NEWS
Editorials on research integrity
Authors declare no competing interests—really? Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment (guest editorial) June 2024.
Replace the ivory tower with the fire tower. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment (guest editorial) p.355, doi:10.1002/fee.2676
'Best available science' and the reproducibility crisis. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment (guest editorial) 20(9):495, https://doi.org/10.1002/fee.2568
Scientific ethics and the illusion of naïve objectivity. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment (guest editorial) 7:1.
Research articles
Treves, A., Agan, SW, Langenberg, JA, Lopez-Bao, J.V., Louchouarn, NX. Parsons, DR, Rabenhorst, MF, Santiago-Ávila, FJ, 2024. Response to Roberts, Stenglein, Wydeven, and others. Journal of Mammalogy 2024 in press.
Louchouarn, NX, Proulx, G, Serfass, TL, Niemeyer, CC, Treves, A. 2024. Best management practices for trapping are neither best science nor best management. Canadian Wildlife Biology & Management 13(1): 35-49
Treves A, Fergus, AR, Hermanstorfer, SJ, Louchouarn, NX, Ohrens, O, Pineda Guerrero, AA. 2024.
Gold-standard experiments to deter predators from attacking farm animals. Animal Frontiers 14(1)"40-52.
After years of research, our conclusions about non-lethal deterrents and how to design randomized, controlled trials with crossover design.
(1) The long-held belief that randomized, controlled trials (RCTs) are impossible in wild ecosystems with working livestock is laid to rest.
(2) Crossover designs reduce most confounding variables between subjects and strengthen inference beyond the gold-standard of RCTs, yet we describe limitations precisely.
(3) Non-lethal methods can be effective in preventing carnivore approaches and attacks on working livestock in fenced pastures or open rangelands. The relationship between approaches and attacks remains uncertain.
(4) Lethal methods of predator control have been subjected to less robust study designs that suggest mixed results including increases in livestock losses.
(5) Non-lethal methods promise the elusive triple-win for wildlife, domestic animals, and livelihoods.
Treves, A. 2025.Uncertainty and precaution in hunting wolves twice in a year: reanalysis of Treves and Louchouarn: reply to Stauffer et al.PLoS One in press.
available here. Please note there is an unresolved issue with nondisclosure of multiple potentially competing interests by Roberts et al. and Stauffer et al. I have raised these issues with the appropriate scientific integrity editors during the course of peer review. I await successful resolution following National Academies guidelines on research integrity. I will remove the disclosures they should have made once resolved. Please check back in a few months. I also explain why scientific integrity is so important to public confidence in our research community and good government at this page.
Notable pre-prints
Treves, A., Hostler, K, Vonarburg, N.
CO2 emissions and constitutional provisions that protect the environment. Pre-print for pre-publication review posted 25 May 2024.
Expert Scientific Panel webinar recording ( 18 Oct. 2023)
Click for the recording and all the information and Q&A in video and text files.
Treves, A., L. M. Elbroch, J. T. Bruskotter 2024.
Evaluating fact claims accompanying policies to liberalize the killing of wolves, peer-reviewed chapter TBA, In press. Alpha Wildlife Publications, Canada.
Replace the ivory tower with the fire tower. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment (guest editorial) p.355, doi:10.1002/fee.2676
Coming soon: Pre-prints available for download
Why use pre-prints?
To reach a larger number of peer scientists before an article goes through the publication process, we present our work in pre-print format. This also has the advantage of reaching the public and policy-makers more quickly. The downside is if we get something wrong (demonstrated by peer-reviewed work or a pre-print shared with us) yet it reached the public and went into effect. We accept that risk because of the pressing public need for scientific information for public policy. We will clearly communicate any corrections if we find an error.
in review. Robust inference and errors in studies of wildlife control. Pre-print posted for pre-publication review at https://www.researchsquare.com/article/rs-3478813/v1
Abi R. Fergus, Samuel J. Hermanstorfer, Adrian Treves in review. Combining two non-lethal methods in crossover design randomized experiments. Pre-print posted for pre-publication review.