BirdReturns is an example of the growing movement called reconciliation ecology, in which ecosystems dominated by humans are managed to increase biodiversity.
“It’s a new ‘Moneyball,’ ” said Eric Hallstein, an economist with the Nature Conservancy and a designer of the auctions, referring to the book and movie about the Oakland Athletics’ data-driven approach to baseball. “We’re disrupting the conservation industry by taking a new kind of data, crunching it differently and contracting differently.”
It could also be an exportable solution. Agriculture creates some of the world’s most serious ecological problems. If BirdReturns proves itself, it could be an inexpensive model for adjusting agricultural landscapes to mesh with the needs of wildlife.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/15/science/paying-farmers-to-welcome-birds.html?_r=1