Anthropization level of Lascaux Cave microbiome shown by regional‐scale comparisons of pristine and anthropized caves

Limestone areas across the world develop karstic caves, which are populated by a wide range of macro‐ and microorganisms. Many of these caves display Paleolithic art or outstanding speleothems, and in the last century they have been subjected to anthropization due to touristic management and intense human frequentation. Despite their cultural importance and associated conservation issues, the impact of anthropization on cave biodiversity is not known. Here, we show that anthropization is associated with specific cave biota modifications. We compared diversity in four pristine caves, four anthropized show caves, and the iconic Lascaux Cave with even stronger anthropization. The predominant microbial higher taxa were the same in all caves, but the most anthropized cave (Lascaux) was unique as it differed from the eight others by a higher proportion of Bacteroidetes bacteria and the absence of Euryarchaeota and Woesearchaeota archaea. Anthropization resulted in lower diversity and altered community structure for bacteria and archaea on cave walls, especially in Lascaux, but with a more limited effect on microeukaryotes and arthropods. Our findings fill a key gap in our understanding of the response of karstic communities to anthropization, by revealing that tourism‐related anthropization impacts on the prokaryotic microbiome rather than on eukaryotic residents, and that it shapes cave biota irrespective of cave natural features.     

Linking political and scientifically derived targets for global biodiversity conservation: implications for the expansion of the global network of protected areas

Despite the global network of protected areas covers 12% of the world's land surface, its performance is still unsatisfactory. Although political and scientifically sound conservation targets usually portray different pictures of the task ahead, we show that in terms of priority areas for expanding the global network of reserves, there is much agreement between the political targets of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), and the scientifically derived goals endorsed by international conservation organizations. Here we analyse four global databases to identify priority areas for fulfilling the CBD target of representing 10% of every ecological region within protected areas, and compare the distribution of priority regions for fulfilling that political target, with the distribution of the priority areas for global biodiversity conservation identified by Conservation International, the WWF, and the Wildlife Conservation Society on scientific basis. For 63% (549) of the world's terrestrial ecoregions the CBD 10% target is still not met; fulfilling it requires protecting another 4.6% of the Earth's land surface (6,239,894 km²). Yet, at least 78% of the priority regions for fulfilling that target lay within priority regions for the main global conservation strategies. By pursuing the political target set by the CBD much ancillary gains in terms of other global conservation objectives can be obtained.     

Diversity and distribution of aquatic insects in Southern Brazil wetlands: implications for biodiversity conservation in a Neotropical region

The selection of priority areas is an enormous challenge for biodiversity conservation. Some biogeographic methods have been used to identify the priority areas to conservation, and panbiogeography is one of them. This study aimed at the utilization of panbiogeographic tools, to identify the distribution patterns of aquatic insect genera, in wetland systems of an extensive area in the Neotropical region (approximately 280 000km2), and to compare the distribution of the biogeographic units identified by the aquatic insects, with the conservation units of Southern Brazil. We analyzed the distribution pattern of 82 genera distributed in four orders of aquatic insects (Diptera, Odonata, Ephemeroptera and Trichoptera) in Southern Brazil wetlands. Therefore, 32 biogeographic nodes corresponded to the priority areas for conservation of the aquatic insect diversity. Among this total, 13 were located in the Atlantic Rainforest, 16 in the Pampa and three amongst both biomes. The distribution of nodes showed that only 15% of the dispersion centers of insects were inserted in conservation units. The four priority areas pointed by node cluster criterion must be considered in further inclusions of areas for biodiversity conservation in Southern Brazil wetlands, since such areas present species from different ancestral biota. The inclusion of such areas into the conservation units would be a strong way to conserve the aquatic biodiversity in this region.     

A multi-faceted framework of diversity for prioritizing the conservation of fish assemblages

Floodplain waterbodies and their biodiversity are increasingly threatened by human activities. Given the limited resources available to protect them, methods to identify the most valuable areas for biodiversity conservation are urgently needed. In this study, we used freshwater fish assemblages in floodplain waterbodies to propose an innovative method for selecting priority areas based on four aspects of their diversity: taxonomic (i.e. according to species classification), functional (i.e. relationship between species and ecosystem processes), natural heritage (i.e. species threat level), and socio-economic (i.e. species interest to anglers and fishermen) diversity. To quantitatively evaluate those aspects, we selected nine indices derived either from metrics computed at the species level and then combined for each assemblage (species rarity, origin, biodiversity conservation concern, functional uniqueness, functional originality, fishing interest), or from metrics directly computed at the assemblage level (species richness, assemblage rarity, diversity of biological traits). Each of these indices belongs to one of the four aspects of diversity. A synthetic index defined as the sum of the standardized aspects of diversity was used to assess the multi-faceted diversity of fish assemblages. We also investigated whether the two main environmental gradients at the catchment (distance from the sea) and at the floodplain (lateral connectivity of the waterbodies) scales influenced the diversity of fish assemblages, and consequently their potential conservation value. Finally, we propose that the floodplain waterbodies that should be conserved as a priority are those located in the downstream part of the catchment and which have a substantial lateral connectivity with the main channel.     

Ecological preferences of neotropical cave bats in roost site selection and their implications for conservation

Bats frequently use caves as roosts due to higher environmental stability and protection. However, species-specific ecological and physiological requirements and conditions of roosts and their surroundings can influence species presence. Little is known on cave choice by bats in the Neotropics, a species- and cave-rich region. Understanding how bats, cave characteristics and the surrounding landscape are related with each other helps the management and conservation of bats and caves. Based on sampling 19 caves using both diurnal observations and captures, we tested (1) whether bat richness was positively related to cave temperature, humidity, size, stability, and heterogeneity of microhabitats, and the preservation and heterogeneity of the surrounding landscape in central Brazil; (2) whether cave and landscape characteristics influenced on species composition; (3) how species responded to cave and landscape variables; and (4) whether these relationships changed between seasons. Temperature was a limiting factor, whereas environmental stability, humidity, and structural attributes of caves favored the occurrence of more species. Larger caves, rich in microhabitats – but more stable than the external environment – supported more species, especially in the dry season. Landscape context did not influence species richness and composition in the caves, but the percentage of vegetation around caves was important for certain species. Our results highlight the influence of environmental variables in the process of cave selection by Neotropical bat species. Moreover, we emphasize the importance of cave protection for bats and provide useful information for decision-making in processes of environmental licensing.     

贵州荔波玉屏洞穴陆生动物食物来源及营养级

洞穴是“极端地下生物多样性”的聚集地, 为了揭示洞穴陆生动物的食物来源以及营养级关系, 本文于2016年10月对贵州荔波玉屏镇的3个代表性洞穴内的陆生动物进行调查, 应用¹³C和¹⁵N稳定同位素方法, 分析了洞内陆生动物和基础碳源的δ¹³C、δ¹⁵N值变化特征, 探究了各动物类群的营养级位置以及不同的基础碳源对动物的食物源的贡献率。结果表明: 洞穴植物的δ¹³C值范围为-38.25‰ ± 0.95‰至-29.44‰ ± 0.49‰, 土壤有机质δ¹³C值范围为-32.73‰ ± 0.03‰至-24.68‰ ± 0.41‰, 大部分不在洞穴植物的δ¹³C变化范围内。洞穴动物δ¹³C、δ¹⁵N值范围分别为-34.22‰ ± 0.39‰至-14.83‰ ± 0.78‰、1.86‰ ± 0.20‰至16.43‰ ± 0.05‰, 表现出较大的种(或类群)间差异。IsoSource软件估算结果表明, 洞穴土壤有机质对78.3%动物类群的食物源的贡献率高于植物。荔波玉屏洞穴消费者的营养级范围为1.01-5.32, 其中, 巨蚓科、螺类、潮虫科、马陆、大蚊科、夜蛾科主要处于第2营养层次; 蚰蜒科、蚁蛉科(幼虫)、蝙蝠处于第3营养层次; 蜚蠊科处于第2-3营养层次; 驼螽科、蠼螋科处于第2-4营养层次; 蜘蛛处于第2-5营养层次, 跨3个营养级。综上认为, 洞穴土壤有机质是洞穴消费者的主要食物基础。大部分同一类群的动物在洞穴中所处的营养级位置较稳定, 少部分同属于一个类群的动物在不同洞穴或同一洞穴不同光带所处的营养级位置有差异。     

Nature conservation at the edge

Currently, there is an increasing need for evidence-based strategies in nature conservation, for example when designing and establishing nature reserves. In this contribution, we critically assess the ecological relevance of recent nature conservation practices in Kenya (East Africa), a region of global biodiversity hotspots. More specifically, we overlay the distribution of species richness (here based on mammals, birds, amphibians and vascular plants) with the location of nature reserves, the Kenyan agro-ecological zones (areas representing diverging agricultural potentials), and with the spatial distribution of human population density. Our analyses indicate that the majority of protected areas are located in areas with comparatively low species richness, while areas with extraordinary high levels of species richness are not adequately covered by nature reserves. Areas of high agricultural productivity (and with high human demographic pressure) are mainly reserved for high-yield agriculture; however, these regions are also characterised by high species richness. The majority of nature reserves are restricted to the semi-arid regions of Kenya, marginal for agricultural usage, but also with low levels of species richness. Based on this analysis, we prioritize areas for future protection. This single-country case illustrates that agricultural production in high-yield areas outweighs nature conservation goals, even in global biodiversity hotspot regions, and that priority setting may conflict with effective nature conservation.     

Determination of conservation priorities in regions with multiple political jurisdictions

Red lists serve as the most prominent tool for priority setting in applied conservation, even though they were not originally designed for this task. Hence, threat status does not always reflect actual conservation needs and can be very different from actual conservation priorities. Therefore, red lists may at best be a suboptimal tool for setting conservation priorities in a country or region. As a response, a range of alternative or complementary tools have been developed, with approaches, methods, and parameters such as population decline, population center etc. used, differing widely among countries. One recent development is the combination of conservation status with a measure of the international importance of a population in a focal region for the global survival of a species. Here, we provide a new method that integrates the two concepts while keeping them conceptually separate. The main benefit of this method is that it can be applied across variable geographical scales such as regions, countries, and even continents. Furthermore, it allows for better recommendations for applied conservation and conservation policy development than the two concepts in isolation. Our method, if applied internationally, would allow for a standardized priority setting in species conservation, would be highly comparable between countries, and would lead to a more efficient use of the limited financial and human resources for monitoring and conservation of biodiversity.     

Governance factors in the identification of global conservation priorities for mammals

Global conservation priorities have often been identified based on the combination of species richness and threat information. With the development of the field of systematic conservation planning, more attention has been given to conservation costs. This leads to prioritizing developing countries, where costs are generally low and biodiversity is high. But many of these countries have poor governance, which may result in ineffective conservation or in larger costs than initially expected. We explore how the consideration of governance affects the selection of global conservation priorities for the world's mammals in a complementarity-based conservation prioritization. We use data on Control of Corruption (Worldwide Governance Indicators project) as an indicator of governance effectiveness, and gross domestic product per capita as an indicator of cost. We show that, while core areas with high levels of endemism are always selected as important regardless of governance and cost values, there are clear regional differences in selected sites when biodiversity, cost or governance are taken into account separately. Overall, the analysis supports the concentration of conservation efforts in most of the regions generally considered of high priority, but stresses the need for different conservation approaches in different continents owing to spatial patterns of governance and economic development.     

Future battlegrounds for conservation under global change

Global biodiversity is under significant threat from the combined effects of human-induced climate and land-use change. Covering 12% of the Earth's terrestrial surface, protected areas are crucial for conserving biodiversity and supporting ecological processes beneficial to human well-being, but their selection and design are usually uninformed about future global change. Here, we quantify the exposure of the global reserve network to projected climate and land-use change according to the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment and set these threats in relation to the conservation value and capacity of biogeographic and geopolitical regions. We find that geographical patterns of past human impact on the land cover only poorly predict those of forecasted change, thus revealing the inadequacy of existing global conservation prioritization templates. Projected conservation risk, measured as regional levels of land-cover change in relation to area protected, is the greatest at high latitudes (due to climate change) and tropics/subtropics (due to land-use change). Only some high-latitude nations prone to high conservation risk are also of high conservation value, but their high relative wealth may facilitate additional conservation efforts. In contrast, most low-latitude nations tend to be of high conservation value, but they often have limited capacity for conservation which may exacerbate the global biodiversity extinction crisis. While our approach will clearly benefit from improved land-cover projections and a thorough understanding of how species range will shift under climate change, our results provide a first global quantitative demonstration of the urgent need to consider future environmental change in reserve-based conservation planning. They further highlight the pressing need for new reserves in target regions and support a much extended 'north-south' transfer of conservation resources that maximizes biodiversity conservation while mitigating global climate change.     

Integrating phylogenetic and functional biodiversity facets to guide conservation: a case study using anurans in a global biodiversity hotspot

The Cerrado is one of the most threatened biomes in Brazil, with little spatial representation within the Protected Area network. Recently, proposed conservation plans worldwide have advocated for the use of multiple biodiversity facets to protect unique evolutionary and functional processes. Our aim was to identify areas with high biodiversity representativeness applying this multifaceted perspective, and propose conservation plans based on the joint analysis of taxonomic, functional and phylogenetic diversity. We used a database of the Brazilian National Program for Research in Biodiversity, which employs a standard protocol for sampling tadpoles. The Cerrado database includes samples from 165 water bodies spread over 15 localities, covering most of the Central Brazilian Cerrado. We selected four morphological traits to calculate functional diversity and used a dated phylogeny available in the literature to compute phylogenetic diversity. Our approach selected five priority areas for conservation, one of which is already protected. Our results highlighted the importance of four new areas which show high values of diversity, including original lineages and traits, and urgently need conservation prioritization. Furthermore, unlike the current protected network, our approach performs significantly better than random at protecting sites with high phylogenetic and functional diversity. We therefore discuss how the multifaceted indices considered can help protect key ecosystem functions and evolutionary legacy in anuran communities of the Brazilian Cerrado.     

中华菊头蝠的栖息生态特征及种群保护

中华菊头蝠(Rhinolophus sinicus)主要分布于我国境内,属于典型的洞栖食虫性蝙蝠,具有重要的研究意义与保护价值。近年,在湘西州境内的16个溶洞中对其栖息生态特征进行了观察,共记录到其个体12942只次,数据分析结果显示：该蝠是该区域溶洞中的居留型优势蝠种,具有集群冬眠的习性。每年的9月中下旬开始逐步聚群冬眠,翌年的3月底开始苏醒,其夏季的繁育场所非常隐蔽,通常位于人无法进入的洞段或人迹罕至的洞穴。总体上,其栖点主要集中于距洞口150—200 m(91.60%)的洞段,离地高度6—10 m(91.75%),多以“双足悬挂”的栖姿将身体悬空倒挂于洞道的顶壁。其体温与栖点温度之间不存在显著性差异(P>0.05),但具有明显的线性正相关关系(R~2=0.8886)。其栖点安全性春夏季高,秋冬季中等偏低。中华菊头蝠作为该区域洞栖性蝙蝠的优势种,在维持洞穴生态系统的稳定中发挥着至关重要的作用,加强对洞穴生态系统中蝙蝠伞护性的研究有助于洞穴生态保护教育及对蝙蝠种群的保护实践。     

Climate change and opposing spatial conservation priorities for anuran protection in the Brazilian hotspots

In conservation biogeography, the process of spatial conservation prioritization (SCP) aims to select areas that meet biodiversity targets at a minimum set coverage. Here, we propose a SCP scheme for the highly endemic and diverse anuran fauna of the Atlantic Forest (AF) and Cerrado (CER) South American hotspots under different climate change scenarios. Specifically, we make use of predicted anuran occurrences, built for baseline and future (2050 and 2070) time slices, and address biological and conservation metrics to identify potential priority regions for anuran conservation over time using the software MARXAN. Considering each time slice separately, the percentage area needed for total anuran representation varies at magnitudes of 9.8–10.66% for the AF and 6.4–8.8% for the CER. Pooling all time slices together in the selected conservation network, the identified spatial priorities account for 15.56% and 13.25% of the total AF and CER areas respectively. However, we identified opposing strategies for the anuran spatial conservation prioritization in the AF and CER over the different time periods; the increasing of priority cells across time considering the potential species redistribution under climate change in the AF, and the selection of fewer priority cells in the future than the identified for the baseline climate in the CER. The southeastern AF coast was identified as a priority area for amphibian conservation in this hotspot, as well as some other smaller areas in the northern and southern regions. Priority areas identified in the CER, although patchy distributed across the hotspot, are found in specific central-northern, western, and southeastern regions. The different conservation strategies identified in the present SCP emphasize the need for establishing different conservation efforts according to a sequential scheduling of priority areas that optimizes the long-term conservation goals.     

系统发育多样性测度及其在生物多样性保护中的应用

生物多样性保护面临两个基本问题：如何确定生物多样性测度以及如何保护生物多样性。传统的生物多样性测度是以物种概念为基础的,用生态学和地理学方法确定各种生物多样性指数。其测度依赖于样方面积的大小,并且所有的物种在分类上同等对待。系统发育多样性测度基于系统发育和遗传学的理论和方法,能确定某一物种对类群多样性的贡献大小。该方法比较复杂,只有在类群的系统发育或遗传资料比较齐全时方能应用。本文认为,物种生存力途径和系统发育多样性测度相结合有助于确定物种和生态系统保护的优先秩序。     

辽宁省生物多样性保护优先区识别

生物多样性保护优先区是我国为加强生物多样性保护划定的重要区域,辽宁省境内目前并无此类优先区,弥补相关缺失具有重要意义。本研究通过对生态系统保护、人类影响和生物多样性保护区划3个准则层7个指标进行计算,依次获得辽宁省生物多样性保护优先区指标值、准则层值和优先区识别综合值,结合辽宁省县(市)行政边界和自然保护区边界数据,确定了辽宁西部和东部生物多样性保护优先区的建议地域范围。其中,辽宁西部生物多样性保护优先区面积为12951 km²,森林覆盖率为53.6%,包括9个省级以上自然保护区,以水土保持作为区域重要生态功能;辽宁东部生物多样性保护优先区面积为20057 km²,森林覆盖率为78.9%,包括8个省级以上自然保护区,以水源涵养作为区域重要生态功能。上述优先区是国家和省级保护物种的集中分布区,也是辽宁省重要生态系统的分布区,亟待开展生物多样性保护工作。     

生物多样性保护优先区抽样调查策略研究——以武陵山地区为例

生物多样性保护优先区是我国为加强生物多样性保护和监管划定的重要区域,目前部分优先区已陆续开展生物本底资料的调查评估工作,但受限于经费、时间等条件,对区内所有县域或网格全覆盖式科考,既不现实也无必要,因而区域尺度的抽样设计是一个亟需解决的关键问题。以武陵山生物多样性保护优先区为例,结合层次聚类和系统抽样方法,同时考虑历史调查资料的系统完整程度和空间保护属性,提出了一个科学可行的抽样方案。首先将研究区域内的所有县域聚为5类,每类挑选出2个重点县域,共获得6个历史上进行过系统科学考察的县域和4个本底资料相对缺乏的县域,进而挑选出76个重点调查网格（10 km×10 km）,其中生物多样性富集网格36个,保护区外的人类干扰网格40个,抽样比例为11.09%,每个网格平均调查经费为2.52万元。该抽样策略区分了调查层次并突出重点区域,使调查和评估更有针对性,进一步完善了保护优先区基础调查系统,也强化了项目管理能力,对其他保护优先区项目开展具有一定参考价值。     

The mid-latitude biodiversity ridge in terrestrial cave fauna

The world's obligate cave-dwelling fauna holds considerable promise for biogeographic analysis because it represents a large number of independent evolutionary experiments in isolation in caves and adaptation to subterranean life. We focus on seven north temperate regions of at least 2000 km², utilizing more than 4300 records of obligate cave-dwelling terrestrial invertebrates. In North America, highest diversity was found in northeast Alabama while in Europe highest diversity was found in Ariège, France, and in southeast Slovenia. Based on these regions as well as more qualitative data from 16 other regions, we hypothesize that a ridge (ca 42°–46° in Europe and 34° in North America) of high biodiversity occurs in temperate areas of high productivity and cave density. This may reflect a strong dependence of cave communities on long term surface productivity (as reflected in actual evapotranspiration), because the subterranean fauna relies almost entirely on resources produced outside caves. This dependence may explain the unique biodiversity pattern of terrestrial cave invertebrates.     

Biodiversity hotspots are not congruent with conservation areas in the Gulf of California

As marine systems are threatened by increasing human impacts, mechanisms to maintain biodiversity and ecosystem functions and services are needed. Protecting areas of conservation importance may serve as a proxy for maintaining these functions, while also facilitating efficient use and management of limited resources. Biodiversity hotspots have been used as surrogates for spatial conservation importance; however, as many protected areas have been established opportunistically and under differing criteria, it is unclear how well they actually protect hotspots. We evaluated how well the current protected area network and priority areas selected through previous systematic conservation planning exercises preserve biodiversity hotspots in the Gulf of California, Mexico. We also determined spatial congruence between biodiversity hotspots based on different criteria, which may determine their ability to be used as surrogates for each other. We focus on the Gulf of California because it is a megadiverse system where limited information regarding species diversity and distribution has constrained development of strategies for conservation and management. We developed a species occurrence database and identified biodiversity hotspots using four different criteria: species richness, rarity, endemism, and threatened species. We interpolated species occurrence, while accounting for heterogeneous sampling efforts. We then assessed overlap of hotspots with existing protected areas and priority areas, and between hotspots derived by distinct criteria. We gathered 286,533 occurrence records belonging to 12,105 unique species, including 6388 species identified as rare, 642 as endemic, and 386 as threatened. We found that biodiversity hotspots showed little spatial overlap with areas currently under protection and previously identified priority areas. Our results highlight the importance of distinct spatial areas of biodiversity and suggest that different ecological mechanisms sustain different aspects of diversity and multiple criteria should be used when defining conservation areas.