CONSERVATION OUTCOMES AND THE EFFECTIVENESS OF INTERVENTIONS

Conservation and management of marine turtles and other charismatic species must learn from successes and failures. This research area focuses on monitoring and evaluating the outcomes of conservation efforts and on-ground interventions to inform future management decisions and to maximize conservation outcomes. Our lab is interested in ways to quantify and to determine the effectiveness of management actions and to maximize conservation outcomes.

SPECIFIC PROJECTS

  • Implications of management efforts on the nesting environment of sea turtles
  • Marine spatial planning in Brazil
  • Assessing different marine turtle nest protection measures against coyotes
  • Human dimensions of Madagascar’s marine protected areas
  • Effectiveness and design of marine protected areas for marine turtles

PUBLICATIONS

van Zinnicq Bergmann, M.P.M., Guttridge, T.L, Smukall, M.J., Adams, V.M. , Bond, M.E., Burke, P.J.,Fuentes, M. M. P. B. , Heinrichh, D.D.U., Huveneers, C., Gruber, S.H., Papastamatiou, Y.P (2022).Using movement models and systematic conservation planning to inform marine protected area design for a multi-species predator community. Biological Conservation. 266, 109469
Santos, A. J. B., Bellini, C., Santos, E. A. P., Sales, G., Ramos, R., Vieira, D. H. G., . . . Fuentes, M. M. P. B. (2021). Effectiveness and design of marine protected areas for migratory species of conservation concern: A case study of post-nesting hawksbill turtles in Brazil. Biological Conservation, 261, 109229.
Fuentes, M. M. P. B. , Meletis, Z. A., Wildermann, N. E., Ware, M. (2021). Conservation interventions to reduce vessel strikes on sea turtles: A case study in Florida. Marine Policy, 128, 104471.
Lovemore, T. E. J., Montero, N., Ceriani, S. A., Fuentes, M. M. P. B. (2020). Assessing the effectiveness of different sea turtle nest protection strategies against coyotes. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, 533, 151470.
Mills, M., Magris, R. A., Fuentes, M. M. P. B. , Bonaldo, R., Herbst, D. F., Lima, M. C. S., . . . de Freitas, R. R. (2020). Opportunities to close the gap between science and practice for Marine Protected Areas in Brazil. Perspectives in Ecology and Conservation.
Ware, M., Fuentes, M. M. P. B. (2020). Leave No Trace ordinances for coastal species management: influences on sea turtle nesting success. Endangered Species Research 41,197-207.
Fuentes, M. M. P. B. , Gillis, A.J., Ceriani, S.A., Guttridge, T. L., Van Zinnicq Bergmann, M.P.M., Smukall, M. Gruber, S.H., Wildermann, N. (2019). Delineating Marine Protected Areas in Bimini, Bahamas by considering hotspots for the green turtle (Chelonia mydas). Biodiversity and Conservation, 28,197–211.
Ware, M., Fuentes, M. M. P. B. (2018). Potential for relocation to alter the incubation environment and productivity of sea turtle nests in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Chelonian Conservation Biology, 17, 252-262.
Riskas, K. A., Tobin, R., Fuentes, M. M. P. B. , Hamann, M. (2018). Using expert opinion to evaluate the threat of illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing to sea turtles: a case study in the Indian Ocean and Southeast Asia. Biological Conservation, 217, 232-239.
Gredzens C, Hamann M, Marsh H, Fuentes, M. M. P. B. , Limpus CJ, Shimada T (2014) Satellite tracking of sympatric marine megafauna can inform the biological basis for species co-management. PlosONe. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0098944.
Magris R, Mills M, Fuentes, M. M. P. B. , Pressey B (2013) Analysis of progress towards a comprehensive system of marine protected areas in Brazil. Natureza & Conservação 11(1):1-7.
Fuentes, M. M. P. B. , Fish M, Maynard J (2012) Management strategies to mitigate the impacts of climate change on sea turtle’s terrestrial reproductive phase. Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change. 17, 51-63.

COLLABORATORS

Morena Mills, Imperial College of London
Rafael Magris, Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation
Bob Pressey, ARC Center of Excellence for Coral Studies
Matthew Ware, Florida State University
Armando Santos, Florida State University

FUNDING

National Geographic Foundation
Save Our Seas Foundation