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Pacific Conservation Biology Pacific Conservation Biology Society
A journal dedicated to conservation and wildlife management in the Pacific region.

Pacific Conservation Biology

Pacific Conservation Biology

Pacific Conservation Biology provides a forum for discussion about regional conservation problems; debate about priorities and mechanisms for conservation oriented biological research; and dissemination of the results of relevant research. Read more about the journalMore

Editor-in-Chief: Mike Calver

Publishing Model: Hybrid. Open Access options available.

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Latest

These articles are the latest published in the journal. Pacific Conservation Biology is published under a continuous publication model. More information is available on our Continuous Publication page.

Published online 01 July 2025

PC25029Deriving a population estimate for Eld’s deer (Rucervus eldii siamensis) in Siem Pang Wildlife Sanctuary, Cambodia

Paul Meek 0000-0002-3792-5723, Rachel Ladd 0000-0002-4056-894X, Jonathan C. Eames and Luke K.-P. Leung
 

A subspecies of Eld’s deer (Rucervus eldii siamensis) has a strong-hold in Cambodia; however, populations are small. We used camera traps during the dry season to assess if this sampling tool could be used to estimate population size. We designed a methodology to successfully produce a population estimate that can be used to monitor the status of this subspecies and inform conservation management.

Published online 30 June 2025

PC25006Transnational shark trade: personal baggage and postal seizures in Australia and New Zealand

Josephine Lingard 0000-0002-0874-2119, Patrick Reis-Santos 0000-0001-9843-9465, Phillip Cassey 0000-0002-2626-0172 and Bronwyn M. Gillanders
 

Sharks are threatened with extinction globally due to overfishing driven by trade. However, there is little understanding on transit and potential illegal trade of shark products in Oceania, including the contribution of Australia and Aotearoa/New Zealand, considering the proximity to the ‘hub’ of the shark fin trade in Southeast Asia. Further investigating links between countries and improving recorded species information are crucial to support monitoring and regulation of the trade of sharks and endangered species.

Published online 23 June 2025

PC25019Predation on the threatened Carnaby’s cockatoo (Zanda latirostris) by feral cats (Felis catus)

Peter R. Mawson 0000-0001-6729-2966, Rick Dawson, Brooke S. Richards and Denis A. Saunders 0000-0001-5959-573X
 

Feral cats (Felis catus) predated Carnaby’s cockatoo (Zanda latirostris) nesting adult females, their nestlings, and eggs during a study in remnant woodland in the northern wheatbelt of Western Australia. The predation impact on annual cockatoo nesting effort ranged from 5.2 to 24.1%, suggesting that cats are a significant threat by reducing the survival of adult breeding females and recruitment of fledglings.

Published online 23 June 2025

PC25008Automated methods for processing camera trap video data for distance sampling

Trevor Bak 0000-0001-6246-9451, Richard J. Camp 0000-0001-7008-923X, Matthew D. Burt and Scott Vogt
 

Camera traps offer a cost-effective way to track wildlife but the large amounts of data camera traps produce hinders their usage. This barrier can be overcome using machine learning to automatically classify data and generate population density estimates. This approach could enable widespread wildlife monitoring to assess biodiversity trends.

Published online 17 June 2025

PC24101Invasive rodent eradications in French Pacific islands: a critical analysis of past efforts

Wilfried Weiss 0009-0005-8943-4968, Fabrice Brescia, Julien Baudat-Franceschi, Tehani Withers, Baudouin Des Monstiers, Simon Ducatez, Jean-Yves Meyer, Thomas Ghestemme and Eric Vidal
 

French Pacific Island territories are home to unique biodiversity, threatened by invasive rodents. This study reviews 85 eradication projects across 77 islands since 1982. Adopting a strategic approach with clear island prioritisation and enhanced local capacities is essential to achieving sustainable eradications and protecting the French Pacific Islands unique biodiversity.

Published online 16 June 2025

PC24088Ecology, conservation, and future perspective of walking sharks (Hemiscyllium spp.) in Indonesia

  Fahmi 0000-0003-3199-7467, Y. Putra 0000-0002-9223-4829, S. Oktaviyani 0000-0003-3375-8240, Y. Jutan, A. S. Haris and F. Jamlaay
 

Walking sharks (Hemiscyllium spp.) are endemic species in the Indo-Pacific region. Threatened by fishing, habitat loss, and the aquarium trade, they received legal protection in Indonesia in 2023. However, further conservation actions such as expanding Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), habitat restoration, and captive breeding are essential for their long-term survival and sustainable management.

Published online 16 June 2025

PC25013Satellite-tracked movements of juvenile great egrets (Ardea alba) and plumed egrets (Ardea plumifera) from the Macquarie Marshes in the Murray–Darling Basin, Australia

Heather M. McGinness 0000-0002-0380-4982, Micha V. Jackson, Luke R. Lloyd-Jones, Xinyu Hou, Louis O’Neill, Shoshana Rapley and Freya Robinson
 

Understanding bird movements is critical for conserving their populations and habitats. We satellite-tracked the movements of 18 juvenile egrets (Ardea spp.), describing where, when, and how quickly they flew. This included tracking a non-stop flight from Australia to Papua New Guinea that took approximately 38 h. This information is useful for prioritisation of management resources for wetlands and waterbirds.

Little is known about how landscape scale features influence frog distribution; this is especially the case for the vulnerable frog species Mixophyes iteratus. This study surveyed M. iteratus occurrence and counts over the Tweed Valley of northern New South Wales, Australia to determine if there was a relationship with landscape features. Occurrence was biased towards the western part of the Tweed Valley and counts were higher in conservation reserves. Conservation efforts should focus on micro-habitat features in areas with low- to mid-count predictions.

Published online 05 June 2025

PC24081Restoration thinning has minor and temporary effects on understorey fuels in a regrowth eucalypt floodplain forest under conservation management

L. White 0000-0002-5790-2035, S. K. Travers 0000-0002-6252-1667, D. McAllister, K. Lawrie and E. Gorrod
 

Thinning is sometimes used to reduce fire risks during forest restoration but its efficacy in Australian eucalypt forests is uncertain. We undertook experimental thinning in a previously logged river red gum forest. We found that regrowth tree density did not substantially affect understorey fuels and thinning did not change fuel hazard ratings. Thus, thinning did not reduce or increase fire risk during the study.

Published online 05 June 2025

PC23060Demand for fish swim-bladders driving inshore dolphin populations in Papua New Guinea towards local extinction

Isabel Beasley 0000-0003-1104-7309, Yolarnie Amepou, Joyce Mavera, Wilma Mavea, Jim Anamiato, Karen Baird, Anissa Lawrence and Cara Masere
 

Inshore dolphins in Papua New Guinea are facing local extinction because of by-catch in gillnets targeting fish swim-bladders (‘fish maw’). The lucrative nature of this fishery creates an significant hurdle to conservation programs. The mortality rate of inshore dolphins is unsustainable and is causing populations to decline. Demand for fish maw as a luxury food and medicine is threatening many marine species worldwide.

This article belongs to the collection: Marine Mammals in the Pacific.


Pest species in Western Australia.

Eradicat has the potential to be used as an all-predator bait. Low target species density combined with a range of environmental and human activity factors limited our assessment of Eradicat baits potential as an all-predator bait. More work is required, however bait uptake by foxes was promising. Photographs by Tracey Kreplins.

Published online 29 May 2025

PC24077A social practice perspective on environmental volunteering and pest management in Aotearoa New Zealand

Dean Stronge 0000-0003-3537-0565, Geoff Kaine 0000-0001-6747-7434 and Jade Hyslop 0000-0001-8858-8985
 

The number of community environmental groups in Aotearoa New Zealand has increased in recent years. Variations in how trapping activities are undertaken do not meet recognised best practice for pest management. Our findings suggest the shift in focus to ‘dead pests’ over resource protection will not achieve Aotearoa’s biodiversity goals.

Published online 27 May 2025

PC25001Response of a koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) source population following a large-scale progressive translocation harvest

John Callaghan 0000-0001-6652-7866, Stephen Phillips and Ross Goldingay
 

Translocation is rapidly becoming a critical tool for threatened species reintroduction and conservation. It is vital to ensure harvests do not jeopardise the source, and this study confirmed a koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) population was able to recover from a large-scale gradual translocation harvest. This knowledge provides important guidance for planning sustainable conservation translocation programs.

Published online 20 May 2025

PC25024Just add water: exceptional plant recruitment in arid zone mine rehabilitation

Rachel J. Standish 0000-0001-8118-1904, Todd E. Erickson, Jonathan Fisher and Tim K. Morald
 

Rehabilitation is needed to address social and ecological impacts of high-intensity mining activity in the Pilbara region. Yet success is limited by the arid climate, lack of topsoil, and poor plant establishment from sown seeds. Our observations suggest potential for assisted and unassisted plant recruitment in the absence of fresh topsoil.

Published online 12 May 2025

PC24096Who’s been lost from the landscape? Identifying missing terrestrial fauna to inform urban rewilding

Mareshell Wauchope 0000-0002-1414-8925, Patrick B. Finnerty 0000-0001-5762-6272, Jennifer C. Pierson, Peter B. Banks, Alexandra J. R. Carthey and Thomas M. Newsome
 

Urban areas present unique wildlife rewilding opportunities. Applying a decision framework to occurrence data we identify rewilding candidate species with broadest geographic potential; then explore traits and factors influencing urban rewilding suitability. These insights provide key considerations for wildlife managers planning rewilding projects, promoting effective biodiversity conservation in urban landscapes.

Just Accepted

These articles have been peer reviewed and accepted for publication. They are still in production and have not been edited, so may differ from the final published form.

Most Read

The Most Read ranking is based on the number of downloads in the last 60 days from papers published on the CSIRO PUBLISHING website within the last 12 months. Usage statistics are updated daily.

  1. The Pacific foodfish list: a standardized list of over 1000 species of marine fish consumed by Pacific people

    Pacific Conservation Biology 31 (2)
    N. L. Andrew 0000-0002-2337-8722, L. Aisea, N. D. H. Arachchi 0000-0001-8245-6359, N. Bailly, I. Bertram, P. Bosserelle, L. Carron, K. D. Clements 0000-0001-8512-5977, M. P. Duenas, V. Fatongiatau, S. Felise, S. González-Murcia, B. Jaugeon, L. Joy, L. P. Kaitu, U. Kaly, J.-A. Kerandel, J. Z. Koehn, J. Kinch, S. Jalam, A. Kwapena, O. Li, S. Lindfield, F. Magron, B. R. Moore, R. F. Myers, B. Ned, B. Nikiari, D. Ochavillo, J. van der Ploeg 0000-0001-7099-4002, K. Raumea, M. Roscher, M. Sabater, A. Sami, G. Shedrawi, N. Smith, D. J. Steenbergen 0000-0003-4067-4432, M. Sukulu, F. Tulafono, S. Tiitii, T. Toroca, P. Tua, L. Vaipuna, C. C. C. Wabnitz, J. Wencélius, M. White, B. Yeeting

Collections

Collections are a curation of articles relevant to a topical research area

This collection of Pacific Conservation Biology papers will enable a synthesis of the challenges which face marine mammal populations and research in the Pacific and the actions and agreements to address some of the challenges, facilitate the publication of important knowledge from research poor areas, and highlight the importance of crowd-sourced data across geographically complex regions.

Collection Editors
Rochelle Constantine (University of Auckland - Waipapa Taumata Rau)
Claire Garrigue (Institute for Research and Development)

Last Updated: 05 Jun 2025

Two Peoples Bay Nature Reserve is one of the most important nature conservation areas along the south coast of Western Australia. This Collection of Pacific Conservation Biology papers about the natural history of Two Peoples Bay Nature Reserve, provides past and current knowledge of this significant nature reserve.

Collection Editors
A. J. M. Hopkins, G. T. Smith and D. A. Saunders

Last Updated: 22 Apr 2025

This Collection offers an overview of the publishing process from start to finish, and is designed to provide information and support to researchers looking to publish academic articles. Topics include common mistakes authors make in presentation or in misunderstanding what happens in production, the importance of accurate referencing and proofing, navigating problems with authorship, making decisions about Open Access, and promoting work once it is accepted.

Collection Editor
Mike Calver (Editor-in-Chief, Pacific Conservation Biology)

Last Updated: 12 Dec 2024

This Collection focuses on contributions from researchers studying conservation problems and solutions along the eastern Pacific coast and Hawaii. The papers from the eastern Pacific coast include island and mainland examples, confirming that both are considered within the journal’s scope. They illustrate the range and quality of the work published by Pacific Conservation Biology, as well as the journal’s service to the scientific communities of the eastern Pacific coast.

Last Updated: 22 Mar 2024

The challenges for conservation in the Pacific are sharpest in managing coral reefs. The effects of anthropogenic climate change are already evident, as well as unregulated exploitation, land clearing or agricultural production on adjoining lands. In 2018, Pacific Conservation Biology celebrated 25 years of publication. It was also International Year of the Reef. In this Collection, we have collated key papers to aid the understanding of the value of, and threats to, coral reefs and their ecosystems, with hope that this research will contribute to a brighter future for our reefs.

Collection Editors
Mike Van Keulen and Mike Calver

Last Updated: 18 May 2018

Pacific Conservation Biology is dedicated to conservation in the Pacific region, which is defined broadly as the western Pacific (East Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia and Oceania), the north Pacific (including Russia), and the islands of the central Pacific across to countries on the North American and South American continents bordering on the eastern Pacific. In this Collection, Pacific Conservation Biology addresses the ‘big questions’ in conservation, providing a forum for conservation scientists, natural resource managers and science communicators to explore the answers in a Pacific context.

Last Updated: 27 Jun 2017

Committee on Publication Ethics

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Ivor Beatty Award

Kit Prendergast has been awarded the Ivor Beatty Award for 2023.

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