Poor effectiveness of the Natura 2000 network protecting Mediterranean lichen species

Evaluation of the effectiveness of protected areas networks for conserving diversity is a demanding topic in biological conservation. In the last few years, there has been an increasing number of studies on species distribution modelling which can be easily used to test the efficiency of reserve networks. Unfortunately, this effort has been focused on the so called charismatic species. Our main goal is to test the effectiveness of the Natura 2000 network by using non-charismatic species. We determined potential distribution patterns for 18 lichen species in Spain and evaluated the effectiveness of the Natura 2000 network in protecting them. Models were implemented with ENFA (Ecological-Niche Factor Analysis) because this modelling approach only requires presence data since the reliability of absence data is really poor. Habitat suitability maps were obtained and high suitability areas were characterised using ten environmental predictors. Maps of areas of high suitability were overlaid with the Natura 2000 network cover, considering the different biogeographical regions present in mainland Spain. The effectiveness of the Natura 2000 was quite low in most species. The analysis per region showed that Mediterranean lichen species growing in forests are better protected than species found in coastal, drier and warmer areas. Our results indicate that the Natura 2000 network, a protection system based on vascular plants, does not guarantee the protection of Mediterranean lichen species. Thus, this type of gap analysis and especially the inclusion of “non-charismatic” organisms such as lichens should be considered in studies to define protected areas.     

我国翼手类分子系统地理学研究进展

近25 年,分子系统地理学研究发展迅速,成为进化及生态学领域一研究热点。翼手目动物具有独特的表型特征和生态属性。对其开展分子系统地理学研究有助于揭示该类群种群遗传现状、地理分布格局及其形成过程。本文从研究种类、方法、内容及成果方面总结了我国翼手类分子系统地理学研究进展,并分析了今后应完善的方面。     

Neottia cordata (Orchidaceae) at its southernmost distribution border in Europe: Threat status and effectiveness of Natura 2000 Network for its conservation

Neottia cordata is an orchid species that exclusively occurs in Picea abies subsp. abies and Pinus sylvestris stands and forms its southernmost distribution limits in Greece. Over the last decade, it has been recorded in numerous sites, in which it forms small colonies, both in terms of population and area. This research re-evaluates the threat status of Neottia cordata based on updated chorological and population data; it also checks the effectiveness of the Natura 2000 Network as far as its conservation is concerned by applying the MaxEnt model. The recently collected data justify the classification of N. cordata as "Vulnerable". The most significant variables that affect its distribution were found to be the vegetation type and the precipitation of the warmest quarter. The results of the MaxEnt model suggest that: (i) the Natura 2000 Network is characterised by areas of higher habitat suitability values when compared to the areas that fall outside this network; and, (ii) Picea abies subsp. abies forests are more suitable for its conservation than those of Pinus sylvestris. It is concluded that the most appropriate management measure for the species conservation is the maintenance of the tree layer canopy closed.     

Stage of pregnancy dictates heterothermy in temperate forest-dwelling bats

Bats face high energetic requirements, as powered flight is costly and they have a disadvantageous surface-to-volume-ratio. To deal with those requirements energy saving mechanisms, such as heterothermy (torpor), have evolved. Torpor during pregnancy, however, reduces rates of foetal development and consequently prolongs pregnancy. Therefore, heterothermy has a great effect on reproduction, as an unhindered parturition can only be assured by high body temperatures. Regardless of these adverse affects of torpor the energetic requirements of bats during reproduction urge for energy savings and bats are known to enter torpor during pregnancy. The species in the current study differ in their torpor patterns and thus their heterothermic strategy. However, we hypothesized, that species-specific heterothermic behaviour should be revoked at the end of pregnancy. We analyzed skin temperatures of Myotis bechsteinii, Myotis nattereri and Plecotus auritus during pregnancy and found no differences in torpor depth between species during the last phase of pregnancy. Furthermore, we could show that individuals entered torpor frequently during pregnancy and only minimized torpor during the last stage of pregnancy. This suggests that close to the end of pregnancy, heterothermy is restricted but not species-specific and the required energy is allocated otherwise.     

Low effectiveness of the Natura 2000 network in preventing land-use change in bat hotspots

One of the most important issues in biodiversity conservation is an exploration of the relationships among protected areas, land-use changes and biodiversity, so we aimed to assess the performance of the Natura 2000 network (N2000) in representing the bat conservation hotspots in peninsular Spain and the Balearic Islands and to compare the rates of land-use changes within these hotspots with those observed throughout the rest of the study area. First, we applied a Combined Index that integrates various biodiversity metrics (species richness, rarity and vulnerability) to identify hotspots, and once they were identified, we used null models to assess the performance of N2000 in representing them. Finally, also using null models, we tested whether the changes in land use (“anthropization” or “naturalization”) within the hotspots occurred at a significantly higher or lower frequency than in the rest of the study area; for this, we considered two temporal windows (1980–2006 and 2006–2012) corresponding with periods before and after the official designation of the N2000 sites. Our results show that bat hotspots are effectively represented in the Iberian N2000, but although land-use changes were generally higher in Spain before 2006, hotspots have not experienced lower rates of change compared to the remainder of the territory (regardless of the period under consideration). This suggests low effectiveness of the Iberian N2000 in preventing land-use change in bat hotspots, so to preserve the Iberian bat fauna, we encourage the urgent implementation of management plans to avoid intensive changes in land use both inside and around bat hotspots.     

A Relevance Index for the habitat areas of Natura 2000 Network based on their Rarity and Representativeness

The 231 habitat types included in the European Environmental Agency (EEA) database of the Natura 2000 Network are distributed throughout more than 22 thousand Sites of Community Importance (SCI) covering around 128 million hectares in Europe. However, individual habitat areas have different conservation relevance according to the Rarity of the habitat type and their Representativeness in relation to the whole type.We propose a Relevance Index and evaluate it for each area of each habitat type, taking into account the Rarity of the habitat type, assessed by the extent of its occurrence in the Natura 2000 Network, and the Representativeness of the area, as the contribution of that area to the total extent of that habitat type in the Network.Results allow for an objective analysis of the Natura 2000 Network indicating, for example, that rarity of a habitat type in Natura 2000 Network does not necessarily correlate with its priority status, suggesting the need for reevaluation of the situation.The Relevance Index proposed for a given habitat area is the product of the Rarity Index of its habitat type and the Representativeness of the area. We demonstrate the application of the Index for the areas of three different Natura 2000 Sites. The Relevance Index of one Site (SRI) will be the sum of the Relevance Indices of its corresponding habitat areas (HRI). The same approach is applicable to regions, countries or for any habitat cluster allowing for the quantification of their contribution to the whole Natura 2000 Network.It is suggested that the Relevance index can also be applied in monitoring the components of the Natura 2000 Network, and is useful to support management decisions for conservation in Europe.     

Gap analysis revealed a low efficiency of Natura 2000 network for the conservation of endemic species in Mediterranean temporary freshwater habitats

Listed and rare species are abundant in temporary freshwater habitats. Among them, the endemic contingent represents a crucial conservation target particularly in the areas characterized by abundant endemic flora for which the local administrations have a high level of responsibility. The aim of this research was to test how the endemic plants found in Mediterranean temporary ponds were represented in Natura 2000 network in a biodiversity hotspot of the Mediterranean region. The results of our research at regional scale pointed out that the existing Nature 2000 sites provide a limited degree of protection and that the gap analysis should be taken into account when conservation priorities are set.     

Evaluation of habitat sustainability and vulnerability for beech (Fagus crenata) forests under 110 hypothetical climatic change scenarios in Japan

Questions: Are there any sustainable or vulnerable habitats in which beech (Fagus crenata) forests could survive in Japan under 110 hypothetical climate change scenarios? Location: Six islands of Japan on which beech grows naturally. Methods: An ecological habitat model was used to simulate the potential habitat shifts of beech forests under 110 climate change scenarios. The amount of suitable habitat loss and gain was calculated with three migration options and risk surfaces. Vulnerable and sustainable habitats were identified to evaluate the potential risks and survival of beech forests. Results: The total areas of potential suitable habitats differed considerably depending on the future temperature and precipitation changes. Some areas on the Sea of Japan (SOJ) side showed higher probability of maintaining suitable habitats, whereas there were wider areas in which suitable habitats could not persist under any of the 110 climate change scenarios. Conclusions: The risk surfaces of the suitable habitats showed that decreases in precipitation along with increases in temperature reduced the total areas of suitable habitats. Increases in precipitation with increases in temperature of more than or equal to 2°C always reduce the areas of suitable habitats. Under increased precipitation with a temperature increase of <2°C, the areas of suitable habitats showed an increase, maintenance of the status quo or a decrease, depending on the size of the increase in precipitation. Beech forests in western Japan are predicted to be vulnerable to climate change, whereas some mountains on the SOJ side are predicted to be possible future refugia.     

Questioning the effectiveness of the Natura 2000 Special Areas of Conservation strategy: the case of Crete

Aim This study examines the effectiveness of the selected ‘network’ of Natura 2000 Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) at a regional scale in Greece, in terms of its representativeness of plant biodiversity. Location The island of Crete is used as a case study because it is considered to be one of the 10 hotspots for biodiversity in the Mediterranean Basin. Methods Hotspot analysis and complementarity algorithms are used to define priority areas for conservation and calculate their spatial overlap with the Natura 2000 SACs in Crete. Results The various categories of hotspots contain subsamples of plant categories, used for their definition. Spatial overlap among different categories of hotspots, areas of complementary diversity and Natura 2000 SCAs is low. Main conclusions The results show that the Natura 2000 SACs ‘network’ in Crete seems insufficient to ensure satisfactory representation of the regional plant biodiversity elements.     

河南省洞栖蝙蝠的多样性与保护

2011 年6 月至2013 年7 月,利用雾网和抄网捕捉蝙蝠,采用直接计数、拍照等方法统计蝙蝠的数量,调查了河南省60 个洞穴中蝙蝠的种类、数量及分布,根据蝙蝠的外形及头骨特征鉴定种类,计3 科6 属17 种,其中易危(VU)物种3 种,近危(NT)和无危(LC)物种各7 种。马铁菊头蝠和菲菊头蝠为河南省广布种。依据洞穴的开发情况和人类入洞活动的频度等,评估洞穴的干扰程度,30 个洞穴属严重干扰,10 个洞穴属轻度干扰,20 个洞穴属自然状态。依据洞穴中蝙蝠的种类、数量及濒危程度,将洞穴的相对重要性划分为4 个级别,级别1 和多数级别2 的洞穴具有大的空间和复杂的洞穴系统,这些洞穴既是蝙蝠的繁殖地又是冬眠场所,其中栖息的蝙蝠种类多且数量大。对洞穴的总长度、最大宽度和最大高度进行了测量,比较4 个级别洞穴的测量数据,级别1 洞穴的总长度、最大宽度、最大高度的平均值明显大于其他级别。目前,多数洞穴未得到很好的保护,由于旅游开发等原因,洞栖蝙蝠正面临着严重的生存危机。     

Optimizing passive acoustic sampling of bats in forests

Passive acoustic methods are increasingly used in biodiversity research and monitoring programs because they are cost‐effective and permit the collection of large datasets. However, the accuracy of the results depends on the bioacoustic characteristics of the focal taxa and their habitat use. In particular, this applies to bats which exhibit distinct activity patterns in three‐dimensionally structured habitats such as forests. We assessed the performance of 21 acoustic sampling schemes with three temporal sampling patterns and seven sampling designs. Acoustic sampling was performed in 32 forest plots, each containing three microhabitats: forest ground, canopy, and forest gap. We compared bat activity, species richness, and sampling effort using species accumulation curves fitted with the clench equation. In addition, we estimated the sampling costs to undertake the best sampling schemes. We recorded a total of 145,433 echolocation call sequences of 16 bat species. Our results indicated that to generate the best outcome, it was necessary to sample all three microhabitats of a given forest location simultaneously throughout the entire night. Sampling only the forest gaps and the forest ground simultaneously was the second best choice and proved to be a viable alternative when the number of available detectors is limited. When assessing bat species richness at the 1‐km² scale, the implementation of these sampling schemes at three to four forest locations yielded highest labor cost‐benefit ratios but increasing equipment costs. Our study illustrates that multiple passive acoustic sampling schemes require testing based on the target taxa and habitat complexity and should be performed with reference to cost‐benefit ratios. Choosing a standardized and replicated sampling scheme is particularly important to optimize the level of precision in inventories, especially when rare or elusive species are expected.     

Target ranging and the role of time-frequency structure of synthetic echoes in big brown bats,Eptesicus fuscus

Summary Echolocating bats judge the distance to a target on basis of the delay between the emitted cry and the returning echo. In a phantom echo set-up it was investigated how changes in the time-frequency structure of synthetic echoes affect ranging accuracy of big brown bats, Eptesicus fuscus.A one channel phantom target simulator and a Y/N paradigm was used. Five Eptesicus fuscus were trained to discriminate between phantom targets with different virtual distances (delays). The phantom echo was stored in a memory and broadcast from a loudspeaker after a certain delay following the bat's triggering of the system via a trigger microphone. The ranging accuracy was compared using 5 different signals with equal energy as phantom echoes: a standard cry (a natural bat cry), two kinds of noise signals, a high pass, and a low pass filtered version of the standard cry.The standard cry was recorded from one of the bats while judging the distance to a real target. The duration was 1.1 ms, the first harmonic swept down from 55 to 25 kHz and there was energy also in the second and third harmonic. Both noise signals had the same duration, power spectrum, and energy as the standard cry. One noise signal was stored in a memory and hence was exactly the same each time the bat triggered the system. The other variable noise signal was produced by storing the envelope of the standard cry and multiplying on-line with band pass filtered noise. The time-frequency structure (e.g. rise time) of this noise signal changed from triggering to triggering. The filtered signals were produced by either 40 kHz high pass or 40 kHz low pass filtering of the standard cry.The range difference thresholds for the 5 bats were around 1–2 cm (51–119 us) using the standard cry as echo. The range difference threshold with both noise signals was 7–8 cm (around 450 s delay difference). The 40 kHz high pass filtered cry increased the threshold to approximately twice the threshold with the standard cry. With the 40 kHz low pass filtered cry the threshold was increased 2.5–3 times relative to the threshold with the standard cry. A single bat was tested with a signal filtered with a 55 kHz low pass filter leaving the whole first harmonic. The threshold was the same as that with the standard signal.The reduced ranging accuracy with the filtered signals indicates that the full band width of the first harmonic is utilised for ranging by the bats. The substantial reduction in accuracy with the noise signals indicates that not only the full band width but also the orderly time-frequency structure (the FM sweep) of the cry is important for ranging in echolocating bats.Abbreviations FM frequency modulated - CF constant frequency - peSPL peak equivalent sound pressure level - SD standard deviation - SE standard error of mean - EPROM erasable programmable read only memory - FFT fast Fourier transform - S/N signal-to-noise ratio     

Altitudinal distribution of bats in the Pol’ana Mts area (Central Slovakia)

In May — August, bats were mist-netted along an altitudinal gradient of 350–1350 m a.s.l. in the Pol’ana Mts area, to verify the correlation of species number decrease and the increase in elevation, to find which species could be predictors of certain altitude levels and to compare the sexual occurrence of species in various altitudes. Seventeen bat species were recorded. The most abundant mist-netted species were Myotis daubentonii (16%), M. myotis (13%) and M. mystacinus (12%). Otherwise, the most frequently caught species were M. mystacinus (40%), Eptesicus serotinus, M. myotis (26%) and Nyctalus leisleri (23%). In this study at a local scale, from oak to spruce vegetation stages, decreasing number of species with increasing altitude was found. Species dominance of the individual altitudinal levels was significantly different (15 species up to 600 m a.s.l., six species over 1100 m a.s.l.). The results indicated that the occurrence of some bat species, due to their ecological adaptations, is more or less characteristic for higher or lower altitudes of the Western Carphathians. The “lowland” species were considered to be mainly E. serotinus, Pipistrellus pipistrellus, N. noctula, N. leisleri and M. daubentonii. In higher elevations (more than 850 m), the presence of reproductive females was not found, of all but one, N. noctula, of the “lowland” species which are breeding in the area. The “mountain” species were considered to be E. nilssonii and Plecotus auritus. The general occurrence and reproduction of M. mystacinus and Barbastella barbastellus, was not limited by elevation.     

降雨噪声对菲菊头蝠出飞行为的影响

降雨噪声属于常见的自然噪声,由雨滴撞击物体表面产生。目前,有关降雨噪声对动物的潜在影响被普遍忽视。回声定位蝙蝠主要利用声信号在黑暗环境导航空间、探测猎物及社群交流,是开展降雨噪声影响研究的理想类群。本研究选择菲菊头蝠 (Rhinolophus pusillus)作为研究对象,检验降雨噪声是否影响蝙蝠出飞行为。我们在集群栖息地外,播放强降雨噪声、空白对照和种内回声定位声波,开展野外回放实验。利用单因素方差分析及其事后检验,评价菲菊头蝠对不同回放刺激的反应差异。研究发现,相比空白对照,强降雨噪声导致菲菊头蝠的通勤数量百分比平均降低2.82倍,回声定位脉冲数量平均减少4.86倍,集群出飞时间延长3.75 min。相比空白对照,同种回声定位声波对菲菊头蝠出飞行为的影响并不显著。研究结果证实强降雨噪声抑制菲菊头蝠的出飞行为。本研究表明,降雨引起 的噪声干扰可能是导致蝙蝠躲避降雨的重要因素,为野生蝙蝠物种保育与管理提供启示。     

蝙蝠犁鼻器受体V1R基因的分子进化

哺乳动物的犁鼻嗅觉系统 (VNS)主要感知信息素,而信息素在动物的生殖和社会行为中起着重要的调控作用。为了研究蝙蝠犁鼻器受体的分子进化,我们以已发表基因组的10种蝙蝠为研究对象,采用比较基因组学方法,对蝙蝠犁鼻器受体V1R基因进行分析。研究结果显示：10种蝙蝠中都存在V1R基因。尽管在印度假吸血蝠和帕氏髯蝠中存在完整的V1R基因,但大部分蝙蝠中的V1R基因却都是假基因。进一步的分析表明,假吸血蝠中仅有的1个全长的V1R基因处于中性进化状态,揭示其犁鼻器很可能已经丧失功能;而帕氏髯蝠中3个全长的V1R基因都受到了强烈的净化选择,提示其犁鼻嗅觉功能仍然保留,这些结果和蝙蝠犁鼻器形态学研究和蝙蝠TRPC2基因的研究结果相一致。我们的研究表明大部分蝙蝠丧失了犁鼻嗅觉功能,而犁鼻器功能丧失的原因比较复杂,有待进一步研究。     

Evolution of nocturnality in bats: Potential competitors and predators during their early history

Despite their taxonomic and ecological diversity, modern bats (Order Chiroptera) are almost exclusively nocturnal. This behaviour is too ubiquitous to be explained by common patterns of temporal variation in availability of their diverse food sources or by the risk of hyperthermia when flying during the day. Other explanations for bat nocturnality include competition and increased predation risk from birds during the day. In the early and mid Eocene, the known bat fauna consisted of several insectivorous species of sizes similar to those of the modern European assemblage. This fauna was contemporaneous with several species of predatory birds, including owls (Strigiformes), hawks (Accipitridae), falcons (Falconidae) and rollers (Coraciiformes), which were the same size as modern predators on bats. Predation risk could therefore have been a significant factor preventing the early bats from becoming diurnal. Competition from aerial insectivorous birds, however, was less likely to have been significant for bats during the early Eocene, since very few such groups, mainly small Aegialornithidae, were present, with most of the major groups of aerial insectivores evolving later.