Global Ecology and Conservation最新文献

{"title":"Differential influences of island biogeographic effects on the diversity among three plant life-forms","authors":"Saiqiang Li ,&nbsp;Qinqin Pan ,&nbsp;Xiaodong Yang ,&nbsp;Yongchao Gao ,&nbsp;Mingshan Xu","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e03499","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e03499","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Traditional island biogeography posits that area and remoteness are key determinants of species richness. However, this theory is challenged by recent changes in species dispersal patterns caused by human activity and climate change. These emerging factors may affect the species richness of different plant life forms in distinct ways. While most studies focus on overall species richness, few have explored these factors separately influence trees, shrubs, and herbs. This study hypothesizes that the impacts of island area, remoteness, climate, and human activities vary across plant life-forms. By examining the species richness of three plant life-forms across 30 uninhabited islands on China's eastern continental shelf, we provide new insights into island biodiversity. We employed various statistical models and PLS-PM to interpret the mechanisms that maintain the richness of different plant life-forms. We found that species richness of total plants, trees, shrubs, and herbs showed a strong positive correlation with island area (0.36 ≤ R² ≤ 0.51, <em>p</em> &lt; 0.01), while remoteness negatively affected total, tree, and shrub richness (0.15 ≤ R² ≤ 0.22, <em>p</em> &lt; 0.05) but not herbs. Invasive plant richness increased with land use intensity and habitat heterogeneity (R² = 0.29, 0.47; <em>p</em> &lt; 0.01). The PLS-PM showed that island biogeographic effects, climate, and human activities influence plant richness differently among the three plant life-forms. The area is a major determinant for shrub and herb richness, while remoteness has a more significant effect on tree species richness. Human activities positively affected tree richness but negatively affected shrub and herb richness. Climatic factors positively affected shrub species richness, but not tree and herb richness. Our study offers novel insights into island biogeography by exploring how island area, remoteness, climate, and human activities shape the diversity of trees, shrubs, and herbs. These findings underscore the importance of developing life-form-specific conservation strategies, especially in light of climate change and human influences.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":"58 ","pages":"Article e03499"},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2025-02-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143436793","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Optimal ecological restoration strategy development based on value-cost trade-offs","authors":"Yunxuan Liu ,&nbsp;Cui Zhang ,&nbsp;Miaomiao Xie ,&nbsp;Jingyi Xie","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e03500","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e03500","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Ecological restoration can provide a holistic and systemic perspective for the implementation of ecosystem protection and restoration projects. However, making decisions on optimal ecological restoration strategies remains a challenge. This study supports strategy development by balancing ecological improvement and economic viability. In this study, we took Huanghua, a county under provincial jurisdiction in China, as an example. We identified areas prioritized for ecological restoration by employing the research paradigm of \"sources-resistance surface-corridors-nodes\". In addition, we searched for Pareto-optimal solutions using the nondominated sorting genetic algorithm II (NSGA-II) to balance the trade-offs between different objectives. The results of this study revealed that 46 ecological barriers were identified as priority ecological restoration areas in Huanghua, mainly for cropland and construction land. Three optimal ecological restoration strategies with high value<img>cost ratio, high ecological value, and low implementation cost were proposed for typical ecological restoration priority areas for different decision-making needs. Area I has the highest value<img>cost ratio, whereas Area II and Area III have the same value<img>cost ratio, and it is most appropriate to prioritize restoration for Area I. When the investment budget is lower than the implementation cost of ecological restoration, ecological restoration projects with a high value<img>cost ratio are often chosen. This study constructed a methodological framework for formulating optimal ecological restoration strategies, which effectively enhanced the science of the decision-making process. The results provide a highly valuable scientific basis for developing ecological restoration strategies in Huanghua.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":"58 ","pages":"Article e03500"},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2025-02-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143478914","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Evaluation of impact of climate extremes on vegetation change in Southwest China considering time-lag effect","authors":"Gang Qi ,&nbsp;Nan Cong ,&nbsp;Tangzhen Qiu ,&nbsp;Lei Rong ,&nbsp;Ping Ren ,&nbsp;Jiangtao Xiao","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e03497","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e03497","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The occurrence of extreme climate phenomena has markedly increased due to the rising trend in global temperatures, leading to significant changes in plant distribution and behavior. This trend is particularly evident in Southwest China, a region highly sensitive to climate shifts and frequently exposed to extreme climate events. However, the impact of the time-lag effect on vegetation is often overlooked. In this study, daily temperature (maximum and minimum) and precipitation data were used to calculate nine extreme climate indices. These indices were then employed to evaluate their impact on vegetation dynamics in the region. Subsequently, MODIS NDVI data were used to explore the correlations and time-lag effects between these extreme climate indices and vegetation changes. The analysis revealed significant annual and monthly growth rates in the regional average NDVI from 2000 to 2020, with R² determination coefficients of 0.06 and 0.94, respectively. Most extreme climate indices exhibited a strong positive correlation with NDVI on a monthly scale. A significant correlation was observed between extreme precipitation index and vegetation index in croplands and grasslands. There was a significant 0–2-month lag in the correlation between NDVI and extreme precipitation indices, whereas the correlation between NDVI and extreme temperature indices was more pronounced, with a lag of approximately 4–6 months. Ultimately, our study identified a stronger correlation between precipitation indices and NDVI, highlighting the necessity for increased attention to intense precipitation in the southwest to protect vegetation growth in the region. These findings provide a robust scientific basis for the proactive management of vegetation in Southwest China in response to future extreme climate events.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":"58 ","pages":"Article e03497"},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2025-02-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143436794","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Evaluating mangrove forest dynamics and fragmentation in Sundarbans, Bangladesh using high-resolution Sentinel-2 satellite images","authors":"Sujit Kumar Roy ,&nbsp;Pratik Mojumder ,&nbsp;Md Ashik Arman Chowdhury ,&nbsp;Md. Mahmudul Hasan","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e03493","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e03493","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Forest fragmentation, caused by human activities, has negative consequences for forest health and biodiversity. The Sundarbans, situated in two densely populated countries, face ongoing human encroachment due to residential construction. This study investigated changes in forest cover and fragmentation in the Sundarbans, Bangladesh, from 2017 to 2023. The analysis used Sentinel-2 imagery and the Google Earth Engine (GEE) platform to classify water bodies, mangrove forests, built-up areas, and agriculture zones. Accuracy levels have not significantly fluctuated, but overall accuracy remained between 88 % and 91 %, with high agreement kappa statistics ranging from 0.83 to 0.88 across all years. The study identified Patch, Edge, Perforated, and Core forest classes, revealing annual shifts in land use. Notably, the ‘Patch’ class indicated localized regeneration, while the ‘Core (&gt;202 ha)’ declined due to deforestation, urban expansion, and shifting agriculture. The Core class decreased significantly from 205,421 ha in 2017–73,127 ha in 2020. Additionally, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) indices highlighted fluctuations in forest classes and vegetation/non-vegetation areas. Canopy changes showed a 3 % reduction in high canopy (&gt;0.3) from 2017 to 2023. High-resolution data facilitated the precise mapping of fragmented areas, emphasising the urgent need for conservation planning amidst urbanization while preserving the Sundarbans’ ecological integrity.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":"58 ","pages":"Article e03493"},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2025-02-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143436795","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Carbon sequestration law by phytoliths in the bamboo forests: Insights for the management of phytolith carbon sink","authors":"Li Liu,&nbsp;Linjiao Wang,&nbsp;Lukang Song,&nbsp;Maoyin Sheng","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e03491","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e03491","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Phytolith-occluded organic carbon (PhytOC) plays a crucial role as a stable and enduring carbon sink in the intricate web of terrestrial ecosystems. Bamboo forests exhibit the most prominent ability of phytolith carbon sequestration among terrestrial vegetation. This study systematically investigated the complex dynamics of phytolith carbon sequestration and accumulation in different organs (leaves, branches, culms, and roots) of <em>P. edulis</em> and <em>B. emeiensis</em> forests across three growth stages (young, middle-aged, and mature) in shale and limestone regions of southwest China. The results unveiled the spectrum of PhytOC content, storage, and sequestration rate within the <em>P. edulis</em> forests, ranging from 0.24 to 10.51 g·kg⁻¹, 0.62–35.72 kg·hm⁻², and 0.75–61.06 kg·CO₂·hm⁻²·a⁻¹, respectively. On the other hand, the <em>B. emeiensis</em> forests exhibited a wider range, with PhytOC content varying from 0.33 to 20.59 g·kg⁻¹, storage from 0.25 to 102.81 kg·hm⁻², and sequestration rate from 0.90 to 75.39 kg·CO₂·hm⁻²·a⁻¹. The differences in phytolith carbon sequestration were significant or extremely remarkable across forest species, ages, organs, and bedrock types. Roots play a major role in the phytolith carbon sequestration of bamboo forests. The root PhytOC sequestration rate of <em>P. edulis</em> and <em>B. emeiensis</em> is 30.67 and 12.69 kg·CO₂·hm⁻²·a⁻¹, respectively. Forest age and bedrock both have a significant impact on the phytolith carbon sequestration of bamboo forests. Both soil physicochemical properties and forest community structures are closely related to phytolith carbon sequestration and accumulation in the bamboo forests, which are great of significance in the artificial intervention for increasing the phytolith carbon sink.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":"58 ","pages":"Article e03491"},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2025-02-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143428752","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Restoration plantations accelerate recovery of fungal communities of course woody debris in southern Costa Rica","authors":"Jeffrey A. Lackmann ,&nbsp;Estefania P. Fernandez Barrancos ,&nbsp;Rakan A. Zahawi ,&nbsp;Laura Aldrich-Wolfe","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e03487","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e03487","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Fungi are essential to forests because of their role in the nutrient cycle as the primary decomposers of woody debris. Anthropogenic disturbances threaten forest ecosystems and reduce fungal diversity, changing the way carbon moves through the ecosystem. We experimentally investigated the effectiveness of two forest restoration treatments at recovering old-growth forest fungal communities and the relative importance of direct and indirect exposure of woody substrates to large insects for subsequent fungal colonization in a tropical premontane landscape. Restoration treatments consisted of 17–18-year-old, 50 × 50 m plantation and natural regeneration plots compared to nearby reference forest plots. We introduced three <em>Inga edulis</em> logs into each restoration and reference plot (nine logs/site; five sites) and applied the following treatments: 1) control logs open to the environment, 2) logs enclosed in cages to exclude arthropods &gt;2 mm, 3) logs enclosed in cages and drilled with holes to mimic wood-boring arthropods. After one year, we extracted samples from the logs, describing their fungal communities using metabarcoding. Fungal community composition in logs from plantations resembled that of reference forests, while logs in natural regenerations did not. Limiting arthropod access diminished fungal richness in plantation treatments and reference forest by ∼19 %, suggesting that arthropods play a role in facilitating fungal colonization. Results suggest that the biotic and abiotic processes of tropical forests impacting fungal colonization and dispersal are effectively restored through restoration plantations in less than 20 years when remnant forest patches are present nearby, a shorter timeframe than that of natural regenerations.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":"58 ","pages":"Article e03487"},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2025-02-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143428751","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Non-native plants in road verges attract pollinators despite associated declines in native flowers","authors":"Massimo Martini ,&nbsp;Emily Kaul ,&nbsp;Reid Miller,&nbsp;Jason Gibbs,&nbsp;Kyle Bobiwash","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e03489","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e03489","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Marginal habitats are increasingly recognized for their potential value in pollinator conservation. Road verges, which cover extensive areas, provide abundant floral resources and contribute to habitat heterogeneity and connectivity in homogeneous landscapes. However, road verges are also hotspots for the establishment and dispersal of non-native plants, raising doubts on their suitability to support diverse pollinator populations. We sampled flowering plants and visiting insects in roadsides of southeastern Manitoba, Canada, and leveraged datasets of bee communities from surrounding areas and Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs) to compare pollinator communities across habitats. Plant communities in road verges were dominated by a subset of abundant non-native species and were disproportionately visited by generalist pollinators. Non-native plant abundance was negatively correlated with native plant richness and abundance in the verges but positively associated with bee richness and abundance. Landscape context and scale also influenced pollinators. We found strong differences in pollinator richness, abundance, and community composition at larger (ecozone) scales, with local landscape composition and configuration also contributing significantly, albeit to a lesser extent. Road verge bee communities were distinct and less even than those in surrounding areas and WMAs, and exhibited a markedly higher proportion of polylectic to oligolectic individuals. These findings suggest that road verges can support generalist pollinators but are less suitable for specialists, highlighting their potential to maintain pollination services in heavily disturbed or densely-forested landscapes while also revealing limitations in harboring representatively diverse and even communities.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":"58 ","pages":"Article e03489"},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2025-02-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143428758","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Climate change may shift diet of the African savanna elephant: Preliminary results for 14 food tree and shrub species in the WAPOK transboundary ecosystem, West-Africa","authors":"Gafarou Agounde ,&nbsp;Kolawolé Valère Salako ,&nbsp;Rodrigue A.F. Idohou ,&nbsp;Akoeugnigan Idelphonse Sode ,&nbsp;Sylvanus Mensah ,&nbsp;Kangbeni Dimobe ,&nbsp;Achille Ephrem Assogbadjo ,&nbsp;Romain Glèlè Kakaï","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e03468","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e03468","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Climate change through an increase in temperature and a reduction of rainfall constitutes a serious threat to the African savannah elephants <em>Loxodonta africana</em> Cuvier. Climate change can directly shrink suitable habitats of the main food resources of elephants; hence reducing their food availability. In this study, we assessed the present-day and future suitable habitat for 14 tree and shrub species previously identified as main components of the elephant diet in the W-Arli-Pendjari-Oti-Mandouri-Keran (WAPOK) ecosystem, the largest savannah ecosystem in West-Africa. Bioclimatic and soil data were used to build the present-day and future models under two representative concentration pathway scenarios: RCP4.5 and RCP8.5. We further explicitly accounted for dispersal constraints and compared “actually” colonized habitats to suitable habitats based on the traditional assumption of unlimited dispersal. Mean diurnal temperature range, isothermality, temperature seasonality, annual temperature range, annual precipitation, number of dry months, and soil were the seven most important drivers of the distribution of the species. However, their relative importance varied greatly among species. Nevertheless, the annual precipitation had a high contribution (47–77 %) for nine out of the 14 species (∼ 65 %). Compared to present-day, results showed a moderate decrease in suitable habitats for seven out of the 14 species under scenarios RCP4.5 (1.30 – 12.95 %) and RCP8.5 (1.89 – 17.21 %). The remaining species, namely, <em>Tamarindus indica, Annona senegalensis, Vitex doniana, Vachellia sieberiana, Kigelia africana, Adansonia digitata,</em> and <em>Borassus aethiopum</em> will experience an increase of 2.97 – 51.68 % (RCP45) and (2.58 – 53.55 %) (RCP85) of their suitable habitats. Incorporation of dispersal constraints in the models showed that 9.26 – 48.26 % of currently suitable habitats will be occupied with the lowest and highest values for <em>T. indica</em> and <em>A. digitata</em> respectively. Top five species with moderate probabilities (35–48 %) to colonize and occupy suitable habitats included <em>A. digitata,</em> followed by <em>V. sieberiana, V. doniana, D. microcarpum, P. erinaceus,</em> and <em>P. biglobosa.</em> Species with the lowest probability to colonize suitable habitats were <em>V. paradoxa,</em> followed by <em>K. africana, Khaya senegalensis, Balanites aegyptiaca, B. aethiopum,</em> and <em>T. indica</em>. This study shows that climate change by reducing the availability of some food resources may shift diet of African savanna elephants. It further indicated that dispersal constraint is important in habitat suitability modeling. Finally, it provides valuable information on the potential impacts of climate change on key food resources of savannah elephants which can guide conservation and management actions in the WAPOK ecosystem.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":"58 ","pages":"Article e03468"},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2025-02-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143395929","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Changes in functional traits and resources reduce the specialization of hummingbirds in fragmented landscapes","authors":"Ariana Vélez ,&nbsp;Catherine H. Graham ,&nbsp;Ibeth P. Alarcón ,&nbsp;Ruth Arias ,&nbsp;Santiago Cárdenas-Calle ,&nbsp;Omar Landázuri ,&nbsp;Carlos Iván Espinosa ,&nbsp;Boris A. Tinoco","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e03469","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e03469","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Pollinator specialization, crucial for the stability of plant-pollinator interactions, can be affected by habitat loss and fragmentation; however, the pathways that induce these changes are poorly understood. We aim to understand the underlying factors by which habitat loss, fragmentation, and vegetation structure change species specialization of hummingbirds and consequently influence community robustness in tropical montane forests of southern Ecuador. We used a piecewise structural equation model to simultaneously analyze the influence of functional traits of pollinators and resource availability as pathways driving the changes in specialization, resulting from an increase in habitat loss, fragmentation, and simplification of vegetation structure. We found that fragmentation reduces hummingbird specialization by filtering out hummingbirds with long bills. In addition, we observed that forest edges have greater floral diversity associated with a decrease in hummingbird specialization. The observed shift towards generalization in hummingbird assemblages, related to the transformation of landscapes, appears to promote more robust communities capable of sustaining hummingbird populations. However, morphologically specialized pollinators can be highly sensitive to fragmentation and even become locally extinct when fragmentation increases in a landscape. We conclude that while fragmented habitats may maintain robust communities, specialist species, often with unique ecological functions, may be lost.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":"58 ","pages":"Article e03469"},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2025-02-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143420193","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Malayan porcupines in moonlight: Assessing nocturnal activity patterns, with a review of porcupine distributions in Bangladesh","authors":"Muntasir Akash ,&nbsp;Abigail Gazzard ,&nbsp;Rifa Nanziba ,&nbsp;Sultan Ahmed ,&nbsp;Haris Debbarma ,&nbsp;Tania Zakir","doi":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e03486","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.gecco.2025.e03486","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Many aspects of Hystricidae porcupine ecology in South Asia, including that of the Malayan porcupine (<em>Hystrix brachyura</em>), remain poorly studied. Part of this species’ global range falls within Bangladesh, where the presence and distribution of porcupines is generally unclear. In Bangladesh, 2–3 species are thought to occur: the Malayan porcupine, the Asiatic brush-tailed porcupine (<em>Atherurus macrourus</em>), and the Indian crested porcupine (<em>Hystrix indica</em>). However, the presence of the latter is disputed. In this study, we used camera trapping data from mixed evergreen forests in northeastern Bangladesh and country-wide occurrence records from a literature and media report to clarify current knowledge of porcupine distributions in the country. Our results expand the known distributions of Malayan and Asiatic brush-tailed porcupines in Bangladesh but provide no evidence of the Indian crested porcupine. Additionally, using the camera trapping data, we explore previously unreported aspects of the ecology and activity patterns of Malayan porcupines. We examined their temporal activity against that of Asiatic brush-tailed porcupines, carnivores and anthropogenic stressors, as well as investigated the effect of nighttime illumination on activity patterns. We found that Malayan porcupines are generally more active over winter. However, they consistently reduced their activity levels on brighter nights and avoided full-moon periods as a potential anti-predator mechanism. The species exhibited high temporal overlap with similarly nocturnal Asiatic brush-tailed porcupines and mesocarnivores, but little to no overlap with largely diurnal human activity, livestock or feral dog movements. Considering the limited data available on these porcupine species as well as the growing demand for bushmeat and medicinal products, concerns for porcupine populations in South and Southeast Asia are growing. Improved knowledge is crucial for conservation monitoring and management; therefore, further ecological and threat studies are needed to tackle this knowledge gap and inform conservation plans appropriately.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":54264,"journal":{"name":"Global Ecology and Conservation","volume":"58 ","pages":"Article e03486"},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2025-02-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143403546","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}