High-elevation Areas Research Articles

Undeveloped till soils in scree areas are an overlooked important phosphorus source for waters in alpine catchments

Scree deposits in alpine catchments contain undeveloped till soils that are “hidden” between and under stones. These scree areas have no vegetation except for sparse lichen patches on stone surfaces, but the soils exhibit biological activity and active cycling of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and organic carbon (C). We compared the chemical and biochemical properties of till soils in the scree areas (scree soils) with developed soils in alpine meadows (meadow soils) of 14 catchments in the alpine zone of the Tatra Mountains. The data showed that scree soils served as an important source of mobile P forms for waters in high elevation catchments. We then conducted a detailed soil survey focused on four selected alpine catchments with scree cover proportions > 30%. This study confirmed that scree soils have significantly higher concentrations of mobile P forms compared to meadow soils, and a high specific microbial activity directed towards the extraction of P with rapid turnover in the microbial biomass. The combination of these properties and the amounts of scree soils in high-elevation areas highlight their importance in overall biogeochemical P cycling in alpine catchments, and the terrestrial P export to receiving waters.

Habitat Distribution Pattern of Rare and Endangered Plant Magnolia wufengensis in China under Climate Change

Magnolia wufengensis is a newly discovered rare and endangered species endemic to China. The primary objective of this study is to find the most suitable species distribution models (SDMs) by comparing the different SDMs to predict their habitat distribution for protection and introduction in China under climate change. SDMs are important tools for studying species distribution patterns under climate change, and different SDMs have different simulation effects. Thus, to identify the potential habitat for M. wufengensis currently and in the 2050s (2041–2060) and 2070s (2061–2080) under different climate change scenarios (representative concentration pathways RCP2.6, RCP4.5, RCP6.0, and RCP8.5) in China, four SDMs, Maxent, GARP, Bioclim, and Domain, were first used to compare the predicted habitat and explore the dominant environmental factors. The four SDMs predicted that the potential habitats were mainly south of 40° N and east of 97° E in China, with a high distribution potential under current climate conditions. The area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve (AUC) (0.9479 ± 0.0080) was the highest, and the Kappa value (0.8113 ± 0.0228) of the consistency test and its performance in predicting the potential suitable habitat were the best in the Maxent model. The minimum temperature of the coldest month (−13.36–9.84 °C), mean temperature of the coldest quarter (−6.06–12.66 °C), annual mean temperature (≥4.49 °C), and elevation (0–2803.93 m), were the dominant factors. In the current climate scenario, areas of 46.60 × 104 km2 (4.85%), 122.82 × 104 km2 (12.79%), and 96.36 × 104 km2 (10.03%), which were mainly in central and southeastern China, were predicted to be potential suitable habitats of high, moderate, and low suitability, respectively. The predicted suitable habitats will significantly change by the 2050s (2040–2060) and 2070s (2060–2080), suggesting that M. wufengensis will increase in high-elevation areas and shift northeast with future climate change. The comparison of current and future suitable habitats revealed declines of approximately 4.53%–29.98% in highly suitable habitats and increases of approximately 6.45%–27.09% and 0.77%–21.86% in moderately and lowly suitable habitats, respectively. In summary, these results provide a theoretical basis for the response to climate change, protection, precise introduction, cultivation, and rational site selection of M. wufengensis in the future.

Assessing spatiotemporal patterns of mesocarnivores along an urban‐to‐rural gradient

AbstractRapid increases in human development and activity are affecting the spatial and temporal dynamics of mammalian mesocarnivore communities. We used 40 motion‐sensitive cameras along an urban‐to‐rural gradient, and single‐season occupancy models, to evaluate the habitat use of a local mesocarnivore guild (coyote [Canis latrans], bobcat [Lynx rufus], red fox [Vulpes vulpes], gray fox [Urocyon cinereoargenteus], and raccoon [Procyon lotor]) near Newburgh, New York, USA, during May–September 2021. Additionally, we fit circular kernel density estimations to assess how mesocarnivores may alter their diel and nocturnal activity patterns in response to human development. Red foxes were positively associated with urban areas and were also significantly more active at night in semiurban areas versus rural and urban locations. Coyotes demonstrated some adaptability to urban areas, being generally more nocturnal as urbanization increased but were also more likely to use higher elevation sites and areas with more natural habitat cover. We did not find support for a spatial shield hypothesis, as red foxes and raccoons were often detected in the same semiurban and urban sites as coyotes. Bobcats generally avoided human‐dominated areas, whereas raccoons were ubiquitous throughout the gradient and exhibited similar daily and nocturnal activity levels in all land cover types. Overall, our results document how anthropogenic disturbance may alter mesocarnivore community structure and landscape use, providing information for managing urban carnivore populations and mitigating human–wildlife conflict, particularly at the local scale.

NDVI Analysis for Monitoring Land-Cover Evolution on Selected Deglaciated Areas in the Gran Paradiso Group (Italian Western Alps)

The ongoing climate warming is affecting high-elevation areas, reducing the extent and the duration of glacier and snow covers, driving a widespread greening effect on the Alpine region. The impact assessment requires therefore the integration of the geomorphological context with altitudinal and ecological features of the study areas. The proposed approach introduces chronologically-constrained zones as geomorphological evidence for selecting deglaciated areas in the alpine and non-alpine belts. In the present study, the protected and low-anthropic-impacted areas of the Gran Paradiso Group (Italian Western Alps) were analysed using Landsat NDVI time series (1984–2022 CE). The obtained results highlighted a progressive greening even at a higher altitude, albeit not ubiquitous. The detected NDVI trends showed, moreover, how the local factors trigger the greening in low-elevation areas. Spectral reflectance showed a general decrease over time, evidencing the progressive colonisation of recently deglaciated surfaces. The results improved the discrimination between different greening rates in the deglaciated areas of the Alpine regions. The geomorphological-driven approach showed significant potential to support the comprehension of these processes, especially for fast-changing areas such as the high mountain regions.

Transport Analysis of Copper in Boac River Marinduque, Philippines

In 1996, over 1.6 million cubic meters of mine tailings were released along Boac River, Marinduque, Philippines declaring it biologically dead. Numerous studies found traces of heavy metals along this river, and bioaccumulation became a problem. Several heavy metals contaminating the river were reported to be ingestible by humans; one of which is Copper (Cu). With that, this study investigated Cu dispersion in the downstream area of Boac River. This was first done by coordinating with the “Development of Health Index: Vulnerability to Extreme Environmental Events for Marinduque island.” (D-HIVE) project in collecting the water quality data, rainfall data, and digital elevation models (DEMs). Using the Hydrologic Engineering Center’s River Analysis System (HEC-RAS) 6.2, the analyses were conducted by inputting the collected data. The flood hazard maps showed minimal spread in high-elevation areas and distinct spread in low-lying areas. The highest flood velocity was in the starting and middle points of the watershed, indicating these areas have the highest potential to liftCu content and transport it into the downstream area and floodplain. The spatial variability maps showed that pH increases while Cu content decreases as water flows toward the downstream area. Overall, this study successfully determined the dispersion of Cu along Boac River.

Quantifying climate variability and regional anthropogenic influence on vegetation dynamics in northwest India

To explore the spatio-temporal dynamics and mechanisms underlying vegetation cover in Haryana State, India, and implications thereof, we obtained MODIS EVI imagery together with CHIRPS rainfall and MODIS LST at annual, seasonal and monthly scales for the period spanning 2000 to 2022. Additionally, MODIS Potential Evapotranspiration (PET), Ground Water Storage (GWS), Soil Moisture (SM) and nighttime light datasets were compiled to explore their spatial relationships with vegetation and other selected environmental parameters. Non-parametric statistics were applied to estimate the magnitude of trends, along with correlation and residual trend analysis to quantify the relative influence of Climate Change (CC) and Human Activities (HA) on vegetation dynamics using Google Earth Engine algorithms. The study reveals regional contrasts in trends that are evidently related to elevation. An annual increasing trend in rainfall (21.3 mm/decade, p < 0.05), together with augmented vegetation cover and slightly cooler (−0.07 °C/decade) LST is revealed in the high-elevation areas. Meanwhile, LST in the plain regions exhibit a warming trend (0.02 °C/decade) and decreased in vegetation and rainfall, accompanied by substantial reductions in GWS and SM related to increased PET. Linear regression demonstrates a strongly significant relationship between rainfall and EVI (R2 = 0.92), although a negative relationship is apparent between LST and vegetation (R2 = −0.83). Additionally, increased LST in the low-elevation parts of the study area impacted PET (R2 = 0.87), which triggered EVI loss (R2 = 0.93). Moreover, increased HA resulted in losses of 25.5 mm GSW and 1.5 mm SM annually. The relative contributions of CC and HA are shown to vary with elevation. At higher elevations, CC and HA contribute respectively 85% and 15% to the increase in EVI. However, at lower elevations, reduced EVI is largely (79%) due to human activities. This needs to be considered in managing the future of vulnerable socio-ecological systems in the state of Haryana.

Water Distribution Challenges in Northeast Trinidad and Tobago

Provision of a reliable supply of water with adequate pressures is a paramount challenge for the water distribution network in Northeast Trinidad and Tobago. Customers in this region, served by the Water and Sewerage Authority of Trinidad and Tobago experience difficulties in obtaining a pipe borne supply of water as they reside on areas of high elevation or are at the farthest end of the distribution system. Areas where water supply challenges are a problem are Oropoune Gardens Piarco, Upper Five Rivers Arouca, Windy Hill Arouca, Edna Hill Arouca, Lillian Heights Arouca, The Foothills Arouca, Pineridge Heights Housing Development and Ridgeview Heights Housing Development Bon Air North. Sources of supply to these impacted areas are the North Oropouche Water Treatment Plant, the Hollis Water Treatment Plant, the Tacarigua High Lift Station and Arouca wells. Challenges in the water supply are a consequence of obsolete pipelines, numerous leaks, failure of mechanical equipment and a shortened duration of supply. This paper identifies the inefficiencies and challenges of the water distribution system in this region by simulating flow through crucial transmission and distribution pipelines using ANSYS Fluent simulation. The Hazen-Williams equation was used to calculate frictional pressure loss in the respective crucial pipelines. Using the results from both analyses, prospective solutions to alleviate and eliminate the inadequate water supply experiences faced by customers in these areas were advocated.

Untangling the increasing elevation of cropland in China from 1980 to 2020

The redistribution of cropland to areas of higher elevation in China has long affected agricultural development and could seriously threaten national food security. However, there is currently little research reported on this phenomenon, which may limit the improvement of cropland protection policies. To fill this gap, we analyzed the spatiotemporal characteristics and driving mechanisms of increased cropland elevation in China during the period 1980–2020. The average cropland elevation in China increased by 17.38 m from 1980 to 2020. The gravity center of the cropland area and average cropland elevation in China moved to the northwest by 81.00 km and 51.47 km, respectively. The amount of newly added cropland in eastern China was less than that in occupied regions; however, the average elevation of newly added cropland was greater than that of occupied cropland, though the opposite phenomenon was observed in western China. Slope, temperature, land-use intensity, population, economic density, and distance to main roads were the main factors affecting the redistribution of cropland to areas of higher elevation. The effects of these major driving factors exhibited significant spatial and temporal variations in China. This study has important implications for improving existing cropland protection policies and developing more effective cropland management systems in China.

Preliminary checklist of butterfly diversity from the Himachal Pradesh Agricultural University, Palampur, India

Butterflies are the bio-indicator species for monitoring the health of the ecosystem. A preliminary checklist of the butterfly diversity was prepared by a long-term survey from 2019 to 2022 in varied habitats in the agriculture landscape of the Himachal Pradesh Agriculture University (HPAU), India. The study recorded 77 butterfly species belonging to six families Nymphalidae, Pieridae, Lycaenidae, Hesperiidae, Papilionidae and Riodinidae. In addition, there are some rare records of butterfly species such as Common Wall (Lasiommata schakra), Dark Blue Tiger (Tirumala septentrionis), Ringed Argus (Callerebia annada) and Pioneer (Belenois aurota). Some butterflies are habitat specific and few also show local migration from high-elevation areas of the surrounding Dhauladhar ranges. The preliminary checklist prepared from the present study was also compared with Central University of Himachal Pradesh (CUHP) located in the similar landscape of the study area. This will help to understand the long-term effect of habitat degradation from human-modified environment and agricultural activities to facilitate effective conservation strategies to protect Himalayan ecosystem.

Identifying climate change refugia for South American biodiversity.

Refugia-based conservation strategies offer long-term effectiveness and minimize uncertainty on strategies for climate change adaptation. Here, we use distribution modelling to identify climate change refugia for 617 terrestrial mammals and quantify the role of protected areas in safeguarding these zones across South America. Moist tropical forests located in high-elevation areas with complex topography concentrated the highest local diversity of species refugia, although regionally important refugia centers were also found elsewhere. Andean Amazon forests were revealed as "Anthropocene museums", hosting climate change refugia for more than half the continental species' pool and up to 87 species locally (17×17 km2 grid cell). The highland zones of the Southern Atlantic Forest also included megadiverse refugia, safeguarding up to 76 species per cell. Almost half of the species that may find refugia in the Atlantic Forest will do so in a single region - the Serra do Mar and Serra do Espinhaço. Most of the refugia highlighted here, however, are not covered by protected areas, which may shelter less than 6% of the total area of climate change refugia, leaving 129 to 237 species with no refugia inside the territorial limits of protected areas of any kind. Those results reveal a dismal scenario on the level of refugia protection in some of the most biodiverse regions of the world. Nonetheless, because refugia areas tend to be located in high-elevation, topographically complex and remote areas, with lower economic pressure, formally protecting them may require a comparatively modest investment. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

The Interannual Relationship between the Diabatic Heating over the South Asia and the Snow Depth over the Southern Tibetan Plateau in Late Spring to Early Summer: Roles of the Air Temperature

The southern Tibetan Plateau (TP) is snow covered during cold season but exhibits faster snow melting in early summer. Using in situ observations and improved satellite-derived data, the present study indicates that the snow depth (SD) over the southern TP exhibits distinction characteristics between late spring (i.e., P1: April 16th–May 15th) and early summer (i.e., P2: May 16th–June 14th). In terms of climate states, the snow melting rate over the southern TP in P2 is faster than that in P1. The acceleration of snow melting during P2 is mainly found over high elevation areas caused by the increase of local air temperature. Diagnoses of the thermodynamic equation further demonstrate that the warming over the southern TP during the two periods is mainly attributed to the meridional temperature advection and diabatic heating in situ. On the interannual time scale, the SD over the southern TP is closely related to diabatic heating over South Asia. During P1, the diabatic cooling from the southern Bay of Bengal eastward to the western South China Sea suppresses convection over the Bay of Bengal and southern TP and has resulted in an upper-level anomalous cyclone and cold temperature anomalies from the surface to 200 hPa over the southern TP, favoring the above-normal SD over the southern TP. On the other hand, SD over the southern TP in P2 is closely related to diabatic cooling over the northern Indochina Peninsula and diabatic heating over the southern China. But we could not prove that these diabatic heating anomalies can affect the SD over the southern TP by modulating local surface air temperature. This may be limited by the quality of the data and the simulation capability of the simple model.

Mineralización de afinidad granítica en la porción central del batolito de Colangüil. Provincia de San Juan, Argentina

The central portion of the Batholith of Colangüil belongs to the Frontal Range and is located in the northwest of San Juan province, Argentina. It includes different granite units of Permian in age: Romo, Conconta, and Agua Blanca. These intrude the Cerro Agua Negra Formation, an Upper Carboniferous - Asselian sedimentary unit. These units are partially covered by volcaniclastic rocks of the Choiyoi Group, lower Permian-Triassic in age. The region was characterized by mineral extractions during the last century. Metalliferous mineralization has been recognized in the higher elevation areas of the Conconta and Agua Blanca plutons, with an early paragenesis of wolframite, fluorite, niobium, and quartz, and later deposition of scheelite, in quartz gangue. The latter was observed in the Agua Blanca pluton. The tectonic of the Cisuralian Permian San Rafael phase, compressive in nature, affected mainly the Cerro Agua Negra Formation. An oriented NW-SE fault array on the aforementioned igneous and sedimentary units stands out. Two regional fracturing axes limit laterally this sector of the batholith and match the location of the mineral deposits. A greater ascent of granite basement blocks can be seen to the south of the Conconta pluton and in the surroundings of the Agua Blanca pluton, based both on the intense erosion of its sedimentary host rock and by the little development of mineralization in the Romo sector. The fluid inclusion assemblages present in the veins of the Conconta and Romo sectors are linked with saline and carbonic fluid types, typical of the tungsten deposition cycle.

Vertical accretion rates of mangroves in northeast Brazil: Implications for future responses and management

Northeast (NE) Brazil has a semi-arid climate and low plant diversity mangroves confined to estuaries influenced by a meso-tidal regime (∼2.5 m). Whilst these mangroves are protected by state and federal legislation, large areas have been lost to urban encroachment and shrimp farms, a situation continuing today. This work discusses the potential impacts of sea level rise on mangroves in three estuaries in NE Brazil. The three sites witness decreasing annual precipitation associated with global climate change, which will have the dual effect of increasing water and salinity stress, decreasing productivity, as well as reducing inputs of allochthonous fluvial material. Simultaneously, since the 1990's local sea level rise (3.5 mm/yr) has been greater than the global average (3.2 mm/yr). Average accretion rates, derived from 137Cs and 210Pb dating in fringing mangroves in this study, are likely to be insufficient to maintain surface elevation and keep pace with sea level rise. Notwithstanding, historical data suggest that there has been no recorded mangrove loss as a result of sea level rise and in some areas a recorded gain in the upper estuarine mangrove reaches. At present there are limited inputs from the watershed in all three estuaries, mostly due to decreasing annual rainfall and river damming, limiting the transport capacity and hampering the export of sediments to the fringing mangroves and the sea and limiting the ability of the fringing mangroves to respond to sea level rise. However, this has been suggested to result in the accumulation of soils along river margins further upstream forming new islands and potentially expanding estuarine mangroves upstream. Both the fringing and the estuarine mangroves are surrounded by both licensed and unlicensed settlements, as well as dunes preventing expansion into higher elevation areas as a response to sea level rise. Recent changes to legislation protecting these ecosystems put a further strain on adaptation and resilience capacity, increasing the threat to these important coastal systems and the ecosystem services they provide.

Spatial mismatch between wild bee diversity hotspots and protected areas.

Wild bees are critical for multiple ecosystem functions but are currently threatened. Understanding the determinants of the spatial distribution of wild bee diversity is a major research gap for their conservation. We modeled wild bee α and β taxonomic and functional diversity in Switzerland to uncover countrywide diversity patterns and determine the extent to which they provide complementary information, assess the importance of the different drivers structuring wild bee diversity, identify hotspots of wild bee diversity, and determine the overlap between diversity hotspots and the network of protected areas. We used site-level occurrence and trait data from 547 wild bee species across 3343 plots and calculated community attributes, including taxonomic diversity metrics, community mean trait values, and functional diversity metrics. We modeled their distribution with predictors describing gradients of climate, resource availability (vegetation), and anthropogenic influence (i.e., land-use types and beekeeping intensity). Wild bee diversity changed along gradients of climate and resource availability; high-elevation areas had lower functional and taxonomic α diversity, and xeric areas harbored more diverse bee communities. Functional and taxonomic β diversities diverged from this pattern, with high elevations hosting unique species and trait combinations. The proportion of diversity hotspots included in protected areas depended on the biodiversity facet, but most diversity hotspots occurred in unprotected land. Climate and resource availability gradients drove spatial patterns of wild bee diversity, resulting in lower overall diversity at higher elevations, but simultaneously greater taxonomic and functional uniqueness. This spatial mismatch among distinct biodiversity facets and the degree of overlap with protected areas is a challenge to wild bee conservation, especially in the face of global change, and calls for better integrating unprotected land. The application of spatial predictive models represents a valuable tool to aid the future development of protected areas and achieve wild bee conservation goals.

Supervised Machine Learning and Bayesian Regression Kriging with Application to COVID-19 Incidences in Sub-Saharan Africa

Since COVID-19 invasion of the World, human life has been affected greatly. Several studies have shown a positive correlation between COVID-19 infections and pre-existing conditions such as Diabetes, Cancer, Tuberculosis, and Hypertension. In this study, we would like to determine whether demographic variables have a contribution to the spread of COVID-19 infections. We will apply a machine language method to select the demographic variables which are impactful in the spread of COVID-19 cases in Sub-Saharan Africa. Then we shall determine the nature of COVID-19 cases patterns applying the K-Nearest Neighbor (KNN) in calculating the neighborhood weights between locations/countries. The weights would then be tested for significance to conclude whether the cases patterns are either random, sparsely or clustered. We would then perform simulations to estimate the social demographic/covariates/fixed effects parameters and the random effects parameters. The Bayesian Kriging would be applied to predict Covid-19 cases based on the estimated social demographical variables coefficients/parameters and the random effects parameters in unknown/new locations in Sub Saharan Africa with a known uncertainty. The results showed that Children aged (0-14) years living with HIV AIDS, Prevalence of HIV Total (percentage of population ages 15-49) and Access to electricity (as a percentage of the population) was estimated to contribute to the increase of COVID-19 cases. Prediction of the COVID-19 cases in unknown locations showed that most of the cases were predicted in the elevated locations/areas than in the lower/flatter locations. This could mean that high elevated areas are associated with lower temperatures which increases the spread of COVID-19 cases as opposed to lower/flatter areas which are associated with higher temperatures which reduces the spread of COVID-19 cases.

Performance evaluation of CMIP6 GCMs for the projections of precipitation extremes in Pakistan

Extreme weather events are more detrimental to human culture and ecosystems than typical weather patterns. A multimodel ensemble (MME) of the top-performing global climate models (GCMs) to simulate 11 precipitation extremes was selected using a hybrid method to project their changes in Pakistan. It also compared the benefits of using all GCMs compared to using only selected GCMs when projecting precipitation extremes for two future periods (2020–2059) and (2060–2099) for four shared socioeconomic pathways (SSPs), SSP1-2.6, SSP2-4.5, SSP3-7.0 and SSP5-8.5. Results showed that EC-Earth3-Veg, MRI-ESM2-0 and NorESM2-MM performed best among GCMs in simulating historical and projecting future precipitation extremes. Compared to the MME of all GCMs, the uncertainty in future projections of all precipitation indices of the selected GCMs were significantly smaller. The MME median of the selected GCMs showed increased precipitation extremes over most of Pakistan. The greater increases were in RX1day by 6–12 mm, RX5day by 12–20 mm, Prcptot by 40–50 mm, R95ptot by greater than 30 mm, R99ptot by more than 9 mm, R4mm ≥ 4 mm by 0–4 days, R10mm by 2–6 days, R20mm by 1–3 days, and SDII by 1 mm/day, CWD by one day, CDD by 0–4 days in the northern high elevated areas for SSP5-8.5 in the late future. These results emphasize the greater influence of climate change on precipitation extremes in the northern, high-elevation areas, which provide the majority of the country’s water. This emphasizes the necessity to adopt suitable climate change mitigation strategies for sustainable development, particularly in the country's northern regions.

Potential distribution of Leptotrombidium scutellare in Yunnan and Sichuan Provinces, China, and its association with mite-borne disease transmission

BackgroundLeptotrombidium scutellare is one of the six main vectors of scrub typhus in China and is a putative vector of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS). This mite constitutes a large portion of the chigger mite community in southwest China. Although empirical data on its distribution are available for several investigated sites, knowledge of the species’ association with human well-being and involvement in the prevalence of mite-borne diseases remains scarce.MethodsOccurrence data on the chigger mite were obtained from 21 years (2001–2021) of field sampling. Using boosted regression tree (BRT) ecological models based on climate, land cover and elevation variables, we predicted the environmental suitability for L. scutellare in Yunnan and Sichuan Provinces. The potential distribution range and shifts in the study area for near-current and future scenarios were mapped and the scale of L. scutellare interacting with human activities was evaluated. We tested the explanatory power of the occurrence probability of L. scutellare on incidences of mite-borne diseases.ResultsElevation and climate factors were the most important factors contributing to the prediction of the occurrence pattern of L. scutellare. The most suitable habitats for this mite species were mainly concentrated around high-elevation areas, with predictions for the future showing a trend towards a reduction. Human activity was negatively correlated with the environmental suitability of L. scutellare. The occurrence probability of L. scutellare in Yunnan Province had a strong explanatory power on the epidemic pattern of HFRS but not scrub typhus.ConclusionsOur results emphasize the exposure risks introduced by L. scutellare in the high-elevation areas of southwest China. Climate change may lead to a range contraction of this species towards areas of higher elevation and lessen the associated exposure risk. A comprehensive understanding of the transmission risk requires more surveillance efforts.Graphical

Comparative assessment of morphological, physiological and phytochemical attributes of cultivated Valeriana jatamansi Jones in Uttarakhand, West Himalaya

Medicinal plants are global sources of herbal products, drugs, and cosmetics. They are disappearing rapidly due to anthropogenic pressure, overexploitation, unsustainable harvesting, lack of knowledge on cultivation, and the availability of quality plating materials. In this context, standardized in-vitro propagation protocol was followed to produce Valeriana jatamansi Jones, and transferred in two locations at Kosi-Katarmal (GBP) Almora (1200 masl) and Sri Narayan Ashram (SNA) Pithoragarh (Altitude 2750 masl), Uttarakhand. Over the three years of growth, plants were gathered from both locations for determining biochemical and physiological parameters, and growth performance. The plants growing at Sri Narayan Ashram (SNA) showed considerably (p < 0.05) higher amounts of polyphenolics, antioxidant activities, and phenolic compounds. Similarly, physiological parameters (transpiration 0.004 mol m−2 s−1; photosynthesis 8.20 μmol m−2 s−1; stomatal conductance 0.24 mol m−2 s−1), plant growth performance (leaves number 40, roots number 30, root length 14 cm) and soil attributes (total nitrogen 9.30; potassium 0.025; phosphorus 0.34 mg/g, respectively) were found best in the SNA as compared to GBP. In addition, moderate polar solvent (i.e., acetonitrile and methanol) was found suitable for extracting higher bioactive constituents from plants. The findings from this study revealed that large-scale cultivation of V. jatamansi should promote at higher elevation areas such as Sri Narayan Ashram to harness the maximum potential of the species. Such a protective approach with the right interventions will be helpful to provide livelihood security to the local populace along with quality material for commercial cultivation. This can fulfill the demand through regular supply of raw material to the industries and simultaneously promote their conservation.

Biogeography of the theileriosis vector, Rhipicephalus appendiculatus under current and future climate scenarios of Zimbabwe

Climate directly influences the epidemiology of vector-borne diseases at various spatial and temporal scales. Following the recent increased incidences of theileriosis in Zimbabwe, a disease mainly transmitted by Rhipicephalus appendiculatus, we determined lethal temperatures for the species and current and possible future distribution using the machine learning algorithm ‘Maxent’. Rhipicephalus appendiculatus larvae had an upper lethal temperature (ULT50) of about 44 ± 0.5 °C and this was marginally higher for nymphs and adults at 46 ± 0.5 °C. Environmental temperatures recorded in selected zonal tick microhabitats were below the determined lethal limits, indicating the ability of the tick to survive these regions. The resultant model under current climatic conditions showed areas with high suitability indices to the eastern, northeastern and southeastern parts of the country, mainly in Masvingo, Manicaland and Mashonaland Central provinces. Future predictions as determined by 2050 climatic conditions indicate a reduction in suitable habitats with the tick receding to presently cooler high elevation areas such as the eastern Highlands of Zimbabwe and a few isolated pockets in the interior of the country. Lowveld areas show low suitability under current climatic conditions and are expected to remain unsuitable in future. Overall, the study shows that R. appendiculatus distribution is constrained by climatic factors and helps identify areas of where occurrence of the species and the disease it transmits is highly likely. This will assist in optimizing disease surveillance and vector management strategies targeted at the species.

First cladistic analysis of Toxotarsinae (Diptera: Calliphoridae), with insights on the evolution of the group and on the transformation series of some historically controversial characters.

Toxotarsinae is a subfamily of Calliphoridae (Diptera: Calyptratae: Oestroidea) with 11 species currently distributed in three genera: Neta Shannon, 1926, Sarconesia Bigot, 1857, and Toxotarsus Macquart, 1851. All known species are endemic to South America, mostly restricted to areas with cooler temperatures-like high elevation areas of the Andean Cordillera-and lowlands and coastal regions in the subtropical and temperate parts of the continent. The classification of the subfamily has been somewhat controversial, with eleven, mostly monotypic nominal genera established to accommodate its species, mostly due to distinct interpretations of certain controversial characters by different authors. To provide a sound basis for a generic classification, we performed the first study aimed to understand the transformation series of those controversial characters and character states under a phylogenetic framework. Our maximum parsimony analyses, under both equal and implied weighting of characters and including all currently known species in the subfamily, retrieved two main clades of Toxotarsinae: the roraima group, composed of Sarconesia roraima (Townsend, 1935), Neta chilensis (Walker, 1836), and S. magellanica (Le Guillou, 1842), and the splendida group, composed of the remaining species of the subfamily. The position of S. magellanica varied, but the species was mostly recovered within the roraima group except in the analyses under implied weighting with k values between 1 and 6. Our results, which include an explicit interpretation of the transformation series associated with some characters and character states commonly used in Toxotarsinae systematics, suggest that both Sarconesia and Neta, along with other genera proposed in the past for species of the subfamily such as Sarconesiomima Lopes & Albuquerque, 1955, Chlorobrachycoma Townsend, 1918, Sarconesiopsis Townsend, 1918, and Roraimomusca Townsend, 1935, previously suggested to be synonyms of Sarconesia, do not properly reflect the evolution of lineages in the subfamily and should not be considered as valid nominal genera. Toxotarsus was the only genus consistently recovered as monophyletic and, based on the phylogenetic relationships recovered herein, we suggest including all known Toxotarsinae within this genus, with the roraima and splendida clades treated as species-groups. Finally, we discuss the characters commonly used to delimit the taxa subordinated to Toxotarsinae, such as the length of the first flagellomere, the position of the rays of the arista relative to the pedicel, the extension of the plumosity of the arista, and the number of postsutural acrostichal setae.