Search results for "Ang"

Persistence of submerged macrophytes in a drying world: Unravelling the timing and the environmental drivers to produce drought-resistant propagules

2018

Possible effects of global environmental changes on Antarctic benthos: a synthesis across five major taxa

2012

Because of the unique conditions that exist around the Antarctic continent, Southern Ocean (SO) ecosystems are very susceptible to the growing impact of global climate change and other anthropogenic influences. Consequently, there is an urgent need to understand how SO marine life will cope with expected future changes in the environment. Studies of Antarctic organisms have shown that individual species and higher taxa display different degrees of sensitivity to environmental shifts, making it difficult to predict overall community or ecosystem responses. This emphasizes the need for an improved understanding of the Antarctic benthic ecosystem response to global climate change using a multi…

SPACE USE, CIRCADIAN ACTIVITY PATTERN, AND MATING SYSTEM OF THE NOCTURNAL TREE RAT THALLOMYS NIGRICAUDA

2004

We present results of a radiotracking study of the black-tailed tree rat Thallomys nigricauda, based on 3 males and 4 females in the breeding season and 2 males and 5 females in the nonbreeding season. The study was conducted in the southern Kalahari thornveld, South Africa, a savanna landscape of acacia trees and patchy acacia bush. Nocturnal activity patterns, vegetation use, space use, and interactions were followed for 8–17 days. During the breeding season, males were active with 2 synchronous activity peaks shortly after sunset and late at night. Home ranges included the nests of 8–10 females, 6 different daytime resting places, and 3–5 areas of high activity. Males were mobile within …

Habitat ecology of the smooth snake Coronella austriaca and its reptilian prey in the degraded bog with implications for artificial refuge surveys

2016

AbstractDiet preferences of the smooth snake (Coronella austriaca) being still controversial, we studied the overlap between its habitat and that of its potential reptilian prey species using the artificial refuge (ATR) method. The discriminant function analysis revealed that part of the smooth snake’s habitat niche is unused by one of its prey species – Zootoca vivipara. The smooth snake was recorded more often in places with high density of individuals of another lizard species – Anguis fragilis. Occasional data on snake diets supported the assumption that the latter species is a very important food item for the smooth snake in the study area. Our study estimated the minimum number of tim…

Onset of natal dispersal in Peregrine Falcon from Mediterranean islands (Italy)

2018

Abstract Basic information on natal dispersal of Peregrine Falcons is virtually lacking in Europe, despite increased attention on this species, and the sensitivity of this stage in the Peregrines’ life history. In this study, we collected satellite telemetry data during the onset of natal dispersal of 19 Peregrine Falcons tagged in Sicily and the Aeolian archipelago (Italy). We divided the onset of dispersal into the following 3 periods: post-fledging dependence period (PFDP), wandering, and wintering. PFDP lasted on average 47±16 days, during which young peregrines moved very little (0.167 km), and explored small areas (0.226 km2) far from the nest cliff, and showed no sex differences. The…

A new methodology for organic soils in national greenhouse gas inventories: Data synthesis, derivation and application

2020

Abstract Drained organic soils are large sources of anthropogenic greenhouse gases (GHG) in many European and Asian countries. Therefore, these soils urgently need to be considered and adequately accounted for when attempting to decrease emissions from the Agriculture and Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) sectors. Here, we describe the methodology, data and results of the German approach for measurement, reporting and verification (MRV) of anthropogenic GHG emissions from drained organic soils and outline ways forward towards tracking drainage and rewetting. The methodology was developed for and is currently applied in the German GHG inventory under the United Nations Framewor…

Eight decades of adaptive changes in herring reproductive investment: the joint effect of environment and exploitation

2021

Abstract Reproductive investment is a central trait for population dynamics and productivity. Fishing and environmental variations are major drivers affecting population structure, dynamics, and adaptation of life-history and behavioural traits. However, those factors are often considered independently, and few studies take into account their joint effect. In this study, we investigate the contribution of environment, fishing pressure, and intra-specific competition to variation in the reproductive investment of the Norwegian spring-spawning herring (Clupea harengus), a stock that has been fished for centuries, and monitored for decades. Reproductive investment and post-spawning weight were…

FLUCTUATING TEMPERATURE LEADS TO EVOLUTION OF THERMAL GENERALISM AND PREADAPTATION TO NOVEL ENVIRONMENTS

2013

Environmental fluctuations can select for generalism, which is also hypothesized to increase organisms' ability to invade novel environments. Here, we show that across a range of temperatures, opportunistic bacterial pathogen Serratia marcescens that evolved in fluctuating temperature (daily variation between 24°C and 38°C, mean 31°C) outperforms the strains that evolved in constant temperature (31°C). The growth advantage was also evident in novel environments in the presence of parasitic viruses and predatory protozoans, but less clear in the presence of stressful chemicals. Adaptation to fluctuating temperature also led to reduced virulence in Drosophila melanogaster host, which suggests…

A novel method to predict dark diversity using unconstrained ordination analysis

2019

[Questions] Species pools are the product of complex ecological and evolutionary mechanisms, operating over a range of spatial scales. Here, we focus on species absent from local sites but with the potential to establish within communities — known as dark diversity. Methods for estimating dark diversity are still being developed and need to be compared, as well as tested for the type, and amount, of reference data needed to calibrate these methods. [Location] South Bohemia (48°58′ N, 14°28′ E) and Železné Hory (49°52′ N, 15°34′ E), Czech Republic. [Method] We compared a widely accepted algorithm to estimate species pools (Beals smoothing index, based on species co-occurrence) against a nove…

Mediterranean identities - environment, society, culture

2017

The Mediterranean Sea, one of the most complex marine ecosystems, is inhabited by a rich and diverse biota which is disproportionate to its dimensions. It is cur‐ rently affected by different pressures, mainly driven by human activities such as cli‐ mate change and bioinvasions. This Sea, also due to its geographic position (wedged between the temperate climate of central Europe and the arid climate of northern Africa), seems to be one of the regions most susceptible to global climate change. The increased rates of introduction and spread of marine alien species may represent a supplementary stress factor to Mediterranean marine native biota already challenged by climatic abnormalities. The…