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Havrdová A, Douda J, Doudová J. Threats, biodiversity drivers and restoration in temperate floodplain forests related to spatial scales. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 854:158743. [PMID: 36108840 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.158743] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2022] [Revised: 08/19/2022] [Accepted: 09/09/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Floodplain forests offer a diversity of habitats and resources for a very wide range of plant and animal species. They also offer many benefits to humankind and are considered essential to the mitigation of the effects of climate change. Nevertheless, throughout the world they are suffering the most intense of anthropogenic pressures so are, of all ecosystems, among the most endangered. Here, we bring together and synthesise existing ecological understanding of the mechanisms underlying the high heterogeneity and diversity of temperate floodplain forests and of the pressures threatening their high biological value due to habitat homogenisation. Floodplain forests depend on the periodic disturbances under which they evolved, including fluvial dynamics, traditional management practices and the activities of herbivores. However, they have been heavily degraded by climate change, invasion of exotic species, river-flow regulation, landscape fragmentation, eutrophication and the cessation of traditional management. We can now observe two general trends in temperate floodplain forests: (1) Due to intensive landscape exploitation, they are now more open and thus prone to the spread of competitive species, including of invasive exotics and (2) Due to the cessation of traditional management, along with modified hydrological conditions, they are composed of species in the later successional stages (i.e., more shade-tolerant and mesic) while light-demanding species are quickly vanishing. Restoration practices have brought about contrasting results when restoration of floodplains to their natural states has been problematic. This is likely because of interplay between various natural and artificial processes not previously taken into proper consideration. We would like to draw attention to the fact that restoration projects or the preservation of existing floodplain forest ecosystems should combine the restoration of watercourses with the mitigation of other important threats acting at different scales of the landscape (spread of invasive species, eutrophication of watersheds and inappropriate forest management).
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Affiliation(s)
- Alena Havrdová
- Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, Praha-Suchdol 165 00, Czech Republic.
| | - Jan Douda
- Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, Praha-Suchdol 165 00, Czech Republic
| | - Jana Doudová
- Faculty of Environmental Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, Praha-Suchdol 165 00, Czech Republic
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Owen‐Ramos JD, Sanchez CJ, Blair S, Holm S, Furnas BJ, Sacks BN. Use of fecal DNA to estimate black bear density in an urban‐wildland interface. WILDLIFE SOC B 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/wsb.1347] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Julia D. Owen‐Ramos
- Mammalian Ecology and Conservation Unit, Veterinary Genetics Laboratory University of California Davis, 1 Shields Avenue Davis CA 95616 USA
| | - Camilo J. Sanchez
- California Department of Fish and Wildlife Genetics Research Laboratory 1701 Nimbus Road Rancho Cordova CA 95670 USA
| | - Shelly Blair
- California Department of Fish and Wildlife North Central Region 1701 Nimbus Road Rancho Cordova CA 95670 USA
| | - Sara Holm
- California Department of Fish and Wildlife North Central Region 1701 Nimbus Road Rancho Cordova CA 95670 USA
| | - Brett J. Furnas
- California Department of Fish and Wildlife Wildlife Health Laboratory 1701 Nimbus Road Rancho Cordova CA 95670 USA
| | - Benjamin N. Sacks
- Mammalian Ecology and Conservation Unit, Veterinary Genetics Laboratory University of California Davis, 1 Shields Avenue Davis CA 95616 USA
- Department of Population Health and Reproduction, School of Veterinary Medicine University of California Davis, 1 Shields Avenue Davis CA 95616 USA
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3
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Puckett EE, Davis IS. Spatial patterns of genetic diversity in eight bear (Ursidae) species. URSUS 2021. [DOI: 10.2192/ursus-d-20-00029.2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Emily E. Puckett
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN 38152, USA
| | - Isis S. Davis
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN 38152, USA
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HOOKER MICHAELJ, CLARK JOSEPHD, BOND BOBBYT, CHAMBERLAIN MICHAELJ. Evaluation of Connectivity Among American Black Bear Populations in Georgia. J Wildl Manage 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/jwmg.22041] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- MICHAEL J. HOOKER
- Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources University of Georgia 180 E Green Street Athens GA 30602 USA
| | - JOSEPH D. CLARK
- U.S. Geological Survey, Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center, Southern Appalachian Research Branch University of Tennessee Knoxville TN 37996 USA
| | - BOBBY T. BOND
- Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Wildlife Resources Division 1014 MLK Boulevard Fort Valley GA 31030 USA
| | - MICHAEL J. CHAMBERLAIN
- Warnell School of Forestry and Natural Resources University of Georgia 180 E Green Street Athens GA 30602 USA
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Zecherle LJ, Nichols HJ, Bar‐David S, Brown RP, Hipperson H, Horsburgh GJ, Templeton AR. Subspecies hybridization as a potential conservation tool in species reintroductions. Evol Appl 2021; 14:1216-1224. [PMID: 34025762 PMCID: PMC8127701 DOI: 10.1111/eva.13191] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2020] [Revised: 12/11/2020] [Accepted: 12/27/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Reintroductions are a powerful tool for the recovery of endangered species. However, their long-term success is strongly influenced by the genetic diversity of the reintroduced population. The chances of population persistence can be improved by enhancing the population's adaptive ability through the mixing of individuals from different sources. However, where source populations are too diverse the reintroduced population could also suffer from outbreeding depression or unsuccessful admixture due to behavioural or genetic barriers. For the reintroduction of Asiatic wild ass Equus hemionus ssp. in Israel, a breeding core was created from individuals of two different subspecies (E. h. onager & E. h. kulan). Today the population comprises approximately 300 individuals and displays no signs of outbreeding depression. The aim of this study was a population genomic evaluation of this conservation reintroduction protocol. We used maximum likelihood methods and genetic clustering analyses to investigate subspecies admixture and test for spatial autocorrelation based on subspecies ancestry. Further, we analysed heterozygosity and effective population sizes in the breeding core prior to release and the current wild population. We discovered high levels of subspecies admixture in the breeding core and wild population, consistent with a significant heterozygote excess in the breeding core. Furthermore, we found no signs of spatial autocorrelation associated with subspecies ancestry in the wild population. Inbreeding and variance effective population size estimates were low. Our results indicate no genetic or behavioural barriers to admixture between the subspecies and suggest that their hybridization has led to greater genetic diversity in the reintroduced population. The study provides rare empirical evidence of the successful application of subspecies hybridization in a reintroduction. It supports use of intraspecific hybridization as a tool to increase genetic diversity in conservation translocations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lilith J. Zecherle
- School of Biological and Environmental SciencesLiverpool John Moores UniversityLiverpoolUK
- Mitrani Department of Desert EcologyJacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert ResearchBen‐Gurion University of the NegevMidreshet Ben‐GurionIsrael
- NERC Biomolecular Analysis FacilityDepartment of Animal and Plant SciencesUniversity of SheffieldSheffieldUK
| | | | - Shirli Bar‐David
- Mitrani Department of Desert EcologyJacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert ResearchBen‐Gurion University of the NegevMidreshet Ben‐GurionIsrael
| | - Richard P. Brown
- School of Biological and Environmental SciencesLiverpool John Moores UniversityLiverpoolUK
| | - Helen Hipperson
- NERC Biomolecular Analysis FacilityDepartment of Animal and Plant SciencesUniversity of SheffieldSheffieldUK
| | - Gavin J. Horsburgh
- NERC Biomolecular Analysis FacilityDepartment of Animal and Plant SciencesUniversity of SheffieldSheffieldUK
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Wright PGR, Schofield H, Mathews F. Can effective population size estimates be used to monitor population trends of woodland bats? A case study of Myotis bechsteinii. Ecol Evol 2021; 11:2015-2023. [PMID: 33717438 PMCID: PMC7920762 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.7143] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2020] [Revised: 11/26/2020] [Accepted: 12/04/2020] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
Molecular approaches to calculate effective population size estimates (Ne) are increasingly used as an alternative to long-term demographic monitoring of wildlife populations. However, the complex ecology of most long-lived species and the consequent uncertainties in model assumptions means that effective population size estimates are often imprecise. Although methods exist to incorporate age structure into Ne estimations for long-lived species with overlapping generations, they are rarely used owing to the lack of relevant information for most wild populations. Here, we performed a case study on an elusive woodland bat, Myotis bechsteinii, to compare the use of the parentage assignment Ne estimator (EPA) with the more commonly used linkage disequilibrium (LD) Ne estimator in detecting long-term population trends, and assessed the impacts of deploying different overall sample sizes. We used genotypic data from a previously published study, and simulated 48 contrasting demographic scenarios over 150 years using the life history characteristics of this species The LD method strongly outperformed the EPA method. As expected, smaller sample sizes resulted in a reduced ability to detect population trends. Nevertheless, even the smallest sample size tested (n = 30) could detect important changes (60%-80% decline) with the LD method. These results demonstrate that genetic approaches can be an effective way to monitor long-lived species, such as bats, provided that they are undertaken over multiple decades.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick G. R. Wright
- Department of Life SciencesUniversity of SussexFalmerUK
- Vincent Wildlife TrustLedburyUK
| | | | - Fiona Mathews
- Department of Life SciencesUniversity of SussexFalmerUK
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Phylogenetic analysis of marginal Asiatic black bears reveals a recent Iranian–Himalayan divergence and has implications for taxonomy and conservation. Mamm Biol 2020. [DOI: 10.1007/s42991-020-00044-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
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Blair CD, Muller LI, Clark JD, Stiver WH. Survival and Conflict Behavior of American Black Bears after Rehabilitation. J Wildl Manage 2020. [DOI: 10.1002/jwmg.21783] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Coy D. Blair
- Department of Forestry, Wildlife and FisheriesUniversity of Tennessee and Appalachian Bear Rescue 274 Ellington Hall Knoxville TN 37996 USA
| | - Lisa I. Muller
- Department of ForestryWildlife and Fisheries, University of Tennessee, 274 Ellington HallKnoxville TN 37996 USA
| | - Joseph D. Clark
- U.S. Geological Survey, Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center, Southern Appalachian Research BranchUniversity of Tennessee 274 Ellington Hall Knoxville TN 37996 USA
| | - William H. Stiver
- National Park ServiceGreat Smoky Mountains National Park 107 Park Headquarters Road Gatlinburg TN 37738 USA
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Wang W, Zheng Y, Zhao J, Yao M. Low genetic diversity in a critically endangered primate: shallow evolutionary history or recent population bottleneck? BMC Evol Biol 2019; 19:134. [PMID: 31242851 PMCID: PMC6595580 DOI: 10.1186/s12862-019-1451-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2019] [Accepted: 05/31/2019] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Current patterns of population genetic variation may have been shaped by long-term evolutionary history and contemporary demographic processes. Understanding the underlying mechanisms that yield those patterns is crucial for informed conservation of endangered species. The critically endangered white-headed langur, Trachypithecus leucocephalus, is endemic to a narrow range in southwest China. This species shows very low genetic diversity in its 2 main relict populations, Fusui and Chongzuo. Whether this has been caused by a short evolutionary history or recent population declines is unknown. Therefore, we investigated the contributions of historical and recent population demographic changes to population genetic diversity by using 15 nuclear microsatellite markers and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control region sequences. RESULTS Using genetic data from 214 individuals we found a total of 9 mtDNA haplotypes in the Fusui population but only 1 haplotype in the Chongzuo population, and we found an overall low genetic diversity (haplotype and nucleotide diversities: h = 0.486 ± 0.036; π = 0.0028 ± 0.0003). The demographic history inferred from mtDNA and microsatellite markers revealed no evidence for historical population size fluctuations or recent population bottlenecks. Simulations of possible population divergence histories inferred by DIYABC analysis supported a recent divergence of the Chongzuo population from the Fusui population and no population bottlenecks. CONCLUSIONS Despite severe population declines caused by anthropogenic activities in the last century, the low genetic diversity of the extant white-headed langur populations is most likely primarily due to the species' shallow evolutionary history and to a recent, local population founder event.
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Affiliation(s)
- Weiran Wang
- School of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China.,Institute of Ecology, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China.,Beijing National Day School, Beijing, 100871, China
| | - Yitao Zheng
- School of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China.,Institute of Ecology, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China
| | - Jindong Zhao
- School of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China.,Institute of Ecology, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China
| | - Meng Yao
- School of Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China. .,Institute of Ecology, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China.
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Murphy SM, Hast JT, Augustine BC, Weisrock DW, Clark JD, Kocka DM, Ryan CW, Sajecki JL, Cox JJ. Early genetic outcomes of American black bear reintroductions in the Central Appalachians, USA. URSUS 2019. [DOI: 10.2192/ursu-d-18-00011.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Sean M. Murphy
- Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40546, USA
| | - John T. Hast
- Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40546, USA
| | - Ben C. Augustine
- Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40546, USA
| | - David W. Weisrock
- Department of Biology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506, USA
| | - Joseph D. Clark
- United States Geological Survey, Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center, Southern Appalachian Research Branch, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
| | - David M. Kocka
- Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, Verona, VA 24482, USA
| | - Christopher W. Ryan
- West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, South Charleston, WV 25303, USA
| | - Jaime L. Sajecki
- Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, Verona, VA 24482, USA
| | - John J. Cox
- Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40546, USA
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Genetic diversity and population structure of white-lipped peccaries (Tayassu pecari) in the Pantanal, Cerrado and Atlantic Forest from Brazil. Mamm Biol 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/j.mambio.2019.03.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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