Rich Habitats Research Articles

Integrating habitat- and species-based perspectives for wetland conservation in lowland agricultural landscapes

Wetlands are among the most endangered ecosystems worldwide with multiple direct and indirect stressors, especially in human-altered areas like intensive agricultural landscapes. Conservation management and efforts often focus on species diversity and charismatic taxa, but scarcely consider habitats. By focusing on a complex formed by 107 permanent wetlands at 18 Natura 2000 sites in the Emilia-Romagna region (northern Italy), the patterns of habitats of conservation concern were investigated and the concordance with threatened species patterns was analysed. Wetlands were characterised in terms of morphology, connectivity, land use and management as drivers of assemblage and richness patterns of habitats. Our results showed a strong concordance between the distribution and richness patterns of both habitats and threatened taxa (birds, mammals, amphibians, reptiles, fish, invertebrates, and plants). Thus, habitats seem an effective proxy of species patterns. The variables related with perimeter, environmental heterogeneity and presence of water bodies were the most important ones associated with habitat richness patterns. The presence of aquatic systems (measured as the percentage of wetland area occupied by an aquatic surface) and their position in the hydrographic network were associated mostly with habitats distribution. Low richness wetlands (in habitat terms) were not complementary as no new habitat types were supported. The results stressed the relevance of wetlands with wide water body perimeters composed of diverse systems as being key for biodiversity conservation in a simplified agricultural matrix. Integrating habitat- and species-based perspectives seems a promising field and may provide a rapid assessment tool to acquire effective information for wetlands conservation and assessment.

Isolation and characterization of new ectoine-producers from various hypersaline ecosystems in Egypt

The biodiversity of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems in Egypt including seas, lakes, and soils with high salinity levels provides rich habitats for flourishing halophilic microorganisms. The present study aims to isolate halophilic bacteria from sixteen samples representing ecosystems with various geographic locations and surveying the mechanisms by which they can tolerate the osmotic stress. Results revealed the highest salinity levels; sodium, chloride, sulfate, magnesium, calcium, and potassium concentrations in water sample of Wadi El-Natroun Lake since the total number of halophilic bacteria was4.68/g and the largest number of halophilic genera was observed in the northern coast of Matrouh governorate. A total of 60 bacterial isolates selected during (June-October 2015) were screened using thin layer chromatography for osmolyte; ectoine. It has the ability to decrease the harmful effects of high salinity, heating, freezing, drying as well as oxygen radicals and other denaturing agents in halophiles. Quantitative estimation of ectoine by high-performance liquid chromatography showed its yield was ranged between 185 and 700 mg/l. Using biochemical tests and 16s rRNA technology, the most active ectoine-producers were identified as Vibrio sp. CS1 and Salinivibrio costicola SH3. The yielded ectoine was purified using cation exchange chromatography (Dowex 50 WX8 resin) and its physicochemical properties were investigated using standard methodology. Characterization of purified ectoine via nuclear magnetic resonance and fourier transform infrared spectroscopy showed the similarity between bacterial ectoine and the authentic was nearly 99%.

Biogeography and fish community structure in Irish estuaries

Estuaries represent important transitional waters where marine and freshwater ecosystems meet and mix. Estuaries are dynamic systems due to their tidal nature and their ecology is expected to shift with climate change and the arrival of new species. Spatially extensive descriptive studies that provide temporal baselines for species distribution and abundance, and associated environmental variables deliver a comprehensive reference point against which to monitor change. To provide this biogeographic context for Ireland, which is surrounded by temperate Atlantic waters, the biogeography and fish community structure of Irish estuaries was examined using a large dataset comprised of 208,313 individual fish, 80 different species sampled from 37 estuaries from 2008–2017.Species richness was strongly correlated with the area of shallow littoral and subtidal habitats. Estuaries at higher latitudes tended to have lower species richness in shallow littoral areas. Estuary mouth width and proportion of subtidal area were both positively related to species richness in subtidal habitats. The main driver of estuary clustering is the changing proportion of estuarine species versus marine migrants. The results show a dominant group of larger, more open estuaries where marine migrants consistently dominate the fish population.This study confirms the role of marine migrants in contributing to fish community composition in estuaries and highlights the vital nursery function that Irish estuaries perform for estuarine-dependent marine fish species. The associations between fish community structure and broad-scale environmental parameters provide a time stamped baseline for monitoring future climate change impacts on estuarine fish assemblages in Ireland.

Ecology, threats and conservation status of Carex buekii (Cyperaceae) in Central Europe

Carex buekii is a tall sedge, forming large stands in wetlands, particularly in river floodplains across Central Europe and thus on many sites determining the typical appearance of riverine habitats. Our paper aims at increasing the knowledge on ecology of C. buekii and its role in the wetlands. Field data were collected in Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, and Italy. Carex buekii usually occurs in nutrient rich habitats, but is also capable of colonising relatively nutrient-poor ones; it grows on both acidic and alkaline soils (pH 3.3–7.4) with diverse concentrations of assimilable elements (Ca, Mg, P, K). One of the most important ecological characteristics of C. buekii is its relationship to the floodplains of watercourses. It seems to be dependent on, or at least very tolerant to regular disturbances by streaming, floods and transport of sediments. Carex buekii usually forms relatively uniform stands of its own association, Caricetum buekii. The species most frequently accompanying C. buekii are Urtica dioica, Calystegia sepium, Galium aparine, Rubus caesius, Phalaris arundinacea, and Cirsium arvense. The sedge also occurs in the understorey of forests with e.g. Alnus glutinosa, Salix fragilis, Padus avium, and Quercus robur. Carex buekii is able to colonise man-made or man-changed habitats such as railway embankments and roadsides or regulated river banks. Taking into account the IUCN Red List Criteria we propose to regard C. buekii as a least-concern (LC).

Assessment of Avifaunal Diversity in Riverine and Urban Areas of Layyah along the River Indus, Punjab-Pakistan

Layyah City is located along the River Indus and provides rich habitat for a wide range of resident and migratory bird species. The present study documents for the first time the avifaunal diversity and abundance of urban and riverine sites of Layyah. Potential habitats around the city were identified and three study sites were selected, one in each of the main habitat types. A total of 223 species was recorded: 92 residents, 87 winter visitors, 42 passage migrants and two new records from the area. A Shannon Wiener Index of 4.36 indicates that the area has a high level of biodiversity. Of the species recorded, 16 are included in the IUCN Red list as vulnerable (N=6), near threatened (N=9) or endangered (N=1). The most abundant species were House Crow Corvus splendens, House Sparrow Passer domesticus, Common Myna Acridotheres tristis and Common Starling Sturnus vulgaris. Two species, Houbara or McQueen's Bustard Chlamydotis macqueenii and Black-headed Ibis Threskiornis melanocephalus were recorded for the first time from the area. Potential threats to the avian diversity of the area are hunting, habitat loss, and pollution.

Inland salt areas of Southeast Serbia: ecological preferences of certain representatives of flora

Simultaneous monitoring of vegetation and soil of inland salt areas of Southeastern Serbia was performed in order to assess the univariate response of species along the environmental gradients. Five habitat types were recognized by classification analysis based on physicochemical characteristics of soil. Ecological preferences of 9 species recognized as diagnostic of established habitats were estimated by Huisman-Olff-Fresco models. Carex distans, Cynod on dactylon and Plantago coronopus are diagnostic species of habitat type I which is characterized by electrical conductivity lower than 500 μScm−1, slightly alkaline reaction and low concentration of nutrients. Habitats of type II with alkaline soil, where concentration of available potassium (53 mg K2O/100 g soil) and phosphorus (19 mg P2O5/100 g soil) is high and electrical conductivity is in range of 608 to 860 μScm−1, are suitable for Carex divisa, Juncus compressus and Limonium gmelinii. Puccinellia festuciformis shows affinities to habitats of type III, characterized by electrical conductivity of 1200–2800 μScm−1 and low water and nutrient content. Presence of Camphorosma monspeliaca on habitats (type IV) indicates high concentration of OH− ions, salts (>3000 μScm−1) and chlorides in soil. Puccinellia distans shows affinities to strongly saline, alkaline and nutrient rich habitats (type V) with fluctuating water regime during the vegetation season. Information on objectively assessed ecological preferences of plant species represents a suitable foundation for defining local or regional indicator systems, calibration of existing ecological indices and realization of procedures with the goal of conservation and enhancement of threatened ecosystems such as inland salt areas.

Cross-Ecosystem Effects of Agricultural Tile Drainage, Surface Runoff, and Selenium in the Prairie Pothole Region

The Prairie Pothole Region (PPR) of the United States and Canada is a vast network of wetlands that provide rich habitat for waterfowl and aquatic organisms. Much of the landscape surrounding these wetlands is dominated by agriculture, allowing for contaminants such as neonicotinoid insecticides and selenium to enter these water bodies following precipitation. We surveyed 18 wetlands in the PPR of South Dakota that were categorized as receiving surface runoff, tile drainage, or surrounded by grassland (control) for larval and adult insects and contaminant concentrations over two years. Selenium concentrations in the water, as well as in larval and adult insects were the biggest difference among our treatments, and concentrations of all three were approximately two times higher in tile drainage sites than in surface or control sites. For example, adult insect tissue concentrations were (μg/g, mean ± S.D.) 1.5 ± 1.3 in control sites, 1.7 ± 2.4 in surface runoff sites, and 4.4 ± 5.0 in tile drainage sites. Adult insects responded more sensitively to agricultural influences than larval insects, with up to 50% reductions in adult abundance in the tile drainage treatment even in the absence of larval population reductions. Reductions in adult populations in combination with the retention of selenium over metamorphosis indicate that agricultural influence in these wetlands may also affect the terrestrial ecosystem by reducing quantity and/or quality of insect prey for terrestrial consumers, such as waterfowl.

Two new peltate-leaved species of Begonia L. (Begoniaceae) from northern Vietnam

Two new species in Begonia sect. Coelocentrum, Begonia acutis, and B. remusatifolia, have been discovered in the karst regions of northern Vietnam, one of the richest habitats for Begonia. The differences of the two new species were compared with other peltate-leaved species in China and Vietnam, including B. cavaleriei, B. pulvinifera and B. wangii. According to IUCN Red List categories, B. acutis and B. remusatifolia were assigned to the Critically Endangered (CR) and the Endangered (EN) category, respectively.

The importance of different juvenile habitats as nursery areas for a ubiquitous estuarine-dependent marine fish species

Estuarine-dependent marine fish species rely on shallow, sheltered and food rich habitats for protection from predators, growth and ultimately recruitment to adult populations. Hence, habitats within estuaries function as critical nursery areas for a variety of fish species. Results from stomach content analysis and dietary diatom composition of a ubiquitous estuarine-dependent species Rhabdosargus holubi (Steindachner, 1881) in the main vegetated and un-vegetated habitats in the Bushmans Estuary, South Africa, were interpreted along with published information on habitat complexity, relative abundance and behaviour of this species. Although the complexity of seagrass, together with the higher abundance and behaviour of R. holubi in seagrass suggests that this is the main nursery habitat (in terms of both feeding and protection from predation), the dominance of red filamentous algae and the presence of some invertebrates mainly in the diet of fish from un-vegetated habitats indicates that this species is using a mosaic of habitats, including un-vegetated areas, for foraging. Based on the above findings, and results from other studies, it is concluded that juvenile R. holubi in permanently open estuaries makes use of a range of habitats according to macrophyte shelter from predators, the availability of preferred food resources and physical drivers such as water depth and tidal phase. This study demonstrated that a multi-method approach, as opposed to a single method approach (diet alone) is useful to assess the nursery value of juvenile fish habitats.

Middle Jurassic terebratulide brachiopods from the Jordan Valley (northwestern Jordan)

ABSTRACT The Middle Jurassic terebratulide brachiopods from the Jordan Valley, northwestern Jordan, are herein revised and systematically described and new taxa are added to the faunal list. A new genus and species Jordanithyris ardainensis gen. et sp. nov., is introduced from the upper Bathonian (Hamam Formation) and lower Callovian (Mughanniyya Formation) of the Arda section. In the upper Bathonian Hamam Formation (consisting of limestone, dolomite, alternating sandstone, and marlstone beds), Ptyctothyris quillyensis occurs. The assemblage Arabatia bihinensis, Ectyphoria sinaiensis, Ptyctothyris quillyensis, Dorsoplicathyris dorsoplicata, and Tubithyris jurayfahiensis is recorded in the lower Callovian limestone beds with marlstone interbeds of the Mughanniyya Formation. Brachiopods of the Jordanian Hamam and Mughanniyya formations can be correlated with the fauna of the Aroussiah Formation in Sinai and the Zohar and Matmor formations in southern Israel. The sedimentary environment is interpreted as the protected shallow inner shelf, and nutrient rich habitat resulting in high faunal diversity. The high degree of endemism of this fauna is yet another confirmation of the representative pronounced Middle Jurassic endemism along the southern Tethyan margin of the Ethiopian Province.

Habitats shape the cuticular chemical profiles of stingless bees

Stingless bees are highly social pollinators in tropical ecosystems. Besides floral pollen and nectar, they collect substantial amounts of plant resins, which are used for nest construction/maintenance and defence against antagonists. Moreover, some stingless bees extract chemical compounds from resins and incorporate them in their cuticular chemical profiles, rendering this trait directly dependent on the plant community of the surrounding environment. While previous studies have investigated how variation in the composition and diversity of available resin sources affect resin storages inside hives, subsequent effects on the bees’ cuticular chemistry have not been studied. To fill this gap, we investigated the number, proportion and composition of compounds in the cuticular chemical profile of an Australian stingless bee using gas chromatography and mass spectrometry. We analysed whether and (if so) how the cuticular chemistry was affected by habitat (i.e., plantations, forests, and gardens) and tree species richness. We found that overall numbers and proportions of self-produced and resin-derived compounds in the cuticular chemical profiles of Tetragonula carbonaria were similar across habitats, while the composition of all compounds (i.e., both self-produced and resin-derived) and of resin-derived compounds differed between habitats. This indicates that the surrounding tree species community and thus available resin chemistry affected the composition of particularly resin-derived compounds on the bees’ cuticle. As the number and composition of resin-derived cuticular compounds were not affected by tree species richness, stingless bees appear to selectively incorporate specific compounds available in the surrounding environment in their cuticular chemical profiles, which may increase their defensive properties.

Behavior in a Changing Landscape: Using Movement Ecology to Inform the Conservation of Pond-Breeding Amphibians

Movement, both within an individual’s home range and at the scale of dispersal, is a fundamental aspect of an animal’s life. The field of movement ecology has established a conceptual framework to analyze the lifetime movement of an organism, offering a sound basis for conservation actions since the movement range of many species has been altered by habitat fragmentation and degradation. An organism’s lifetime movement is organized around three main functions – exploitation, exploration, and relocation – which are associated with specific behavioral mechanisms and spatio-temporal scales. The movement ecology framework is a valuable tool as applied to amphibians, as managing these spatially structured populations requires in-depth knowledge of the behavioral mechanisms that determine movement. In terms of exploitation, these animals have a complex lifecycle, which involves migrating between different types of habitat, thus requiring them to cross a landscape matrix that may be more or less inhospitable. In terms of exploration and relocation, between-pond movements within the pond archipelagoes of a given population are frequent and strongly contribute to population resilience. Relocation also occurs at a larger scale, through long-distance dispersal to colonize new patches, exposing the individuals to unknown environments. Each function, at each scale, involves specific interactions between individual motivation (phenotype dependence) and environmental quality (context dependence) that determine decision-making and fitness outputs. Long-term exposure to local selective pressures can lead to differentiation in coping types that could be considered as Evolutionarily Significant Units (ESUs) for conservation. At the scale of a patch, the optimal direction of migration can be inherited, thus allowing the optimization of migration routes for juveniles. At the regional scale, a dispersal syndrome resulting in a greater propensity for boldness and exploration could be a response to unpredictable breeding sites or the high benefits of colonizing a rich habitat. Greater knowledge about such behavioral adaptations to specific situations would allow more targeted development of conservation measures or help to stop the spread of invasive species. The evolutionary context of movement behavior is thus of primary interest in designing effective conservation actions in a changing world.

Heterogeneity in millipede communities (Diplopoda) within a forest–forest edge–meadow habitat complex

The positive influence of heterogeneity in vegetation and land-use on animal diversity is generally well established, but it has not been conclusively confirmed yet in millipede communities inhabiting karst canyons where biodiversity is to large extent determined by variation in topography (e.g., elevation). We studied how millipede assemblages (Diplopoda) vary between forest, forest edge, and meadow habitats in this specific karst environment. We sampled millipedes by pitfall trapping during two vegetation seasons (from March to October in 2001 and 2002) in approximately monthly intervals across nine sites in Central Slovakia (Veľká Fatra Mts). In total, 951 individuals belonging to 12 species from 6 families and 10 orders were collected. The dominant species was Unciger foetidus, which was also one of the two most frequent species along with Polydesmus complanatus. Although the total number of captured millipedes was greatest on forest edges (395 individuals), intermediate in meadows, and lowest in forests (214 individuals), millipede abundance and species composition varied considerably within each habitat type among the sites. Total millipede species richness in meadow and forest edge habitats was the same (11 species) and it was lower in forest habitats (7 species), while species diversity (Shannon's H′) and equitability (E) were greatest in meadows. Millipede diversity measures (species richness or equitability) were correlated positively with species richness of herb layer and negatively with shrub layer equitability, soil conductivity, and soil phosphorus. Thus, we found complex patterns of heterogeneity in millipede community composition and richness across studied habitats and elevations that were driven by habitat type and plant community and soil characteristics. While millipede abundance patterns varied, open habitats supported most species-rich millipede communities at lower elevations, while forest edges were most species-rich at the high elevation.

Echiniscus siticulosus (Echiniscidae: spinulosus group), a new tardigrade from Western Australian scrub

ABSTRACTAustralian fauna is widely recognised for its high levels of endemism, and tardigrade fauna does not seem to be an exception in this respect. The richness of xerothermic habitats in Australia, often occupied by heterotardigrade family Echiniscidae, entails high abundance and uniqueness of echiniscid assemblages. A new gonochoristic/dioecious echiniscid species was found in large numbers in samples from Western Australia. Echiniscus siticulosus sp. nov., characterised by dominant large cuticular pores in the dorsal sculpture and appendages in the form of spines, represents the spinulosus group but can be distinguished from the known members of this species complex by a unique combination of traits: peculiar faceting of the caudal plate formed by ridge-shaped epicuticular extensions and pore morphology. An amended phenotypic diagnosis of Echiniscus spiniger Richters 1904, the species morphologically most similar to the new species, is also presented.

Spatial dynamics and burrow occupancy in a desert lizard floodplain specialist, Liopholis slateri

1. Desert river floodplains are resource rich but high-risk habitats. For surface-dwelling animals in these habitats, persistence is a trade-off between the advantages of relatively abundant food resources and the costs of episodic surface disturbances from infrequent but unpredictable rainfall events.2. In central Australia, there are few non-flying, terrestrial species that are specialised floodplain occupants, and their persistence strategies are not well understood.3. Using photographic mark-recapture and scat DNA, we observed a population of one such desert floodplain specialist, Slater's skink Liopholis slateri, over four years to understand how it persists in these disturbance-prone habitats.4. We found evidence of a highly mobile, but site stable population, with spatial clustering of burrows into local ‘neighbourhoods’. There were relatively low fluctuations in population size among years, with a second seasonal breeding event following heavy rain in January 2015. We observed both long-term residence of individuals and long-term use of burrows at the site.5. Frequent movements within and among neighbourhoods, and regular burrow construction, suggest a population capable of dispersal in the event of high intensity disturbance. Dispersing individuals and some neighbourhoods may act as recolonization sources in the event of a flood extirpating the core population.

Biodiversity loss in a Mediterranean ecosystem due to an extreme warming event unveils the role of an engineering gorgonian species

Stochastic perturbations can trigger major ecosystem shifts. Marine systems have been severely affected in recent years by mass mortality events related to positive thermal anomalies. Although the immediate effects in the species demography affected by mortality events are well known, information on the mid- to long-term effects at the community level is much less documented. Here, we show how an extreme warming event replaces a structurally complex habitat, dominated by long-lived species, by a simplified habitat (lower species diversity and richness) dominated by turf-forming species. On the basis of a study involving the experimental manipulation of the presence of the gorgonian Paramuricea clavata, we observed that its presence mitigated the effects of warming by maintaining the original assemblage dominated by macroinvertebrates and delaying the proliferation and spread of the invasive alga Caulerpa cylindracea. However, due to the increase of sediment and turf-forming species after the mortality event we hypothesize a further degradation of the whole assemblage as both factors decrease the recruitment of P.clavata, decrease the survival of encrusting coralligenous-dwelling macroinvertebrates and facilitate the spreading of C. cylindracea.

Effects of landscape complexity on pollinators are moderated by pollinators' association with mass-flowering crops.

Conserving and restoring semi-natural habitat, i.e. enhancing landscape complexity, is one of the main strategies to mitigate pollinator decline in agricultural landscapes. However, we still have limited understanding of how landscape complexity shapes pollinator communities in both crop and non-crop habitat, and whether pollinator responses to landscape complexity vary with their association with mass-flowering crops. Here, we surveyed pollinator communities on mass-flowering leek crops and in nearby semi-natural habitat in landscapes of varying complexity. Surveys were done before and during crop bloom and distinguished between pollinators that visit the crop frequently (dominant), occasionally (opportunistic), or not at all (non-crop). Forty-seven per cent of the species in the wider landscape were also observed on leek flowers. Crop pollinator richness increased with local pollinator community size and increasing landscape complexity, but relationships were stronger for opportunistic than for dominant crop pollinators. Relationships between pollinator richness in semi-natural habitats and landscape complexity differed between groups with the most pronounced positive effects on non-crop pollinators. Our results indicate that while dominant crop pollinators are core components of crop pollinator communities in all agricultural landscapes, opportunistic crop pollinators largely determine species-richness responses and complex landscapes are local hotspots for both biodiversity conservation and potential ecosystem service provision.

Land use, REDD+ and the status of wildlife populations in Yaeda Valley, northern Tanzania.

REDD+ projects primarily focus on reducing carbon emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries. These projects are regularly evaluated against their core objective of conserving carbon stocks, but their contribution to biodiversity conservation has rarely been assessed. To assess the conservation value of the area and the relative performance of a REDD+ land use plan in Yaeda Valley, a semi-arid savannah ecosystem in northern Tanzania, we implemented an annual wildlife monitoring scheme. Based on direct sightings and indirect signs of wildlife, obtained from stratified walking transects conducted annually from 2015–2018, we estimated annual trends of mammal species richness and wildlife densities in three REDD+ and three non-REDD+ land-use strata. Our surveys document a near complete mammal community in the area. Species accumulation curves, and subsequent statistical comparisons, indicated highest mammal species richness in the woodland habitats (both REDD+ and non REDD+ strata) as compared to more human and livestock impacted areas, and suggested constant species richness from 2015–2018. To estimate stratum- and year-specific livestock and wildlife densities (cattle, donkey, goat and sheep combined, Thomson’s gazelle, Kirk’s dik-dik) and wildlife sign densities (aardvark, bushbuck, bushpig, Kirk’s dik dik, eland, elephant, Maasai giraffe, greater kudu, hyena, impala, lesser kudu, warthog, wildebeest, Plains zebra), we fitted species-specific detection functions in a distance sampling framework. Species-specific densities varied between 2015 and 2018 and showed substantial increases and occasional declines in other species-stratum combinations. However, population growth rates were not systematically associated with specific land-use strata. Although our results do not explicitly provide evidence that REDD+ land-use plans directly co-benefit wildlife conservation, they show that REDD+ areas have the potential to maintain intact wildlife assemblages. To ensure effective long-term conservation outcomes, we advocate for a more formal integration of wildlife conservation goals in the REDD+ scheme.

DNA Barcoding Sheds Light on Novel Records in the Tunisian Red Algal Flora

Tunisia is located at a key position in the Mediterranean Sea where it constitutes a transitional area between the eastern and western basins benefitting from rich habitat diversity. The most recent inventory of marine macrophytes dated back to 1987 with an update in 1995, however these inventories were performed with identification based on morphological observations, which can be misleading for many seaweed species. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study of the Tunisian macroalgal flora using DNA barcoding methods. Our target was to carry out a survey of macroalgae, to reveal cryptic species and allochthonous introductions, and to identify taxa with problematic taxonomy. COI-5P sequence analysis resolved 26 genetic species, including two new reports and three alien species. Of the remaining taxa, several displayed cryptic diversity relative to species reported from the Mediterranean versus from other geographical regions with taxonomic and nomenclature updates provided where possible. The aim of the present paper was to provide a DNA barcode-assisted floristic list of florideophycean algae collected along the Tunisian coast.

Ecological traits predict population changes in moths

Understanding the ecological traits which predispose species to local or global extinction allows for more effective pre-emptive conservation management interventions. Insect population declines are a major facet of the global biodiversity crisis, yet even in Europe they remain poorly understood. Here we identify traits linked to population trends in ‘common and widespread’ UK moths. Population trend data from the Rothamsted Research Insect Survey spanning 40 years was subject to classification and regression models to identify common traits among species experiencing a significant change in occurrence. Our final model had an accuracy of 76% and managed to predict declining species on 90% of occasions, but was less successful with increasing species. By far the most powerful predictor associated for declines was moth wingspan with large species declining more frequently. Preference for woody or herbaceous larval food sources, nocturnal photoperiod activity, and richness of habitats occupied also proved to be significantly associated with decline. Our results suggest that ecological traits can be reliably used to predict declines in moths, and that this model could be used for Data Deficient species, of which there are many.