Browsing by Author "Brandis, KJ"

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    A new frontier in tracking waterbird movements and wetland health
    (University of New South Wales and Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, 2015-07-08) Brandis, KJ; Mazumder, D; Kingsford, RT; Hollins, SE
    The utility of stable isotope analysis in environmental studies is well established, particularly in the fields of animal tracking (Hobson and Wassenaar, 2008) and the development of isoscapes (West et al., 2010). Key to the success of these international studies is knowledge of the distribution of variability in δ2H and δ18O isotopes. In Australia, the availability of isotopic data with sufficient variability in δ2H and δ180 isotopes is insufficient to produce robust isoscapes. Given the potential utility of isoscapes to contribute to environmental management and policy, such as the management of environmental flows for wetland health and waterbird breeding, a rigorous sampling effort is needed to bolster current knowledge. To address this need this project will deliver, for the first time, an isoscape identifying relative importance of wetlands for waterbirds at a landscape scale.
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    Novel detection of provenance in the illegal wildlife trade using elemental data
    (Springer Nature, 2018-10-18) Brandis, KJ; Meagher, PJB; Tong, LJ; Shaw, M; Mazumder, D; Gadd, PS; Ramp, D
    Despite being the fourth largest criminal market in the world, no forensic tools have been sufficiently developed to accurately determine the legal status of seized animals and their parts. Although legal trading is permissible for farmed or captive-bred animals, many animals are illegally removed from the wild and laundered by masquerading them as captive bred. Here we present high-resolution x-ray fluorescence (XRF) as a non-invasive and cost-effective tool for forensic classification. We tested the efficacy of this technique by using machine learning on a training set of zoo specimens and wild-caught individuals of short-beaked echidnas (Tachyglossus aculeatus), a small insectivorous monotreme in Australia. XRF outperformed stable isotope analysis (δ13C, δ15N), reducing overall classification error below 4%. XRF has the added advantage of providing samples every 200 μm on a single quill, enabling 100% classification accuracy by taking the consensus of votes per quill. This accurate and cost-effective forensic technique could provide a much needed in situ solution for combating the illegal laundering of wildlife, and conversely, assist with certification of legally bred animals. © 2018 The Authors, Open Access: This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Published by Springer Nature Limited
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    Using feathers to map continental-scale movements of waterbirds and wetland importance
    (John Wiley & Sons, Inc, 2021-03-03) Brandis, KJ; Mazumder, D; Gadd, PS; Ji, B; Kingsford, RT; Ramp, D
    Waterbirds are highly mobile, moving over large distances to access resources. Although consistent migration routes are observed in highly seasonal and predictable environments, movement patterns to utilize ephemeral resources in dryland environments are largely unknown. This makes conservation planning and water policy challenging as the relative importance of widely dispersed wetlands is difficult to rank. We addressed this challenge by combining a citizen science project with the novel application of X-ray fluorescence of feathers to detect continental scale movement of waterbirds using elemental signatures. By doing so, we gained important insight into the movements of 24 waterbird species, including the significance of the Murray–Darling basin as a key source of waterbirds across the continent. Our approach highlights the benefits of elemental signatures to identify key areas of habitat use and priorities for wetland management. © 2021 The Society for Conservation Biology (Open Access)