Key Concepts in Ecology: Adaptations to variable environments

This blog post on ‘Adaptations to variable environments’ is part of the BES ‘Key Concepts in Ecology’ series, designed to help ecologists in learning the key topics in ecology! Take a look at the full series for a list of key topics you might typically find in an ecology textbook, each providing a quick introduction to the topic, and a list of suggested papers for … Continue reading Key Concepts in Ecology: Adaptations to variable environments

besmeeJanuary 17, 2024January 31, 2024Leave a comment

Field Methods, Statistical methods

How to weigh a whale

Post provided by Nathan Hirtle (he/him)

A whale’s size not only provides information on its own health, but also the status of the marine ecosystem in which it lives. So how do scientists weigh the biggest creatures on planet? In this blog post, Nathan Hirtle shares insight from his recent paper on measuring the volume of whales using drone images.

Ben WhittakerFebruary 1, 2023January 25, 20231 Comment

Conservation and management, Field Methods

Understanding climate change through animal song

Post provided by Diego Llusia (he/him), Camille Desjonquères (she/her) and Sara Víllen-Peréz (she/her)

Many species produce sound as a means of communication, emitting calls or songs to broadcast information to others in the surrounding area. In this blog post, Diego Llusia, Camille Desjonquères, and Sara Víllen-Peréz discuss their research on recording animal calls and how these soundtracks can be used to help monitor the impacts of climate change.

Ben WhittakerOctober 10, 20221 Comment

Journal Issues

September 2022 Issue Out Now!

Our September issue is now online! This issue contains 22 articles about the latest methods in ecology and evolution, including methods for using the US National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON), measuring understory vegetation structure, inducing cancer in invertebrates and much more! Read on to find out about this month’s featured articles and the article behind our magical marine cover. National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON) In this … Continue reading September 2022 Issue Out Now!

India StephensonSeptember 5, 2022Leave a comment

Conservation and management

Assessing impacts of ocean warming on marine fishes

Post provided by Chi-Yun Kuo

Predicting the effects of ocean warming is vital for understanding the likely impacts of climate change on marine ecosystems. In this post, Chi-Yun Kuo shares insights from his recent publication in Methods in Ecology and Evolution which develops a framework for estimating the effects of warming water on communities of marine fishes, and discusses the implications for conservation, food security, and other ecosystem services.

Ben WhittakerMay 4, 2022Leave a comment

Robert May Prize

Tropical forest structure and diversity: a comparison of methodological choices

Post provided by Cléber Rodrigo de Souza

Each year Methods in Ecology and Evolution awards the Robert May Prize to the best paper published in the journal by an author at the start of their career. Ten Early Career Researchers made the shortlist for this year’s prize, including Cléber Rodrigo de Souza who is a data scientist at the Federal University of Lavras in Brazil. In this interview, Cléber shares insights on their paper ‘Tropical forests structure and diversity: a comparison of methodological choices’.

Ben WhittakerApril 12, 2022Leave a comment

Conservation and management, Statistical methods

Let’s get real: translating species distribution models into conservation practice

Post provided by Veronica F. Frans

Species distribution models (SDMs) are popular methods for identifying important habitats for species, but what does it take to translate SDMs into conservation practice? In this post, Veronica Frans discusses the applications of iSDMdb as featured in the paper, “Integrated SDM database: enhancing the relevance and utility of species distribution models in conservation management”, recently published in Methods in Ecology and Evolution.

Ben WhittakerNovember 10, 2021Leave a comment

Conservation and management, Statistical methods

A new tool to identify important sites for conservation using tracking data

Post provided by Martin Beal, Steffen Oppel, Jonathan Handley, Richard Phillips, Paulo Catry, and Maria Dias.

Identifying areas around the world that can best contribute to the conservation of wild animals is a major challenge. Historically, this required conducting extensive surveys in the field, but with the advent of miniature tracking technology we can now follow animals and allow them to indicate which areas they depend on most. In this collaborative post, international researchers from ISPA – Instituto Universitário in Lisbon, the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, BirdLife International, and British Antarctic Survey present a new conservation tool as outlined in the paper “track2KBA: An R package for identifying important sites for biodiversity from tracking data” recently published in Methods in Ecology and Evolution.

Ben WhittakerSeptember 28, 2021Leave a comment

Conservation and management, Lab Methods, Robert May Prize

Ultrasound for trees? Using focused ultrasound technology as a new method of DNA extraction

Post provided by Hal Holmes

Each year Methods in Ecology and Evolution awards the Robert May Prize to the best paper in the journal by an author at the start of their career. Hal Homes has been shortlisted for their article ‘Focused ultrasound extraction (FUSE) for the rapid extraction of DNA from tissue matrices’. In this blog, Hal discusses how their paper came to be and the future applications of FUSE technology.

Ben WhittakerApril 28, 2021April 28, 20211 Comment

Conservation and management, Field Methods, Methods papers, Statistical methods

Searching for snow leopards

Post provided by Ian Durbach and Koustubh Sharma

Snow leopard captured via camera trap in Mongolia. Picture credit: Snow Leopard Conservation Foundation/Snow Leopard Trust/Panthera (OR SLCF/SLT/PF).

Snow leopards are notoriously elusive creatures and monitoring their population status within the remote, inhospitable habitats they call home, can be challenging. In this post, co-authors Ian Durbach and Koustubh Sharma discuss the applications of their Methods in Ecology and Evolution article, ‘Fast, flexible alternatives to regular grid designs for spatial capture–recapture’, for monitoring snow leopard populations.

streamdnaFebruary 15, 2021February 11, 2021Leave a comment

Methods Blog

Tag: conservation