An analysis of sightings of Cetacea in British waters

An analysis is carried out of all documented sightings of cetaceans in British waters between 1950–1975, received by the Cetacean Group. Two major problems which must be taken into account in such an analysis are difficulties of specific identification and bias from uneven coverage.
The results show that porpoises are present in coastal waters for much of the year. The pattern of movements for this species is rather confused. Most dolphin species show peak numbers in summer, earliest in the north of Britain and later further south. Risso's dolphins may enter British waters rather earlier in spring than other species. Killer whales occur off the west coast of Britain and Ireland mainly between June-September. Pilot whales are seen in North Britain at most times of the year but otherwise enter British waters along the west coast in spring. Bottle-nosed whales and the larger whale species, including the Rorquals, are found only on the north and west coasts in summer and early autumn. For all species, herd size increases at the same time as increase in the numbers of sightings reported. Different species have different herd sizes with the largest occurring amongst porpoise and all dolphin species except Risso's dolphin, and the smallest amongst the large whale species. Herds may be accompanied by young individuals in spring-late summer, depending on the species.     

Seed size and seedling growth: differential response of Australian and British Fabaceae to nutrient limitation

Seed size is widely held to exert an important influence over plant establishment, but while large seeds are often assumed to be at an advantage in nutrient-limited conditions, there is in fact, little consistent evidence to support this hypothesis. Here, we examined the interspecific relationship between seedling growth and seed size for Australian and British Fabaceae species in nutrient solutions deficient in nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium or all nutrients combined (distilled water). The British species showed no consistent link between mean seed mass and seedling growth in nutrient-limited conditions. By contrast, all four nutrient-deficient treatments yielded a significant relationship for the Australian species. Linear regression showed that growth under balanced nutrient conditions was positively associated with growth without nutrients, although in fewer cases for the British species. We suggest that habitat-specific differences in regeneration conditions and/or evolutionary history may influence the role that seed size plays in dictating how seedlings of different species respond to nutrient shortage. We recommend caution in attempts to link traits like seed size to wider patterns of plant community ecology.     

British species that are present in Australia have different traits from British species that are not present in Australia

Aim

Introduced species spreading to natural ecosystems is a leading cause of environmental change and a key feature of the Anthropocene. While there have been many studies of the traits of introduced and invasive species, less is known about the traits that affect a species' chances of reaching and establishing in new areas. We asked whether British species that are present in Australia have different traits to British species that are not present in Australia.

Location

Great Britain and Australia.

Methods

We compiled a list of all vascular plant species from Great Britain and divided them into those that are present in Australia (395 species) and those that are not present in Australia (1171 species). We compiled data for each species' seed mass, seedbank longevity, maximum plant height, flower size, flower colour and geographical extent in the British Isles. We conducted independent sample t-tests for continuous variables and Chi-squared tests for categorical variables to determine differences between groups.

Results

We found British species present in Australia have, on average, larger geographic extents in the British Isles, longer periods of seed bank longevity (mean ~3 months as opposed to ~3 weeks), and maximum heights that are on average 36% taller than British species that are not present in Australia. However, British species present in Australia did not have significantly different flower size, flower colour or seed mass from British species that are not present in Australia.

Main Conclusions

British species that are present in Australia and British species that are not present in Australia differ in several traits. These differences likely result from a combination of factors including introduction biases, environmental filters during establishment and stochasticity. Our results suggest that humans may be consciously and unconsciously selecting species for introduction. Some of the traits that are associated with an increased chance of a species being transported to/establishing in a new range also contribute to invasiveness. Thus, anthropogenic introduction biases could contribute to an increased risk of ecosystem invasion.     

The identity of Leptothorax albipennis (Curtis) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) and its presence in Great Britain

The karyotype and external morphology of Leptothorax ( Myrafant ) ants, taken from nests at nine ' Leptothorax tuberum ' localities in England and Wales, identifies them all as L. tuberointerruptus. Their karyotype differs in chromosome number and chromosome morphology from the karyotypes of morphologically similar European Leptothorax ( Myrafant ) species including L. tuberum , but matches the karyotype shared by L. tuberointerruptus and L. rougeti. Worker propodeal spine length, and worker propodeal spine shape coupled with worker gaster banding characteristics, distinguish the nest samples from L. rougeti. The presence of L. tuberointerruptus in Britain is therefore confirmed, and the data demonstrate this ant's occurrence throughout the British range attributed to L. tuberum. In the absence of equivalent data identifying L. tuberum as a British species, it may reasonably be assumed that L. tuberointerruptus has been misrecorded as L. tuberum in Britain and that all British mainland records of L. tuberum refer to L. tuberointerruptus. An examination of the syntypes of Stenamma albipennis shows that S. albipennis and L. tuberointerruptus are synonymous, and that L. albipennis is the senior name. It follows that L. albipennis is a scarce British ant of 'Notable B' conservation status. A taxonomic synopsis for L. albipennis is given.     

Macroecological patterns in British breeding birds: covariation of species'geographical range sizes at differing spatial scales

The availability of high quality data on the distribution and abundance of British birds at the national scale means that this fauna is the basis for a growing body of macroecological study. Nevertheless. questions remain about how representative of wider patterns the distributions and abundances of birds in Britain may be. Here, we use data on the British. European and global breeding distributions of British birds to show that species that are widespread in Britain also tend to be widespread across larger regions. These results hold for both residents and migrants separately, and when controlling for the phylogenetic related ness of species. Species with wide latitudinal spans in Europe also tend to have large British ranges, with the largest British ranges exhibited by species inhabiting mid-latitudes in Europe. These results demonstrate that the distributions of birds within Britain are not simply idiosyacratic. but do reflect aspects of their broader distributions.     

DERMATOCARPON LEPTOPHYLLODESAND RELATED SPECIES IN THE BRITISH ISLES

The species ofDermatocarponoccurring in the British Isles are reviewed, with special reference to the hydrophilous species; a number of related species not yet recorded for the British Isles are also briefly treated.Dermatocarpon deminuensandD. leptophyllodesare confirmed as British; the nameD. leptophyllumshould be deleted from the British list. The nameD. meiophyllumis shown to be based on discordant elements. A key is provided to the British and Irish species.     

Cetaceans in British waters

Most information on the distribution, movements and ecology of cetaceans in the N.E. Atlantic have come from whale catches mainly in the early part of this century, and from strandings records collected by the British Museum (Nat. Hist.). With the formation of the Cetacean Group in 1973, a scheme for recording live cetaceans at sea was started. This paper summarizes the results of about two thousand sightings involving nearly 25,000 individual animals between the years 1958– 1978 (but mainly from the last 10 years), and relates them to existing information collected from other sources. Difficulties of identification and potential sources of bias are discussed. Most large cetaceans are present in British waters as part of a latitudinal feeding migration whereas smaller species may be present in the N.E. Atlantic throughout the year with movements being mainly of an offshore-inshore nature. Some species are clearly very rare probably as a result of over-exploitation in the last century and early part of this century. These include the Right whale, Blue whale and probably Humpback whale. Other species are rarely recorded because their usual range is some distance from British waters. These include narwhal and White whale (from Arctic waters), Pygmy sperm whale, smaller beaked whales and Euphrosyne dolphin (from warm temperate to tropical waters). The Harbour porpoise is by far the most common and widespread species in British waters, occurring mainly in inshore waters, although it has apparently declined in certain regions (e.g. Southern North Sea, English Channel, Irish Sea) in recent years probably as a result of pollution, disturbance and/or over-exploitation of food resources. Bottle-nosed and Risso's dolphins are also widely distributed close to the coast, although the latter is restricted to the west and south coasts and the former is associated particularly with some large estuaries. Common dolphins are relatively abundant and widespread, and are more pelagic than the previous three species. White-sided dolphins have a mainly pelagic distribution centred on the Northern North Sea whilst the White-sided dolphin has a wider distribution which includes all the western seaboard. Of larger cetaceans, the Killer whale is relatively common particularly on the west coasts and the Pilot whale is locally and seasonally abundant at the north and south ends of Britain and Ireland where they probably represent distinct populations. The Bottlenose whale, Minke, Fin and Sei whales are confined to the west and north coasts, all but the Minke whale having a primarily pelagic distribution. Sperm whales although increasingly commonly stranded on British coasts, are rarely sighted in inshore waters. The west coast of Britain and Ireland are the most important regions for cetaceans whereas the Southern North Sea has the smallest number although in previous decades numbers were probably higher. Most cetacean species occur mainly in the summer months, particularly August and September, although some species, e.g. White-sided Dolphin, Pilot whale and Minke whale show peaks later in the year. A number of species show secondary spring peaks, e.g. Bottle-nosed and Common dolphins, Risso's dolphins, and Pilot whales. Present evidence suggests that only the large whales exhibit definite latitudinal migrations, all other species being resident at high latitudes although they may show offshore-inshore or possibly small latitudinal movements. Many of the movements indicated from the present analysis can be linked to the seasonal changes in food availability and to the timing and geographical location of breeding, and these are described in detail. Many concentrations of a particular cetacean species occur regularly in the same area year after year and these may often be related to spawning concentrations of a particular fish species. Variations in herd size are noted between species and within species at different times of the year. These are related to aggregations associated with feeding, breeding, and long-distance movements winch will vary according to the biology and ecology of different cetacean species.     

Additions and amendments to the list of British smut fungi

Investigation of material of British smut fungi held in the national collections at kew (k) undertaken during preparation of the new checklist of British and Irish Basidiomycota (Legon et al. 2005) identified several species not hitherto known from the British Isles. These include taxa not previously recognised due to earlier, broader species concepts, as well as others based on earlier misidentifications or discovered during examination of herbarium material of their host plants. These taxa are fully reported here. In addition, amendments to nomenclature and taxonomy of other British species which have occurred since the monography by Mordue & Ainsworth (1984) are summarised.     

NOTES ON NORTHERN MIGRANTS OBSERVED INLAND IN BRITISH GUIANA

1. The scarcity of northern migrants in British Guiana and the South American tropics generally is commented on.
2. 40 species of migrants, exclusing rare vagrants, from North America are known to occur in British Guiana; 24 of these have been recorded from the Bartica district. In each case nearly half are waders.
3. The number of species found in the Bartica district of British Guiana is compared with the number recorded in a recent intensive study of an inland area near the Caribbean coast of northeastern Venezuela, where 12 of the 16 northern migrants noted were waders.
4. A list of migrants from North America observed at the tropical research station of the New York Zoological Society at Kartabo (Bartica district) is criticized.
5. Notes from the writer's own observations on inland occurrences in British Guiana of 19 migrants and one rare vagrant are given.
6. Notes on two other species, the Swallow-tailed Kite Elanoides forficatus (a resident race occurs), and the Black Swift Nephoecetes niger , whose winter range is unknown, are included.     

A review of factors affecting deer dispersion and their relevance to management

Factors affecting the dispersion of deer are reviewed, and their relevance to the management of British species. Most of the information is taken from studies of European Red and Roe deer, and also from North American species. Home range/territory size is discussed; individual home range sizes vary within species, and are largely associated with habitat structure and/or climate. It is suggested that traditional behaviour and social factors may be important in limiting home range size and deer distribution. The role of food, shelter and freedom from disturbance are reviewed in relation to deer dispersion and movements. It is suggested that deer will occupy areas with a good combination of all the major factors rather than the best of any one. Suggestions for research on British species, with a view to management, are put forward.     

Macrolichen diversity as an indicator of stand age and ecosystem resilience along a precipitation gradient in humid forests of inland British Columbia,Canada

The distributional ecology of 87 macrolichens is reported from 14 unmanaged mid-seral and old forest stands along a precipitation gradient in south-central British Columbia. We used a combination of univariate and multivariate statistics to investigate the role of forest structure and stand age in the distribution of epiphytic macrolichens in interior cedar-hemlock forests. Old forests support a higher number of species; although mean species richness is not significantly different between the two age classes. Terricolous and epixylic community structure is correlated with stand age and log characteristics, but the epiphtytic community is not. Epiphytic community structure is strongly associated with precipitation in the old stands, but not in the mid-seral stands. Old forests at the wetter end of the precipitation gradient contained several old-growth associated species, all of which are hygrophytic. Most epiphytic macrolichens associated with old forests are not dependent on specific structural attributes. However, western red cedar (Thuja plicata Donn ex D. Don) harbors the greatest number of arboreal macrolichen species by far in these unmanaged stands and should, therefore, be considered a key indicator in managed forests. Our study suggests that most macrolichen species found in old forests can also occur in 70- to 165-year-old forests dating from stand-replacing fires. Old forests, however, clearly provide important habitat for oceanic epiphytes at the edge of their ecological range in the interior of British Columbia. Our findings illustrate that the macrolichen flora in wet toe-slope stands in humid inland British Columbia has a high level of resilience following disturbance under natural succession conditions. It also underlines the point that some species, like Lobaria pulmonaria, are good indicators of old-growth forests in certain regions but not in others, suggesting a careful use of the term old-growth dependence.     

Community reassembly: a test using limestone grassland in New Zealand

To examine community reassembly, we sampled grasslands on calcareous soil (4%–24% CaCO₃) in New Zealand that were largely composed of species introduced from Britain. We tested whether the British species had reassembled on New Zealand limestone into the same communities as they form on limestone in Britain. The vegetation of six New Zealand sites was sampled, each with ten 2 × 2 m quadrats that followed the standard methodology of the British National Vegetation Classification (NVC). Analysing species presence and cover using program TableFit with the full database of British species, the New Zealand species assemblages gave poor to moderate fits (40%–72%) to the communities of the NVC, and even then not to calcareous grassland, though one site did fit to a calcareous spring community. The poor fits can be partly attributed to the absence from New Zealand of many British calcareous-specialist species. On omitting from the NVC database all species not present in New Zealand, the fits increased somewhat to 48%–77%. Using this modified database, two sites fitted British calcareous grassland communities. These two sites are on thinner soil (<10 cm depth), under lower rainfall. Where fits were obtained to calcareous communities, the environment of the community in Britain matched very well that of the New Zealand site. It is concluded that environmental and perhaps biotic filtering has been strong enough in some sites to assort alien species into the same species assemblages as they form in their native range, indicating the Deterministic model of community structure. However, the absence of some species has prevented full reassembly.     

The geographical relationships of British and Irish vascular plants

Classifications of British and Irish vascular plants into floristic elements are reviewed. Only H.C. Watson and J.R. Matthews have attempted to devise a more or less comprehensive classification, based on the British range of the species (Watson) or the European distribution (Matthews). A new classification of 1481 native species is presented, based on their range in the Northern Hemisphere. Species are classified by their occurrence in one or more major biomes (Arctic, Boreal, Temperate, Southern) and their longitudinal distribution (Oceanic, Suboceanic, European, Eurosiberian, Eurasian, Circumpolar). The distribution of species in the floristic elements is illustrated by coincidence maps for the British Isles and Europe. The British and Irish flora is dominated by Boreo-temperate, Temperate and Southern-temperate species, with the Temperate species being the most numerous. Species with continental distributions (i.e. species which are rarer than expected in western Europe) are listed; most of these are in the Boreo-temperate and Temperate elements. The floristic elements are discussed in relation to the life-form spectra, habitat preferences and altitudinal limits of the component species, and analysed in terms ol˜ Ellenberg indicator values for temperature and continentality. The new classification is compared with that of Matthews. An additional 48 species which are endemic to the British Isles are listed. The scope for extending this method of classification to other organisms and for adapting it for use outside the British Isles is discussed.     

Timing of mating in the Common Seal (Phoca vitulina)

It is generally believed that British Common Seals mate after the moult, in late summer. In contrast, evidence from other parts of their range suggests that mating occurs before the moult, at the end of lactation. This paper reviews the evidence for the timing of mating from all parts of the range of this species, and presents data on seasonal changes in male sexual behaviour at a haulout site in Orkney, U.K. British Common Seals do mate at the end of lactation, as in other areas; the presumed precopulatory display described in previous studies is more likely to have been play between juveniles or sub-adults.     

Flight areas of British butterflies: assessing species status and decline

Geographical range size is a key ecological variable, but the consequences of measuring range size in different ways are poorly understood. We use high-resolution population data from British butterflies to demonstrate that conventional distribution maps, widely used by conservation biologists, grossly overestimate the areas occupied by species and grossly underestimate decline. The approximate flight areas occupied by 20 out of 45 colonial British species were estimated to cover a median of only 1.44% of the land surface within occupied regions. Common species were found to be declining faster than conventional distribution maps suggest: common and rare species had no significant difference in their population-level rates of extinction. This, combined with the log-normal form of the range-size frequency distribution, implies that species-level extinction rates may accelerate in the medium to long term. Population-level conservation is a matter of great urgency for all species, not just for the rarest.     

Rabies in insectivorous bats of western Canada, 1979 to 1983

A total of 1,745, 362, and 536 bats collected in Alberta, British Columbia, and Saskatchewan, respectively, was tested for rabies virus between 1979 and 1983. Only one (0.1%) of 769 bats collected at random from buildings was infected with rabies virus in contrast to 95 (5%) of 1,874 symptomatic, rabies-suspect bats submitted for testing. The pattern of infection in the rabies-suspect bats was similar in Alberta and Saskatchewan, but differed in British Columbia. Rabies was diagnosed in four species of bats in each of Alberta and Saskatchewan, but in seven species in British Columbia. Annual prevalence in rabies-suspect bats was similar in colonial species within each province. Rabies was found rarely in suspect little brown bats (Myotis lucifugus) (less than 1%). In suspect big brown bats (Eptesicus fuscus), the prevalence was low in Saskatchewan (3%), moderate in Alberta (10%), and high in British Columbia (25%). Big brown bats accounted for over 55% of the rabid bats detected in each province. Annual prevalence reported in silver-haired bats (Lasionycteris noctivagans) and hoary bats (Lasiurus cinereus) was variable in all three provinces. Rabies is enzootic in northern insectivorous bats.     

The British species of Schizoporella (Bryozoa: Cheilostomatida)

Three new species are described in the cheilostomate bryozoan genus Schizoporella Hincks, 1877. British records of Scliizoporella dunkeri Reuss are shown to represent two previously unnamed species. Scliizoporella dunkeri is the senior synonym of the Adriatic species Schizoporella longirostris Hincks. Material of S. longirostris from British localities is referred in part to S. dunkeri and in part to a previously unnamed species.