Pub Date : 2024-09-05DOI: 10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03170
Ádám Lőrincz, Bonita Ratkai, Csaba Tölgyesi, Gábor Lőrinczi, Kata Anna Bán, Kata Frei, Tamás Jégh, Zoltán Bátori, István Elek Maák
Semi-natural farming systems with high conservation value offer a valuable opportunity to meet biodiversity conservation goals without compromising agricultural production. The high conservation value of such systems often roots in their increased local or landscape-level heterogeneity, which facilitates the coexistence of different species on a small spatial scale. Gaining a comprehensive understanding of the coexistence mechanisms operating in such systems is essential to mark future conservation trajectories. To facilitate this process, in this study, we aimed to uncover the interactive effects of spatial and temporal heterogeneity on community structuring mechanisms in wood-pastures, Europe’s widespread and heterogeneous semi-natural land-use form. Using ants as bioindicators, we connected species occurrence data with fine-scale measurements of local microclimatic conditions and quantified the seasonal niche breadths and overlaps of ant species forming communities in the four different habitat types (grasslands, solitary trees, forests, and forest edges) of three Central European wood-pastures. The niche quantification (performed for 28 ant species in total) was based on four-dimensional hypervolumes, with solar irradiation, air and soil temperature, and air humidity values of every species occurrence. Our results show that despite being located close to one another, the ant communities of the four different habitat types exhibited distinct patterns of seasonal realized niche dynamics, leading to community-wide temporal changes in niche hypervolumes and hypervolume overlaps (i.e., realized niche breadths and niche overlaps). The hypervolumes of dominant ants (characterized by high behavioral and ecological dominance) were mainly determined by the favorability of environmental conditions throughout the year, and in turn, their values shaped the realized niche breadths and overlap patterns of the intermediate and subordinate species. Importantly, the niche expansions and retractions of the dominant group changed the competitive pressure within the communities (quantified by hypervolume overlaps), opening up empty ecological niches to intermediate and subordinate species during periods characterized by suboptimal environmental conditions. Moreover, the niche dynamics showed a varying pattern across the different habitat types, implying that habitat structure and the associated environmental conditions interact with the effects of seasonality even on a small spatial scale. Our results uncover the interactive effects of spatial and temporal heterogeneity on coexistence mechanisms within wood-pastures. Given the distinct patterns in community dynamics and different community structuring mechanisms of the individual habitat types, wood-pastures and other complex landscapes have the potential to sustain different communities on a small spatial scale and thus boost landscape-level biodiversity.
{"title":"Ants in space and time: Spatiotemporal niche changes facilitate species coexistence in semi-natural ecosystem complexes","authors":"Ádám Lőrincz, Bonita Ratkai, Csaba Tölgyesi, Gábor Lőrinczi, Kata Anna Bán, Kata Frei, Tamás Jégh, Zoltán Bátori, István Elek Maák","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03170","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03170","url":null,"abstract":"Semi-natural farming systems with high conservation value offer a valuable opportunity to meet biodiversity conservation goals without compromising agricultural production. The high conservation value of such systems often roots in their increased local or landscape-level heterogeneity, which facilitates the coexistence of different species on a small spatial scale. Gaining a comprehensive understanding of the coexistence mechanisms operating in such systems is essential to mark future conservation trajectories. To facilitate this process, in this study, we aimed to uncover the interactive effects of spatial and temporal heterogeneity on community structuring mechanisms in wood-pastures, Europe’s widespread and heterogeneous semi-natural land-use form. Using ants as bioindicators, we connected species occurrence data with fine-scale measurements of local microclimatic conditions and quantified the seasonal niche breadths and overlaps of ant species forming communities in the four different habitat types (grasslands, solitary trees, forests, and forest edges) of three Central European wood-pastures. The niche quantification (performed for 28 ant species in total) was based on four-dimensional hypervolumes, with solar irradiation, air and soil temperature, and air humidity values of every species occurrence. Our results show that despite being located close to one another, the ant communities of the four different habitat types exhibited distinct patterns of seasonal realized niche dynamics, leading to community-wide temporal changes in niche hypervolumes and hypervolume overlaps (i.e., realized niche breadths and niche overlaps). The hypervolumes of dominant ants (characterized by high behavioral and ecological dominance) were mainly determined by the favorability of environmental conditions throughout the year, and in turn, their values shaped the realized niche breadths and overlap patterns of the intermediate and subordinate species. Importantly, the niche expansions and retractions of the dominant group changed the competitive pressure within the communities (quantified by hypervolume overlaps), opening up empty ecological niches to intermediate and subordinate species during periods characterized by suboptimal environmental conditions. Moreover, the niche dynamics showed a varying pattern across the different habitat types, implying that habitat structure and the associated environmental conditions interact with the effects of seasonality even on a small spatial scale. Our results uncover the interactive effects of spatial and temporal heterogeneity on coexistence mechanisms within wood-pastures. Given the distinct patterns in community dynamics and different community structuring mechanisms of the individual habitat types, wood-pastures and other complex landscapes have the potential to sustain different communities on a small spatial scale and thus boost landscape-level biodiversity.","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142181622","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
In the present context of climate change and extreme weather events, understanding the impact of flood events on Mediterranean riverine ecosystems is key for conserving landscapes while preserving local biodiversity. In this study, we examined the impact of a major flood that occurred in November 2014 on the Baillaury River (Southern France) where a population of the Mediterranean Pond Turtle (Schweigger, 1812) was monitored from 2012 to 2022. Survival, recruitment, and transition probabilities were estimated before and after the flood using Pradel Robust-Design and Multistate models. Although turtle population size decreased by 16 % immediately after flooding, the adult population rapidly returned to its initial state with a balanced sex ratio. This study highlights that neither the structure nor the temporal dynamics of the adult population were altered over a ten year period underlying the fast resilience of the species. The flood however mainly impacted the spatial dynamics of the population by increasing downstream movements of turtles, which resulted in changes of their distribution along the river.
{"title":"The Mediterranean Pond Turtle shows resilience to extreme flood events","authors":"Pauline Priol, Anne-Sophie Le Gal, Olivier Verneau, Jean-Yves Georges, Alexis Santalucia, Lionel Courmont","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03177","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03177","url":null,"abstract":"In the present context of climate change and extreme weather events, understanding the impact of flood events on Mediterranean riverine ecosystems is key for conserving landscapes while preserving local biodiversity. In this study, we examined the impact of a major flood that occurred in November 2014 on the Baillaury River (Southern France) where a population of the Mediterranean Pond Turtle (Schweigger, 1812) was monitored from 2012 to 2022. Survival, recruitment, and transition probabilities were estimated before and after the flood using Pradel Robust-Design and Multistate models. Although turtle population size decreased by 16 % immediately after flooding, the adult population rapidly returned to its initial state with a balanced sex ratio. This study highlights that neither the structure nor the temporal dynamics of the adult population were altered over a ten year period underlying the fast resilience of the species. The flood however mainly impacted the spatial dynamics of the population by increasing downstream movements of turtles, which resulted in changes of their distribution along the river.","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142223852","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-09-03DOI: 10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03179
Cord B. Eversole, Ruby Ayala, E. Drake Rangel, Scott E. Henke
The spot-tailed earless lizards (STEL) are small, phrynosomatid lizards in the Holbrookia genus. Historically, these were considered two subspecies, the Plateau () and Tamaulipan STEL (); however, each are now recognized as a distinct species (i.e., (plateau STEL) and (Tamaulipan STEL)). Recently, the plateau STEL was considered but not awarded federal protection under the Endangered Species Act by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; however, much uncertainty remains about the status of the Tamaulipan STEL and a conclusive policy decision has not been made. In this study, we developed a hybrid theoretic-empirical demographic model and conducted a population viability analysis (PVA) of the Tamaulipan STEL (). We evaluated the role of multiple demographic, environmental, and anthropogenic parameters and assessed population-level effects and extinction risks via sensitivity experiments. The baseline simulation demonstrated that Tamaulipan STEL have a relatively low probability of extinction under best case scenario conditions; however, results of elasticity analysis of the baseline simulation and sensitivity analysis of demographic parameters demonstrated that increases in juvenile mortality had the greatest effect on population growth rate and extinction risk. Simulations of anthropogenic impacts showed that small increases in habitat loss (e.g., 2 %) had drastic negative effects on population size and persistence. Results from this study demonstrate the need for conservation and management actions aimed at protecting and increasing populations of young individuals (i.e., decreasing juvenile mortality) and promoting the conservation of available and suitable habitat for STEL throughout their range. These results must be considered in future conservation initiatives focused on this species to achieve successful conservation outcomes.
{"title":"Cloudy with a chance of survival: Simulating the effects of climate, habitat, and management on the population viability of an at-risk lizard species","authors":"Cord B. Eversole, Ruby Ayala, E. Drake Rangel, Scott E. Henke","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03179","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03179","url":null,"abstract":"The spot-tailed earless lizards (STEL) are small, phrynosomatid lizards in the Holbrookia genus. Historically, these were considered two subspecies, the Plateau () and Tamaulipan STEL (); however, each are now recognized as a distinct species (i.e., (plateau STEL) and (Tamaulipan STEL)). Recently, the plateau STEL was considered but not awarded federal protection under the Endangered Species Act by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; however, much uncertainty remains about the status of the Tamaulipan STEL and a conclusive policy decision has not been made. In this study, we developed a hybrid theoretic-empirical demographic model and conducted a population viability analysis (PVA) of the Tamaulipan STEL (). We evaluated the role of multiple demographic, environmental, and anthropogenic parameters and assessed population-level effects and extinction risks via sensitivity experiments. The baseline simulation demonstrated that Tamaulipan STEL have a relatively low probability of extinction under best case scenario conditions; however, results of elasticity analysis of the baseline simulation and sensitivity analysis of demographic parameters demonstrated that increases in juvenile mortality had the greatest effect on population growth rate and extinction risk. Simulations of anthropogenic impacts showed that small increases in habitat loss (e.g., 2 %) had drastic negative effects on population size and persistence. Results from this study demonstrate the need for conservation and management actions aimed at protecting and increasing populations of young individuals (i.e., decreasing juvenile mortality) and promoting the conservation of available and suitable habitat for STEL throughout their range. These results must be considered in future conservation initiatives focused on this species to achieve successful conservation outcomes.","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142181625","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-09-03DOI: 10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03182
Tamás Zalai, József Katona, Pál Tóth, Zsolt Végvári, Balázs A. Lukács
Shorebirds represent key indicator species for evaluating the health of wetlands, as they rely on specific habitats for breeding and foraging. Several restoration actions were initiated to restore these wetlands in the Hortobágy (Hungary), however, their effects have never been assessed. Since birds are good indicators of the health and quality of natural environment and sensitive to changes in land use and climate, we evaluated the restoration actions conducted in the last 20 years using bird monitoring data. Our study focuses on the long-term effects of different habitat restoration actions implemented in the region, which involved no restoration, targeted and non-targeted type of interventions for shorebird management as well as long-term and short-term management. The evaluation is based on long-term monitoring data of shorebird species: Black-winged Stilt, Northern Lapwing, Black-tailed Godwit, Common Redshank and Common Snipe. The effectiveness of restoration actions found to have a species-specific aspect, but in general, our findings indicate positive effects of targeted and long-term restoration actions on breeding shorebird populations. By contrast, targeted but short-term actions led to even worse results for shorebird breeding population size than where no restoration actions were initiated. These findings contribute to a better understanding of the specific habitat requirements of breeding shorebirds in the steppe region and can inform future habitat management strategies. The results can be used in conservation planning and management and highlight the importance of long-term and targeted habitat reconstruction projects in restoring and maintaining breeding shorebird populations.
{"title":"Assessing the effects of long-term habitat reconstruction on breeding shorebird populations in a steppe region","authors":"Tamás Zalai, József Katona, Pál Tóth, Zsolt Végvári, Balázs A. Lukács","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03182","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03182","url":null,"abstract":"Shorebirds represent key indicator species for evaluating the health of wetlands, as they rely on specific habitats for breeding and foraging. Several restoration actions were initiated to restore these wetlands in the Hortobágy (Hungary), however, their effects have never been assessed. Since birds are good indicators of the health and quality of natural environment and sensitive to changes in land use and climate, we evaluated the restoration actions conducted in the last 20 years using bird monitoring data. Our study focuses on the long-term effects of different habitat restoration actions implemented in the region, which involved no restoration, targeted and non-targeted type of interventions for shorebird management as well as long-term and short-term management. The evaluation is based on long-term monitoring data of shorebird species: Black-winged Stilt, Northern Lapwing, Black-tailed Godwit, Common Redshank and Common Snipe. The effectiveness of restoration actions found to have a species-specific aspect, but in general, our findings indicate positive effects of targeted and long-term restoration actions on breeding shorebird populations. By contrast, targeted but short-term actions led to even worse results for shorebird breeding population size than where no restoration actions were initiated. These findings contribute to a better understanding of the specific habitat requirements of breeding shorebirds in the steppe region and can inform future habitat management strategies. The results can be used in conservation planning and management and highlight the importance of long-term and targeted habitat reconstruction projects in restoring and maintaining breeding shorebird populations.","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142223838","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-09-03DOI: 10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03175
Xiaojiao Pan, Pengcheng Wang, Mingjun Teng, Manzhu Bao
The use of local native plant species for ecological restoration and rehabilitation is considered an important strategy for nature-based solutions. To achieve this goal, the key work is to understand the distribution of local native plants and their limiting factors. is a keystone species of the vegetation community in subtropical coastal areas, and it plays an essential role in the function and stability of the coastal vegetation buffer zone. The aim of this study was to identify the factors that restrict the growth of in the subtropical supratidal zone. We investigated the growth and development of plants at three field sites, Dongtou Island (DT), Yuhuan Island (YH), and Cangnan County (CN), in Zhejiang Province, China. To investigate the key factors restricting the growth of this species we sampled soils from both the supratidal zone and the habitat zone. Soils in the supratidal zone showed typical characteristics of sodium chloride-type saline-alkali soil, and the soluble salts content showed wide fluctuations. Some soils in the supratidal zone showed severe salinization. The soil pH and soluble salts contents were higher, but soil organic matter content was lower, in the supratidal zone than in the habitat zone. Among the three wild habitat sites, DT had the lowest soil nutrient contents. In soil from the DT site, the soluble salts content was 150 % higher and soil organic matter content was 50 % lower than those in soils from the YH and CN sites. Compared with growing at the CN and YH sites, those growing at the DT site showed higher antioxidant enzyme activity, higher organic osmotic regulatory substances content, and lower malondialdehyde content in the leaves and roots. These results suggest that the growth and distribution of are affected by the organic matter content, pH, and soluble salts content in soil. Among the three populations studied here, the population at DT was the most tolerant to the highly saline conditions in this subtropical coastal area, and has potential applications in landscape restoration of the supratidal zone.
{"title":"Distribution and growth potential of wild Pittosporum tobira in the subtropical supratidal zone","authors":"Xiaojiao Pan, Pengcheng Wang, Mingjun Teng, Manzhu Bao","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03175","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03175","url":null,"abstract":"The use of local native plant species for ecological restoration and rehabilitation is considered an important strategy for nature-based solutions. To achieve this goal, the key work is to understand the distribution of local native plants and their limiting factors. is a keystone species of the vegetation community in subtropical coastal areas, and it plays an essential role in the function and stability of the coastal vegetation buffer zone. The aim of this study was to identify the factors that restrict the growth of in the subtropical supratidal zone. We investigated the growth and development of plants at three field sites, Dongtou Island (DT), Yuhuan Island (YH), and Cangnan County (CN), in Zhejiang Province, China. To investigate the key factors restricting the growth of this species we sampled soils from both the supratidal zone and the habitat zone. Soils in the supratidal zone showed typical characteristics of sodium chloride-type saline-alkali soil, and the soluble salts content showed wide fluctuations. Some soils in the supratidal zone showed severe salinization. The soil pH and soluble salts contents were higher, but soil organic matter content was lower, in the supratidal zone than in the habitat zone. Among the three wild habitat sites, DT had the lowest soil nutrient contents. In soil from the DT site, the soluble salts content was 150 % higher and soil organic matter content was 50 % lower than those in soils from the YH and CN sites. Compared with growing at the CN and YH sites, those growing at the DT site showed higher antioxidant enzyme activity, higher organic osmotic regulatory substances content, and lower malondialdehyde content in the leaves and roots. These results suggest that the growth and distribution of are affected by the organic matter content, pH, and soluble salts content in soil. Among the three populations studied here, the population at DT was the most tolerant to the highly saline conditions in this subtropical coastal area, and has potential applications in landscape restoration of the supratidal zone.","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142181627","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-09-03DOI: 10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03180
Brandon W. McDonald, Marcus A. Lashley, Michael V. Cove
Negative interactions among invasive predators, competitors and native species can often disrupt ecosystem services, particularly when keystone species are affected. The Key Largo woodrat () is an endangered ecosystem engineer, endemic to protected hammocks on the northern third of the island of Key Largo, FL, USA. Invasive predator control efforts have assisted in woodrat recovery, but less is known about how a potential competitor, the black rat (), interacts with the woodrat. We conducted camera trap surveys at supplemental nest sites throughout the range of the woodrat and used multi-species occupancy models to investigate factors influencing woodrat and black rat co-occurrence. Supplemental nest sites were surveyed each year over a three-year period, during which the population of black rats within the protected hammock declined precipitously. Woodrats and black rats occurred at similar levels in the first survey with occupancy probabilities of 22.8 % and 15.6 %, respectively. Both species occurred at fewer sites in the second survey, but while woodrats later rebounded, black rats were only detected twice in the final survey. There was evidence of species avoidance between the rodents based on a species interaction term, and they exhibited opposing relationships with predictor variables of both detection and occupancy probabilities. As the occupancy of black rats decreased, the relationship between woodrats and distance from developed areas also weakened. Following the black rat decline, woodrats recolonized an area previously dominated by black rats, where they had been presumed extirpated for 2–3 decades. Our results indicate that black rat competition restricted occupancy of Key Largo woodrats, hindering recovery efforts that previously concentrated on invasive predator removal, demonstrating the need to consider influences of both invasive predators and competitors in species recovery programs.
{"title":"Collapse of invasive competitor expands distribution of endangered ecosystem engineer","authors":"Brandon W. McDonald, Marcus A. Lashley, Michael V. Cove","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03180","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03180","url":null,"abstract":"Negative interactions among invasive predators, competitors and native species can often disrupt ecosystem services, particularly when keystone species are affected. The Key Largo woodrat () is an endangered ecosystem engineer, endemic to protected hammocks on the northern third of the island of Key Largo, FL, USA. Invasive predator control efforts have assisted in woodrat recovery, but less is known about how a potential competitor, the black rat (), interacts with the woodrat. We conducted camera trap surveys at supplemental nest sites throughout the range of the woodrat and used multi-species occupancy models to investigate factors influencing woodrat and black rat co-occurrence. Supplemental nest sites were surveyed each year over a three-year period, during which the population of black rats within the protected hammock declined precipitously. Woodrats and black rats occurred at similar levels in the first survey with occupancy probabilities of 22.8 % and 15.6 %, respectively. Both species occurred at fewer sites in the second survey, but while woodrats later rebounded, black rats were only detected twice in the final survey. There was evidence of species avoidance between the rodents based on a species interaction term, and they exhibited opposing relationships with predictor variables of both detection and occupancy probabilities. As the occupancy of black rats decreased, the relationship between woodrats and distance from developed areas also weakened. Following the black rat decline, woodrats recolonized an area previously dominated by black rats, where they had been presumed extirpated for 2–3 decades. Our results indicate that black rat competition restricted occupancy of Key Largo woodrats, hindering recovery efforts that previously concentrated on invasive predator removal, demonstrating the need to consider influences of both invasive predators and competitors in species recovery programs.","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142181626","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Climate and land use change are the primary drivers causing the reduction of habitat range for many species worldwide, especially wide-ranging and large-bodied ungulates. For instance, khulan (), a flagship species inhabiting desert regions of Asia, exhibits heightened vulnerability to habitat loss and fragmentation due to their extensive habitat requirements. We simulated suitable khulan habitats in China across 20 scenarios, including the past (1980–2000), current (2001–2022), and future (2050 s and 2070 s) climate and land use change scenarios. For each scenario, we identified the suitable habitat area and evaluated the effectiveness of protected areas (PAs). Our findings revealed a decline in khulan habitat area from 133,006 km in the past to 60,141 km at present. Future scenarios indicate further reductions in potential khulan habitat, with more negative impacts resulting from climate change than land use change. Northern Xinjiang is expected to persist as a primary area of both in-situ and ex-situ refugia for khulan in future scenarios. Although suitable habitat within existing PAs is smaller than that outside, the rates of habitat loss and fragmentation outside the PAs surpass those inside PAs. These findings emphasize the importance of effective management strategies for PAs as crucial goals for ongoing conservation efforts for the khulan. Our models suggest that future suitable habitat for khulan will be situated along the international border between China and Mongolia, adjacent to protected areas in Mongolia utilized by khulan. Enhancing connectivity between these habitats could significantly contribute to improving both the climate and genetic resilience of khulan populations.
{"title":"Synergistic effects of climate and land use change on khulan (Equus hemionus hemionus) habitat in China","authors":"Jiajia Ding, Yingying Zhuo, Wenxuan Xu, Mimi Kessler, Muyang Wang, Weikang Yang","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03181","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03181","url":null,"abstract":"Climate and land use change are the primary drivers causing the reduction of habitat range for many species worldwide, especially wide-ranging and large-bodied ungulates. For instance, khulan (), a flagship species inhabiting desert regions of Asia, exhibits heightened vulnerability to habitat loss and fragmentation due to their extensive habitat requirements. We simulated suitable khulan habitats in China across 20 scenarios, including the past (1980–2000), current (2001–2022), and future (2050 s and 2070 s) climate and land use change scenarios. For each scenario, we identified the suitable habitat area and evaluated the effectiveness of protected areas (PAs). Our findings revealed a decline in khulan habitat area from 133,006 km in the past to 60,141 km at present. Future scenarios indicate further reductions in potential khulan habitat, with more negative impacts resulting from climate change than land use change. Northern Xinjiang is expected to persist as a primary area of both in-situ and ex-situ refugia for khulan in future scenarios. Although suitable habitat within existing PAs is smaller than that outside, the rates of habitat loss and fragmentation outside the PAs surpass those inside PAs. These findings emphasize the importance of effective management strategies for PAs as crucial goals for ongoing conservation efforts for the khulan. Our models suggest that future suitable habitat for khulan will be situated along the international border between China and Mongolia, adjacent to protected areas in Mongolia utilized by khulan. Enhancing connectivity between these habitats could significantly contribute to improving both the climate and genetic resilience of khulan populations.","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142181624","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-09-03DOI: 10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03183
Siti Mastura Hasan, Muhammad Sainuddin, Sándor Csányi
In Malaysia, escalating human-wildlife conflicts pose significant risks to both human populations and wildlife species, highlighting the need for advanced systems for effective conflict management. This study introduces the Geo Wild System (GWS), a novel Progressive Web Application (PWA) specifically tailored for Malaysian contexts. GWS integrates data from diverse sources, including citizen reports, park rangers, and licensed hunters, and employs Geographic Information System (GIS) tools to enhance data visualization and identify conflict hotspots. During the study period from January to June 2024, GWS recorded and facilitated the deployment of 117 traps across six districts: Shah Alam, Hulu Selangor, Sungai Besar, Hulu Langat, Georgetown, and Seberang Prai. These deployments, based on reported conflict data, resulted in the capture of 88 wildlife individuals, including 85 long-tailed macaques (), two wild boars (), and one Asian palm civets (), demonstrating the system's operational effectiveness. GWS supports a comprehensive reporting, monitoring, and analysis system, utilizing GIS-based Kernel Density Estimation (KDE) to pinpoint critical conflict hotspots, particularly in rapidly urbanizing areas. User feedback was overwhelmingly positive, highlighting the system’s user-friendliness and robust data integration. Despite initial deployment challenges and geodetic constraints, GWS has proven to be a valuable tool for mitigating wildlife conflicts, enabling informed, timely management responses, and offering a promising approach to adaptive wildlife management in Malaysia.
{"title":"The introduction of Geo Wild System (GWS) as a novel wildlife reporting, monitoring, and analyzing system in Malaysia","authors":"Siti Mastura Hasan, Muhammad Sainuddin, Sándor Csányi","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03183","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03183","url":null,"abstract":"In Malaysia, escalating human-wildlife conflicts pose significant risks to both human populations and wildlife species, highlighting the need for advanced systems for effective conflict management. This study introduces the Geo Wild System (GWS), a novel Progressive Web Application (PWA) specifically tailored for Malaysian contexts. GWS integrates data from diverse sources, including citizen reports, park rangers, and licensed hunters, and employs Geographic Information System (GIS) tools to enhance data visualization and identify conflict hotspots. During the study period from January to June 2024, GWS recorded and facilitated the deployment of 117 traps across six districts: Shah Alam, Hulu Selangor, Sungai Besar, Hulu Langat, Georgetown, and Seberang Prai. These deployments, based on reported conflict data, resulted in the capture of 88 wildlife individuals, including 85 long-tailed macaques (), two wild boars (), and one Asian palm civets (), demonstrating the system's operational effectiveness. GWS supports a comprehensive reporting, monitoring, and analysis system, utilizing GIS-based Kernel Density Estimation (KDE) to pinpoint critical conflict hotspots, particularly in rapidly urbanizing areas. User feedback was overwhelmingly positive, highlighting the system’s user-friendliness and robust data integration. Despite initial deployment challenges and geodetic constraints, GWS has proven to be a valuable tool for mitigating wildlife conflicts, enabling informed, timely management responses, and offering a promising approach to adaptive wildlife management in Malaysia.","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142181623","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Mountains of Southwest China (MSC) serve as a prominent geographical distribution center for and (Ericaceae). These mountains are currently experiencing an unparalleled warming trend, which poses severe challenges to the survival of these keystone alpine species. However, the geographical distribution responses of these species to climate change remain incompletely understood and are often overlooked. Here, we constructed ensemble models (EMs) using ten models of five algorithms to calibrate ecological niche models and predict suitable habitat areas for the two species across four climate emission scenarios over three distinct periods. Our analysis indicated the higher importance of elevation than temperature and precipitation in shaping the spatial distribution of the two alpine species. The current suitable habitats of and have areas spanning 14.85 × 10 and 11.01 × 10 km, respectively, which are mostly distributed in the western and central regions of MSC. The suitable habitat of is projected to decrease by 15.09–75.31 %, but the potential habitat of is expected to shrink by12.71 % to 76.8 % in different future climate scenarios. The suitable habitats of these species may become confined in a “summit trap” within relatively low-altitude regions, whereas habitats distributed at high altitudes may serve as “biological refuges.” The future distribution of the two alpine species will shift to high altitudes in westward and northward regions, with substantial thermal and hydrothermal changes as the primary drivers of habitat alteration and migration patterns. The losses or benefits for species under climate warming depend on their ecological niches and geographical location, which provide a geographical guidance for the long-term conservation and sustainable use of species and essential insights into the spatial conservation assessment of alpine plant groups in biodiversity hotspots in the future.
{"title":"Geographic distribution and impacts of climate change on the suitable habitats of two alpine Rhododendron in Southwest China","authors":"Yanghui Zhao, Ying Zhang, Yadan Yan, Yafeng Wen, Donglin Zhang","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03176","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03176","url":null,"abstract":"Mountains of Southwest China (MSC) serve as a prominent geographical distribution center for and (Ericaceae). These mountains are currently experiencing an unparalleled warming trend, which poses severe challenges to the survival of these keystone alpine species. However, the geographical distribution responses of these species to climate change remain incompletely understood and are often overlooked. Here, we constructed ensemble models (EMs) using ten models of five algorithms to calibrate ecological niche models and predict suitable habitat areas for the two species across four climate emission scenarios over three distinct periods. Our analysis indicated the higher importance of elevation than temperature and precipitation in shaping the spatial distribution of the two alpine species. The current suitable habitats of and have areas spanning 14.85 × 10 and 11.01 × 10 km, respectively, which are mostly distributed in the western and central regions of MSC. The suitable habitat of is projected to decrease by 15.09–75.31 %, but the potential habitat of is expected to shrink by12.71 % to 76.8 % in different future climate scenarios. The suitable habitats of these species may become confined in a “summit trap” within relatively low-altitude regions, whereas habitats distributed at high altitudes may serve as “biological refuges.” The future distribution of the two alpine species will shift to high altitudes in westward and northward regions, with substantial thermal and hydrothermal changes as the primary drivers of habitat alteration and migration patterns. The losses or benefits for species under climate warming depend on their ecological niches and geographical location, which provide a geographical guidance for the long-term conservation and sustainable use of species and essential insights into the spatial conservation assessment of alpine plant groups in biodiversity hotspots in the future.","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142181628","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-09-02DOI: 10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03174
Farkhanda Naz, Muhammad Arif, Tan Xue, Li Changxiao
Riparian soils, together with vegetation, play a crucial role in supporting biodiversity and driving biogeochemical processes within river ecosystems. Conservation of riparian soils and artificial planting are essential for river ecosystem recovery following land degradation. Researchers focus on examining soil nutrients, microbial biomass, and organic acid metabolism in the interactions between plants and soil along riverbanks. However, the seasonal responses of riparian soils to artificial plantations have been infrequently reported in the existing literature. This study investigates the influence of seasonal variations on soil conditions and the growth of artificially planted species in the riparian zones of the Three Gorges Dam Reservoir (TGDR) in China. The species sampled include and . These species provide valuable insight into soil properties along riparian zones, assessing interactions across different seasons: T1 (spring), T2 (summer), and T3 (autumn). The results demonstrated significant seasonal changes in soil organic matter, ammonium nitrogen, nitrate nitrogen, and other indicators between T1 and T3. Apart from invertase activity in soil, enzyme activity peaked during T1. Dominant soil bacteria were examined using high-throughput 16S rDNA sequencing, revealing that the available bacteria belong to 62 phyla and 211 classes. Among the most abundant were and , averaging over 60 % across all soil samples. Principal component analyses accounted for 62.81 % (T1), 50.57 % (T2), and 54.08 % (T3) of the variation observed in the study, indicating that soil properties were predominantly influenced by the different seasonal phases, assuming all other factors remained constant. Pearson correlation analysis ( < 0.05) identified strong positive correlations between physical properties and all three plant species during T1 ( ≤ 0.94), as well as significant negative correlations with bacterial communities in T2 and T3 ( ≤ −1.00). These findings suggest that the selected plant species are well-suited to cultivation in the riparian zone of the TGDR. This study enhances our understanding of seasonal dynamics in riparian environments, offering practical insights into their management.
{"title":"Seasonal dynamics of soil ecosystems in the riparian zones of the Three Gorges Reservoir, China","authors":"Farkhanda Naz, Muhammad Arif, Tan Xue, Li Changxiao","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03174","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gecco.2024.e03174","url":null,"abstract":"Riparian soils, together with vegetation, play a crucial role in supporting biodiversity and driving biogeochemical processes within river ecosystems. Conservation of riparian soils and artificial planting are essential for river ecosystem recovery following land degradation. Researchers focus on examining soil nutrients, microbial biomass, and organic acid metabolism in the interactions between plants and soil along riverbanks. However, the seasonal responses of riparian soils to artificial plantations have been infrequently reported in the existing literature. This study investigates the influence of seasonal variations on soil conditions and the growth of artificially planted species in the riparian zones of the Three Gorges Dam Reservoir (TGDR) in China. The species sampled include and . These species provide valuable insight into soil properties along riparian zones, assessing interactions across different seasons: T1 (spring), T2 (summer), and T3 (autumn). The results demonstrated significant seasonal changes in soil organic matter, ammonium nitrogen, nitrate nitrogen, and other indicators between T1 and T3. Apart from invertase activity in soil, enzyme activity peaked during T1. Dominant soil bacteria were examined using high-throughput 16S rDNA sequencing, revealing that the available bacteria belong to 62 phyla and 211 classes. Among the most abundant were and , averaging over 60 % across all soil samples. Principal component analyses accounted for 62.81 % (T1), 50.57 % (T2), and 54.08 % (T3) of the variation observed in the study, indicating that soil properties were predominantly influenced by the different seasonal phases, assuming all other factors remained constant. Pearson correlation analysis ( < 0.05) identified strong positive correlations between physical properties and all three plant species during T1 ( ≤ 0.94), as well as significant negative correlations with bacterial communities in T2 and T3 ( ≤ −1.00). These findings suggest that the selected plant species are well-suited to cultivation in the riparian zone of the TGDR. This study enhances our understanding of seasonal dynamics in riparian environments, offering practical insights into their management.","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":4.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142181629","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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