Local people and conservation officials’ perceptions on relationships and conflicts in South African protected areas
- Authors: Thondhlana, Gladman , Cundill, Georgina
- Date: 2017
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/68640 , vital:29300 , https://doi.org/10.1080/21513732.2017.1315742
- Description: Protected areas (PAs) are often conflict-ridden, but conflict resolution mechanisms are often constrained by little appreciation of the perceptions of the principal agents (PA managers and local communities) about such conflicts. Getting local people’s support in PA management efforts is considered important for achieving conservation and livelihood goals. Using data from 13 nature reserves in South Africa, this study explores the perceptions of reserve managers and local communities about their relationships and the existence and underlying causes of conflicts. The findings showed sharp contrasts in perceptions between reserve managers and local communities. Reserve managers generally perceived that there were no conflicts with local communities and that their relationship with them was positive while local communities thought otherwise, claiming conflicts were centred around restricted access to PAs, lack of benefits from PAs and communication problems. These findings have profound implications for conservation, especially considering the importance of getting local people’s support in PA management.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
Keeping it in the family: coevolution of latrunculid sponges and their dominant bacterial symbionts
- Authors: Matcher, Gwynneth F , Waterworth, Samantha C , Walmsley, Tara A , Matsatsa, Tendayi , Parker-Nance, Shirley , Davies-Coleman, Michael T , Dorrington, Rosemary A
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/65603 , vital:28818 , https://doi.org/10.1002/mbo3.417
- Description: publisher version , The Latrunculiidae are a family of cold water sponges known for their production of bioactive pyrroloiminoquinone alkaloids. Previously it was shown that the bacterial community associated with a Tsitsikamma sponge species comprises unusual bacterial taxa and is dominated by a novel Betaproteobacterium. Here, we have characterized the bacterial communities associated with six latrunculid species representing three genera (Tsitsikamma, Cyclacanthia, and Latrunculia) as well as a Mycale species, collected from Algoa Bay on the South African southeast coast. The bacterial communities of all seven sponge species were dominated by a single Betaproteobacterium operational taxonomic unit (OTU0.03), while a second OTU0.03 was dominant in the Mycale sp. The Betaproteobacteria OTUs from the different latrunculid sponges are closely related and their phylogenetic relationship follows that of their hosts. We propose that the latrunculid Betaproteobacteria OTUs are members of a specialized group of sponge symbionts that may have coevolved with their hosts. A single dominant Spirochaetae OTU0.03 was present in the Tsitsikamma and Cyclacanthia sponge species, but absent from the Latrunculia and Mycale sponges. This study sheds new light on the interactions between latrunculid sponges and their bacterial communities and may point to the potential involvement of dominant symbionts in the biosynthesis of the bioactive secondary metabolites. , This research was supported by a SARChI grant from the South African National Research Foundation (NRF, GUN: 87583) and the Rhodes University Sandisa Imbewu Programme. S. C. W. was supported by an NRF Innovation PhD Scholarship and a Rhodes University Henderson PhD Scholarship. T. A. W. was supported by PhD Fellowships from the NRF and the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD)
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2016