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Abd Mutalib, A. H., Fadzly, N., Ahmad, A., & Nasir, N. (2014). Understanding nesting ecology and behaviour of green marine turtles at Setiu, Terengganu, Malaysia. Mar Ecol, 36(4), 1003–1012.
Abstract: In this paper, we emphasize the importance of understanding the nesting ecology and nesting behaviour of green marine turtles (Chelonia mydas). Data were collected from 2007 until 2012 from nesting beaches at Setiu Terengganu, Malaysia. We focused on one of the beaches, Telaga Papan, based on data collected in 2012. We recorded the distribution of nesting areas, the emergence hour and the correlation between successful nesting attempts and false crawls. Telaga Papan had a significantly higher distribution of green marine turtle nesting compared with the other five beaches (ANOVA, F5,42 = 8.874, P < 0.01, mean = 36.750 ± 3.727). The highest number of successful nesting attempts was recorded in 2012 (mean = 28.714). A majority of the species landed between 22:00 and 23:59 h (25%). There was a strong correlation between successful nesting attempts and false crawls (rs = 0.883, P = 0.02). Based on these findings on the nesting ecology and nesting behaviour of green marine turtles, we suggest that scientific research, strict monitoring, awareness programs and policy implementation should be carried out proactively. Such activities are necessary to reduce the anthropogenic pressures at the nesting beaches as well as to ensure more successful nesting attempts of green marine turtles in Setiu.
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Azam, C., Kerbiriou, C., Vernet, A., Julien, J. - F., Bas, Y., Plichard, L., et al. (2015). Is part-night lighting an effective measure to limit the impacts of artificial lighting on bats? Glob Chang Biol, .
Abstract: As light pollution is currently considered to be a major threat to biodiversity, different lighting management options are being explored to mitigate the impact of artificial lighting on wildlife. Although part-night lighting schemes have been adopted by many local authorities across Europe to reduce the carbon footprint and save energy, their effects on biodiversity are unknown. Through a paired, in situ experiment, we compared the activity levels of 8 bat species under unlit, part-night and full-night lighting treatments in a rural area located 60 km south of Paris, France. We selected 36 study locations composed of 1 lit site and a paired unlit control site; 24 of these sites were located in areas subject to part-night lighting schemes, and 12 sites were in areas under standard, full-night lighting. There was significantly more activity on part-night lighting sites compared to full-night lighting sites for the late-emerging, light-sensitive Plecotus spp., and a similar pattern was observable for Myotis spp., although not significant. In contrast, part-night lighting did not influence the activity of early emerging bat species around streetlights, except for Pipistrellus pipistrellus for which there was significantly less activity on part-night lighting sites than on full-night lighting sites. Overall, no significant difference in activity between part- and full- night lighting sites were observed in 5 of the 8 species studied, suggesting that current part-night lighting schemes fail to encompass the range of activity of most bat species. We recommend that such schemes start earlier at night to effectively mitigate the adverse effects of artificial lighting on light-sensitive species, particularly along ecological corridors that are especially important to the persistence of biodiversity in urban landscapes. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
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Bará, S., Ulla, A. (2018). Light Pollution in the Galician Atlantic Islands Maritime-Terrestrial National Park 2018 Report. USC Tragsa.
Abstract: The Galician Atlantic Islands Maritime-Terrestrial National Park (PNMTIAG), with the exception of the island of Cortegada, still has night skies of acceptable quality. However, the PNMTIAG islands are under strong photic pressures, both internal and external, that hinder the preservation of the basic features of the natural night, and call for an immediate action of all concerned stakeholders
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Barentine, J. C. (2016). Going for the Gold : Quantifying and Ranking Visual Night Sky Quality in International Dark Sky Places. IJSL, 18, 9–15.
Abstract: Since the invention of electric lighting in the nineteenth century, the steadily increasing use of artificial light at night in outdoor spaces has grown to threaten the integrity of dark night skies and nocturnal terrestrial spaces. The conservation community has gradually come to accept the need to protect natural nighttime darkness, which finds expression in dark sky parks and similar protected areas. As these places begin to reap tangible economic benefits in the form of sustainable ‘astrotourism,’ the movement to actively protect them gains strength. The International Dark-Sky Association designates Dark Sky Parks and Reserves under a comparative ranking scheme that assigns night sky quality tiers according to a combination of objective and subjective characteristics, but shortcomings in the consistency of these ratings exist that undermine the consistency and reputation of the designation program. Here we consider potential changes to the qualification regime to make the ratings system more robust for the benefit of future designations.
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Benfield, J. A., Nutt, R. J., Taff, B. D., Miller, Z. D., Costigan, H., & Newman, P. (2018). A laboratory study of the psychological impact of light pollution in National Parks. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 57, 67–72.
Abstract: Light pollution is ubiquitous in much of the developed and developing world, including rural and wilderness areas. Other sources of pollution, such as noise or motorized vehicle emissions, are known to impact the perceived quality of natural settings as well as the psychological well-being and satisfaction of visitors to those locations, but the effects of light pollution on visitors to natural settings is largely unstudied. Using experimental manipulations of light pollution levels in virtual reality simulations of three U.S. National Parks, the current study aimed to provide initial evidence of an effect on visitors. Results show that light pollution impacts a range of psychological and scene evaluation dimensions but that pristine night skies are not necessarily viewed as the ideal, likely due to being viewed as unfamiliar or unrealistic because so few have experienced the true baseline.
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