scholarly journals Ground flora of field boundary dry stone walls in the Burren, Ireland

2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 352-376
Author(s):  
Lindsay Hollingsworth ◽  
Marcus Collier
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Field Boundary ◽  
High Exposure ◽  
Rural Landscapes ◽  
Ground Flora ◽  
Floral Ecology ◽  
Habitat Corridors ◽  
Western Ireland ◽  
Surrounding Landscape ◽  
Stone Walls

Despite the fact that field boundary (dry) stone walls are globally common in rural landscapes, very little research has been carried out regarding them. Dry stone walls may act as refuges for a range of plants and animals, especially in areas where conditions do not favour a high biodiversity or areas of high exposure. They may also provide connectivity via habitat corridors and may even serve as a habitat in their own right. This paper reports on a case study survey of the forb assemblages of field boundary dry stone walls in terms of species richness, biodiversity, and composition in comparison to the surrounding landscape, and aims to provide some insight into the floral ecology characteristics of dry stone walls. To accomplish this, the forbs growing in and immediately adjacent to 18 segments of dry stone wall in the Burren region of western Ireland, were surveyed. The forb assemblages growing within the walls were compared with those growing in the 0.5 m closest to the walls and those growing the areas 0.5-1.0 m on either side of the walls. The wall assemblages were shown to have lower species richness and each category of assemblage was shown to have significantly different species composition. This research indicates that the dry stone walls of the Burren may be associated with a distinct floral ecology, and therefore may act as habitat corridors in an otherwise exposed landscape.

Connectivity or area: what drives plant species richness in habitat corridors?

2018 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 173-181 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Thiele ◽  
Simon Kellner ◽  
Sascha Buchholz ◽  
Jens Schirmel
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Plant Species Richness ◽  
Habitat Corridors

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 Influences of landscape structure on butterfly diversity in urban private gardens using a citizen science approach

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manfred Pendl ◽  
Raja Imran Hussain ◽  
Dietmar Moser ◽  
Thomas Frank ◽  
Thomas Drapela
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Citizen Science ◽  
Land Use Planning ◽  
Linear Models ◽  
Butterfly Conservation ◽  
Butterfly Species ◽  
Butterfly Diversity ◽  
Science Approach ◽  
Surrounding Landscape ◽  
The Impact

AbstractAlthough urbanization is increasing worldwide, private gardens may help mitigate the impact of urbanization on butterfly diversity. We investigated how local and landscape factors correspond with the observed butterfly species diversity and species composition in Viennese private gardens. The goal is to determine the importance of private gardens for butterfly conservation. Butterfly species were observed by skilled volunteers by applying a citizen science approach. We related butterfly species numbers in private gardens with local parameters and landscape composition in a radius of 1 km around each garden. Data were analyzed using a regression approach based on generalized linear models. The butterfly species richness in private gardens was positively correlated with butterfly species richness in the surrounding landscapes. Butterfly species richness in private gardens increased with higher proportions of area relevant for butterflies in the surrounding landscape and with increasing numbers of host and nectar plant species in the private gardens. A higher proportion of wooded areas in the surrounding landscape was related with a smaller proportion of the landscape butterfly species pool being observed in the private gardens. Overall, our results could be useful in land use planning, and for future studies of how to integrate citizen science and make urban gardens more beneficial for butterfly conservation.

scholarly journals Conserving relics from ancient underground worlds: assessing the influence of cave and landscape features on obligate iron cave dwellers from the Eastern Amazon

PeerJ ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. e4531 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rodolfo Jaffé ◽  
Xavier Prous ◽  
Allan Calux ◽  
Markus Gastauer ◽  
Gilberto Nicacio ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Species Composition ◽  
Phylogenetic Diversity ◽  
Agricultural Land ◽  
Geographic Distance ◽  
Terrestrial Ecosystems ◽  
Habitat Amount ◽  
Landscape Features ◽  
Surrounding Landscape ◽  
Main Factor

The degradation of subterranean habitats is believed to represent a serious threat for the conservation of obligate subterranean dwellers (troglobites), many of which are short-range endemics. However, while the factors influencing cave biodiversity remain largely unknown, the influence of the surrounding landscape and patterns of subterranean connectivity of terrestrial troglobitic communities have never been systematically assessed. Using spatial statistics to analyze the most comprehensive speleological database yet available for tropical caves, we first assess the influence of iron cave characteristics and the surrounding landscape on troglobitic communities from the Eastern Amazon. We then determine the spatial pattern of troglobitic community composition, species richness, phylogenetic diversity, and the occurrence of frequent troglobitic species, and finally quantify how different landscape features influence the connectivity between caves. Our results reveal the key importance of habitat amount, guano, water, lithology, geomorphology, and elevation in shaping iron cave troglobitic communities. While mining within 250 m from the caves influenced species composition, increasing agricultural land cover within 50 m from the caves reduced species richness and phylogenetic diversity. Troglobitic species composition, species richness, phylogenetic diversity, and the occurrence of frequent troglobites showed spatial autocorrelation for up to 40 km. Finally, our results suggest that the conservation of cave clusters should be prioritized, as geographic distance was the main factor determining connectivity between troglobitic communities. Overall, our work sheds important light onto one of the most overlooked terrestrial ecosystems, and highlights the need to shift conservation efforts from individual caves to subterranean habitats as a whole.

scholarly journals Zooplankton biodiversity and community structure vary along spatiotemporal environmental gradients in restored peridunal ponds

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Anton-Pardo ◽  
Xavier Armengol ◽  
Raquel Ortells
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Environmental Gradients ◽  
Life Cycles ◽  
Priority Effects ◽  
Weak Selection ◽  
Temporal Dimension ◽  
High Exposure ◽  
Local Factors ◽  
Dispersal Vectors ◽  
Community Dissimilarity

<p>Zooplankton assemblages in neighboring ponds can show important spatial and temporal heterogeneity. Disentangling the influence of regional versus local factors, and of deterministic versus stochastic processes has been recently highlighted in the context of the metacommunity theory. In this study, we determined patterns of temporal and spatial variation in zooplankton diversity along one hydrological year in restored ponds of different hydroperiod and age. The following hypotheses regarding the assembling of species over time were tested: i) dispersal is not limited in our study system due to its small area and high exposure to dispersal vectors; ii) community dissimilarity among ponds increases with restoration age due to an increase in environmental heterogeneity and stronger niche-based assemblages;and iii) similarity increases with decreasing hydroperiod because hydroperiod is a strong selective force filtering out organisms with long life cycles. Our results confirmed dispersal as a homogenizing force and local factors as gaining importance with time of restoration. However, short hydroperiod ponds were highly dissimilar, maybe due to the environmental differences among these ponds, or to high stochasticity followed by priority effects under a weak selection pressure. By adding a temporal dimension to the study of zooplankton structuring, we could identify the first months after flooding as being crucial for species richness, especially in short hydroperiod ponds; and we detected differences in seasonal species richness related to hydroperiod and pond age.</p>

scholarly journals A review of the influence of beaver Castor fiber on amphibian assemblages in the floodplains of European temperate streams and rivers

2020 ◽  
pp. 135-146 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lutz Dalbeck
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Headwater Streams ◽  
Castor Fiber ◽  
Amphibian Species ◽  
Study Region ◽  
Beaver Ponds ◽  
Species Numbers ◽  
Eurasian Beaver ◽  
Catchment Areas ◽  
Surrounding Landscape

Once widespread throughout Eurasia and hunted nearly to extinction, the Eurasian beaver Castor fiber has returned to large parts of its former range, largely through active conservation measures. Beavers can substantially alter small, low order streams and their floodplains through dam construction, burrowing activities and tree felling. Therefore, it is presumed they can significantly influence amphibian distributions, species richness and numbers. We undertook a literature review to compare the available data addressing the effects of beaver dams on amphibians in streams of central temperate and boreal Europe. All 19 amphibian species occurring in the study region were found in beaver ponds, despite their distinctly different habitat requirements. Amphibian species acting as pioneers / early colonisers were under-represented in beaver ponds compared to typical forest species. Open country and ubiquitous species showed intermediate patterns. Beaver ponds in headwater streams often supported the entire spectrum of species occurring in the surrounding landscape, and species numbers in beaver modified headwater streams were comparable to those in floodplains of larger natural rivers. In small headwater streams, beavers tended to be the primary providers of essential habitat for amphibians. In contrast, beaver ponds in the floodplains of larger rivers appeared to have less effect and supported lower average species numbers compared to beaver ponds in headwater streams. We propose that beavers and their habitat creating activities are pivotal determinants of amphibian species richness in the headwater streams, which account for 60–80 % of the water bodies in catchment areas in temperate Europe. By creating habitat for endangered amphibian species, beavers and their ability to modify habitats offer extensive opportunities to implement many aspects of the European Water Framework Directive across the continent and to restore amphibian habitats, contributing to their long-term conservation.

Local and Landscape Habitat Associations of Shorebirds in Wetlands of the Sacramento Valley of California

2015 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew E. Reiter ◽  
Mike A. Wolder ◽  
Jennifer E. Isola ◽  
Dennis Jongsomjit ◽  
Catherine M. Hickey ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Surface Water ◽  
Local Scale ◽  
Habitat Associations ◽  
Management Unit ◽  
Scale Model ◽  
Early Winter ◽  
Sacramento Valley ◽  
Surrounding Landscape ◽  
Wetland Types

Abstract The Sacramento Valley of California is a site of international importance for shorebirds despite having lost &gt;90% of its historic wetlands. Currently both managed wetlands and flooded agriculture are important habitats for shorebird populations, but the extent of flooded agriculture may be declining in early winter when shorebirds need to acquire resources postmigration to survive winter. We employed long-term shorebird monitoring data to evaluate factors influencing abundance and species richness of shorebirds using the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge Complex in early winter (November–December) between 2000 and 2009. We quantified the effect of local attributes of the wetland management unit (wetland type, size, and topography) as well as factors in the surrounding landscape (proportion of surface water and housing density) using generalized linear mixed models. We assessed a local-scale model, including covariates representing the area of six wetland types within the management unit, an index to the proportion of the management unit that had a tapered-edge (i.e., topography where flooded areas grade to exposed shoreline then upland), and a year effect. In this local-scale model, shorebird abundance had a significant positive association with the area of seasonally flooded marsh (SFM) and summer water. Topographical variation, characterized by the amount of tapered-edge, also had a significant positive effect on the abundance of shorebirds and species richness. Because &gt;70% of the shorebirds were counted in SFM, we removed all wetland types except SFM to evaluate landscape covariates. Using only SFM-dominated units, there was a significant nonlinear association with the area of SFM within a management unit, with 40–95-ha wetlands having the highest shorebird abundance and species richness. On a landscape scale, the amount of flooding within a 10-km buffer was the best supported model of shorebird abundance and suggested the highest shorebird abundance in a management unit to be expected when 15–45% of the surrounding landscape was flooded. Species richness was positively associated with the proportion of surface water within 2- and 5-km buffers. We identified zones with a predicted high shorebird response to SFM, and assessed that only 6% of potential wetland areas in those zones have permanent conservation status. Our analyses suggest that shorebird abundance and species richness vary nonlinearly as a function of both local and landscape factors, and thus both spatial scales should be considered when developing conservation and management strategies.

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