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The main focus of the book is the presentation of the inertial view of population growth. This view provides a rather simple model for complex population dynamics, and is achieved at the level of the single species without invoking species interactions. An important part of the account is the maternal effect. Investment of mothers in the quality of their daughters makes the rate of reproduction of the current generation depend not only on the current environment, but also on the environment experienced by the previous generation.

An easy method to evaluate a remote place’s snowpack depth has been discussed for helping later-stage elderly persons’ life. The method of using a smartphone camera and an augmented reality marker (AR marker) has been investigated. The general smartphone with a high image resolution camera was used to observe snowpack depth in remote places and remote control the robot via Bluetooth device. And image processing using artificially integrated technology (AI technology) was adapted for detecting the AR markers and for evaluating the snowpack depth.

Occupancy Estimation and Modeling is the first book to examine the latest methods in analyzing presence/absence data surveys. Using four classes of models (single-species, single-season; single-species, multiple season; multiple-species, single-season; and multiple-species, multiple-season), the authors discuss the practical sampling situation, present a likelihood-based model enabling direct estimation of the occupancy-related parameters while allowing for imperfect detectability, and make recommendations for designing studies using these models. * Provides authoritative insights into the latest in estimation modeling* Discusses multiple models which lay the groundwork for future study designs* Addresses critical issues of imperfect detectibility and its effects on estimation* Explores the role of probability in estimating in detail

Between 2009 and 2018, the total fertility rate fell in most European countries. In 2018, fertility was below the replacement level throughout Europe. Net migration was positive for two-thirds of European countries. This paper illustrates the implications for long-run population growth of observed net migration-fertility-mortality combinations in 20 European countries over the 2009–18 period by comparing the observed net migration to a zero population growth-related 'replacement level' for net migration. The results show that in several northern and north-western European countries, the net migration level has been consistently above this replacement level: if the net migration level and fertility and mortality rates remain constant, the population would increase. However, the findings also indicate that in all of the eastern European countries covered, the net migration level has been consistently below the net migration replacement level. The results further show that in Finland, Norway and Switzerland, the long-run implications of having constant fertility-mortality-net migration levels change from leading to population growth to leading to population decline. The opposite pattern is observed in Germany. The feasibility of preventing long-run population decreases through changes in net migration levels is discussed in light of the results.

The Total Fertility Rate (TFR) is the below replacement level for a population without migration throughout Europe. The population growth implications of low fertility combined with non-zero migration remain widely misunderstood. This paper proposes new measures which may enhance understanding of the relationships between TFRs and population growth for open populations. For 22 European countries in 2019, the method adjusts the familiar ‘typically just below 2.1’ replacement level for effects of constant non-zero immigration counts and emigration rates. The long-run perspective on zero growth the ‘Migration-Adjusted Replacement TFR’ provides is supplemented with near-term perspective by also presenting the TFR that would produce zero population growth immediately. The Migration-Adjusted Replacement TFR for 2019 ranges between 0.86 for Spain and 2.44 for Croatia. The variation is associated with the differences in migration between these countries. Its value is below 2.1 in 18 countries. For nine countries, the 2019 TFR is above the Migration-Adjusted Replacement level. The ‘Immediate Population Replacement TFR’ ranges from 0.26 for Sweden to 2.83 for Bulgaria, and for most countries lies below the Migration-Adjusted Replacement TFR. For most of the European countries, the TFRs that are coherent with zero population growth, immediately and long run, are below 2.1. A major advantage of this paper’s version of the ‘Migration-Adjusted Replacement TFR’ is its applicability to contexts with negative current net migration. The new measures proposed in this paper can better guide assessment of the relationships between fertility levels and population growth for European and other countries with non-zero immigration and emigration.

A proportion of the southern elephant seal ( Mirounga leonina ) population that breeds in the Kerguelen Plateau region seasonally migrates between their natal sub-Antarctic islands and moult haul-out locations on the Antarctic coastline. Analyses of survey data collated for one moult location at the Vestfold Hills, East Antarctica, showed that there had been no appreciable change in the timing (phenology) of maximum seal arrivals between 1974 and 2022; however, the maximum number of seals moulting at that site had declined by ~90% over the same time interval. Spatial analyses showed rates of population change were survey area dependent, as seal numbers decreased most rapidly at haul-out areas closest to the permanently occupied Davis Station, suggesting that a relationship exists between seal numbers and human activities. The range of potential factors that contribute to population change for southern elephant seals moulting at the Vestfold Hills includes changes in status at primary source populations, one of which has not been surveyed since the 1990s, and species relocation. Should numbers of southern elephant seals in the Vestfold Hills continue to decrease at the current average rate of change (-7.78 seals/year) the species could vanish from the area by c. 2040.

Marine sponges are prominent organisms of the benthic coral reef fauna, providing important ecosystem services. While there have been increasing reports that sponges are becoming one of the dominant benthic organisms in some locations and ecoregions ( e.g . Caribbean), they can be impacted by changing environmental conditions. This study presents the first documentation of a mass mortality event of the barrel sponge Xestospongia sp. in the lower Gulf of Thailand and its consequences on population dynamics and size distribution. Two anthropogenic impacted reefs (Haad Khom and Mae Haad) of the island Koh Phangan and two anthropogenic non-impacted reefs of the islands Koh Yippon and Hin Yippon within the Mu Ko Ang Thong Marine National Park were surveyed in the years 2015 and 2016. The results showed a strong shift in population densities at Koh Phangan. Fatal “bleaching” ending up in mass mortality was observed for these reefs in 2015. Xestospongia sp. abundance decreased from 2015 to 2016 by 80.6% at Haad Khom and by 98.4% at Mae Haad. Sponges of all sizes were affected, and mortality occurred regardless of the survey depth (4 and 6 m). However, Xestospongia population densities in the Marine Park were at a constant level during the surveys. The abundances in 2015 were 65% higher at the Marine Park than at Koh Phangan and 92% higher in 2016. The most likely causes of the mass mortality event was a local harmful algal bloom event, pathogens, undetected local higher water temperatures, or a combination of these factors, whereas sea surface temperature analyses showed no marine heatwave during the observed mass mortality event in 2015. Considering the ecological importance of sponges such as Xestospongia sp., long-term monitoring of reefs and their environmental parameters should be implemented to prevent such mass die-offs.

The extent of shrinkage in the Netherlands is rather limited so far. Still, the Netherlands was one of the first European countries that introduced a national-level policy for regions facing structural population decline and shrinkage in 2009: the Population Decline Action Plan. This happened in response to local and regional policy initiatives and a lobby of local and regional governments, but also because the Minister of the Interior perceived shrinkage as a national policy challenge. This action plan was an attempt to arrange a multiscalar governance of shrinkage at national, regional, and local scales. However, this policy ended in 2019, and its last remaining element, a targeted subsidy for regions facing structural population decline, ended in 2022. This article will discuss (a) how and why the policy was introduced and how its governance was arranged, (b) how the policy changed between 2009 and 2022, (c) why it ended, (d) which new regional policies have been developed recently instead, and (e) what this could mean for the governance of shrinkage in the Netherlands.

Brown hares originated in the open steppe grasslands of Eurasia and have adapted very successfully to a mixed, arable agriculture environment. In the last decades of the 20th century, a decline in brown hare populations has been observed in many European countries. In this study, we documented a long-term (1965–2018) decline in the hare population in a field and forest mosaic in central Poland (from over 30 ind./100 ha in the mid-1960s to 1–2 ind./100 ha in the past decade). We showed that the recent autumn densities were the same as compared to the preceding spring densities (suggesting a low recruitment rate) and that the recent densities recorded in the fields were no longer higher than in the forests (probably due to a decrease in the habitat quality of arable lands). We also showed that the share of hares in a red fox diet was now very low (0.1% vs. 13% in the past). We compared the recent (2004–2018) population estimates to another area that was located 70 km east (with a similar habitat structure, a community of predators and climate conditions, but with less intense agriculture), where the hare population was increasing. We suggested that the farming practices were the most important factor for the hare population decrease in our study area.

This article seeks a framework applicable to analysing planning in the context of shrinkage. Our preliminary observation is that shrinking cities tend to lean toward pro‐growth planning instead of actively planning for shrinkage. This seems to apply even in cities where shrinking is a politically accepted phenomenon, and even if growth‐dependent planning approaches have been claimed to fit poorly in contexts of shrinkage. Could understanding the liaisons between planning justification and relation to growth help explain why planning tends to lead towards growth even in a context of shrinkage? This article links cultural theory‐informed planning approaches with planning justification and their relation to growth. In the context of shrinkage, growth‐dependent planning approaches easily become economically unviable and politically contested due to increased inequalities. Planning approaches that lack a clear connection to growth can provide nonmonetary benefits to the local community, help to accept the shrinking reality, and encourage awareness of unexpected opportunities. The suggested framework aims to deepen the understanding of polyrationality in planning approaches through the lenses of justification and growth. It is worth noting that when planning is justified in terms of growth, it can ultimately become growth‐oriented, even if its stated objective is non‐growth.