Indicator species

Responses of some species to disturbances can be used as a parameter of analysis about levels of change in the environmental services. These species can be used as environmental bioindicators. Class Insecta has many appropriate species. This paper aims an analysis of bioindicator species of the impact caused by intensive agriculture, deforestation, reforestation and pollution of aquatic and terrestrial environments.

The assessment of the habitat condition is the first step of conservation actions and several tools are available to assess wetlands. However, only a few tools are adapted to the priority habitat Mediterranean temporary ponds. Thus, our objectives were (i) to identify biological indicators associated with the different conservation status of Mediterranean temporary ponds and (ii) to create an efficient evaluation tool for non-experts using indicators of conservation status. A total of 87 ponds were sampled in southwest Portugal to assess the presence of plants, large branchiopods, amphibians, threatened voles and bats. Ponds with favourable conservation status showed higher species richness of plants, large branchiopods and amphibians. We identified eighteen indicators for favourable ponds: 15 plants, one large branchiopod and two amphibian taxa. We propose a new tool to assess the conservation status of Mediterranean temporary ponds based on the presence of these indicators. This tool is an alternative to other common, but timeconsuming, methods and can be readily used by trained practitioners. The replication and adaptation of this tool to other regions and habitats enables the collection of comparable data and the geographical scaling-up of the assessments.

Upland forests in Cambodia (e.g., evergreen, semi-evergreen, dry mixed deciduous, and deciduous dipterocarp forests in hilly-to-montane landscapes) support high biodiversity and provide critical ecosystem services, yet evidence on tree species composition and diversity patterns remains fragmented across sites, methods, and reporting styles. This scoping review maps how the literature in Cambodia has applied Importance Value Index (IVI) and diversity indices (e.g., Shannon, Simpson, evenness) to describe forest communities, compare forest types, and interpret disturbance effects. Following established scoping review guidance and reporting recommendations, we synthesize available peer-reviewed studies and relevant technical sources that report floristic composition, dominance structure, and diversity metrics. Evidence shows that Cambodia's evergreen and semi-evergreen forests generally exhibit higher species richness and more even composition than deciduous dipterocarp forests, which are commonly characterized by strong dominance of a few dipterocarps (e.g., Dipterocarpus and Shorea). However, comparability is constrained by variation in plot size, DBH thresholds, sampling intensity, and inconsistent reporting of IVI components. Key gaps include limited upland-specific datasets outside a few wellstudied provinces, underuse of standardized diversity frameworks (e.g., Hill numbers), and insufficient integration of IVI/diversity results with environmental gradients (topography, soil, fire regimes) and disturbance histories. We provide recommendations to harmonize methods and improve future syntheses for Cambodian upland forest ecology and management.

The growing concern for the quality of water in aquatic ecosystems makes it essential to develop new indicators that allow evaluating and predicting their state against anthropogenic impact. Microorganisms are able to reflect quickly changes in their habitat, through both its taxonomic and functional characteristics, and that is why they are in consideration as indicators of environmental quality (*1). The objective of this work was to identify attributes of the composition and functionality of microbial communities, to be evaluated as an indicator of water quality, focusing on emerging pollutants (ECs). For that, ECs and bacterial communities were analyzed along the basins of two coastal lagoons encompassing an anthropogenic gradient, looking for taxonomic and functional indicators. Taxonomic indicators were looked using Illumina sequencing of 16S RNAr gene V4 region followed by identification of amplicon secuence variants (ASVs) and taxonomic annotation. In the case of functional ...

Indicator species with high fidelity to a-priori defined groups of sites are a relevant tool to ecologically characterize plant or animal assemblages. The identification of indicator or diagnostic species is usually performed by summarizing the species abundances within each group of sites. Species with high concentration in a given group of sites are considered diagnostic of that particular group. Among the methods proposed for the determination of indicator species, only very few have considered the species functional traits. This is quite surprising, as species influence ecosystem processes via their traits. Therefore, the species functional traits should give a much better ecological characterization of a group of sites than the species abundances. The aim of this paper is thus to use the species functional characteristics to improve their diagnostic value. These characteristics include the species functional traits and all species-level indicators of environmental association. The proposed method consists of combining the species abundances and their functional characteristics into a single composite index, which can be interpreted as the species fuzzy degree of compatibility with each group of sites. The interpretation of this index in terms of fuzzy set theory allows to introduce a high degree of flexibility in the computation of the species diagnostic values. To show the behavior of the proposed index, two worked examples with data on Alpine vegetation in northern Italy and urban alien species in the city of Brussels (Belgium) are used.

We analyse the effects of coastal defence structures, mainly low crested (LCS), on the surrounding intertidal and subtidal infaunal assemblages and mobile fauna. The results summarise joint studies within the DELOS project in Spain (Mediterranean Sea), Italy (Adriatic Sea) and UK (English Channel and Atlantic Ocean). We demonstrate that univariate analysis did not generally identify LCS impacts, but multivariate analyses did, this being a general trend across all locations and countries. Changes in sediment and infauna seem to be inevitable and usually tend to induce negative changes, particularly on the landward side and in the presence of additional structures or after beach nourishment. The consequences of LCS construction always depend on the response of the assemblages inhabiting a given region. However, to assess the ecological importance of the induced changes and to provide additional monitoring criteria, likely indicator species should be taken into account. The presence of species either coming from the new hard bottoms or associated to physical disturbances is viewed as a negative impact, while the potential nursery role of LCS is a positive one. The combined use of monitoring and forecast models allows to identify these impacts and may play a relevant role in mitigation protocols. Finally, our work supports the feasibility of introducing design criteria tending to facilitate a positive evolution of the assemblages surrounding the structures once the changes due to the presence of the LCS are completed and the new situation tends to become more stable

Dead wood fungi have a major importance for forests biodiversity as they produce wood degradation in forest habitats. In this paper are presented some aspects related to the diversity of dead wood fungi in tree deciduous forest types from tree natural reserves (Crujana, Dragomirna and Zamostea) from Suceava County and the effect of some ecological factors (host tree, diameter and decomposition degree of the dead wood and some microclimatic characteristics of sites) on their occurrence and diversity. Investigations carried out in 2013 resulted in the identification of 44 lignicolous fungi species. Analysis of similarities between lingnicolous fungi species from the investigated natural reserves (by hierarchical clustering) shows a separation of three fungi groups, depending on the host- trees species. The effect of the tree host species was highlighted also by detrended correspondence analysis, which, in addition presented the existence of an altitudinal gradient and a weaker effect ...

328 species in total were recorded at 500 sites between 30° 06’ and 24° 00’N in the Eastern Desert of Egypt. The occurrence of species was classified into 5 constancy classes: dominant, very common, common, occasional and sporadic. A sharp decrease in the number of recorded species was noticed along the N–S direction from Cairo-Suez road in the north to Aswan-Baranis road in the south (from 179 to 23), and an increase along the E–W direction from the Red Sea coast in the east to the River Nile Valley in the west (from 46 to 80). It was found out that geographical affinities affect the patterns of species distribution: 82 annual (therophyte) species are dominant life forms within the northern part of the study area, followed by 33 species in the southern part. Phanerophytes (trees) showed a decrease in their number from north (13 species) to south (9 species), but a slight increase from east (9 species) to west (10 species). Distribution maps of local geographical subtypes of each of...

The vegetation of the Chernihiv city sands (natural and technogenic origin) has rather high syntaxonomic diversity (17 associations and 5 initial communities) and the ruderal phytocoenoses prevail. Natural phytocenoses are represented to a small extent (<i>Cyperetum flavescentis </i>Koch 1926, <i>Dichostylidi–Helochloetum alopecuroidis </i>(Timar 1950) Pietsch 1973, <i>Artemisia scoparia–Dianthus borbasii </i>community, <i>Kochietum arenariae</i> Fijalk 1978). Synanthropic psammophytes species communities that are more resistant to anthropogenic influence, are formed under urban conditions. The ecological range of vegetation of sandy alluvia varies from xerophytic phytocoenoses in mineral-poor sand (<i>Kochietum arenariae</i>) to the communities, which indicate waterlogged areas with increased mineralization of water and saline bottom sediments (<i>Typhetum laxmannii </i>Nedulcu 1968). Itispossibletoobserve the ...

The results of field research at 230 river sections located throughout Poland were used to examine the possibility of predicting values of macrophyte metrics of ecological status. Artificial intelligence methods such as artificial neural networks were used in the modelling. The physicochemical parameters of water (alkalinity, conductivity, nitrate and ammonium nitrogen, reactive and total phosphorus, and biochemical oxygen demand) were used as the explanatory (modelling) variables. The explained (modelled) parameters were the Polish MIR (Macrophyte Index for Rivers), the British MTR (Mean Trophic Rank) and the French IBMR (River Macrophytes Biological Index). The quality of the constructed models was assessed using the normalized root mean square error (NRMSE) and the r-Pearson's linear correlation coefficient between variables modelled by the networks and calculated on the basis of the botanical research. These analyses demonstrated that the network modelling MIR values had the highest accuracy. The lowest prediction accuracy was obtained for MTR and IBMR indices. The differences between particular models are likely to result from better adjustment of the Polish method to local rivers (particularly in terms of indicator species used).

The impact of altering hydro-morphology on three macrophyte community types was investigated at 107 European stream sites. Sites were surveyed using standard macrophyte and habitat survey techniques (Mean Trophic Rank Methodology and River Habitat Survey respectively). Principal Components Analysis shows the macrophyte community of upland streams live in a more structurally diverse physical habitat than lowland communities. Variables representing the homogeneity and diversity of the physical environment were used to successfully separate un-impacted from impacted sites, e.g. homogeneity of depth and substrate increased with decreasing quality class for lowland sites (ANOVA p<0.05). Macrophyte attribute groups and structural metrics such as species richness were successfully linked to hydro-morphological variables indicative of impact. Most links were specific to each macrophyte community type, e.g., the attribute group liverworts, mosses and lichens decreased in abundance with increasing homogeneity of depth and decreasing substrate size at lowland sites but not at upland sites. Elodea canadensis, Sparganium emersum and Potamogeton crispus were indicative of impacted lowland sites. Many of the indicator species are also known to be tolerant to other forms of impact. The potential for a macrophyte tool indicative of hydro-morphological impact is discussed. It is concluded one could be constructed by combining indicator species and metrics such as species richness and evenness.

The aim of this paper is to as- sess usefulness of different measures when determining central tendencies which characterise the environmental requirements of living organisms. Mathematical analyses were made of the environmental parameters of river macrophyte communities which were taken as a representative pattern of different levels of biological structures. To deliver a representative dataset, botanical surveys were carried out on a range of British rivers together with environmental assessment and the plant communities groups were identified based on characteristic species according to eslished phytosociological criteria. The mean values and standard univariate medians of the revealed associations were compared with means calculated on the basis of advanced transformation and also with the rarely calculated multivariate L median. Due to high variance and asymmetrical distribution, the analyses based on the mean-value appeared to be limited in application. To avoid this disadvantage transformation to obtain normality of the dataset standardisation was proposed although even this did not fully reach a satisfactory symmetry. It was concluded that each environmental variable for each single biota must be individually treated by a suile transformation to obtain approximately normal distributions. The univariate median was very resistant to the effects of outliers but gave a flattened output of the environmental dataset making the partitioning of biological units very difficult. The multivariate L median appeared to be unaffected by outliers. It enabled to obtain considerable ordering of communities against individual environmental parameters without data transformation.

Parasites have proven to display high responsiveness to anthropogenic stress, having, therefore a considerable value as bioindicators. We analysed the variability in the structure of parasite populations and assemblages of the poeciliid Cnesterodon decemmaculatus caught at partially urbanized stream along a unidirectional gradient with the aim of evaluating their utility as indicators of the effect of urbanization. A total of 209 fish were examined for parasites; some physical parameters of the stream, including the percentage of urbanization (UR) were also recorded. Data were analyzed at the levels of parasite populations and assemblages discriminated by host sex. Fish condition factor was negatively affected by UR, possibly related to flashing hydrology, but it was not related to parasite abundance. Different combinations of variables explained the distribution of parasite populations and assemblages along the creek, with UR being recurrently identified among the best predictors of parasite loads at all levels of analyses. Whereas densities of mollusc first intermediate hosts were considered of little relevance for parasite distribution, distribution of definitive hosts, as well as the presence of pollutants and increased flashiness in urbanized sections of the creek were retained as possible explanations to the observed patterns. As these factors can act simultaneously, the mechanisms driving differences in parasite dynamics of urban streams are difficult to individualize, but the effect of urbanization on both hosts and parasites was clearly identified. Parasites found, with abundances clearly related to UR, can be considered as good ecological indicators, since they are broadly distributed in the region, easy to observe and count, their prevalence and abundance allow reliable quantitative comparisons and are sensitive to variations of environmental stress and/or ecological conditions at small spatial scales. Consequently the susceptibility of fish-trematode systems to variations in both biotic and abiotic stressors makes them a promising tool for detecting urbanization-related disturbances in streams.

The southeast of the Iberian Peninsula is a recognized area of high aquatic biodiversity, water beetles being one of the most well-known groups contributing to such biodiversity. The standing waters of this area show a high habitat diversity, occurring fresh, saline, temporary, permanent, karstic, endorheic, and artificial small water bodies. Despite this, there has been no attempt to analyze their contribution to local biodiversity. In this work, we identify the species inhabiting standing waters, analyze their contribution to the checklist from the study area, and recognize the species exclusive to this kind of habitat. We also highlight the most threatened species, identify the habitats which constitute biodiversity hotspots for this group, explore patterns of water beetle assemblage composition, and identify indicator species associated with each habitat type. We collected 125 species, 55 of them being typical to lentic habitats, in the set of 26 sampled standing water bodies, which means the 57% of the 218 species recorded in the most recent checklist for the study area. A total of 10 species are Iberian endemics and four can be considered threatened, Ochthebius irenae falling in both categories. Natural ponds showed the highest species richness (91 species), while saline water bodies (endorheic lagoons and continental salt-pans) contributed the most threatened species: Nebrioporus baeticus, Ochthebius delgadoi, Ochthebius tudmirensis and Ochthebius irenae. The most representative species for continental salt-pans was Ochthebius notabilis, for endorheic lagoons Ochthebius marinus and Hygrotus pallidulus, while Hydroglyphus geminus played this part in rice fields. Our results suggest that rice fields, endorheic lagoons, and continental salt-pans have specific water beetles assemblages, which could be used in bioassessment and conservation studies. In general, standing waters are seriously threatened in this area, particularly as a result of intensive agricultural activities. Thus, taking into account these ecosystems hold a high number of species, their continued degradation is likely to result in a significant loss of biodiversity, including key populations of a number of threatened and endemic species.

The integument surface of the cavernicolous terrestrial isopod Mesoniscus graniger collected in the Magura and Zidita caves, Romania, was investigated using the SEM. Almost the entire body surface is covered by honeycomb-like polygonal scales arranged like a net. Only two fields on both sides of the cephalon have a smoother structure with less pronounced and somewhat morphologically altered scale microstructures. Tricorns, the morphological characteristic for isopod body surfaces, were not observed. The surface granules looking as a ring or chalice of partly elevated scales with a brush or spine-like structures or setae in the center were documented as almost regularly arranged structure on the whole body. Possible functions of these structures are discussed.

Hydrological connectivity controls the patterns of invertebrate assemblages in wetland ecosystems. With degradation of intertidal wetlands, artificial freshwater release has become an important restoration technique. Hydrological connectivity with tidal creeks is also a key ecological process for intertidal wetlands. However, how hydrologic connectivity affects snail assemblages remains poorly investigated in intertidal wetlands. We studied the differences in snail assemblages in wetlands to understand the effects of hydrological connectivity, wetland to river, and wetland to ocean. We found freshwater connectivity can transform intertidal snail assemblages into freshwater snail assemblages; restored wetlands primarily had freshwater snail species and natural intertidal wetlands mainly supported marine or salt-adapted snail species. Cluster analysis, nMDS plot and ANOSIM analysis showed snail assemblages were influenced strongly by hydrological connectivity. Stenothyra glabra, Oncomelania sp. and Nassarius festivus were indicators of natural intertidal wetlands. Hippeutis cantori, Radix swinhoei and Succinea pfeifferi were indicators of restored wetlands. Our results suggest natural hydrological connectivity with the ocean needs to be maintained when attempting to restore intertidal wetlands. Without this connection, connecting impaired wetlands only to rivers, may not achieve restoration of natural biotic assemblages.

This article utilizes scholarship on borders to interpret the persistence of inequality in Indigenous seascapes, irrespective of moves to redress colonial wrongs or the growing anthropocenic recognition of human-nature interconnectedness. I examine border politics in the context of Māori claims for marine title and rights and the post-settlement development of aquaculture. Drawing on Harsha Walia’s concept of “border imperialism” and Achille Mbembe’s thesis on “borderization,” the article highlights the endurance of colonial forms alongside their neoliberal transformation into the enclosures and entrapments arising in the context of accelerated marine industrialization. By holding in tension the interconnection between marine environments and kinship, on one hand, and scholarship on borders, on the other, the article suggests that Indigenous Māori kinship, expanding through multiple layers of difference, constitutes a site of resistance that has the potential to refute the logic of borderization

European Alpine landscapes are facing marked land-use changes. On the one hand, outdoor winter recreation is spreading, with ski infrastructure degrading fragile mountain habitats, and snowsports causing disturbance and stress to wildlife. On the other hand, the abandonment of traditional grazing practices on timberline grasslands is leading to their encroachment by shrubs and forest, which decreases habitat heterogeneity and negatively affects biodiversity. We used the black grouse, a declining key indicator species of the Alpine timberline ecosystem, to assess optimal breeding habitat characteristics, with the goal of providing guidelines for appropriate restoration. Using Mixed Effects Logistic Regression analyses, we compared habitat features both at visited and at pseudoabsence locations within individual home ranges in order to determine the optimal habitat for males and females. Horizontal and vertical structural heterogeneity within all vegetation layers was the best predictor of occurrence for both sexes. In contrast, vegetation composition affected the presence of females, but not that of males. Females preferred a diverse, complex mosaic consisting of isolated mature coniferous trees and scattered small regenerating trees, associated with shrub cover (Ericacea) and Alpine meadows (Nardion). Chick-rearing females furthermore avoided roads, forest tracks and walking paths. The optimal predicted proportions of habitat types obtained from the model provide guidelines for the restoration of timberline ecosystems through corrective forestry measures and/or adapted grazing practices. These measures are likely to also benefit other Alpine timberline biodiversity.

The use of indicator species is popular in ecological monitoring and management. In recent years, new methods to improve the quality and application of indicator data have been proposed and developed. Here we propose the use of detection probability in the selection and application of indicator species. We evaluated environmental and observer factors believed to affect detection of potential species. Observer effects were the most evident factor and may necessitate the greatest consideration in the use of indicator species. Our results call attention to the fact that raw counts are far from accurate and that the use of detection probability can and should be incorporated into sampling protocols, species selection, and the allocation of effort for projects that use indicator species as part of monitoring and management programs.

The ecological integrity of the Mthatha River is increasingly under threat from climate change and anthropogenic impacts of contamination by acidification, organic pollutants, industrial and agricultural chemicals, and waste water. This study assessed the ecological state of the river and the impact of water quality on benthic macroinvertebrate communities from 2015 to 2016. Faunal specimens were sampled and environmental variables measured at four sites that vary in topography and human impact along the river. A total of 2980 specimens were recorded at sites, and classified into 12 orders, 46 families and 71 species. Species composition and distribution were directly or indirectly affected by season, physico-chemical variables and habitat heterogeneity. CCA results showed that electrical conductivity, pH, temperature, dissolved oxygen and vegetation accounted for species distribution patterns. Both habitatrestricted and common/widespread species can be used as indicators for assessing the quality of the Mthatha River system. Habitat management along the river should aim at preserving sufficient indigenous vegetation, especially during summer when biotope requirements are optimal. The practicality of using species-level surveys on a routine basis can be challenging. It might be advisable to select a few indicator species identified in this study and to monitor them as surrogates for the whole community.

Studies concerning nature and fodder value, yielding and calorific value of the community Glycerietum maximae Hueck 1831 from extensively managed meadows were conducted in the years 2012-2015 in the Noteć valley varying in moisture content and trophic conditions. The analyses were made on a total of 28 relevés of the association, prepared according to the Braun-Blanquet method . Recorded data included the taxonomic affiliation, botanical composition of the association, percentage shares of individual species in the community as well as the current habitat conditions based on Ellenberg's indicator values : F, R and N, while moisture content conditions were determined according to Oświt . Mean values of EIVs and Oświt's indexes showed a significant effect of moisture content, soil reaction and nitrogen content on trophic conditions, species composition of flora, yield and economic value as well as species diversity. These indicators indicate their applicability in the evaluation of directions in the transformation of rush flora. In their typical form the rushes are strongly dominated by one species Glyceria maxima, (S= IV and D =6485.0). This community due to strong inundation, late cutting, lack of fertilisation or cultivation has poor swards (FVS=2.2) of low fodder value and moderate nature value. However, thanks to huge yielding potential and relatively high fibre content it is one of the most promising energy crops, which is confirmed by the calculated lower heating value of 17.1 MJ•kg -1 DM and higher heating value of 18.1 MJ•kg -1 s.m.

The most important results of a lichenological survey carried out in 2001-2005 in Králický Sněžník are presented. Historical data on occurrence of lichens recently rare in the Czech Republic (viz Biatora helvola, Cyphelium inquinans, Eiglera flavida, Lobaria pulmonaria, Nephroma parile, Psoroma hypnorum, Sphaerophorus fragilis and Strigula stigmatella) were verified in the field. Several species were not recorded in the territory so far (viz Agonimia repleta, Japewia subaurifera, Lecania furfuracea, Lecidea leprarioides, Leptogium subtile, Pyrenula nitida and Sclerophora peronella). Totally, entries on 355 lichen species were gathered up till now. The number is equal to ca 27% of complete national lichen-flora (including historical and bibliographical data). During the current survey 231 species were recorded.

14 species of mayffies were recorded from Bas-Rhin (NE France), where no earlier data are available. Brachycercus harrisellus is new for NE France. Mots clés: Ephéméroptères, Faune de France, NE France. 14 espèces d'Ephémères sont citées du departement du Bas-Rhin d'où aucune donnée antérieure n'est disponible. Brachycercus harrisellus est nouveau pour le Nord-Est de la France.

Rhithrogena iridina s. str. (nicht picteti!) wurde erstmals in Deutschland sicher in Form einer männlichen Imago nachgewiesen. Der Fundort ist ein kleiner Mittelgebirgsbach im Südosten Sachsens. Es werden ergänzende Angaben zur Taxonomie, Nomenklatur, Faunistik und Zoogeographie gemacht. Rhithrogena iridina s. str. (not picteti!) is recorded first time in Germany in the stage of a male imago. The location is a small mountain brook in the southeast of the German federal state Saxony. Additional notes on the taxonomy, nomenclature, faunistics and zoogeography are given.

Von Ephemera lineata, einer vergleichsweise gut kenntlichen Art mit westpaläarktischer Verbreitung vom Wolgasystem bis nach Spanien, fehlen in den modernen Bearbeitungen der Bundesländer im norddeutschen Tiefland insgesamt Angaben zu einem historischen oder aktuellen Vorkommen. Ein aktueller Erstnachweis in Brandenburg gab Anlass die einschlägige Literatur durchzusehen und förderte überraschenderweise einen weiteren sicheren Nachweis aus Sachsen-Anhalt zutage. Although Ephemera lineata is a comparatively easily determinable species with a wide Western Palaearctic distribution from at least the Volga-System in the East to Spain in the West no records are given for the Northern German Lowlands in modern federal state checklists from Germany. A present first finding of this rare species in the River Spree of the federal State Brandenburg was reason to check again the historical relevant literature and yielded an unexpected further finding of a proved and widely overlooked record from the River Saale in Saxony-Anhalt.

Im Zuge gewässerökologischer Untersuchungen im Saarlandwurden in den vergangenen Jahren der untere Schwarzbach, die untere Blies und die Saar auf ihre Makrozoobenthos-Besiedlung untersucht. Dabei wurden einige potamotypische Eintagsfliegenarten mit regionalfaunistischer Bedeutung nachgewiesen, deren Funde im Folgenden diskutiert werden.

The growing pressure placed by human development on natural resources creates a need for quick and precise answers about the state of conservation of different areas. Thus, identifying and making use of ecological indicators becomes an essential task in the conservation of tropical systems. Here we assess the effects of small-scale disturbance on terrestrial arthropods and select groups that could be used as ecological indicators in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Arthropods were sampled within a continuous forest in the Serra do Mar State Park, southeastern Brazil, both in disturbed and undisturbed areas of the reserve. The abundance of exotic species was higher in the disturbed site, and this pattern seems to be an adequate indicator of anthropogenic disturbance. Species richness of Araneae, Carabidae, Scarabaeidae, Staphylinidae, and epigaeic Coleoptera (pooled) was higher in the undisturbed site, while that of fruit-feeding butterflies was higher in the disturbed site. Species richness was not significantly correlated between any pair of taxa. In contrast, species composition was significantly correlated among most groups, and clearly discriminates the disturbed from the undisturbed site. Moreover, fruit-feeding butterflies and epigaeic Coleoptera composition discriminated disturbed and undisturbed sites even when species were grouped into higher taxonomic levels, which may be a way of overcoming the difficulty of identifying arthropod species from poorly studied, species-rich ecosystems. Potential applications for these indicators include the choice and evaluation of sites for the establishment of natural reserves, elaboration of management plans, and the assessment of ecological impacts due to human activities, either for the purposes of licensing or legal compensation.

A research investigation was carried out in bela forest of Indus between Tarbela and Khairabad, Pakistan to document the existent vegetation and floristic diversity. Floristic surveys were conducted during July 2015 to June 2016 for the record of plant biodiversity. The bela forests stretched to 52 km in length from Tarbela to Khairabad in study area. Fifty two random plots were taken along Indus River at four selected sites. All the species within each plot was noted and identified. The determined voucher specimens were deposited in

The structure of fish assemblages in lotic systems usually registers variations from the headwaters to the mouth related to geomorphological and physicochemical changes. We evaluated the main processes that structure the fish assemblages on the spatial, seasonal, and decadal (2009–2010; 2019–2020) scales and their relationship with environmental variables in two low-impacted Neotropical Pampean streams tributaries to the Río de la Plata river (RdlP). Environmental variables related to the longitudinal variation in the fish assemblage were depth, macrophyte coverage, and altitude, showing higher values in the upper stream sectors compared to the lower ones. Specific richness increased towards lower stream sectors due to the migration of riverine species from the RdlP. The beta diversity partitioning analysis registered that the greatest proportion of variability was explained by the turnover component in both the longitudinal and seasonal analyses. The upper sectors showed a more sta...

The population structure and reproductive fitness of Pseudione elongata africana parasitizing the shrimp Palaemon concinnus were studied in two mangroves in Mozambique. About 100 host specimens were sampled every 15 days for 12 months at Costa do Sol, a peri-urban mangrove near Maputo, and at Saco, a near pristine mangrove at Inhaca Island. Parasites were removed from the branchiostegites of the shrimp and measured. Ovigerous females were selected and the eggs and embryos removed from the brood pouch and counted after staging their level of development. At Costa do Sol, the total length of female parasites (FPTL) was about 17% higher than at Saco. Ovigerous females were also more abundant at Costa do Sol in both the dry and wet seasons. The average brood size ranged from 89 to 207 eggs mm -1 FPTL in the Saco and 177 to 357 eggs mm -1 at Costa do Sol. These data provide baseline information on the population structure and reproduction of this parasite in east African mangroves. Comparative data on these parameters in peri-urban and more isolated mangroves may also lay the groundwork for the use of parasite reproduction as an indicator of anthropogenic pressure.

During the Late Holocene, the rate of sea level rise decreased and climate changes, hydrodynamic processes or anthropogenic impacts became predominant parameters governing the sedimentary infill of estuarine environments. The aim of this study is to describe the response of past benthic mollusc communities to these forcing factors. Mollusc skeletal remains were sampled from three 8000, 5500 and 2600 year-long sedimentary records in the Marennes-Oléron Bay (Atlantic Coast, France), where environmental changes have previously been identified thanks to a combination of very high resolution seismic profiles and sedimentological data. Molluscan assemblages successfully record environmental changes, even at the smallest temporal scale. They provide relevant information regarding bathymetry, salinity, hydrodynamics, oxygen content and sediment supply. In the 8000 year-long record, the transition from an upper to a lower intertidal mudflat community provides evidence of a transgressive phase that occurred between 8000 and 7600 years BP. In the 5500 year-long record, an oyster bank developed on the slopes of a tidal channel has been recovered. The composition of the fossil community and the careful examination of skeletal remains suggest that the channel was hydraulically inefficient, in response to the sediment infilling of its drainage area. In the 2600 year-long record, a soft-bottom, shallow-water, subtidal mollusc community, similar to that found nowadays in the Marennes-Oléron Bay, has been recovered from both lower mixed sand-mud and upper muddy units separated by a major regional unconformity dated to about 1000 years BP. This sharp transition is recorded by a few rare species, and was responsible for the local extinction of the bivalve Lepton squamosum. However, the abundance of the most common species and the quantity of fragmented shells remain stable, which may indicate that mud drape deposition was related to an increase in mud supply rather than a decrease in water energy. The level of detail of the palaeoenvironmental reconstructions varies, depending on the ecological requirements of the species. Stenotypic indicator species provide accurate, quantitative information, whereas eurytypic species add undesired variability to the assemblages. Since fossil molluscs are easy to collect and to identify and provide long-term, smoothed records of environment variations, this study suggests that they can be used prior to any other biological proxy, as a first step into reconstructions of Holocene coastal environments.

Le propos de ce travail a ete l&#39;etablissement de l&#39;impact de l&#39;alteration du milieu sur le degre de developpement des ailes des Coleopteres Carabiques ripicoles. L&#39;echantillonnage a ete realise dans deux stations du fleuve Guadiato (SO Espagne) distantes de 22 km dont la principale difference est due a la construction du barrage de La Brena, proche de la seconde station aux conditions environnementales fluctuantes. Les resultats montrent qu&#39;il y a une predominance d&#39;effectifs apteres a la premiere station et que les formes macropteres sont les plus abondantes dans la faune qui colonise les rivieres apres les inondations

To protect bather health at recreational beaches, fecal indicator bacterial standards are used to monitor water quality, and waters exceeding the standards are subsequently closed to bathers. However beachgoers are also in contact with beach sands, the sanitary quality of which is not included within beach monitoring programs. In fact, sands and sediments provide habitat where fecal bacterial populations may persist, and in some cases grow, in the coastal zone. Specific pathogens are less well studied in beach sands and sediments, but there is a body of evidence that they too may persist in these environments. This paper reviews the current state of knowledge regarding the abundance and distribution of fecal indicator bacteria and pathogens in beach sands of diverse climatological regions, and at beaches subjected to varied levels of anthropogenic impact. In all regions fecal indicator bacteria are nearly ubiquitous in beach sands, and similar relationships emerge between fecal indicator abundance in dry sand, submerged sands, and water. Taken together, these studies contextualize a potential public health issue and identify research questions that must be addressed in order to support future policy decisions.

In Switzerland, in order to preserve and enhance arthropod diversity in grassland ecosystems (among others), farmers had to convert at least 7 % of their land to ecological compensation areas -ECA. Major ECA are low input grasslands, traditional orchards, hedges and wild flower strips. In this paper the difference in species assemblages of 3 arthropod groups, namely spiders, carabid beetles and butterflies between intensively managed and low input meadows is investigated by means of multivariate statistics. On one hand, the consequences of these differences are analysed at the habitat level to promote good practices for arthropod diversity in grassland ecosystems. On the other hand, the contribution of each meadow type to the regional diversity is investigated to widen the analysis to the landscape level.

The Danube east of Vienna is the 'lifeline' of the Donau-Auen National Park. In the last about 140 years it has been strongly altered by river engineering and, in a second stage, by a bed load deficit due to hydropower plants in the upper reaches of the river and its tributaries. As a consequence the river is degrading, with deepening rates between 2 and 3 cm/a in most parts of the study reach. On the other hand, overbank deposition and natural levee formation lead to an aggradation of the floodplain, the channel and its floodplain are diverging. In natural rivers, overbank deposition usually is balanced and restricted by side erosion and lateral channel migration. However, the banks of the Danube are fixed by riprap, thus the overbank deposits cannot be eroded, and distinct 'natural' levees are formed. Both river-bed degradation and overbank deposition are aspects of a geomorphic disequilibrium, and the system will further depart from the natural state.