scholarly journals A framework for the development of a global standardised marine taxon reference image database (SMarTaR-ID) to support image-based analyses

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kerry L. Howell ◽  
Jaime S. Davies ◽  
A. Louise Allcock ◽  
Andreia Braga-Henriques ◽  
Pål Buhl-Mortensen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Use ◽  
Image Data ◽  
Marine Species ◽  
Marine Ecology ◽  
Reference Image ◽  
Reference Standard ◽  
Quality Of Data ◽  
Common Reference ◽  
The North ◽  
Taxonomic Groups

AbstractVideo and image data are regularly used in the field of benthic ecology to document biodiversity. However, their use is subject to a number of challenges, principally the identification of taxa within the images without associated physical specimens. The challenge of applying traditional taxonomic keys to the identification of fauna from images has led to the development of personal, group, or institution level reference image catalogues of operational taxonomic units (OTUs) or morphospecies. Lack of standardisation among these reference catalogues has led to problems with observer bias and the inability to combine datasets across studies. In addition, lack of a common reference standard is stifling efforts in the application of artificial intelligence to taxon identification. Using the North Atlantic deep sea as a case study, we propose a database structure to facilitate standardisation of morphospecies image catalogues between research groups and support future use in multiple front-end applications. We also propose a framework for coordination of international efforts to develop reference guides for the identification of marine species from images. The proposed structure follows the Darwin Core standard to allow integration with existing databases. We suggest a management framework where high-level taxonomic groups are curated by a regional team, consisting of both end users and taxonomic experts. We identify a mechanism by which overall quality of data within a common reference guide could be raised over the next decade. Finally, we discuss the role of a common reference standard in advancing marine ecology and supporting sustainable use of this ecosystem.

scholarly journals Towards ecosystem-based management: identifying operational food-web indicators for marine ecosystems

2017 ◽  
Vol 74 (7) ◽  
pp. 2040-2052 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jamie C. Tam ◽  
Jason S. Link ◽  
Axel G. Rossberg ◽  
Stuart I. Rogers ◽  
Philip S. Levin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Web ◽  
Marine Ecosystem ◽  
Sustainable Use ◽  
Evaluation Criteria ◽  
Marine Ecosystems ◽  
Reference Points ◽  
Marine Ecology ◽  
Quality Of Data ◽  
Ecosystem Based Management ◽  
Selection Of

Abstract Modern approaches to Ecosystem-Based Management and sustainable use of marine resources must account for the myriad of pressures (interspecies, human and environmental) affecting marine ecosystems. The network of feeding interactions between co-existing species and populations (food webs) are an important aspect of all marine ecosystems and biodiversity. Here we describe and discuss a process to evaluate the selection of operational food-web indicators for use in evaluating marine ecosystem status. This process brought together experts in food-web ecology, marine ecology, and resource management, to identify available indicators that can be used to inform marine management. Standard evaluation criteria (availability and quality of data, conceptual basis, communicability, relevancy to management) were implemented to identify practical food-web indicators ready for operational use and indicators that hold promise for future use in policy and management. The major attributes of the final suite of operational food-web indicators were structure and functioning. Indicators that represent resilience of the marine ecosystem were less developed. Over 60 potential food-web indicators were evaluated and the final selection of operational food-web indicators includes: the primary production required to sustain a fishery, the productivity of seabirds (or charismatic megafauna), zooplankton indicators, primary productivity, integrated trophic indicators, and the biomass of trophic guilds. More efforts should be made to develop thresholds-based reference points for achieving Good Environmental Status. There is also a need for international collaborations to develop indicators that will facilitate management in marine ecosystems used by multiple countries.

scholarly journals Area-based Management ToolsDeveloping Regulatory Frameworks for Areas beyond National Jurisdiction

2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 142-157
Author(s):  
Robin Warner
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Use ◽  
Marine Species ◽  
Marine Biodiversity ◽  
Sargasso Sea ◽  
North East ◽  
The North ◽  
Regulatory Frameworks ◽  
National Jurisdiction ◽  
Marine Areas

The increasing intensity and impacts of human activities in the global oceans pose significant threats to the extensive repository of marine species, habitats and ecosystems in the vast marine areas beyond national jurisdiction (abnj). This article examines the scope of these threats and the role of area-based management mechanisms such as marine protected areas (mpas) in addressing those threats. It discusses the law and policy rationale for establishing mpas in abnj and some regional examples of mpa designation in the North East Atlantic, the Mediterranean, Antarctica and the Sargasso Sea. Finally, it reviews global initiatives in the United Nations to develop a more integrated and cross-sectoral framework for conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in abnj including the designation of a representative network of mpas in these largely neglected areas of the ocean.

scholarly journals Farmers’ and Herders’ Perceptions on Rangeland Management in Two Agroecological Zones of Benin

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 425
Author(s):  
Rodrigue Vivien Cao Diogo ◽  
Luc Hippolyte Dossa ◽  
Sèyi Fridaïus Ulrich Vanvanhossou ◽  
Badirou Dine Abdoulaye ◽  
Kossi Hélliot Dosseh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Natural Resources ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Sustainable Use ◽  
Negative Attitude ◽  
Rangeland Management ◽  
Mineral Fertilization ◽  
The North ◽  
Unused Land ◽  
Agroecological Zones ◽  
Sound Management

The sustainable use of rangelands in pastoral areas requires the inclusion of all stakeholders to develop sound management strategies. However, the role of these actors in the sustainable management of natural resources is still poorly understood. The present study aims to (i) assess the perception of farmers and herders of the risks and opportunities of transhumance on rangeland resource use and management, and to (ii) generate useful knowledge for the design and implementation of policies that favor the coexistence of these actors and reduce competition over rangeland resources use in Benin. To this end, interviews were conducted with 240 crop farmers and herders using a semi-structured questionnaire in two contrasting agroecological zones in the northern (Kandi) and the southern (Kétou) part of the country. Among the respondents, 64% of farmers in the North were agro-pastoralists (owning 10.6 ha of land and 10.7 cattle) and 36% were herders (keeping 45.8 cattle and cultivating about 3.7 ha of land). They perceived that communal rangelands were entirely degraded. In the South, 36% of respondents were agro-pastoralists (with 0.3 cattle and farming 4 ha of land) and 64% cattle herders (raising 45.3 cattle and farming 0.9 ha of land only). Of the herders, 50% kept cattle for more than 20 years, while agro-pastoralists had no previous experience in cattle herding. Cultivation practices among crop farmers, such as high use of mineral fertilization (23.8%) and bush fires for land clearing (22.5%), were reported in Kandi (North) and Kétou (South) as factors that might contribute to land degradation. However, these farmers perceived transhumance as a threat to the sustainable use of natural resources. In contrast, herders perceived transhumance as an opportunity to valorize unused land and increase the availability of manure to cropland. The prevalent negative attitude of crop farmers regarding transhumant herders increases the vulnerability of cattle herding in both regions. There is an urgent need of raising awareness concerning the mutual benefits provided by the coexistence of crop farmers with herders to promote participative rangeland management strategies. This may contribute towards coping with the current challenges of food insecurity and increasing climate variability as well as to reducing recurrent conflicts in the region.

scholarly journals Toward a global reference database of COI barcodes for marine zooplankton

2021 ◽  
Vol 168 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ann Bucklin ◽  
Katja T. C. A. Peijnenburg ◽  
Ksenia N. Kosobokova ◽  
Todd D. O’Brien ◽  
Leocadio Blanco-Bercial ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Species Diversity ◽  
Dna Sequences ◽  
Reference Sequence ◽  
Global Ocean ◽  
Reference Database ◽  
Data Repositories ◽  
Marine Zooplankton ◽  
The North ◽  
Coi Sequences ◽  
Taxonomic Groups

AbstractCharacterization of species diversity of zooplankton is key to understanding, assessing, and predicting the function and future of pelagic ecosystems throughout the global ocean. The marine zooplankton assemblage, including only metazoans, is highly diverse and taxonomically complex, with an estimated ~28,000 species of 41 major taxonomic groups. This review provides a comprehensive summary of DNA sequences for the barcode region of mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I (COI) for identified specimens. The foundation of this summary is the MetaZooGene Barcode Atlas and Database (MZGdb), a new open-access data and metadata portal that is linked to NCBI GenBank and BOLD data repositories. The MZGdb provides enhanced quality control and tools for assembling COI reference sequence databases that are specific to selected taxonomic groups and/or ocean regions, with associated metadata (e.g., collection georeferencing, verification of species identification, molecular protocols), and tools for statistical analysis, mapping, and visualization. To date, over 150,000 COI sequences for ~ 5600 described species of marine metazoan plankton (including holo- and meroplankton) are available via the MZGdb portal. This review uses the MZGdb as a resource for summaries of COI barcode data and metadata for important taxonomic groups of marine zooplankton and selected regions, including the North Atlantic, Arctic, North Pacific, and Southern Oceans. The MZGdb is designed to provide a foundation for analysis of species diversity of marine zooplankton based on DNA barcoding and metabarcoding for assessment of marine ecosystems and rapid detection of the impacts of climate change.

scholarly journals Recreational Harvest of Sharks and Rays in Western Australia Is Only a Minor Component of the Total Harvest

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (11) ◽  
pp. 6215
Author(s):  
Matias Braccini ◽  
Eva Lai ◽  
Karina Ryan ◽  
Stephen Taylor
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
Minor Component ◽  
The North ◽  
Commercial Harvest ◽  
Unknown Status ◽  
Reef Sharks ◽  
Conservation Concern ◽  
Taxonomic Groups ◽  
A Minor ◽  
Port Jackson

Sharks and rays are a global conservation concern with an increasing number of species considered at risk of extinction, mostly due to overfishing. Although the recreational harvest of sharks and rays is poorly documented and generally minimal, it can be comparable to the commercial harvest. In this study, we quantified the recreational harvest of sharks and rays in Western Australia, a region with a marine coastline greater than 20,000 km. A total of 33 species/taxonomic groups were identified, with the harvest dominated by dusky and bronze whalers, blacktip reef sharks, gummy sharks, Port Jackson sharks, wobbegongs, and rays and skates. Eighty-five percent of individuals were released with an unknown status (alive or dead). We found a latitudinal gradient of species composition, with tropical and subtropical species of the genus Carcharhinus dominating in the north and temperate species from a range of families dominating in the south. Overall, our findings showed that the recreational harvest was negligible when compared with commercial landings.

scholarly journals Spatiotemporal variation in size-structured populations using fishery data: an application to shortfin mako (Isurus oxyrinchus) in the Pacific Ocean

2017 ◽  
Vol 74 (11) ◽  
pp. 1765-1780 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mikihiko Kai ◽  
James T. Thorson ◽  
Kevin R. Piner ◽  
Mark N. Maunder
Keyword(s):  
Coastal Waters ◽  
Mixed Model ◽  
Linear Mixed Model ◽  
Marine Species ◽  
Structured Populations ◽  
Spatiotemporal Model ◽  
The North ◽  
Isurus Oxyrinchus ◽  
Shortfin Mako ◽  
Catch Rates

We develop a length-disaggregated, spatiotemporal, delta-generalized linear mixed model (GLMM) and apply the method to fishery-dependent catch rates of shortfin mako sharks (Isurus oxyrinchus) in the North Pacific. The spatiotemporal model may provide an improvement over conventional time-series and spatially stratified models by yielding more precise and biologically interpretable estimates of abundance. Including length data may provide additional information to better understand life history and habitat partitioning for marine species. Nominal catch rates were standardized using a GLMM framework with spatiotemporal and length composition data. The best-fitting model showed that most hotspots for “immature” shortfin mako occurred in the coastal waters of Japan, while hotspots for “subadult and adult” occurred in the offshore or coastal waters of Japan. We also found that size-specific catch rates provide an indication that there has been a recent increasing trend in stock abundance since 2008.

scholarly journals PEMODELAN BAWAH PERMUKAAN MANIFESTASI MINERAL DENGAN METODE GEOMAGNETIK DAERAH PACITAN JAWA TIMUR

KURVATEK ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-33
Author(s):  
Fatimah Fatimah
Keyword(s):  
Image Data ◽  
Geological Structure ◽  
Magnetic Data ◽  
Magnetic Intensity ◽  
Magmatic Arc ◽  
The North ◽  
Ore Minerals ◽  
Ore Mineralization ◽  
Extensional Structure ◽  
Anomaly Map

Tulakan Subdistrict, Pacitan Regency, East Java Province. This area is part of the Southern Mountain Zone of East Java, which is the Sunda-Banda magmatic arc of Oligo-Miocene age, where there are alterations and indications of valuable ore minerals. Field magnetic data is taken in an area of 1 x 1 km, with the looping method on the grid trajectory within 200 x 100 m. Then, magnetic data correction and data processing were carried out with Oasis Montaj. From the magnetic anomaly map, the value of high magnetic intensity in the southern part is fresh (intrusive) andesit-dasitic rock as host rock which causes alteration, in the middle has a low magnetic intensity value which is in the direction of the relatively NE-SW river direction, whereas in the north with high intensity is fresh andesite lava. From the image data, it can be seen that the straightness pattern of the geological structure which is dominated by the extensional structure with the direction of NE-SW and E-W is the main trap of epithermal veins carrying ore mineralization mainly Cu, Pb in the study area.

scholarly journals Effect of Extreme Weather Events on the Sedimentation of the Bay of Samaná, Dominican Republic (1900–2016)

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 56 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ramón A. Delanoy ◽  
Misael Díaz-Asencio ◽  
Rafael Méndez-Tejeda
Keyword(s):  
Accumulation Rate ◽  
Marine Species ◽  
Extreme Weather ◽  
Extreme Weather Events ◽  
Rainfall Regime ◽  
Mountainous Area ◽  
Mountain Range ◽  
The South ◽  
The North ◽  
Weather Events

The Bay of Samaná, formed by tectonism and sedimentation, is delimited to the north by the peninsula of the same name, to the south by the north slope of the Eastern Mountain Range and Los Haitises National Park, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, and to the west by the ancient Gran Estero, today the Lower Yuna. There follows a process of continuous degradation by the existing tectonic forces and the sediment contributions by the Yuna, Yabón, and La Yeguada rivers to the south as well as by the landslides of the mountainous area of the Samaná Peninsula, during periods of storms and hurricanes. The coastal area of Samaná Bay has altered by 2.17 km2 at the mouth of the Yuna River from 2003–2015. The high turbidity level has affected coral reefs and marine species.  The  mangroves  are  lost  faster  than  they  are  regenerated  by  the  coastline’s change. Variations in the elemental compositions of calcium and iron show the terrigenous influence on the dynamics of the bay during Extreme Weather Events (EWP) in the river basins that flow into it. Abrupt changes in the rainfall regime produced an equal change in the estuary sedimentation regime, according to the 210Pb. In the 2007–2016 period, a column of sediment that reached 38 cm and a 12 cm to 8.4 km column were deposited 4 km southeast of the municipality of Sánchez and east of the mouth of the Yuna River. The Sedimentary Accumulation Rate is very high, and the content of heavy metals exceeds the threshold values of Table SQuirt.

scholarly journals Distribution of birds in Colombia

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Danny Vélez ◽  
Edwin Tamayo ◽  
Fernando Ayerbe-Quiñones ◽  
Julián Torres ◽  
Juan Rey ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Species Richness ◽  
Land Use Planning ◽  
Scientific Information ◽  
Sustainable Use ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Geographic Information ◽  
Huge Number ◽  
Bird Species Richness ◽  
Taxonomic Groups

1. Colombia with 1941 known recorded bird species is one of the most species rich countries in the world. Efforts are necessary to conserve, study and promote sustainable use of this important taxonomic group throughout Colombia’s vast territory. 2. In an ideal world, informed decisions that are based on sound scientific information should be likelier to have successful outcomes. Nevertheless, there are barriers that make it difficult to access and use information in a timely fashion. Those same barriers impede the study, conservation and sustainable use of bird species in Colombia. On the other hand, given that there is good documentation about the ecology of a large number of species, information about the distribution of birds can be easily incorporated into decision-making processes, once this information becomes readily available in a consumable format using Geographic Information Sciences tools. 3. In this context, the main objective of this paper is to present the first compilation of the current distribution of 1889 (97%) species of birds in Colombia, using expert criteria. The shapefiles were used to show the distribution and diversity of bird species in Colombia under both geopolitical and conservation geographic units. 4. The information provided in this paper can be used as a baseline for a huge number of initiatives that aim to strengthen conservation efforts and improve knowledge about one the most unique taxonomic groups in the country. These range from land use planning strategies at the municipal or department scale to sustainable use of bird species - such as those initiatives related to bird watching - in Colombia. This study has considered three key aspects: 1) the importance of birds for Colombia’s ecosystems, 2) the privileged place of Colombia in bird species richness and 3) the importance of data mobilisation in formats easily consumable by Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to facilitate the processes of informed decision-making. We present the first compilation - in shapefile format - for 1889 of the 1941 bird species recorded from Colombia. Using this novel collection, we showed the species richness of birds in Colombia’s 33 Departments plus its Captial District (DPs), 1122 Municipalities (MNs), 58 protected areas (PAs), 39 Regional Autonomous Corporations (the authorities responsible within their respective jurisdictions for regulating the environment and renewable natural resources in Colombia; CARs) and 916 Collectively Titled Territories (including both indigenous reservations and afro-descendant communities; CTTs). In addition, we provide a list of known bird species richness for the above geographic units found in the available literature. The information provided here can be used as a baseline for a huge number of initiatives concerning the study, conservation and sustainable use of bird species present in Colombia, providing access to key features of bird distribution that should facilitate decision-making.

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