Wetlands play a critical role in maintaining the global climate, regulating the hydrological cycle, and protecting human health. However, they are rapidly disappearing due to human activities. ...Waterbirds are valuable bio-indicators of wetland health, but it is challenging to monitor them effectively. Wireless Multimedia Sensor Networks (WMSNs) offer a promising technology for monitoring wetlands. Nonetheless, these networks are constrained in terms of energy, and also encounter challenges associated with large-scale deployments under natural environmental conditions. These conditions introduce harsh circumstances that may not have been anticipated during the pre-deployment testing phase. This paper proposes a Digital Twin (DT) based energy-efficient WMSN monitoring system specifically tailored for waterbirds in wetlands. The system utilizes a unique approach that combines local audio identification and image compression with DT technology to optimize network performance and minimize energy consumption. To reduce unnecessary image transmissions, the system employs a real-time, low-complexity local audio identification phase before triggering image capture. A denoising step is employed to achieve highly accurate bird recognition despite surrounding noises. Each image undergoes a low-complexity compression scheme prior to transmission, further enhancing energy efficiency. To enhance the system’s overall efficiency and effectiveness, DT technology is integrated to create real-time replicas of the WMSN and the monitoring application. A synergistic interaction between the two DTs enables cooperative data-making decision that ensures both QoS (Quality of Service) and QoE (Quality of Experience) requirements are met. Transmission rate control is done using a fuzzy logic decision-making technique. Real-time feedback provides rapid and accurate analysis of the current state of the WMSN, allowing for dynamic adjustments. The ”what-if scenarios” feature of the implemented DTs has been effectively leveraged to find the most suitable settings for the controller. The effectiveness and performance enhancements achieved by integrating DT into our WMSN-based surveillance system are validated through comprehensive experiments in scenarios that correspond to a real-world wetland. Comparative analyses demonstrate the undeniable benefits of the DT-integrated system compared to a conventional WMSN-based surveillance setup. In particular, the results demonstrate the system’s superior performance in terms of energy efficiency, real-time monitoring capabilities, and ability to handle multiple video sources.
•Migratory waterbirds are a good indicator of the natural environment.•WMSN are proposed for continuous non-invasive monitoring of birds in their natural habitat.•Conventional WMSN lack optimized energy and struggle with unpredictable conditions in natural environments.•Audio identification prior to image capture is used to achieve significant energy savings.•Digital Twin is leveraged to enable real-time control and system optimization.
Migratory waterbirds disperse a broad range of angiosperms by endozoochory (seed dispersal via gut passage), especially plants in coastal wetlands. However, there is no previous information about the ...capacity of seeds to remain in the seed bank after waterbird endozoochory, and very little about how wetland salinity can influence the effect of gut passage on germination. We collected seeds of Juncus subulatus (Juncaceae), Bolboschoenus maritimus , and Schoenoplectus litoralis (Cyperaceae) from Doñana marshes in Spain. All three species are considered to have physiological dormancy. After gut passage following ingestion by ducks, seeds were stored in darkness in solutions with six different conductivities (1, 2, 4, 8, 16, and 32 dSm -1 ), for periods of 1, 6, or 12 months to simulate presence in a seed bank. After storage, 1800 seeds of each plant species assigned to these treatments were subjected to germination tests in demineralized water, together with 1800 control seeds that had not been ingested before storage. All species germinated readily after storage, with or without gut passage beforehand. Storage time and salinity both had important effects on germinability and time to germination, which differed between control and ingested seeds, and between plant species. After ≥6 months, germinability of Cyperaceae was enhanced by gut passage (≤25% higher than control seeds) at some salinities. Only J. subulatus showed consistently lower germinability after passage (≤30%). Only B. maritimus showed consistently slower germination after passage (≤33%). Salinity effects were more complex after passage, but increasing salinity did not generally have a negative impact on germination of ingested seeds. When compared to additional seeds that had not been stored before germination tests, storage reduced germinability in J. subulatus (≤39% reduction), but increased it in B. maritimus (≤17%) and S. litoralis (≤46%). Seeds dispersed by waterbird endozoochory may be easily incorporated into wetland seed banks, where they can remain halotolerant and delay germination until conditions become suitable. This can benefit wetland plants by increasing rates of long-distance dispersal, gene flow, and establishment of new populations. Avian gut passage can have positive and species-specific effects on germination in plants with persistent seed banks and/or physiological dormancy.
Seabirds are vital, but overlooked, components of coastal marine ecosystems and may connect the marine and terrestrial environment at a global scale, significantly contributing to inter-habitat ...connectivity and the provision of multiple ecosystem services. Although the ecological and functional role of birds in terrestrial areas, islands in particular, has been deeply studied since the last century, the same does not hold true for coastal marine areas. Given the importance of coastal areas for seabirds worldwide and, at the same time, the high vulnerability of both, looking into the role of seabirds in influencing the ecosystem functioning in coastal areas is needed nowadays. Here, we review the current knowledge regarding the role of seabirds on coastal ecological processes giving particular emphasis on the linkage between the seabird functions that are crucial in influencing the ecological processes and the provision of ecosystem services, and disservices, for the human well-being. Seabirds can contribute to shaping coastal ecological processes and services in a multitude of ways, among which directly influencing trophic status, environmental contamination, biodiversity and food webs through trophic (bottom-up or top-down) and non-trophic processes. We identified areas for future research to further clarify this linkage and promote seabird conservation.
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•Seabirds contribute to inter-habitat connectivity at global scale.•Seabird influence on coastal systems is overlooked compared to terrestrial systems.•Seabirds greatly influence ecological processes and functioning of recipient systems.•Seabird functions influence the provision of many ecosystem services.•More studies are needed to improve the knowledge in this field.
Every research endeavour must start with closing the information gap about species distribution and biodiversity systematically. Even though enough avifaunal research has been done on the Gulf of ...Mannar, southeastern India, there have been limited studies about the avifauna from all 21 islands except two. Increasing species occurrence data on distribution from all the islands is highlighted for the future conservation plans for this Important Bird Area. We provide an updated and detailed checklist and distribution of bird groups for all islands individually from a sampling period of 2015–2022. A total of 96 bird species belonging to 34 families from 13 orders were recorded from all the islands; of which 58 species were waterbirds and other terrestrial ones. Of the 29 shorebird species recorded, one is Endangered and seven are Near Threatened by IUCN Red List. Some of the earlier recorded species, not seen in our survey, are not annotated as no record exists for the last decade.
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•The habitat function of waterbirds in Yancheng coastal wetlands is measured scientifically.•The effect mechanism of functional assessment indicators on waterbirds are analyzed.•The ...countermeasures for key node restoration of waterbirds habitat in Yancheng coastal wetlands are put forward.
In recent years, due to human activities and global climate change, the number and area of waterbird habitats in Yancheng coastal wetlands, a newly established world natural heritage site, have been shrinking, the function of the waterbird habitats has been degraded to varying degrees, and the safety of waterbird populations and habitats has been threatened. Therefore, in this study, waterbird habitat functions at the regional scale were assessed by using spatial principal component analysis (SPCA). According to the load matrix of principal components and the Redundancy analysis (RDA) method, the driving force of habitat function change and the mechanisms of their effects on waterbird guilds and diversity were revealed. The results showed that the areas of the highest and high habitat function grades continued to decline from 1987 to 2019, and the areas of the lowest and low grades of habitat function continued to increase. The overall habitat functions in the waterbird distribution areas were high, but the functional grades within different habitat sites were obviously decreasing. The main driving factors affecting habitat function change in Yancheng coastal wetlands from 1987 to 2019 were habitat types, habitat area, habitat diversity, habitat fragmentation, number of residential areas and reclamation intensity. The effects of these driving factors on the population diversity and distribution of waterbird guilds were different. Finally, countermeasures and suggestions for the functional maintenance and key node restoration of waterbird habitats in Yancheng coastal wetlands were proposed.
Rivers and their interdependent human communities form social-ecologically complex systems that reflect basin scale functionally but are often governed by spatially mismatched governance systems. ...Accounting for this complexity requires flexible adaptive governance systems supported by legitimacy in decision-making processes. Meaningful community dialogue, information exchange, transparency, and scientific rigor are essential to this process. We examined failings in the adaptive governance of the Menindee Lakes system, a major Australian wetland system on the Barka/Darling River of the Murray-Darling Basin. Ecological sustainability of the Menindee Lakes was a casualty of a top-down governance, driven by the New South Wales Government in pursuit of “water savings” for the Murray-Darling Basin, a large scale, federally influenced region. We used quantitative and qualitative methods to analyze long-term social-ecological impacts and stakeholder perceptions of adaptive governance. State and federal government agencies failed basic processes of adaptive governance, ignoring local environmental sustainability in pursuit of basin scale objectives at great cost to governments, communities, humans, and non-humans. This resulted in the development of an ineffective, technocratic solution that lacked community input, leading to a complete loss of support by local communities, including traditional owners. We emphasize the importance of elements of scale in adaptive governance projects, if such projects are going to be effective and legitimate with consequences of coarse commitments to large spatial scale political and environmental objectives.
Concentrations of mercury (Hg) were examined in the blood of mute swans from rural breeding sites and urban wintering areas in southern parts of Poland, Europe. The birds were classified into three ...age groups: cygnets, juveniles and adults. To investigate the potential impact of Hg on birds, hematocrit (Ht), reduced glutathione (GSH) levels and morphometric measurements were taken. Using morphometric parameters, we stated that all mute swans sampled were in good condition. The mercury concentrations found were rather low and differed between birds from industrialized wintering areas and rural breeding areas (means 7 ng/mL and 2 ng/mL, respectively). We found no difference in Hg concentrations between the sexes, but concentrations varied significantly between age groups (cygnets 2 ng/mL, juveniles 7 ng/mL and adults 6 ng/mL). A similar trend was observed for hematocrit levels. GSH levels did not differ between any of the groups studied. We found no significant relationship between blood parameters (Ht, GSH) in relation to Hg concentrations. We conclude that the Hg concentrations in blood may be influenced by industrialization, season and age, but generally low concentration such as those found by us do not affect Ht and GSH levels.
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•Blood Hg concentrations found were generally low.•Blood parameters (Ht, GSH and Hg levels) did not differ in respect of sex.•Only levels of Ht and Hg differed according to age group (the lowest in cygnets).•No correlations were found between the blood parameters studied.
Variability of low mercury levels in blood of mute swans is linked to age and season factors, but it is unrelated to blood parameters and sex.
Tourism is a rapidly developing industry in ecologically sensitive remote areas, especially in developing countries. Although a lucrative livelihood alternative, it is often responsible for degrading ...the environment and stratifying the socio-economic setup, if not managed prudently. We assessed the impact of tourism on ecological integrity and local livelihood in wetlands of Changthang Wildlife Sanctuary (CWLS), Indian Trans-Himalaya. Change in behaviour of wetland birds was studied using flight initiation distance (FID) approach to understand the ecological sensitivity of CWLS. We evaluated livelihood contribution of tourism and attitude of local people towards tourism as a futuristic livelihood opportunity using questionnaire-based interviews and focus group discussions. Although traditional communities of CWLS see tourism as a livelihood opportunity; they are still sceptical about its effectiveness and indicated leakage of tourism benefits. People were also dubious about its impact on their socio-cultural and environmental structure. FID estimates have shown level of sensitivity among wetland birds towards presence of tourists. We recommend, site-specific FID based ‘minimum approach distances’ of most sensitive species for delineating buffers around wetlands to ensure no disturbance to waterbirds. Community managed nature-based tourism is suggested to maximise the tourism benefits to local people. Prototypical sustainable tourism activities should be endorsed in the region that can elicit advancement of local economy and efficacy of conservation efforts.
•Tourism a lucrative livelihood, if imprudently managed degrades socio-ecological set-up.•In CWLS, wetland-centric tourism is increasing socio-ecological vulnerabilities.•Locals doubt tourism sustainability owing to negative impacts and economic leakage.•FIDs of sensitive species may be used for delineating no activity buffer zones .•Community-led-nature-based tourism will be high-value low-impact model.
Conservation prioritization requires knowledge about organism distribution and density. This information is often inferred from models that estimate the probability of species occurrence rather than ...from models that estimate species abundance, because abundance data are harder to obtain and model. However, occurrence and abundance may not display similar patterns and therefore development of robust, scalable, abundance models is critical to ensuring that scarce conservation resources are applied where they can have the greatest benefits. Motivated by a dynamic land conservation program, we develop and assess a general method for modeling relative abundance using citizen science monitoring data. Weekly estimates of relative abundance and occurrence were compared for prioritizing times and locations of conservation actions for migratory waterbird species in California, USA. We found that abundance estimates consistently provided better rankings of observed counts than occurrence estimates. Additionally, the relationship between abundance and occurrence was nonlinear and varied by species and season. Across species, locations prioritized by occurrence models had only 10–58% overlap with locations prioritized by abundance models, highlighting that occurrence models will not typically identify the locations of highest abundance that are vital for conservation of populations.
Use of lead shot for hunting was banned under legislation on 26 Ramsar sites in Denmark from 1986, based on evidence of poisoning in waterbirds ingesting lead shot and high lead shot pellet densities ...in Danish wetland sediments caused by intensive hunting. To assess the fate of lead shot from hunting prior to 1986 and the degree to which such shot remains available to waterbirds, this study replicated the survey of shot pellet densities in substrates in Ringkøbing Fjord undertaken in the late 1970s. 287 shotgun pellets (282 lead, five steel) were recovered from 123 sediment samples at four locations, equivalent to a mean of 127 pellets m−2 in the top 20 cm of the sediment at the four locations, in certain hot spots equating to >250 kg lead ha−1, broadly similar to densities found in the 1970s. Possible explanations were given for the persistence of such high lead shot densities despite >30 years of regulation, during which time steel shot has been widely used as the alternative to lead. Field experiments showed that steel shot corroded in the marine environment, which likely contributes to lower steel shot densities found in this study. It is concluded that lead gunshot pellet dispersal and accumulation in natural ecosystems remains as a persistent and irreversible hazard to wildlife and ecosystems. Based on these Danish experiences, it is urgently recommended that international and national bodies in countries where hunting with lead shot continues recognise these results and act to prevent the accumulation of this toxic metal.
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•Lead shot was banned over Danish wetlands in 1986 to reduce poisoning of waterbirds.•Lead shot accessible to birds in resampled wetlands did not differ in 2019 to late 1970s.•Low settlement and corrosion rates of shot pellets explain pellet persistence in soils.•Replacement non-toxic steel shotgun pellets corrode and disappear.•Accumulated lead shot creates an enduring global toxic legacy.
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