Conservation Science

A group of students from the University of Maine-Machias made a bittersweet discovery this week. They found an Asian shore crab on Great Wass Island in Beals, the northernmost point where the crab has been sighted. The excitement of their discovery was tinged with disappointment, however, because the Asian shore crab is an invasive species that threatens Maine’s coastal ecosystem.

New NOAA-led research on tagged humpback whales in Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary reveals a variety of previously unknown feeding techniques along the seafloor. Rather than a single bottom feeding behavior, the whales show three distinct feeding approaches: simple side-rolls, side-roll inversions, and repetitive scooping.

Songbirds comprise a large amount of biodiversity in any ecosystem and in any habitat. They're also important indicators of changes to that habitat. But many songbird species migrate hundreds or thousands of miles, creating a challenge for scientists who are eager to learn more about these extraordinary creatures.

The morning air smells of balsam and wet duff as Adrienne Leppold sets out on a narrow trail to check the mist nets she set up before dawn to capture birds in a patch of forest in Orono. A great-crested flycatcher cries “wheep, WHEEP,” one of a dozen or so species calling and singing in the trees. Leppold doesn’t pause, however, to scan the branches. She makes a beeline for the nets, followed by three students she’s teaching the precise and delicate art of banding birds.

Lewis’s interests focus on a group of plants called bryophytes, which don’t have the conventional vascular tissue that transports water in most plants. The most commonly recognized member of the group is the mosses, which Lewis has studied in the far reaches of the Alaskan wilderness and the Chilean sub-Antarctic mountains.

By 1982, the number of California condors in the wild had dwindled to 22, an entire species nearly wiped out by, among other threats, lead poisoning from hunters’ ammunition. Though it was difficult to know for sure at the time because few condor carcasses were retrieved, researchers concluded that the big scavengers — whose wingspans can reach nine feet or more — were consuming lead fragments in the carrion that makes up their diet and rapidly dying off.

Conservation programs are usually voluntary in nature. Yet, most ignore the perceptions and preferences of the target demographic. Working with social pychologist Mike Sorice at VA Tech University and others, Advanced Conservation Strategies publishes a new article on approaches to increasing participation in incentive programs for biodiversity conservation. This landowner-centered approach focuses on understanding landowners preferences and incentives in relation to biodiversity conservation.

The morning air smells of balsam and wet duff as Adrienne Leppold sets out on a narrow trail to check the mist nets she set up before dawn to capture birds in a patch of forest in Orono. A great-crested flycatcher cries “wheep, WHEEP,” one of a dozen or so species calling and singing in the trees. Leppold doesn’t pause, however, to scan the branches. She makes a beeline for the nets, followed by three students she’s teaching the precise and delicate art of banding birds.

NatureServe today announced that Healy Hamilton, Ph.D., has accepted the position of vice president for conservation science and chief scientist, starting on November 4, 2013.