The influence of coniferous afforestation on lowland farmland bird communities in Ireland: different seasons and landscape contexts

Current governmental policy in Ireland is encouraging afforestation, 80% of which is likely to consist of exotic conifer species, in low-lying agricultural areas. Whereas most studies of bird diversity in forest/farmland mosaic landscapes have focused on high quality woodland remnants in a hostile agricultural matrix, this study has considered the influence of man-made plantations in a less intensively farmed context. Bird communities of three lowland agricultural landscapes (each 2000 ha in area) with intermediate or low levels of coniferous forest cover (33% or 8% approximately) were sampled in winter and summer. Though total abundance and species richness of birds of farmland habitats in the partially forested and open sites did not differ, the presence of trees in the surrounding landscape did influence abundance of some common species such as Blue Tit Parus caeruleus, Robin Erithacus rubecula and Blackbird Turdus merula. In winter, species composition of farmland habitats with and without hedgerow trees differed between forested and open landscapes. Also, the abundance of certain species varied between farmland adjacent to and remote from forest edges, in both seasons. In these landscapes, coniferous plantations did not greatly affect the mainly generalist farmland bird community, either positively or negatively. However, if the proportion of land-use occupied by forestry were to increase, reducing the available hedgerow habitat and forest edge/area ratio, diversity and abundance of declining farmland bird species might be negatively affected.     

Differential response of selected taxa to landscape context and agricultural intensification

Understanding the dynamics of biodiversity in changing agricultural landscapes is a goal for nature conservation and agricultural policies. Agriculture operates at several spatio-temporal levels from field to landscape, and induces differential response of communities according to their ecological traits. Reactions of several taxa to landscape and agricultural changes was conducted along landscape gradients in northern Brittany (France) gathering 14 sites. Landscapes ranged from fine grained areas, with a large proportion of permanent grasslands, wood and hedgerows, to coarse grained ones dominated by crops. Response of communities were either loss of species along the gradient (as for Diptera Chironomidae and Empididae), replacement (Coleoptera Carabidae) and no change in species composition (small mammals). In this paper, we present why these taxa react in such different ways according to their life history traits, their mobility patterns and to which parameters of landscape structure or agriculture intensification they are sensitive. Density of hedgerow networks, and permeability of individual hedgerows determine the spatial distribution of adults Diptera according to their flying ability. Mean body size of carabid beetles significantly decreases along the gradient of agricultural intensification, small species adapted to disturbance replacing large ones that are characteristic of stable habitats. The same small mammal species are found all along the two gradients, but their relative abundance is linked to the importance of crops versus more stable habitats in the landscape.We concluded that species survival in those fine grained agricultural landscapes depends on processes operating at the site scale and defining habitat quality, and processes operating at the landscape and/or metapopulation scale such as landscape modifications in connectivity and habitat availability.     

Shotgun metagenomics of dust microbiome from flight deck and cabin in civil aviation aircraft

Microbial exposure is related to the health of passengers on commercial aircraft, but no studies characterized the microbial composition at the species level and identified their ecological determinants. We collected vacuum dust from floor and seat surfaces in flight decks and cabins of 18 aircraft, and amplification-free shotgun metagenomics was conducted to characterize the microbial composition. In total, 7437 microbial taxa were identified. The relative abundance for bacteria, eukaryote, viruses, and archaea was 96.9%, 1.8%, 0.3%, and 0.03%, respectively. The top bacterial species mainly derived from outdoor air and human skin included Sphingomonas, Corynebacterium, Micrococcus luteus, Variovorax paradoxus, Paracoccus dentrificans, and Propionibacterium acnes. The abundance of NIAID-defined pathogens was low, accounted for only 0.23% of total microbes. The microbial species and functional composition were structured by the indoor surface type (R² = 0.38, Adonis), followed by the manufacturer of the aircraft (R² = 0.12) and flight duration (R² = 0.07). Indoor surfaces affected species derived from different habitats; the abundance of dry skin and desiccated species was higher on textile surfaces, whereas the abundance of moist and oily skin species was higher on leather surfaces. The growth rates for most microbes were stopped and almost stopped.     

Modeling spatially explicit population dynamics of Pterostichus melanarius I11. (Coleoptera: Carabidae) in response to changes in the composition and configuration of agricultural landscapes

The intensification of agricultural practices has induced the local, national and regional extinction of many species and also affected ecosystem services provided by biodiversity such as biological control of agricultural pests. We model the population dynamics of Pterostichus melanarius (Coleoptera: Carabidae), a carabid beetle often used as indicator species of habitat changes, by a joint model that combined a matrix model of population dynamics including local dispersal with an explicit model of the patchy landscape of the polders of the Bay of Mont St. Michel (Brittany, France). We used this model to evaluate the effects of landscape composition and configuration on the spatial population dynamics of this carabid beetle, and also investigated the consequences that different management strategies of the structure and composition of an agricultural landscape can have on its abundance and spatial distribution. The results of this study highlight that semi-habitats (field edges, dykes, hedgerows) usually considered as shelters for wintering play a key role as well for summer recruitment. We find that there is an optimal cluster size of patches for population viability that is induced by the seasonal movement of P. melanarius. However, the effect of increasing the amount of semi-natural habitats patches on the viability of this population critically depend on the spatial arrangement, connectivity and spatial alternation of the network of semi-natural habitats, a feature that should be considered in the conservation and management actions in the landscape context.     

Biodiversity of the vascular plants in the young fluvioglacial landscapes in the Severo-Chuiskiy centre of present-day glaciation (the Central Altai)

Abstract

This article reports the species richness of vascular plants in the young fluvioglacial landscapes in the Severo-Chuiskiy centre of present-day glaciation using the example of the fluvioglacial deposits of the mountain-glacial basin Aktru. These landscapes are four well distinguished classes of habitats: open pebble fields with minimal vegetation, young larch forests on elevated parts of the relief, shrub thickets on the banks of the Aktru river, and sites with ground-frazil near the valley slopes. There are 132 species of vascular plants in the young fluvioglacial landscapes. These include 36 families and 77 genera. There are 3 species of pteridophytes (only Equisetum), 4 species of gymnosperms, and 125 species of angiosperms. The highest species diversity was recorded for Asteraceae, Poaceae and Salicaceae families, and for Salix, Poa, and Carex genera. The highest species richness – 100 species – were recorded for open pebble fields. There were 76 species in the young larch forests, and 58 species occurred in shrub thickets. The lowest richness is characterised for the sites with ground frazil, where 31 species were recorded.     

Linking biokinetics and consumer–resource dynamics of zinc accumulation in pond abalone Haliotis diversicolor supertexta

A dynamic model that links biokinetics and consumer–resource dynamics for describing zinc (Zn) accumulation in abalone Haliotis diversicolor supertexta has been developed and then applied to Zn data from real abalone farms. The biokinetic parameters used in this study, uptake and depuration rate constants of abalone and their food source, red alga Gracilaria tenuistipitata var. liui, were obtained from a laboratory 14-d exposure experiment. We carried out a sensitivity analysis of the model by using the fractional factorial design technique, taking into account the influence of consumer–resource-related parameters such as growth and death rates and biomass and biokinetic parameters characterized by bioconcentration factor. Results indicate that the response time of biomagnification dynamics of Zn accumulation in abalone was influenced mainly by the growth rate of algae and biomass and the death rate of abalone and by interactions algae biomass and abalone death rate and abalone and algae biomass. New algae production results in substantially higher values of biomagnification factor. The linked model was then applied to field observations from a real-life situation of variable Zn concentrations occurring in abalone farms. Simulation results show that the predicted values are within a factor of 2 of the measured values (% errors range from 5.3±4% to 44.1±8%). Both model analysis and model application to the abalone farms suggest that the linking influences between biokinetics and consumer–resource dynamics support Zn accumulation in H. diversicolor supertexta and in G. tenuistipitata var. liui as functions of Zn concentration in water and abundance of food occurring in abalone farms.     

Niche construction,entanglement and landscape domestication in Scandinavian infield systems

Domesticated landscapes are formed by complex social and ecological interactions. We study present-day remnants of species-rich hay meadows and pastures in Scandinavia, with historical roots in former ‘infield systems’, initially developed during the first centuries AD and maintained until the modernisation of agriculture during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Infield systems include infields, enclosed areas near farms incorporating hay meadows and crop fields, and surrounding outlying land used mainly for grazing. We interpret the development of Scandinavian infield systems and their relationship to vegetation and human culture using concepts of niche construction and entanglement. A key issue revolves around spatio-temporal stabilisation of managed grasslands, in turn related to a complex of interactions between cultural development (e.g. perceptions of land ownership and management practices) and ecological patterns (e.g. species richness). We propose that niche construction and entanglement are useful concepts bridging studies in social history and ecology, and for developing conservation programmes in cultural landscapes.     

How do habitat variability and management regime shape the spatial heterogeneity of birds within a large Mediterranean urban park?

Large urban parks can support a diverse bird community. However, the effects of variability among habitats and of park management on bird assemblages are poorly understood. We studied bird communities within the Yarkon Park, Tel Aviv, the largest urban park in Israel. We examined species richness, abundance and community composition across 20 locations that differ in levels of park management to identify habitat variables responsible for variation in bird richness and composition. Of 91 recorded bird species, 13 were aliens (14%), 4 were urban exploiters (4%), 54 were urban adapters (60%) and 20 were migrants (22%). Management had a significant effect on native bird richness and bird community structure varied among areas with different management regimes. Species richness of all the above species’ groups was lowest in intensively managed areas. Areas with intermediate levels of management had higher or equal richness compared to unmanaged areas. The majority of urban exploiters were found at all locations within the park reaching their highest abundances in intensively managed areas. Species richness of alien birds did not vary across levels of management. Bird species richness was negatively associated with lawn cover and with distance from nearest water source and was positively associated with the number of woody plant species. We suggest that urban parks should be designed such that the heterogeneity of native vegetation is preserved, if we aim to maintain native bird species diversity and minimize urban exploiter and alien species. When lightly managed or unmanaged, urban parks can retain large remnants of sub-natural habitats and can serve as important contributors to the conservation of native biodiversity within a large urban metropolis.     

Biotic homogenization and alien bird species along an urban gradient in South Africa

Similar to the process seen in invasion biology, urbanized environments lead to biotic homogenization with a few species, often alien, dominating the urban habitat. We investigated avian communities across an urban gradient in Pretoria (South Africa). We defined three urbanization zones: urban, suburban and semi-natural, based on land-cover. We conducted point counts of all species at each of 13 sites in these zones over a 4-month period. We found significantly more species in the semi-natural zone than the urban zone but abundance was significantly lower in semi-natural than urban. The increase in abundance was mainly as a result of alien species with the three most abundant species in the urban zone being all alien. Semi-natural contained fewer alien species than urban and significantly fewer than suburban. The Common Myna Acridotheres tristis was the only alien species that was observed in all three urbanization zones and was the second most abundant species in the suburban and urban zones. Our study supports the process of biotic homogenization, where an increase in alien species occurs in the urban compared to semi-natural zone. Although the suburban zone made an important contribution towards native bird abundance in a larger city environment, this environment was also an important environment for alien species, especially for the Common Myna.     

Neighborhood socioeconomic status is a useful predictor of perennial landscape vegetation in residential neighborhoods and embedded small parks of Phoenix, AZ

Though landscape vegetation in cities is human-mediated and often more diverse than that in surrounding environments, little work has been done to quantify ways that humans shape its composition. Our study identified important sources of variation in perennial vegetation composition within residential neighborhoods of Phoenix, AZ, USA. We hypothesized that neighborhood socioeconomic status (SES) should offer some capacity for predicting landscape vegetation richness and abundance in both residential neighborhoods and embedded small city parks. As predicted, neighborhood vegetation richness increased across a gradient of low to high SES (R²=0.89) with the most variation explained by median family income (R²=0.86). In contrast, neighborhood vegetation abundance decreased across a gradient of increased time since disturbance (R²=0.62) with the most variation explained by median year of neighborhood development (R²=0.56). Median year of neighborhood development was also the dominant factor (R²=0.47) in explaining decreased park vegetation abundance across a gradient of increased time since disturbance. We were least able to predict park vegetation richness and could account for only 29% of variation using a SES gradient model with percent of population having a graduate education as the most dominant factor. In residential neighborhoods, we identified more than 3 times the number of landscape vegetation taxa than an earlier report and also found a higher percentage of native vegetation in parks than in surrounding neighborhoods. We discuss these different compositional patterns of perennial vegetation in neighborhoods and embedded parks in terms of their relationship to socioeconomic and disturbance gradients, and a conceptual framework of “top-down” and “bottom-up” human management influences. Our study intimates that residential vegetation composition in rapidly expanding, arid cities like Phoenix is largely driven by “luxury” and legacy effects and should be most rich in neighborhoods with the highest socioeconomic standing and most abundant in newest neighborhoods.     

Habitat Suitability and Landscape Structure: A Maximum Entropy Approach in a Mediterranean Area

Species distribution models have recently become important tools in ecological research. Prediction of suitable habitats for threatened and endangered species is essential for the conservation and management of their native habitats. A landscape scale approach is relevant for biodiversity conservation since landscape planning and management are generally conducted at wide spatial scales, focusing on areas with complex landscape configuration as a consequence of human activities. The aims of this study were to test a maximum entropy approach (Maxent) to the development of a niche-based model for species of conservation interest and to relate this model to landscape structure metrics. The results obtained here showed a good predictive power of Maxent for the three target species and highlighted the importance of landscape structure analysis for the detection of patterns of habitat suitability. Moreover, this work stressed that combining classical environmental information with landscape structure in analysing habitat suitability for species of conservation interest may be used to guide conservation efforts and landscape management practices.     

Intersection reservations as habitats for meadow butterflies and diurnal moths: Guidelines for planning and management

Regularly managed road verge environments, such as intersection reservations, i.e. non-linear grassland patches surrounded by roads and ramps, form potential habitats for plant and insect species dependent on semi-natural grasslands. The first objective was to compare the Lepidoptera communities of intersections to other open biotopes (semi-natural grasslands, abandoned fields and field verges) in order to determine whether this is true under the present management regime. The second objective was to characterise environmental factors explaining the possible differences between the habitat groups and the most important factors associated with high species richness and population sizes in intersections. Between 2002 and 2003, a total of 97 species and 7250 individuals were recorded in transect counts on 17 sites on both intersections and control areas in SE Finland. There were more species and butterfly individuals in the control sites, the differences being due to the surrounding environment and young age of most intersection habitats. Old intersections with high plant species richness and natural vegetation exhibited the highest Lepidoptera species richness, while soil moisture and mowing intensity were the most important factors explaining Lepidoptera abundance. The spreading of a thick layer of top soil rich in nutrients and the use of non-native seed mixes rich in grasses during the construction phase should be avoided and late summer mowing management combined with the removal of cut material should be applied in intersections.     

Effects of golf courses on local biodiversity

There are approximately 2600 golf courses in the UK, occupying 0.7% of the total land cover. However, it is unknown whether these represent a significant resource, in terms of biodiversity conservation, or if they are significantly less diverse than the surrounding habitats.The diversity of vegetation (tree and herbaceous species) and three indicator taxa (birds, ground beetles (Coleoptera, Carabidae) and bumblebees (Hymenoptera, Apidae)) was studied on nine golf courses and nine adjacent habitats (from which the golf course had been created) in Surrey, UK. Two main objectives were addressed: (1) to determine if golf courses support a higher diversity of organisms than the farmland they frequently replace; (2) to examine whether biodiversity increases with the age of the golf course.Birds and both insect taxa showed higher species richness and higher abundance on the golf course habitat than in nearby farmland. While there was no difference in the diversity of herbaceous plant species, courses supported a greater diversity of tree species. Furthermore, bird diversity showed a positive relation with tree diversity for each habitat type. It was found that introduced tree species were more abundant on the older golf courses, showing that attitudes to nature conservation on courses have changed over time. Although the courses studied differed in age by up to 90 years, the age of the course had no effect on diversity, abundance or species richness for any of the animal taxa sampled. We conclude that golf courses of any age can enhance the local biodiversity of an area by providing a greater variety of habitats than intensively managed agricultural areas.     

Some life history parameters and production of Daphnia carinata (king) grown in different culturing media

Estimates of the abundance and production of Daphnia carinata in six mass culture experiments revealed higher values in the cow dung medium compared with other manures tested. Average production ranged from 1.2 to 223 mg m⁻³ wk⁻¹ and average biomass of the population from 1.3 to 194 mg m⁻³ wk⁻¹. The P/B coefficient was highest in the mohua (Madhuca indica) oil cake (1.15) and lowest in the poultry manure (0.77). Daphnia started reproducing at the age of 6–9 days in different culture media. Longevity was higher in the field ( 36 days) than in the laboratory. The total numbers of offspring per female was closely correlated with the mean number of eggs per female in her life span. The intrinsic rate (r) and the finite rate (e') of population of growth of Daphnia were markedly higher in the field than in the laboratory.     

Method for obtaining root nodules of the Baikal relict legumes in laboratory pot experiments

Abstract

Many relict and endemic legumes are often rare and endangered species, located in remote and almost impenetrable areas. This makes it difficult to study their symbiosis with nodule bacteria. The aim of this work was to obtain root nodules under laboratory conditions of Hedysarum zundukii, Oxytropis popoviana, Oxytropis triphylla, Oxytropis tragacanthoides, Astragalus chorinensis and Glycyrrhiza uralensis belonging to the Miocene-Pliocene relicts, usually growing in restricted habitats of the Baikal Lake region. A pot experiment was conducted with soils and seeds collected in distribution areas of these legumes. The collected soils had low content of N and P, suggesting importance of nitrogen-fixing symbiosis for successful maintenance of plant populations. The symbiotic nodules were observed on roots of all plant species tested and 52 bacterial strains assumed as root nodule bacteria (rhizobia) were isolated from nodules. The proposed method avoids collection of native plants and prevents decrease in plant populations. The isolated bacteria will be used to search for ancestral genes responsible for the specificity and efficiency of rhizobia-legume symbiosis and can contribute to the conservation of rare and endangered species of relict legumes in the Baikal region.     

The development of epigeic fauna in new hedges — a comparison of spatial and temporal trends

The colonisation of a linear sequence of nine young hedge plantations (each 400 m²) within an intensely cultivated landscape about 30 km to the west of Bonn has been studied to compare spatial and temporal distribution patterns of epigeic arthropods in order to consider differences obtained concerning an assessment of colonisation characteristics and dispersal trends. The investigation was started in 1982, the year in which the new hedges were planted and continued until 1991. Pitfall traps—usually six as a standard set—were installed in young hedges and in old wooded habitats of an adjacent semi-natural habitat complex, as well as in surrounding arable fields and in meadow strips connecting the hedge plantations. But only in 1990 nearly all the habitats were sampled at the same time. Between 1982 and 1989 catches were continuously performed only in two habitats, since 1986 in four young habitats.Results on species of the taxonomical groups of Carabidae, Opilionida and Araneida show that the analysis of spatial only or temporal only patterns can lead to different interpretations and sometimes wrong conclusions about the colonisation of new hedge habitats. Both types of data, comprehensive spatial and long-term temporal, are complementary and a combination of both is recommended for properly assessing dispersal of species and other dynamic processes in the landscape. As far as the colonisation of new hedges is concerned it is shown that despite high temporal dynamics in species abundances and remarkable differences between the three taxa considered, the development towards a typical hedge fauna progresses very slowly. Small, 9-year-old hedges do not function well as stepping stones for the dispersal of epigeic forest and forest-edge arthropods, and only a small corridor effect could be established for the linear plantation strip. Remarkable differences in colonisation trends between beetle and spider species of similar ecological preferences are discussed.     

Conservation categories and rarity types of Siberian Saussurea species

Abstract

The criteria for assessing conservation categories of rare species are not identical in drafting the red lists of Russia and the IUCN. By the example of genus Saussurea (Compositae), we have shown that the conservation measures for some endangered species do not match their state. We conducted indicator analyses on two factors of more than 9000 relevés with Saussurea species with large ranges and determined their rarity types according to D. Rabinowitz. Only 2 Siberian Saussurea species are not characterised by any type of rarity. The other 54 taxa all feature a small range, low abundance or high habitat specificity.     

Cold resistance of three species of earthworms (Oligohaeta,Lumbricidae) in Western Siberia

We studied cold resistance of Lumbricus rubellus, Octolasion lacteum, Dendrodrilus rubidus tenuis earthworms of Western Siberia (Tomsk) populations. Worms of these species turned out to be not resistant to low temperatures (100% mortality at ?3?°C), while cocoons, on the contrary, survived ?35?°C (L. rubellus) or below ?40?°C (D. rubidus tenuis). The worms’ populations under study do not have specific cold resistance. Their main characteristics are similar in Western Siberia and other geographically remote areas according to our studies. Due to their very high cold resistance, cocoons are indifferent to winter temperatures. Hibernation of the studied species of worms in the severe conditions of the West Siberian climate is possible only in the warmest habitats where minimum soil temperature in hibernation horizons does not fall below ?2?°C. Apparently, the proportion of such habitats in the region is high as 5 out of 12 surveyed biotopes had minimum temperature above the maximum tolerated by worms at a depth of 15?cm.     

Effects of urbanization on Neotropical wasp and bee assemblages in a Brazilian metropolis

The rapid growth of cities in many parts of the world has stimulated an increasing number of ecological studies of urban environments. Here, 12 study sites in the city of Belo Horizonte (MG), southeastern Brazil, were compared to analyze the effects of habitat changes related to urbanization on the species richness and abundance of native wasps and bees. Two spatial scales were considered: large portions of the urban landscape (entire sites) and small areas within these sites (public squares). Overall, the abundance of advanced eusocial bees (i.e. stingless bees), which were the dominant species, was directly affected by the loss of vegetation cover and the increase of buildings associated with urbanization. The magnitude of this effect varied according to the nesting habits of each species. The loss of vegetation cover associated with urbanization also had a negative effect on the abundance and species richness of advanced eusocial wasps. Generalist species of bees and wasps, such as Trigona spinipes and Polybia occidentalis, were very abundant and not sensitive to the habitat changes related to urbanization. Advanced eusocial bees also responded to small-scale habitat changes (size and vegetation cover of public squares). No relation was found between the solitary and the primitive eusocial wasps and bees and the habitat changes considered here. Conservation strategies in urban environments need to consider different spatial scales in order to maintain or enhance the local diversity of wasps and bees.     

Exploitation de bambous (Sinarundinaria alpina (K. Schum.) C.S. Chao & Renvoize), cause des conflits entre le Parc National de Kahuzi-Biega et la population environnante: stratégie de conservation et de résolution de conflit

Sinarundinaria alpina is a species of mountain bamboo which is a source of various conflicts between the managers of the Kahuzi-Biega National Park (KBNP) and surrounding communities. This mountainous species is threatened by these communities to meet their need for various uses. Six permanent plots of 3 hectares were set between 2000–3000 metres above sea level and floristic inventories were made. In addition, information related to anthropogenic threats related to bamboo exploitation was recorded. All data were analysed using quantitative statistical parameters. Results suggest the existence of 196 species in these six permanent plots of the group Bamboo. The position of this Sinarundinaria alpina vegetation in the dynamic rainforest recovery dynamics is confirmed by the presence of trees and tree-nurseries of these trees. Fifty-three species, 27% of the plants observed, including Sinarundinaria alpina seedlings, contribute to the daily feeding of great apes, mainly Grauer’s Gorilla (Gorilla beringei graueri). This forest appears to be one of their critical habitats. The decrease in the area covered by bamboos is due primarily to anthropogenic activities but also some natural hazards (expansion of Sericostachys scandens, natural fading of Bamboo and attacks by beetles). Following these findings, conservation strategies were proposed. Several strengths were noted, including multiplication of bamboo nurseries and distribution of seedlings to local communities. This can be seen as a strong development of this sector in the future. This study is a preliminary assessment for further investigation.