Influence of host migration between woodland and pasture on the population dynamics of the tick Ixodes ricinus: A modelling approach

ScienceDirect - Ecological Modelling : Influence of host migration between woodland and pasture on the population dynamics of the tick Ixodes ricinus: A modelling approach. The modelling of tick population dynamics is a prerequisite to simulating tick-borne diseases and the corresponding spread of the pathogen. We have developed a dynamic model to simulate changes in tick density at different stages (egg, larva, nymph and adult) under the influence of temperature. We have focused on the tick Ixodes ricinus, which is widespread in Europe.

Foraging decisions of bison for rapid energy gains can explain the relative risk to neighboring plants in complex swards

ESA Online Journals - Foraging decisions of bison for rapid energy gains can explain the relative risk to neighboring plants in complex swards: "Herbivores commonly base their foraging decisions not only on the intrinsic characteristics of plants, but also on the attributes of neighboring species. Although herbivores commonly orient their food choices toward the maximization of energy intake, the impact of such choices on neighboring plants remains largely unexplored. We evaluated whether foraging decisions by herbivores aiming at a rapid intake of digestible energy could explain multiple neighboring effects in complex swards"

ESA Online Journals - Simultaneous modeling of habitat suitability, occupancy, and relative abundance: African elephants in Zimbabwe

ESA Online Journals - Simultaneous modeling of habitat suitability, occupancy, and relative abundance: African elephants in Zimbabwe: "The recent development of statistical models such as dynamic site occupancy models provides the opportunity to address fairly complex management and conservation problems with relatively simple models. However, surprisingly few empirical studies have simultaneously modeled habitat suitability and occupancy status of organisms over large landscapes for management purposes. Joint modeling of these components is particularly important in the context of management of wild populations, as it provides a more coherent framework to investigate the population dynamics of organisms in space and time for the application of management decision tools."

Management of infectious wildlife diseases: bridging conventional and bioeconomic approaches

ESA Online Journals - Management of infectious wildlife diseases: bridging conventional and bioeconomic approaches: "The primary goal of disease ecology is to understand disease systems and then use this information to inform management. The purpose of this paper is to show that conventional disease ecology models are limited in their ability to inform management of systems that are already infected, and to show how such models can be integrated with economic decision models to improve upon management recommendations."

ScienceDirect - Biological Conservation : Triage for conserving populations of threatened species: The case of woodland caribou in Alberta

ScienceDirect - Biological Conservation : Triage for conserving populations of threatened species: The case of woodland caribou in Alberta "Prioritization of conservation efforts for threatened and endangered species has tended to focus on factors measuring the risk of extirpation rather than the probability of success and cost. Approaches such as triage are advisable when three main conditions are present: insufficient capacity exists to adequately treat all patients, patients are in a critical state and cannot wait until additional capacity becomes available, and patients differ in their likely outcome and/or the amount of treatment they require. "

ScienceDirect - Biological Conservation : Dynamic wildlife habitat models: Seasonal foods and mortality risk predict occupancy-abundance and habitat selection in grizzly bears

ScienceDirect - Biological Conservation : Dynamic wildlife habitat models: Seasonal foods and mortality risk predict occupancy-abundance and habitat selection in grizzly bears: "Most current wildlife habitat models, such as resource selection functions, typically assume a static environment, extrapolate poorly in space and time, and often lack linkages to population processes"

HOMINIDS: An agent-based spatial simulation model to evaluate behavioral patterns of early Pleistocene hominids

Scopus preview – Scopus - Ecological Modelling: HOMINIDS: An agent-based spatial simulation model to evaluate behavioral patterns of early Pleistocene hominids: "The HOMINIDS ABM is a new Agent Based Model that simulates the actions of two species of proto-human agents defined by a few, simple parameters. These proto-human agents attempt to subsist by foraging and nesting on dynamic, spatially explicit landscapes. The landscapes are described with a number of parameters based on empirical field data collected in habitats in East Africa. The results of three separate scenarios with 1 year model runs repeated 30 times each, for a total of 90 simulations, are presented and discussed to illustrate both the capacity and flexibility of our ABM modeling environment. The simulations show that the model food preferences and anatomy ascribed to Australopithecus boisei resulted in different expressions of foraging behaviors and subsistence strategies in two distinct ecological settings, and that adding tubers to the diet significantly increases the chances of the hominid agents meeting their daily caloric requirements year-round."

Modelling nutritional interactions: from individuals to communities

Scopus preview – Scopus - Trends in Ecology and Evolution: Modelling nutritional interactions: from individuals to communities: "Nutrient acquisition is a major context for ecological interactions among species but ecologists and nutritionists have developed theory in isolation from each other. Developments in agent-based modelling, state-space modelling of nutrition and multi-scale modelling of landscape ecology provide the components for a new synthesis in nutritional ecology linking the nutritional biology of individual organisms to population- and community-level processes across multiple scales within an evolutionary context. We review the core elements for such a synthesis and set out the principles for a generic modelling framework that could be used to test specific ecological hypotheses."

Modelling the effectiveness of contraception for controlling introduced populations of elephant in South Africa

Scopus preview – Scopus - African Journal of Ecology: Modelling the effectiveness of contraception for controlling introduced populations of elephant in South Africa: "Re-introduced African elephant (Loxodonta africana Blumenbach) populations are growing at very high rates in many of southern Africa's reserves, have attained densities higher than previously thought possible and may be exhibiting irruptive growth. Active management of such populations is necessary to prevent the potentially negative effects on habitat and biodiversity that are associated with elephant overpopulation. One potentially feasible method of elephant management is immunocontraception, but very little is known about the long-term effectiveness of this method. Using demographic data from three South African elephant populations, we made model projections of the effects of contraception on population growth rates to determine whether contraception may be a feasible management tool for elephant. In comparison with noncontracepted populations, realistic reductions in population growth rate after 20 years of contraception were projected to be up to c. 64%, with 50% being a very feasible target. Through its ability to reduce population growth rates, immunocontraception should be an effective tool for preventing or minimizing irruption in elephants and, perhaps, other introduced ungulate species."