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\"Everything was finally in place. The scientists stood in their observation bunker in the Alamogordo desert, staring through the lenses of their protective glasses at the tower five miles away where the world's first atomic device awaited an electric pulse for detonation. It was 5:29 a.m. on July 19, 1945. The previous evening, one of the smartest persons in the world had decided it was time to lighten things up a bit. Enrico Fermi glanced round at his fellow scientists and said, in his heavy Italian accent, \"Now, let's make a bet whether the atmosphere will be set on fire by this test.\"1 He wondered aloud whether this would incinerate only New Mexico or spread to the entire planet. Laughter followed, some of it nervous. A few people took him up on it\"-- Provided by publisher.

Aim: A large body of knowledge exists on individual anthropogenic threats that have an impact on marine biodiversity in the Mediterranean Sea, although we know little about how these threats accumulate and interact to affect marine species and ecosystems. In this context, we aimed to identify the main areas where the interaction between marine biodiversity and threats is more pronounced and to assess their spatial overlap with current marine protected areas in the Mediterranean. Location: Mediterranean Sea. Methods: We first identified areas of high biodiversity of marine mammals, marine turtles, seabirds, fishes and commercial or well-documented invertebrates. We mapped potential areas of high threat where multiple threats are occurring simultaneously. Finally we quantified the areas of conservation concern for biodiversity by looking at the spatial overlap between high biodiversity and high cumulative threats, and we assessed the overlap with protected areas. Results: Our results show that areas with high marine biodiversity in the Mediterranean Sea are mainly located along the central and north shores, with lower values in the south-eastern regions. Areas of potential high cumulative threats are widespread in both the western and eastern basins, with fewer areas located in the south-eastern region. The interaction between areas of high biodiversity and threats for invertebrates, fishes and large animals in general (including large fishes, marine mammals, marine turtles and seabirds) is concentrated in the coastal areas of Spain, Gulf of Lions, north-eastern Ligurian Sea, Adriatic Sea, Aegean Sea, south-eastern Turkey and regions surrounding the Nile Delta and north-west African coasts. Areas of concern are larger for marine mammal and seabird species. Main conclusions: These areas may represent good candidates for further research, management and protection activities, since there is only a maximum 2% overlap between existing marine protected areas (which cover 5% of the Mediterranean Sea) and our predicted areas of conservation concern for biodiversity.

Marine ecosystems globally have suffered habitat, biodiversity and function loss in response to human activity. Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) can limit extractive activities and enhance ecosystem resilience, but do not directly address external stressors. We surveyed 48 sites within seven MPAs and nearby unprotected areas to evaluate drivers of coral reef condition in the Mexican Caribbean. We found that local human activity limits protection effectiveness. Coral cover was positively related to protection characteristics, but was significantly lower at sites with elevated local human activity. Furthermore, we predict ongoing coastal development will reduce coral cover despite expanded protection within a regionwide MPA if an effective integrated coastal zone management strategy is not implemented. Policy makers must acknowledge the detrimental impact of uncontrolled coastal development and apply stringent construction and wastewater regulations in addition to marine protection.

This paper focuses on the current state of mangroves in Egypt, analyses how climate change is affecting mangrove forests and suggests a conservation strategy to safeguard this valuable maritime resource. Mangroves in Egypt are primarily found in regions around the Red Sea, making them popular for ecotourism across the globe. A crucial breeding and feeding ground for many commercial fishery species, mangroves are a maritime habitat that is both economically and environmentally significant and a variety of living things call them home. Mangroves are one of the most threatened tropical and subtropical ecoregions in the world. These threats come from both natural and human sources, including oil spills, human waste runoff, herbicide use, and coastal development, all of which have the potential to harm the environment. Mangrove habitats are immediately impacted by salinity changes and rising sea levels brought on by climate change. This is unfortunate as mangroves are one of the most important global carbon sinks, and their loss due to climate change may accelerate sea level rise and ocean acidification, which will cause the extinction of numerous commercial fish species. A conservation strategy should be implemented to safeguard the mangroves around the Egyptian Red Sea by using mitigation techniques, creating marine protected zones near the mangroves, and consulting the owners of the mangrove stalks. Analysis of multi-temporal satellite imagery is one of the most significant methods to assist decision-makers and environmental planners in obtaining high-precision information about environmental and climatic changes. Analysis of satellite imagery is a valuable way to detect, monitor, assess and map the environmental, human, and natural activities that are threatening the growth of the mangrove forest ecosystem. Change detection analyses using satellite imagery were conducted to evaluate the effects of rapid coastal sustainable development, including human urban and tourism activities; the decline and destruction of large areas of the mangrove forest for animal feeding along camel trade roads; and the threat of natural impacts such as flash flooding, coastal and soil erosion or human impacts such as established desalination plants and other human activities along the coastal zone of the Egyptian Red Sea.

Global commitments to halt biodiversity decline mean that it is essential to monitor species' extinction risk. However, the work required to assess extinction risk is intensive. We demonstrate an alternative approach to monitoring extinction risk, based on the response of species to external conditions. Using retrospective International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List assessments, we classify transitions in the extinction risk of 497 mammalian carnivores and ungulates between 1975 and 2013. Species that moved to lower Red List categories, or remained Least Concern, were classified as ‘lower risk'; species that stayed in a threatened category, or moved to a higher category of risk, were classified as ‘higher risk'. Twenty-four predictor variables were used to predict transitions, including intrinsic traits (species biology) and external conditions (human pressure, distribution state and conservation interventions). The model correctly classified up to 90% of all transitions and revealed complex interactions between variables, such as protected areas (PAs) versus human impact. The most important predictors were: past extinction risk, PA extent, geographical range size, body size, taxonomic family and human impact. Our results suggest that monitoring a targeted set of metrics would efficiently identify species facing a higher risk, and could guide the allocation of resources between monitoring species' extinction risk and monitoring external conditions.

Aim China is one of the countries with the richest amphibian biodiversity in the world. Among the 408 Chinese amphibians, 174 species are considered threatened according to the China Biodiversity Red List in 2015. However, to date, which species traits or extrinsic factors are correlated with extinction risk in Chinese amphibians is rarely examined. The aims of this study were thus to identify the patterns and correlates of extinction risk in Chinese amphibians and to determine whether patterns and processes are similar between species with either small or large geographic distributions. Location China. Methods We obtained twelve species traits and four extrinsic factors that have been commonly linked to the extinction risk of amphibians. After phylogenetic correction, these factors were tested separately and in combination to identify their correlations with extinction risk in all Chinese amphibians, and in small‐ranged and large‐ranged species. Results Geographic range size and elevational range were the most important predictors of extinction risk in all Chinese amphibians. Although extinction risk in small‐ranged amphibians was predominantly determined by small elevational range, in large‐ranged amphibians it was driven by geographic and elevational ranges, body size, human exploitation index and adult microhabitat. Small‐ranged amphibians had a higher percentage of threatened species than large‐ranged species. However, the body size distributions were not statistically different between these two amphibian subgroups. Main conclusions Our findings suggest that conservation priority should be given to species with small geographic and elevational ranges. Small‐ranged and large‐ranged amphibians should be conserved with different strategies because the factors influencing extinction risk differ between these two groups. In specific, the reduction of habitat loss should be a primary focus of management efforts because species with small geographic and elevational ranges are particually vulnerable to habitat loss. Conservation efforts should also focus on protecting large‐bodied species and preventing human overexploitation for the effective conservation of large‐ranged amphibians.

Bat fatalities at wind energy facilities in North America are predominantly comprised of migratory, tree‐dependent species, but it is unclear why these bats are at higher risk. Factors influencing bat susceptibility to wind turbines might be revealed by temporal patterns in their behaviors around these dynamic landscape structures. In northern temperate zones, fatalities occur mostly from July through October, but whether this reflects seasonally variable behaviors, passage of migrants, or some combination of factors remains unknown. In this study, we examined video imagery spanning one year in the state of Colorado in the United States, to characterize patterns of seasonal and nightly variability in bat behavior at a wind turbine. We detected bats on 177 of 306 nights representing approximately 3,800 hr of video and > 2,000 discrete bat events. We observed bats approaching the turbine throughout the night across all months during which bats were observed. Two distinct seasonal peaks of bat activity occurred in July and September, representing 30% and 42% increases in discrete bat events from the preceding months June and August, respectively. Bats exhibited behaviors around the turbine that increased in both diversity and duration in July and September. The peaks in bat events were reflected in chasing and turbine approach behaviors. Many of the bat events involved multiple approaches to the turbine, including when bats were displaced through the air by moving blades. The seasonal and nightly patterns we observed were consistent with the possibility that wind turbines invoke investigative behaviors in bats in late summer and autumn coincident with migration and that bats may return and fly close to wind turbines even after experiencing potentially disruptive stimuli like moving blades. Our results point to the need for a deeper understanding of the seasonality, drivers, and characteristics of bat movement across spatial scales. Bat behavior driving fatalities at wind turbines remains poorly understood. Our analysis of one year of video imagery at a wind turbine in Colorado revealed seasonal peaks of bat activity that included increases in diversity and duration of behaviors that may exacerbate risk of fatality. Our results point to the need for a deeper understanding of the seasonality, drivers, and characteristics of bat movement across spatial scales.

The Istanbul Strait is an important cetacean habitat that is intensely used by humans. Yet little is known about their spatial-temporal distribution. To understand the encounter rates and residency patterns of bottlenose dolphins, photo-identification data were collected between 2011 and 2016 in the Istanbul Strait. The study showed that bottlenose dolphins are a regular, year-round component of the strait. The encounter rate was estimated to be four groups (22 individuals) per 10 km. The adjacent waters of Marmara Sea and Black Sea, that host relatively less marine traffic, had the highest number of encounters in the area. Conversely, the middle sections had the lowest number of encounters but the highest marine vessel density. Further, the encounter rates dropped to zero in the fishing zones, where the number of purse seines reached up to 100 per day. Additionally, dolphins showed varying degrees of residency patterns, with multi-year re-sightings. Maximum re-sighting distance was up to 35 km, which is more than the total length of the strait. This movement pattern should be investigated as it might reveal possible migration between local populations. This study finds that the Istanbul Strait serves as a critical habitat for the regional bottlenose dolphin populations and they are likely to be a part of a resident local population with a home range extending the length of the strait. Dedicated surveys with inter-regional collaborations are needed to evaluate the home range and population status of this endangered species for their effective conservation in one of the busiest waterways of the world.

The oases of the Baja California peninsula have served as biological refugia for unique and relict biological groups since the late Pleistocene. In this paper, we identified and analyzed the floristics associations in aquatic and riparian vegetation. We also investigated impacts of human activity and geographic factors on the oasis vegetation. A total of 248 species, including relic (e.g., Thelypteris puberula, Epipactis gigantea) and 56 nonnative species, were identified. Some exotic plants such as Cryptostegia grandiflora, Arundo donax, and Pennisetum ciliare were invasive. Species richness of the oasis plants exhibited a stronger correlation with oasis size (or area) but less with latitude, longitude, and elevation. Human activities, including introductions of exotic species, appeared as a threat to the oasis vegetation. Presence of the rare and relict species warrants a high-priority protection of these unique and vanishing mesic ecosystems from human threats.

Artificial intelligence (AI)-based virtual influencers are now frequently used by brands in various categories to engage customers. However, little is known about who the followers of these AI-based virtual influencers are and more importantly, what drives the followers to use AI-based virtual influencers. The results from a survey support the notion that compensatory mechanisms and the need to belong play important roles in affecting usage intentions of AI-based virtual influencers. Specifically, the study finds that usage intentions are mediated and moderated by compensatory mechanisms that arise from the perception of AI-based virtual influencers’ functional benefits and existential threats to human identity. Furthermore, the need for belonging moderates the effects of the following status (following versus non-following) on perceived personalization benefits of AI-based virtual influencers and behavioral intentions to use AI-based virtual influencers. This study provides important implications for academia delving into the social, cultural, and philosophical implications of AI-based virtual influencers for human societies as well as for brands that plan to use AI-based virtual influencers and gain a better understanding of their customers in AI-driven digital marketing.