Collins, A;
Bohm, M;
Collen, B;
(2020)
Choice of baseline affects historical population trends in hunted mammals of North America.
Biological Conservation
, 242
, Article 108421. 10.1016/j.biocon.2020.108421.
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Abstract
Establishing historical baselines of species' populations is important for contextualising present-day population trends, identifying significant anthropogenic threats, and preventing a cultural phenomenon known as ‘shifting baseline syndrome’. However, our knowledge of historical baselines is limited by a lack of direct observation data on species abundance pre-1970. We present historical data of species-specific fur harvests from the Canadian government and Hudson's Bay Company as a proxy for estimating species abundance over multiple centuries. Using stochastic stock reduction analysis originally developed for marine species, we model historical population trends for eight mammals, and assess population trends based on two different baseline years: 1850 and 1970. Results show that population declines are significantly greater when using an 1850 baseline, as opposed to a 1970 baseline, and for four species, the population trend shifted from a population increase to a decrease. Overall, the median population change of the eight species changed from a 15% decline for 1850, to a 4% increase for 1970. This study shows the utility of harvest data for deriving population baselines for hunted terrestrial mammals which can be used in addition to other historical data such as local ecological knowledge. Results highlight the need for developing historically relevant population baselines in order to track abundances over time in threatened species and common species alike, to better inform species conservation programs, wildlife management plans and biodiversity indicators.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Choice of baseline affects historical population trends in hunted mammals of North America |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.biocon.2020.108421 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2020.108421 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions. |
| Keywords: | Historical baselines, Shifting baseline syndrome, Population estimation,Mammal conservation, Hudson's Bay Company, North America |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences > Div of Biosciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Life Sciences > Div of Biosciences > Genetics, Evolution and Environment |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10090236 |
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