Forest-associated Species Research Articles

The importance of defining focal assemblages when evaluating amphibian and reptile responses to land use.

Habitat loss and degradation are primary threats to amphibians and reptiles, but the relative effects of common land uses on assemblages and the mechanisms that underlie faunal responses are poorly studied. We reviewed the effects of four prevalent types of habitat alteration (urbanization, agriculture, livestock grazing, and silviculture) on amphibian and reptile species richness and abundance by summarizing reported responses in the literature and by estimating effect sizes across studies for species richness in each land-use type. We then used a multinomial model to classify species as natural habitat specialists, generalists, and disturbed habitat specialists and examined variation in effect sizes for each land-use type according to habitat specialization categories. There were mixed conclusions from individual studies, some reporting negative, neutral, or positive effects of land use on species richness and total abundance. A large proportion of studies reported species-specific effects of individual species abundance. However, in our analysis of effect sizes, we found a general trend of negative effects of land use on species richness. We also demonstrate that habitat associations of common species and species turnover can explain variation in the effect of land use on herpetofauna. Our review highlights the pervasive negative effects of common land uses on amphibians and reptiles, the importance of identifying groups vulnerable to land-use change (e.g., forest-associated species) in conservation studies, and the potential influence of disturbance-associated species on whole assemblage analyses.

Composition and Functional Diversity in Bird Communities in a Protected Humid Coastal Savanna

Our current understanding of the vertebrate communities of a newly gazetted Tanzanian coastal national park is limited and strongly taxonomically biased towards large mammals. We conducted bird assessments in three sites in Saadani National Park using species lists to analyze some parameters to inform biodiversity conservation in the area. We recorded 3112 individuals in 268 species falling in 66 families, including 2 endangered, 2 vulnerable, and 6 near threatened species. Both species richness and species diversity varied between sites. Species relative abundances were not different between the sites although some functional groups, especially granivores, were more abundant than others. Bird assemblages included 21 forest specialists (FF-species), 35 forest generalists (F-species), and 68 forest visitors (f-species) overlapping among bushland, wooded grassland, grassland, and thickets suggesting presence of important microhabitats for the forest-associated species in this ecosystem. Bird species richness in a feeding guild also showed marked overlap between habitats suggesting availability of rich food resources for the birds. This paper highlights the importance of maintaining a structurally heterogeneous landscape to sustain diverse bird communities in the area.

Bird Assemblages in a Malagasy Forest-Agricultural Frontier: Effects of Habitat Structure and Forest Cover

Increasing global human population and per-capita food consumption are expected to exacerbate the already massive agricultural footprint in tropical ecosystems. Madagascar is home to exceptional levels of biodiversity and is in the midst of severe land-use change, mostly driven by slash-and-burn, smallholder agriculture. Understanding the consequences of these agricultural practices for Malagasy native species is therefore of the foremost importance for the conservation of the nation's biodiversity. We surveyed bird assemblages inside and surrounding Ranomafana National Park, southeastern Madagascar, obtaining nearly 1,000 records of more than 60 species. At each study point, habitat structure was characterized by its vegetation complexity, and forest cover was quantified within circles of radii of 100, 500 and 750 m. We found that species richness was higher in forest than in agricultural areas, and responses to land-use change were found to be guild-specific, with frugivores being especially depleted outside forest areas, whereas granivores had higher species richness in the agricultural matrix. The number of recorded species with forest affinities was highly associated with landscape-scale forest cover, while open area and generalist species responded mainly to site-scale habitat structure. Our results demonstrate a turnover from forest-associated species to open area and habitat generalist species in Madagascar's smallholder agricultural areas. Our study underscores the conservation value of landscape-scale forest cover and of site-scale vegetation complexity. A double-stranded conservation approach, in which both landscape-scale forest cover and vegetation complexity are preserved would benefit conservation of the island's forest avifauna.

Poor Prospects for Avian Biodiversity in Amazonian Oil Palm

Expansion of oil palm plantations across the humid tropics has precipitated massive loss of tropical forest habitats and their associated speciose biotas. Oil palm plantation monocultures have been identified as an emerging threat to Amazonian biodiversity, but there are no quantitative studies exploring the impact of these plantations on the biome’s biota. Understanding these impacts is extremely important given the rapid projected expansion of oil palm cultivation in the basin. Here we investigate the biodiversity value of oil palm plantations in comparison with other dominant regional land-uses in Eastern Amazonia. We carried out bird surveys in oil palm plantations of varying ages, primary and secondary forests, and cattle pastures. We found that oil palm plantations retained impoverished avian communities with a similar species composition to pastures and agrarian land-uses and did not offer habitat for most forest-associated species, including restricted range species and species of conservation concern. On the other hand, the forests that the oil palm companies are legally obliged to protect hosted a relatively species-rich community including several globally-threatened bird species. We consider oil palm to be no less detrimental to regional biodiversity than other agricultural land-uses and that political pressure exerted by large landowners to allow oil palm to count as a substitute for native forest vegetation in private landholdings with forest restoration deficits would have dire consequences for regional biodiversity.

Butterfly diversity and habitat variation in a disturbed forest in northern Vietnam

Abstract. Forests provide critical habitat for tropical butterflies world-wide. However, habitat variation and disturbance within forests can affect butterfly communities and diversity in complex ways. Building on previous research and a known land-use history, we studied butterfly diversity in the mountains of Tam Dao, Vinh Phuc Province, northern Vietnam monthly from 2005 to 2008 and 2012 to examine how habitat variation affects the butterfly communities. We sampled butterflies in three different types of forest habitat: an open road in a disturbed forest (which was formerly a path in a closed-canopy forest), bamboo-dominated forest, and secondary forest. A total of 147 species and 4,685 individual butterflies were recorded. The species composition and richness of the open road within forest and the secondary forest were similar to one another but more forest-associated species were found in the secondary forest. The bamboo forest had the fewest species and had a clearly distinct butterfly community con...

The value of remnant trees in pastures for a neotropical poison frog

Abstract:Conversion of natural habitats to anthropogenic land uses is a primary cause of amphibian declines in species-rich tropical regions. However, agricultural lands are frequently used by a subset of forest-associated species, and the habitat value of a given land use is likely modified by the presence and characteristics of remnant trees. Here we used mark–recapture methods to examine abundances and movement probability of the poison frog, Oophaga pumilio, at individual trees in forest-fragment edges and adjacent pastures in north-eastern Costa Rica. One hundred and forty-seven trees were surveyed at three replicate sites that each included a forest fragment and adjacent pasture. Trees were sampled at distances of ≤30 m into forest and ≤150 m into pastures for Oophaga pumilio, and local environmental characteristics were measured at each tree. We also measured indices of physical condition (size and endurance) of frogs captured in forest edges and in nearby pastures. Analyses of 167 marked individuals showed no difference in per-tree abundances or sex ratios between pasture and forest edges. We found significant interactions between habitat type and leaf-litter cover, tree dbh and number of logs, indicating greater influence of local variables on abundances in pastures. Movement among trees was infrequent and not predicted by sex, size, habitat type or environmental variables. While results of endurance tests did not differ for individuals from the two habitats, frogs captured in pastures were, on average, larger than frogs captured in forest edges. These data indicate that remnant trees are important habitat features for O. pumilio in pastures and corroborate research in other systems that suggests that large relictual trees should be retained to maximize the potential for altered landscapes to provide habitat for native species.

Rove beetles respond heterogeneously to urbanization

Effects of urbanization on rove beetles were studied along a rural-suburban-urban forested gradient characterized by increasing human disturbance in and around Debrecen city (Hungary). Three classical and six novel hypotheses regarding the response of species to urbanization were tested. We found that overall species richness increased significantly with decreasing urbanization (i) as it is predicted by the increasing disturbance hypothesis, and contradicting (ii) the intermediate disturbance hypothesis that predicts the highest species richness in the moderately disturbed suburban area. (iii) The number of forest-associated species was significantly lower in the urban area compared to suburban and rural areas, as predicted by the habitat specialist hypothesis. All of the proposed novel hypotheses are about habitat alteration caused by the urbanization were corroborated. The (iv) richness of hygrophilous species was the highest in the rural area (hygrophilous species hypothesis), while (v) the number of thermophilous species was higher in the urban area (thermophilous species hypothesis). The richness of species directly or indirectly feeding on decaying organic materials ((vi) saprophilous, (vii) phytodetriticol, (viii) myrmecophilous, (ix) mycetophilous species hypotheses) was also highest in the rural area compared to the urban one. We stress that overall species richness is not the most appropriate indicator of the impacts of urbanization and accompanying disturbance on these beetles. Instead, habitat affinity and ecological traits of the species give more information about what habitat properties and environmental variables change drastically during urbanization.

Species-specific traits predict genetic structure but not genetic diversity of three fragmented Afrotropical forest butterfly species

The Upper Guinean forests of Ghana, West Africa, are considered among the most threatened and fragmented in the world. Little is known about the genetic consequences of fragmentation on Ghana’s forest-associated species, but this genetic signature is generally expected to differ across species. We compared patterns of mtDNA cytochrome oxidase I (COI) variation of three Nymphalid forest butterfly species that differ with respect to their relative dispersibilities (Aterica galene: high habitat fidelity, low dispersal ability; Euphaedra medon: high habitat fidelity, strong dispersal ability; Gnophodes betsimena: relaxed habitat fidelity, low dispersal ability). Individuals were collected from two large forest reserves and five small sacred forest groves. Patterns of differentiation across species were broadly coincident with our predicted hierarchy of relative species dispersibility and suggested that genetic connectivity is most compromised by strict fidelity to forest habitat rather than by raw capacity for sustained flight. Connectivity was uncorrelated with geographic distance, but instead seemed best explained by urbanization and the sequential pattern of forest loss. Genetic diversity was dramatically different among species and not easily explained by either species-specific traits or effects of fragmentation. Aterica galene, the species most impacted by fragmentation, exhibited very high diversity, whereas G. betsimena, a broadly distributed, very common species, with relaxed habitat fidelity, was genetically depauperate. There was limited evidence of genetic erosion from the sacred groves despite these small forest patches accounting for less than 1–10 % of the total area of the forest reserves, which indicates these forest relics have high conservation value.

Songbird response to green-tree retention prescriptions in clearcut forests

Green-tree retention prescriptions have been proposed as a silvicultural technique for reducing the negative impacts of clearcutting on mature forest-associated species, while still promoting habitat for early-successional species. We evaluated the effectiveness of green-tree retention for conserving mature forest-associated, generalist, and early-successional songbirds in aspen stands that were 1–15years post-harvest. We compared species occupancy estimates at sites where green-tree retention levels were exceeded (>10% canopy cover), met (3–10%), or below (<3%) recommended retention guidelines. We also compared the relative importance of these levels of green-tree retention to forest stand age in explaining songbird occurrence. With the exception of Red-eyed Vireos, our results suggest that current green-tree retention guidelines are ineffective at increasing site occupancy of mature forest-associated songbirds in aspen harvest units. Additionally, site occupancy of early-successional and generalist songbirds were unaffected by these levels of retention. Rather, site occupancy probabilities for most forest birds showed a clear association with age since harvest (1–15years); however, the strength and direction of the association varied by species. Our research highlights the importance of considering forest stand age when assessing the impact of silvicultural prescriptions on forest songbirds. Future management objectives in aspen forests should reflect the value of clearcutting to early-successional and generalist bird species, while recognizing that green-tree retention as measured in our study does little to promote occupancy of the mature forest-associated bird community.

Glacial History of a Modern Invader: Phylogeography and Species Distribution Modelling of the Asian Tiger Mosquito Aedes albopictus

BackgroundThe tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus, is one of the 100 most invasive species in the world and a vector of human diseases. In the last 30 years, it has spread from its native range in East Asia to Africa, Europe, and the Americas. Although this modern invasion has been the focus of many studies, the history of the species’ native populations remains poorly understood. Here, we aimed to assess the role of Pleistocene climatic changes in shaping the current distribution of the species in its native range.Methodology/Principal FindingsWe investigated the phylogeography, historical demography, and species distribution of Ae. albopictus native populations at the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Individuals from 16 localities from East Asia were analyzed for sequence variation at two mitochondrial genes. No phylogeographic structure was observed across the study area. Demographic analyses showed a signature of population expansion that started roughly 70,000 years BP. The occurrence of a continuous and climatically suitable area comprising Southeast China, Indochinese Peninsula, and Sundaland during LGM was indicated by species distribution modelling.Conclusions/SignificanceOur results suggest an evolutionary scenario in which, during the last glacial phase, Ae. albopictus did not experience a fragmentation phase but rather persisted in interconnected populations and experienced demographic growth. The wide ecological flexibility of the species probably played a crucial role in its response to glacial-induced environmental changes. Currently, there is little information on the impact of Pleistocene climatic changes on animal species in East Asia. Most of the studies focused on forest-associated species and suggested cycles of glacial fragmentation and post-glacial expansion. The case of Ae. albopictus, which exhibits a pattern not previously observed in the study area, adds an important piece to our understanding of the Pleistocene history of East Asian biota.

Long term variations in small mammal composition of a snake diet do not mirror climate change trends

The study of the dietary changes which have intervened over the years in generalist and opportunist predators may provide useful information on the temporal modifications of their prey communities, especially under a climate change scenario. In this study, we analysed the quantitative changes in the small mammal portion of the diet of a generalist and opportunist predator, the asp viper (Vipera aspis) at a forest zone in central Italy, for the period 1987–2010. In addition, small mammals were trapped in five of these years. Apodemus spp., Mus musculus, and Myodes glareolus were the main prey for vipers. Among the various taxa eaten by vipers, only two showed significantly consistent trends over the years, with M. glareolus increasing and Sorex spp. declining in the viper diet. There were no significant relationships between the number of years passed after the first year of sampling and the diversity and dominance indexes of prey composition. We also found a significantly positive relationship between small mammal abundance in the field and their relative frequency of occurrence in the viper's diet, thus demonstrating that vipers really sampled the small mammal species in relation to their local availability. Despite being temperate-zone forest-associated species, hence likely adversed by global warming, Sorex spp. and M. glareolus showed opposite trends over the years, thus suggesting that such trends may reflect more local scale perturbations (local forest overgrowth and diminution of logging).

Forest cover, carbon sequestration, and wildlife habitat: policy review and modeling of tradeoffs among land-use change scenarios

a b s t r a c t Local and regional governments have developed climate action plans with significant implications for forests and wildlife. The effectiveness of climate mitigation through forest carbon sequestration depends on understanding the spatial and temporal dynamics of landcover and land-use change (LCLUC). Few studies project future LCLUC effects on forest carbon sequestration, and even fewer examine the resulting consequences for forest connectivity and wildlife habitat. First, we asked what forest-relevant climate mitigation strategies have been identified in US state climate mitigation plans, and do they consider implications for wildlife habitat and forest connectivity? Second, for Wisconsin, a partially forested state, what are the effects of three future LCLUC scenarios on afforestation, forest loss, carbon sequestration and storage, forest connectivity, and wildlife habitat? The 35 US states with climate mitigation plans recommended woody biomass for biofuels or energy production (27 states), forest loss prevention (24 states), and afforestation (17 states). Most plans (24 states) anticipated positive wildlife impacts while 7 plans indicated potential negative wildlife impacts from biomass energy; only 3 plans anticipated tradeoffs among afforestation and energy production. A LCLUC model for Wisconsin revealed substantial local variation in potential afforestation and forest loss, carbon sequestration, and wildlife habitat across LCLUC scenarios that range from no change in current conditions (Static Forest) to maximum afforestation potential (All Forest). Projected increases in forest cover under the Dynamic Forest scenario equated to 0.41 TgC sequestered per year, or 1.3% of Wisconsin’s emissions of 33 TgC per year. Potential increases in core forest area and connectivity would increase habitat for 60 forest-associated species of greatest conservation need, but may decrease habitat for 48 grassland-associated species of greatest conservation need. These results indicate the importance of synergistic evaluation of multiple policy goals and LCLUC scenarios to examine tradeoffs and spatial dynamics of climate change mitigation strategies.

Indicator guilds representing forest composition and configuration in the Great Lakes – St. Lawrence forest region – A nationally replicable selection methodology

Sustainable forest management (SFM), an explicit policy objective in Canada, balances social, economic and environmental values. The status and trends of forest-associated species is one indicator of SFM, though it is under utilized due to challenges with indicator selection and data availability. This paper demonstrates and tests an indicator selection methodology which combines Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) data and LandSat land cover data to identify indicator guilds, or groups of indicator species, for a series of forest composition and configuration attributes in the Great Lakes St. Lawrence forest region. Guild performance is tested at independent sites within the region and compared with that of guilds assembled using known species’ habitat preferences, and abundance trends are reported for two periods: 1990–2007 and 1967–2007. Guilds assembled using the method proposed here describe more variation in forest composition (r-sq(adj): 41–76) than those assembled using known habitat preferences alone (r-sq(adj): 17–58). Forest configuration guilds, which were not compared with existing guilds, also describe a large proportion of variation in configuration attributes (r-sq(adj): 47–76). Guild abundance remained stable over the long and short term for most guilds with the exception of the wetland guild, which increased moderately over the long-term, and the deciduous guild which increased moderately over the short-term. Despite challenges associated with the use of bird guilds as indicators of forest composition and configuration, results presented here suggest that indicator guilds may provide useful information regarding the status and trends of regional scale forest composition and configuration attributes.

Martens in the matrix: the importance of nonforested habitats for forest carnivores in fragmented landscapes

The intervening landscape between patches of forest (i.e., matrix) has enormous potential to mitigate the negative effects of forest fragmentation. However, to release this potential requires understanding of how individual species perceive matrix. Here we investigated use of matrix by pine martens (Martes martes) in a region with low forest cover (Scotland). We radiotracked 11 martens to determine their habitat preferences, then combined our data with those published from 5 additional Scottish landscapes to examine how home-range size (i.e., population density) and diet of martens varied with forest edge density (i.e., fragmentation). Our tracking showed that although mature forest was the most preferred habitat, certain matrix habitats (scrub and tussock grassland) also were consistently selected. These 2 habitats provided martens with fundamental resources that are of limited availability within intensively managed plantation forests: den sites and primary prey (Microtus agrestis). Our synthesis of data across landscapes indicated martens benefit from supplemental resources in matrix habitats; consumption of small mammals increased with fragmentation and coincided with an initial increase in marten population densities. However, population densities of martens decreased once fragmentation passed a threshold level. Our results demonstrate that habitat complementation at the landscape-scale is essential for some forest-associated species. Resource supplementation from matrix habitats may be particularly important in regions with a long history of low-forest cover or where forest cover is now dominated by afforested plantations, which may lack essential resources.

Bryophyte response to forest canopy treatments within the riparian zone of high-elevation small streams

Riparian buffer strips are increasingly used to mitigate disturbance effects on terrestrial biota found adjacent to streams, yet it is unclear how the effects of canopy treatment (clear-cut, buffer, or intact forest) will interact with pre-existing stream–upland gradients. We questioned whether proximity to the stream would influence bryophyte richness and whether the effects of canopy treatment on bryophyte composition and functional group representation would differ along the stream–upland gradient. Bryophyte richness, abundance, and composition were sampled in continuous forest (n = 6), two-sided buffers (buffer width approximately 15 m on both stream sides; n = 10), and clear-cuts (n = 7) in the southern interior of British Columbia. At each site, bryophyte functional group frequency was sampled within 10 × 2 m belt transects located at 1, 5, and 10 m from the stream edge. Both distance from the stream and canopy treatment were strongly associated with bryophyte community variation. The richness of many functional groups was highest immediately adjacent to the stream. The richness and frequency of forest-associated species, as well as the overall extent of the bryophyte mat, had the highest values in continuous forests, intermediate values in buffers, and lowest values in clear-cuts. Although significant differences in bryophyte communities occurred between buffers and clear-cuts at all distances from the stream, differences between buffers and continuous forest were nonsignificant. These results indicate that riparian buffers can play an important role in the mitigation of harvesting effects on the bryologically rich communities along small headwater streams.

Pleistocene genetic connectivity in a widespread, open-habitat-adapted mosquito in the Indo-Oriental region

Aim The environmental effect of Pleistocene climatic change in the Indo-Oriental region has resulted in allopatric fragmentation and the generation of diversity in forest-associated species. The aim of this study was to determine the extent to which Pleistocene climatic change has resulted in the fragmentation and speciation of an open-habitat-adapted mosquito, Anopheles vagus s.l., across its range. Location Anopheles vagus s.l. was sampled across the Indo-Oriental region. Methods We generated 116 mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) and 121 nuclear internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) DNA sequences from 18 populations. Relationships between mitochondrial haplotypes were reconstructed using minimum spanning networks, and population structure was examined using analyses of molecular variance. The population history, including lineage divergence times, population expansion and gene flow, was inferred using beast and the isolation with migration (IM) model. Results There was no evidence to support the presence of the endemic Philippines species, A. limosus; instead, Philippine populations were closely related to, and derived from, A. vagus on the eastern Southeast Asian mainland. The most distinct populations were those from Java and East Timor, which differed from all other populations by all individuals having a 4-bp insertion in the ITS2 sequence. The corresponding mitochondrial haplotypes had an estimated divergence time of 2.6 Ma [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.9–3.6 Ma]. Haplotype networks and analysis of molecular variance for COI supported western (Sri Lanka, India and Myanmar) and eastern (Thailand, Singapore, Cambodia, Vietnam and the Philippines) population groupings. This grouping structure results from the divergence of an eastern and a western mitochondrial lineage, estimated to have occurred 0.37 Ma (95% CI 0.26–0.55 Ma). Subsequent migration from the east to the west (0.16 Ma) is inferred to have created an admixture zone in Myanmar and Thailand. Main conclusions With the possible exception of populations from Java and East Timor, A. vagus appears to be one widespread genetically diverse taxon across its extensive range. The abundance of grassland during long interglacial periods may have facilitated population connectivity and range expansion across the Oriental and western Australasian regions.

Ground-dwelling invertebrates in reforested conifer plantations

Plantation forests are an important part of the forest estate in many countries. In Ireland, they cover around 9% of the land area and many that are commercially mature are now being felled and reforested. The potential biodiversity value of such second rotation forests has yet to be determined, yet this may be particularly significant in Ireland where cover of semi-natural woodland is only 1%. Invertebrates are a vital component of forest biodiversity, functioning as decomposers and pollinators, herbivores, predators and prey. Spiders and Carabid beetles are often used in biodiversity assessment as they are easily captured using pitfall traps, are taxonomically well known and respond to changes in habitat structure. This study aimed to examine spider and Carabid beetle diversity in second rotation Sitka spruce ( Picea sitchensis) plantations at different stages of the forest cycle (5, 8–12, 20–30, 35–50 years), and compare the spiders captured in second rotation forests with those from first rotation. Spider and beetle diversity was influenced by stand structural development in second rotation plantations with numbers of forest-associated species increasing over the forest cycle. Overall, spider richness declined over the forest cycle and this was related to decreasing cover of field layer vegetation and fewer open-associated species. In contrast, total beetle richness increased and became more specialised over the forest cycle which may be related to slower colonisation of disturbed areas by beetles in comparison with spiders, and fewer open specialists at the early stages of second rotation. Spider assemblages were distinguished between rotations. This may be related to differing habitat conditions in second rotation forests including dryer soils with lower pH, differing vegetation complexity and presence of brush piles. Few of the forest species accumulated during first rotation were retained and the early stages of second rotation forest cycle was characterised by a generalist open fauna. Nonetheless, as the forest cycle progressed the spider assemblages between rotations became more similar. Current forest policy supports retaining over-mature trees and creating a mosaic of different aged stands within a plantation. Such measures may provide refuge for forest species after clearfell. In countries where forest fragments exist in a landscape dominated by agriculture, consideration should be given to the capacity of mature forest adjacent to felled stands to support forest species, and to the configuration of over-mature areas retained after felling.

Occurrences of forest butterflies in the farm bush savannah outside a forest reserve in Ghana, West Africa

The willingness of a species to leave a forest fragment is a prerequisite for subsequent dispersal across the intervening non-forested landscape. Species with stringent fidelity to the forest patch will be isolated from populations in other fragments and predisposed to factors that promote extinction of local populations. Here, we document which fruit-feeding, forest-dwelling butterflies occur in the farm bush savannah outside an afrotropical forest reserve in order to gain a first approximation of those potentially dispersing across it. Standard fruit-baited traps hung at 80 m inside the forest, the forest edge and 12 and 50 m into the savannah matrix were used to characterize communities in the different habitats. A total of 1616 specimens were collected from the 19 traps, representing 90 species. Rarefied species richness was generally comparable across habitats. Multivariate ordination analyses, which integrate species composition and relative abundance in addition to richness, uncovered two broad community types, i.e. forest (edge plus 80 m inside) and matrix. Relative fidelity to forest habitat was investigated for the 45 species that were represented by at least five individuals. More than half of the forest-associated species showed relaxed fidelity to forest habitat and were commonly trapped in the matrix. Although forest generalists and dry forest species were expected to be more commonly trapped outside the forest relative to wet or moist forest species, there was no relationship between the relative occurrence of species in matrix versus forest habitat and their habitat association category.

The Bee Fauna of Residential Gardens in a Suburb of New York City (Hymenoptera: Apoidea)

AbstractAs suburban landscapes expand, it is critical to understand their capacity to support wildlife. Pollinators, specifically bees (Hymenoptera: Apoidea: Anthophila), are to some degree compatible with urbanization and may be able to exist in suburbs in diverse assemblages. We surveyed 21 residential gardens for bees in Westchester County, a suburban area immediately north of New York City. From a sample of 1,675 individuals, we documented 110 species, of which 95% were native, 50% were solitary, and 93% were polylectic. In terms of abundance of specimens, eusocial (50% of specimens), native (97%), and polylectic (98%) bees were dominant. Contrary to our expectation, based on previous bee surveys in urban landscapes, the bee community documented was not depauperate in either soil-nesting or parasitic species (65 and 19% of species, respectively), nor was it enriched in exotic species (6% of species). Instead, the assemblage resembled the richer bee fauna documented at a 1,520-ha research preserve (forest) located in the same region, although certain specialist (oligolectic) and/or forest-associated species were absent. These results suggest that suburban landscapes in eastern North America have the potential to host relatively diverse and intact bee communities.

Distribution and composition of carabid beetle (Coleoptera, Carabidae) communities across the plantation forest cycle—Implications for management

If national afforestation targets are met, the proportion of area under plantation forest cover in Ireland will almost double by the year 2030 to 17%, and will consist of mostly non-native trees. There is an urgent and vital need to assess and to maximise the biodiversity potential of these forests. This study compares carabid beetle (Coleoptera, Carabidae) composition and assemblage patterns across different stages of the forest cycle, in addition to intensive grassland habitats, the habitat the plantation forest will most likely be replacing. The clearfell habitat had the highest median species richness, while the grassland habitat had the highest species diversity, but lowest species dominance. Ordination analysis revealed that the species assemblages of all stages of the forest cycle could be clearly separated from the grassland habitat, while differences were also observed between forest stages. Canonical correspondence analysis revealed that the most significant factors influencing carabid community composition were percent cover of ground vegetation and mosses, and also percent soil moisture. Differences in species with varying physical traits and microhabitat preferences were also observed between habitats, with larger, brachypterous species positively associated with increasing canopy cover and smaller macropterous species displaying the opposite pattern. The presence and abundance of forest-associated species increased with increasing plantation age, with a corresponding decrease in open habitat-associated and generalist species. The results of this study suggest that at the landscape scale, a variety of different aged forest stands would maximise the biodiversity potential of the planned afforestation.