西雅鲁藏布江中游地区斑头雁越冬种群数量和分布

雅鲁藏布江、拉萨河和年楚河流域是斑头雁重要的越冬区。１９９２年冬季在流域范围内１３个县市共发现斑头雁１００８１只。斑头雁越冬分布区海拔高度为３５００－４０００米,内均有大面积流动的水面。斑头雁在农田里采食收割时遗落的谷物,中午在水面上、沙滩上戏嬉休息,在河叉及水库的浅水区过夜。     

西藏雅鲁藏布江中游地区斑头雁越冬种群数量和分布

雅鲁藏布江、拉萨河和年楚河流域是斑头雁重要的越冬区。１９９２年冬季在流域范围内１３个县市共发现斑头雁１００８１只。斑头雁越冬分布区海拔高度为３５００─４０００米,内均有大面积流动的水面。斑头雁在农田里采食收割时遗落的谷物,中午在水面上、沙滩上戏嬉休息,在河叉及水库的浅水区过夜。     

西藏雅鲁藏布江中游斑头雁的越冬种群数量、分布和活动区

斑头雁(Anser indicus)是高致病性禽流感病毒的易感鸟类和潜在的传播源,在禽流感防控中占有重要地位。有关斑头雁的越冬种群现状缺乏研究。2009年1月,在雅鲁藏布江中游共统计到越冬斑头雁44657只,主要分布于一江两河地带的林周县、日喀则市、白朗县、拉孜县、江孜县和贡嘎县境内。这一统计数据远高于1990年代的统计数量,由此可将其全球种群数量估计值由5.2-6万只修正为至少7万只。越冬斑头雁的平均集群大小为(208±262)只(n=215),主要栖息环境包括冬小麦田、冬歇期农田、河流湖泊和沼泽湿地,其中在冬歇期农田中统计到的数量占72.1%。2006-2008年,对青海湖繁殖斑头雁的卫星跟踪表明,其越冬地点主要位于西藏雅鲁藏布江流域、拉萨河流域和印度,越冬期为11月至翌年的3月份,在越冬地平均停留(108±30)d,越冬活动区大小为(122.22±124.94)km2(n=3)。受西藏独特的宗教传统和农耕畜牧结合的生产方式的影响,越冬斑头雁经常与大量家畜和水鸟混杂在农田觅食,在禽流感疫情防控时应引起重视。     

玛卡种植对云南会泽越冬斑头雁栖息地利用和选择的影响

玛卡(Lepidium meyenii)作为一种滋补药材在2012年引入我国西南地区,随后种植面积不断扩大,在2018年前后因市场价格回落,其种植规模迅速萎缩。云南会泽黑颈鹤国家级自然保护区念湖片区是斑头雁(Anser indicus)的重要越冬地,也是玛卡的主要产区之一,玛卡种植面积的剧烈变化也为研究农田候鸟对农耕环境的适应性提供了契机。于2015-2020年在使用卫星跟踪技术在会泽保护区对8只越冬斑头雁进行了长时跟踪,在个体水平上比较了玛卡种植期(2015-2018年)和传统作物种植期(2019-2021年)越冬斑头雁栖息地利用和选择的差异,结果表明:(1)在两个时期,斑头雁的栖息地利用模式发生了剧烈改变。在玛卡种植期斑头雁主要利用沼泽(71.29±3.54)%,其次为耕地(18.12±2.90)%和深水水域(10.59±5.97)%,而在传统作物种植期,主要的利用类型则转变为耕地(74.44±4.84)%,其次为沼泽(12.53±6.97)%和深水水域(12.25±2.44)%。(2)对于同一只斑头雁个体,在不同越冬年份,其栖息地利用模式较稳定。A5号斑头雁在2019年和2020年越冬季均表现为对耕地利用率较高,分别为76.95%和80.41%;A6号斑头雁在2019、2020和2021年越冬时,均偏好利用耕地,利用率分别为76.52%、80.61%和75.74%。(3)在栖息地选择方面,斑头雁对9个环境因子均具有选择性。根据随机森林模型评估结果,最重要的因子均为距夜栖地距离,表明斑头雁对夜栖水环境的依赖性。在其它因子上,两个时期则表现出一定的差异性。在玛卡种植期,斑头雁栖息地选择模式中各类因子的优先顺序为夜栖地>主要觅食地>回避类栖息地>人为干扰因子;在传统作物种植期则为夜栖地>回避类栖息地>人为干扰因子>主要觅食地。综合来看,玛卡种植会对斑头雁产生不利影响,不仅会直接减少斑头雁的优质栖息地面积,而且会直接改变斑头雁栖息地利用和选择模式。建议在保护区内或周边区域实施大规模农业耕种模式调整时,应充分考虑农田鸟类的栖息地需求,进行科学管理。     

青海湖斑头雁（Anser indicus）繁殖期的活动性、栖息地利用及其与人的关系

2005年高致病性禽流感爆发,导致青海湖数千只斑头雁和中国其他地区大量家禽死亡。首次应用无线电遥测和颈环标记法对青海湖疫区斑头雁在繁殖期的活动性、栖息地利用及其与人的关系进行了研究。斑头雁主要在蛋岛繁殖,在泉湾、尕日拉、黑马河口、铁卜加河口等地觅食。斑头雁在青海湖的活动区为（309.63±172.72）km^2,活动核心区大小为（49.30±19.61）km^2。个体在不同阶段的活动区大小无显著差异。不同繁殖阶段间活动区较稳定,平均有超过一半（56.6%±24.9%）的活动点落入上一阶段的活动区中。由于成鸟在繁殖后期带领幼鸟离开繁殖场所,因而繁殖中、后期的活动区稳定性相对较差。斑头雁对河口、沼泽、草地和湖泊的利用率依次减少。随着繁殖季节的推移,斑头雁对河口的利用率逐渐减小,对沼泽的利用率则逐渐增加。对斑头雁与人的关系研究表明,在地点方面,斑头雁在蛋岛、黑马河口和泉湾与人的接触强度最大;在时间方面,5月份斑头雁与人的接触强度最大。在这些时间和地点,加强旅游管理和对牧民的宣传对禽流感防控非常必要。     

广东省原鸡种群数量、分布及栖息地现状的初步调查

广东原鸡栖息地分布在徐闻,雷州,信宜,高州,阳春5个县（市）,为孤立的三块,呈岛屿状分布,总面积2501.62km^2,总体数量680-750只,原鸡数量最多,面积最大的一块栖息地是由信宜,高州,阳春3块小栖息地组合而成,成为广东原鸡的主要栖息和分布地。     

完达山东部林区野猪种群数量和栖息地特征的初步分析

2008 年11 月18 日至2009 年3 月20 日,为了调查黑龙江省完达山东部林区野猪种群数量和栖息地特征,我们采用随机布设样线的方法在东方红林业局境内13 个林场共布设大样方40 个,样线200 条。调查结果表明,东方红林业局境内野猪分布平均密度为0.175 头/ km² , 种群数量为546 ～ 680 头;野猪主要分布在河口、奇源、青山、五林洞、独木河、海音山和东林7 个林场,位于海拔300 ～ 800 m 的范围内。1989 年调查的野猪平均密度为0.372 头/ km² ,种群数量为1302 ; 2002 年调查的野猪平均密度为0. 342 头/ km² , 种群数量为1 198 头。近年来野猪种群密度降低,种群数量呈加速下降趋势。对野猪栖息地特征分析表明,野猪喜欢选择中坡位、阳坡、坡度小于5°、地表植被盖度大于30% 、隐蔽度和郁闭度在25% ～ 50% 之间的生境。阔叶林、灌丛是野猪的主要栖息地。非法捕猎、森林采伐、坚果采摘和东北虎的捕食是造成野猪种群数量减少、栖息地质量下降的主要因素。     

浙江清凉峰国家级自然保护区猪獾种群密度、活动节律和栖息地利用特征

中型食肉动物;作为生态系统中的上层消费类群;对生态系统的功能、结构和稳定发挥重要作用。猪獾(Arctonyx albogularis)为鼬科中型食肉动物;在华东地区森林生态系统食物链中处于较高位置;然而关于其种群密度、日活动节律及栖息地利用特征的研究较少。本研究在浙江清凉峰国家级自然保护区千顷塘和龙塘山区域布设了110台红外相机;进行3年调查;累积118 800个工作天数。利用随机相遇模型估算了猪獾种群密度;采用非参数核密度指数法分析了猪獾与同域物种的日活动节律;并通过构建单物种占域模型评估了猪獾的栖息地利用特征。研究表明:(1)猪獾在清凉峰保护区内种群密度为每平方千米(23.26 ±2.97)只;并存在季节和年际间变化。(2)猪獾偏好晨昏活动;与花面狸(Paguma larvata)、鼬獾(Melogale moschata)的日活动节律模式存在显著差异;与黄鼬(Mustela sibirica)活动节律的重叠程度较高。(3)占域模型结果表明;猪獾在繁殖季倾向栖息在阔叶林、针叶林以及针阔混交林中;且气温正向影响其栖息地利用;在非繁殖季;猪獾偏好在缓坡、距居民区较近以及气温较高区域活动。本研究扩展了对猪獾野外生态习性的了解及中型食肉动物在华东地区森林生态系统中的作用;为其保护与管理提供科学依据。     

西双版纳三岔河地区野生亚洲象的个体识别、种群数量和活动特点

2004 年10 月至2005 年10 月,在云南西双版纳三岔河野象谷用直接观察、拍照、摄像等方法直接记录野生亚洲象的形态学特征,通过耳、门齿、背、尾、疤痕、面部骨骼等特征对经过本地区的象群和独象进行个体识别并建立个体信息库。直接观测记录野象524 头次,通过照片资料和访问间接记录289 头次,识别为46 头个体,由7 个家族(庭)群共38 头和8 头单独活动的雄象组成;发现象群和独象的活动具有季节性;不同象群在野象谷的活动频次差异显著;象群大小和其在本地区的活动频率之间呈明显的正相关。     

珍稀濒危植物紫纹兜兰的种群结构和数量动态

通过对广东省河源市紫金县白溪省级自然保护区紫纹兜兰(Paphiopedilum purpuratum)进行样方调查,运用种群生命表、存活曲线、种群生存函数值和时间序列预测分析方法,研究紫纹兜兰种群的动态变化过程,揭示各龄级植株的数量动态和变化规律。结果表明,紫纹兜兰龄级以幼龄为主,幼龄阶段占整个种群的54.73%,年龄结构为稳定型。种群年龄结构的动态指数V_(pi)为0.33、V_(pi)'为0.07,均大于0,紫纹兜兰的存活曲线更接近Deevey-Ⅱ型,表明该种群目前属于稳定型种群。累计死亡率函数和危险率函数上升,生存率函数下降,死亡密度函数波动较大。从时间序列预测分析表明,种群具备一定的恢复能力,但是种群整体数量随时间的增加,成年植株逐渐增加,幼苗减少。平均开花和结实率仅为16.94%和3.29%,种子没有胚乳而营养不足,在自然环境下很难发育成幼苗,主要靠分蘖植株繁殖,因此对紫纹兜兰幼苗的保护很关键。     

西藏夯错水鸟多样性及斑头雁繁殖活动区的变化

于2009年4-11月,对西藏夯错的水鸟资源状况进行了调查,旨在了解该地区水鸟资源状况的了解,并为禽流感的防控提供了科学依据.在夯错全年共记录到水鸟26种,隶属于6目10科.夯错也是斑头雁和棕头鸥重要的繁殖地.水鸟春秋季迁徙高峰期在4月份和10月份,这也是水鸟多样性较高的2个月,其主要原因是由于迁徙鸭类数量和种类的增加.卫星跟踪研究表明,在繁殖前期,斑头雁活动区面积较大,主要在夯错及其周围的湿地取食;进入繁殖中期,斑头雁的活动范围减少了许多;繁殖后期,随着幼鸟陆续出壳.父母随即带领幼鸟离开夯错,到其它湿地取食和育雏,因此此期的活动区面积较大.由于夯错面积较小,不能满足斑头雁对食物的需求,因此部分斑头雁选择其它湿地作为主要的取食地,但部分扩散到其它湿地的斑头雁在迁徙前期重新返回夯错,使得该时期斑头雁的数量有呈上升趋势.通过与青海湖水鸟资源状况的比较发现,夯错水鸟种类较少.这可能主要是由于两个湖泊所处地理区划的不同,并由此带来的气候环境的差异,以及植被条件的不同所造成的.这种差异主要是由于夯错海拔较高.紫外线很强,气候干燥,植被单一,栖息地类型多样性较低,因此水鸟的种数也相对较少一些.     

A preliminary analysis of the diet composition of overwintering Bean geese (Anser fabalis) and greater white-fronted geese (A. albifrons) in Korea using PCR on fecal samples

Bean geese (Anser fabalis) and Greater white-fronted geese (Anser albifrons) are the dominant wintering waterfowl in South Korea. Although they are commonly observed in estuaries and rice fields during the winter, the diet composition of the geese during the winter has rarely been studied. In this study, we provide the results from preliminary analyses on the diet of these two geese species overwintering in Daebu Island of South Korea. We used a total of 13 fecal samples from Bean geese (n?=?4) and Greater white-fronted geese (n?=?9), and performed a BLAST search for the sequences obtained from 87 clones (n?=?36 for Bean geese and n?=?51 for Greater white-fronted geese). The diet of Bean geese consisted of five families of plants: Caryophyllaceae (75.0%), Poaceae (13.9%), Asteraceae (5.5%), Polygonaceae (2.8%) and Cucurbitacea (2.8%). On the other hand, the diet of Greater white-fronted geese consisted of 6 families of plants: Poaceae (74.5%), Caryophyllaceae (9.8%), Solanacea (5.9%), Portulacaceae (3.9%), Lamiaceae (3.9%) and Brassicaceae (2.0%). We found that plants of the rice family (Poaceae) are important in the diet of wintering geese, especially for Greater white-fronted geese. This knowledge can be used to establish conservation strategies of the geese overwintering in South Korea.     

Isolation and characterization of microsatellite marker loci in the greylag goose (Anser anser)

Ten novel polymorphic microsatellite loci were isolated and characterized from the greylag goose, Anser anser, a long-term monogamous and biparental bird. Additionally, five new primers pairs were designed based on previously published microsatellite locus sequences from closely related species. Multiplex polymerase chain reactions conditions were optimized for all 15 primer pairs. The number of alleles ranged from two to 12 per locus with an observed heterozygosity ranging from 0.07 to 0.85. This marker set will be used to determine rates and origins of extra-pair and parasitic young in a population of individually banded greylag geese with known life histories.     

Costs and benefits of flocking in foraging white-fronted geese (Anser albifrons): effects of resource depletion

This study investigated the costs and benefits of flocking in white-fronted geese Anser albifrons foraging on rice grains in Japan. The time budgets of focal geese were recorded, and the effects of flock size on the proportions of time spent in vigilant and agonistic behaviour were tested. The results showed that the decline in vigilance level and consequent increase in foraging time were beneficial results of flocking whereas agonistic interactions, a potential cost of flocking, did not increase with increasing flock size. However, seasonal variation in flock size suggested that exploitative competition could be a cost of flocking; the sizes of flocks in spring, when resource depletion had progressed, were significantly reduced compared with those in autumn. An experimental increase in rice density resulted in a significant increase in flock size. We conclude that the flock size of foraging white-fronted geese is a result of compromise between a constant benefit of flocking (i.e. decline in vigilance level) and a cost of flocking varying with food abundance (i.e. exploitative competition).     

Effects of physiological and social challenges in different seasons on fecal testosterone and corticosterone in male domestic geese (Anser domesticus)

We investigated the reliability of the non-invasive approach of measuring steroid hormones from feces in the domestic goose (Anser domesticus), a mainly herbivorous bird with a short gut passage time (2–3 h). Groups of eight outdoor-housed male domestic geese were subjected to three different experiments, injection of either GnRH analogue or ACTH, or ”social stimulation” by confrontation with two alien males or females. These experiments were replicated in three different seasons, in spring, during peak reproductive activity, in summer, during long-day photorefractoriness and postnuptial molt, and in fall, during sexual reactivation. GnRH stimulation resulted in significant increases of mean response and peak fecal testosterone metabolites (TM) in spring and fall. Response TM concentrations excreted in spring were generally higher than in summer and fall. Social confrontation with two females, but not with two males, increased mean and peak TM in all seasons. In general, ACTH treatment resulted in a proportionally higher increase of fecal corticosterone metabolites (BM) than GnRH did in fecal TM (80- to 140-fold vs 6- to 8-fold). ACTH significantly increased mean and peak BM in all seasons. Social confrontation with two males significantly increased fecal BM in spring, but confrontation with two females increased fecal BM in fall. Our results indicate that determining steroids from feces is a generally valid approach. However, the sensitivity of the method may vary between different hormones and results may differ between seasons. BM results seemed more sensitive and seasonally robust than did TM. Received: 22 December 1999 / Received in revised form: 26 January 2000 / Accepted: 27 January 2000     

Dam effects on the wintering strategy and habitat use of Greylag Goose (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Anser anser</Emphasis>) in Ichkeul National Park,North Tunisia

The mosaic of habitats in the Ichkeul National Park is frequently changing due to the variations in water conditions that had influenced the wintering strategy of waterbird populations. To this point of view, field work on the wintering strategy of Greylag Geese in the Ichkeul National Park was realized during two consecutive winters (September 2001–March 2002 and September 2002–March 2003). Results showed that in this area, the Greylag Goose was a regular winter visitor, typically from the beginning of October to the end of March, when food resources were totally exhausted in all marshes. Records of diurnal time budget revealed that feeding (43%) and sleeping (20%) dominated all other activities: walking, flying alertness, and preening. The food resource depletion might be the principal responsible for the total population size decreases, the behavioral changes, and the switch of habitats used by the considered species. This situation is a kind of alarm bell to indicate a perturbation of the habitats in the Ichkeul National Park. Therefore, it is essential to use appropriate management strategies to enhance the value of this area for the bio-indicator species, in particular Greylag Goose which is very sensitive to habitat changes.     

Goose hybrids, captive breeding and restocking of the Fennoscandian populations of the Lesser White-fronted goose (Anser erythropus)

The lesser white-fronted goose (Anser erythropus) isthe most threatened of the Palearctic goose species with a decliningpopulation trend throughout its distributional range. The currentestimate of the Fennoscandian subpopulation size is 30–50 breedingpairs, whereas it still numbered more than 10000 individuals at thebeginning of the last century. Reintroduction and restocking have beencarried out in Sweden and Finland using captive lesser white-frontedgoose stock with unknown origins. We have carried out a study of thegenetic composition of captive-bred stock by sequencing a 221 bphypervariable fragment of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control regionfrom 15 individuals from the Hailuoto farm, Finland. Two out of thethree maternal lineages detected in the captive stock are also presentin wild populations. The third maternal lineage among the captive lesserwhite-fronted geese originates from the closely related greaterwhite-fronted goose (Anser albifrons). None of the investigatedwild lesser white-fronted goose individuals carried the mtDNA of thegreater white-fronted goose. The presence of greater white-fronted goosemtDNA in the lesser white-fronted goose captive stock suggests thathybridization has occurred during captive propagation.     

Changes in land use and habitat availability affect the population genetic structure of Metrioptera roeselii (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae)

The impact of temporal changes in habitat availability and land use on the present genetic diversity of the grassland katydid species Metrioptera roeselii was investigated in an extensively used agricultural landscape (Lahn-Dill-Bergland, Germany) based on six microsatellite loci. By integrating spatial and temporal dimensions, this study contrasts to conventional approaches that usually record landscape changes at discrete points in time. Molecular data suggest little geographical substructuring of the species. Nevertheless, time-dependent effects on genetic diversity in terms of observed heterozygosity and allelic richness within subpopulations were detected by general linear models (GLM), explaining up to 82 and 13%, respectively. The results indicated that allelic richness was significantly reduced with higher rates of land-use change. Contrastingly, the level of heterozygosity even increased with increasing land-use change, if this rate increase was accompanied by a reduction in grassland amount, while with an increase of grassland amount the level of heterozygosity remained similar. Furthermore, depending on the study site, heterozygosity was differently affected by grassland age of sampled patches and of the surrounding. This is presumably induced by contrasting levels of heterozygosity in combination with differing modes of dispersal due to habitat availability and site-specific matrix effects. The loss of genetic diversity due to frequent land-use change might result in a reduced ability to adapt to landscape change, which is even more relevant in intensively used agricultural landscapes and in the course of climate change.