Variation in the thermal ecology of an endemic iguana from Mexico reduces its vulnerability to global warming

The persistence of reptile populations in a specific location is influenced by individuals’ capacity to regulate their body temperatures, among other factors. Anthropogenic climate change may pose a risk to the survival of ectothermic animals due to their dependence on external heat sources to thermoregulate. In this study, we calculated indices of thermal habitat quality, thermoregulatory precision, and thermoregulatory effectiveness for the endemic spiny-tailed iguana Ctenosaura oaxacana. We evaluated these indices and the thermoregulatory behavior of the iguanas in the four types of vegetation that provide the most favorable conditions for thermoregulation. We also performed our experiments during both the wet and dry seasons to capture the full range of thermal conditions available to C. oaxacana over the course of a year. Finally, we evaluated the potential niche for the iguana in the years 2020, 2050, and 2080. Thermoregulation depends on both seasonal and environmental factors in this species. We found that thermoregulation effectiveness in both wet and dry seasons depends not only on the thermal conditions of the immediate environment, but also on the cover vegetation and habitat structure available across the range of habitats the species uses. Thus, heterogeneous habitats with dispersed vegetation may be most suitable for this species’ thermoregulatory strategy. Likewise, niche modeling results suggested that suitable habitat for our study species may continue to be available for the next few decades, despite global warming tendencies, as long as cover vegetation remains unaltered. Our results suggest that thermoregulation is a complex process that cannot be generalized for all ectothermic species inhabiting a given region. We also found that temperature changes are not the only factor one must consider when estimating the risk of species loss. To understand the necessary thermal conditions and extinction risk for any ectothermic species, it is necessary to focus studies on the species’ general ecology.     

The bat-eared fox: A dietary specialist?

We studied the degree of dietary specialisation of bat-eared foxes (Otocyon megalotis) by analysing 177 scats collected on a game ranch in central South Africa. Bat-eared foxes generally are considered to be insectivorous with a distinct specialisation on termites, however, our results indicated a much broader and opportunistic diet. Termites were detected in more than 90% of the scats throughout the year, but they only contributed 12–40% to the ingested biomass across seasons. Instead, fruits, primarily bluebush (Diospyros lycioides), were the most important food category in summer (63% biomass) as well as in autumn (74% biomass). Also, high niche breadth values (B = 5.7–6.9 for frequency of occurrence, B = 1.8–4.1 for biomass data) indicated a rather generalistic feeding behaviour. We also documented numerous cases of opportunistic scavenging on carcasses by bat-eared foxes. The difference with earlier dietary studies of bat-eared foxes might be attributable to geographical and ecological variations among sites and also partly to methodological differences. Concerning the latter, no previous studies considered biomass calculations but instead most assessed the frequency of occurrence of prey items, which likely overestimated the importance of small prey such as termites.     

Microhabitat amelioration and reduced competition among understorey plants as drivers of facilitation across environmental gradients: Towards a unifying framework

Studies of facilitative interactions as drivers of plant richness along environmental gradients often assume the existence of an overarching stress gradient that equally affects the performance of all the species in a given community. However, co-existing species differ in their ecophysiological adaptations, and do not experience the same stress level under particular environmental conditions. Moreover, these studies assume a unimodal relationship between richness and biomass, which is not as general as previously thought. We ignored these assumptions to assess changes in plant–plant interactions and their effect on local species richness across environmental gradients in semi-arid areas of Spain and Australia. We aimed to understand the relative importance of direct (microhabitat amelioration) and indirect (changes in the competitive relationships among the understorey species: niche segregation, competitive exclusion or intransitivity) mechanisms that might underlie the effects of nurse plants on local species richness. By jointly studying these direct and indirect mechanisms using a unifying framework, we found that nurse plants (trees, shrubs and tussock grasses) increased local richness not only by expanding the niche of neighbouring species but also by increasing niche segregation among them, though the latter was not important in all cases. The outcome of the competition-facilitation continuum varied depending on the study area, likely because the different types of stress gradient considered. When driven by both rainfall and temperature, or rainfall alone, the community-wide importance of nurse plants remained constant (Spanish sites), or showed a unimodal relationship along the gradient (Australian sites). This study expands our understanding of the relative roles of plant–plant interactions and environmental conditions as drivers of local species richness in semi-arid environments. The results can also be used to refine predictions about the response of plant communities to environmental change, and to clarify the relative importance of biotic interactions as drivers of such responses.     

Long‐term tree fern dynamics linked to disturbance and shade tolerance

Question: Do New Zealand tree ferns have recognizable shade tolerance niches? Location: Lowland temperate rain forest of New Zealand (41°20′S, 174°58′E). Methods: Growth, death and recruitment of five tree fern species were estimated from a 38‐year record of stem heights, collected within a 2.25‐ha block of forest, and electron transport rates (ETR) of photosystem II of fronds were measured. Results: Two species of Cyathea were comparatively common (603 and 351 stems in total) and two were comparatively rare (155 and 17 stems in total) on the site. The common species had lower rates of growth, recruitment and mortality than the rare species, had skewed age distributions typical of shade‐tolerant species and were probably recruited soon after a catastrophic earthquake in 1855. The two rare species were failing to recruit under closed forests; their age distributions indicated that all had regenerated long after the earthquake. ETR were higher for faster‐growing than for the shade‐tolerant species. A tree fern that regenerates vegetatively from aerial buds, Dicksonia squarrosa, was common on the site (361 stems in total). Its age distribution suggested it was relatively shade tolerant, but its mortality and recruitment rates were much higher than those of the two shade‐tolerating Cyathea species, suggesting that this multi‐stemmed species functions differently from the monopodial Cyathea species. Conclusions: New Zealand Cyathea tree ferns occupy distinct niches along a shade tolerance spectrum and their relative abundances are strongly influenced by disturbance history. The study provides evidence that tree fern species differ strongly in their responses to canopy disturbance and are not ecologically equivalent.     

中国特有植物雪落樱桃潜在分布及其生态特征

为明确中国特有植物雪落樱桃(Cerasus xueluoensis)的潜在分布与居群生态特征,利用DIVA-GIS软件及其耦合的BIOCLIM模型,首次绘制了雪落樱桃适生区分布模拟图,并对影响其分布的主导气候因子进行了定性定量分析。结果表明,雪落樱桃当前潜在适生区主要分布在亚热带长江流域1 200 m以上高海拔山区,其中渝-鄂-湘三省交界的大巴山-巫山山脉可视为现代核心分布区,湘黔交界及湘南的南岭山脉可视为雪落樱桃潜在分布的南界,陕-豫-鄂交界山区的秦岭南麓可能是其潜在分布的北界。主成分分析(PCA)筛选的主导气候因子及其贡献率依次为:年降水量(bio12)最冷季降水量(bio19)最暖季降水量(bio18)最湿季降水量(bio16),累计频率曲线进一步确定其适宜范围分别为:993.00～1 870.22、500.00～680.00、430.00～669.16和500.00～680.00mm,表明降水是影响雪落樱桃当下分布格局的主导气候限制因子。Pearson相关性分析表明,雪落樱桃分布格局在区域尺度上受海拔、经、纬度影响;最小树分析和聚类分析表明,雪落樱桃7个野生居群可划分为中西部与东部两大分支;受试者工作特征曲线(ROC) AUC值达到0.751,满足模型预测精度的基本要求。这些有助于为雪落樱桃制定科学合理的资源保护与科学引种规划。     

卧龙保护区三种中型食肉动物的生态位差异

2014至2019年,利用红外相机对卧龙保护区的赤狐（Vulpes vulpes）、黄喉貂（Martes flavigula）和豹猫（Prionailurus bengalensis）进行了监测,并分析比较了三者的栖息地分布和日活动节律。结果显示,赤狐栖息地主要分布于保护区西部高海拔地区,与黄喉貂和豹猫栖息地重叠较少;豹猫和黄喉貂的栖息地均集中分布于皮条河以南,且相互重叠部分达56.7%;在日活动节律方面,赤狐和豹猫表现出夜行性,黄喉貂表现出昼行性。本研究表明,三种食肉动物均通过栖息地或日活动节律的差异产生了生态位分离,从而实现了在卧龙保护区内的相互共存。     

两种绣线菊低温锻炼与脱锻炼处理对蛋白质表达的影响

通过2维双向电泳法,研究抗寒能力与光合能力不同的金山绣线菊与华北绣线菊,低温锻炼处理对蛋白质表达所产生的影响。结果表明,低温锻炼处理对2种绣线菊蛋白质表达的影响显著不同,在低温锻炼与脱锻炼处理中,金山绣线菊产生低温诱导特异蛋白,华北绣线菊没有低温诱导特异蛋白表达;蛋白质双向电泳图谱分析表明,华北绣线菊与金山绣线菊经过低温锻炼后发生蛋白质差异表达,经质谱鉴定其中的3种显著差异表达的蛋白质分别为2种未知新蛋白,2种未知蛋白的部分氨基酸序列分别为VSHLAGFSSNNPK、LKADKPTLLSEAK;DPNDHPNPFTVK、DGNGFFLYLLDPDSSK、NGDGMFLYLLDGLESK,另一种差异蛋白为抗坏血酸过氧化物酶;低温锻炼处理使绣线菊中与光合作用密切相关的蛋白质抗坏血酸过氧化物酶发生了显著的变化。     

Species-specific distribution of two sympatric Maculinea butterflies across different meadow edges

An important consequence of habitat fragmentation is the increase of edge habitats. Environmental factors in the edges are different from those in the interiors, which causes changes in the distribution of plant and animal species. We aimed to study how edges affect the distribution of two butterfly species within meadow fragments. We therefore investigated the effect of distance from edge and edge type (road edge versus tree edge) on two sympatric large blue species (Maculinea teleius and M. nausithous). Our results showed that edge type had contrasting effects on the two species. M. teleius favoured both interiors and road edges, while M. nausithous preferred the tree edges. In the case of the latter species a strong positive edge effect was also found. This kind of within-habitat niche segregation is probably related to the different microenvironmental conditions at the edges. Foodplant density did not seem to limit the distribution of these species. Our results suggest that interiors of meadows are important for M. teleius, while tree edges maintain the habitats of the regionally rarer butterfly, M. nausithous.