Bioindicators Of Environmental Changes Research Articles

Molecular and biological studies of nonindigenous and extremely rare fish species from the western Baltic reported from the Pomeranian Bay (southwest Baltic Proper)

W ięcaszek B., P anicz R., E ljasik P., Tański A., B ushra A. 2023. Molecular and biological studies of nonindigenous and extremely rare fish species from the western Baltic reported from the Pomeranian Bay (southwest Baltic Proper). Folia Biologica (Kraków) 71: 181-194. Water inflows from the North Sea to the Baltic Sea are recognized as a significant factor influencing the diversity of fish species in the region. In this report, we present findings on three newly discovered fish species (Solea solea, Merluccius merluccius, and Limanda limanda) and the presence of species that were previously seldom observed in the Pomeranian Bay and the associated oligohaline waters of Szczecin Lagoon. These fishes were incidentally captured during monitoring surveys of commercially important fish species. Species identification relied on partial sequences of cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI), cytochrome b (cytb), and rhodopsin (rho) genes, as well as morphometric diagnostic characteristics. Upon comparing the obtained sequences with GenBank records, it was revealed that the sequences for Merluccius merluccius (rho, GenBank acc. no. OM737733) and Chelidonichthys lucerna (cytb, GenBank acc. no. OM737734) constitute new DNA barcodes. The majority of sequences obtained in our study matched those available in GenBank for fishes inhabiting the North Sea, suggesting spatial and temporal linkages between the two seas. The remaining sequences exhibited similarity to data from the Cantabrian Sea, the coasts of France, and the Norwegian Sea. The study results, in conjunction with information on the inflows of saline waters and data from previous studies on reported fish occurrences, indicate that the bycatch species could serve as potential bioindicators of environmental changes in the study area.

Anthropause on tardigrade urban communities during COVID-19 pandemic restrictions in Salta, Argentina

Abstract The World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic on 11 March 2020. The ‘anthropause’ almost emptied our streets of vehicles. In urban areas, automobile traffic is a major environmental factor, and tardigrades can serve as bioindicators of environmental change. During the winter of 2019–2020, samples were taken both before and during the COVID-19 lockdown. In both cases, traffic variables (vehicles per minute), environmental variables, and microhabitats were evaluated. Both before and after the COVID-19 lockdown, the true species diversity and the β-diversity of each habitat and habitat pair were compared. The indicator value method identified species that served as indicators of habitat. Although species richness increased during the anthropause, abundance decreased, as evidenced by the discovery of previously unknown species of Paramacrobiotus and Milnesium in 2020 and by the first record of Mesobiotus in the same year. Different variables were affected in different ways by the decline in vehicular traffic that occurred during the anthropause. Compared to the other examined traffic conditions, the behaviour of the variables was distinct in medium traffic, resulting in more stable conditions. Patterns of nested urban diversity might produce reversible gradients over time. Between habitats with high vehicular traffic and those with medium vehicular traffic, the greatest loss of species occurs.

An Efficient Neural Network Design Incorporating Autoencoders for the Classification of Bat Echolocation Sounds.

Bats are widely distributed around the world, have adapted to many different environments and are highly sensitive to changes in their habitat, which makes them essential bioindicators of environmental changes. Passive acoustic monitoring over long durations, like months or years, accumulates large amounts of data, turning the manual identification process into a time-consuming task for human experts. Automated acoustic monitoring of bat activity is therefore an effective and necessary approach for bat conservation, especially in wind energy applications, where flying animals like bats and birds have high fatality rates. In this work, we provide a neural-network-based approach for bat echolocation pulse detection with subsequent genus classification and species classification under real-world conditions, including various types of noise. Our supervised model is supported by an unsupervised learning pipeline that uses autoencoders to compress linear spectrograms into latent feature vectors that are fed into a UMAP clustering algorithm. This pipeline offers additional insights into the data properties, aiding in model interpretation. We compare data collected from two locations over two consecutive years sampled at four heights (10 m, 35 m, 65 m and 95 m). With sufficient data for each labeled bat class, our model is able to comprehend the full echolocation soundscape of a species or genus while still being computationally efficient and simple by design. Measured classification F1 scores in a previously unknown test set range from 92.3% to 99.7% for species and from 94.6% to 99.4% for genera.

Effectiveness of rapid sampling assessments for wetland-breeding amphibians

A primary response to the Clean Water Act has been the development of numerous indices of biotic integrity (IBI) using various taxonomic groups to assess the condition of water bodies in the United States. The IBI is a frequently used approach for assessing the ecological integrity of streams; however, it is less commonly applied to wetland systems, despite the scientific and policy needs to assess wetland condition and develop ecological performance goals for wetland monitoring, creation, and restoration. Although a great deal of attention has been given to wetland acreage due to the “no net loss” policy over the past two decades, much less attention has been given to the ecological integrity of these same wetlands. To assess wetland health and function, regulatory agencies and land managers need clear performance standards that are based on the ecology of wetland organisms. To address this need, we sampled 242 wetlands distributed across 45 managed properties in Illinois, U.S.A. over three years (2012–2014) for adult and larval amphibians (12 samples per wetland). Amphibian assemblages make up critical ecological components of many wetland ecosystems and are considered useful bioindicators of environmental change because they are sensitive to various forms of environmental and habitat alteration. We developed an amphibian-based IBI (hereafter aIBI) for the assessment of seasonal wetlands and optimal sampling strategies to best quantify these wetlands (i.e., assessment of time and effort). The aIBI applied a conservation coefficient to all species captured; conservation coefficients were developed through a survey of amphibian experts (n = 16). We captured 25 amphibian species with an average of 7.11 amphibian species (range 1–13) per site. Using the species occurrence data collected from both dipnet and minnow trap surveys over 12 survey periods, we assessed the average percent error in the estimation of aIBIs and species richness. Our results show that a wetland can be accurately evaluated with amphibians in one field season, but that multiple samples during that field season will be necessary. We show that 4–5 surveys using multiple methods distributed throughout the spring and summer are required. This level of effort may be incongruent with existing definitions of ‘rapid assessment’, but it is the necessary level of effort needed to confidently and accurately evaluate wetlands using amphibians as an indicator taxon. Additionally, aIBI provides a more robust framework to assess wetland integrity compared to simple species richness or other similar methodologies.

Potential Trees Species of North-East India for Dendroclimatological Studies

Many tropical trees show distinct annual ring formation as in temperate conifers, and the growth of these annual rings is used as bio-indicators of environmental changes. Dendroclimatology is the science dealing with the reconstruction of a history of past climate through dendrochronological (tree ring) analysis and assessing the effect of climatic change on tree growth. Trees are living natural archives and their growth is largely impacted by various climatic and non-climatic events occurring in the surrounding environments. In Northeast India, several conifers and broad-leaf tree species such as Abies densa, Larix griffithii, Pinus merkusii, Pinus kesiya, Pinus wallichiana, Quercus serrata, Toona ciliata and Tectona grandis have been used for tree ring-based studies. Dendrochronological studies mainly focused on the reconstruction of climate history, climate-tree growth relationship, river flow history reconstruction, inter-annual density fluctuation, and for development of climate proxies. Among these, the oldest tree ring chronology of Abies densa of 490 years (1504 to 1994) was reported from Yumthang of Sikkim. Whereas the youngest chronology of Toona ciliata of 35 years (1984 to 2018) was from Chandel district of Manipur. The knowledge derived from the detailed study of these species will help forest managers and conservationists to manage the forest in a changing environment. This paper presented dendrochronological information of different trees of northeast India based on the published literature and their possible impact on climate reconstruction through dendroclimatology. However, further potential tree species forming tree rings need to be worked out for possible climate mitigation measures of tropical trees in northeast India.

Disturbance and disease: host-parasite interactions in freshwater streams remain stable following wildfire.

Increases in the intensity and frequency of wildfires highlight the need to understand how fire disturbance affects ecological interactions. Though the effects of wildfire on free-living aquatic communities are relatively well-studied, how host-parasite interactions respond to fire disturbance is largely unexplored. Using a Before-After-Control-Impact design, we surveyed 10 stream sites (5 burned and 5 unburned) in the Willamette River Basin, Oregon and quantified snail host infection status and trematode parasite community structure 1year before and two years after historic wildfires. Despite the severity of the wildfires, snail host populations did not show significant shifts in density or size distributions. We detected nine taxa of trematode parasites and overall probability of infection remained consistent over the three-year study period. However, at the taxon-specific level, we found evidence that infection probability by one trematode decreased and another increased after fire. In a larger dataset focusing on the first year after fire (9 burned, 8 unburned sites), we found evidence for subtle differences in trematode community structure, including higher Shannon diversity and evenness at the burned sites. Taken together, host-parasite interactions were remarkably stable for most taxa; for trematodes that did show responses, changes in abundance or behavior of definitive hosts may underlie observed patterns. These results have implications for using parasites as bioindicators of environmental change and suggest that aquatic snail-trematode interactions may be relatively resistant to wildfire disturbance in some ecosystems.

An evaluation of the macro anatomy of the Hazel Dormouse’s (Muscardinus avellanarius Linnaeus, 1758) (Rodentia: Mammalia) skeletal system in Türkiye

Muscardinus avellanarius, one of the thirty species of the Gliridae family, is found in areas covered with deciduous forests, with a range stretching from Bursa (Uludağ) to Trabzon in Türkiye. Hazel Dormouse, classified as an endangered species and characterized by their deep hibernation patterns, possess significant value as bioindicators of environmental change. In this study, a macro-anatomical evaluation of the skeletal structure of forty-six specimens collected from the Eastern and Western Black Sea Regions between 1979 and 1983 were conducted. The evaluation revealed that the whole skeleton of Muscardinus avellanarius consisted of 225 bones. The morphometric variances and variations between the Eastern Black Sea and Western Black Sea specimens were detected by defining the skull and baculum bones that hold taxonomic value.

Nematodes as indicators of environmental changes in a river with different levels of anthropogenic impact.

Considering that changes in the biodiversity of parasite communities can be used as indicators of ecosystem health, the aim of this study was to investigate the potential use of Geophagus brasiliensis parasites as bioindicators of environmental changes. We established three sample points in the Iguaçu River, each presenting different degrees of environmental impact. Out of the 69 G. brasiliensis specimens analyzed, 32 (46.3%) were parasitized by at least one parasite. We collected a total of 56 specimens of endoparasites belonging to the phylum Nematoda. Fishes collected in point 3 presented a significantly higher abundance of nematode species (moderately degraded) (Kruskal-Wallis2;69 = 8.62; p = 0.01) and species compositions between points were significantly different (F = 6.95, p = 0.002). No significant difference in relative condition factor (Kn) among the points (F2;66 = 2.54; p = 0.08) or correlation in Kn and abundance of nematodes (rs = 0.1; p = 0.4) were indicated. The results presented in this study indicate that the parasitic community of G. brasiliensis is characterized by low diversity in polluted locations, which explains the absence of certain parasite species and the occurrence of nematode species with varied responses to the pollution gradient.

Effects of environmental factors on mycoplankton diversity and trophic modes in coastal surface water

Mycoplankton play a key role in aquatic microbial food webs and nutrient cycling. However, the environmental factors that affect their composition and trophic modes in coastal water remain unclear. In this study, we used fungal metabarcoding to characterize seasonal mycoplanktonic communities in the surface water of the Maowei Sea. Dothideomycetes and Sordariomycetes were the dominant classes in the Maowei Sea. Random forest modeling analyses suggested that Ochroconis, Rhodotorula, Perenniporia and Derxomyces were the best seasonal bioindicators of environmental changes. Spearman’s correlation analysis showed that TOC (total organic carbon) is the main factor affecting mycoplanktonic bioindicators. Through FUNGuild analysis, we classified mycoplankton in the Maowei Sea into eight trophic modes and found that saprotrophs were the most abundant. Random forest analysis and Spearman’s correlation indicated that the mycoplankton trophic modes could reflect environmental changes in the Maowei Sea and were mainly influenced by dissolved inorganic phosphorus (DIP), dissolved oxygen (DO), and total organic carbon (TOC). Mycoplanktonic alpha and beta diversities significantly varied in different seasons (p < 0.05). Spearman rank’s test, Mantel test, and partial Mantel test indicated that TOC was the key environmental factor that affected the mycoplanktonic alpha and beta diversities. Variation partition analysis revealed that mycoplankton community structure was affected more due to nutrient variability than water quality (18 % vs 7 %). Overall, this study enhanced our understanding of the key controlling environmental factors affecting mycoplanktonic diversities and trophic modes in the coastal environment.

Mycoplanktonic Community Structure and Their Roles in Monitoring Environmental Changes in a Subtropical Estuary in the Beibu Gulf

Mycoplankton are an important component of marine ecosystems and play a key role in material cycling and energy flow in marine ecosystems. In this study, high-throughput sequencing of the 18S rDNA gene was employed to investigate the community structure of mycoplankton during summer and winter and their response to environmental changes in the Dafengjiang River estuary in the Beibu Gulf, Guangxi. The mycoplanktonic community was generally dominated by Ascomycota, Basidiomycota, and Cryptomycota. However, there were significant seasonal differences in the α-diversity of the mycoplanktonic community (p &lt; 0.05). Random forest modeling also revealed that Paramicrosporidium, Parengyodontium, Arthrinium, Paramycosphaerella, Pestalotia, and Talaromyces were the most effective bioindicators of environmental changes. Spearman’s correlation analysis and distance-based redundancy analysis suggested that the trophic status, chemical oxygen demand, dissolved oxygen, and salinity were the key environmental factors regulating the mycoplanktonic community structure. Variation partitioning analysis also found that nutrient levels were the main driver of the β-diversity of the mycoplanktonic community, showing a greater effect than the water quality parameters. In conclusion, this study revealed the mycoplanktonic community structure and its key drivers in the Dafengjiang River estuary, thus providing a theoretical reference for ecological environmental monitoring and resource management in the Beibu Gulf.

Fruticose Lichen Communities at the Edge: Distribution and Diversity in a Desert Sky Island on the Colorado Plateau

Subalpine habitats in sky islands in the Southwestern USA are currently facing large-scale transformations. Lichens have widely been used as bioindicators of environmental change. On the Colorado Plateau, fruticose lichens occur in patchy, disconnected populations, including unique lichen-draped conifer sites in subalpine forests in the La Sal Mountains in southeastern Utah. Here, we document the distribution and fungal diversity within these lichen communities. We find that lichen-draped conifer sites in the La Sal Mountains are restricted to only three known, small areas in Picea englemannii forests above 3000 m above sea level, two of which have recently been impacted by wildfire. We document 30 different species of lichen-forming fungi in these communities, several which represent the first reports from the Colorado Plateau. We also characterize mycobiont haplotype diversity for the fruticose lichens Evernia divaricata, Ramalina sinensis, and multiple Usnea species. We also report a range of diverse fungi associated with these lichens, including genetic clusters representing 22 orders spanning seven classes of Ascomycetes and fewer clusters representing Basidiomycetes. Our results provide a baseline for ongoing monitoring and help to raise awareness of unique lichen communities and other biodiversity in the region.

Temporal variability of crustacean parasites of fish and its importance for coastal resource management to anthropogenic climate change

This paper reviews the information available over the last 20 years on studies of the temporal variability of parasitic infections caused by parasitic crustaceans of fish in the Mexican territory. The possible responses of these parasitic infections to changes in the aquatic ecosystems caused by anthropogenic climate change are described. By studying the intensity of infection of Argulus yucatanus (a case study of parasite crustaceans of fish), the response of infections to changes in water temperature can be detected. Into this context and based on previous investigations reviewed, it is highlighted the importance of monitoring for long-time the behavior of these parasites. Also, it is indicated that parasitic crustaceans represent a good study model as bioindicators of environmental changes because they are in direct contact or exposed to hazardous substances of the environment. Extensive and precise data on parasitic biodiversity along with their ecological and experimental information are necessary to understand the possible responses of the parasitic infections caused by crustaceans in the face of climate change. Based on this kind of information it would be possible to deal with issues on control strategies and prevention of parasitic infections caused by crustaceans in aquaculture as well as for the sustainable development of aquatic ecosystems. Keywords: Long-term monitoring, sentinel species, parasitic infections, parasitic crustaceans, climate change.

DNA metabarcoding reveals impacts of anthropogenic stressors on freshwater meiofauna

Meiofauna includes small-sized animals playing fundamental trophic and ecological roles in all aquatic ecosystems. The biodiversity of marine meiofauna has been well investigated, with most results supporting meiobenthic communities as valuable bioindicators of environmental changes. However, research on freshwater meiofauna is rare and scattered. This shortfall is particularly critical in the Southeastern United States, which is well explored for larger species and collectively known as a hotspot of freshwater biodiversity, but it is also known for its substantial and rapid imperilment. Our goal is to explore the biodiversity of freshwater meiofauna from a section of the Tennessee River, a major waterway located in the Southeastern U.S., and test whether changes in the abiotic conditions could explain shifts in the meiofauna biodiversity. Meiofauna biodiversity, estimated as richness, community composition, and phylogenetic diversity, was revealed using an amplicon-based metagenomic approach (= DNA metabarcoding). Results showed a high diversity of meiofauna with over 200 taxa distributed across 10 phyla, suggesting that the Tennessee River is also a hotspot of biodiversity for small-sized animals. Abiotic conditions are highly variable among sites and likely linked to anthropogenic inputs. Statistical analyses showed that temperature is the variable most associated with meiofaunal biodiversity. Temperature is one of the most important ecological barriers to species distribution and is critically disturbed by thermal pollution and global warming. This work supports the idea that biodiversity assessments of meiofauna communities, especially with metagenomic approaches, is cost-effective and useful for monitoring the effect of environmental changes also in freshwater ecosystems.

Structure and putative function of a soil microbial community impacted by the deposition of tailings and subsequent revegetation after the rupture of the Fundao Dam

AbstractThe rupture of the Fundão Dam containing iron‐rich mining tailings, in 2015, was one of the worst environmental disasters in Brazil. The deposition of tailings has generated serious impacts on the soil and, as microorganisms play an important role in these environments, the recovery of the microbial community is a critical step in restoring the soil for sustainable use. Soil microorganisms and their activities are recognized as sensitive bioindicators for environmental changes; however, few experiments have been conducted to investigate the response of the microbial community to the magnitude of the impact caused by the Fundão Dam rupture and the effect of the use of revegetation natural or induced for ecosystem recovery, especially in Brazil. This study aimed to evaluate the dynamics of community structure and putative functions, over time, in response to the deposition of the tailings on the soil by bacterial 16S rRNA sequencing. We evaluated an area affected by tailings, covered with natural and induced revegetation. The results revealed a temporal dynamic of the soil microbiota, which demonstrates that the microbial community structure of these areas differed, mainly in less abundant taxa, and the induced revegetation area was closer to the forest than natural revegetation. These results reveal the importance of implementing revegetation programs to accelerate the initial recovery. Functions related to the use of alternative electron acceptors differed, possibly due to the greater compaction of the affected soil. Despite the improvement of the impacted areas over time, the strong effect of tailings deposition on the bacterial community structure can still be noticed.

Anuran diversity and community structure in Lesti upriver across buffer zone habitat in Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park

In Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park (BTSNP), buffer zone areas, one of which is the Lesti upstream rivers, play a critical role in sustaining biodiversity and community life. Frogs serve as a bioindicator of environmental change, particularly in the upstream rivers of the Lesti. The present study examines the diversity and community structure of Anura in the upstream rivers of Lesti, which are included in the BTSNP buffer zones. Throughout the surveys, up to 14 anuran species were encountered in four sites adjacent to the BTSNP border and crossed by the Lesti rivers. This study suggests that buffer zones may support herpetofaunal diversity by allowing humans to interact with them and sustainably utilize the resources in the areas. Urban development and conservation in these areas must be kept current in order to minimize environmental disruption caused by humans

Temporal variation in Oligochaeta species composition in an anthropized stretch of a Neotropical urban river

Aquatic environments in urban centers suffer constantly from changes in limnological variables, mainly due to increased pollution in these systems. Aquatic Oligochaeta are bioindicators of environmental change. The Iguaçu River is the second most polluted river in Brazil and in the Middle Iguaçu region is used for the public water supply. Efforts to understand the dynamics and conservation of this river are necessary, since this region has a gap in studies with aquatic invertebrates. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate temporally the Oligochaeta species composition and the beta diversity of an anthropized stretch of a subtropical urban river, predicting that changes in abiotic variables cause changes in species composition and decrease the beta diversity over the years. We measured abiotic variables (water temperature, dissolved oxygen, electrical conductivity, pH, organic matter, aluminum and lead) and collected sediment samples using a grab in a stretch of the Iguaçu River over three years. We recorded 35 species of Oligochaeta and observed that changes in abiotic variables caused changes in species composition and beta diversity over the years, corroborating our prediction. The abiotic variables electrical conductivity, organic matter and aluminum were negatively related to species composition. In conclusion, the stretch studied in the middle Iguaçu showed an evident inter-annual variation in the Oligochaeta species composition, with a tendency to decrease the beta diversity, probably caused by changes in the abiotic variables.

Seasonal Diversity of Microeukaryotes in the Han River, Korea Through 18S rRNA Gene Metabarcoding.

Freshwater ecosystems contain a large diversity of microeukaryotes that play important roles in maintaining their structure. Microeukaryote communities vary in composition and abundance on the basis of temporal and environmental variables and may serve as useful bioindicators of environmental changes. In the present study, 18S rRNA metabarcoding was employed to investigate the seasonal diversity of microeukaryote communities during four seasons in the Han River, Korea. In total, 882 unique operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were detected, including various diatoms, metazoans (e.g., arthropods and rotifers), chlorophytes, and fungi. Although alpha diversity revealed insignificant differences based on seasons, beta diversity exhibited a prominent variation in the community composition as per seasons. The analysis revealed that the diversity of microeukaryotes was primarily driven by seasonal changes in the prevailing conditions of environmental water temperature and dissolved oxygen. Moreover, potential indicator OTUs belonging to diatoms and chlorophytes were associated with seasonal and environmental factors. This analysis was a preliminary study that established a continuous monitoring system using metabarcoding. This approach could be an effective tool to manage the Han River along with other freshwater ecosystems in Korea.

Learning on a chip: Towards the development of trainable biohybrid sensors by investigating cognitive processes in non-marine Ostracoda via a miniaturised analytical system

Miniaturised analytical systems are showing growing interest in aquatic ecology, although this technology has not been exploited to study cognitive behaviours of organisms in aquatic micro-environments. Herein, a miniaturised testing arena was developed to investigate information processes and learning of Heterocypris incongruens , a freshwater ostracod relevant as bioindicator of environmental conditions. After dedicated training phases, a microchannel-based caging system enabled to tested if H. incongruens can associate a light stimulus to a food/stress source. Furthermore, the miniaturised system was used to test the ostracods ability in discriminating different coloured lights by choosing that previously associated with food or by avoiding the one previously associated with a stressor. Trained ostracods significantly reacted to light stimuli compared to naïve individuals. When two different light colours were provided, trained ostracods selected the one associated with food, and avoided that associated with a stress source. The experiment in which ostracods were trained to associate light to food showed that H. incongruens not only exploits visual stimuli for decision making, but also for modulating its behaviour, swimming longer in presence of the right colour light than in presence of the different colour light, or no light. This can be an adapting behaviour balancing the energy use during foraging activities and limiting exposure to potential predators. This study is the first to report such complex cognitive processes in ostracods, paving the way to new research directions for Lab-on-a-Chip systems, focused on behavioural ecology and cognition studies, as well as to the development of novel biohybrid sensors. • Biomicrofluidics is a recent technology with great potential in aquatic ecology. • Ostracoda have an enormous importance as bioindicators of environmental changes. • A miniaturised system has been developed to investigate learning in Ostracoda. • The model species associated different light stimuli to food and stress sources. • The new concept of trainable organism-based sensors is provided.

Bird diversity and ethno-ornithological knowledge of local people in Ciletuh-Palabuhanratu Geopark, Sukabumi, West Java, Indonesia

Abstract. Iskandar J, Fathin AS, Silmi RH, Husodo T, Wulandari I, Megantara EN, Partasasmita R, Shanida SS. 2021. Bird diversity and ethno-ornithological knowledge of local people in Ciletuh-Palabuhanratu Geopark, Sukabumi, West Java, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 22: 3409-3422. Birds have ecological and social functions, and are common to be used as bioindicators of environmental changes. Birds are very important consideration when establishing conservation areas, including geopark which has uniqueness in terms of geological, biological and cultural diversities. This study aimed to investigate the bird diversity in Ciletuh-Palabuhanratu Geopark, West Java, Indonesia and as well as to reveal the local knowledge on bird species and folk classification, functions and utilization of birds among the village people. Mixed methods of quantitative and qualitative approaches were applied in this study, while some techniques, including semi-structured interviews, structured interviews, and bird observation on transect and spotlighting were employed to collect the primary data. In total, there were 121 bird species of 47 families of which 88 species were recorded during the field observation and 79 species were documented through the interviews with respondents. Among them, 12 species are listed as having high conservation status under IUCN, 17 species are listed as Appendix II (CITES), and 21 species are listed by Regulation of the Minister of Environment and Forestry of the Republic Indonesia No. P 106/2018 on Protected Plant and Animal Species. The local community has profound knowledge of birds species, folk classification, ecological, socio-cultural, and socio-economic functions. In the past, the village people had traditional beliefs and myths on birds, resulting in some sacred birds had been traditionally conserved. Nowadays, these are no longer strongly existed, and consequently, many birds have been hunted by using different methods of hunting birds, both traditional and modern for various purposes, including for consumption, bird keeping, and trading to obtain cash. Therefore, bird conservation efforts that involve the community are really needed in this area as the strategy of sustainable management of Ciletuh-Palabuhanratu Geopark.

Cover Caption

Butterflies are considered bioindicators of environmental change. We evaluated the combined effects of climate and land‐use interactions on butterfly diversity in tropical rainforest and savanna ecosystems of southwestern China. The results showed that increasing land‐use intensity not only caused a dramatic decrease in butterfly alpha diversity but also significantly simplified butterfly species composition, and finally revealed interactions between human‐modified habitat change and climate change shaped butterfly diversity in both ecosystems. Our study has important implications for biodiversity conservation under the current era of rapid human‐induced habitat loss and climate change (see pages 1109‐1120). The photo is provided by Bai‐Ge Miao, which the butterfly Papilio memnon is visiting the Ixora casei ‐Super king‐ flowers.