Flight morphology corresponds to both surrounding landscape structure and local patch conditions in a highly specialized peatland butterfly (Lycaena epixanthe )

2018 ◽  
Vol 43 (5) ◽  
pp. 629-639 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lindsay A. Crawford ◽  
Nusha Keyghobadi
Keyword(s):  
Landscape Structure ◽  
Flight Morphology ◽  
Local Patch ◽  
Surrounding Landscape

scholarly journals Contrasting Effects of Tillage and Landscape Structure on Spiders and Springtails in Vineyards

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 2095 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandra Pfingstmann ◽  
Daniel Paredes ◽  
Jacob Buchholz ◽  
Pascal Querner ◽  
Thomas Bauer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Landscape Structure ◽  
Mixed Models ◽  
Soil Tillage ◽  
Family Diversity ◽  
Shannon Diversity ◽  
Green Cover ◽  
Activity Density ◽  
Springtail Species ◽  
Landscape Factors ◽  
Surrounding Landscape

Interactions between predatory species and their potential prey are little studied in vineyards, especially considering the surrounding landscape structure. We examined the effects of soil tillage intensities in vineyard inter-rows on the activity density and diversity of spiders (Araneae) and springtails (Collembola), their potential preys, and assessed whether these effects are altered by non-crop elements in the surrounding landscape. We collected data in 16 vineyards in Austria; eight were periodically mechanically disturbed (PMD), eight had permanent green cover (PGC). The study vineyards were embedded in landscapes ranging from structurally simple to complex. Both, spiders and springtails were collected with pitfall traps. Data analyses using generalized linear mixed models (GLMM) showed different effects of soil tillage intensities on spiders and springtails and an interaction with semi-natural elements (SNEs) in the surrounding landscape. Activities of springtails were higher under PMD than under PGC while spider activity density remained unaffected. Spider family Shannon diversity was lower under PMD than under PGC, while springtail species Shannon diversity was unaffected by tillage. Under PMD, spider activity and family diversity decreased with increasing SNEs in the surroundings indicating spider emigration away from vineyards. Under PGC, spider activity density increased with increasing SNE proportions in the surroundings when springtail activity density was high. Our findings suggest that recommendations on sustainable vineyard management should include both site and landscape factors.

scholarly journals Staphylinidae and Carabidae overwintering in wheat and sown wildflower areas of different age

2004 ◽  
Vol 94 (3) ◽  
pp. 209-217 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Frank ◽  
B. Reichhart
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Winter Wheat ◽  
Landscape Structure ◽  
Vegetation Cover ◽  
Fine Sand ◽  
Distinct Pattern ◽  
Carabid Beetles ◽  
Sand Content ◽  
Surrounding Landscape ◽  
Successional Age

AbstractSpecies richness and abundance of staphylinid and carabid beetles overwintering in winter wheat fields and 1- to 3-year-old wildflower areas were investigated during 2000/2001 on 16 study sites in Switzerland. Abundance and species richness of overwintering staphylinids significantly increased with successional age of the wildflower areas and were always higher in older wildflower areas than in winter wheat. A similar but less distinct pattern was observed for the abundance and species richness of carabid beetles. The influence of habitat parameters (vegetation cover, fine sand content, organic matter, pH, soil pore volume, surrounding landscape structure, habitat area) on the staphylinid and carabid assemblages based on the number of individuals per species and site was analysed using canonical correspondence analysis. Vegetation cover was the most significant parameter significantly characterizing both staphylinid and carabid assemblages. The amount of vegetation cover explained 15.7% of the variance, fine sand content accounted for 13.3% and surrounding landscape structure for 10.9% of the variance in the staphylinid assemblage. In the carabid assemblage, vegetation cover was the only significant factor, explaining 24.7% of the variance. This study showed for the first time that the significance of wildflower areas as a reservoir for hibernation for generalist predatory beetles increases with progressing successional age.

scholarly journals Does Body Size Affect a Bird's Sensitivity to Patch Size and Landscape Structure?

The Condor ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 108 (4) ◽  
pp. 808-816
Author(s):  
Maiken Winter ◽  
Douglas H. Johnson ◽  
Jill A. Shaffer
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Tallgrass Prairie ◽  
Landscape Structure ◽  
Patch Size ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Threshold Effect ◽  
Conservation Strategy ◽  
Woody Vegetation ◽  
Habitat Patches ◽  
Surrounding Landscape

Abstract Abstract Larger birds are generally more strongly affected by habitat loss and fragmentation than are smaller ones because they require more resources and thus larger habitat patches. Consequently, conservation actions often favor the creation or protection of larger over smaller patches. However, in grassland systems the boundaries between a patch and the surrounding landscape, and thus the perceived size of a patch, can be indistinct. We investigated whether eight grassland bird species with different body sizes perceived variation in patch size and landscape structure in a consistent manner. Data were collected from surveys conducted in 44 patches of northern tallgrass prairie during 1998–2001. The response to patch size was very similar among species regardless of body size (density was little affected by patch size), except in the Greater Prairie-Chicken (Tympanuchus cupido), which showed a threshold effect and was not found in patches smaller than 140 ha. In landscapes containing 0%–30% woody vegetation, smaller species responded more negatively to increases in the percentage of woody vegetation than larger species, but above an apparent threshold of 30%, larger species were not detected. Further analyses revealed that the observed variation in responses to patch size and landscape structure among species was not solely due to body size per se, but to other differences among species. These results indicate that a stringent application of concepts requiring larger habitat patches for larger species appears to limit the number of grassland habitats that can be protected and may not always be the most effective conservation strategy.

scholarly journals Surrounding landscape structures, rather than habitat age, drive genetic variation of typical calcareous grassland plant species

2020 ◽  
Vol 35 (12) ◽  
pp. 2881-2893
Author(s):  
Theresa Anna Lehmair ◽  
Ellen Pagel ◽  
Peter Poschlod ◽  
Christoph Reisch
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Diversity ◽  
Land Use ◽  
Genetic Variation ◽  
Population Size ◽  
Habitat Quality ◽  
Landscape Structure ◽  
Calcareous Grassland ◽  
Calcareous Grasslands ◽  
Surrounding Landscape ◽  
Swabian Alb

Abstract Context Land use change reduced calcareous grasslands throughout Europe during the last decades. Subsequent fragmentation and habitat deterioration led, moreover, to a massive biodiversity decline. To counteract this alarming development, a clear understanding of genetic variation patterns, as fundamental level of biodiversity, becomes inevitable. Objectives The aim of our study was to identify the drivers of genetic variation in common calcareous grassland plant species. More specifically, we tested whether genetic diversity or differentiation of Asperula cynanchica, Campanula rotundifolia, and Linum catharticum depend on habitat age, landscape structure, habitat quality, and/or population size. Methods We investigated 912 individuals, 304 per study species, from 19 calcareous grasslands across the Swabian Alb in Baden-Württemberg (Germany) using AFLP analyses. Results We observed no significant influence of habitat age on genetic diversity and differentiation. Habitat quality also had no impact on genetic diversity and population size only showed weak effects. However, genetic diversity strongly depended on landscape structure represented by distance to the nearest settlement, total area of surrounding calcareous grasslands, and their connectivity. Conclusions Migratory sheep herding is considered as main land use in calcareous grasslands on the Swabian Alb and thus, landscape structures in the study region may describe movement patterns of grazing livestock. In this study, genetic variation in calcareous grassland populations was strongly affected by surrounding landscape structures and subsequent grazing patterns. Therefore, we assume that moderate grazing intensities over the long term may increase levels of genetic diversity, whereas periods of overgrazing or abandonment could lower genetic diversity.

A New Look at Old Temples

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 52-81 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melanie Sticker-Jantscheff
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Transformation ◽  
Star Cluster ◽  
Agricultural Work ◽  
Cosmological Beliefs ◽  
Surrounding Landscape ◽  
New Look

Among the most interesting features of the provincial Roman veteran colony of Augusta Raurica (present-day Switzerland) are its sanctuaries, which were constructed during a period of profound cultural transformation. The current study examines the temples within their surrounding landscape and skyscape, to explore the possibility that their locations and orientations may bear testimony to the cosmological beliefs of the colony's inhabitants. The findings suggest that alignments with the star cluster of the Pleiades and the constellation Orion constituted a connective element between earth and sky and were used by the Gallo-Roman elites to reconcile agricultural work and seasonal festivities with new socio-political and religious requirements.

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