Terrestrial Mammal Species Research Articles

Annotated Checklist of Terrestrial Mammals of the Virginia Barrier Islands and the Adjacent Delmarva Peninsula Mainland

The Virginia barrier islands lie along the seaward margin of the southern Delmarva Peninsula in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States, and collectively they comprise an internationally recognized biosphere reserve. Despite this recognition, no comprehensive checklist of mammals exists for the islands or the adjacent Delmarva Peninsula mainland. Herein we report on the species composition of terrestrial mammals of this region based on (1) a search of museum collections, (2) a compilation of literature sources and personal communications, and (3) our own extensive fieldwork (1975–2020). We documented 6 orders, 12 families, and 25 species of native terrestrial mammals. The islands are depauperate in comparison with the mainland, with several native species missing from the islands. We also documented 3 orders, 3 families, and 4 species of non-native mammals that are currently established on the islands. In addition, we herein present a historical overview of livestock species that were introduced to the islands, but (with 1 exception) no longer occur there. European settlement of the mainland and the islands began in the early 1600s; however, permanent human structures have been absent from most of the islands for the past 60+ years, leaving them undeveloped and in a natural state. These islands are undergoing rapid geological and ecological change under the pressure of accelerated sea-level rise associated with climate change. This checklist provides a foundation for future biogeogeographic studies of mammals in this region and serves as a baseline against which to measure future ecological and distributional changes.

Using biological records to infer long-term occupancy trends of mammals in the UK

Conservation action is usually triggered by detecting trends in species’ population size, geographical range, or occupancy (proportion of sites occupied). Robust estimates of these metrics are often required by policy makers and practitioners, yet many species lack dedicated monitoring schemes. An alternative source of data for trend estimation is provided by biological records, i.e., species presence information. In the UK, there are millions of such records, but biological trend assessments are often hindered by biases caused by the unstructured way in which they are collected. Recent advances in occupancy modelling that account for changes in survey effort and detectability over time mean that robust occupancy trends can now be estimated from these records. By grouping mammal species into survey assemblages — species likely to be recorded at the same time — and applying occupancy models, this study provides estimates of long-term (1970 to 2016) occupancy trends for 37 terrestrial mammal species from the UK. The inter-annual occupancy growth rates for these species ranged from -4.26% to 11.25%. This information was used to classify two species as strongly decreasing, five as decreasing, 12 as no change, 11 as increasing and seven as strongly increasing. Viewing the survey assemblages as a whole, the occupancy growth rates for small mammals were, on average, decreasing (-0.8% SD 1.57), whereas bats and deer (0.9% SD 1.30) were increasing (3.8% SD 3.25; 0.9% SD 1.30 respectively), and mid-sized mammals were stable (-0.3 SD 1.72). These results contribute much-needed information on a number of data deficient species, and provide evidence for prioritising conservation action.

Integrated spatial planning for biodiversity conservation and food production

Integrated spatial planning for biodiversity conservation and food production

High level of intrinsic phenotypic antimicrobial resistance in enterobacteria from terrestrial wildlife in Gabonese national parks.

Data on the prevalence of antibiotic resistance in Enterobacteriaceae in African wildlife are still relatively limited. The aim of this study was to estimate the prevalence of phenotypic intrinsic and acquired antimicrobial resistance of enterobacteria from several species of terrestrial wild mammals in national parks of Gabon. Colony culture and isolation were done using MacConkey agar. Isolates were identified using the VITEK 2 and MALDI-TOF methods. Antibiotic susceptibility was analysed and interpreted according to the European Committee on Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing guidelines. The preliminary test for ESBL-producing Enterobacteriaceae was performed by replicating enterobacterial colonies on MacConkey agar supplemented with 2 mg/L cefotaxime (MCA+CTX). Extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL) production was confirmed with the double-disc synergy test (DDST). The inhibition zone diameters were read with SirScan. Among the 130 bacterial colonies isolated from 125 fecal samples, 90 enterobacterial isolates were identified. Escherichia coli (61%) was the most prevalent, followed by Enterobacter cloacae (8%), Proteus mirabilis (8%), Klebsiella variicola (7%), Klebsiella aerogenes (7%), Klebsiella oxytoca (4%), Citrobacter freundii (3%), Klebsiella pneumoniae (1%) and Serratia marcescens (1%). Acquired resistance was carried by E. coli (11% of all E. coli isolates) and E. cloacae (3% of all E. cloacae) isolates, while intrinsic resistance was detected in all the other resistant isolates (n = 31); K. variicola, K. oxytoca, K. pneumoniae, E. cloacae, K. aerogenes, S. marcescens and P. mirabilis). Our data show that most strains isolated in protected areas in Gabon are wild type isolates and carry intrinsic resistance rather than acquired resistance.

Electrocardiographic Scaling Reveals Differences in Electrocardiogram Interval Durations Between Marine and Terrestrial Mammals.

Although the ability of marine mammals to lower heart rates for extended periods when diving is well documented, it is unclear whether marine mammals have electrophysiological adaptations that extend beyond overall bradycardia. We analyzed electrocardiographic data from 50 species of terrestrial mammals and 19 species of marine mammals to determine whether the electrical activity of the heart differs between these two groups of mammals. We also tested whether physiological state (i.e., anesthetized or conscious) affects electrocardiogram (ECG) parameters. Analyses of ECG waveform morphology (heart rate, P-wave duration, and PQ, PR, QRS, and QT intervals) revealed allometric relationships between body mass and all ECG intervals (as well as heart rate) for both groups of mammals and specific differences in ECG parameters between marine mammals and their terrestrial counterparts. Model outputs indicated that marine mammals had 19% longer P-waves, 24% longer QRS intervals, and 21% shorter QT intervals. In other words, marine mammals had slower atrial and ventricular depolarization, and faster ventricular repolarization than terrestrial mammals. Heart rates and PR intervals were not significantly different between marine and terrestrial mammals, and physiological state did not significantly affect any ECG parameter. On average, ECG interval durations of marine and terrestrial mammals scaled with body mass to the power of 0.21 (range: 0.19–0.23) rather than the expected 0.25—while heart rate scaled with body mass to the power of –0.22 and was greater than the widely accepted –0.25 derived from fractal geometry. Our findings show clear differences between the hearts of terrestrial and marine mammals in terms of cardiac timing that extend beyond diving bradycardia. They also highlight the importance of considering special adaptations (such as breath-hold diving) when analyzing allometric relationships.

Data Management and Sharing for Collaborative Science: Lessons Learnt From the Euromammals Initiative

The current and future consequences of anthropogenic impacts such as climate change and habitat loss on ecosystems will be better understood and therefore addressed if diverse ecological data from multiple environmental contexts are more effectively shared. Re-use requires that data are readily available to the scientific scrutiny of the research community. A number of repositories to store shared data have emerged in different ecological domains and developments are underway to define common data and metadata standards. Nevertheless, the goal is far from being achieved and many challenges still need to be addressed. The definition of best practices for data sharing and re-use can benefit from the experience accumulated by pilot collaborative projects. The Euromammals bottom-up initiative has pioneered collaborative science in spatial animal ecology since 2007. It involves more than 150 institutes to address scientific, management and conservation questions regarding terrestrial mammal species in Europe using data stored in a shared database. In this manuscript we present some key lessons that we have learnt from the process of making shared data and knowledge accessible to researchers and we stress the importance of data management for data quality assurance. We suggest putting in place a pro-active data review before data are made available in shared repositories via robust technical support and users’ training in data management and standards. We recommend pursuing the definition of common data collection protocols, data and metadata standards, and shared vocabularies with direct involvement of the community to boost their implementation. We stress the importance of knowledge sharing, in addition to data sharing. We show the crucial relevance of collaborative networking with pro-active involvement of data providers in all stages of the scientific process. Our main message is that for data-sharing collaborative efforts to obtain substantial and durable scientific returns, the goals should not only consist in the creation of e-infrastructures and software tools but primarily in the establishment of a network and community trust. This requires moderate investment, but over long-term horizons.

Abundance, diversity and daily activity of terrestrial mammal and bird species in disturbed and undisturbed limestone habitats using camera trapping, Central Thailand

Abstract: Pla-ard M, Hoonheang W, Kaewdee B, Panganta T, Charaspet K, Khoiesri N, Paansri P, Kanka P, Chanachai Y, Thongbanthum J, Bangthong P, Sukmasuang R. 2021. Abundance, diversity and daily activity of terrestrial mammal and bird species in disturbed and undisturbed limestone habitats using camera trapping, Central Thailand. Biodiversitas 22: 3620-3631. This study on the abundance, diversity and daily activity of terrestrial mammal and bird species was conducted in the limestone mountainous area of Central Thailand, located on the east of Dong Phaya Yen-Khao Yai forest complex. Camera traps were placed in both habitats disturbed by limestone mining and undisturbed habitat areas. From the study, a total of 38 species of mammals and birds from 27 families in 13 orders were recorded, including 15 species of mammals from 6 orders, 12 families and 23 species of birds from 14 families in 7 orders. Fifteen species of mammals were recorded in the undisturbed area and 11 were recorded in the disturbed area, with the Malayan Pangolin, Small Indian Civet and Grey-bellied Squirrel found in the undisturbed area. However, the number of bird species in the limestone mining area was larger than in the undisturbed area. It was also found that there was no difference in the overall abundance and diversity of mammalian species between disturbed and undisturbed areas, which is not in accordance with the hypothesis. But in the case of wild birds, the relative abundance of wild birds was found to differ significantly between areas. A high number was found in the areas with mining activities, although there was no difference in the diversity index of the two areas. However, it was found that when the combined data was analyzed, there was a significant difference in the daily activity of both mammals and wild birds in both areas. Many rare wildlife species were recorded during this study, for example, the Malayan Pangolin, Serow, Northern Pig-tailed Macaque, Rufous Limestone-babbler, Golden Jackal, Leopard Cat, Large-toothed Ferret Badger, Small Asian Mongoose, Common Palm Civet, Small Indian Civet, Malayan Porcupine. The key measure proposed is to preserve some natural habitats within the areas with mining activities, as wildlife remains in the area.

Drivers of intraspecific lethal aggression in mammals

AbstractAimTo assess whether interspecific variation in lethal intraspecific aggressiveness in mammals exhibits a geographical gradient and, if so, to identify which ecological, social and evolutionary processes could explain such patterns.LocationGlobal.TaxonMammalia.MethodsWe mapped intraspecific lethal aggressivity for 952 terrestrial mammal species and, through an assemblage‐based and phylogenetic approach, tested at a global scale four hypotheses that may explain differences in lethal aggressivity: the seasonal effects of photoperiod seasonality, food resource availability, social organisation and evolutionary history.ResultsPhotoperiod seasonality, which is linked to hormonal control, was the best predictor of lethal aggressivity. However, interactions between the environment and evolutionary factors explained the higher proportion of interspecific variation.Main conclusionsThe geography of behavioural traits, affecting multiple adaptive pathways, is an important emerging area of biogeographical research with high potential relevance for interpreting other macroecological patterns.

BRacatus: A method to estimate the accuracy and biogeographical status of georeferenced biological data

Abstract Georeferenced biological data of species distributions, abundances or traits are critical for ecological and evolutionary research. However, the accuracy (true vs. false records) and biogeographical status (native vs. alien) of individual georeferenced records are often unclear, which limits their use in species distribution modelling, analyses of biodiversity change and other applications. Here, we introduced bRacatus, a new method and R package to estimate a given georeferenced record's probability of being true or false and of corresponding to a native or an alien occurrence. Our framework avoided artificial thresholds of data filtering and instead implemented a probabilistic framework which allowed propagating uncertainties in subsequent analyses. We trained and tested our method on 400 terrestrial species of amphibians, birds, terrestrial mammals and vascular plants from four continents. bRacatus showed good predictive power (mean AUC higher than 0.9; mean RMSE lower than 0.3) for both the accuracy and biogeographical status. Model performance was similar among continents, range sizes and taxa not used in the training. Tests were robust using either range maps or regional checklists of differing levels of data completeness as reference regions. bRacatus was implemented as a user‐friendly R package that enabled researchers to assess the accuracy and biogeographical status of species occurrences, population abundances, community composition or any other type of georeferenced biodiversity records. We proposed this method as a routine step in addressing the inherent uncertainty of point observations to promote more accurate ecological inference and predictions.

Diversity and activity patterns of medium- and large-sized terrestrial mammals at the Los Tuxtlas Biosphere Reserve, México

Studies on diversity of animal communities allow determination of their species richness and composition. This information is particularly relevant to establish sound conservation programs in biosphere reserves, where human activities should be focused on the sustainable use of natural resources and ensure biodiversity protection. This study estimated the diversity and species richness and determined the species composition and activity patterns of medium- and large-sized terrestrial mammals in the Los Tuxtlas Biosphere Reserve (LTBR) located in Veracruz, Mexico. We set 18 camera traps to record medium and large-sized terrestrial mammals from August 2016 to January 2017. We calculated the trapping rate, guilds, and activity patterns of species. Diversity was estimated with Hill numbers. We compared our estimates with other studies in tropical forest in Mexico. We obtained 308 independent captures of 13 species; Cuniculus paca and Dasyprocta mexicana were the species with the highest trapping rate. Order-0, order-1, and order-2 diversity values were 13.99, 6.50, and 4.75 effective species, respectively, which ranks LTBR the fourth-most diverse reserve of medium- and large-sized terrestrial mammals compared to six other tropical rainforest sites in southern Mexico. We recorded mammals representing five trophic guilds, of which frugivore-folivores (five species) and omnivores (three species) ranked highest. All recorded species were primarily nocturnal (six species) or diurnal (six species). Tamandua mexicana, Leopardus pardalis, L. wiedii, and Eira barbara are listed as endangered in the Mexican Official Standard Norm NOM-059-2019, and L. wiedii is listed as near threatened in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. We were able to record 40.6 % of the terrestrial mammal species known to inhabit the LTBR. The absence of large-sized species such as large predators and herbivores was notable. Comparison of medium and large-sized mammal diversity of camera trapping studies in Mexico show that landscape degradation is impoverishing terrestrial mammal communities.

Mammal and bird species ranges overlap with armed conflicts and associated conservation threats

AbstractArmed conflicts are a pervasive global threat, but their implications for wildlife conservation remain unclear. Using a 30‐year spatial dataset of armed conflicts in conjunction with species range maps, we found that conflicts during 1989–2018 occurred within at least 4291 (78%) and 9056 (85%) terrestrial mammal and bird species ranges, respectively. For 4% overall and 5–7% of threatened species, conflicts within ranges have been both widespread (≥50% of range) and frequent (≥15 years). Further, an examination of International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List assessments revealed that ranges overlap with armed conflicts is associated with declining population trends of threatened species and distinct species threat portfolios in which hunting and habitat loss and degradation are more prominent. Our findings call for greater recognition and understanding of direct and indirect threats from armed conflicts in species conservation assessments and underscore the importance of addressing conflict resiliency in conservation plans for a wide suite of species.

Drivers of change in the realised climatic niche of terrestrial mammals

The breadth of a species' climatic niche is an important ecological trait that allows adaptation to climate change, but human activities often reduce realised niche breadth by impacting species distributions. Some life‐history traits, such as dispersal ability and reproductive speed, allow species to cope with both human impact and climate change. But how do these traits interact with human pressure to determine niche change? Here we investigate the patterns and drivers of change in the realised climatic niche of 258 terrestrial mammal species. Our goal is to disentangle the impacts of human land use, climate change and life history. We quantified the past and present climatic niches of each species by considering past climatic conditions (Mid Holocene) within their pre‐human impact distributions, and current climatic conditions within the current distributions. Depending on the difference between past and current niche, we defined four categories of change: ‘shrink', ‘shift', ‘stable' and ‘expand'. We found over half of the species in our sample have undergone niche shrink, while only one in six retained a stable niche. Climate change and distribution change were the strongest correlates of species niche change, followed by biogeography, anthropogenic land use and life‐history traits. Factors that increased the probability of niche shrink included: overall climatic instability, reduction in distribution range, historical land use, large body mass and long weaning age. Species with these characteristics might require interventions that facilitate natural dispersal or assisted colonisation to survive rapidly changing climates.

A middle Miocene vertebrate assemblage from the Czech part of the Vienna Basin: Implications for the paleoenvironments of the Central Paratethys

Czujan's sandpit is an abandoned quarry in the Vienna Basin (Mikulov, Czech Republic) that has yielded an important middle Miocene vertebrate assemblage. Here we re-describe the site from the perspective of sedimentology, taphonomy, and paleoenvironments, and further review the biochronology of the fauna to clarify the age. The updated faunal list includes two testudines (one trionychid and one medium-sized testudinid), and 12 species of terrestrial mammals (three proboscideans, four perissodactyls, four artiodactyls, and one carnivoran), consistent with an early Astaracian (MN6) age. The position of the Wielician/Kosovian boundary just below the floor of Czujan's sandpit, and our new biostratigraphic data, further allow us to constrain the fossil assemblage to the latest MN6 (late Badenian, ⁓13.6 Ma) and resolves a longstanding controversy about the age of the site. The site exposes a coarsening-upward succession deposited in a braid delta environment, and comprises three facies association: from bottom to top, pelagic sediments (FA1); prodelta and delta slope sediments (FA2); and distributory channel infills of the delta front and delta plain (FA3), the latter containing all the studied terrestrial vertebrates. We propose two taphonomic explanations for the genesis of the vertebrate assemblage: (1) a time-averaged assemblage generated by riverine transport, or (2) a transported assemblage from a mass death site(s), with mass death episode(s) caused by seasonal droughts in the river catchment. Our new findings allow the more precise reconstruction of late Badenian terrestrial paleoenvironments in the northwest area of the Vienna Basin and adjacent Carpathian Foredeep Basin. This region comprised a mosaic of continental habitats dominated by woodlands but also including forest patches and more open environments.

Lipid signature of neural tissues of marine and terrestrial mammals: consistency across species and habitats.

Marine mammals are exposed to O2-limitation and increased N2 gas concentrations as they dive to exploit habitat and food resources. The lipid-rich tissues (blubber, acoustic, neural) are of particular concern as N2 is five times more soluble in lipid than in blood or muscle, creating body compartments that can become N2 saturated, possibly leading to gas emboli upon surfacing. We characterized lipids in the neural tissues of marine mammals to determine whether they have similar lipid profiles compared to terrestrial mammals. Lipid profiles (lipid content, lipid class composition, and fatty acid signatures) were determined in the neural tissues of 12 cetacean species with varying diving regimes, and compared to two species of terrestrial mammals. Neural tissue lipid profile was not significantly different in marine versus terrestrial mammals across tissue types. Within the marine species, average dive depth was not significantly associated with the lipid profile of cervical spinal cord. Across species, tissue type (brain, spinal cord, and spinal nerve) was a significant factor in lipid profile, largely due to the presence of storage lipids (triacylglycerol and wax ester/sterol ester) in spinal nerve tissue only. The stability of lipid signatures within the neural tissue types of terrestrial and marine species, which display markedly different dive behaviors, points to the consistent role of lipids in these tissues. These findings indicate that despite large differences in the level of N2 gas exposure by dive type in the species examined, the lipids of neural tissues likely do not have a neuroprotective role in marine mammals.

Body Mass Prediction Model Using Skeletal Elements and Morphological Grouping

Each facet of an organism's function, such as heart rate, metabolism, organ size and function, feeding ecology, and locomotion is influenced by its body size. Using body size to estimate the size and functions of organs in extant mammals is standard and reasonably straightforward. However, estimating the body size and organ function of fossil species, particularly transitional species such as the Eocene whales, is more challenging. The Eocene whales are diverse in body size, structure, locomotion, and habitat, therefore, a single allometric model does not provide the most accurate body size estimation for each fossil whale family. This in turn leads to less accurate organ size and function assessment. The overall goal of my research is to predict the body size of the Eocene whales and use these estimates to predict other organ functions. Grouping representative modern mammals to create body mass prediction models to use for the Eocene whales is the first step in this research project. I measured the bones of the skull, vertebrae, and limbs of select species of modern aquatic, semi-aquatic, and terrestrial mammals. I then calculated an average body mass for each species represented using recorded body weights. Using Principal Component Analysis (PCA), I generated morphological groupings of these mammals from the skeletal measurements. For each PCA analysis completed, I constructed a linear regression equation to predict body size from the variables used in each analysis and the average body weight. I tested the prediction models using the measurements of 12 species representatives that were not included in the data set used to create the model, specifically Odocoileus virginianus, Tragulus napu, Hippopotamus amphibus, Tapirus indicus, Sus scrofa, Canis lupus lycaon, Nyctereutes procyonid, Ehydra lutris, Gulo gulo, Neophoca cinerea, Lobodon carinophagus, and Ursus maritimus. Through PCA I identified five morphological groups from the mammals in the data set: Aquatic, Semi-aquatic, Semi-terrestrial, Large Terrestrial and Small Terrestrial. The test mammals all fit with their species. For the prediction model using all skeletal variables, the standard error of the estimate (SEE) for all 12 test individuals ranged from 0.3359 – 0.7496. For the skull variables, the SEE ranged from 0.1260 – 0.3197. For the limb variables, the SEE ranged from 0.1716 – 0.3964. For the vertebral variables, the SEE ranged from 0.1511 – 0.2851. These small SEE values and the large sample size substantiate the accuracy of these predictive models and the reliability of their respective confidence intervals (CI) and prediction intervals (PI) for the models. The results confirm that these linear regression models will be appropriate to predict the body mass of the Eocene whales in the second stage of this project.

Mammal Persistence Along Riparian Forests in Western India Within a Hydropower Reservoir 55 Years Post Construction

While the negative impacts of dam construction on downstream river stretches and riparian forests are well studied, the status of wildlife presence and persistence in upstream reservoir deltas is virtually unknown. We investigated the drivers of terrestrial mammal occupancy and persistence along riparian forests of Koyna reservoir in western India 55 years after its construction. We adopted a catchment-wide field design grounded in the river continuum concept and sampled different stream orders within the reservoir. Camera traps, nested in an occupancy modeling framework, were deployed across 72 riparian sites and replicated for four seasons across all stream types. We recorded a total of nineteen species of terrestrial mammals during the study period. Multi-season occupancy models revealed three key patterns of mammal persistence: (a) ungulates were more frequently photo-captured in riparian forests; gaur and wild pig had the highest proportions of the total sampled area (0.84 ± 0.12 SE; 0.77 ± 0.07 SE, respectively); (b) small-sized ungulates were more vulnerable to local extinction than large-bodied ungulates; extinction probability was highest for barking deer (0.59 ± 0.07) and lowest for sambar (0.15 ± 0.07); and (c) distance from stream played major roles in determining mammal detection. Riparian forests are fundamentally important to ecosystem functioning and biodiversity conservation, and using the data from this study, managers can plan to sustain high mammal persistence along riparian forests at Koyna reservoir or similar Indian reserves. Further, our robust sampling approach, grounded in the terrestrial-riverine continuum concept, can be applied globally to understand species assemblages, aiding in multi-landscape and wildlife management planning.

Ecological correlates of extinction risk in Chinese terrestrial mammals

AbstractAimChina is among the countries with highest mammal diversity in the world, but a considerable proportion of Chinese terrestrial mammal species is currently at risk of extinction. For effective conservation, it would be fundamental to answer the following questions: (1) Is extinction risk randomly distributed among families in Chinese terrestrial mammals? (2) If not, which families are more threatened than expected by chance? (3) What are the major ecological predictors of extinction vulnerability? (4) Does taxonomic difference exist in ecological correlates of extinction risk? (5) To what extent does anthropogenic disturbance contribute to variations in extinction risk?LocationChina.MethodsWe collected data on biological traits, environmental factors and anthropogenic disturbance for 453 Chinese terrestrial mammals. We used phylogenetically controlled regression models and model selection to identify predictors of extinction risk for the whole species set and for the three large taxonomic groups (Carnivora, Artiodactyla and Lagomorpha) separately.ResultsWe found that extinction risk was not randomly distributed among families. Seven families (old world monkeys, gibbons, cats, civets and genets, musk deer, deer and bovids) contained significantly higher proportions of threatened species than expected by chance. Geographic range size was the only factor consistently supported in all the best models for the whole species set and for three large taxonomic groups. Although considered important in the global model for the whole species set, body weight was a poor predictor of extinction risk in taxon‐specific analyses. We also detected considerable differences in ecological correlates of extinction risk among Carnivora, Artiodactyla and Lagomorpha. After controlling for phylogeny, anthropogenic disturbance was not significantly correlated with extinction risk.Main conclusionsFor effective conservation, we should pay special attention to those highly threatened families and the species with limited range size. Our results also highlight the importance of performing taxon‐specific analyses for conservation practice.

Atypical Toxoplasmosis in a Mediterranean Monk Seal (Monachus monachus) Pup

The Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus) is the rarest species of pinniped in the world. Necropsy of a Mediterranean monk seal pup that stranded alive on the southern Adriatic Italian coast and died a few hours later revealed co-infection by cetacean morbillivirus (CeMV) and Toxoplasma gondii. Pathological lesions included a multifocal, moderate to severe, necrotizing myocarditis and a diffuse, chronic, moderate interstitial pneumonia with bronchial and bronchiolar epithelial hyperplasia. Lesions of atypical necrotizing arteritis were seen in the aorta and major pulmonary arteries in association with the presence T. gondii organisms. Severe haemorrhagic foci and lesions of non-suppurative meningoencephalitis, together with the presence of protozoal cysts, were seen in the brain. Co-infection of CeMV and T. gondii has not been previously reported in monk seals. The vascular lesions found in this animal can be considered atypical because they have not been reported in other terrestrial or marine mammal species. The disseminated toxoplasmosis associated with the unusual vascular and haemorrhagic brain lesions could be related to the immunosuppressive effects of CeMV infection.

Assessing different methods for measuring mammal diversity in two southern African arid ecosystems

Management and conservation actions are only as effective as our ability to monitor and assess biodiversity trends. We therefore compared the cost efficiency and effectiveness of several standard methods to assess mammal diversity using camera traps, live traps, track plates, mist nets for bats, acoustic bat surveys, spotlight surveys, and block transects recording individual animals, scat, and tracks. We also assessed local knowledge through interviews. We surveyed on two contrasting arid ecosystems in South Africa. Our data indicated that block transects were the most cost-efficient and effective method at ascertaining terrestrial mammal species richness. Depending on the goal of the study and the area, a combination of block transects with camera traps or spotlight surveys is a viable option. However, our study indicated the best combination to detect species across different taxonomic groups was block transects and live traps. Local knowledge interviews can be a good addition to a survey as it assesses mammal diversity for longer time period and not just the survey season and it provides knowledge on species that are difficult to detect.

Prioritizing areas for conservation outside the existing protected area network in Bhutan: the use of multi-species, multi-scale habitat suitability models

ContextUnderstanding the environmental and anthropogenic factors influencing habitat selection of multiple species is a foundation for quantifying human impacts on biodiversity and developing effective conservation measures.ObjectivesTo determine the effect of multiple scales of environmental/topographic and anthropogenic variables and landscape patterns on habitat suitability of terrestrial mammals in Bhutan, assess the effectiveness of the current protected area network, identify areas of high species richness outside of the existing protected area, and evaluate the potential effectiveness of indicator and umbrella species for conservation planning.MethodsWe modelled multi-scale habitat selection of sixteen species of terrestrial mammals across Bhutan using data from a nation-wide camera trap survey. We used the predicted species distribution maps to assess the multi-species conservation effectiveness of the existing protected area network. We performed simulations to identify high priority areas for multiple species based on their habitat suitability, proximity to existing protected areas and overall connectivity within the predicted distribution of species. We used correlation analysis among predicted occurrence maps and multivariate cluster analysis to identify potential indicator species. We evaluated the potential utility of each species as umbrella species by assessing how well optimal protected areas for that species would protect suitable habitat for all 16 species simultaneously.ResultsProtected areas and forest cover were strongly associated with habitat use of most modelled species. Additionally, topographical features, like terrain roughness and slope position, contributed to habitat selection of multiple species, but often in different ways. Environmental and topographical variables were mostly selected at medium to broad scales. Anthropogenic variables (agriculture and built-up areas) were negatively associated with habitat suitability of most species at both fine and broad scales. Conservation effectiveness assessment of existing protected areas found protected areas in south-central Bhutan have high effectiveness in terms of both mean and total richness protected. Similarly, biological corridors in the south-central region offered high mean richness protection. Our simulation of optimal areas for additional protection found areas abutting protected areas in southern Bhutan offered high relative species richness protection. Our umbrella species analysis found muntjac, wild pig, serow, sambar and Asian golden cat are the most effective umbrella species for broader biodiversity protection. Our indicator species analysis found tiger, gaur, dhole, clouded leopard, Asian black bear and common leopard as effective indicator species.ConclusionsThis study highlights the need to protect optimally located species-rich areas outside the current protected areas. This kind of multi-species habitat assessment provides important information to optimize future conservation and development plans at national and regional scales.