African Birds Research Articles

Indigenous knowledge of South African bird and rangeland ecology is effective for informing conservation science

South Africa's communal rangelands constitute ~25% of the country's land cover and are largely managed for livestock grazing. These habitats play an important role in rural livelihoods and cultural practices. Using semi-structured interviews, we documented indigenous local ecological knowledge (LEK) held by rural dwellers linked to natural resource utilisation, environmental health and cultural keystone indicator species (CKIS) in the grassland communities of southern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Our main objective was to examine the ability for LEK to inform conservation management. We found that people who were heavily reliant on natural resources attained a higher LEK score, indicating a greater breadth of ecological knowledge, which in turn shaped their perceptions of environmental change. Community members confirmed the presence of conservation concern species within this area, highlighting the limitations of only using citizen science databases for conservation management, as their observations within these databases are biased towards major road routes and protected or urban areas. LEK can play an important role in identifying habitats crucial to species' persistence and delineating population trends over time. Our surveys highlighted the importance of the Southern Ground-hornbill Bucorvus leadbeateri as a CKIS that acts as an early warning system of changing weather, notably rain. However, LEK is context-specific, and some CKIS species such as the Southern Ground-hornbill have wide distribution ranges. Consequently, the cultural associations and implications differ based on local belief systems that are often defined by the language spoken and the community's geographical location. Our study demonstrated the importance of including indigenous LEK in conservation planning for threatened species and habitats and the importance of traditional family values responsible for transferring oral knowledge.

Genomic vulnerability and socio-economic threats under climate change in an African rainforest bird.

Preserving biodiversity under rapidly changing climate conditions is challenging. One approach for estimating impacts and their magnitude is to model current relationships between genomic and environmental data and then to forecast those relationships under future climate scenarios. In this way, understanding future genomic and environmental relationships can help guide management decisions, such as where to establish new protected areas where populations might be buffered from high temperatures or major changes in rainfall. However, climate warming is only one of many anthropogenic threats one must consider in rapidly developing parts of the world. In Central Africa, deforestation, mining, and infrastructure development are accelerating population declines of rainforest species. Here we investigate multiple anthropogenic threats in a Central African rainforest songbird, the little greenbul (Andropadus virens). We examine current climate and genomic variation in order to explore the association between genome and environment under future climate conditions. Specifically, we estimate Genomic Vulnerability, defined as the mismatch between current and predicted future genomic variation based on genotype–environment relationships modeled across contemporary populations. We do so while considering other anthropogenic impacts. We find that coastal and central Cameroon populations will require the greatest shifts in adaptive genomic variation, because both climate and land use in these areas are predicted to change dramatically. In contrast, in the more northern forest–savanna ecotones, genomic shifts required to keep pace with climate will be more moderate, and other anthropogenic impacts are expected to be comparatively low in magnitude. While an analysis of diverse taxa will be necessary for making comprehensive conservation decisions, the species‐specific results presented illustrate how evolutionary genomics and other anthropogenic threats may be mapped and used to inform mitigation efforts. To this end, we present an integrated conceptual model demonstrating how the approach for a single species can be expanded to many taxonomically diverse species.

Evaluation of the use of drones to monitor a diverse crocodylian assemblage in West Africa

Context West African crocodylian populations are declining and in need of conservation action. Surveys and other monitoring methods are critical components of crocodile conservation programs; however, surveys are often hindered by logistical, financial and detectability constraints. Increasingly used in wildlife monitoring programs, drones can enhance monitoring and conservation efficacy. Aims This study aimed to determine a standard drone crocodylian survey protocol and evaluate the drones as a tool to survey the diverse crocodylian assemblage of West Africa. Methods We surveyed crocodile populations in Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, and Niger in 2017 and 2018, by using the DJI Phantom 4 Pro drone and via traditional diurnal and nocturnal spotlight surveys. We used a series of test flights to first evaluate the impact of drones on crocodylian behaviour and determine standard flight parameters that optimise detectability. We then, consecutively, implemented the three survey methods at 23 sites to compare the efficacy of drones against traditional crocodylian survey methods. Key results Crocodylus suchus can be closely approached (>10 m altitude) and consumer-grade drones do not elicit flight responses in West African large mammals and birds at altitudes of >40–60 m. Altitude and other flight parameters did not affect detectability, because high-resolution photos allowed accurate counting. Observer experience, field conditions (e.g. wind, sun reflection), and site characteristics (e.g. vegetation, homogeneity) all significantly affected detectability. Drone-based crocodylian surveys should be implemented from 40 m altitude in the first third of the day. Comparing survey methods, drones performed better than did traditional diurnal surveys but worse than standard nocturnal spotlight counts. The latter not only detected more individuals, but also a greater size-class diversity. However, drone surveys provide advantages over traditional methods, including precise size estimation, less disturbance, and the ability to cover greater and more remote areas. Drone survey photos allow for repeatable and quantifiable habitat assessments, detection of encroachment and other illegal activities, and leave a permanent record. Conclusions Overall, drones offer a valuable and cost-effective alternative for surveying crocodylian populations with compelling secondary benefits, although they may not be suitable in all cases and for all species. Implications We propose a standardised and optimised protocol for drone-based crocodylian surveys that could be used for sustainable conservation programs of crocodylians in West Africa and globally.

A trait-based risk assessment of South African forest birds indicates vulnerability of hole-nesting species

Forests in South Africa are under threat from a variety of anthropogenic land use changes; however, the impacts of these changes on wildlife populations are poorly understood. To address this issue, a pan-European trait-based risk assessment framework was modified for use in South Africa. This framework allows the identification of habitats and species most at risk, as well as the most important threats to species' persistence. The original model was expanded through the addition of any positive effects of land use change on species, to create a net risk model. Range changes were predicted by risk scores in montane forests, where the major risks were found to be invasion by alien trees and bark collection for traditional medicine. Risk scores within lowland species were higher, indicating potential population declines not accounted for by the SABAP range change data, as well as greater risk in the near future due to land use changes. Five hole-nesting species of birds, out of only ten hole-nesting species included in the study, consistently emerged as having the highest risk scores overall, and across forest types: the black-bellied starling, Narina trogon, trumpeter hornbill, crowned hornbill and green barbet. Consistent with this, using the net method, nesting risk was found to be higher than foraging risk for species across all forest types and within each type, suggesting that land use changes in South Africa are rendering forest-dependent hole-nesting species particularly vulnerable.

Phylogeographical history of the Olive Woodpecker Dendropicos griseocephalus, a species widely distributed across Africa

Few studies have quantified the extent of genetic differentiation within widely distributed polytypic African bird species with disjunct ranges. Current knowledge indicates that high levels of genetic differentiation are found for such lineages but generalization of the pattern requires further comparisons with other co‐distributed taxa. We assessed the extent of phylogeographical structure across the range of the Olive Woodpecker Dendropicos griseocephalus using mitochondrial and nuclear intron data. The Olive Woodpecker occupies the forests of Central (Dendropicos griseocephalus ruwenzori) and Eastern (Dendropicos g. kilimensis) Africa, with a disjunct morphological lineage (Dendropicos g. griseocephalus) occurring in southern Africa. Each of the subspecies lineages can be diagnosed using morphology. Phylogenetic analyses of our sequence data recovered three monophyletic lineages with kilimensis sister to ruwenzori, and griseocephalus as sister to the clade uniting these two taxa. Molecular species delimitation methods and estimates of gene flow under the isolation‐with‐migration model suggest that the clade uniting the central and eastern subspecies may be recognized as distinct at the species level from the nominate subspecies, which is restricted to southern Africa. We conclude that D. griseocephalus (Boddaert, 1783) and D. ruwenzori (Sharpe, 1902) (including subspecies kilimensis) should be considered full species. The biogeographical pattern we uncover for the Olive Woodpecker differs from that of other co‐distributed widespread species both in terms of the order of sequence divergence of lineages occupying different areas of endemism in Africa, and in the timing of divergence, being younger (0.5–0.7 mya BP) than that recovered for the co‐distributed Square‐tailed Drongo Dicrurus ludwigii (0.9–1.6 mya BP).

The allometry of movement predicts the connectivity of communities

Connectivity has long played a central role in ecological and evolutionary theory and is increasingly emphasized for conserving biodiversity. Nonetheless, connectivity assessments often focus on individual species even though understanding and preserving connectivity for entire communities is urgently needed. Here we derive and test a framework that harnesses the well-known allometric scaling of animal movement to predict community-level connectivity across protected area networks. We used a field translocation experiment involving 39 species of southern African birds to quantify movement capacity, scaled this relationship to realized dispersal distances determined from ring-and-recovery banding data, and used allometric scaling equations to quantify community-level connectivity based on multilayer network theory. The translocation experiment explained observed dispersal distances from ring-recovery data and emphasized allometric scaling of dispersal based on morphology. Our community-level networks predicted that larger-bodied species had a relatively high potential for connectivity, while small-bodied species had lower connectivity. These community networks explained substantial variation in observed bird diversity across protected areas. Our results highlight that harnessing allometric scaling can be an effective way of determining large-scale community connectivity. We argue that this trait-based framework founded on allometric scaling provides a means to predict connectivity for entire communities, which can foster empirical tests of community theory and contribute to biodiversity conservation strategies aimed at mitigating the effects of environmental change.

BirdPix - report on the photographic atlas of the birds of Nigeria, 2012 – 2019

This paper describes progress with the atlas of birds of Nigeria, from 7 March 2012 to 15 December 2019. The database of the project contained 658 records of 246 species submitted to the BirdPix section of the Virtual Museum. The BirdPix section of the Virtual Museum was launched in 2012 and is a supplementary data capture project for the African Bird Atlas. Over this period, for Nigeria, twelve citizen scientists contributed records to BirdPix. The most frequently recorded species were Laughing Dove Streptopelia senegalensis (769 records across its range, with 12in Nigeria, from 12 grid cells), and Northern Red Bishop Euplectes franciscanus (30 records across the range, and recorded in 11 grid cells in Nigeria). At least two photographs of species range extensions had been submitted. This paper highlights the role of citizen science in biodiversity conservation and provides up-to-date information on the species distribution maps and lists of bird species recorded in the grid cells. Without a doubt, the BirdPix database will only be comprehensive if it contains the entire knowledge base of the species occurring within each grid cell. Data generated in the BirdPix project can be used for monitoring and modelling changes in species distributions over time. Increased awareness of the concept of citizen science and increased volunteer recruitment should be top priorities.

Abundance and diversity of ectoparasites of wild birds in Pandam Wildlife Park, Plateau State, Nigeria

Birds’ populations are being threatened by parasites that have not received adequate attention by parasitologists. This study aimed at evaluating the abundance and diversity of ectoparasites of the wild birds in Pandam Wildlife Park. A systematic five-month study of ectoparasites was conducted. Sixty-two (62) birds were trapped using mist nets and examined for ectoparasite infestation. Wool soaked with 70% ethanol, using gloved-protected-hand; ectoparasites were carefully extracted, preserved in sampling bottles containing 70% alcohol for morphological identification. A wide spectrum insecticide (0.09% tetrametrin and 0.45 piperronyl) was used to pulverize tiny parasites on the feather over a white paper. Overall, 4,066 ectoparasites belonging to 5 orders, 8 families, and 24 species were identified from the trapped birds. Fiftysix 56(90.3%) birds were found to be infested with ectoparasites, while 6(9.7%) had none. Phthirathera, and Siphonaptera were the most and least abundant respectively. The highest parasites found were lice (96.60%) and the least, fleas (0.02%). Wing predilection site had the highest infestation rate (83%), and the lowest was the leg (0.37%). The most caught and most infested bird species was the West African thrush bird Turdus pelios (14.28%), followed by the Red-checked cuckoo-shrike and Bronze manikin (10.70% and 7.14%) respectively. Least species of bird infested among others, were the African paradise king fisher, Blue-throated brown sunbird, Blue-spotted wood dove, and Blue-breasted fire finch (1.79%). Nevertheless, there was no significant difference (p>0.05) in the rate of infestations among the caught and examined bird species. The study provided useful insight and knowledge on how diverse and abundant ectoparasites of bird species are in this park and possible vector-borne diseases that may have zoonotic potential.
 Keywords: Abundance; birds; ectoparasites; diversity; park; wildlife.

High temperatures are associated with substantial reductions in breeding success and offspring quality in an arid-zone bird.

During hot weather, terrestrial animals often seek shaded thermal refugia. However, this can result in missed foraging opportunities, loss of body condition and impaired parental care. We investigated whether such costs could compromise breeding success in a widespread southern African bird: the Southern Yellow-Billed Hornbill Tockus leucomelas. We predicted that hornbills might be especially vulnerable to temperature-dependant reductions in parents' foraging capacity due to extreme asymmetry in sex-specific roles during breeding: females are confined within the nest cavity for most of the nesting period and the burden of provisioning falls solely on the male during this time. We followed 50 hornbill nesting attempts in the Kalahari Desert between 2012 and 2015, collecting data on provisioning rates, adult and nestling body mass, fledging success and size of fledglings. Mean daily maximum air temperatures (Tmax) during nesting attempts ranged from 33.2 to 39.1°C. The likelihood of successful fledging fell below 50% at mean Tmax > 35.1°C; a threshold now regularly exceeded at our study site due to recent climate warming. Additionally, offspring fledging following the hottest nesting attempts were > 50% lighter than those fledging following the coolest. Sublethal costs of keeping cool including loss of body condition, production of poor-quality offspring and breeding failure are likely to become issues of serious conservation concern as climate change progresses; even for currently widespread species. Missed-opportunity costs associated with behavioral thermoregulation and direct sublethal costs of temperature exposure should not be overlooked as a potential threat to populations, especially in environments that are already hot.

Biome stability predicts population structure of a southern African aridland bird species.

Environments are heterogeneous in space and time, and the permeability of landscape and climatic barriers to gene flow may change over time. When barriers are present, they may start populations down the path toward speciation, but if they become permeable before the process of speciation is complete, populations may once more merge. In Southern Africa, aridland biomes play a central role in structuring the organization of biodiversity. These biomes were subject to substantial restructuring during Plio‐Pleistocene climatic fluctuations, and the imprint of this changing environment should leave genetic signatures on the species living there. Here, we investigate the role of adjacent aridland biome boundaries in structuring the genetic diversity within a widespread generalist bird, the Cape Robin‐chat (Cossypha caffra). We find evidence supporting a central role for aridland biomes in structuring populations across Southern Africa. Our findings support a scenario wherein populations were isolated in different biome refugia, due to separation by the exceptionally arid Nama Karoo biome. This biome barrier may have arisen through a combination of habitat instability and environmental unsuitability, and was highly unstable throughout the Plio‐Pleistocene. However, we also recovered a pattern of extensive contemporary gene flow and admixture across the Nama Karoo, potentially driven by the establishment of homesteads over the past 200 years. Thus, the barrier has become permeable, and populations are currently merging. This represents an instance where initial formation of a barrier to gene flow enabled population differentiation, with subsequent gene flow and the merging of populations after the barrier became permeable.

Bucking the trend: the African Black Oystercatcher as a recent conservation success story

The African Black Oystercatcher Haematopus moquini is a charismatic, southern African near-endemic, wader species, that is often seen as a flagship species for coastal bird conservation, as it was recently down-listed regionally to Least Concern on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. To celebrate this rare conservation success story, BirdLife South Africa named it the 2018 Bird of the Year and ran a year-long programme in collaboration with the Nature’s Valley Trust highlighting aspects of the species’ biology, current threats, and conservation success. We used data collected by the Southern African Bird Atlas Project (SABAP1 and SABAP2) to examine changes in the species’ range and relative abundance, both in the records between the two projects, as well as trends within the SABAP2 sampling period (2008–2017). This case study enabled us to assess whether such metrics can accurately reflect abundance and distributional changes in a species. We found increases in the reported range and the reporting rates between the two Atlas projects, and that the SABAP2 reporting rate was stable. Regionally, across four coastal categories, the reporting rate was lowest in KwaZulu-Natal, though this region also showed an increase in the probability of reporting during the SABAP2 period. While corroborating the recent change in the species’ conservation status, we also provide good evidence that the long-term SABAP data can be used successfully to assess population trends and range changes over time.

Land cover change homogenizes functional and phylogenetic diversity within and among African savanna bird assemblages

Conversion of natural ecosystems into anthropogenic landscapes can result in biotic homogenization, whereby differences in species composition among sites are diminished through colonization or local extinction. This may reduce the resilience of assemblages to further perturbation and the range or quality of ecosystem services they offer. We investigate how land cover change has altered patterns of compositional, functional and phylogenetic diversity of avian communities in a typical African savanna. We investigate if there has been selection for closely-related or functionally similar species with increasing land use intensity and how this has affected alpha and beta components of diversity. We conducted point counts over 2 years in four distinct land cover types (urban, rural, protected and a transitional matrix), representing a gradient of land cover change. We compared alpha and beta phylogenetic, compositional and functional diversity between sites to assess whether land cover change has homogenized avian communities. While alpha diversity tended to be higher in transformed land cover types (urban, rural and matrix), measures of beta diversity among sites within these types were significantly lower than beta diversity within the protected area. Furthermore, assemblages in transformed areas were functionally and phylogenetically more similar than expectation based on a null model, particularly in the urban area. While transformed areas may support higher diversity than natural habitats inside the protected area, human impacts are filtering for species with specific traits and thus homogenizing functional and phylogenetic diversity within and between sites in our study system.

Using large-scale citizen science ringing data as a means of calculating maximum longevity in birds

This article calculates estimates of avian longevity for southern African Passeriformes and demonstrates the impact citizen scientists have on data volumes curated by the South African Bird Ringing Unit (SAFRING). We calculated taxon-specific longevity records for 341 species from 33 families using ringing data collected between 1948 and 2017. An increase in active ringer participation over time correlated positively with an increase in retrap and recovery data, allowing for more reliable longevity calculations. These results highlight the significant contribution citizen scientists have made to bird ringing in southern Africa and identify data-deficient taxa to which future ringing activities should be targeted.

USUTU VIRUS: AN EMERGING FLAVIVIRUS IN EUROPE

Among various arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses), the flaviviruses stand out with regard to their number, geographic distribution and importance in both human and veterinary medicine. West Nile virus is flavivirus, present endemic in many European countries as well as in Serbia where it circulates in horses, birds, humans and mosquitoes. Usutu virus (USUV) is flavivirus morphologically, antigenically, genetically and ecologically very similar to WNV, which circulates in neighbouring countries (Hungary, Croatia, Austria). The USUV is maintained in transmissible cycle between birds and mosquitoes mainly from the genus Culex. Mammals (humans, horses, rodents) can also be infected. Humans and other mammals are “dead end” hosts. Virus is isolated from numerous bird species. The USUV infections are asymptomatic in wild African birds, while for European birds, the virus is very virulent causing necrotizing focal encephalitis, degenerative myocarditis and fatal encephalitis. It is assumed that the virus was introduced into Europe by the migratory birds that have been infected by living or passing through endemic areas in Africa. First human cases were recorded in Italy in 2009. The genome of USUV was detected in cerebrospinal fluid of woman suffering from B-cell lymphoma with meningoencephalitis and in plasma of a female, who was subjected to a liver transplantation and subsequently developed fever, headache, and fulminant hepatitis which progressed to coma. In Austria, USUV infections were confirmed in people with a skin rash of unknown aetiology using plaque reduction neutralization test. The circulation of USUV has been proven in humans in many European countries by serological studies (Germany, Italy, and Croatia). Serological study performed in 2015 revealed that USUV is present in inhabitants of South Bačka District of Vojvodina, Serbia. Serum samples were tested using commercial ELISA IgG test for USUV and IgG antibodies against USUV were detected in 5% (4/88) of patients. The molecular investigation included 216 pools of mosquitoes collected in the period from June to September, in the South Bačka District. The USUV genome was detected in two mosquito pools (2/216). In human samples tested by RT PCR, USUV genome was not found.

Invasion of Psittacula krameri in Gauteng, South Africa: are other birds impacted?

Anthropogenic activities have resulted in the dispersal of many species beyond their natural range and there is ongoing concern over their impacts on native ecosystems. However, these interactions are hard to disentangle from the effect of human-driven habitat alterations. Psittacula krameri (Rose-ringed Parakeet) is a recent coloniser in the heavily modified province of Gauteng, South Africa. We analysed this species across the region to assess its colonising status and potential impact to-date. Using presence data from the Second Southern African Bird Atlas Project (SABAP2) for the parakeet as well as a selected subgroup of 49 other bird species (potential competitor and control species), occurrence patterns in the province for the period of July 2007–June 2017 were determined. Reporting rates for species in SABAP2 were used as a proxy for relative abundance. While the parakeet’s range and abundance increased significantly, only two species showed a significant reporting rate decline in areas of parakeet occurrence. These declines persisted across a wider area where parakeets were not found. Broader-scale Gauteng reporting rate trends, not replicated in the parakeet range, were noted for nine other species, suggesting that the changing avifaunal composition in the anthropogenically transformed Gauteng may instead be driven by habitat change. A large proportion of species can be considered as newcomers to this largely modified ecosystem, and the possibility of vacant niche filling is strong in this case. In the context of novel ecosystems such as urban areas, a terminology based on adaptability rather than nativity status is encouraged.

Completeness of digital accessible knowledge of the birds of western Africa: Priorities for survey

AbstractOpen-source primary biodiversity data, or digital accessible knowledge (DAK), are widely used in biodiversity informatics to understand the status of global biodiversity, model species’ ecological niches and geographic distributions, and inform biodiversity conservation decisions. However, these datasets are often unavailable, incomplete, or unevenly distributed across regions. We examined DAK for the birds of western Africa, obtained from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) and eBird, to identify gaps in the current knowledge of birds of western Africa, which can be used to guide future avian surveys across the region. We cleaned and standardized the data, resulting in >430,000 records, with 91% from eBird. From these we calculated inventory completeness indices for all grid cells at 0.5°, 0.3°, and 0.1° spatial resolutions across the region. We defined well-surveyed grid cells as those with completeness indices >80% and with >200 associated DAK records. We found marked spatial, seasonal, environmental, and temporal (historical) biases and information gaps in coverage. We identified 59 well-surveyed cells at 0.1°, 55 at 0.3°, and 50 at 0.5° resolution, with well-surveyed sites clustered around points of access such as major cities and national reserves or parks. Our results identified remarkably distinct areas in environmental space with diverse climatic conditions to be given priority for future avian surveys and conservation. The distinctiveness in the climatic conditions of these areas compared to well-surveyed sites is an indication that these areas when sampled could provide new insights into western African bird diversity. Lastly, we show the underrepresentation of traditional biodiversity data (e.g., museums, herbaria collections) compared to citizen science–enabled data (e.g., eBird), which demonstrates the potential of citizen science in documenting and monitoring biodiversity in western Africa, and by extension other poorly known regions of the world.

Chronic, sublethal effects of high temperatures will cause severe declines in southern African arid-zone birds during the 21st century

Birds inhabiting hot, arid regions are among the terrestrial organisms most vulnerable to climate change. The potential for increasingly frequent and intense heat waves to cause lethal dehydration and hyperthermia is well documented, but the consequences of sublethal fitness costs associated with chronic exposure to sustained hot weather remain unclear. Using data for species occurring in southern Africa's Kalahari Desert, we mapped exposure to acute lethal risks and chronic sublethal fitness costs under past, present, and future climates. For inactive birds in shaded microsites, the risks of lethal dehydration and hyperthermia will remain low during the 21st century. In contrast, exposure to conditions associated with chronic, sublethal costs related to progressive body mass loss, reduced nestling growth rates, or increased breeding failure will expand dramatically. For example, by the 2080s the region will experience 10-20 consecutive days per year on which Southern Pied Babblers (Turdoides bicolor) will lose ∼4% of body mass per day, conditions under which this species' persistence will be extremely unlikely. Similarly, exposure to air temperature maxima associated with delayed fledging, reduced fledgling size, and breeding failure will increase several-fold in Southern Yellow-billed Hornbills (Tockus leucomelas) and Southern Fiscals (Lanius collaris). Our analysis reveals that sublethal costs of chronic heat exposure are likely to drive large declines in avian diversity in the southern African arid zone by the end of the century.

Nematode Parasites of Anurans from Three Cocoa Farms in Ondo State, Nigeria

The research was designed to investigate the parasitic fauna of Anurans from cocoa farms in Ondo state. Amphibians are one of the most threatened groups of vertebrates. Many reasons are attributed to the decline of amphibian species such as global warming, habitat destruction and modification, others include: exploitation, pesticide use, introduced species, ultraviolet-B radiation (UV-B), pollution, parasites and diseases. A total of 31 frogs from 4 genera, Hemisus, Ptychadena, Rana and Xenopus and 7 toads from 1 genus, Sclerophrys were examined. 9 frogs were collected from Oluwateru farm at Iwoye Village; 7 frogs were collected from Folorunso farm at Ako-Igbatoro and 15 frogs from Obodulu farm in Idanre. 5 toads were collected from Oluwateru farm at Iwoye Village and 2 toads from Obodulu farm in Idanre. In all cases collection was done between 20:00 hrs and 05:00 hrs. Collected specimens were transported in sealed but ventilated containers to the laboratory where identification was done to species level. The frogs were anaesthetized until death in absolute chloroform soaked in cotton wool placed inside kill-jar for 3 minutes in the laboratory. The gastrointestinal tracts were cut open and the contents of the various sections were put into separate Petri dishes containing normal saline. The skin and the bladder were observed directly under a dissecting microscope for the presence of cysts and monogeneans. The parasites were fixed and preserved in 70% alcohol following standard procedure. Parasites recovered from the gastrointestinal tracts of the anurans include Cosmocerca ornata, Deising, 1861, Cosmocerca cummutata, Diesing, 1851 Paracosmocerca mucronata, Kung and Wu, 1945, Ampliceacum africanum, Taylor, 1924, Gendria liberrei Bain and Philipon, 1969 and Chenospirura asturi Hsu, 1957 Others were Procamallus brevis Kung, 1948 and Camallanus dimitrovi Durette- Desset and Batcharov, 1974. Some of the parasites are zoonotic while a few others are established parasites of African fishes and water Birds raising probable public health concerns from the findings. Further works aimed at unravelling the biodiversity of hosts and parasites in the lush ecosystem of Ondo state, as well as identification of organisms involved in the life cycle are noted.

Implications of geographical range changes and resultant sympatry for three Accipiter hawks on the Cape Peninsula, South Africa

Some invasive species are known to compete with and even displace indigenous species. Two Accipiter species historically indigenous to eastern South Africa have colonised the Cape Peninsula in the south-west of the country and have become sympatric with a third local Accipiter species. We investigated the changes in the occurrence reporting rates of all three species on the Cape Peninsula between 1982 and 2018 using data from the Atlas of the Birds of the Southwestern Cape and from the two data collection periods of the Southern African Bird Atlas Project (SABAP1 and 2). We found that the Black Sparrowhawk Accipiter melanoleucus has become more abundant and that the African Goshawk A. tachiro and the historically local Rufous-breasted Sparrowhawk A. rufiventris have declined since the invasion of the Cape Peninsula by Black Sparrowhawks, suggesting that the latter species has outcompeted and at least partially displaced the other two species. Although that may be the case, since the three species seem to have relatively stabilised population sizes after 2010 this could suggest progressive resource partitioning with a level of ecological isolation following the initial dominance interactions. Since the westward expansion of the ranges of the Black Sparrowhawk and the African Goshawk along the southern coastal region of South Africa were most likely facilitated by anthropogenic alteration of the landscape ultimately leading to the sympatry of the three species on the Cape Peninsula, we suggest that this is therefore a case of indirect human-caused alien invasion.

Effects of climate change on the distributional potential of three range-restricted West African bird species

AbstractA detailed understanding of species’ responses to global climate change provides an informative baseline for designing conservation strategies to optimize protection of biodiversity. However, such information is either limited or not available for many tropical species, making it difficult to incorporate climate change into conservation planning for most tropical species. Here, we used correlative ecological niche models to assess potential distributional responses of 3 range-restricted West African birds, Timneh Parrot (Pscittacus erithracus timneh), Ballman’s Malimbe (Malimbus ballmanni), and White-necked Rockfowl (Picathartes gymnocephalus), to global climate change. We used primary biodiversity occurrence records for each species obtained from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility, eBird, and VertNet; for environmental data, we used climatic variables for the present and future, the latter characterized by 2 IPCC representative concentration pathways (4.5, 8.5) future emissions scenarios and 27 general circulation models for a 2050 time horizon. We found broad present-day potential distributions with respect to climate for all 3 species. Future potential distributions for Ballman’s Malimbe and White-necked Rockfowl tended to be stable and closely similar to their present-day distributions; by contrast, we found marked climate change–driven potential range loss across the range of Timneh Parrot. Our results suggest that impacts of climate change on the present distributions of West African birds will in some cases be minimal, but that individual species may respond differently to future conditions. Thus, to optimize conservation of these species, and of bird diversity in general, we recommend that regional-to-national species conservation action plans incorporate climate change adaptation strategies for individual species; ecological niche models could provide an informative baseline information for this planning and prioritization.