Month: June 2021

Using Conservation Techniques to Stop Poaching of Wildlife

The following was a term paper written for my conservation biology class in collaboration with Hallie Draegert

Abstract:

It is a well-known fact that the human population is increasing in size. The growth of one population, the humans, tends to impact other populations negativity. In this case, the concern is the impact it has on wildlife populations. As long as wildlife and human populations coexist problems will arise.  These problems can occur in response to tension between local human communities and the attempts of organizations working to conserve native populations of animals. Often these organizations seem to forget that the local’s livelihoods depend on exploiting the local animals. This has led to the creation of conservation models that do not work because they did not consider the local politics.

One of the most common crimes committed is poaching. Poaching has led directly to the extinction of many species and induces stress, on currently stable species. This could make future extinction of the population an issue that needs to be addressed. Since poaching is a serious problem for highly stressed species, it is critical to work to prevent the crime. There are many current techniques used to reduce and combat poaching. However, the issue has not been fully resolved. This is likely because only a single model is in use at a time in an area.

geograph-6097299-by-Mike-Pennington
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The rainforest is teeming with dynamic relationships!

There are many dynamic relationships in the rainforests of the world. Which is expected as they are home to up to 40 percent of known plant and animal species. Within the forest there are a widely variety of symbiotic relationships, which means there are interactions between two species. For some species the relationship is beneficial for both parties, this is call mutualism. For example the Brazil nut trees (Bertholletia excelsa) produces a nut that is an only be cracked by a few species, one of which is various agouti (Dasyprocta sp.) which is a small rat like animal. The tree benefits as it’s seeds are dispersed and the agouti receives a free meal.

1142px-central_american_agouti_bp

Description
English: A Central American Agouti (Dasyprocta punctata) in Panama experimenting with a western diet.
Source BirdPhotos.com
Author Tomfriedel

In some cases one species is unaffected and the other benefits, this is commensalism. A example of this would be a frog sheltering itself from a storm event under the leaves of a plant. The plant is un effected but the frog benefits. Lastly, parasitism is when one species is harmed and the other benefits. Bot flies are a common tropical parasite that lay their eggs on a mammal host. The eggs then hatch and the larva develop in the skin of the host animal.

frog in rain

A frog in the rain in Belize. Image by Lauren Schramm

Competition is a symbiotic relationship in while two species use the same resources. Because it requires an energy investment both species are harmed, but the harm may be unequal. Many rainforest plants are animal pollinated or their seeds are dispersed by animals. Resource partitioning occurs when a resource is divided among species in some way like time or place. One way plants reduce their competition against each other is by targeting different animal groups. For example flowers pollinated by bats are often white making them easier to see at night, while flower pollinated by other animals are red, orange, and yellow. Bat pollinated flowers also contain a musky smells, while flower pollinated by moths, bees, and other insects have a strong fragrance. Plants also reduce competition by flowering and fruiting at different times. This is one reason there are always flowers and fruits available in the rainforest at any given time.

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Can remote sensing (drones) find harmful algae blooms?

A harmful aquatic algae bloom is when there is sudden a rapid growth of algae. In the past these were more commonly referred to as red tides. These populations of algae in term then produce extracellular compounds that can cause harm and even death to humans and wildlife and fish. Shellfish that are subjected to HABs cause humans to get sick. In rare cases people can even die. HABs most commonly occur in the oceans and large freshwater lakes, such as the Great Lakes.

Often HABs occurs due to nutrient runoff but it is important to understand these have been occurring for millions of years. There are fossilized HABs and fossils of whales found in a proximity and quality near the fossilized HABs that is is theorized the HABs resulted in the death of the whales. Climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of HABs so it is clear we need to develop tools to predict and mitigate risks with HABs.

I looked at research into using remote sensing to predict algal blooms of Karenia brevis in coastal Florida. This algal is responsible for the most red-tides in Florida. It produces a neurotoxin that kills aquatic life and makes shellfish toxic to humans. Researchers used a geographic information system (GIS) to develop a machine learning method to detect harmful algal blooms (HABs).

Karenia brevis Images source: Florida fish and wildlife resources department
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What lives in the bottom of lakes and streams in Cobb County Georgia- benthic organisms!

Benthic organisms are remarkably diverse and vary with habitat. They include protozoa (like amoebas), sponges, cnidarians, flatworms, nematodes, isopods, crayfish, amphipods, mollusks, gastropods, leaches and aquatic worms, pelecypods, insects, and fish. Benthic species I have observed in my area (Cobb County, Georgia) include the Asian Clam (Corbicula fluminea), larval brook salamanders (Eurycea sp.), common sunfishes (Lepomis sp.), the Chattahoochee Crayfish (Cambarus howardi), caddisfly larva (Order Trichoptera), damselflies and dragonflies larval (Order Megaloptera), mayfly larva (Order Ephemeroptera), dragonflies and damselfly larval (Order Odonata), aquatic worms (phylum Annelida), Eastern Dobsonfly larval (Corydalus cornutus), water snakes (Nerodia sp.), longjaw minnow (Ericymba amplamala), river Cooter (Pseudemys concinna), true bugs (Order Hemiptera), true flies larval (Order Diptera), beetles (Order Coleoptera) and stonefly larval (Order Plecoptera). It is worth noting some of these species may only occupy the benthos for a period.

Image of a Brook Salamander. Brook salamanders are a genus, Eurycea, image by Lauren Schramm

Image of a Brook Salamander. Brook salamanders are a genus, Eurycea, image by Lauren Schramm

In some streams, Asian clams, an invasive aquatic species, can be one of the largest components of the benthic invertebrate community (Poff et al.,1993), however this is not the case in all streams in Cobb County. Black et al. (2003) evaluated benthic macroinvertebrate populations of two local streams: Sope Creek and Rottenwood Creek. In Sope Creek they found Ephemeroptera and Diptera to be the dominant orders. In Rottenwood Creek they found Trichoptera and Diptera to be the dominant orders.

An Asian Clam (Corbicula fluminea). Image by Lauren Schramm.

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