Shearwaters and petrels are highly adapted seabirds that occur across all the world’s oceans. Petrels are a threatened seabird group comprising 120 species. They have bet-hedging life histories typified by extended chick rearing periods, low fecundity, high adult survival, strong philopatry, monogamy and long-term mate fidelity and are thus vulnerable to change. Here, 38 petrel conservation researchers summarize information regarding the most important threats according to the IUCN Red List...

The European rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus is endemic to Mediterranean ecosystems in the Iberian Peninsula, where it is a key species. In recent years its populations have declined due to several factors including habitat transformation and viral diseases. At the same time, corrective measures including population restocking in areas with low population densities using rabbits from other geographical areas have been performed. In this study we evaluate the impact restocking has had on the...

Thermoregulation, metabolism and life history of species are affected by body size and shape. Based on specimens of the wood mouse Apodemus sylvaticus that were collected at Doñana National Park in 1978–81 and 2006–07, changes in body mass, body size, and allometry were tested between these periods. Furthermore, data from 1978–81, when more specimens were available, were used to evaluate the sexual dimorphism of adults. This study confirms and extends previous findings on...

International wildlife trade is a major source of current biological invasions. However, the power of trade regulations to reduce invasion risks at large, continental scales has not been empirically assessed. Although international policy responses to combat biological invasions have increased over the last several decades, responsibility for protection against invaders lies mostly on national governments. This has led to important differences in legislation among countries. If the ban...

Even though plumage diversity is one of the most diverse phenotypic traits in nature, the reasons why some species exhibit more distinctive colors than others are poorly known. In the case of melanins, different chemical forms lead to different plumage colors and different amounts of those forms lead to different color intensities. However, the synthesis of some melanin forms is more physiologically limited than others. Here, authors hypothesize that an evolutionary solution to this scenario...