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Ramsar Site (ramsar + site)
Selected AbstractsSize matters: the value of small populations for wintering waterbirdsANIMAL CONSERVATION, Issue 3 2004Sarah F. Jackson Protecting systematically selected areas of land is a major step towards biodiversity conservation worldwide. Indeed, the identification and designation of protected areas more often than not forms a core component of both national and international conservation policies. In this paper we provide an overview of those Special Protection Areas and Ramsar Sites that have been classified in Great Britain as of 1998/99 for a selection of wintering waterbird species, using bird count data from the Wetland Bird Survey. The performance of this network of sites is remarkable, particularly in comparison with published analyses of networks elsewhere in the world. Nevertheless, the current site-based approach, whilst having the great benefit of simplicity, is deliberately biased towards aggregating species at the expense of the more dispersed distribution species. To ensure that the network continues successfully to protect nationally and internationally important waterbird populations, efforts now need to concentrate on the derivation of species-specific representation targets and, in particular, the ways in which these can be incorporated into the site selection process. Although these analyses concern the performance of protected areas for waterbirds in Great Britain, the results have wide-ranging importance for conservation planning in general and the design of protected area networks. [source] Impact of land use changes on water resources and biodiversity of Lake Nakuru catchment basin, KenyaAFRICAN JOURNAL OF ECOLOGY, Issue 2009Jackson Akama Raini Abstract Lake Nakuru, Kenya, is one of a series of saline,alkaline closed basin lakes in the eastern arm of the Rift Valley. The lake has been variously described as ,the lake of a million flamingos' and ,the Worlds greatest ornithological spectacle' and is bedrock to the areas' tourism. The lake was designated a bird sanctuary in 1960, a National Park in 1968, first rhino sanctuary in 1987, first Kenyan Ramsar site in 1990, an Important Bird Area in 1999 and a world-class national park in 2005. Over the last 40 years, its basin has been heavily settled, extensively cultivated, urbanized and industrialized. Environmental problems include poor agricultural practices, human encroachment, pollution, wildlife mortality/morbidity, human/wildlife conflicts, poverty, ethnic tensions and land clashes and lack of adequate legal and policy framework. Approaches to conservation have been initiated against identified existing problems and constraints. These approaches are (i) organizational and institutional development; (ii) hot spots and pollution loads management and (iii) catchment and park management. Constraints have been identified as unclear demarcation of responsibilities, lack of budget, skilled staff and know-how and lack of environmental standards and regulations. The impacts of ecosystem changes on people's lives and livelihoods are discussed. [source] Assessment of impact of aquaculture on Kolleru Lake (India) using remote sensing and Geographical Information SystemAQUACULTURE RESEARCH, Issue 16 2006Marappan Jayanthi Abstract Aquaculture is one of the fastest growing food industries and the rapid growth of aquaculture worldwide has resulted in growing concerns about its impact on important ecosystems. Kolleru Lake, India's largest fresh water body, and Ramsar site have undergone tremendous changes due to the development of aquaculture. To assess the impact of aquaculture on Kolleru, satellite data were found appropriate because of the synoptic-detailed overview and accuracy. Satellite data of IRS 1D, LISS III from 2004 and Survey of India topographic maps from 1967 were processed using image processing techniques in erdas imagine and analysed in Geographical Information System (GIS) such as arc gis 9.1. Land use map prepared from the satellite data was verified in the field using Global Positioning System to check the land and water use classes and its areal extent. It was estimated from the topographic maps of 1967 that the total lake boundary area was 180.38 km2, in which 70.70 km2 had water throughout the year and 100.97 km2 had water during the rainy season. The digital image processing of 2004 satellite data revealed that Kolleru was no longer a lake and the lake area of 62.65 km2 (34.73%) only remained in a degraded state, extensively colonized by macrophytes. The total loss of lake area was 109.02 km2 between 1967 and 2004, in which aquaculture was developed in 99.74 km2, which represented 55.3% of the 1967 lake area. The maximum conversion to aquaculture occurred from the lake liable to be inundated during the 1967 rainy season. The area under agriculture was 16.62 km2 in 2004, the increase in lake area for agriculture between 1967 and 2004 being 8.22 km2 (4.55% of lake). If human induced degradation is allowed to continue, the lake will very soon disappear. Now, the Government of Andhra Pradesh, India, has initiated schemes and laws to restore the lake to its pre-development state. Lessons learnt from the Kolleru Lake cautioned that there is a need for regular monitoring of important water resources throughout the world to protect the biodiversity of the earth. [source] Ostracoda (Crustacea) from the Turkish Ramsar site of Lake Ku, (Manyas Gölü)AQUATIC CONSERVATION: MARINE AND FRESHWATER ECOSYSTEMS, Issue 3 2001Selçuk Alt, nsaçl Abstract 1.,Lake Ku, (Manyas Gölü), an important bird conservation area, was sampled in the summer, autumn, winter and spring of 1997, and the seasonal and spatial distributions of ostracods were investigated. Many of the taxa collected are useful indicator species for monitoring conditions within lake basins. 2.,The findings suggest that the L. Ku, ecosystem is already substantially degraded. Pollution, coupled with extensive water abstraction for irrigation, have damaged the value of the lake, both commercially (as an inland waters fishery), and as an important site for wetland bird conservation. 3.,This work shows that ostracod faunal analysis has value in the study of such sites, particularly where more formal physical, chemical and biological monitoring methods are inappropriate or unavailable. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] | ||||||||||