Dominant Habitat Research Articles

The role of anthropogenic container habitats as mosquito oviposition habitats in rural settlements in northern Tanzania.

In many areas, the main sources of mosquito vectors are not natural habitats but small artificial water bodies that are provided unintentionally by humans. Such container habitats have been linked to outbreaks of dengue fever and other arboviral diseases. However, in many parts of the world the possible risks associated with container habitats have not been assessed. Here, we focused on a human population expansion area in northern Tanzania with a high incidence of dengue and other cases of high fever. We explored the importance of anthropogenic container habitats for mosquito production in the Lake Manyara Basin. We also assessed how biotic and physicochemical habitat characteristics limit mosquito abundance in containers. Results showed that Aedes aegypti (Linnaeus), vector of dengue and other arboviruses, and Culex quinquefasciatus (Say), vector of filarial worms, were the dominant mosquitoes ovipositing in large numbers in different containers. Old tires were the dominant and most productive container habitat for mosquitoes in the region. However, there were strong differences among villages, illustrating that the mosquito burden associated with container habitats varies locally. We concluded that in this region, removal of artificial container habitats could be a simple strategy to reduce the mosquito-mediated disease burden within the local population.

Impacts of an invasive alga on recruitment of a temperate reef fish

The invasive brown macroalga, Sargassum horneri (devil weed), has spread along the southern California coast, replacing the native habitat-forming macroalga, Macrocystis pyifera (giant kelp). M. pyrifera is a critical habitat for macroalgal-associated fishes, especially for the arrival and survival of juvenile fish that constitutes recruitment success. It is unclear whether critical processes in recruitment may be altered if S. horneri replaces M. pyrifera as the dominant biogenic macroalgal habitat on rocky reefs. Through a series of laboratory experiments, we investigated the effects of macroalgal identity on post-settlement processes contributing to recruitment success for a common macrophyte-associated fish, Heterostichus rostratus (giant kelpfish). To evaluate the potential impacts of S. horneri vs. M. pyrifera in their effects on juvenile H. rostratus, we explored whether there were differences for H. rostratus in their (1) habitat choice in the presence of both macroalgae, (2) prey choice employing the mysid shrimp, Holmesimysis costata, that were fed on either of the two macroalgae, and (3) predator-mediated mortality by Paralabrax clathratus (kelp bass), a common piscivore in both macroalgal habitats. The results of these experiments suggest that for the post-settlement processes evaluated here, macroalgal identity does not appear to have a significant impact on giant kelpfish, and recruitment success in S. horneri habitat may be equivalent to that observed in M. pyrifera. It is possible, however, that differential settlement to these macroalgae, species-specific habitat requirements, or other post-settlement factors may play a role in influencing recruitment success within each of these two habitats. Conducting further studies that include ambient invertebrate prey densities of H. rostratus in each macroalgal habitat, particularly in a field setting, will potentially provide greater insight into these processes.

Characterising epibenthic diversity and physical drivers in unconsolidated marine habitats of Algoa Bay, South Africa

Unconsolidated marine sediment habitats spatially make up the majority of global ocean seabed, yet benthic faunal patterns and their abiotic drivers remain poorly understood. Benthic research in Algoa Bay, on the south coast of South Africa, has largely focused on rocky reefs, while the dominant unconsolidated sediment habitats have been poorly studied. This study describes epibenthic assemblages associated with unconsolidated sediment in Algoa Bay, at between 30 and 100 m depth, and investigates the relationship between biotic patterns and physical drivers. Epibenthic abundance data were quantified from benthic imagery and tested against the long-term means and coefficients of variation of 12 abiotic factors, including depth, mean grain size and bottom temperature. Multivariate analyses revealed two statistically distinct epibenthic communities. This pattern was largely explained by depth, mean grain size, mean bottom temperature and mean current speed (cumulative variation of 52.49%). To a lesser extent, the long-term variability of bottom temperature, current speed and dissolved oxygen also influenced the community (cumulative variation of 34.44%). Visual classification of the substrates indicated that a mixed substrate type (i.e. sand and a low percentage of rock) significantly influences the benthic community. The findings suggest that a combination of depth and substrate type are largely responsible for the epibenthic assemblages observed.

АНАЛИЗ ЧИСЛЕННОСТИ КОСУЛИ СИБИРСКОЙ (CAPREOLUS PYGARGUS PALLAS, 1771) НА ТЕРРИТОРИИ САРАТОВСКОЙ ОБЛАСТИ

The number of Siberian roe deer (Capreolus pygargus P., 1771) in the Saratov region in the 60-70 years of the last century was several dozen individuals, in 2019 the number was more than 15 thousand individuals. The area characteristic of the Siberian roe deer habitat in the Saratov region is 1,543.18 thousand hectares (15.5% of the total area of the region's hunting grounds). The dominant habitat categories for this species are: "Farmland" – 39.9%, "Forests" – 39.8%, "Young trees and shrubs" – 10.8%, "Floodplain complexes" – 6.4%. The state of the population was assessed according to the following indicators: the dynamics of the number, the density of individuals per unit area characteristic of the habitat of the species, and the ratio of the economically expedient number of the species to the actual one. Growth has been noted in the long-term dynamics of the number. The population growth over the last decade has averaged 17.2%. On 4.1% of the habitat area peculiar to the species, the density of individuals (per unit area) was more than 20 individuals per 1 thousand. ha; by 42.7%, the density was from 10 to 20 individuals per 1 thousand. ha; on 53.2% of the area peculiar to the species, the density was below 10 individuals per 1 thousand hectares. In general, the density of roe deer in the region is 10.3 individuals per thousand hectares of the area suitable for the habitat of the species. For Right–bank areas, these indicators are 12.0, for Left-bank areas - 6.6 individuals per thousand hectares. The percentage ratio of the actual and economically feasible population in only one administrative district of the region (Balakovsky) is close to 100%. This is 2.5% of the total habitat area peculiar to the species. On 13.8% of the habitat area, this indicator ranged from 55 to 86%. In most of the area (83.7%) typical for the habitat of the species, the number does not reach 50% of the economically feasible. In the whole region, the percentage ratio of the actual and economically feasible number for 2019 was 35.7% (the actual number of roe deer is 15,757 individuals, economically feasible – 44,193 individuals). The deficit in economically expedient numbers (the difference between economically expedient and actual) is 28,436 individuals.

Evaluating hedgerows for wild bee conservation in intensively managed agricultural landscapes

Wild bees provide essential pollination services to both agricultural crops and wild flowering plant species. The decline of wild bee species has been associated with a number of different threats, primarily the loss of natural habitats. The Delta Farmland & Wildlife Trust (DF&WT), a non-profit conservation organization, incentivizes farmers to plant hedgerows consisting of native shrubs and trees on the edge of their production fields, mainly to create habitat for wildlife in the Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR) of Delta in British Columbia, Canada. In this study, the value of the planted hedgerows was evaluated as foraging habitat for wild bees specifically. During the summers of 2015 and 2016, we surveyed bees and flowers in planted hedgerows, as well as the two other most dominant field margin habitats, remnant hedgerows and grass margins. The relationship between available floral resources and bee abundance and diversity, as well as bee-flower interactions, was analyzed and compared among these three habitat types. Overall, wild bees collected from flowers and pan traps were more abundant, species rich and significantly more diverse in grass margins compared to planted and remnant hedgerows. However, significant results were inconsistent between sampling methods and years, implying none of the habitat types stood out as clearly better. While the strongest relationship was found between floral abundance and bee abundance, it did not explain the differences between habitat types alone. Bee-flower interaction records showed that bees primarily visited herbaceous species mostly found in grass margins while only a few of the recommended woody plant species for hedgerow plantings were visited. The results indicate that grass margins could be a valuable alternative conservation approach or addition to woody hedgerows if properly planned and managed. These results can be used to help improve field edge management for the conservation of wild bee species.

Woodland, cropland and hedgerows promote pollinator abundance in intensive grassland landscapes, with saturating benefits of flower cover

Abstract Pollinating insects provide economic value by improving crop yield. They are also functionally and culturally important across ecosystems outside of cropland. To understand landscape‐level drivers of pollinator declines, and guide policy and intervention to reverse declines, studies must cover (a) multiple insect and plant taxa and (b) a range of agricultural and semi‐natural land uses. Furthermore, in an era of woodland restoration initiatives and rewilding ideologies, the contribution of woodland and woody linear features (WLFs; e.g. hedgerows) to pollinator abundance demands further investigation. We demonstrate fine‐scale analysis of high‐quality, co‐located measurements from a national environmental survey. We relate pollinator transect counts to ground‐truth habitat and WLF maps across 300 1 km squares in Wales, UK. We look at effects of habitat type, flower cover, WLF density and habitat diversity on summer abundance (July and August) of eight insect groups, representing three insect orders (Lepidoptera, Hymenoptera and Diptera). Compared with improved grassland (the dominant habitat in Wales), pollinator abundance is consistently higher in cropland and woodland—especially broadleaved woodland. For mining bees and two hoverfly groups, abundance is predicted to be at least 1.5× higher in woodland ecosystems than elsewhere. Furthermore, we estimate contributions of WLFs to abundance in agriculturally improved habitats to be up to 14% for honeybees and up to 21% for hoverflies. The abundance of all insect groups increases with flower cover, which is a key mechanism through which woodland, cropland and grassland support pollinators. Importantly, we observe diminishing returns of increasing flower cover for abundance of non‐Apis pollinator groups, expecting roughly twice the increase in abundance per % flower cover from 0% to 5%, as compared with 10% to 15%. However, the shape of the relationship was inverted for honeybees, which showed steeper increases in abundance at higher flower cover. Synthesis and applications. We provide a holistic view of the drivers of pollinator abundance in Wales, in which flower cover, woodland, hedgerows and cropland are critical. We propose a key role for woodland creation, hedge‐laying and farmland heterogeneity within future land management incentive schemes. Finally, we suggest targeting of interventions to maximise benefits for non‐Apis pollinators. Specifically, increasing floral provision in areas where existing flower cover is low—for example, in flower‐poor improved grasslands—could effectively increase pollinator abundance and diversity while prioritising wild over managed species.

Biotopic diversity and ecomorphic analysis of the Gryshkiv lis tract (Poltava)

The study of ecosystem and biotope biodiversity of park ecosystems allows to identify the most valuable plant objects in their composition, to assess the degree of stability of existing groups and to identify current threats of anthropogenic impact on them. Gryshkiv Lis tract (Poltava, Kyiv region) is one of the centers of natural phytodiversity conservation and is an array of deciduous forests with an area of ​​about 50 hectares, located adjacent to residential areas of the city. Research materials were collected during field expeditions in August–September 2021 using generally accepted geobotanical methods. The list of higher plants found on the territory of the Gryshkiv Lis tract includes 154 species belonging to 3 classes, 51 families. The most numerous of them are Asteraceae – 19%, Poaceae – 14%, Rosaceae – 11% and Lamiaceae – 10%. There are two species of plants listed in the Red Book of Ukraine and seven species are regionally rare plants. One plant group was identified in the Green Book of Ukraine. Ecomorphic analysis of species showed that mesophytes, sciogeliophytes and mesotrophs predominate in the study area. Thus, the proportions of hygromorphs, heliomorphs and tropomorphs are close to the structure of the typical flora of the forest-steppe zone, which indicates favorable development conditions for zonal forest vegetation. However, in the spectrum of cenomorphs the share of ruderants is quite significant – almost 20%, the percentage of adventitious species is close to 3%. This indicates a significant anthropogenic transformation of the flora of the surveyed object. Habitat classification was carried out in accordance with the structure of the National Catalog of Habitats of Ukraine. Studies have shown that in the tract "Grishkiv Lis" there are at least 7 habitats, including forest (Eastern European mesophilic eutrophic deciduous forests of forest-steppe and steppe zones), swampy (reedbeds normally without freestanding water, beds of large Carex spp.), shrubbery (lowland and collinar riverine willow scrub, Central European subcontinental thickets), grassy (mesophile fringes), synanthropic (ruderal biotops of perennial nitrophilic type grasses). The dominant habitat of the Gryshkiv Lis tract is natural deciduous forests. The studied object represents a characteristic type of vegetation for the forest-steppe zone – maple-linden oak wood (anthropogenically transformed) with elements of waterlogging. Its central areas are represented by stands with a high degree of preservation of the structure and have good prospects for preservation and restoration with moderate efforts. Recommendations for the preservation of floristic diversity and vegetation of the Gryshkiv Lis tract include the introduction of a system of biotechnical measures to support ecosystems, including restrictions and regulation of recreation, elimination of natural landfills, sewage disposal and elimination of unauthorized buildings. The territory has environmental, scientific, aesthetic and recreational significance. Creation here of a protected area will help preserve the coenotic, landscape and biological diversity of Poltava region.

Representative benthic habitat mapping on Lovina coral reefs in Northern Bali, Indonesia

Abstract. Kartikasari A, Pristianto T, Hanintyo R, Ampou EE, Wibawa TA, Borneo BB. 2021. Representative benthic habitat mapping on Lovina coral reefs in Northern Bali, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 22: 4766-4774. Satellite optical imagery datasets integrated with in situ measurements are widely used to derive the spatial distribution of various benthic habitats in coral reef ecosystems. In this study, an approach to estimate spatial coverage of those habitats based on observation derived from Sentinel-2 optical imagery and a field survey, is presented. This study focused on the Lovina coral reef ecosystem of Northern Bali, Indonesia to support deployment of artificial reefs within the Indonesian Coral Reef Garden (ICRG) programme. Three specific locations were explored: Temukus, Tukad Mungga, and Baktiseraga waters. Spatial benthic habitat coverages of these three waters was estimated based on supervised classification techniques using 10m bands of Sentinel-2 imagery and the medium scale approach (MSA) transect method of in situ measurement.The study indicates that total coverage of benthic habitat is 61.34 ha, 25.17 ha, and 27.88 ha for Temukus, Tukad Mungga, and Baktiseraga waters, respectively. The dominant benthic habitat of those three waters consists of sand, seagrass, coral, rubble, reef slope and intertidal zone. The coral reef coverage is 29.48 ha (48%) for Temukus covered by genus Acropora, Isopora, Porites, Montipora, Pocillopora. The coverage for Tukad Mungga is 8.69 ha (35%) covered by genus Acropora, Montipora, Favia, Psammocora, Porites, and the coverage for Baktiseraga is 11.37 ha (41%) covered by genus Montipora sp, Goniastrea, Pavona, Platygyra, Pocillopora, Porites, Acropora, Leptoseris, Acropora, Pocillopora, Fungia. The results are expected to be suitable as supporting data in restoring coral reef ecosystems in the northern part of Bali, especially in Buleleng District.

Animal diversity in beech forests – An analysis of 30 years of intense faunistic research in Hessian strict forest reserves

Under natural conditions beech forest would be the most widespread habitat in Central Europe. Therefore the knowledge of this vegetation type, including the animal communities dwelling there, as well as the mechanisms forming these communities are of high interest for biodiversity research and conservation in Central Europe. However, historically, Central European beech forests were thought to harbor only relatively few species. Here, faunistic data of five beech forest reserves, which were generated as part of the Hessian strict forest reserves program, are analyzed to investigate diversity patterns of Hessian beech forests of low mountain ranges. We focus on species-level data from six organism groups: Aculeata, Araneae, Coleoptera, Heteroptera, Lumbricidae, and Macrolepidoptera. We show that with 2552 forest-dwelling species from these organism groups an unexpectedly high number of species was found in Hessian beech forests, and that a higher species richness can be expected in these groups. Observed species diversity ranges from 1245 to 1556 forest dwelling species in the five individual forest reserves. Overall, 36 % of the forest dwelling species of the considered species groups known from Germany were found with all applied methods in the forest reserves. Different forest reserves share 40–50 % of the species, representing 50–70 % of the species of the individual reserves, indicating high levels of regional and habitat-structure based differentiation. Only 21 % of the species are found in all five reserves. The low percentage of species found in all five reserves is, in addition to differing local conditions, probably a result of the communities being composed of few highly abundant and many rare species, leading to a high percentage of species only found by chance in our surveys. We also observe differences in community heterogeneity among the five reserves. Patterns differ between organism groups, clearly indicating that a focus on single taxa or a single indicator group falls short of revealing meaningful patterns. In spider communities, beta diversity is linked to the spatial distance between traps. In other organism groups community heterogeneity within reserves rather depends on structural heterogeneity. Species richness was associated with percentage of reserve area not covered with the most dominant habitat type, the deadwood amount, and with survey year. Being the potential natural vegetation of Germany and considering the unexpectedly high diversity of their associated fauna, beech forests bear a great conservation value. However, their widespread occurrence and dominance is likely to push them out of focus of conservation efforts. Yet protecting diverse and richly structured beech forests can contribute greatly to preserving the native arthropod fauna and should play a central role in biodiversity conservation efforts in Central Europe.

Diversity and habitat association of medium and large mammals in Gibe Sheleko National Park, Southern Ethiopia.

Complete documentation on the status of mammals is indispensable for appropriate conservation measures in protected areas. However, there is inadequate information on mammalian resources in the ecosystem of Gibe Sheleko National Park (GSNP). Thus, the study aimed to assess species diversity, abundance, and habitat association of medium‐ and large‐sized mammals in GSNP. We stratified the study area into five dominant habitat types, namely dense forest, wooded grassland, grassland, riverine forest, and farmland habitat types based on land cover and vegetation structures and further employed stratified random sampling technique across each habitat type. The sample transects covered 20% of the study area. Transect width ranged from 50 m to 400 m based on vegetation cover and visibility of mammals. The main data were collected via direct observation. Data were analyzed via chi‐square test and species diversity indexes. We recorded the total of 20 mammals species' those belong to 10 families of which 8 species were large‐sized and 12 species medium‐sized mammals. There were two IUCN vulnerable species, namely Hippopotamus amphibious and Panthera pardus, and two globally near‐threatened species, particularly Litocranius walleri and Caracal caracal in the study area. Dense forest held the highest species diversity of medium‐ and large‐sized mammals (H′ = 2.28) with the highest evenness index (J = 0.84). Riverine forest had the least diversity with uneven population distribution. Papio anubis was the most abundance species, whereas Caracal caracal was the least abundant in the study area. GSNP is home for threatened and spectacular mammals species'; hence, an appropriate conservation measure is mandatory to keep existing mammals species'.

Dung beetle β‐diversity across Brazilian tropical dry forests does not support the Pleistocene Arc hypothesis

AbstractTropical dry forests (TDFs) are one of the most threatened ecosystems worldwide. Two hypotheses have been proposed to explain the origin of TDFs in South America: the Amazonian TDF hypothesis and the Pleistocene Arc hypothesis (PAH). There is a need to evaluate the distribution patterns of different organisms across the TDF distribution. We tested the following hypotheses: the species composition is determined by historical‐evolutionary events, and therefore, the TDFs have a similar species composition as predicted by the PAH. Alternatively, the species composition is determined by recent ecological processes, and therefore, the TDFs have a sharing of species to their respective adjacent dominant habitat, with no support for the PAH. We expect that climatic factors drive the species richness, abundance and species dissimilarity (β‐diversity) between TDFs and adjacent habitats across the latitudinal gradient. We sampled dung beetles across six Brazilian states in TDF fragments and adjacent dominant habitats and obtained the climatic conditions across the gradient. We used the β‐diversity partition and generalised linear models to test our hypotheses. We sampled 8,625 dung beetles representing 102 species. Sorensen dissimilarity was higher among TDFs than between TDFs and adjacent habitats and was mostly due to the substitution of species. Annual mean temperature had a positive effect on abundance in TDFs but did not affect species richness. Species substitution (Podani’s approach) between TDFs and adjacent habitats decreased with mean diurnal range of temperature, while nestedness patterns (Baselga’s approach) increased with annual precipitation. Depending on the approach used (Baselga’s vs. Podani’s), we can obtain different results across the latitudinal gradient. The composition and structure of dung beetle assemblages in TDFs are mostly determined by more recent regional‐to‐local ecological processes since each TDF has a unique evolutionary history and a different dung beetle species composition. Our results do not support the Pleistocene Arc hypothesis.

Large-scale spatial patterns of small-mammal communities in the Mediterranean region revealed by Barn owl diet

Due to mainly opportunistic hunting behaviour of Barn owl can be its diet composition used for assessing local structure of small-mammal community. We evaluated the structure of small-mammal communities in the Mediterranean region by analysing Barn owl diet using own pellets and literature data (85 localities comprising 182,343 prey individuals). Contrary to widely accepted macroecological theory, we found a latitudinal increase of small-mammal alpha diversity, a less distinct west–east increase and lower diversity on islands. The mean prey weight decreased with increasing latitude, while on islands it decreased with increasing island area. The mean prey weight on islands was further negatively affected by mean land modification by human and positively affected by its range. The diet diversity on islands was not affected either by island area or its distance from the mainland. Its composition largely conformed to the main pattern pronounced over whole the region: an unexpected homogeneity of small-mammal community structure. Despite high beta diversity and large between-sample variation in species composition, Crocidura (+ Suncus etruscus) and murids (Apodemus, Mus, Rattus, in marginal regions partly replaced by gerbillids, Meriones or Microtus) composed more than 90% of owl prey in 92% of samples. Peak abundances of these widespread species are associated with a dynamic mosaic of dense patches of sparse herb vegetation and evergreen sclerophyllous shrublands interspersing areas of human activity, the dominant habitat of the inner Mediterranean and richest food resource for foraging Barn owls. The respective small-mammal species can be looked upon as invasive elements accompanying large scale human colonization of the region since the Neolithic and replacing original island biota. Our study documented that desertification of the Mediterranean played an important role in shaping inverse latitudinal gradient in diversity of small-mammals that contradicts to widely accepted mecroecological theory.

A rapid qualitative methodology for ecological integrity assessment across a Mediterranean island's landscapes

Rapid qualitative field methods can be used to evaluate ecological integrity (EI) at a landscape level. This study evaluates the EI of 63 landscape types (LCTs) in Cyprus derived from Landscape Character Mapping. Following a stratified sampling, LCTs were evaluated using 209 Land Description Units (LDUs) i.e., homogeneous map entities, sharing a similar pattern of natural and cultural elements. In every LDU, six ecological integrity (EI) indicators were visually assessed consistently namely naturalness, habitat continuity, number of habitats, dominant habitat type, management intensity and scale. TwoStep Cluster Analysis was employed to identify EI categories, and Categorical Principal Components Analysis (CATPCA) to associate the individual indicators with overall EI in the LDUs. Linear regressions were used to predict EI based on the most important indicators. Forested and shrubland landscapes have consistently good EI with low variation, while urbanized and agricultural landscapes have lower EI. There is great variation in the number of agricultural landscape types and their EI. There are significant linear relationships between EI and naturalness, habitat continuity and intensity. The novelty of this work lies with the fact that it provides the first island-wide study in the Mediterranean assessing EI spatially through a small number of indicators. Results indicate that LCA can be an appropriate consistent and inexpensive spatial framework for assessing EI, which can be directly associated with management intervention to maintain or improve EI.

Floristic diversity and correlates of naturalization of alien flora in urban green spaces of Srinagar city

The sustainable management of green spaces in cities is crucial in achieving the challenging goal of urban sustainability. The common practice of cultivation of alien plants in urban green spaces is often associated with risk of naturalisation (i.e. escape into wild), which can have sometime adverse impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem services. To mitigate these risks, understanding patterns and processes of naturalisation of alien flora in urban green spaces becomes crucial. Here we report the floristic diversity of alien flora and correlates of its naturalisation in the green spaces of Srinagar city – one of the largest urban centres in the Himalaya. We documented 342 plant species belonging to 66 families from the green spaces of Srinagar, predominantly represented by 245 alien species (72%). Among the alien species pool, 133 species (54%) are exclusively under cultivation (non-escapes) and 112 species (46%) grow in the wild (cultivation escapes and accidentally introduced species); and of the latter, 51 were naturalised, 39 casual and 22 invasive. The cultivated alien species escaped into the wild belong to 27 families, and most prominently to the Asteraceae. Habitat-wise, plant dumping sites in the green spaces constituted the most dominant habitat of cultivation escapes. A significant relationship was revealed between the proportion of aliens under cultivation and species traits such as growth form, life span and residence time; and plant species with herbaceous growth form, annual life span and relatively longer residence time showed higher proportion of naturalisation. We found a significant correlation between abundance of the cultivation escapes and residence time (r = 0.507). The present study has generated policy-relevant data on urban green spaces of Srinagar, which can support policy regulations to steer the sustainable development of this rapidly urbanising Himalayan city.

Seascape heterogeneity modifies estuarine fish assemblages in mangrove forests

AbstractMangroves are a dominant structural habitat within tropical and subtropical estuaries that provide a number of ecosystem services, including habitat for a range of crustaceans and fish. However, mangroves are one of the most threatened estuarine habitats globally, having been severely reduced in extent, and replaced by urban structures. Here, we test for the effects of both natural (e.g. seagrass, rock and mangroves habitat extent, and connectivity) and human (e.g. extent of urban area) landscape variables on the number and type of fish inhabiting mangroves forests. We used remote underwater video stations to quantify fish assemblages within mangroves at 150 sites in 30 estuaries across Queensland, Australia. Fish community structure was best explained by the extent of mangroves and seagrasses within an estuary, the distance to the estuary mouth, and the size of the estuary and catchment. Moderate catchment size and proximity to the estuary mouth increased species richness and abundance of harvestable fish at individual mangrove sites. In order to maintain mangrove fish assemblages and the functions they provide, management initiatives should focus on maintaining natural estuarine seascapes that are located closer to the mouth of estuaries, in particular, focusing on estuaries that have lower levels of catchment urbanization.

Utilization of plants as food source from Sebaju village forest, Nanga Kebebu village, Nanga Pinoh District, Melawi Regency

Forests has a role in supporting food security programs. Sebaju Village Forest, Nanga Kebebu Village, Nanga Pinoh District, Melawi Regency is a village forest area that has the potential of non-timber forest product, one of which is that there are many plants that can be used as food for daily living needs. The research objective was to explore local knowledge of the community and to make an inventory of the types of plants used as food by the communities around the Sebaju village forest, Nanga Kebebu village, Melawi regency, as well ass to describe how to uses and process plants that are used as food by the community. The research method was purposive sampling and data collection was carried out by in-depth interviews with the community in Nanga Kebebu village. The data were analyzed descriptive qualitative in order to obtain a systematic and accurate picture. The results found 58 plant species consisting of 31 families, these plants were dominated by the Anacardiaceae family (8 species). Arecaceae and Moraceae (5 species), Sapindaceae, Phyllanthaceae, Myrtaceae, and Fabaceae (3 species), while one other family each has 1-2 species. The most dominant plant habitats were trees with 40 species (68.96%), 8 types of herbs (13.79%), 4 types of shrubs (6.89%) and the least were lianas and 3 types of shrubs. (5.17%). The part of the plant that was used the most was the fruit, namely 44 species (75.38%), 8 types of leaves (13.79%), while the parts of the plant that were least used were 2 types of tubers (3.45%), 2 types tubers (3.45%), 1 flower (1.72%), 1 seed (1.72%). The largest group of foodstuffs is fruit as much as 40 types (67%), 12 types of vegetables (20%), while the lowest is 3 types of drinks (5%), 3 types of spices (5%), and 2 tubers type (3%). The most widely used food crop processing method is directly used 33 types (56.90%), 10 types of boiled (17.24%), 6 types of sauteed (10.34%) and 5 types of chili sauce (8.62%), Meanwhile, the least used processing methods were 2 types of frying (3.45%) and 2 types of drying (3.45%). Based on their growth status, the highest growth was in the wild, consist of 34 species (59%), and the lowest was cultivated by 24 species (41%) that grew in the Sebaju customary forest area, Nanga Kebebu Village, Nanga Pinoh District, Melawi Regency. Sebaju village forest has high biodiversity as food plant and local knowledge of te community in the use of plants in the forest area makes conservation efforst better because the community strives to be able to make a sustainable management of food from forest.ÂÂ

European native oysters and associated species richness in the presence of non‐native species in a southern North Sea estuary complex

AbstractThere are growing calls to restore populations of European native oysters (Ostrea edulis), on the premise that restored populations will support a range of ecosystem services with an emphasis placed on restored oyster habitats promoting biological diversity, however benefits associated with naturally occurring O. edulis remain unclear. We undertook biannual surveys in the Blackwater, Crouch, Roach and Colne Estuaries Marine Conservation Zone (BCRC.MCZ), a highly sedimented estuary complex in the southern North Sea, to investigate links between natural densities of O. edulis (0–4.2 m−2), the prevalence of other dominant habitat features such as non‐native slipper limpet (Crepidula fornicata), dead shell abundance and epibenthic macroinvertebrate species richness. Increased epibenthic species richness was associated with O. edulis, even at densities below the OSPAR Commission recognized definition of an oyster bed (5 oysters m−2). Our analysis predicts increased associated species richness with density of native oysters (e.g., +1.6 additional species at 1 oyster m−2 or + 2.8 species at 5 oysters m−2), but only in areas with lower density of C. fornicata. Where C. fornicata are at higher density, the potential benefits of oyster restoration for associated species were curtailed. This may explain the observed asymptotic relationship between oyster density and diversity at 1 oyster m−2. In these and other high Crepidula density areas we recommend extending native oyster habitat even at low density. This may be of particular interest to areas with the protozoan oyster parasite Bonamia ostreae, which spreads more easily in high‐density areas. These lower density thresholds should also be considered for future management decisions—closing harvests so they do not reduce density further and impair biodiversity services of the habitats. In conclusion, while C. fornicata may be a useful oyster settlement substrate, we find that it limits the potential increases in associated species gains of oyster restoration.

Habitat categorisation and mapping of a seabird reserve: Ilhéu da Praia, Azores

The removal of invasive species and mitigation of habitat loss are vital conservation tools for species such as seabirds. We surveyed habitats across the entirety of a small seabird islet reserve, Ilhéu da Praia, in the Azores, two decades on from mammalian eradication and floral restoration. Here, we present a fine-scale map, to a 12 metre resolution, representing the first full habitat survey of this islet. This resource can serve as a baseline for monitoring future habitat changes to this internationally important seabird islet. Following restoration efforts in the 1990s, the islet’s dominant habitats are meadow, grassland dominated by Festuca petraea, or a combination of the two. We also report a novel observation of both Band-rumped Hydrobates castro and Monteiro’s H. monteiroi Storm Petrels breeding in the cavities of Tamarix africana, an invasive tree species.

North American Prairie Is a Source of Pollen for Managed Honey Bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae).

Prairie was a dominant habitat within large portions of North America before European settlement. Conversion of prairies to farmland resulted in the loss of a large proportion of native floral resources, contributing to the decline of native pollinator populations. Efforts to reconstruct prairie could provide honey bees (Apis mellifera) a source of much-needed forage, especially in regions dominated by crop production. To what extent honey bees, which were introduced to North America by European settlers, use plants native to prairies is unclear. We placed colonies with pollen traps within reconstructed prairies in central Iowa to determine which and how much pollen is collected from prairie plants. Honey bee colonies collected more pollen from nonnative than native plants during June and July. During August and September, honey bee colonies collected more pollen from plants native to prairies. Our results suggest that honey bees’ use of native prairie plants may depend upon the seasonality of both native and nonnative plants present in the landscape. This finding may be useful for addressing the nutritional health of honey bees, as colonies in this region frequently suffer from a dearth of forage contributing to colony declines during August and September when crops and weedy plants cease blooming. These results suggest that prairie can be a significant source of forage for honey bees in the later part of the growing season in the Midwestern United States; we discuss this insight in the context of honey bee health and biodiversity conservation.

Large Mammal Diversity in Nensebo Forest, Southern Ethiopia

There is a lack of information on mammalian faunal resources of remote forests in Ethiopia; as a result, the findings of the research on large wild mammals at Nensebo forest is one of the steps in a continuing effort to document and describe the diversity and distribution of Ethiopian mammals in remote and less accessible forests. The survey was conducted to assess the species composition and relative abundance of large mammals. Two standardized survey techniques, direct (sighting/hearing) and indirect (scat/footprint), were employed using systematically established transect lines and field plots in two dominant habitat types (modified moist Afromontane forest and intact moist Afromontane natural forest) of the study area. A total of 16 species were recorded including two endemic mammals, namely, Tragelaphus buxtoni and Tragelaphus scriptus meneliki. Abundance of species among different habitat types was not significantly different (χ2 = 0.125, df = 1,p>0.05), and Colobus guereza was the most abundant species. In contrast, Felis serval, Panthera leo, and Tragelaphus buxtoni were the least abundant species. The highest diversity index was recorded in the natural forest habitat (H′ = 2.188), and the modified forest had the lowest diversity index (H′ = 1.373). There is an urgent need to minimize threats and mitigate impacts.