Search results for "CONSERVATION"

Multiple morphological characters needed for field identification of cryptic long‐eared bat species around the Swiss Alps

2010

The identification of cryptic species may significantly change our view about their distribution, abundance, ecology and therefore conservation status. In the European Alps, molecular studies have revealed the existence of three sibling species of plecotine bats Plecotus auritus, Plecotus austriacus and, very recently, Plecotus macrobullaris. Knowledge of the ecological niche partitioning of cryptic species is a requisite to develop sound conservation policies. Yet, this requests the development of unambiguous identification methods easily applicable in the field. This study investigates the reliability of several morphological methods used for species recognition and proposes a new identif…

Diurnal habitat suitability for a Mediterranean steppeland bird, identified by Ecological Niche Factor Analysis

2011

Context The negative effects of agricultural intensification and policies, use of pesticides, fertilisers and mechanised harvesting on several populations of pseudo-steppe birds have increasingly required more detailed and effective habitat suitability models. Distribution models of farmland species are prone to incur recordings of false absence data. Ecological Niche Factor Analysis (ENFA) allows identification of environmental predictors of species distribution by using presence data only. Aims We quantified the diurnal habitat preferences and niche width of one steppe species, the stone curlew (Burhinus oedicnemus), with unfavourable conservations status in a Mediterranean area and recl…

Integrating species distribution models (SDMs) and phylogeography for two species of AlpinePrimula

2012

The major intention of the present study was to investigate whether an approach combining the use of niche-based palaeodistribution modeling and phylo-geography would support or modify hypotheses about the Quaternary distributional history derived from phylogeographic methods alone. Our study system comprised two closely related species of Alpine Primula. We used species distribution models based on the extant distribution of the species and last glacial maximum (LGM) climate models to predict the distribution of the two species during the LGM. Phylogeographic data were generated using amplified fragment length polymorphisms (AFLPs). In Primula hirsuta, models of past distribution and phylo…

Caractérisation de la connectivité des habitats du petit rhinolophe en Franche-Comté

2011

National audience

Des chiroptères et des hommes : zoom sur les travaux de Pierline Tournant

2012

La movilización ciudadana para la conservación de la naturaleza: democracia, autonomía y áreas protegidas

2023

El presente artículo profundiza en el papel que tuvieron los movimientos sociales en la configuración de la política conservacionista de las décadas de los 70, 80 y 90 en los territorios de Catalunya, Comunitat Valenciana y Andalucía. A través de una investigación cualitativa basada en entrevistas en profundidad y en el análisis documental, abordamos desde una perspectiva comparada cómo la movilización ciudadana y el asociacionismo científico y académico influyeron en la declaración de los primeros parques naturales a través del apoyo o el rechazo a las iniciativas de conservación.

Different trophic positions among social vespid species revealed by stable isotopes

2021

The social vespid wasps are common insect predators and several species behave in unison in the same biotopes. It is commonly accepted that social wasps are mainly opportunistic generalist predators without differences in prey selection and hence they compete for the same food resources. Trophic positions of six vespid wasp species and their potential prey from four sites in Finland and one in the UK were evaluated using carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes (δ13C and δ15N). The difference in isotope values indicated different trophic positions among species. In general, Dolichovespula spp. showed higher δ15N values than Vespula spp., which suggests that Dolichovespula forage on higher trophi…

Multi-Locus Phylogenetic Analyses of the Almadablennius Clade Reveals Inconsistencies with the Present Taxonomy of Blenniid Fishes

2022

We used a multi-locus phylogenetic approach (i.e., combining both mitochondrial and nuclear DNA fragments) to address some long-standing taxonomic inconsistencies within the diverse fish clade of Combtooth Blennies (Blenniidae—unranked clade Almadablennius). The obtained phylogenetic trees revealed some major inconsistencies in the current taxonomy of Parablennini, such as the paraphyletic status of the Salaria and Parablennius genera, casting some doubt regarding their actual phylogenetic relationship. Furthermore, a scarce-to-absent genetic differentiation was observed among the three species belonging to the genus Chasmodes. This study provides an updated taxonomy and phylogeny of the fo…

Artificial grass in parks as a potential new threat for urban bird communities

2022

Summary Green areas are key habitats for urban avifauna. Urban parks stand out from other anthropic habitats especially in providing trophic resources for many bird species. Consequently, modifications of these green zones can imply major changes in urban biodiversity. Potential pernicious urban remodelling is taking place in parks of eastern Spain because natural grass is being replaced with artificial grass to save water and to avoid management. This study aimed to determine whether remodelled parks with artificial grass harbour lower avian diversity (alpha, beta and gamma diversity) than traditional parks with natural grass. We surveyed 21 parks with artificial grass and 24 parks with na…

Towards a local mass mortality of the Mediterranean orange coral Astroides calycularis (Pallas, 1766) in the Pelagie Islands Marine Protected Area (I…

2022

In late summer 2020, a widespread mortality event severely affected colonies of the Mediterranean endemic orange coral Astroides calycularis in the Pelagie Islands (Strait of Sicily, southern Mediterranean Sea). The degree of the mortality impact at seven study sites of the archipelago (five within the Pelagie Islands Marine Protected Area) was quantified by estimating the proportion of affected colonies in populations of A. calycularis. Five of the seven surveyed sites revealed a low degree of impact, but Punta Ruperta and Cala Creta (both on the island of Lampedusa) showed a medium impact with values of 32.3% and 30.5% of affected colonies respectively. The 2020 mortality event coincided …