Articles by Alex Taylor - Page 5

Two new studies have set out the ideal conditions for giraffes to be translocated to new areas for conservation purposes. Groups should contain at least 30 females and at least 3 males to ensure long-term survival, and on-going monitoring and management is vital.

An innovative new technique has been developed to survey for animal species. Scientists have used environmental DNA shed by animals in water to provide a snapshot of the local mammal community.

An alternative method for monitoring Asiatic lions using whisker patterns and body markings to identify individual lions has been demonstrated. This could lead to improved population estimates and help inform conservation policy.

Scientists have used innovative ways to track female loggerhead turtles. The data reveals that return to the same nesting beaches to lay eggs year after year, therefore, these key locations should be a focus for conservation efforts.

Natural habitats are being converted to agriculture or urban landscapes all too rapidly. A ground-breaking study has shown that it will be small invertebrate predators that will be most affected by this.

In 2017, Hurricane Irma offered scientists the chance to study the impact of a severe weather event on white-tailed deer. They discovered that the deer changed their movement rate and their habitat selection, thus are able to alter their behaviour in order to survive.

Using the most comprehensive dataset on the ‘human footprint,’ which maps the accumulated impact of human activities on the land’s surface, researchers have documented intense human pressures across the range of a staggering 20,529 terrestrial vertebrate species.

Australia’s devastating drought is having a critical impact on the iconic platypus. With increasing reports of rivers drying up and platypuses becoming stranded, it is feared that local populations are declining rapidly.

A new study on how animal communication is affected by deforestation shows that male howler monkeys howl for longer in forest interiors and natural forest edges than at man-made forest edges. This is because there are fewer resources at these edges and has implications for conservation.