An integrated approach to national marine resources development

A review is presented of the various marine resources and their potential, concerning fishing, aquaculture, transportation, pollution, hydrocarbons and solid minerals, renewable energy and ocean thermal energy conversion. Administrative problems confronting their rational management in Sri Lanka are examined, considering coastal area management and development, management issues, and alternatives.

Fourier analysis and gabor filtering for texture analysis and local reconstruction of general shapes

Since the pioneering work of Gibson in 1950, Shape- From-Texture has been considered by researchers as a hard problem, mainly due to restrictive assumptions which often limit its applicability. We assume a very general stochastic homogeneity and perspective camera model, for both deterministic and stochastic textures. A multi-scale distortion is efficiently estimated with a previously presented method based on Fourier analysis and Gabor filters. The novel 3D reconstruction method that we propose applies to general shapes, and includes non-developable and extensive surfaces. Our algorithm is accurate, robust and compares favorably to the present state of the art of Shape-From- Texture. Results show its application to non-invasively study shape changes with laid-on textures, while rendering and retexturing of cloth is suggested for future work. © 2009 IEEE.

Learning shape priors for single view reconstruction

In this paper, we aim to reconstruct free-from 3D models from a single view by learning the prior knowledge of a specific class of objects. Instead of heuristically proposing specific regularities and defining parametric models as previous research, our shape prior is learned directly from existing 3D models under a framework based on the Gaussian Process Latent Variable Model (GPLVM). The major contributions of the paper include: 1) a probabilistic framework for prior-based reconstruction we propose, which requires no heuristic of the object, and can be easily generalized to handle various categories of 3D objects, and 2) an attempt at automatic reconstruction of more complex 3D shapes, like human bodies, from 2D silhouettes only. Qualitative and quantitative experimental results on both synthetic and real data demonstrate the efficacy of our new approach. ©2009 IEEE.

Modelling the long-term sustainability of indigenous hunting in Manu National Park, Peru: landscape-scale management implications for Amazonia

P> Widespread hunting throughout Amazonia threatens the persistence of large primates and other vertebrates. Most studies have used models of limited validity and restricted spatial and temporal scales to assess the sustainability. We use human-demographi

Game Vertebrate Densities in Hunted and Nonhunted Forest Sites in Manu National Park, Peru

Manu National Park of southern Peru is one of the most renowned protected areas in the world, yet large-bodied vertebrate surveys conducted to date have been restricted to Cocha Cashu Biological Station, a research station covering <0.06 percent of the 1.7Mha park. Manu Park is occupied by >460 settled Matsigenka Amerindians, 300-400 isolated Matsigenka, and several, little-known groups of isolated hunter-gatherers, yet the impact of these native Amazonians on game vertebrate populations within the park remains poorly understood. On the basis of 1495 km of standardized line-transect censuses, we present density and biomass estimates for 23 mammal, bird, and reptile species for seven lowland and upland forest sites in Manu Park, including Cocha Cashu. We compare these estimates between hunted and nonhunted sites within Manu Park, and with other Neotropical forest sites. Manu Park safeguards some of the most species-rich and highest biomass assemblages of arboreal and terrestrial mammals ever recorded in Neotropical forests, most likely because of its direct Andean influence and high levels of soil fertility. Relative to Barro Colorado Island, seed predators and arboreal folivores in Manu are rare, and generalist frugivores specializing on mature fruit pulp are abundant. The impact of such a qualitative shift in the vertebrate community on the dynamics of plant regeneration, and therefore, on our understanding of tropical plant ecology, must be profound. Despite a number of external threats, Manu Park continues to serve as a baseline against which other Neotropical forests can be gauged.

Parallel and Convergent Evolution of the Dim-Light Vision Gene RH1 in Bats (Order: Chiroptera)

Rhodopsin, encoded by the gene Rhodopsin (RH1), is extremely sensitive to light, and is responsible for dim-light vision. Bats are nocturnal mammals that inhabit poor light environments. Megabats (Old-World fruit bats) generally have well-developed eyes, while microbats (insectivorous bats) have developed echolocation and in general their eyes were degraded, however, dramatic differences in the eyes, and their reliance on vision, exist in this group. In this study, we examined the rod opsin gene (RH1), and compared its evolution to that of two cone opsin genes (SWS1 and M/LWS). While phylogenetic reconstruction with the cone opsin genes SWS1 and M/LWS generated a species tree in accord with expectations, the RH1 gene tree united Pteropodidae (Old-World fruit bats) and Yangochiroptera, with very high bootstrap values, suggesting the possibility of convergent evolution. The hypothesis of convergent evolution was further supported when nonsynonymous sites or amino acid sequences were used to construct phylogenies. Reconstructed RH1 sequences at internal nodes of the bat species phylogeny showed that: (1) Old-World fruit bats share an amino acid change (S270G) with the tomb bat; (2) Miniopterus share two amino acid changes (V104I, M183L) with Rhinolophoidea; (3) the amino acid replacement I123V occurred independently on four branches, and the replacements L99M, L266V and I286V occurred each on two branches. The multiple parallel amino acid replacements that occurred in the evolution of bat RH1 suggest the possibility of multiple convergences of their ecological specialization (i.e., various photic environments) during adaptation for the nocturnal lifestyle, and suggest that further attention is needed on the study of the ecology and behavior of bats.

Report of the national stakeholder consultation workshop on Sri Lanka NPOA for the conservation and management of sharks, 03 December, 2013, Colombo, Sri Lanka

The objectives of the workshop were to; ensure shark catches were sustainable; assess threats to shark populations; identify vulnerable shark stocks; protect biodiversity; improve consultation involving stakeholders; minimize waste a discards and facilitate monitoring and landings data.

Survey of shark fisheries and preparation of a National Plan of Action (NPOA) for conservation and management of shark resources in Bangladesh

The report presents; terms of reference; work progress; surveys of shark fishers and traders; shark biodiversity survey; and a National Plan of Action (NPOA) for conservation and management of shark resources in Bangladesh.

Aquatic agricultural systems in Cambodia: national situation analysis

The objective of the current report produced for the CGIAR Research Program on Aquatic Agricultural Systems (AAS) is to provide basic information on key constraints driving poverty and vulnerability in aquatic agricultural systems in the Tonle Sap region in Cambodia. Six objectives and corresponding research themes are included in the program: sustainable increases in productivity; equitable access to markets; resilience and adaptive capacity; empowering policies and institutions; reduced gender disparity; and expanded benefits for the resource-poor. In this report, the authors review the main aquatic agricultural systems (status, specific policies and strategies, interventions, challenges, and options), then review the main drivers of change. This leads to an identification of plans and strategies important to AAS, with a particular focus on perspectives, gaps and opportunities in national policies, community engagement, increased benefits, adaptive capacity, and gender. This review, of potential interest to decision makers and all development partners, leads to conclusions and recommendations aimed at policymakers and institutional as well as private investors in development.

Guide to the development of Myanmar's National Plan of Action for the conservation and management of sharks

The priorities for the revised National Plan of Action include: strengthening current regulations; improved data collection of landings; identifying breeding and nursery grounds; study of ecology and biology of sharks; improved data acquisition of shark products and trade; and active enforcement at sea, landing sites and markets.

Report of the National Technical Workshop on the Conservation Strategy for the Myeik Archipelago, Dawei, Myanmar, 27 February, 2015

This was a follow up to the workshop held in October, 2014. This second workshop consolidated findings an and recommendations and highlighted the importance of cooperation between Department of Fisheries (DoF) and non-state actors.