Nathan Whitmore
Hi, my name is Nathan Whitmore, and I’m a conservation scientist and practitioner. Over the years I have worked variously as a fisheries observer, conservation ranger, and, from 2012 to 2018, as an in-country adviser for the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Papua New Guinea programme. My professional interests include evidence-based decision making, sustainable use of wildlife, and traditional natural resource management.
Subjects: Life Science, Statistics
Personal Interests
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When I am not working I busy myself canoeing, growing mushrooms, and trying to master traditional fire lighting techniques.
Websites
Books
Articles
More dead than alive: harvest for ceremonial headdresses threatens Pesquet’s Parrot in Papua New Guinea
Published: Jan 01, 2020 by Emu - Austral Ornithology
Authors: Grace Nugi, Nathan Whitmore
Subjects:
Life Science
The red feathers of Pesquet’s Parrot are highly sought after for use in the ceremonial headdresses of the highland cultures of Papuan New Guinea. We revealed around 8% of the wild population would be harvested annually just in one district alone. Given that a greater number of Pesquet’s Parrot exist in headdresses than are alive in the wild, we advocate focusing on prolonging the lifespan of existing headdresses rather than attempting to protect the species in remote areas.
Forest connectivity is important for sustaining Admiralty cuscus (Spilocuscus kraemeri) in traditional terrestrial no-take areas on Manus Island, Papua New Guinea
Published: Jan 01, 2018 by Pacific Conservation Biology
Authors: John Lamaris, Nathan Whitmore
Subjects:
Life Science
Tambu is a well respected concept in Melanesian societies and represents a periodic cultural restriction on harvesting for the purpose of fulfilling customary obligations and restocking resources. We investigated the denning home range and movement patterns of 10 cuscus using radio-telemetry in and around a 21-ha forested tambu area over a 28-day period. Through application of Laplace’s extension of the Buffon’s needle problem we conclude that tambu areas are unlikely to be self-sustaining.
Harnessing local ecological knowledge for conservation decision making via Wisdom of Crowds: the case of the Manus green tree snail Papustyla pulcherrima
Published: Jan 01, 2016 by Oryx
Authors: Nathan Whitmore
Subjects:
Life Science
The shell of the Manus green tree snail is renowned for its beauty and is subject to international protection under CITES, having been harvested intensively in the past. To determine its threat status, and whether further conservation action is justified, an inexpensive Wisdom of Crowds approach was used to estimate the change in relative density of the snail between 1998 and 2013.