggests that even small areas of gravel or degraded spawning habitat may enable a higher degree of spawning success than has previously been assumed to be necessary for conservation or recolonization of this species.\u
Newly developed microsatellite markers for the pan-European duck mussel, Anodonta anatina: Revisiting the main mitochondrial lineages

Freshwater mussels of the family Unionidae are one of the most threatened groups worldwide and have suffered severe decline over recent decades. Although the freshwater duck mussel, Anodonta anatina (Linnaeus, 1758), is still widespread, this species has shown evidence of recent declines and is already protected in some European countries. Informed conservation efforts must take into account patterns in genetic diversity and phylogeography. In the present study, 20 newly developed polymorphic loci were described and tested in seven populations of A. anatina, belonging to three previously detected divergent mtDNA lineages. The genetic diversity patterns, within and among A. anatina populations, were evaluated to test their congruence with those lineages. A high genetic differentiation (F ST ) was found among all populations, with the exception of those in Central Europe (Germany) and the UK, which were not strongly structured. The present study confirms the division of the species into three evolutionarily significant units corresponding to the three previously detected mtDNA lineages, which should be managed independently. Furthermore, owing to the high differentiation among southern European populations, the establishment of distinct management units for the Guadalquivir, Guadiana and Douro populations in the Iberian Peninsula is also proposed.We would like to thank our collaborators who have
kindly provided us with tissue samples: Juergen
Geist, Katharina Stoeckl, and Irene Guarneri.
Financial support was provided by the Portuguese
Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT)
project PTDC/AAC-AMB/117688/2010. We
would like to thank Susana Lopes for help with
fragment analysis and acknowledge the assistance
of staff at Genoscreen for generation of 454
sequence reads and DNA sequencing. Official
capture and sampling licences were issued by
Junta de Castilla y León (Consejería de Fomento y Medio Ambiente EP/CYL/331/2012, de 17 de
Abril de 2012); Junta de Andalucia (Consejería de
Medio Ambiente- SGYB/FOA/AFR/SFS, de 17
de Julio de 2012); and Gobierno de Aragón
(Dirección General de Conservación del Medio
Natural- 136.071/2012 de 12 de Julio de 2012)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Monitoring deep Mediterranean rhodolith beds

1. The protocols available for sampling and monitoring shallow subtidal rhodolith beds (RBs) are inadequate for the deep Mediterranean analogues, and need calibration in order to attain comparable results.\ud
2. After reviewing the present knowledge of the peculiarities of Mediterranean RBs, and in the framework of the ongoing international effort for their conservation, a two-step approach is suggested for their definition, identification, delimitation, description, and monitoring.\ud
3. Regional mapping should be improved, and RBs should be identified and delimited as those areas of the sea floor with >10% cover of live rhodoliths over a minimum surface of 500 m2, on 1:10000 scale. More detailed scales (at least 1:1000) should be used for monitoring selected RBs, in order to detect significant changes through time.\ud
4. Beside location and areal extent, the description of RBs should include the occurrence of macroscopic sedimentary structures of the sea floor, thickness of live cover, mean percentage cover of live thalli and surface live/dead ratio, cover of dominant morphologies of rhodoliths (simplified on a ternary diagram), and volumetrically important calcareous algal species.\ud
5. For the purpose of assessment of the ecological status and the evaluation of human-induced impacts, quantitative data about community composition are required. The comparative assessment of ecological status and the identification of RBs of high conservation value for special protection should consider the natural geographic and seasonal/annual variability of RBs
Harbour seal (Phoca vitulina) abundance within the Firth of Tay and Eden Estuary, Scotland : recent trends and extrapolation to extinction

Aerial surveys were funded by SNH and NERC.1. Aerial surveys have detected alarming declines in counts of harbour seals in several regions across Scotland. 2. Demographic data and simple models were used to examine the recent decline in the numbers of harbour seals counted in one population within a Special Area of Conservation (SAC) on the east coast of Scotland. The models suggest that the continuation of current trends would result in the species effectively disappearing from this area within the next 20 years. 3. While the cause of the decline is unknown, it must be reducing adult survival because the high rate of decline cannot be wholly accounted for by changes in other demographic parameters. 4. Recovery of the population to the abundance recorded at the time the SAC was designated (2005) is likely to take at least 40 years, even if the cause of the decline is immediately identified and removed. 5. The models suggest that partial removal of the cause can have only limited benefits to population recovery, and there are unlikely to be any long-term benefits from introducing or reintroducing additional individuals while the underlying problem persists. Therefore, if the population of harbour seals in this area is to recover it is essential that the sources of the increased mortality are identified and measures are put in place to manage these.PostprintPeer reviewe
Site-fidelity and movement patterns of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) in central Argentina : essential information for effective conservation

1. The effectiveness of conservation measures such as marine protected areas (MPAs)
for the conservation of cetaceans is determined by how well their home range or
critical habitat is covered. The present study seeks to provide information on the
site-fidelity and movement patterns of individual bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops
truncatus) in central Argentina.
2. Between 2007 and 2013, photo-identification data of bottlenose dolphins were
collected in four study sites some 90–200 km apart from each other along the central
Argentinean coast.
3. Results show long-term site-fidelity (over 5 years) in one of the study areas. Resighting
rates further suggest the existence of different sub-populations of
bottlenose dolphins, but also confirm some connectivity (with movements over 200–
290 km) and thus potential for gene flow within the region.
4. Considering the population declines of bottlenose dolphins in Argentina, information
on site-fidelity and movement patterns will be of value to improve the effectiveness
of existing MPAs for the conservation of the species as well as prioritizing areas for
increased research.Cetacean Society International, Trigon NV, Fundación Marybio, Fundación Cethus and Whale and Dolphin Conservation.http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/(ISSN)1099-07552018-02-28hb2017Mammal Research Institut
A review of climate change and the implementation of marine biodiversity legislation in the United Kingdom

1. Marine legislation, the key means by which the conservation of marine biodiversity is achieved, has been developing since the 1960s. In recent decades, an increasing focus on ‘holistic’ policy development is evident, compared with earlier ‘piecemeal’ sectoral approaches. Important marine legislative tools being used in the United Kingdom, and internationally, include the designation of marine protected areas and the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) with its aim of meeting ‘Good Environmental Status’ (GES) for European seas by 2020. 2. There is growing evidence of climate change impacts on marine biodiversity, which may compromise the effectiveness of any legislation intended to promote sustainable marine resource management. 3. A review of key marine biodiversity legislation relevant to the UK shows climate change was not considered in the drafting of much early legislation. Despite the huge increase in knowledge of climate change impacts in recent decades, legislation is still limited in how it takes these impacts into account. There is scope, however, to account for climate change in implementing much of the legislation through (a) existing references to environmental variability; (b) review cycles; and (c) secondary legislation and complementary policy development. 4. For legislation relating to marine protected areas (e.g. the EC Habitats and Birds Directives), climate change has generally not been considered in the site-designation process, or for ongoing management, with the exception of the Marine (Scotland) Act. Given that changing environmental conditions (e.g. rising temperatures and ocean acidification) directly affect the habitats and species that sites are designated for, how this legislation is used to protect marine biodiversity in a changing climate requires further consideration. 5. Accounting for climate change impacts on marine biodiversity in the development and implementation of legislation is vital to enable timely, adaptive management responses. Marine modelling can play an important role in informing management decisions
Integrating ecosystem services into conservation strategies for freshwater and marine habitats: a review

Over the last two decades, there has been increasing public and political recognition of society's dependency upon natural habitat complexity and ecological processes to sustain provision of crucial ecosystem services, ranging from supplying potable water through to climate regulation. How has the ecosystem-services perspective been integrated into strategies for aquatic habitat conservation?
Literature on conservation of diverse freshwater and marine habitats was reviewed to assess the extent to which past and current strategies specifically targeted ecosystem services, and considered ecosystem functions, potential trade-offs and social issues when formulating protection measures for conserving aquatic habitats.
Surprisingly few published examples exist where comprehensive assessment of ecosystem services supported development of conservation plans. Seldom were aquatic habitat conservation objectives framed in terms of balancing trade-offs, assessing social values and evaluating suites of ecosystem services under different strategies. Time frames for achieving these objectives were also rarely specified. There was no evidence for fundamental differences between marine and freshwater habitats with respect to their ecosystem services that should be considered when setting targets for their conservation.
When an ecosystem-service perspective is used for setting objectives in aquatic habitat conservation, the following actions are recommended: (1) explicitly listing and evaluating full suites of ecosystem services to be conserved; (2) identifying current and future potential trade-offs arising from conservation; (3) specifying time frames within which particular strategies might protect or enhance desired services; and (4) predicting how different proposed strategies might affect each ecosystem function, service flow and public benefit.
This approach will help ensure that less-apparent ecosystem services (e.g. regulating, supporting) and their associated ecosystem functions receive adequate recognition and protection in aquatic conservation of freshwater and marine habitats. However, conservation objectives should not focus solely on protecting or enhancing ecosystem services but complement current strategies targeting biodiversity and other conservation goals.Peer Reviewe
Genetic population structure of harbour seals in the United Kingdom and neighbouring waters

Natural Environment Research Council (GrantNumber(s): SMRU1001; Grant recipient(s): Ailsa Hall)1.  In the United Kingdom (UK), several harbour seal (Phoca vitulina) populations have been declining over the past decade. In order to understand the effect of these changes in abundance, this study seeks to determine the population structure of harbour seals in the UK, and in Scotland in particular, on a wider and finer spatial scale than has previously been reported. 2.  Harbour seals were genotyped from 18 different localities throughout the UK and neighbouring localities in mainland Europe, at 12 microsatellite loci. Results from Bayesian and frequency based tests of population structure suggested an initial structural division into two main groups consisting of localities in northern UK and southern UK-mainland Europe, respectively. 3.  These two clusters were further divided into four geographically distinct genetic clusters. 4.  An overall agreement between the genetic results and the existing management areas for UK harbour seals was observed, but it is also clear that an adaptive management approach should be adopted, in which the delineation of the current management areas is maintained until further genetic and ecological information has been accumulated and analysed.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe
Harbour seals (Phoca vitulina) around an operational tidal turbine in Strangford Narrows : no barrier effect but small changes in transit behaviour

Funding: NERC Marine Renewable Energy Knowledge Exchange Programme (Contract 4060038637) and NERC grant SMRU1001.1. Data were obtained from 32 electronic tags that were glued to the fur of harbour seals (Phoca vitulina) in and around Strangford Lough, Northern Ireland, during the environmental monitoring of the SeaGen tidal turbine. 2. This study provides the first detailed information on the behaviour of marine mammals close to a commercial-scale tidal energy device. The turbine did not prevent transit of the animals through the channel and therefore did not result in a ‘barrier’ effect. 3. However, the animals' behaviour did change when the turbine was operating, demonstrating the importance of allowing for behavioural responses when estimating collision risks associated with tidal turbines. 4. Tagged animals passed the location of the device more frequently during slack water than when the current was running. In 2010 the frequency of transits by tagged seals reduced by 20% (95% CI: 10–50%) when the turbine was on, relative to when it was off. This effect was stronger when considering daylight hours only with a reduction of transit rate of 57% (95% CI: 25–64%). Seals tagged during the operational period transited approximately 250 m either side of the turbine suggesting some degree of local avoidance compared with the pre-installation results. 5. The results presented here have implications for monitoring and managing the potential interactions between tidal turbines and marine wildlife. Principally that the design of telemetry studies for measuring change in response to developments should seek to understand and take into account variability in seal behaviour. 6. This study only looked at the effects of a single turbine rather than an array, and mitigation limited the ability to determine close range interactions. However, the study indicates that the effect of the turbine on Strangford Lough harbour seals was minor and that collision risk was reduced by the behaviour of the seals.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe
Is current floodplain management a cause for concern for fish and bird conservation in Bangladesh’s largest wetland?

Worldwide, water regulatory structures have impacts on aquatic ecological connectivity. This study determined the effects of current sluice management on the fish community in the Baral River, a major connection to the largest wetland (Chalan Beel) in Bangladesh. It also examines wider problems for biodiversity conservation (particularly waterbirds) in that wetland, which has shrunk to 30% of its former dry-season size in 50 years.\ud
During the flood period, the peak breeding time for native floodplain fishes, sluices were in undershot operation (open by 16–60% of water depth). During this time, fish abundance and species richness were 229% and 155% higher respectively at sites upstream of the sluices, despite similar habitat upstream and downstream. Outside this period, when sluices were fully open, abundance and species richness were similar upstream and downstream.\ud
Fish samples were dominated by fry, which are susceptible to damage by sluices. Twenty (41.7%) of 48 fish species captured in this study are classed as threatened in Bangladesh and their abundance was significantly lower downstream of the sluices. Two alien species, Aristichthys nobilis and Hypophthalmichthys molitrix, were recorded, probably escapees from local aquaculture activities.\ud
Twenty-five species of wetland birds were recorded in the Chalan Beel. From interviews, 64% of these species appear to have decreased in the last 20 years, together with 11 more species that may have become locally extinct over this period. This suggests that widespread ecological disruption is occurring.\ud
Improved water management (e.g. gate opening height and duration) or modification (e.g. fish pass) of the Baral sluices is needed, to meet biodiversity and fisheries needs, rather than just for flood control and crop production. Improved hydrological and ecological connectivity and habitat protection are needed, as are a cessation of destructive fishing and seasonal fish ranching practices that currently provide synergistic pressures