So Shoot Me

Minister right to be wary of gene editing – Part 2

Jamie Steer • Jun 19, 2019

• biodiversity conservation,
• gene editing,
• genetically modified organisms,
• New Zealand,
• predator free 2050,
• predator free New Zealand

The Minister of Conservation’s recent direction to put the brakes on research into gene editing for predator eradication has proven a bone of contention with some. That’s regrettable because her decision is well justified. See here for Part 1 of this two-part series. 4. We should progress with the research anyway A fourth objection is that the Minister has … Read More

Minister right to be wary of gene editing

Jamie Steer • Jun 18, 2019

• biodiversity conservation,
• gene editing,
• genetically modified organisms,
• New Zealand,
• predator free 2050,
• predator free New Zealand

The Minister of Conservation’s recent direction to put the brakes on research into gene editing for predator eradication has proven a bone of contention with some. That’s regrettable because her decision is well justified. In a recent Letter of Expectation to Predator Free 2050 Limited, Minister Sage instructed that no resources shall be directed towards the development of gene editing … Read More

Plague Skink II: Revenge of the mudslingers

Jamie Steer • Mar 27, 2019

• competition,
• delicate,
• invasive species,
• plague,
• rainbow,
• reptiles,
• skinks

I’m recently reminded of why I’m not on Facebook. In a moment of weakness I took a look at the Sciblogs Facebook page. The first thing I came across was a commenter ruminating on a recent post of mine: ‘Oh FFS, Sciblogs! Not MORE straw-man pseudoscience from Steer?!?!?!?’ Charming. Another was more positive though, referring a friend to a … Read More

Biodiversity: Do non-native species count?

Jamie Steer • Feb 04, 2019

• Biodiversity,
• biodiversity conservation,
• introduced species,
• invasive species,
• non-native

Should non-native species classify as a kind of biodiversity?  The answer, one would think, is straightforward and should be uncontroversial. We need look only to the international Convention on Biological Diversity to find it. And the definition there is clear: biological diversity (or ‘biodiversity’) is defined as: ‘the variability among living organisms from all sources including, inter alia, terrestrial, … Read More

The plague skink: Science or scaremongering?

Jamie Steer • Jan 22, 2019

• competition,
• delicate,
• invasive species,
• plague,
• rainbow,
• reptiles,
• skinks

Introduced species can cause significant changes in their receiving environments. For any new species, a wide range of effects can be contemplated – both positive and negative. In the absence of evidence, caution is surely needed. Introduced by accident in the mid-1960s, ‘plague skinks’ (Lampropholis delicata) have been known for all but about the last eight years as ‘rainbow … Read More

Predator Free 2050: What are the target species?

Jamie Steer • Jan 14, 2019

• eradication,
• invasive mammals,
• invasive predators,
• invasive species,
• island eradications,
• pest eradication,
• possums,
• predator free 2050,
• predator free New Zealand,
• rats,
• stoats

Answer: It’s not clear. Ambiguity over target species is counterproductive, both to the goal itself, and to the public’s ability to understand and monitor progress towards it. On 26 July 2016 the then National Government announced a plan to eradicate all of New Zealand’s rats, stoats and possums by 2050. The decision – including the species to be … Read More

Post #1: My New Year’s resolution – write more posts!

Jamie Steer • Jan 03, 2019

• blogging,
• goals,
• new years resolutions

It’s a New Year, and with it, time for a confession: my blogging output has been pretty bad. The good news is I’ve found a solution. Since joining the Sciblogs stable in March 2017 I’ve written a total of 17 posts. That’s less than one a month. And, in truth, it’s even worse than that because fully 13 of them … Read More

From Restoration to Reconciliation: Concluding thoughts

Jamie Steer • Dec 24, 2018

• Baby Boomers,
• Biodiversity,
• conservation,
• donald trump,
• restoration

I wanted to end now on a couple of final reflections and thoughts. First, I implore you as the next generation of ecologists to think critically about the assumptions of your disciplines. Don’t just blindly swallow the positions of your older colleagues, including me (OK, not so much me…). Restoration Ecology, in particular, was developed and propagated mostly by … Read More

From Restoration to Reconciliation: Belief 10 – Winners never quit

Jamie Steer • Dec 23, 2018

• conservation,
• defeatism,
• ecology,
• feral,
• New Zealand,
• novel ecosystems

Some final comments from my interview with Kim Hill:  ‘It’s a very defeatist way of looking at things, and I don’t buy it!’ ‘Please make him stop! He’s such a defeatist!’ ‘So, the answer is don’t care? Do whatever?!’  A lot of people who advocate for novel ecosystems and new approaches in ecology and our understandings of nature … Read More

From Restoration to Reconciliation: Belief 9 – We have to do it

Jamie Steer • Dec 22, 2018

• Biodiversity,
• ecology,
• evolution,
• extinction,
• introduced species,
• invasive species,
• native species

This is this idea that we either do this or something that we love dies – what might be referred to as ‘conservation at the barrel of a gun’. Here’s another collection of quotes from the feedback to Kim Hill again – the last one most notably being from one of New Zealand’s foremost conservation biologists: ‘By accepting many introduced … Read More