Terrestrial Ecoregions Research Articles

How Can Seasonality Influence the Performance of Recent Microwave Satellite Soil Moisture Products?

In addition to technical issues related to the instruments used, differences between soil moisture (SM) measured using ground-based methods and microwave remote sensing (RS) can be related to the main features of the study areas, which are intricately connected to hydraulic–hydrological conditions and soil properties. When long-term analysis is performed, these discrepancies are mitigated by the contribution of SM seasonality and are only evident when high-frequency variations (i.e., signal anomalies) are investigated. This study sought to examine the responsiveness of SM to seasonal variations in terrestrial ecoregions located in areas covered by the in situ Romanian Soil Moisture Network (RSMN). To achieve this aim, several remote sensing-derived retrievals were considered: (i) NASA’s Soil Moisture Active and Passive (SMAP) L4 V5 model assimilated product data; (ii) the European Space Agency’s Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity INRA–CESBIO (SMOS-IC) V2.0 data; (iii) time-series data extracted from the H115 and H116 SM products, which are derived from the analysis of Advanced Scatterometer (ASCAT) data acquired via MetOp satellites; (iv) Copernicus Global Land Service SSM 1 km data; and (v) the “combined” European Space Agency’s Climate Change Initiative for Soil Moisture (ESA CCI SM) product v06.1. An initial assessment of the performance of these products was conducted by checking the anomaly of long-term fluctuations, quantified using the Absolute Variation of Local Change of Environment (ALICE) index, within a time frame spanning 2015 to 2020. These correlations were then compared with those based on raw data and anomalies computed using a moving window of 35 days. Prominent correlations were observed with the SMAP L4 dataset and across all ecoregions, and the Balkan mixed forests (646) exhibited strong concordance regardless of the satellite source (with a correlation coefficient RALICE > 0.5). In contrast, neither the Central European mixed forests (No. 654) nor the Pontic steppe (No. 735) were adequately characterized by any satellite dataset (RALICE < 0.5). Subsequently, the phenological seasonality and dynamic behavior of SM were computed to investigate the effects of the wetting and drying processes. Notably, the Central European mixed forests (654) underwent an extended dry phase (with an extremely low p-value of 2.20 × 10−16) during both the growth and dormancy phases. This finding explains why the RSMN showcases divergent behavior and underscores why no satellite dataset can effectively capture the complexities of the ecoregions covered by this in situ SM network.

Range-wide camera traps reveal potential prey species for Javan leopards

Prey depletion poses a threat to large carnivores worldwide. The Javan leopard (Panthera pardus melas), the last remaining apex predator on the Indonesian island of Java, is facing numerous threats from human activities including poaching, habitat loss and prey depletion. Despite the fact that the Javan leopard is an adaptable and opportunistic predator capable of surviving in various environments, our understanding of its prey and predator-prey interactions is still limited, which is crucial for their conservation. Using camera trap data collected from four national parks (i.e., Ujung Kulon, Gunung Gede Pangrango, Meru Betiri, Alas Purwo) that represent four distinct terrestrial ecoregions across the island of Java, we investigated the species richness, relative abundance, and spatial-temporal overlap in activity patterns between the Javan leopard and other animals that coexist in the same location. Our analysis of 7461 independent photos, covering 12,983 camera trap days, revealed that areas with the presence of Javan leopards exhibited higher species richness and abundance compared to those without the presence of Javan leopards. In addition, we found that the activities of banteng (Bos javanicus), barking deer (Muntiacus muntjak), Javan deer (Rusa timorensis), Javan mousedeer (Tragulus javanicus), wild boar (Sus scrofa), junglefowl (Gallus spp.), spangled ebony langur (Trachypithecus auratus), Javan rhino (Rhinoceros sondaicus), long-tailed macaque (Macaca fascicularis) and dhole (Cuon alpinus) were highly overlapping with those of Javan leopards in space and time, suggesting that these species are potential candidate prey for Javan leopards. To our knowledge, this is the first comprehensive investigation of potential prey for the Javan leopard that utilizes camera traps from all four types of terrestrial ecoregions on Java Island. The findings of this study may serve as essential information for the conservation of this critically endangered species.

EU2030 biodiversity strategy: Unveiling gaps in the coverage of ecoregions and threatened species within the strictly protected areas of Italy

About 19 % of the Italian territory is covered by protected areas (PAs), 5.1 % of which fall in IUCN categories Ia and II, which can be considered strictly protected areas (StPAs). The 2030 EU Biodiversity Strategy sets a target of 30 % coverage for PAs (of which 10 % should be StPAs). We assessed the area coverage of StPAs, for the territory of Italy, with respect to biogeographical regions, ecoregions, elevation range, habitats, and the distribution of species threatened with extinction according to the IUCN Red List (Vulnerable, VU; Endangered, EN; or Critically Endangered, CR). We found that most of the StPAs are located in the Mediterranean biogeographical region, followed by the Alpine and Continental regions, and that the spatial distribution of such protected areas is biased towards higher elevation. Moreover, we found that three of the fourteen terrestrial ecoregions of Italy are not protected at all by StPAs (i.e., Illyrian, Ligurian-Provencal, and Central-Adriatic), while the Po Plain and the Sicilia Sections are only marginally protected. Moreover, nine habitats are not covered by any StPAs including one priority habitat (Inland salt meadows). Finally, we found unprotected species among freshwater fish (21), amphibians (3 VU, 3 CR), reptiles (1 CR), birds (2 NE), mammals (1 VU), and plants (20 VU, 14 EN, 21 CR). Our findings suggest that the current amount and spatial distribution of StPAs of Italy are far from the targets of the EU Biodiversity Strategy and needs improvements.

National-scale spatiotemporal patterns of vegetation fire occurrences using MODIS satellite data.

As the risk of climate change increases, robust fire monitoring methods become critical for fire management purposes. National-scale spatiotemporal patterns of the fires and how they relate to vegetation and environmental conditions are not well understood in Zimbabwe. This paper presents a spatially explicit method combining satellite data and spatial statistics in detecting spatiotemporal patterns of fires in Zimbabwe. The Emerging Hot Spot Analysis method was utilized to detect statistically significant spatiotemporal patterns of fire occurrence between the years 2002 and 2021. Statistical analysis was done to determine the association between the spatiotemporal patterns and some environmental variables such as topography, land cover, land use, ecoregions and precipitation. The highest number of fires occurred in September, coinciding with Zimbabwe's observed fire season. The number of fires significantly varied among seasons, with the hot and dry season (August to October) recording the highest fire counts. Additionally, although June, July and November are not part of the official fire season in Zimbabwe, the fire counts recorded for these months were relatively high. This new information has therefore shown the need for revision of the fire season in Zimbabwe. The northern regions were characterized by persistent, oscillating, diminishing and historical spatiotemporal fire hotspots. Agroecological regions IIa and IIb and the Southern Miombo bushveld ecoregion were the most fire-prone areas. The research findings also revealed new critical information about the spatiotemporal fire patterns in various terrestrial ecoregions, land cover, land use, precipitation and topography and highlighted potential areas for effective fire management strategies.

Current and Future Patterns of Global Wildfire Based on Deep Neural Networks

AbstractGlobal climate change and extreme weather has a profound impact on wildfire, and it is of great importance to explore wildfire patterns in the context of global climate change for wildfire prevention and management. In this paper, a wildfire spatial prediction model based on convolutional neural networks (CNNs) was constructed in the reference period (1997–2014) by using wildfire driving factors and historical burned areas derived from the Global Fire Emissions Database (GFED4s). The shifting spatial patterns of global burned areas in future scenarios for the twenty‐first century was investigated by using shared socioeconomic pathways (SSPs) published by CMIP6. Projected burned areas are analyzed by using nine climate models from CMIP6 under four SSPs (SSP126, SSP245, SSP370 and SSP585) for four defined periods. The evolution of the spatial pattern of global wildfires was further described based on terrestrial ecoregions and GFED regions. The results showed that for the reference period (1997–2014), burned areas were generally distributed in tropical and subtropical regions. The projection results exhibited a systematic increasing trend under the four SSPs from a global perspective in response to climate warming. The increasing trend for the burned area in the SSP370 and SSP585 scenarios was more obvious than that for the SSP126 and SSP245 scenarios. As the severity of the emission scenarios increases, severe wildfires will gradually shift to higher latitudes in the mid‐to‐long term (2061–2080) and long term (2081–2100).

Climate change alters global invasion vulnerability among ecoregions

AbstractAimWe assess climate similarity among global freshwater and terrestrial ecoregions under historical and future climate scenarios to determine where climate change will impact the climate filter of invasion process.LocationGlobal.MethodsWe used the Climatch algorithm to conduct a climate‐match analysis to quantify the climate similarity between freshwater and terrestrial ecoregions of the world. Climate match was modelled between all freshwater and terrestrial ecoregions. The analysis was conducted under historical climates and projected climates of 2081–2100 (2090) under three shared socioeconomic pathways SSP2‐4.5, SSP3‐7.0, SSP5‐8.5. Climate matches of each ecoregion were presented as mean climate match to all other ecoregions of the same set. Friedman's non‐parametric rank sum two‐way analysis of variance with repeated measures was used to examine differences in mean climate match between climate scenarios.ResultsMean climate match of ecoregions was projected to increase significantly with small effect sizes for freshwater ecoregions (recipients: 0.132; sources: 0.105), and moderate and small effect sizes for terrestrial ecoregions (recipients: 0.330; sources: 0.259). Climate change was predicted to increase mean climate match in North America and Eurasia, particularly in the Arctic by 2090 under each SSP. Ecoregions in central Africa and South America were predicted to have reduced mean climate match. Ecoregions within larger countries (e.g. Australia, Canada, USA) showed variation in mean climate match.Main ConclusionClimate change projections of bioclimatic predictors of species invasions were shown to increase in homogeneity under higher emissions scenarios. Furthermore, we demonstrate how climate change will provide opportunities for invasive species transported among ecoregions to survive under new conditions and identify where the climate filter of the invasion process will be most affected. Findings can be used to inform conservation actions for mitigating the impacts of introduced species by identifying potential risky source regions of future freshwater and terrestrial invasions under climate change.

Biodiversity Impact Assessment Considering Land Use Intensities and Fragmentation.

Land use is a major threat to terrestrial biodiversity. Life cycle assessment is a tool that can assess such threats and thereby support environmental decision-making. Within the Global Guidance for Life Cycle Impact Assessment (GLAM) project, the Life Cycle Initiative hosted by UN Environment aims to create a life cycle impact assessment method across multiple impact categories, including land use impacts on ecosystem quality represented by regional and global species richness. A working group of the GLAM project focused on such land use impacts and developed new characterization factors to combine the strengths of two separate recent advancements in the field: the consideration of land use intensities and land fragmentation. The data sets to parametrize the underlying model are also updated from previous models. The new characterization factors cover five species groups (plants, amphibians, birds, mammals, and reptiles) and five broad land use types (cropland, pasture, plantations, managed forests, and urban land) at three intensity levels (minimal, light, and intense). They are available at the level of terrestrial ecoregions and countries. This paper documents the development of the characterization factors, provides practical guidance for their use, and critically assesses the strengths and remaining shortcomings.

Intercomparison of recent microwave satellite soil moisture products on European ecoregions

Several satellite microwave-based soil moisture (SM) products have become available in recent years, making possible to produce different datasets at continental and/or a global scale. Numerous variables, including geographic heterogeneity, weather and climate, and land cover, have an impact on these products' accuracy. In this study, we account for all these variables by using the ecoregions as the scale of analysis and conducting a thorough comparison of satellite products with ground-based SM measurements. The whole Europe has been selected as study area, considering it as the aggregation of several ecoregions, each of them classified as an homogeneous zones, in terms of climate, vegetation and potentially investigable soil cover. Selected SM satellite data includes: i) the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) SMAP L4 V5; ii) the European Space Agency (ESA) SMOS-IC V2.0; iii) the H115 and H116 SM products in time-series format generated by analyzing data collected by the Advanced Scatterometer (ASCAT) aboard MetOp satellites; iv) the CGLS SSM 1 km obtained by the radar onboard ESA’s SENTINEL-1 platforms; and v) the European Space Agency’s Climate Change Initiative for Soil Moisture (ESA CCI SM) “COMBINED” ESA CCI SM v06.1 product, created by merging satellite-based passive/active microwave measurements. Such a variety, in terms of technologies and main features, of publicly available online SM products (in their up-to-date version), allowed for a comprehensive intercomparison against in situ measurements of the International Soil Moisture Network (ISMN), that spreads across all of Europe within the above-mentioned terrestrial ecoregion, using four different metrics, i.e., r, bias, ubRMSE and r/rANOM.Overall the intercomparison has underlined how SMAP L4 and ESA CCI show the best performance regardless of the considered metric. ASCAT has achieved best performances among non-modeled/blended products, while SMOS-IC has showed slightly better performance than the CGLS SSM 1 km. Using ecoregions allowed to further characterize the differences of each satellite products and identify the areas where all these products are more reliable (e.g., group (1) made by ecoregions as the Cantabrian Mixed forests or the Balkan Mixed forests; or group 2 made by ecoregions which belong to Mediterranean area) or less performing (e.g., the Central European mixed forests and the Pontic steppe). Hence, these classes have been further analyzed exploiting the ERA5-Land data, in terms of the SM, air temperature, precipitation, evaporation and Leaf area index. The research has provided helpful insights into how the performance of particular SM satellite products changes based on both the characteristics of the product under consideration and the area under investigation (i.e., one ecoregion compared to another).

The potential of ecoregional range maps for boosting taxonomic coverage in ecology and conservation

Expert range maps (ExpRMs) are frequently used to inform species distributions, but often incomplete or missing for many species, particularly among plants and invertebrates. Many species without ExpRMs also have too few occurrence records for reliable application of species distribution models (SDMs). Here we evaluate the performance of commonly used range surrogates and recommend tools that can help fill this significant knowledge gap across a wide range of understudied taxa. Specifically, we explore an alternative range surrogate (ecoregional range maps; EcoRMs), assess its performance versus traditional approaches for 624 North American butterfly species, and outline its use alone and as part of SDMs. As an alternative range estimate, we use terrestrial ecoregions that represent a regionalization of biogeographical zones and we suggest geographical filters and simplifications that improve their performance. We show that consistently across different spatial scales and both in comparison with ExpRMs and SDMs, EcoRMs have an exceptionally high sensitivity and generally a high mean performance. Particularly for species with fewer than 100 occurrence records, EcoRMs outperform other range surrogates. The congruence of species richness patterns was also similar for all approaches. The use of EcoRMs as substitute for data‐poor species without ExpRMs will strongly boost taxonomic coverage of range maps. Additionally, integrating EcoRMs as domains/masks/offsets into SDMs promises significant improvements to model accuracy. For butterflies alone, EcoRMs would thereby provide new range information for 17% and improve basic range information for 43% of all approximately nineteen thousand species. Other technical advantages of generating EcoRMs may also help to overcome issues of the availability, updateability, reproducibility, and circularity of ExpRMs, SDMs and minimum convex hulls (MCVs). In summary, ecoregion‐based range maps offer a versatile tool for ecology and conservation of terrestrial taxa and the application of the EcoRM approach may prove similarly useful for freshwater and marine ecoregions.

Restinga ectomycorrhizae: a work in progress.

Background: The Brazilian Atlantic Forest is one of the most biodiverse terrestrial ecoregions of the world. Among its constituents, restinga vegetation makes a particular case, acting as a buffer zone between the oceans and the forest. Covering some 80% of Brazilian coastline (over 7,300 km in length), restinga is a harsh environment where plants and fungi interact in complex ways that just now are beginning to be unveiled. Ectomycorrhizal symbiosis, in particular, plays a so far ungauged and likely underestimated role. We recently described the morpho-anatomical and molecular features of the ectomycorrhizae formed by several basidiomycetous mycobionts on the host plant Guapira opposita, but the mycorrhizal biology of restinga is still largely unexplored. Here, we report new data on the ectomycorrhizal fungal symbionts of G. opposita, based on the collection of sporomata and ectomycorrhizal root tips in restinga stands occurring in southern Brazil. Methods: To obtain a broader view of restinga mycorrhizal and ecological potential, we compiled a comprehensive and up-to-date checklist of fungal species reported or supposed to establish ectomycorrhizae on restinga-inhabiting host plants, mainly on the basis of field observations. Results: Our list comprises some 726 records, 74 of which correspond to putative ectomycorrhizal taxa specifically associated with restinga. These include several members of Boletaceae, Amanita, Tomentella/ Thelephora, Russula/ Lactifluus, and Clavulina, as well as hypogeous fungi, like the recently described Longistriata flava. Conclusions: Our survey reveals a significant diversity of the restinga ectomycorrhizal mycobiota, indicating the importance of this symbiosis for the ecological functioning of a unique yet poorly known and threatened ecosystem.

Revealing the main factors affecting global forest change at distinct altitude gradients

Anthropogenic activities and climate change play crucial roles in the productivity and sustainability of global forests. Although the impacts of anthropogenic activities and climate change on forests in specific regions have been reported in previous studies, their impact on the global forests along the elevation gradient remains poorly understood. Thus, here, we aimed to investigate anthropogenic activities and climate change effects on global forests by focusing on the drivers on the altitude gradient. To this end, we used spaceborne remote sensing and statistical methods to elucidate the forest areas experiencing significant change and the main factors governing the changes. Our analysis demonstrated that: (1) With respect to the altitude distribution of forest greening/browning, the higher the altitude is, the smaller is the indicated area of forest, and the smaller is the area of forest, the more significant is the greening/browning. In addition, although the area with significant forest greening was generally larger than that of browning, this trend was not consistent through the months or altitude gradients. (2) Except for the high-altitude areas in August and September (>2400 m), the impact of human global forest governance activities on the greening of forests in most altitude areas and months was greater than that of climate change. However, at most altitudinal gradients, the area of forest with significant browning caused by anthropogenic activities was smaller than that caused by climate change. This was because the scope of the impact of climate change was usually larger than that of anthropogenic activities. (3) Although temperature was the main factor responsible for significant monthly forest greening, it was not always the most crucial factor at specific altitudes. Temperature and sunshine duration were the most influential factors causing significant forest greening for the most months of the year in five terrestrial ecoregions. Sunshine duration, as the largest influencing factor causing significant forest browning, had the longest monthly impact in five terrestrial ecoregions. The findings of our study can provide a reference for better global forest management and sustainability.

Spatial conservation prioritization for locating protected area gaps in Iran

In line with global conservation targets, Iran aims to increase its protected area coverage from c. 11 % to 20 %. We explored an area-efficient and balanced set of criteria to find areas that best complement existing protected areas for achieving these targets. We used distribution maps of all threatened vertebrates in a systematic conservation planning approach and compared four different methods of weighting species and locations: 1) species weighted equally, 2) weighted by distribution characteristics (i.e. presence, origin, seasonality) and important habitat surrogates (Important Bird Areas and Endemic Bird Areas), 3) species' level of endemism, and IUCN Red List threat status, and 4) considering opportunity cost based on levels of urbanization to reflect the current land's ecological conditions. We then determined the extent to which existing protected areas cover conservation priorities for different species groups, and explored how new priorities complement Iran's protected area network to achieve national target to protect 20 % of its land area. Our findings showed that parts of terrestrial ecoregions in the north, north-west and west of the country were consistently important in all scenarios, representing the best places to start increasing protected area coverage. Protecting 20 % of the country in the prioritizations constrained by existing protected areas would conserve biodiversity groups in 70 % to 100 % of their distribution, except for birds and mammals for which the protection coverage was lower. Our study locates the important areas for conservation in line with national and international targets that require effective conservation action.

Whether curse or blessing: A counterintuitive perspective on global pest thrips infestation under climatic change with implications to agricultural economics

The improvement and application of pest models to predict yield losses is still a challenge for the scientific community. However, pest models were targeted chiefly towards scheduling scouting or pesticide applications to deal with pest infestation. Thysanoptera (thrips) significantly impact the productivity of many economically important crops worldwide. Until now, no comprehensive study is available on the global distribution of pest thrips, as well as on the extent of cropland vulnerability worldwide. Further, nothing is known about the climate change impacts on these insects. Thus the present study was designed to map the global distribution and quantify the extent of cropland vulnerability in the present and future climate scenarios using data of identified pest thrips within the genus, i.e., Thrips, Frankliniella, and Scirtothrips. Our found significant niche contraction under the climate change scenarios and thrips may reside primarily in their thermal tolerance thresholds. About 3,98,160 km2 of cropland globally was found to be affected in the present scenario. However, it may significantly reduce to 5530 Km2 by 2050 and 1990 km2 by 2070. Further, the thrips distribution mostly getting restricted to Eastern North America, the North-western of the Indian sub-continent, and the north of Europe. Among all realms, thrips may lose ground in the Indo-Malayan realm at the most and get restricted to only 27 out of 825 terrestrial ecoregions. The agrarian communities of the infested regions may get benefit if these pests get wiped out, but on the contrary, we may lose species diversity. Moreover, the vacated niche may attract other invasive species, which may seriously impact the species composition and agricultural productivity. The present study findings can be used in making informed decisions about prioritizing future economic and research investments on the thrips in light of anticipated climate change impacts.

Current trends suggest most Asian countries are unlikely to meet future biodiversity targets on protected areas

Aichi Target 11 committed governments to protect ≥17% of their terrestrial environments by 2020, yet it was rarely achieved, raising questions about the post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework goal to protect 30% by 2030. Asia is a challenging continent for such targets, combining high biodiversity with dense human populations. Here, we evaluated achievements in Asia against Aichi Target 11. We found that Asia was the most underperforming continent globally, with just 13.2% of terrestrial protected area (PA) coverage, averaging 14.1 ± SE 1.8% per country in 2020. 73.1% of terrestrial ecoregions had <17% representation and only 7% of PAs even had an assessment of management effectiveness. We found that a higher agricultural land in 2015 was associated with lower PA coverage today. Asian countries also showed a remarkably slow average annual pace of 0.4 ± SE 0.1% increase of PA extent. These combined lines of evidence suggest that the ambitious 2030 targets are unlikely to be achieved in Asia unless the PA coverage to increase 2.4-5.9 times faster. We provided three recommendations to support Asian countries to meet their post-2020 biodiversity targets: complete reporting and the wider adoption “other effective area-based conservation measures”; restoring disturbed landscapes; and bolstering transboundary PAs.

Mangroves provide blue carbon ecological value at a low freshwater cost

“Blue carbon” wetland vegetation has a limited freshwater requirement. One type, mangroves, utilizes less freshwater during transpiration than adjacent terrestrial ecoregions, equating to only 43% (average) to 57% (potential) of evapotranspiration (ET). Here, we demonstrate that comparative consumptive water use by mangrove vegetation is as much as 2905 kL H2O ha−1 year−1 less than adjacent ecoregions with {E}_{c}-to-ET ratios of 47–70%. Lower porewater salinity would, however, increase mangrove {E}_{c}-to-ET ratios by affecting leaf-, tree-, and stand-level eco-physiological controls on transpiration. Restricted water use is also additive to other ecosystem services provided by mangroves, such as high carbon sequestration, coastal protection and support of biodiversity within estuarine and marine environments. Low freshwater demand enables mangroves to sustain ecological values of connected estuarine ecosystems with future reductions in freshwater while not competing with the freshwater needs of humans. Conservative water use may also be a characteristic of other emergent blue carbon wetlands.

Carbon-isotope composition of artiodactyl tooth enamel and its implications for paleodiets

The stable carbon-isotope composition of mammalian tooth enamel is a powerful tool for reconstructing paleodiet and paleoenvironment. Its application in the fossil record relies on a thorough understanding of the isotopic composition of mammalian diets in modern ecosystems. We compiled and evaluated a global dataset of the carbon-isotope values of artiodactyl tooth enamel, supplemented by new samples, for 79 extant species. After correcting for differences in atmospheric carbon-isotope composition, body mass, and digestive physiology, we compared the inferred carbon-isotope values of ingested forage (δ13Cdiet) among seven feeding categories. The artiodactyl herbivore dietary spectrum is expressed through a wide range of δ13Cdiet values, with the most depleted mean value in frugivores and the most enriched in obligate grazers. In general, grazing species have a broader range of isotope values than browsing species, suggesting a wider dietary niche breadth. Notably, variable grazers exhibit a bimodal distribution of δ13Cdiet values, with North American and Asian taxa consuming C3 diets and African taxa consuming C4 diets, reflecting the amount of C4 vegetation in the environment. Variation in δ13Cdiet values also occurs among terrestrial ecoregions and artiodactyl clades. Grassland ecoregions differ significantly from forest ecoregions. We detected a low but significant phylogenetic signal in the mean δ13Cdiet values of extant species, with some of the oldest ruminant lineages having maintained C3 feeding and pure C4 diets being restricted to two bovid clades. Determining variation in δ13Cdiet values in different feeding categories and lineages will help refine paleoecological and paleoenvironmental reconstructions from the rich fossil record of artiodactyls.

Conceptualization of Sequential Cross-Shore Eco-Geomorphological Units in Topographic Profiles: Introduction and Application of Coastal Belt Archimorphs and Ideograms as Related to the BCCS (Biophysical Cross-Shore Classification System)

Finkl, C.W. and Makowski, C., 2023. Conceptualization of sequential cross-shore eco-geomorphological units in topographic profiles: Introduction and application of coastal belt archimorphs and ideograms as related to the BCCS (Biophysical Cross-Shore Classification System). Journal of Coastal Research, 39(1), 1–17. Charlotte (North Carolina), ISSN 0749-0208. The BCCS (Biophysical Cross-Shore Classification System) is a method of coastal classification based on the concept of using cross-shore eco-geomorphological catenary sequences to define the nature of coastal belts with variable extensions inland and alongshore. The methodology of the BCCS is based on the recognition of cross- and alongshore sequences (Coastal Ecological Sequences, CES) that form overarching catenas (Dominant Catenary Sequences, DCS) when viewed with satellite images in planview. Extension of these concepts to embrace topographic slices across the coast (in a tomographic sense) produces archimorphs that show actual surface (terrestrial and marine) elevations above and below sea level. Based on elevation data from satellite imagery, several repeating profile shapes were concised to a modicum of idealized line-illustrated conceptual shapes that are referred to as ideograms. The ideograms are based on archimorphs, which are the dominant or essential archetypical shapes of eco-geomorphological environments, such as barrier, beach, beach ridge, channel, cliff, coral reef, delta, developed, dune, flat, ice, lagoon, lake, mountain, rock, till, upland, or wetland archetypes. Archimorphs typically combine cross-shore with each other to form polymorphic sequences used to subdivide ideograms into archetype or subarchetype segments. By doing so, a better understanding of spatial linkages between generalized eco-geomorphological units is obtained. Eighteen coastal ideograms are presented in this paper as prospects for stylizing profile shapes to gather immediate conceptualizations of coastal belts. Selected profiles from around the world were constructed to show, in a single illustration, the principal components of cross-shore profiles that include information relating to (but not inclusive of) topographic shape, archimorphs based on elevation data, catenary archimorphic sequences (polymorphs), ideograms based on idealized tomographs, and correlation to the BCCS codifications that include Large Marine Ecosystems (LMEs) and terrestrial Ecoregions (ERs). This kind of conceptual collage amalgamates diverse types of information into a compact format for easy comprehension of coastal setups in an instantaneous view. These annotated classification profiles can be used for coastal belts the world over and have applications in the biophysical, geographical, managerial, and military sciences.

First DNA barcode library for the ichthyofauna of the Jos Plateau (Nigeria) with comments on potential undescribed fish species.

Located in the central region of northern Nigeria, the Jos Plateau covers approximately 9,400 km² with an average altitude of 1,280 m and constitutes a unique terrestrial ecoregion known as the Jos Plateau forest-grassland mosaic. The biota of the Jos Plateau include endemic elements, but very limited information is available on its ichthyofauna. This is despite the fact that the ancient plateau contributes to several large rivers spanning multiple major drainage systems including the Niger and Benue Rivers, and Lake Chad. This study provides the first species list for the fishes of the Jos Plateau based mainly on 175 DNA barcoded museum voucher specimens representing 20 species, and another three species without a DNA barcode. In total, 23 species from eight families and 17 genera were collected from the Jos Plateau including five putatively new species, four in the family Cyprinidae and one in the Clariidae. With ten species, the Cyprinidae is the most diverse fish family on the Jos Plateau, followed by Clariidae and Cichlidae, each with three species. The study also provides data on species distribution and habitat parameters including information on water chemistry that strongly suggests that selected water bodies are heavily impacted by anthropogenic activities. Urgent management steps are required to preserve the unique and diverse fish communities of the Jos Plateau and their habitats.

Climate change may plunder the facultative top predator Yellow-throated Martin from the Hindu-Kush Himalayan Region

The mountain ecosystems are fragile because of topography and extreme climatic conditions. The Hindu-Kush Himalayan (HKH) region is a biodiversity-rich ecosystem and highly vulnerable to climate change and anthropogenic activities among the mountains. In HKH, the climate change impacts on ecologically specialist species are already evident, but generalist species are not much studied. One such generalist species distributed throughout the HKH is Yellow-Throated Marten (YTM) (Martes flavigula Boddaert, 1785), a facultative predator that occupies the Southern flank of the HKH. The YTM is one of the least studied animals distributed up to 4510-m elevation. The HKH covers 61 terrestrial ecoregions and 304 Protected Areas (PAs). An ecologically successful facultative predator of the region is seriously threatened because of habitat loss and climate change. Hence, we used an ensemble model to map the distribution of suitable habitats and their representativeness in terms of ecoregions and PA coverage. The results indicated that by 2050, the distribution range might decline to 58.78% and 49.33% with reference to the current scenario under the representative concentration pathway (RCP) 4.5 and 8.5 scenarios, respectively. The species may lose much of its range, mainly in the eastern part of the HKH landscape. Furthermore, the centroid of the distribution may also shift to the northwest, thereby abandoning many areas and occupying new refugia. The Upper Gangetic plains moist deciduous forests ecoregion possess the highest suitable habitats for the YTM, with a mean value of 0.744. At the same time, the existing PA network represents only 12.2% of its suitable habitat in HKH. Hence, for the long-term viability of the species, there is a need to enhance protection and improve habitat quality.

Rain Forest Fragmentation and Environmental Dynamics on Nosy Be Island (NW Madagascar) at 1300 cal BP Is Attributable to Intensified Human Impact

Madagascar houses one of the Earth’s biologically richest, but also one of most endangered, terrestrial ecoregions. Although it is obvious that humans substantially altered the natural ecosystems during the past decades, the timing of arrival of early inhabitants on Madagascar as well as their environmental impact is still intensively debated. This research aims to study the beginning of early human impact on Malagasy natural ecosystems, specifically on Nosy Be island (NW Madagascar) by targeting the sedimentary archive of Lake Amparihibe, an ancient volcanic crater. Based on pollen, fungal spore, other non-pollen palynomorph, charcoal particle and diatom analyses combined with high-resolution sediment-physical and (in)organic geochemical data, paleoenvironmental dynamics during the past three millennia were reconstructed. Results indicate a major environmental change at ca. 1300 cal BP characterized by an abrupt development of grass (C4) dominated and fire disturbed landscape showing the alteration of natural rain forest. Further, increased soil erodibility is suggested by distinct increase in sediment accumulation rates, a strong pulse of nutrient input, higher water turbidity and contemporaneous increase in spores of mycorrhizal fungi. These parameters are interpreted to show a strong early anthropogenic transformation of the landscape from rain forest to open grassland. After ca. 1000 cal BP, fires remain frequent and vegetation is dominated by forest/grassland mosaic. While natural vegetation should be dominated by rain forest on Nosy Be, these last results indicate that human continuously impacted the landscapes surrounding the lake. At a local scale, our data support the “subsistence shift hypothesis” which proposed that population expansion with development of herding/farming altered the natural ecosystems. However, a precise regional synthesis is challenging, since high-resolution multi-proxy records from continuous sedimentary archives as well as records located further north and in the hinterland are still scarce in Madagascar. The lack of such regional synthesis also prevents precise comparison between different regions in Madagascar to detect potential (dis)similarities in climate dynamics, ecosystem responses and anthropogenic influences at the island’s scale during the (late) Holocene.