Key Topics in Conservation Biology 2

Following the much acclaimed success of the first volume of Key Topics in Conservation Biology, this entirely new second volume addresses an innovative array of key topics in contemporary conservation biology.  Written by an internationally renowned team of authors, Key Topics in Conservation Biology 2 adds to the still topical foundations laid in the first volume (published in 2007) by exploring a further 25 cutting-edge issues in modern biodiversity conservation, including controversial subjects such as setting conservation priorities, balancing the focus on species and ecosystems, and financial mechanisms to value biodiversity and pay for its conservation. Other chapters, setting the framework for conservation, address the sociology and philosophy of peoples’ relation with Nature and its impact on health, and such challenging practical issues as wildlife trade and conflict between people and carnivores. As a new development, this second volume of Key Topics includes chapters on major ecosystems, such as forests, islands and both fresh and marine waters, along with case studies of the conservation of major taxa: plants, butterflies, birds and mammals. A further selection of topics consider how to safeguard the future through monitoring, reserve planning, corridors and connectivity, together with approaches to reintroduction and re-wilding, along with managing wildlife disease. A final chapter, by the editors, synthesises thinking on the relationship between biodiversity conservation and human development. Each topic is explored by a team of top international experts, assembled to bring their own cross-cutting knowledge to a penetrating synthesis of the issues from both theoretical and practical perspectives. The interdisciplinary nature of biodiversity conservation is reflected throughout the book. Each essay examines the fundamental principles of the topic, the methodologies involved and, crucially, the human dimension. In this way, Key Topics in Conservation Biology 2, like its sister volume, Key Topics in Conservation Biology, embraces issues from cutting-edge ecological science to policy, environmental economics, governance, ethics, and the practical issues of implementation. Key Topics in Conservation Biology 2 will, like its sister volume, be a valuable resource in universities and colleges, government departments, and conservation agencies. It is aimed particularly at senior undergraduate and graduate students in conservation biology and wildlife management and wider ecological and environmental subjects, and those taking Masters degrees in any field relevant to conservation and the environment. Conservation practitioners, policy-makers, and the wider general public eager to understand more about important environmental issues will also find this book invaluable.

Table of Contents:
Contributors vii Preface xiii About the companion website xvii Part I The framework 1 1 Conservation priorities: identifying need, taking action and evaluating success 3 Andrew S. Pullin, William Sutherland, Toby Gardner, Valerie Kapos and John E. Fa 2 Levels of approach: on the appropriate scales for conservation interventions and planning 23 Jonathan E.M. Baillie, Dav id Raffa elli and Claudio Sillero-Zubiri 3 Five paradigms of collective action underlying the human dimension of conservation 42 Laurent Mermet, Katherine Homewood, Andrew Dobson and Raphaël Billé 4 Economic instruments for nature conservation 59 Christopher B. Barrett, Erwin H. Bulte, Paul Ferraro and Sven Wunder 5 Tackling unsustainable wildlife trade 74 Adam J. Dutton, Brian Gratwicke, Cameron Hepburn, Emilio A. Herrera and Dav id W. Macdonald 6 Leadership and listening: inspiration for conservation mission and advocacy 92 Andrew Gosler, Shonil Bhagwat, Stuart Harrop, Mark Bonta and Sonia Tidemann 7 The human dimension in addressing conflict with large carnivores 110 Amy Dickman, Silvio Marchini and Michael Manfredo 8 Citizen science and nature conservation 127 Jonathan Silvertown, Christina D. Buesching, Susan K. Jacobson and Tony Rebelo 9 Nature as a source of health and well-being: is this an ecosystem service that could pay for conserving biodiversity? 143 Joelene Hughes, Jules Pretty and Dav id W. Macdonald Part II Habitat case studies 161 10 Ocean conservation: current challenges and future opportunities 163 Alex D. Rogers, Dan Laffoley, Nick Polunin and Derek P. Tittensor 11 Lost in muddy waters: freshwater biodiversity 184 Nic Pacini, David M. Harper, Peter Henderson and Tom LeQuesne 12 Habitat case studies: islands 204 Carolyn King, Mark Lomolino, Gary Roemer and Brendan Godley 13 Conservation of tropical forests: maintaining ecological integrity and resilience 222 Owen T. Lewis, Robert M. Ewers, Margaret D. Lowman and Ya dvinder Malhi Part III Taxonomic case studies 237 14 A global perspective on conserving butterflies and moths and their habitats 239 Thomas Merckx, Blanca Huertas, Yves Basset and Jeremy Thomas 15 Bird conservation in tropical ecosystems: challenges and opportunities 258 Joseph A. Tobias, Çaðan H. Þekercioðlu and F. Hernan Vargas 16 Conserving large mammals: are they a special case? 277 David W. Macdonald, Luigi Boitani, Eric Dinerstein, HervE Fritz and Richard Wrangham 17 Plant conservation: the seeds of success 313 Timothy Wa lker, Stephen A. Harris and Kingsley W. Dixon Part IV Safeguarding the future 327 18 The ‘why’, ‘what’ and ‘how’ of monitoring for conservation 329 Julia P.G. Jones, Gregory P. Asner, Stuart H.M. Butchart and K. Ullas Karanth 19 Effective conservation depends upon understanding human behaviour 344 Freya A.V. St John, Aidan M. Keane and Eleanor J. Milner-Gulland 20 Designing effective solutions to conservation planning problems 362 Andrew T. Knight, Ana. S.L. Rodrigues, Niels Strange, Tom Tew and Kerrie A. Wilson 21 Biological corridors and connectivity 384 Samuel A. Cushman, Brad McRae, Frank Adriaensen, Paul Beier, Mark Shirley and Kathy Zeller 22 Righting past wrongs and ensuring the future: challenges and opportunities for effective reintroductions amidst a biodiversity crisis 405 Axel Moehrenschlager, Debra M. Shier, Tom P. Moorhouse and Mark R. Stanley Price 23 Rewilding 430 Chris Sandom, C. Josh Donlan, Jens-Christian Svenning and Dennis Hansen 24 Disease control 452 Peter D. Walsh Part V A synthesis 467 25 Elephants in the room: tough choices for a maturing discipline 469 David W. Macdonald and Katherine J. Willis Index 495

About the Author :
David W. Macdonald CBE FRSE is Professor of Wildlife Conservation at the University of Oxford. Founder and Director of Oxford’s Wildlife Conservation Research Unit (WildCRU), and a Fellow of Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford. In addition to his conservation research, he is heavily involved in the practice and policy of conservation, and is also known through his films and books on wildlife. Katherine J. Willis is the Tasso Leventis Professor of Biodiversity at the University of Oxford, Director of the Oxford Martin School Biodiversity Institute (BIO) in the Department of Zoology, and a Fellow of Merton College, Oxford. She is also an adjunct Professor in Biology at the University of Bergen, Norway. Her work within the Biodiversity Institute falls under three key research areas: biodiversity beyond protected areas; ecological and evolutionary processes responsible for biodiversity; and biodiversity technologies. She is also heavily involved in the development of smartphone and web-based decision support tools to facilitate the transfer of knowledge on biodiversity science and ecosystem services into conservation, management and policy.

Review :
“The synthesis chapter is one of the highlights of this valuable multidisciplinary contribution to the field of conservation biology and should be mandatory reading material for both students of conservation biology and policymakers.”  (Quarterly Review Biology, 1 March 2015) “The editors deserve credit for having assembled and coordinated such a rich and diverse group of authors and for having produced such an innovative and very useful work.”  (Biological Conservation, 1 January 2015) “This excellent documentation will help readers see the connection between several subdisciplines of biology.  Summing Up: Highly recommended.  Upper-division undergraduates and above.”  (Choice, 1 December 2013)