Ongoing wind energy developments play a key role in mitigating the global effects of climate change and the energy crisis; however, they have complex ecological consequences for many flying animals. The Yellow Sea coast is considered as an ecological bottleneck for migratory waterbirds along the East Asian–Australasian flyway (EAAF), and is also an important wind farm base in China. However, the effects of large-scale onshore wind farms along the EAAF on multidimensional waterbird diversity, and how to mitigate these effects, remain unclear. Here we examined how wind farms and their surrounding landscapes affected multidimensional waterbird diversity along the Yellow Sea coast. Taxonomic, functional, and phylogenetic diversity of the waterbird assemblages, and mean pairwise distances and nearest taxon distances with null models were quantified in relation to 4 different wind turbine densities. We also measured 6 landscape variables. Multi-dimensional waterbird diversity (taxonomic, functional, and phylogenetic diversity) significantly decreased with increasing wind turbine density. Functional and phylogenetic structures tended to be clustered in waterbird communities, and environmental filtering drove waterbird community assemblages. Furthermore, waterbird diversity was regulated by a combination of wind turbine density and landscape variables, with edge density of aquaculture ponds, in addition to wind turbine density, having the greatest independent contribution to waterbird diversity. These results suggest that attempts to mitigate the impact of wind farms on waterbird diversity could involve the landscape transformation of wind farm regions, for example, by including high-edge-density aquaculture ponds (i.e., industrial ponds) around wind farms, instead of traditional low-edge-density aquaculture ponds.

Human–wildlife conflicts are becoming increasingly common worldwide and are a challenge to biodiversity management. Compared with compensatory management, which often focuses on solving emergency conflicts, mitigation management allows decision-makers to better understand where the damage is distributed, how the species are distributed and when the species conduct their activity. Here, we integrated data collected from 90 districts/counties’ damage surveys and 1271 camera traps to understand the damage status, abundance, density and activity rhythms of wild boar (Sus scrofa) in Zhejiang, Eastern China, from January 2019 to August 2023. We found that (1) wild boar–human conflicts were mainly distributed in the northwest and southwest mountainous regions of Zhejiang Province; (2) the total abundance of wild boar was 115,156 ± 24,072 individuals, indicating a growing trend over the past decade and a higher density in the western and southern regions; (3) wild boar exhibited different activity patterns across different damage regions, and the periods around 7:00, 11:00 and 16:00 represented activity peaks for wild boar in seriously damaged regions. The damage distribution, density, distribution and activity rhythms provide specific priority regions and activity intensity peaks for conflict mitigation. We believe that these findings based on the damage, distribution and activity could provide a scientific basis for mitigation management at the county level and enrich the framework of human–wildlife conflict mitigation.

Predators significantly influence amphibian larval development. Predator-induced plasticity is often studied independently from conspecific density effects, but these environmental factors may interact. We conducted two-factor factorial experimental design to manipulate conspecific density and predator cues, aiming to investigate the independently or interactive impacts of these two factors on the development of Chinhai spiny newt larvae (Echinotriton chinhaiensis). Our findings reveal that both high and low conspecific densities constrain spiny newt larval growth and predators also limit growth. Interestingly, high conspecific density restricts predator-induced growth plasticity without interacting effects. Only lower density groups exhibit slower growth responses to predators. Our study investigates how density mediates predator-induced plasticity in the endangered Chinhai spiny newt larvae, providing insights into their intricate life history. These results contribute to the understanding of predator-induced plasticity in amphibians and provide insights into the adaptive strategies of endangered species like Chinhai spiny newt. Such knowledge informs the development of effective conservation strategies for their protection.

This study examined the connectivity between the current suitable habitat and the core habitat for Asiatic black bears ( Ursus thibetanus ) in human‐dominated landscapes and aimed to provide a basis for future conservation strategies for black bear populations in China. We collected occurrence locations ( N = 130) of Asiatic black bears from 2014 to 2023, with data sources spanning 12 provincial administrative regions and covering an area of about 3,010,000 km ² . We predicted the distribution of suitable habitats for Asiatic black bears via the MaxEnt species distribution model using a combination of multiple environmental variables such as topography, vegetation, climate, and anthropogenic disturbances. We performed habitat corridor planning by using the least‐cost path model and circuit theory. The results suggested that (1) Asiatic black bears have a marked preference for mountainous environments with middle and high altitude (> 1000 m), high amounts of precipitation (> 200 mm), and dense vegetation, and they generally avoid areas of anthropogenic disturbance. (2) The suitable habitats for Asiatic black bears showed a highly fragmented pattern, mainly concentrated along the borders of Zhejiang, Anhui, Fujian, and Jiangxi (the Zhe–Gan Region), the borders of Guangxi, Guangdong, and Hunan (the Hu–Guang Region), and the borders of Shaanxi, Chongqing, Hubei, Guizhou, and Sichuan (the Chuan–Shaan Region). Of the predicted 372,483 km ² of suitable habitat, only 23.65% is currently covered by protected and conserved areas. (3) A comprehensive landscape connectivity analysis identified 79 core habitat patches encompassing a total area of 33,257 km ² . Notably, only 29.29% of these patches are currently under protection. Furthermore, we delineated 79 potential least‐cost paths, each with an average length of 43.66 km, and identified pinch points along these pathways that could impede connectivity. To ensure the long‐term survival of Asiatic black bear populations, we recommend enhancing the protection and restoration efforts for the three core habitats and their associated potential connectivity pathways.

Predators significantly impact the development process and subsequently influence the metamorphic decisions of amphibian larvae. Larvae often exhibit induced growth and metamorphic plasticity in response to the presence of predators. However, growth and development rates are not always perfectly correlated, growth responses can vary throughout ontogeny. It is crucial to consider the stage‐specific growth responses induced by predators. Here, we employ a critical windows experimental design and examine development‐related growth and metamorphic responses to predators in the endangered Chinhai spiny newt (Echinotriton chinhaiensis). Our findings reveal that predators constrain the development process of spiny newt larvae and also impact survival to metamorphosis. Inducible plasticity predominantly exhibits in the early and middle stages of larval development. Our results also suggest that diverse developmental plasticity has been adopted by larvae in response to predators. The presence of predators during early stage induces larvae to exhibit a same size at metamorphosis but a prolonged time to metamorphosis, while predators present during middle stage induce larvae to exhibit a large size at metamorphosis but a same time to metamorphosis. The presence of predators at the late developmental stage does not induce any plasticity in larval growth and metamorphosis. Moreover, these results also suggest that several stages of larval development are likely critical developmental windows for spiny newt larvae. This study not only provides basic biological information on predator‐induced developmental plasticity of the endangered Chinhai spiny newt but also likely provides biological insights for the implementation of in situ conservation and preservation efforts for endangered species.