Intersexual variation in the foraging ecology of sexually monochromatic Western Wood‐Pewees

ABSTRACT Investigators generally pool observations of males and females in studies of the foraging behavior of sexually monochromatic songbirds. However, such pooling can obscure possible intersexual differences. We compared the foraging behavior of male and female Western Wood‐Pewees (Contopus sordidulus), a sexually monochromatic species, in the Sierra Nevada Mountains of California during the breeding seasons of 2007 and 2008. We recorded 143 foraging observations (male N= 74, female N= 69). Overall, mean foraging rates of females (2.8 attacks/min) were higher (P < 0.001) than those of males (1.1 attacks/min). In addition, female foraging rates were significantly higher during incubation than during the nest building, nestling, and fledgling periods. When foraging, males perched higher above ground than females (means = 17.1 and 6.7 m, respectively). Differences between male and female Western Wood‐Pewees in foraging rates and perch heights suggest that males may spend more time on vigilance while females focus on foraging quickly during incubation and when feeding nestlings. Because metrics such as foraging attack rates are sometimes used as indicators of habitat quality and we found that rates can differ between the sexes and among nesting stages, investigators should consider the possibility of such differences when assessing habitat quality, especially for sexually monochromatic species of birds.     

Unexpected biodiversity loss under global warming in the neotropical Guayana Highlands: a preliminary appraisal

The fully vegetated summits of the table mountains that form the Guayana Highlands (GH), in northern South America, hold amazing biodiversity and endemism levels, and unique vegetation types. In spite of their present‐day healthy appearance, their biota is seriously threatened of habitat loss by upward displacement, because of the projected warming for the end of this century. Available data are still insufficient for a definite assessment, but preliminary estimations based on representative endemic vascular plant species show that roughly one‐tenth to one‐third of them would loss their habitat with the 2–4°C temperature increase predicted for the region by AD 2100. Given the underlying endemism, the eventual loss of biodiversity will be of global nature. Other mountain ranges around the world with similar characteristics of the GH, namely topographical isolation, high endemism and absence of nival stage because of the lower altitude, would be under similar unexpected risk, and should be urgently considered for conservation purposes.     

Contribution to the knowledge of Bulgarian serpentine grasslands and their relationships with Balkan serpentine syntaxa

Serpentine areas, including those in Bulgaria, are rich in endemic taxa, and still remain to be investigated phytocoenologically. We analyse the vegetation types in various sites and compare them with those in other Balkan countries. The main objectives were (1) to explore and describe the relationships between the vegetation in the serpentine areas investigated in Bulgaria with those in the Balkan Peninsula and (2) to explore and classify the diversity of vegetation in grasslands on serpentine rocks in eastern Rhodope, Bulgaria. The classic methodology of the Braun-Blanquet school was applied to the exploration of the vegetation. Average linkage method (unweighted pair group method with arithmetic mean) and principal coordinate analysis were used to evaluate floristic and synoptic similarities. As a result, the new endemic association Onosmo pavlovae-Festucetum dalmaticae was proposed. This association can be included in the alliance Alyssion heldreichii Bergmeier et al. 2009, newly described on serpentine rocks in northern Greece. Our data confirmed the existence of similar or vicariant endemic syntaxa (associations) on isolated serpentine terrains in northern Greece and south-eastern Bulgaria.     

Upward ant distribution shift corresponds with minimum,not maximum,temperature tolerance

Rapid climate change may prompt species distribution shifts upward and poleward, but species movement in itself is not sufficient to establish climate causation. Other dynamics, such as disturbance history, may prompt species distribution shifts resembling those expected from rapid climate change. Links between species distributions, regional climate trends and physiological mechanism are needed to convincingly establish climate‐induced species shifts. We examine a 38‐year shift (1974–2012) in an elevation ecotone between two closely related ant species, Aphaenogaster picea and A. rudis. Even though A. picea and A. rudis are closely related with North American distributions that sometimes overlap, they also exhibit local‐ and regional‐scale differences in temperature requirements so that A. rudis is more southerly and inhabits lower elevations whereas A. picea is more northerly and inhabits high elevations. We find considerable movement by the warm‐habitat species upward in elevation between 1974 and 2012 with A. rudis, replacing the cold‐habitat species, A. picea, along the southern edge of the Appalachian Mountain chain in north Georgia, USA. Concomitant with the distribution shifts, regional mean and maximum temperatures remain steady (1974–2012), but minimum temperatures increase. We collect individuals from the study sites and subject them to thermal tolerance testing in a controlled setting and find that maximum and minimum temperature acclimatization occurs along the elevation gradient in both species, but A. rudis consistently becomes physiologically incapacitated at minimum and maximum temperatures 2 °C higher than A. picea. These results indicate that rising minimum temperatures allow A. rudis to move upward in elevation and displace A. picea. Given that Aphaenogaster ants are the dominant woodland seed dispersers in eastern deciduous forests, and that their thermal tolerances drive distinct differences in temperature‐cued synchrony with early blooming plants, these climate responses not only impact ant‐ant interactions, but might have wide implications for ant‐plant interactions.     

秦岭山区中国大鲵生境因子的选择

通过对秦岭山区中国大鲵(Andrias davidianus)栖息地生境因子调查、统计,利用R语言分析了各因子与大鲵生境选择的相关性,得出研究结果:秦岭山区影响大鲵生存的主要因子为栖息地类型(相关系数r=0.98),其次是水温(相关系数r=-0.8)、河岸坡度(r=-0.6)和p H (r=-0.6);浊度(相关系数r=0.5)、电导率(r=0.49)、DO(r=0.4)、人为干扰(r=0.35)和海拔(r=0.31)对大鲵分布影响不大。研究结果为探讨中国大鲵对野生环境的适应性选择提供了参考。     

近几十年来冀西北山地白桦次生林径向生长对气候变化的响应

研究不同海拔高度天然次生林径向生长特征及其对气候变化的响应, 揭示影响山地树木径向生长的主要因子, 对于研究气候变化对温带森林生态系统适应性生长、演替和可持续经营的影响具有重要意义。该研究以冀西北山地次生林优势树种白桦(Betula platyphylla)为对象, 于研究区海拔1 350、1 550、1 750、1 950 m处分别设置样地, 采集样木树芯和圆盘, 运用树木年轮气候学方法建立白桦天然次生林标准年表, 并将年轮宽度指数与气候因子进行相关、多元逐步回归分析。主要结果: (1) 1960-2018年研究区气候呈变暖变干趋势, 其中1960-1989年为平稳期, 1989-2018年为快速期。(2)白桦次生林径向生长在1989年发生改变, 年轮宽度指数呈现“增长-下降”的“Λ”形生长趋势。(3)在气候变化平稳期, 白桦次生林径向生长在低海拔样地(B1350、B1550)与气温(平均气温、最高气温、最低气温)呈正相关关系, 在高海拔样地(B1750、B1950)与上年和当年生长季降水量呈显著正相关关系; 在气候变化快速期, 低海拔样地(B1350、B1550)白桦次生林径向生长与生长季气温、生长季潜在蒸散发(ET₀)呈负相关关系, 高海拔样地(B1750、B1950)白桦次生林径向生长与生长季及生长季末期ET₀呈负相关关系。 (4)在气候变化平稳期, 温度对B1350、B1550、B1750样地白桦次生林径向生长的贡献率分别为76%、54%、51%, 水分的贡献率为24%、46%、49%; 在气候变化快速期, 温度对B1350、B1550、B1750样地树木径向生长的贡献率分别为58%、41%、38%, 水分的贡献率为42%、59%、62%; 高海拔B1950样地树木生长始终受水分因子的控制。     

中国西南岩溶山地石漠化演变趋势

为揭示20世纪50年代末至今中国西南地区岩溶山地石漠化转型演变的时空分布及其特征,运用文献计量分析方法,对石漠化演变相关文献的总量和主题词进行了分析,并提取文献中石漠化演变的时间、类型、程度、驱动因素等信息,从县(市)域尺度对中国西南岩溶山地石漠化演变趋势及其空间分布进行综合分析,并进行了典型案例研究。研究表明,从20世纪50年代末至今,西南岩溶山地石漠化演变经历了由自然基础及人为破坏相互激发的严重石漠化向多种人为干扰、综合治理下的演变转型,即由高等级石漠化转向低等级石漠化的过程。在此基础上,研究认为石漠化存在由扩张向收缩转型演变的现象,同时对其转型演变的驱动机制和启示意义进行了探讨,以期为乡村振兴时代岩溶山地生态建设提供参考。