Important Reservoirs Of Biodiversity Research Articles

Land-use changes alter soil bacterial composition and diversity in tropical forest soil in China

Tropical forests, under pressure from human activities, are important reservoirs of biodiversity and regulators of global biogeochemical cycles. Land-use and management are influential drivers of environmental change and ecosystem sustainability. However, only limited studies have analysed the impacts of planting age and vegetation type under land-use change on soil microbial community in tropical forests simultaneously. Here, we assessed soil bacterial community composition and diversity under different land-use in Hainan Province, China, using high-throughput sequencing combined with PICRUSt analysis. Land-use included natural forest, 5-year-old cropland, young (5-year-old) rubber tree plantation, and old (30-year-old) rubber tree plantation. Land-use changes altered the soil bacterial community composition but had a non-significant influence on alpha diversity (P > .05). We found that bacterial beta-diversity significantly decreased in young rubber tree plantation soils and cropland soils compared to natural forest as a control. In contrast, soil bacterial beta-diversity increased in old rubber tree plantation soils, indicating the effects of time since planting. There was no difference in microbial beta-diversity between soils from cropland and young rubber tree plantation. Soil bulk density and moisture, not pH, were the main environmental factors explaining the variability in microbial diversity. PICRUSt analysis of soil bacterial predicted gene abundances within metabolic pathways and indicated that land-use change altered soil functional traits, e.g., amino acid-related enzymes, ribosomes, DNA repair/recombination proteins and oxidative phosphorylation. Also, vegetation type, not planting age, had significant impacts on soil functional traits. Overall, planting age had the greatest influence on soil bacterial beta-diversity, while vegetation type was more crucial for soil functional traits (P < .05).

Analysis of the effect of recreational dog walking on the occupancy probability of the ringtail Bassariscus astutus (Carnivora: Procyonidae) within an urban ecosystem

Despite being highly modified environments, cities are important reservoirs of biodiversity. The ecological reserve situated within southern Mexico City houses several species of mammals, including the ringtail Bassariscus astutus. However, the urban areas surrounding the reserve are subject to various types of uses that could affect the presence of wild species inside and out of the reserve areas. Here, I tested the hypothesis that recreational activities, especially the walking of domestic dogs, can cause the ringtails, smaller sized carnivores, to avoid certain areas. To achieve this, I carried out a survey throughout the reserve and urban landscape, and registered the presence of domestic dogs and ringtails by direct observation or via the detection of feces and latrines during two sampling seasons. I used single species occupancy models to determine the environmental covariates associated with the presence of these carnivores within the reserve and the urban areas around it. In addition, I used two-species occupancy models to estimate the species interaction factor between these species to assess if the presence of domestic dogs has a negative effect over the presence of ringtails. My results reveal that shrub cover in the area affects the occurrence of these species, and that there is no clear evidence that domestic dogs negatively affect the occupancy of ringtails during the studied seasons. These results highlight the capacity of the ringtails to adapt to rapid urbanization, but do not guarantee that recreational activities, especially those involving dogs, have no negative effects on the local distribution of other smaller mammals within this urban reserve.

Using soundscapes to investigate homogenization of tropical forest diversity in selectively logged forests

Abstract Selective logging in tropical forests changes the local number of animal species (alpha diversity), but it also likely affects species turnover (beta diversity). Whilst such changes are documented in many ecosystems under different disturbances, they are poorly understood in selectively logged tropical forests. By using soundscape recordings across broad spatial scales, we measured soundscape saturation and dissimilarity of pairs of soundscapes, as a proxy of alpha and beta diversity, respectively, in selectively logged and protected tropical forest in Indonesian Borneo. Soundscapes of selectively logged forests were more homogeneous than the soundscapes of never logged forest, and that soundscape saturation of protected forest was higher during the day and lower at night in comparison with selective logging concessions. Synthesis and applications. Selectively logged forests act as an important reservoir of biodiversity. Optimizing such production forests for biodiversity conservation requires the consideration of the total continuous area that is assigned to selective logging, and spatial arrangement of annual cutting blocks, as these could affect beta diversity and its recovery.

Diversity increases with elevation: empidine dance flies (Diptera, Empididae) challenge a predominant pattern

AbstractTropical mountain forests are important reservoirs of biodiversity. They are usually species‐rich and often support endemic species making them prime targets for conservation effort. The aim of this study was to investigate elevational patterns of species diversity and phenology to provide a meaningful understanding of insects’ spatio‐temporal distributions along a tropical gradient of elevation. Our study focuses on the Empidinae communities (Diptera, Empididae) from Doi Inthanon (north Thailand, gradient 400–2556 m asl), sampled during two entire years (2006–2007, 2014). This group of insects is more diverse in temperate localities than in the tropics and we found that: (1) increase in altitude and latitude has a similar effect, so that the diversity of our model increases with elevation; (2) the phenology is strongly influenced by seasonality with a peak of diversity occurring during the transition between the dry and rainy seasons; (3) there is no phenological shift in the diversity peak with elevations; and (4) the species composition changes along the altitudinal gradient and through the year (high beta diversity). The increase in diversity with increasing elevation and the peak of diversity occurring at the transitional period both strongly coincide with abiotic factors, the decreasing temperature and the arrival of the monsoon, respectively.

Análisis de la estrategia MasAgro-maíz

&#x0D; &#x0D; &#x0D; En este ensayo se examinan los objetivos y estrategias del programa MasAgro-maíz, partiendo de las condiciones iniciales del subsector agrícola tradicional de México que produce maíz de temporal. Estas condiciones iniciales muestran que la tendencia de los últimos 30 años ha sido de incrementar la producción nacional de maíz de temporal en 1.20 millones de toneladas anuales (MTA) y el rendimiento en 0.22 Mg ha-1, cada 10. Por lo tanto los objetivos de MasAgro habrán de ser corregidos en consecuencia. Se analiza la experiencia mundial sobre la adopción de la agricultura de conservación (AC) por parte de los productores en pequeño. Para el caso examinado de adopción de la AC con rotación bianual, se calcula que el programa ha de tratar directa o indirectamente 3.164 millones de hectáreas (M ha) manejadas por más de 800 000 unidades de producción (UP) pequeñas (categorías &lt; 5 ha y 5-20 ha) y lograr rendimientos promedio de 3.92 Mg ha-1. No obstante el reconocido efecto positivo sobre la sostenibilidad, la estrategia de adopción irreversible de la AC podrá ser pobre debido al bajo incentivo económico de plazo corto involucrado, a la falta de acceso al crédito, a apoyos a la comercialización, y varias incompatibilidades con los objetivos y demandas de bienestar de las pequeñas UP. La estrategia de sustituir entre 25y50%,delasuperficieocupadaporlosmaícesnativosylas variedades acriolladas se considera inadecuada para México, por su carácter de centro de origen del maíz y de importante reservorio de biodiversidad de la especie.&#x0D; &#x0D; &#x0D;

Comparative population genetics of two dominant plant species of high Andean wetlands reveals complex evolutionary histories and conservation perspectives in Chile’s Norte Chico

High Andean wetlands are naturally fragmented ecosystems that are impacted by anthropogenic activities. Although they constitute important reservoirs of biodiversity and ecosystem service providers, many aspects of their ecology are still unknown. In this study, we investigated the population genetic structure of two dominant and highly interactive plant species of high altitude wetlands, Patosia clandestina (Juncaceae) and Carex gayana (Cyperaceae), in 21 high Andean wetlands of Chile’s Norte Chico. Using rbcL gene sequences and AFLP markers, we found that both species displayed low levels of within-wetland genetic diversity, high inter-population genetic differentiation, and spatially-dependent genetic variation arising from isolation-by-distance. The distance at which populations become genetically independent was of the same order of magnitude in both species (125–175 km). Despite these similarities, idiosyncratic spatial patterns were detected. C. gayana in the three most northeastern wetlands demonstrated marked differences relative to the rest of the populations, with the latter group following a latitudinal stepping-stone pattern. In P. clandestina, a genetic barrier was found to divide the northern and southern populations into two balanced groups, and spatial genetic variation was consistent with a hierarchical island model. The data indicate that each of the two species likely responded to different geological and ecological events, resulting in the definition of unique evolutionarily significant units in both. These results suggest that the implementation of global conservation programs at regional scales would likely result in the loss of important components of biodiversity in these ecosystems, and underscore the need for caution in designing effective conservation strategies.

Reconciling Mining with the Conservation of Cave Biodiversity: A Quantitative Baseline to Help Establish Conservation Priorities.

Caves pose significant challenges for mining projects, since they harbor many endemic and threatened species, and must therefore be protected. Recent discussions between academia, environmental protection agencies, and industry partners, have highlighted problems with the current Brazilian legislation for the protection of caves. While the licensing process is long, complex and cumbersome, the criteria used to assign caves into conservation relevance categories are often subjective, with relevance being mainly determined by the presence of obligate cave dwellers (troglobites) and their presumed rarity. However, the rarity of these troglobitic species is questionable, as most remain unidentified to the species level and their habitats and distribution ranges are poorly known. Using data from 844 iron caves retrieved from different speleology reports for the Carajás region (South-Eastern Amazon, Brazil), one of the world's largest deposits of high-grade iron ore, we assess the influence of different cave characteristics on four biodiversity proxies (species richness, presence of troglobites, presence of rare troglobites, and presence of resident bat populations). We then examine how the current relevance classification scheme ranks caves with different biodiversity indicators. Large caves were found to be important reservoirs of biodiversity, so they should be prioritized in conservation programs. Our results also reveal spatial autocorrelation in all the biodiversity proxies assessed, indicating that iron caves should be treated as components of a cave network immersed in the karst landscape. Finally, we show that by prioritizing the conservation of rare troglobites, the current relevance classification scheme is undermining overall cave biodiversity and leaving ecologically important caves unprotected. We argue that conservation efforts should target subterranean habitats as a whole and propose an alternative relevance ranking scheme, which could help simplify the assessment process and channel more resources to the effective protection of overall cave biodiversity.

Effects of Converting Tropical Peat Swamp Forest into Oil Palm Plantation on Water Quality

Peat swamp forest is a unique forest and wetlands ecosystem that recognized as one of the most important reservoir of biodiversity and water resources protection. Rapid development particularly for development, agriculture and plantation in peat swamp forest (PSF) area had given negative impacts to its ecosystem included degradation of its water quality. This study was conducted to determine water quality condition at undisturbed (natural peat swamp forest) and disturbed (converted peat swamp forest) and to determine its effects of forest conversion on water quality. A total of 324 water samples were collected at Sibu, Tatau, Pandan and Sepadok within two years sampling. Based on Water Quality Index (WQI) by Department of Environment Malaysia; river water at PSF of Sibu and Tatau were found categorized under Class IV (slightly polluted) while river water at Pandan and Sepadok categorized under Class III (moderate) water quality status. The most influence parameter that causes the deteriorating of water quality at Sibu and Tatau is low dissolved oxygen (DO), high concentration of ammonia nitrogen (NH3-N) and chemical oxygen demand (COD) and acidic water pH. Based on this study; river water at PSF of Sibu and Tatau (converted peat swamp forest) could affected and polluted due to agricultural and oil palm plantation activities that took place at the area while compared to river water at PSF of Pandan and Sepadok (natural peat swamp forest) that found categorized under Class III (moderate) water quality status. If proper alternative procedures such as sustainable management of water resources, protection of logging and awareness education of local folk are not undertaken, it could lead to the deterioration of the PSF ecosystem. Strategic management practices and applications of technologies to minimize the impacts to PSF should be done on the surrounding environment in order to preserve this natural heritage and for the sustainable management of the ecosystem and conservation of the PSF and its water resources.

Edge Effects, Invasion, and the Spatial Pattern of Herb-Layer Biodiversity in an Old-Growth Deciduous Forest Fragment

Habitat loss and fragmentation are major threats to global biodiversity, altering both habitat structure and availability. Small preserves nested within landscapes dominated by human commerce can serve as long-term storehouses of biodiversity, yet they are vulnerable to threats such as exotic plant invasion and disturbance. The Drew Woods State Nature Preserve (DWSNP) in Darke County, Ohio, provided an opportunity to understand the capacity of a small old-growth preserve for maintaining regional floristic biodiversity and assessing ecological threats. A series of six approximately biweekly herbaceous layer samplings were conducted across 32 1-m2 circular plots within DWSNP, and percent vegetative cover was estimated for each herbaceous species identified. The vascular flora of this 6-ha site was inventoried and used for a Floristic Quality Assessment. Spatial patterns were visualized using ArcGIS software, and linear regression analyses and non-metric multidimensional scaling were used to test for relationships between measures of diversity and cover and environmental variables. A total of 176 species were identified across 124 genera and 67 families, and the majority of species were native (89.2%). Characteristic native herb species included Jeffersonia diphylla (twinleaf), Trillium sessile (toad trillium), Allium tricoccum (wild leek), and Erythronium americanum (trout lily), all of which are indicative of high-quality forest. A north—south gradient of species richness was found across all samplings, with the southernmost plots tending to be most species-rich (P < 0.01, r2 ≤ 0.42). This pattern appeared to be linked with gradients of light and temperature that are likely driven by edge effects. Old-growth forests are known for their resiliency, a trait that was evident in the high-quality flora of DWSNP; however, they are not immune to invasion by exotic species. We discovered a significant, nascent, invasion of Alliaria petiolata (garlic mustard), which has the potential to negatively impact the biological integrity of the site if left unchecked. Small forest fragments in agricultural landscapes can act as important reservoirs of biodiversity, but effective preservation and management of these sites requires an understanding of the threats to their ecological integrity as well as environmental drivers of diversity.

COMPOSICIÓN Y ESTRUCTURA AVIAR EN DOS PARCHES DE BOSQUE SECO EN EL VALLE DEL CAUCA

The dry forest is one of the most degraded, fragmented and less known ecosystems, it is being transformed to implement cities, livestock and crops, leaving only small forest patches which are considered important reservoirs of biodiversity. Given the absence of birdlife information on patches of dry forest still present in the Valle del Cauca and their role in maintenance of the bird populations, the objective of this study was to determine and compare the structure and composition of the avifauna in the forest patches the Chatas and Colindres, and to compare their avifauna with other dry forest areas of the region. In each forest, three sampling days per month were performed from July until December in 2012. Counting points and bird captures were done to monitor individuals. Seventy-six species of birds, belonging to twenty-eight families and fourteen orders were recorded. Five migratory species, nine moderately endangered and two regional endemic species were found. Although species richness and trophic groups was similar (p>0,05), the Colindres forest had a greater diversity (H'= 3.36 and 2.95 for Las Chatas), supported for high plant richness and quality of its landscape matrix. Although both forests are of similar size, they shared 46% of birdspecies, being they complementary for conservation of bird populations. It is important to implement a monitoring and conservation strategies that allow the restoration or recovery of these forest patches, which are important refuges of bird species.

Assessing aquatic biodiversity of zooplankton communities in an urban landscape

Aquatic ecosystems are common in urban environments. A solid understanding of aquatic species’ distributions in urban habitats will both advance urban ecology and preserve biodiversity in cities. In particular, zooplankton are central components of aquatic food webs and their biodiversity patterns thus warrant further characterization and understanding. We examined sources of variation and biodiversity patterns of zooplankton communities across eighteen waterbodies in the urban landscape of Canada’s large island city of Montreal. We report a total of 80 zooplankton taxa of which rotifers and cladocerans were major contributing taxa to biodiversity. We found a lack of agreement between contributions of individual waterbodies to rotifer and cladoceran beta diversity. Littoral vegetated zones proved to be important habitats for zooplankton biodiversity, contributing considerably to the species richness pool, often with a different species composition. Further variation in zooplankton community composition was attributable to local factors such as waterbody size, algal biomass and composition, and macroinvertebrate predators, but also to urban management practices such as waterbody draining during winter. We show that urban waterbodies can represent important reservoirs of biodiversity. Management practices favoring a large diversity of permanent and temporary habitats with littoral vegetated zones should be incorporated in urban design and conservation plans.

Species Richness, Forest Structure, and Functional Diversity During Succession in the New Guinea Lowlands

AbstractMuch of the world's tropical forests have been affected by anthropogenic disturbance. These forests are important biodiversity reservoirs whose diversity, structure and function must be characterized across the successional sequence. We examined changes in structure and diversity along a successional gradient in the lowlands of New Guinea. To do this, we measured and identified all stems ≥5 cm diameter in 19 0.25 ha plots ranging in age from 3 to &gt;50 yr since disturbance. We also measured plant functional traits related to establishment, performance, and competitive ability. In addition, we examined change in forest structure, composition, species diversity, and functional diversity through succession. By using rarefaction to estimate functional diversity, we compared changes in functional diversity while controlling for associated differences in stem and species density. Basal area and species density increased with stand age while stem density was highest in intermediate secondary forests. Species composition differed strongly between mature and secondary forests. As forests increased in basal area, community‐weighted mean wood density and foliar carbon increased, whereas specific leaf area and proportion of stems with exudate decreased. Foliar nitrogen peaked in medium‐aged forests. Functional diversity was highest in mature forests, even after accounting for differences in stem and species diversity. Our study represents one of the first attempts to document successional changes in New Guinea's lowland forest. We found robust evidence that as succession proceeds, communities occupy a greater range of functional trait space even after controlling for stem and species density. High functional diversity is important for ecological resiliency in the face of global change.

Ground beetle community in suburban Satoyama — A case study on wing type and body size under small scale management

A Satoyama landscape is an important reservoir of biodiversity; however, in post-industrial era traditional Satoyama management became economically unfeasible.To maintain Satoyama, labor-saving management styles have begun to be implemented. In contrast to the traditional styles based on labor-intensive practices such as rotational tree clear-cutting, the labor-saving styles consist mainly in tree thinning and ground vegetation cutting within a small spatial range. The consequences of this new approach are unclear, and our study aimed at filling this gap in our knowledge by analyzing the effects of small scale management on ground beetle community in suburban Satoyama (Kashiwa city, central Japan). We applied labor-saving management at limited spatial range, and sampled and analyzed ground beetles both before and after management. Cluster analysis revealed three groups of beetle assemblages, corresponding to three habitats: forest, bamboo stand and grassland. Comparison of wing traits showed that, before management, brachypterous beetles dominated forest plots and macropterous beetles were more prominent in the grassland plot, while in the bamboo stand both types of wing morphology were evenly represented. This trend can be linked to habitat structural stability driven by vegetation regeneration cycles which reflect dominant plant longevity. After management, macroptery increased in all three habitats. Probably, habitat disturbance created by vegetation management gave advantage to macropterous beetles over brachypterous beetles. These results suggest that wing type can be linked to vegetation structural stability. In some species, decline in abundance was accompanied with decline in body size. Our study shows that small scale Satoyama management can have pronounced effects on beetle assemblages.

Pathogens and insect herbivores drive rainforest plant diversity and composition

Tropical forests are important reservoirs of biodiversity, but the processes that maintain this diversity remain poorly understood. The Janzen-Connell hypothesis suggests that specialized natural enemies such as insect herbivores and fungal pathogens maintain high diversity by elevating mortality when plant species occur at high density (negative density dependence; NDD). NDD has been detected widely in tropical forests, but the prediction that NDD caused by insects and pathogens has a community-wide role in maintaining tropical plant diversity remains untested. We show experimentally that changes in plant diversity and species composition are caused by fungal pathogens and insect herbivores. Effective plant species richness increased across the seed-to-seedling transition, corresponding to large changes in species composition. Treating seeds and young seedlings with fungicides significantly reduced the diversity of the seedling assemblage, consistent with the Janzen-Connell hypothesis. Although suppressing insect herbivores using insecticides did not alter species diversity, it greatly increased seedling recruitment and caused a marked shift in seedling species composition. Overall, seedling recruitment was significantly reduced at high conspecific seed densities and this NDD was greatest for the species that were most abundant as seeds. Suppressing fungi reduced the negative effects of density on recruitment, confirming that the diversity-enhancing effect of fungi is mediated by NDD. Our study provides an overall test of the Janzen-Connell hypothesis and demonstrates the crucial role that insects and pathogens have both in structuring tropical plant communities and in maintaining their remarkable diversity.

Agroforestry systems in the highlands of the Tehuacán Valley, Mexico: indigenous cultures and biodiversity conservation

In this study we analysed: (1) the biodiversity conservation capacity of Agroforestry Systems (AFS) in temperate highlands of the Tehuacan–Cuicatlan Valley, Central Mexico, (2) human cultural motives and actions for conserving such diversity and (3) problems endangering that capacity. We evaluated the richness and diversity of perennial plant species maintained in AFS through vegetation sampling of 14 agricultural plots and compared their composition with that of natural forests (14 plots of 500 m2 each). We examined the situations among communities of Nahuatl, Ixcatec and Cuicatec people, documenting through interviews the management practices of plant species and the whole system, reasons why people maintain vegetation cover within AFS, and factors influencing changes in decisions favouring agriculture intensification. In the AFS studied we recorded a total of 79 species of trees and shrubs, 86 % of them being native species and representing 43 % of all species of trees and shrubs recorded in the sampling of the natural forests the AFS derive from. People leave standing on average a total of 40 individual trees and shrubs per agricultural plot. Reasons for leave plant species standing were more frequently associated with their use as fruit trees, firewood, shade, beauty, respect to nature and other environmental benefits. Water availability for irrigation, land tenure, and dependence on agriculture and forest for peasant's subsistence were main decision factors influencing AFS variation in their composition. AFS in temperate zones are important reservoirs of biodiversity and biocultural heritage and should be keystones for conservation policies in the Tehuacan–Cuicatlan Valley.

Adaptation of Bird Communities to Farmland Abandonment in a Mountain Landscape

Widespread farmland abandonment has led to significant landscape transformations of many European mountain areas. These semi-natural multi-habitat landscapes are important reservoirs of biodiversity and their abandonment has important conservation implications. In multi-habitat landscapes the adaptation of communities depends on the differential affinity of the species to the available habitats. We use nested species-area relationships (SAR) to model species richness patterns of bird communities across scales in a mountain landscape, in NW Portugal. We compare the performance of the classic-SAR and the countryside-SAR (i.e. multi-habitat) models at the landscape scale, and compare species similarity decay (SSD) at the regional scale. We find a considerable overlap of bird communities in the different land-uses (farmland, shrubland and oak forest) at the landscape scale. Analysis of the classic and countryside SAR show that specialist species are strongly related to their favourite habitat. Farmland and shrubland have higher regional SSD compared to oak forests. However, this is due to the opportunistic use of farmlands by generalist birds. Forest specialists display significant regional turnover in oak forest. Overall, the countryside-SAR model had a better fit to the data showing that habitat composition determines species richness across scales. Finally, we use the countryside-SAR model to forecast bird diversity under four scenarios of land-use change. Farmland abandonment scenarios show little impact on bird diversity as the model predicts that the complete loss of farmland is less dramatic, in terms of species diversity loss, than the disappearance of native Galicio-Portuguese oak forest. The affinities of species to non-preferred habitats suggest that bird communities can adapt to land-use changes derived from farmland abandonment. Based on model predictions we argue that rewilding may be a suitable management option for many European mountain areas.

Effect of Sugarcane Burning or Green Harvest Methods on the Brazilian Cerrado Soil Bacterial Community Structure

BackgroundThe Brazilian Cerrado is one of the most important biodiversity reservoirs in the world. The sugarcane cultivation is expanding in this biome and necessitates the study of how it may impact the soil properties of the Cerrado. There is a lack of information especially about the impacts of different sugarcane management on the native bacterial communities of Cerrado soil. Therefore, our objective was to evaluate and compare the soil bacterial community structure of the Cerrado vegetation with two sugarcane systems.MethodsWe evaluated samples under native vegetation and the impact of the two most commonly used management strategies for sugarcane cultivation (burnt cane and green cane) on this diversity using pyrosequencing and quantitative PCR of the rrs gene (16S rRNA).Results and ConclusionsNineteen different phyla were identified, with Acidobacteria (≈35%), Proteobacteria (≈24%) and Actinobacteria (≈21%) being the most abundant. Many of the sequences were represented by few operational taxonomic units (OTUs, 3% of dissimilarity), which were found in all treatments. In contrast, there were very strong patterns of local selection, with many OTUs occurring only in one sample. Our results reveal a complex bacterial diversity, with a large fraction of microorganisms not yet described, reinforcing the importance of this biome. As possible sign of threat, the qPCR detected a reduction of the bacterial population in agricultural soils compared with native Cerrado soil communities. We conclude that sugarcane cultivation promoted significant structural changes in the soil bacterial community, with Firmicutes phylum and Acidobacteria classes being the groups most affected.

Macrofauna inhabiting the spongeParaleucilla magna(Porifera: Calcarea) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Sponges (phylum Porifera) are important components of the benthic marine fauna known for their interactions with vertebrates and a large number of invertebrates seeking for food, shelter or substrate for attachment. Studies on this subject, however, were restricted only to the macrofauna inhabiting sponges of the class Demospongiae. In the present work, we describe the macrofauna associated with a calcareous sponge in Brazil,Paraleucilla magna. Individuals of this allegedly non-native species were monthly collected during one year in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil). Fifty-one taxa representing ten animal phyla were found associated withP. magna. The most frequent and abundant taxa were Crustacea, Mollusca, Polychaeta and Bryozoa, while echinoderms, cnidarians, ascidians, nemerteans, platyhelminthes and sponges were less frequent or even rare and less abundant. Juveniles of several taxa and pregnant females of Crustacea were found associated withP. magna, but these associations were not exclusive. The macrofauna associated withP. magnadid not present a clear seasonality, although it was possible to observe a change in the community composition alongside the year. The volume of the sponges was significantly related to the diversity index (H′) and number of taxa, but not with evenness (J′) and number of individuals. Our results show thatP. magnais used as a substrate for attachment and/or shelter by its associates and that most of these associations are just opportunistic. The data presented here reiterate a previous proposal that sponges are important biodiversity reservoirs and that they should be seriously considered in conservation programmes.

Macrofauna inhabiting the sponge Paraleucilla magna (Porifera: Calcarea) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Sponges (phylum Porifera) are important components of the benthic marine fauna known for their interactions with vertebrates and a large sort of invertebrates seeking for food, shelter or substrate for attachment. Studies on this subject, however, were restricted only to the macrofauna inhabiting sponges of the class Demospongiae. In the present work, we describe the macrofauna associated with a calcareous sponge in Brazil, Paraleucilla magna. Individuals of this allegedly non-native species were monthly collected during one year in Rio de Janeiro (Brazil). Fifty taxa representing 10 animal phyla were found associated with P. magna. The most frequent and abundant taxa were Crustacea, Mollusca, Polychaeta and Bryozoa, while echinoderms, cnidarians, ascidians, nemerteans, platyhelminthes and sponges were less frequent or even rare and less abundant. Juveniles of several taxa and pregnant females of Crustacea were found associated with P. magna, but these associations were not exclusive. The macrofauna associated with P. magna did not present a clear seasonality, although it was possible to observe a change in the community composition alongside the year. The volume of the sponges was significantly related to the diversity index (H′) and number of taxa, but not with evenness (J′) and number of individuals. Our results show that P. magna is used as a substrate for attachment and/or shelter by its associates and that most of these associations are just opportunistic. The data presented here reiterate a previous proposal that sponges are important biodiversity reservoirs and that they should be seriously considered in conservation programmes.

Mitochondrial DNA Regionalism and Historical Demography in the Extant Populations of Chirocephalus kerkyrensis (Branchiopoda: Anostraca)

BackgroundMediterranean temporary water bodies are important reservoirs of biodiversity and host a unique assemblage of diapausing aquatic invertebrates. These environments are currently vanishing because of increasing human pressure. Chirocephalus kerkyrensis is a fairy shrimp typical of temporary water bodies in Mediterranean plain forests and has undergone a substantial decline in number of populations in recent years due to habitat loss. We assessed patterns of genetic connectivity and phylogeographic history in the seven extant populations of the species from Albania, Corfu Is. (Greece), Southern and Central Italy.Methodology/Principal FindingsWe analyzed sequence variation at two mitochondrial DNA genes (Cytochrome Oxidase I and 16s rRNA) in all the known populations of C. kerkyrensis. We used multiple phylogenetic, phylogeographic and coalescence-based approaches to assess connectivity and historical demography across the whole distribution range of the species. C. kerkyrensis is genetically subdivided into three main mitochondrial lineages; two of them are geographically localized (Corfu Is. and Central Italy) and one encompasses a wide geographic area (Albania and Southern Italy). Most of the detected genetic variation (≈81%) is apportioned among the aforementioned lineages.Conclusions/SignificanceMultiple analyses of mismatch distributions consistently supported both past demographic and spatial expansions with the former predating the latter; demographic expansions were consistently placed during interglacial warm phases of the Pleistocene while spatial expansions were restricted to cold periods. Coalescence methods revealed a scenario of past isolation with low levels of gene flow in line with what is already known for other co-distributed fairy shrimps and suggest drift as the prevailing force in promoting local divergence. We recommend that these evolutionary trajectories should be taken in proper consideration in any effort aimed at protecting Mediterranean temporary water bodies.