Conservation Evidence: Evidence Data

Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Plough habitats One of four studies (of two experiments), from the USA, found that bird densities were higher on ploughed wetland areas, compared to unploughed areas. Three studies of a site comparison study from the UK found that few whimbrels nested on ploughed and re-seeded areas of heathland, but these areas were used for foraging in early spring. There were no differences in chick survival between birds that used ploughed and re-seeded heathland and those that did not. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F358https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F358Sun, 29 Jul 2012 17:05:56 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Create scrapes and pools in wetlands and wet grasslands Of six studies captured, four before-and after studies from the UK and North America found that the use of sites, or the breeding population of birds on sites, increased following the creation of ponds and scrapes or was higher in areas with ditch-fed ponds. A study from the USA found that dabbling ducks used newly-created ponds in large numbers, although other species preferred older ponds. Songbirds did not appear to be affected by pond-creation. A replicated site from the UK found that northern lapwing chicks foraged in newly created wet features and that chick condition was higher in sites with a large number of footdrains. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F359https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F359Sun, 29 Jul 2012 17:26:31 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Restore or create forests Thirteen of 15 studies from across the world found that bird communities in restored forests were similar to original forests or that species returned to restored sites, that species recovered significantly better than ats unrestored site, that species richness, diversity or abundances increased over time or that restoration techniques themselves improved over time. Nine of the studies found that some species did not return to restored sites, or were less common than in original forests. One study also found that overall territory density decreased over time and another found that territory densities were similar between sites planted with oak Quercus spp. saplings and unplanted sites. One study from the USA found that productivity of birds was similar in restored and natural forests. Another found that productivity was lower. A study from the USA found that fast-growing cottonwood forests less than ten years old held more territories and had higher diversity than similarly-aged oak forests. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F360https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F360Mon, 30 Jul 2012 16:58:06 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Restore or create grasslands Of 23 studies found, three from the USA, Canada and Iceland found that species richness on restored grassland sites was similar to remnant habitats or higher than unrestored sites. One replicated, randomised study from the USA found that bird diversity was lower on restored grassland sites compared to hayfields or pastures, whilst a small American study found that species richness declined at one of two fields restored to grassland from croplands. Three studies from the USA found that target species used restored grasslands. Two studies from the USA found that CRP fields held disproportionate proportions of total bird populations, or that local population trends were correlated with the amount of CRP land in the area. Six studies from the USA and UK found that the abundances or densities of some, or all, species were higher on restored sites compared to unrestored sites, or were comparable to natural habitats. Two studies found lower abundances of species on restored sites compared to unrestored sites, although the authors of one suggest that drought conditions may have confounded the results. Five studies from the USA found that at least some bird species in restored areas of grassland had higher productivities than birds in unrestored areas; similar or higher productivies than natural habitats; or had high enough productivities to sustain populations. Three studies found that productivities were lower in restored areas than unrestored, or that productivities on restored sites were too low to sustain populations. A replicated study from the USA found that older CRP fields held more nests, but fewer species than young fields. Two replicated American studies found no differences in species richness or abundances between CRP fields and riparian filter strips whether they were sown with warm- or cool-season grasses, whilst another found that more grassland specialist species were found on sites sown with non-native species. A replicated study from the USA found no difference in bird densities between sites seeded with redtop grass and those not seeded. A study from Iceland found that very few birds were found on restored sites, unless they were sown with Nootka lupin. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F361https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F361Tue, 31 Jul 2012 13:44:05 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Restore or create traditional water meadows Four out of five before-and-after studies, all from the UK, found that the number of waders and wildfowl on sites increased following the restoration of water meadows. One before-and-after study from Sweden found no increase in northern lapwing population following an increase in the area of managed meadows in the study area. This study also found that restored meadows were used less than expected by breeding lapwings. A before-and-after study from Sweden found that hatching success of northern lapwings were higher on meadows than on spring-sown crops. There were no differences between meadows and autumn-sown crops or grasslands. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F363https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F363Mon, 06 Aug 2012 12:51:09 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Restore or create shrubland Only one of the four studies captured investigated the effects of shrubland restoration in isolation. This small before-and-after study from the UK found that one or two pairs of northern lapwing bred on an area of restored moorland, whereas none had previously bred in the area. A study from the USA and one from the Azores found that populations of target species (gamebirds and seabirds) increased following shrubland restoration, amongst other interventions. A replicated study from the UK which did not distinguish between several interventions performed found a negative relationship between the combined intervention and the ratio of young-to-old grey partridges. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F364https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F364Mon, 06 Aug 2012 13:03:08 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Restore or create savannas We found no evidence for the effects of savanna restoration or creation on bird populations. 'No evidence' for an action means we have not yet found any studies that directly and quantitatively tested this action during our systematic journal and report searches. Therefore we have been unable to assess whether or not the action is effective or has any harmful impacts. Please get in touch if you know of such a study for this action.Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F365https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F365Mon, 06 Aug 2012 13:10:27 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Restore or create inland wetlands Of eleven studies captured, 11, from the mainland USA, Guam, Canada and Hawaii, found that birds used artificially restored or created wetlands. Two found that rates of use and species richness were similar or higher than on natural wetlands. One found that use rates were higher than on unrestored wetlands. Three studies from the USA and Puerto Rico found that restored wetlands held lower densities and fewer species of birds than natural wetlands. A replicated study from the USA found that least bittern productivity was similar in restored and natural wetlands. Two replicated studies examined wetland characteristics: one from the USA found that semi-permanent restored wetlands were used more than temporary or seasonal ones. A study from Hawaii found that larger restored wetlands were used more than smaller sites. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F366https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F366Mon, 06 Aug 2012 13:34:38 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Restore or create coastal and intertidal wetlands All six studies found, from the USA and UK, found that target bird species used restored or created wetlands. Two found that numbers and/or diversity were at least as high as in natural wetlands, one that numbers were higher than in unrestored sites. Three found that bird numbers on wetlands increased over time. Two studies from the UK found that songbirds and waders decreased following wetland restoration, whilst a study from the USA found that songbirds were more common on unrestored sites than restored wetlands. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F367https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F367Tue, 07 Aug 2012 13:15:07 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Restore or create kelp forestsA before-and-study in the USA found that the densities of five of the nine bird species analysed increased following kelp forest restoration. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F368https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F368Tue, 07 Aug 2012 13:39:18 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Restore or create lagoonsA before-and-after study in the UK found that large numbers of bird species used, and bred, in a newly-created lagoon. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F369https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F369Tue, 07 Aug 2012 13:47:37 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Revegetate gravel pits We found no evidence for the effects of gravel pit revegetation on bird populations. 'No evidence' for an action means we have not yet found any studies that directly and quantitatively tested this action during our systematic journal and report searches. Therefore we have been unable to assess whether or not the action is effective or has any harmful impacts. Please get in touch if you know of such a study for this action.Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F370https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F370Tue, 07 Aug 2012 13:49:46 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Remove or control predators to enhance bird populations and communities A meta-analysis and a systematic review both found that reproductive success increased with predator removal, but their exact findings differed. The meta-analysis found that post-breeding population size increased, whilst the systematic review found that this was true on mainlands, but not islands and that breeding populations also increased. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F371https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F371Tue, 07 Aug 2012 13:58:46 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Control avian predators on islands Out of 10 studies, six before-and-after studies from North America, Australia and Europe found that controlling avian predators led to increased population sizes, reduced mortality or increased reproductive success in seabirds on islands. The North American studies had several interventions, so increases could not be linked directly to predator control, and one found that increases were only at one of two sites studied. Two controlled studies in Europe found little evidence that crow control led to increased reproductive success in gamebirds or raptors on islands. A North American study found that, despite higher reproductive success, very few birds returned to the study site after predator removal. A study from North America found that an Atlantic puffin Fratercula arctica translocation programme, combined with the culling of predatory gulls, appeared to be successful. A study from the UK found that the number of common terns Sterna hirundo and black-headed gulls Larus ridibundus declined on gravel islands despite the attempted control of large gulls. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F372https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F372Tue, 07 Aug 2012 14:43:03 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Control mammalian predators on islandsThe assessment of the effectiveness of this intervention was based on a total of 33 studies across all species groups. See Background section below for links to the evidence for the control of mammalian predators on islands on specific species groups. A paired sites study from Finland and a literature review from the UK found increased bird species richness and abundance or population recoveries and recolonisations, following the control or eradication of mammalian predators. Predators removed included American mink Mustela vison, rats Rattus spp. pigs Sus scrofa, cats Felis catus, dogs Canis familiaris and grey fox Dusicyon griseus. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F373https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F373Tue, 07 Aug 2012 15:31:12 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Control mammalian predators on islands for wildfowlA before-and-after study from Alaska found that cackling geese Branta hutchinsii returned to a total of eight nesting islands between the 1970s and 1991, following the removal of Arctic foxes Alopex lugopus from the islands.Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F374https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F374Tue, 07 Aug 2012 15:47:51 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Control mammalian predators on islands for seabirds We found 16 before-and-after studies, one paired sites study and one literature review from around the world, all describing positive seabird responses to the removal or control of mammalian predators (mainly rats Rattus spp. and feral cats Felis catus) from islands. Of these 18 studies, seven found either large population increases or recolonisations following predator eradication or control. Two of these found only partial population increases or recolonisations: a study from Alaska. Twelve studies found increases in reproductive success and survival or decreases in predation and mortality following predator control. In one case there was also a small population increase. Rats and mice Mus musculus were controlled in twelve studies, mostly examining burrow-nesting seabirds; cats in eight, mostly on ground or cliff-nesting seabirds; and other species in two. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F375https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F375Tue, 07 Aug 2012 15:57:05 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Control mammalian predators on islands for gamebirdsA single replicated and controlled study on two Swedish islands found that four species of gamebirds had larger broods, and more females had chicks, when predators were controlled. Two of the species also showed population-level responses. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F376https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F376Tue, 07 Aug 2012 18:51:53 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Control mammalian predators on islands for railsTwo before-and-after studies from Australia and the Galapagos Islands found increases in survival or population density of rails on islands following the removal of feral pigs Sus scrofa. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F377https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F377Wed, 08 Aug 2012 13:42:59 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Control mammalian predators on islands for waders A controlled before-and-after study in New Zealand found that the Chatham Island oystercatcher Haematopus chathamensis population increased following the removal of feral cats Felis catus and other species. A second controlled before-and-after study in Alaska, USA, found small increases in black oystercatcher Haematopus bachmani breeding populations on two islands, but the overall population only increased on one, declining on the other. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F378https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F378Wed, 08 Aug 2012 13:46:45 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Control mammalian predators on islands for raptorsA study in Mauritius found that numbers of Mauritius kestrel Falco punctatus may have increased following the trapping of predators near nests. However, the authors do not provide any data to support this observation. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F379https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F379Wed, 08 Aug 2012 14:14:47 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Control mammalian predators on islands for pigeonsTwo before-and-after trials on Mauritius found that fewer pink pigeon Columba mayeri nests were predated and more chicks were fledged following systematic and intensive rat control. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F380https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F380Wed, 08 Aug 2012 14:19:04 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Control mammalian predators on islands for parrotsTwo before-and-after studies in New Zealand found reduced nest predation and successful recolonisation of an island following invasive mammal eradication or control. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F381https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F381Wed, 08 Aug 2012 14:38:19 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Control mammalian predators on islands for songbirds Two before-and-after trials in the Seychelles and Cook Islands describe population increases in magpie robins and monarch flycatchers following cat and rat control. A before-and-after study from New Zealand found that the population of South Island robins Petroica australis australis was almost identical before and after rat control. Two studies found higher reproductive success in monarch flycatchers and shrikes in areas with rodent control, compared to areas without control. However, this was climate dependent in shrikes. A before-and-after study from Hawaii found lower predation on artificial nests after intensive rodent control. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F382https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F382Wed, 08 Aug 2012 14:43:04 +0100Collected Evidence: Collected Evidence: Control invasive ants on islandsA replicated, randomised and controlled, before-and-after paired sites study in the USA found temporarily increased fledging success, but no decrease in injuries inflicted by Solenopsis geminata on wedge-tailed shearwaters Puffinus pacificus following ant control. However, there was no change in fledging success or injury rate on an island dominated by the big-headed ant Pheidole megacephala following its eradication, either on the experimental or control island. Collected Evidencehttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F383https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservationevidence.com%2Factions%2F383Wed, 08 Aug 2012 15:13:13 +0100