Török et al. (2014) PLoS ONE

Török P, Valkó O, Deák B, Kelemen A, Tóthmérész B (2014) Traditional Cattle Grazing in a Mosaic Alkali Landscape: Effects on Grassland Biodiversity along a Moisture Gradient. PLoS ONE 9(5): e97095. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0097095


Abstract
Extensively managed pastures are of crucial importance in sustaining biodiversity both in local- and landscape-level. Thus, re-introduction of traditional grazing management is a crucial issue in grassland conservation actions worldwide. Traditional grazing with robust cattle breeds in low stocking rates is considered to be especially useful to mimic natural grazing regimes, but well documented case-studies are surprisingly rare on this topic. Our goal was to evaluate the effectiveness of traditional Hungarian Grey cattle grazing as a conservation action in a mosaic alkali landscape. We asked the following questions: (i) How does cattle grazing affect species composition and diversity of the grasslands? (ii) What are the effects of grazing on short-lived and perennial noxious species? (iii) Are there distinct effects of grazing in dry-, mesophilous- and wet grassland types? Vegetation of fenced and grazed plots in a 200-ha sized habitat complex (secondary dry grasslands and pristine mesophilous- and wet alkali grasslands) was sampled from 2006–2009 in East-Hungary. We found higher diversity scores in grazed plots compared to fenced ones in mesophilous- and wet grasslands. Higher cover of noxious species was typical in fenced plots compared to their grazed counterparts in the last year in every studied grassland type. We found an increasing effect of grazing from the dry- towards the wet grassland types. The year-to-year differences also followed similar pattern: the site-dependent effects were the lowest in the dry grassland and an increasing effect was detected along the moisture gradient. We found that extensive Hungarian Grey cattle grazing is an effective tool to suppress noxious species and to create a mosaic vegetation structure, which enables to maintain high species richness in the landscape. Hungarian Grey cattle can feed in open habitats along long moisture gradient, thus in highly mosaic landscapes this breed can be the most suitable livestock type.

Keywords

Biodiversity, Cattle, Conservation science, Ecosystems, Grasslands, Grazing, Shannon index, Species diversity

Tökölyi et al. (2014) Biological Journal of the Linnaean Society

Tökölyi, J., Schmidt, J. and Barta, Z. (2014), Climate and mammalian life histories. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, 111: 719–736. doi: 10.1111/bij.12238
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/bij.12238/abstract

 

Abstract
Mammals display considerable geographical variation in life history traits. To understand how climatic factors might influence this variation, we analysed the relationship between life history traits – adult body size, litter size, number of litters per year, gestation length, neonate body mass, weaning age and age at sexual maturity – and several environmental variables quantifying the seasonality and predictability of temperature and precipitation across the distribution range of five terrestrial mammal groups. Environmental factors correlated strongly with each other; therefore, we used principal components analysis to obtain orthogonal climatic predictors that could be used in multivariate models. We found that in bats, primates and even-toed ungulates adult body size tends to be larger in species inhabiting cold, dry, seasonal environments, whereas in carnivores and rodents a smaller body size is characteristic of warm, dry environments, suggesting that low food availability might limit adult size. Species inhabiting cold, dry, seasonal habitats have fewer, larger litters and shorter gestation periods; however, annual fecundity in these species is not higher, implying that the large litter size of mammals living at high latitudes is probably a consequence of time constraints imposed by strong seasonality. On the other hand, the number of litters per year and annual fecundity were greater in species inhabiting environments with higher seasonality in precipitation. Lastly, we found little evidence for specific effects of environmental variability. Our results highlight the complex effects of environmental factors in the evolution of life history traits in mammals.

 

Keywords
body size, comparative analysis, macroecology, predictability, reproductive traits, seasonality

Molnár V. et al. (2014) Plant Biosystems

Molnár V. A., Popiela A., Lukács B. A. (2014): Elatine gussonei (Sommier) Brullo et al. (Elatinaceae) in Sicily. – Plant Biosystems 148: 27-30. DOI: 10.1080/11263504.2013.788099
http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/11263504.2013.788099#.U2Hhw3ZD3Fw

Abstract
This study reports the Sicilian occurrence of Elatine gussonei (Sommier) Brullo et al., a rare and endangered species previously known only from Lampedusa, Malta and Gozo. The species was found on three localities near settlements Modica and Ispica (south-eastern Sicily).

 

Keywords
Distribution, Mediterranean temporary ponds, section Elatinella, seed morphology, wetland ephemerophyte

Boda et al. (2014) Naturwissenschaften

Pál Boda, Gábor Horváth, György Kriska, Miklós Blahó, Zoltán Csabai (2014): Phototaxis and polarotaxis hand in hand: night dispersal flight of aquatic insects distracted synergistically by light intensity and reflection polarization. Naturwissenschaften, online early, doi: 10.1007/s00114-014-1166-2

 

Abstract
Based on an earlier observation in the field, we hypothesized that light intensity and horizontally polarized reflected light may strongly influence the flight behaviour of night-active aquatic insects. We assumed that phototaxis and polarotaxis together have a more harmful effect on the dispersal flight of these insects than they would have separately. We tested this hypothesis in a multiple-choice field experiment using horizontal test surfaces laid on the ground. We offered simultaneously the following visual stimuli for aerial aquatic insects: (1) lamplit matte black canvas inducing phototaxis alone, (2) unlit shiny black plastic sheet eliciting polarotaxis alone, (3) lamplit shiny black plastic sheet inducing simultaneously phototaxis and polarotaxis, and (4) unlit matte black canvas as a visually unattractive control. The unlit matte black canvas trapped only a negligible number (13) of water insects. The sum (16,432) of the total numbers of water beetles and bugs captured on the lamplit matte black canvas (7,922) and the unlit shiny black plastic sheet (8,510) was much smaller than the total catch (29,682) caught on the lamplit shiny black plastic sheet. This provides experimental evidence for the synergistic interaction of phototaxis (elicited by the unpolarized direct lamplight) and polarotaxis (induced by the strongly and horizontally polarized plastic-reflected light) in the investigated aquatic insects. Thus, horizontally polarizing artificial lamplit surfaces can function as an effective ecological trap due to this synergism of optical cues, especially in the urban environment.


Keywords
Ecological trap, Visual ecology, Photopollution, Polarized light pollution, Phototaxis, Polarotaxis, Cue synergism

Purger et al. (2014) Preslia

Purger D., Lengyel A., Kevey B., Lendvai G., Horváth A., Tomić Z. & Csiky J. (2014): Numerical classification of oak forests on loess in Hungary, Croatia and Serbia. Preslia 86: 47–66.



Abstract
Oak forests on loess are floristically one of the richest types of broadleaved forests and are among the most threatened types of natural habitats in the Carpathian Basin. They are classified in several communities in Hungary, Croatia and Serbia. These syntaxa are distinguished mostly on the basis of traditional phytosociological methods without comparison across a larger geographical scale. The recognition of some of these local syntaxa in the field, therefore, can be difficult, and the application of their names to communities in other areas may be questionable. The goal of this study was to develop an international typology for oak forests on loess based on a numerical analysis. A data set of 437 phytosociological relevés (stands of 12 associations from three countries) was stratified and 270 relevés were analysed using multivariate statistical methods. Six types were distinguished: Primula vulgaris type (xero-mesic to mesic sub-Mediterranean closed-canopy oak forests); Ruscus aculeatus type (xeric to xero-mesic sub-Mediterranean type); Vinca herbacea type (xeric continental open-canopy woodlands); Pulmonaria mollis type (xeric to mesic continental closed-canopy forests); Corydalis cavatype (mesic closed-canopy oak forests in nutrient-rich habitats); and Stellaria media type (xeric to mesic oak forests in nutrient-rich habitats). The vegetation types identified are related to syntaxa traditionally recognized by phytosociologists. Our analysis did not support the distinction of some associations with local distributions. The geographical distributions of the two main forest types exhibited a gradient-like pattern in a north-east–south-west direction. The dry continental forest steppe woodland is mainly distributed in the north-eastern part of Hungary, whereas the xero-mesic sub-Mediterranean forests are restricted to the southwestern and southern part of our study area. This pattern corresponds to a climatic gradient from the North Hungarian Mts to north-eastern Croatia and northern Serbia.


Keywords
Aceri tatarici-Quercion, Carpathian Basin, forest steppe, gradient, phytosociology

Bátori et al. (2014) International Journal of Speleology

Bátori Z., Csiky J., Farkas T., Vojtkó A.E., Erdős L., Kovács D., Wirth T., Körmöczi L. and Vojtkó A. (2014): The conservation value of karst dolines for vascular plants in woodland habitats of Hungary: refugia and climate change. International Journal of Speleology, 43 (1), 15-26.

Abstract

Limestone (karst) surfaces in Hungary are rich in dolines, in which many endangered vascular plant species occur. To date, the majority of studies dealing with doline vegetation have focused on the local rather than the landscape level, without using comparative data from other areas. However, in this study we aimed to compare the vegetation pattern and species composition of dolines under different climate regimes of Hungary with regard to regional species pools. The fieldwork was carried out between 2005 and 2012. Twenty dolines were selected in the Mecsek Mountains (southern Hungary) and nine dolines in the Aggtelek Karst area (northern Hungary). More than 900 vascular plants and more than 2000 plots were included in the study. The moving split window (MSW) technique, nestedness analysis and principal coordinates analysis (PCoA) were used to reveal the vegetation patterns in dolines. Although we found remarkable differences between the species composition of the two regions, dolines of both regions play a similar role in the preservation of different groups of species. Many plants, in particular mountain species, are restricted to the bottom of dolines where appropriate environmental conditions exist. In addition, depending on the doline geometry, many species of drier and warmer forests have colonized the upper slopes and rims. Thus, we can conclude that karst dolines of Hungary can be considered as reservoirs for many vascular plant species, therefore they are particularly important from a conservation point of view. Moreover, these dolines will likely become increasingly indispensable refugia for biodiversity under future global warming.

Keywords

Aggtelek Karst area, global warming, Mecsek Mountains, relict species, transects

Burton et al. (2014) Environmental Monitoring and Assessment

Burton, C., Huggard, D., Bayne, E., Schieck, J., Sólymos, P., Muhly, T., Farr, D. & Boutin, S. (2014): A framework for adaptive monitoring of the cumulative effects of human footprint on biodiversity. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, in press, DOI 10.1007/s10661-014-3643-7

Abstract

Effective ecological monitoring is imperative in a human-dominated world, as our ability to manage functioning ecosystems will depend on understanding biodiversity responses to anthropogenic impacts. Yet, most monitoring efforts have either been narrowly focused on particular sites, species and stressors — thus inadequately considering the cumulative effects of multiple, interacting impacts at scales of management relevance — or too unfocused to provide specific guidance. We propose a cumulative effects monitoring framework that integrates multi-scaled surveillance of trends in biodiversity and land cover with targeted evaluation of hypothesized drivers of change. The framework is grounded in a flexible conceptual model and uses monitoring to generate and test empirical models that relate the status of diverse taxonomic groups to the nature and extent of human “footprint” and other landscape attributes. An adaptive cycle of standardized sampling, model development, and model evaluation provides a means to learn about the system and guide management. Additional benefits of the framework include standardized data on status and trend for a wide variety of biodiversity elements, spatially explicit models for regional planning and scenario evaluation, and identification of knowledge gaps for complementary research. We describe efforts to implement the framework in Alberta, Canada, through the Alberta Biodiversity Monitoring Institute, and identify key challenges to be addressed.

Keywords

Cumulative effects, Ecological monitoring, Human footprint, Biodiversity conservation, Adaptive monitoring, Impact assessment