Temporal patterns in the intertidal faunal community at the mouth of a tropical estuary

The use of intertidal sandy beaches by fish and macrocrustaceans was studied at different temporal scales at the mouth of a tropical estuary. Samples were taken along the lunar and diel cycles in the late dry and rainy seasons. Fish assemblage (number of species, density and biomass), crustaceans and wrack biomass, showed significant interactions among all studied factors, and the combination of moon phase and diel cycle, resulting in different patterns of environmental variables (depth, water temperature and dissolved oxygen), affected habitat use by the different species. Variances in faunal community were detected between seasons, stimulated by salinity fluctuations from freshwater input during the rainy season. These differences suggest an important cycling of habitats and an increase in connectivity between adjacent habitats (estuary and coastal waters). Moreover, the results showed that this intertidal sandy beach also provides an alternative nursery and protected shallow‐water area for the initial development phase of many marine and estuarine species. In addition, this intertidal habitat plays an important role in the maintenance of the ecological functioning of the estuarine–coastal ecosystem continuum.     

Niche segregation of Himalayan river birds

ABSTRACT.   The Himalayan Mountains have more specialist river birds than anywhere on earth, but factors permitting their coexistence have not been evaluated. We examined potential ecological segregation of five sympatric insectivores based on diet, morphology, and foraging behavior during the breeding and nonbreeding seasons in central Nepal. Little Forktails ( Enicurus scouleri ) and Brown Dippers ( Cinclus pallasii ) were highly aquatic in habitat use and diet (89–96% of prey of aquatic origin), but took prey that differed in size and composition. Spotted Forktails ( E. maculatus ) foraged primarily along channel margins, and took more aquatic than terrestrial prey (59% vs. 40%). White-capped ( Chaimorrornis leucocephalus ) and Plumbeous ( Rhyacornis fuliginosus ) water redstarts took primarily terrestrial or aerial prey by gleaning marginal surfaces and flycatching over channels. Two species were similar morphologically (Little Forktail and Plumbeous Water Redstart), but had different diets. Our results illustrate clear ecological separation among this guild of co-occurring river birds on one or more niche dimensions that we suggest is mediated by the physical complexity of mountain, riverine habitats.     

The relationship between ecological segregation and sexual body size dimorphism in large herbivores

Ecological segregation (sexual differences in diet or habitat use) in large herbivores has been intimately linked to sexual body size dimorphism, and may affect both performance and survival of the sexes. However, no one has tested comparatively whether segregation occurs at a higher frequency among more dimorphic species. To test this comparatively, data on sex-specific diet, habitat use and body size of 40 species of large herbivores were extracted from the literature. The frequency of ecological segregation was higher among more dimorphic herbivores; however, this was only significant for browsers. This provides the first evidence that segregation is more common among more dimorphic species. The comparative evidence supported the nutritional-needs hypothesis over the incisor breadth hypothesis, as there was no difference in frequency of segregation between seasons with high and low resource levels, and since segregation was also evident among browsers. Whether the absence of a correlation between ecological segregation and level of sexual body size dimorphism for intermediate feeders and grazers is due to biological differences relative to browsers or to the fact that the monomorphic species included in the analysis were all browsers is discussed. Received: 18 August 1999 / Accepted: 31 January 2000     

Differential effects of local habitat and landscape characteristics on bird communities in Mediterranean afforestations motivated by the EU Common Agrarian Policy

We investigated the effects of local habitat structure and surrounding landscape characteristics (proportion of land use types and connectedness) on species density and composition of bird communities inhabiting the interior of young tree plantations on former cropland in central Spain, which were motivated by the Common Agrarian Policy. Variation of species density (number of species/0.78 ha) among tree plantations showed different environmental associations across seasons: local habitat was more important than landscape characteristics during winter, whereas they were similarly important during spring. Species density increased with the development of the tree layer in winter and with the presence of urban areas around tree plantations and cover of the herbaceous layer within them in the breeding season. We identified 15 species that exhibit high relative abundance in woodland habitats within the Mesomediterranean region of Central Spain that were absent in both seasons in the studied tree plantations, which were an attractive habitat for urban exploiter species but an unfavorable habitat for the regional forest species pool except for forest generalist species. Composition of bird assemblages was more related to local habitat structure than to landscape characteristics around tree plantations and was rather similar in winter and spring seasons. The very different effects of local habitat and landscape characteristics on bird communities make difficult suggesting management practices with positive effects for all avifauna species during the entire year. We conclude that the small size and low maturity of the studied tree plantations do not contribute to enhancing the bird diversity value of current CAP aids to afforest former cropland with pines in the Mediterranean region.     

Habitat selection and coexistence in small mammals of the southern Andean foothills (Argentina)

Habitat partitioning is considered one of the main mechanisms of coexistence among small mammals. This is especially evident in arid environments where resources are particularly scarce. Habitat characteristics such as vegetation heterogeneity and complexity are expected to increase species coexistence, increasing the number of microhabitats that can be occupied by species with different requirements. The Andean foothills can be considered as an ecotone between the Monte and Altoandina phytogeographic provinces as they harbor species from both. Consequently more species are thought to coexist in this area. The objectives of this study were to assess the macro- and microhabitat selection of the small mammal assemblage inhabiting the Andean foothills during wet and dry season and to determine how animals segregate environmental resources to ensure their coexistence. We found that habitat selection occurs at both scales in the Andean foothills. Two species, Eligmodontia moreni and Phyllotis xanthophygus, were capable of distinguishing among macrohabitat types, whereas all species showed habitat selection at the microhabitat scale. We registered selection during both seasons, with some overlap of resource selection during the wet season and the greatest segregation of microhabitat resources during the dry season. Therefore, this work evidence that the assembly of small mammals is sensitive to habitat structure especially in dry seasons where resources are constraints due to arid conditions of Andean foothills.     

北京城市公园环境下自生植物物种组成及多样性时空特征

城市绿地中的人工栽培植物景观已造成资源消耗过高、景观同质化等一系列问题。随着人类生态意识的提高,城市中可自播繁衍、无需过多养护管理同时可发挥生态效益的自生植物引起了国内外的广泛关注,但以往研究主要以整个城市环境作为基底,针对其在城市绿地中的分布特征鲜有报道。为揭示城市绿地中自生植物的多样性特征及其分布的时空格局以指导低维护景观的营建,本研究以北京奥林匹克森林公园为例,采用网格布样法,于2015年生长季的3—11月对所有样点重复调研七次,运用多样性指数、群落聚类、Duncan检验等统计计算方法针对物种组成、群落多样性及群落分类进行了深入探讨。结果表明:全园自生植物丰富,共记录到32科98属128种,其中乡土植物占76.56%,外来植物占23.44%,入侵植物占12.50%。在物种组成的时间变化上,各月份记录到的物种数呈单峰型分布,8月末物种数达到峰值,为98种;菊科(Asteraceae)植物物种数在整个生长季显著高于其他科,外来植物物种数及其所占比例均在夏季达到最高。从空间格局看,路边和林地是样方数量最多的生境类型,所容纳的物种数也最多,分别为109和106种。自生植物群落多样性在10月初显著高于其他月份,其次是8月末、4月末和6月初;各生境下的群落多样性排序较为不稳定,分析认为这是由于各季节不同程度的外界干扰所致。依据物种优势度,自生植物群落共被划分成了42个群落组,各季节和各生境下有其特定优势种和群落组合,其中有9个群落组在春、夏、秋三季均有出现,且大多数群落组随着季节变化景观呈现出丰富的野趣效果。这些研究结果在未来低维护、具有较高生物多样性及地域性特色的可持续性城市绿地植被景观营造中具有重要的参考价值。     

唐家河自然保护区高山姬鼠和中华姬鼠夏季生境选择的比较

为揭示影响高山姬鼠和中华姬鼠夏季空间分布的生态因素,采用样线法和样方取样法,于2009年6—8月在四川省唐家河国家级自然保护区内对两种姬鼠的生境选择进行了比较研究。结果表明:两种姬鼠主要利用坡度平缓,郁闭度、落叶层盖度、乔木胸径和高度较小,灌木、竹子和草本密度适中而草本盖度较大的生境;高山姬鼠频繁出现在海拔较低(1400 m左右)、草本植物较大(平均高度为16—30 cm)的生境中,而中华姬鼠频繁出现在海拔较高(1900 m左右)、草本植物较小(平均高度<15 cm)的生境中。此外,高山姬鼠频繁出现在竹林较矮(平均高度<1 m)、水源距离较近(<50 m)、植被演替阶段较低(小树林)的常绿-落叶阔叶混交林中,而中华姬鼠对这4种生态因子无明显的选择性。两种姬鼠在对生境的利用上虽具一定重叠性,但对诸多生境变量选择上的差异表明各自具有不同的生境利用模式。海拔、植被演替阶段、郁闭度和草本高度4个生境变量判别函数系数的绝对值明显大于其他变量,表明高山姬鼠和中华姬鼠在生境上的分割可能主要与这4个变量有关。生境利用模式的不同有助于两种姬鼠同域共存。     

Diversity of medium and large mammals in the Loka Abaya National Park,southern Ethiopia

We evaluated the richness, diversity, and composition of the medium and large mammal community in the Loka Abaya National Park (LANP), southern Ethiopia, and how these parameters differ among four habitat types: wooded grassland, riverine forest, hilly scrubland and wetland, and between seasons. We recorded a total of 2,573 individual animals of 28 medium and large mammal species in the park. This included three globally threatened species: the endangered African wild dog (Lycaon pictus), the vulnerable Leopard (Panthera pardus), and Hippopotamus (Hippopothamus amphibius). Season had little effect on species richness, diversity, and composition both across and within habitat types. However, species richness across seasons was significantly different among the four habitat types, in the declining order of the following: wooded grassland > riverine forest > hilly scrubland > wetland. The strongest similarity in species composition, both across and within seasons, was found between wooded grassland and riverine forest. In terms of relative abundance, mammal assemblage of the wooded grassland and wetland habitats had more evenly distributed number of species with different relative abundance categories. Overall, Anubis Baboon (Papio anubis), Grivet Monkey (Chlorocebus aethiops), and Greater Kudu (Tragelephus strepsiceros) were the three most abundant species across habitat types. In conclusion, findings of our study reveal that LANP plays an important role in Ethiopia's mammal conservation. Our findings will serve as baseline information for managers of the park to make effective conservation decisions and as a baseline for researchers wishing to conduct related ecological studies.     

Toxoplasma gondii antibodies in free-living African mammals.

Twelve species of free-living African mammals from Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia were tested for antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii using the indirect hemagglutination test. Of 157 animals sampled, 20 (13%) were seropositive. T. gondii antibodies were detected in Burchell's zebra, (Equus burchelli), hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius), African elephant (Loxodonta africana), defassa waterbuck (Kobus defassa), lion (Panthera leo), and rock hyrax (Procavia capensis), The highest titers were found in elephants, two having titers of 1:4096 and one of 1:8192. These results are discussed in relation to the maintenance of T. gondii among African wildlife.     

Ecological separation among browsing ungulates in Tsavo East National Park,Kenya

Summary Data on food habits and habitat preferences of four browsing herbivores (black rhinoceros, giraffe, gerenuk and lesser kudu) were analyzed to assess niche width for each species and niche overlap between pairs of species. All four species depended heavily on woody plants as food, and overlap in the utilization of different plant types (trees and shrubs, herbs, grasses, etc.) was very great in three of six species paris. When individual plant species were considered, markedly less overlap was apparent. Three of the four ungulate species preferred the most densely wooded vegetation type. Overlap in habitat preferences tended to be least in those pairs of species with the greates dietary overlap, which resulted in some degree of ecological separation. This was further increased by differences in browsing level. Seasonal variations in the browsing level of the giraffe had the effect of reducing overlap with the other species in the dry season, when food was in relatively short supply. Whether or not actual competition existed among the four ungulate species could not be established; in any event, it would probably be less important than possible competition exerted by the elephant, the dominant herbivore by far in the ecosystem. The ecological separation evident among the four browsing species probably permitted them to coexist in the area before the elephant reached its present dominant position and started altering the original vegetation.Formerly Tsavo East Research Station, Voi, Kenya     

Hybridization between subspecies of waterbuck (Kobus ellipsiprymnus) in zones of overlap with limited introgression

Two subspecies of waterbuck (Kobus ellipsiprymnus), common (Kobus ellipsiprymnus ellipsiprymnus) and defassa (Kobus ellipsiprymnus defassa), are recognized based on differences in rump pattern, coat colour and geographical distribution. These forms are parapatrically distributed with an area of range overlap in East Africa, where phenotypically intermediate populations occur. Variation in 478 bp of the mitochondrial DNA control region and 14 polymorphic microsatellite loci were used to describe the genetic structure and phylogeographical pattern of the species, and to assess if the intermediate populations are the results of hybridization. In total, 186 individuals from 11 localities were analysed. A high degree of genetic differentiation was found between subspecies, although this was most evident from the microsatellite data. Hybridization was suggested in the phenotypically and geographically intermediate Nairobi NP population in Kenya. A neighbour-joining (NJ) tree based on microsatellite population genetic distances grouped Nairobi between the common and defassa populations, and a Bayesian analysis clearly showed introgression. Individuals sampled in Samburu NP, Kenya, had a common waterbuck phenotype, but introgression was suggested by both markers. Although a high degree of maternal defassa input was indicated from the sequence data, the Samburu population grouped with the common waterbuck in the microsatellite population genetic distance tree, with high support. Analyses of linkage disequilibrium and maximum-likelihood estimates of genetic drift suggested that admixture between subspecies is a recent event. The fact that introgression is limited between subspecies could be caused by chromosomal differences, hindering gene flow between common and defassa waterbuck.     

Investigations into the soil mycoecology of Chambal ravines of India

Summary The present investigation deals with the seasonal succession of fungal communities in wheat fields. The studies were performed during the year 1975–76 and involved four study seasons,viz. winter (1975), summer (1975), rainy (1975) and winter (1976). The observations during two winter seasons were done to find out whether or not fungal communities exhibit definite cyclic pattern. Of the 69 isolated species, 25 showed wider ecological amplitude whereas some species were specific of a particular season. Each season was marked by different fungal mycoflora. The population ofAspergillus terreus, a dominant member of the community, along with many other autochthonous species, exhibited a definite periodicity during various seasons. Seasonal variations in the fungal communities, variations in the extent of similarity among the fungal communities during various seasons and the impact of climatic conditions on the components of fungal communities are discussed.     

千岛湖陆桥岛屿鸟类集团对栖息地片段化的敏感性及其季节变化

为探究千岛湖陆桥岛屿不同鸟类集团对栖息地片段化敏感性的差异和季节变化,于2009年4月—2012年1月鸟类繁殖季(4、5、6月)和冬季(11、12、1月)对千岛湖41个陆桥岛屿鸟类集团进行了研究。结果表明,冬季杂食鸟对片段化敏感性高于食虫鸟,繁殖季时二者无显著差异,繁殖季和冬季时下层鸟对片段化敏感性均高于林冠鸟,冬季留鸟对片段化敏感性高于候鸟,繁殖季则无显著差异。杂食鸟和留鸟对片段化敏感性存在季节差异,而食虫鸟、林冠鸟、下层鸟和候鸟对片段化敏感性均无季节差异。不同鸟类集团对栖息地片段化敏感性的差异和季节变化规律,有助于人们在栖息地管理和保护区设计时采取更有针对性的鸟类保护措施。     

Essential oil composition of two endemic Centaurea species from Turkey, Centaurea mucronifera and Centaurea chrysantha, collected in the same habitat

The essential oils of two endemic Centaurea species from Turkey, C. mucronifera and C. chrysantha, collected in the same habitat, have been studied. The main compounds of the former were germacrene D (29.3%), β-eudesmol (17.4%) and β-caryophyllene (7.3%), while in the latter germacrene D (27.4%), caryophyllene oxide (9.5%) and bicyclogermacrene (5.4%) were detected among its major constituents. The two species produced many similar compounds in their essential oils that could be justified by the similar ecological conditions of their habitat, but also many differences were found that could confirm their taxonomic separation.     

Temporal and spatial patterns in littoral-zone fish assemblages of a reservoir (Lake Texoma,Oklahoma-Texas,U.S.A.)

Synopsis We sampled the littoral-zone fish fauna of Lake Texoma reservoir by electrofishing from January through December 1986 to examine species abundance, species associations and assemblage structure. Although total fish abundance differed significantly across seasons, only one common species (Dorosoma cepedianum) exhibited significant seasonal movement into or out of the littoral zone. Overall littoral-zone assemblage structure (based on rank order of species abundance) was concordant across seasons and habitat types, (vegetation, wood, open). However, within individual seasons and habitat types, assemblage structure was likely influenced by temporal and spatial differences in habitat availability and physicochemical conditions. Associations characteristic of species in natural aquatic environments were not well developed among species in this partly artificial, evolutionarily short-lived reservoir assemblage. Conditions related to water-level fluctuation appeared to deter the formation of persistent species associations and assemblage structure, especially in vegetation and open littoral zone habitats of this multi-purpose reservoir.Senior author     

Niche variability and its consequences for species distribution modeling

When species distribution models (SDMs) are used to predict how a species will respond to environmental change, an important assumption is that the environmental niche of the species is conserved over evolutionary time-scales. Empirical studies conducted at ecological time-scales, however, demonstrate that the niche of some species can vary in response to environmental change. We use habitat and locality data of five species of stream fishes collected across seasons to examine the effects of niche variability on the accuracy of projections from Maxent, a popular SDM. We then compare these predictions to those from an alternate method of creating SDM projections in which a transformation of the environmental data to similar scales is applied. The niche of each species varied to some degree in response to seasonal variation in environmental variables, with most species shifting habitat use in response to changes in canopy cover or flow rate. SDMs constructed from the original environmental data accurately predicted the occurrences of one species across all seasons and a subset of seasons for two other species. A similar result was found for SDMs constructed from the transformed environmental data. However, the transformed SDMs produced better models in ten of the 14 total SDMs, as judged by ratios of mean probability values at known presences to mean probability values at all other locations. Niche variability should be an important consideration when using SDMs to predict future distributions of species because of its prevalence among natural populations. The framework we present here may potentially improve these predictions by accounting for such variability.     

Dung beetle communities as biological indicators of riparian forest widths in southern Brazil

Riparian forests provide important habitat for many wildlife species and are sensitive to landscape change. Among terrestrial invertebrates, dung beetles have been used to investigate the effects of environmental disturbances on forest structure and diversity. Since many studies demonstrated a negative response of dung beetle communities to increasing forest fragmentation, and that most dung beetle species had a more pronounced occurrence during warmest seasons, three hypotheses were tested: (1) Scarabaeinae richness, abundance, diversity and evenness are lower in thinner riparian zone widths than in wider widths during the warmest seasons; (2) Scarabaeinae richness and abundance are positively influenced by leaf litter coverage and height and canopy cover; and (3) Scarabaeinae composition varies with the reduction in riparian vegetation and among annual seasons. We selected four fragments with different riparian zone widths in three secondary streams in southern Brazil. In each fragment, four sampling periods were carried out seasonally between spring 2010 and winter 2011. We collected dung beetles using pitfall traps with two types of bait. We collected 1289 specimens distributed among 29 species. In spring and summer, dung beetle richness was higher in fragments with the widest riparian zone than in those with a thinner riparian zone, and it did not vary between fragments in fall and winter seasons. Dung beetle abundance did not differ among fragments with different riparian zone widths, but it was higher in spring and summer than fall and winter. Richness and abundance were positively influenced by leaf litter. While dung beetle diversity was higher in fragments with wider riparian zone widths than in those with thinner widths, the evenness was similar among fragments. Dung beetle composition differed between the fragments with the widest and thinnest riparian zones, and it also varied among the seasons. Our results suggest that decreased riparian zones affect negatively to dung beetle community structure in southern Brazil. Fragments with thinner riparian zones had lower beetle richness in warmest seasons and an altered community composition. In this sense, the dung beetles are potentially good indicators of riparian forest fragmentation since some species were indicators of a particular riparian zone width. From a conservation perspective, our results demonstrate that the new Brazilian Forest Code will greatly jeopardize not only the terrestrial and aquatic biodiversity of these ecosystems, but also countless other ecological functions.     

Integrative assessment of Western Himalayas streams using multimeric index

Multimeric index based on fish composition was used to assess integrity of shallow and wadeable streams of lower Himalayas in temperate and subtropical ecoregions. Streams were surveyed for biotic and abiotic sampling during base flow periods in pre and post monsoon seasons in 2007 and 2008. Twenty three metrics were computed based on taxonomic richness, trophic composition, habitat preferences, abundance, stress tolerance and species origin attributes of 19 fish species. Candidate metrics were analyzed for efficiency to discriminate degraded sites from non-degraded and redundancy analysis, which sorted 71% of omnivore individuals (excluding intolerant species), 40% of intolerant individuals, 44% of herbivore individuals (excluding benthic species), abundance and 44.5% of non-native individuals as potential metrics. IBI values at forest, agriculture and urban zones were ranged between (max–min) 9.9–3.22, 6.18–2.49 and 4.43–0.69 respectively. Results suggested that poor ecological conditions in streams were generally related to drainage of urban sewage and habitat fragmentation while agriculture land use seems to have moderate impact on ecological integrity of the streams. Less urbanized upstream with grasslands and forests as land use, showed excellent to good ecological integrity of the streams. Proposed index was able to distinguish varying degrees of human impact on ecological integrity of streams and thus index could be used as valuable tool for bioassessment of regional flowing water resources.     

Landbird community composition varies among seasons in a heterogeneous ponderosa pine forest

ABSTRACT.   There is growing recognition of the need to conserve areas used by birds during migration, including forest and upland habitats. Because extensive thinning and burning treatments are planned for ponderosa pine ( Pinus ponderosa ) forests in the southwestern United States, information on the use of these forests by landbirds during migration is needed for conservation planning. We compared species richness among spring, breeding, and fall seasons at 69 points in a ponderosa pine forest to assess changes in landbird communities and the role of different ponderosa pine cover types in habitat selection among seasons. We detected a total of 64 bird species. Bird community similarity was lowest between the breeding and fall seasons and highest between the spring and breeding seasons. Twenty percent of the species detected were present exclusively in the fall and, of these, over half were Neotropical migrants. Only two species (3%) were detected exclusively during the spring. Although we found little difference in bird species similarity among vegetative cover types during the breeding season, forests that contained a deciduous component exhibited higher bird species similarity with each other than with habitats that did not include a deciduous component in spring and fall. In addition, foliage foragers dominated the community in spring and fall, and all Neotropical migrants detected exclusively in fall were found in ponderosa pine forests with a deciduous component. Our results indicate that ponderosa pine forests may be important to migrating or dispersing landbirds in autumn, especially if there is a deciduous component.     

Avian responses to forest fragmentation during the breeding and non-breeding seasons

Forest fragmentation represents a threat to several bird species worldwide. Several factors can change across seasons (e.g. bird perception of the landscape, weather conditions, biotic interactions), which can modify the response of bird populations to forest fragmentation. However, most studies have been conducted only during the breeding season. Here we assessed the relationship between forest fragmentation (patch area and patch isolation) with population abundances of resident species during both the breeding and the non-breeding seasons. Bird population abundances (all species in the community, subsets of forest and habitat generalist species and for individual species) were estimated across a gradient of area-isolation in a semi-arid forest in Cordoba, Argentina. Population abundance of the overall avian community and of the subset of forest species declined with patch area reduction independently of the season. By contrast, the subset of habitat generalist species was not affected by patch area reduction or by the increase in patch isolation, either during the breeding or during the non-breeding season. When the analyses were carried out for individual species, we found four forest species and one habitat generalist species whose responses (the relationship between population abundance and patch area or with isolation) were different between breeding and non-breeding seasons. The negative effects of forest fragmentation were found mainly during the breeding season. Our results suggest that reduction of patch area may lead to a reduction of more than 65% of the population abundance of forest bird species, during both the breeding and the non-breeding season. Therefore, there is an urgent need to conserve large forest patches within the region as irreplaceable elements for the conservation of populations of several species.