ORCID Profile
0000-0003-1853-8311
Current Organisation
Oregon State University
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Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 05-2015
Abstract: The collapsing populations of large herbivores will have extensive ecological and social consequences.
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 18-01-2017
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 06-12-2019
Abstract: Habitat fragmentation caused by human activities has consequences for the distribution and movement of organisms. Betts et al. present a global analysis of how exposure to habitat fragmentation affects the composition of ecological communities (see the Perspective by Hargreaves). In a dataset consisting of 4489 animal species, regions that historically experienced little disturbance tended to harbor a higher proportion of species vulnerable to fragmentation. Species in more frequently disturbed regions were more resilient. High-latitude areas historically experienced more disturbance and harbor more resilient species, which suggests that extinction has removed fragmentation-sensitive species. Thus, conservation efforts to limit fragmentation are particularly important in the tropics. Science , this issue p. 1236 see also p. 1196
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 04-08-2013
DOI: 10.1111/ELE.12162
Abstract: To manage and conserve bio ersity, one must know what is being lost, where, and why, as well as which remedies are likely to be most effective. Metabarcoding technology can characterise the species compositions of mass s les of eukaryotes or of environmental DNA. Here, we validate metabarcoding by testing it against three high-quality standard data sets that were collected in Malaysia (tropical), China (subtropical) and the United Kingdom (temperate) and that comprised 55,813 arthropod and bird specimens identified to species level with the expenditure of 2,505 person-hours of taxonomic expertise. The metabarcode and standard data sets exhibit statistically correlated alpha- and beta- ersities, and the two data sets produce similar policy conclusions for two conservation applications: restoration ecology and systematic conservation planning. Compared with standard bio ersity data sets, metabarcoded s les are taxonomically more comprehensive, many times quicker to produce, less reliant on taxonomic expertise and auditable by third parties, which is essential for dispute resolution.
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 09-2018
DOI: 10.1098/RSOS.181228
Publisher: Hindawi Limited
Date: 16-06-2021
DOI: 10.1111/TBED.14154
Abstract: The Amazon rainforest is considered the largest reservoir of culicids and arboviruses in the world. It has been under intense human-driven alteration, especially in the so-called 'Arc of Deforestation', located in the eastern and southern regions. The emergence and transmission of infectious diseases are increasing, potentially due to land-use change. We used landscape-scale mosquito surveillance across a forest fragmentation gradient in the southern Amazon to evaluate the relationship between forest disturbance and the composition and structure of mosquito communities with a particular focus on the potential for arbovirus emergence in the region. Generalized linear models and logistic regression were used to associate the degree of landscape disturbance with arbovirus vectors' richness and abundance. A total of 1,960 culicids, belonging to 50 species, were collected from 2015 to 2016. Among these species, 20 have been associated with the transmission of arboviruses. Our results show an association of land use, more specifically small size of forest remnants with more irregular shape and higher edge density, with the increase of arbovirus vectors' richness and abundance. Six species of mosquito vectors exhibited a higher probability of occurrence in landscapes with medium or high degrees of disturbance. Our results indicate that land-use change influences mosquito communities with potential implications for the emergence of arboviruses.
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 10-2016
DOI: 10.1098/RSOS.160498
Abstract: Terrestrial mammals are experiencing a massive collapse in their population sizes and geographical ranges around the world, but many of the drivers, patterns and consequences of this decline remain poorly understood. Here we provide an analysis showing that bushmeat hunting for mostly food and medicinal products is driving a global crisis whereby 301 terrestrial mammal species are threatened with extinction. Nearly all of these threatened species occur in developing countries where major coexisting threats include deforestation, agricultural expansion, human encroachment and competition with livestock. The unrelenting decline of mammals suggests many vital ecological and socio-economic services that these species provide will be lost, potentially changing ecosystems irrevocably. We discuss options and current obstacles to achieving effective conservation, alongside consequences of failure to stem such anthropogenic mammalian extirpation. We propose a multi-pronged conservation strategy to help save threatened mammals from immediate extinction and avoid a collapse of food security for hundreds of millions of people.
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 27-07-2016
Location: United States of America
Location: United States of America
No related grants have been discovered for Taal Levi.