Symposium: Equitable Governance of Migratory Species and their Habitats
A tale of two continents: Integrated approaches to inform collaborative conservation of migratory birds in North America and Europe
Author: Brady J. Mattsson, Institute of Wildlife Biology and Game Management,
Department of Integrative Biology and Biodiversity Research,
University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna
Abstract
Drivers of population dynamics in migratory birds are uncertain but likely linked to global change including shifts in climate and land cover being induced by humans. Changes in abundance of these species may, in turn, generate conflicts between conservation organizations and other interests including fisheries, hunting, and agriculture. These coupled human and natural systems span continents and pose enormous challenges for environmental policy and management.
Scientific and technological advances have led to modeling tools for predicting impacts from shifts in climate, land use, or both on migratory populations. Predicting such impacts alone, however, is often insufficient to inform conservation decisions. These choices must often take into account concerns of diverse stakeholders.
The field of collaborative decision analysis offers diverse tools that have been useful at the science-policy interface of wildlife management. These tools integrate predictions and value judgements for quantitative comparisons among decision options while accounting for tradeoffs among competing objectives. In the past three decades, investigators have applied decision analysis to inform decisions to conserve migratory birds in North America. Despite its demonstrated potential for informing real-world decisions, this approach has yet to become common practice in conserving migratory species on other continents.
I will highlight my research to address these scientific challenges related to conservation of migratory species in North America (waterfowl including northern pintail, Anas acuta) and Europe (raptors including red kite, Milvus milvus). I then present a synthesis and outlook on establishing integrated research approaches at the science-policy interface to inform collaborative conservation of migratory species.
Dynamic spatial subsidies
Author: Jendrik Windt, Institute of Wildlife Biology and Game Management,
Department of Integrative Biology and Biodiversity Research,
University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna
Abstract
Numerous migratory species have faced a decline in their population in recent years, particularly those that inhabit agricultural landscapes. These migratory species offer valuable ecosystem services that benefit economically people across their range. However, the knowledge of the extent and spatial distribution of these services at a regional level is often lacking. Quantifying the economic value of migratory species can help focus management actions and funding on the areas that provide the most benefits for species conservation and society.
The pintail (Anas acuta) is a dabbling duck species that breeds in grasslands. We estimate the economic value of hunting and birdwatching for this species in major breeding and wintering habitats used during its annual migration cycle in North America. We use published information on user expenditures and net economic value (consumer surplus) for recreational viewing and hunting.
We quantify the relationships between regional pintail abundance and the expenditure and consumer surplus for watching and hunting pintails in their primary breeding and wintering areas to predict changes in spatial subsidies associated with shifts in pintail abundance. We use various habitat scenarios to predict multiple population sizes. These variables impact the recreational economy and lead to changes in hunting, birding, and the associated economic flows. By combining local demographic and migratory predictions, we can estimate the dynamics in spatial subsidies for this species. This assessment could help to develop more effective conservation funding and policy mechanisms to improve environmental management and societal benefits in the geographically dispersed areas used by migratory species.