Anthony Caravaggi

Background: Small mammals are vital to ecosystem health and serve as key indicators of environmental changes. Population trends in the UK for many species have remained largely undocumented, however, emphasizing the need for more effective monitoring tools. This study evaluates the efficacy of three camera trap designs for detecting small mammals: no-box camera traps (NCTs), open box camera traps (OCTs), and closed tube camera traps (TCTs). Methods: The study was conducted at Silent Valley Nature Reserve, South Wales, focusing on Fagus sylvatica woodland. The authors thank the reserve manager for providing verbal permission to access the site managed by the Gwent Wildlife Trust. Six baited survey stations, each equipped with one NCT, OCT, and TCT, were established in low-disturbance areas, placed approximately 5 m apart. Cameras recorded 15-second videos with a five minute trigger interval. Generalised additive models (GAMs) were used to assess temporal detection patterns, while hourly detection data and overlap metrics evaluated similarities between apparent activity patterns across trap types. Results: Mice ( i.e. , wood Apodemus sylvaticus and yellow-necked A. flavicollis mice; n = 827) and bank voles ( Myodes glareolus ; n = 454) were the most commonly detected species in 1,874 detections of small mammals across 57 camera trap days. Both boxed designs yielded more detections of focal species and fewer false triggers than NCTs. TCTs recorded greater number of focal species detections relative to total detections (79%; compared to 58% for OCTs and 14.8% for NCTs) and the fewest unidentified species (16, compared to 51 and 49 respectively). Vole and shrew activity patterns differed between boxed and NCT designs. There was evidence of differences in detection among box designs, with shrews being more frequently detected by TCTs ( n = 196), and voles more frequently detected by OCTs ( n = 273). Discussion: Boxed traps aided species identification but were affected by camera focal issues, which could be mitigated with low-cost adaptations. Our study highlights the need to consider focal species ecology when designing camera trap studies and provides a basis for the development of more effective small mammal surveys, survey methods and conservation tools.

Although variation in effect sizes and predicted values among studies of similar phenomena is inevitable, such variation far exceeds what might be produced by sampling error alone. One possible explanation for variation among results is differences among researchers in the decisions they make regarding statistical analyses. A growing array of studies has explored this analytical variability in different fields and has found substantial variability among results despite analysts having the same data and research question. Many of these studies have been in the social sciences, but one small “many analyst” study found similar variability in ecology. We expanded the scope of this prior work by implementing a large-scale empirical exploration of the variation in effect sizes and model predictions generated by the analytical decisions of different researchers in ecology and evolutionary biology. We used two unpublished datasets, one from evolutionary ecology (blue tit, Cyanistes caeruleus, to compare sibling number and nestling growth) and one from conservation ecology (Eucalyptus, to compare grass cover and tree seedling recruitment). The project leaders recruited 174 analyst teams, comprising 246 analysts, to investigate the answers to prespecified research questions. Analyses conducted by these teams yielded 141 usable effects (compatible with our meta-analyses and with all necessary information provided) for the blue tit dataset, and 85 usable effects for the Eucalyptus dataset. We found substantial heterogeneity among results for both datasets, although the patterns of variation differed between them. For the blue tit analyses, the average effect was convincingly negative, with less growth for nestlings living with more siblings, but there was near continuous variation in effect size from large negative effects to effects near zero, and even effects crossing the traditional threshold of statistical significance in the opposite direction. In contrast, the average relationship between grass cover and Eucalyptus seedling number was only slightly negative and not convincingly different from zero, and most effects ranged from weakly negative to weakly positive, with about a third of effects crossing the traditional threshold of significance in one direction or the other. However, there were also several striking outliers in the Eucalyptus dataset, with effects far from zero. For both datasets, we found substantial variation in the variable selection and random effects structures among analyses, as well as in the ratings of the analytical methods by peer reviewers, but we found no strong relationship between any of these and deviation from the meta-analytic mean. In other words, analyses with results that were far from the mean were no more or less likely to have dissimilar variable sets, use random effects in their models, or receive poor peer reviews than those analyses that found results that were close to the mean. The existence of substantial variability among analysis outcomes raises important questions about how ecologists and evolutionary biologists should interpret published results, and how they should conduct analyses in the future.

The degradation of the Cerrado ecoregion constitutes one of the greatest threats to mammals in Brazil. Effective conservation requires the identification of impacted species, particularly in unprotected areas. We report the species richness and composition of medium- and large-sized mammals in a Cerrado fragment in the state of Goiás, between July 2017 and August 2021. The sampling effort comprised 648 active search hours and 5,670 camera-trap-days. We recorded 32 species, among them, eight threatened. Rare species, such as Leopardus wiedii, were observed. Tapirus terrestris was the most frequent species (N = 34), and Carnivora was the most represented order (13 species). Species richness (36) was the highest recorded in Goiás in medium and large-sized mammal surveys. The recorded species, which include endangered and large predator species, are under anthropic pressure, requiring short-term and long-term conservation actions.

Reported strike events between wildlife and aircraft are hazardous to aircraft and airfield operations and are increasing globally. To develop effective mitigation strategies, the relative hazard a species poses to aircraft, as well as information relating to its life history, are key to the development of effective mitigation strategies in Wildlife Hazard Management Plans. However, given the complex nature of airfield environments with access restrictions and the presence of sensitive equipment, the collection of high‐quality ecological data can be difficult. Here we use motion‐activated camera traps to collect activity data on a population of Irish hares (Lepus timidus hibernicus) inhabiting the airfield at Dublin International Airport, to investigate the link between hare activity and aircraft activity in relation to hare strikes. Camera traps revealed that the hare population at the airfield largely displayed a bimodal crepuscular activity pattern, with activity peaking at sunrise and at sunset. Recorded hare strike times at the airfield were closely associated with hare activity times with a high temporal overlap between these datasets. In comparison, hare activity and aircraft movement activity had a moderate overlap across all seasons, with strikes peaking at times with low aircraft movements. We demonstrate the importance of understanding the circadian and seasonal activity patterns of hazardous species at airfields for targeted strike mitigation.

De Araujo et al. (Methods in Ecology and Evolution, 2021, https://doi.org/10.1111/2041‐210X.13516) described the development and application of a wire foot snare trap for the capture of jaguars Panthera onca and cougars Puma concolor. Snares are a commonly used and effective means of studying large carnivores. However, the article presented insufficient information to replicate the work and inadequate consideration and description of animal welfare considerations, thereby risking the perpetuation of poor standards of reporting. Appropriate animal welfare assessments are essential in studies that collect data from animals, especially those that use invasive techniques, and are key in assisting researchers to choose the most appropriate capture method. It is critical that authors detail all possible associated harms and benefits to support thorough review, including equipment composition, intervention processes, general body assessments, injuries (i.e. cause, type, severity) and post‐release behaviour. We offer a detailed discussion of these shortcomings. We also discuss broader but highly relevant issues, including the capture of non‐target animals and the omission of key methodological details. The level of detail provided by authors should allow the method to be properly assessed and replicated, including those that improve trap selectivity and minimize or eliminate the capture of non‐target animals. Finally, we discuss the central role that journals must play in ensuring that published research conforms to ethical, animal welfare and reporting standards. Scientific studies are subject to ever‐increasing scrutiny by peers and the public, making it more important than ever that standards are upheld and reviewed. We conclude that the proposal of a new or refined method must be supported by substantial contextual discussion, a robust rationale and analyses and comprehensive documentation.

Habitat composition plays a key role in determining the winter diet of the Hen Harrier Circus cyaneus, which varies across the winter season and between years.To determine the winter diet of the He...

Academic conferences play an important role in the scientific community by providing an opportunity for researchers to discuss their work and to network. However, drawbacks of traditional face‐to‐face (F2F) conferences, such as the ostensible exclusion of non‐scientists, the substantial environmental footprint, and the large costs in terms of both time and money are increasingly being recognized. As a result, alternative and complementary formats are being explored. One of these is the Twitter conference (TC), in which research is presented and discussed on the social media platform Twitter. Here, we use hashtag and presenter data from several ornithology and ecology conferences (both TCs and F2F events) to explore the potential reach of the tweets and the magnitude of the difference in greenhouse gas emissions between the two conference types. We found that TCs generated greater engagement than F2F events, have the potential to reach a very large audience and result in a substantial reduction in emissions. Further, we argue that the format promotes presenter and audience diversity due to participation being flexible and virtually cost‐free. While we recognize some disadvantages of this format compared to F2F events, especially in relation to the social and networking aspects of conferences, we envision that virtual events, such as TCs, will play an important role in the future of science dissemination and outreach. By embracing such opportunities, academic conferences can move towards a more inclusive and sustainable future.