The Geographical Distribution of High Mountain Macrolepidoptera in Europe

2003 ◽  
pp. 239-257 ◽  
Author(s):  
Z. Varga
Keyword(s):  
Geographical Distribution ◽  
High Mountain

scholarly journals On the genus Chaetocladius s. str. Kieffer, 1911 from Switzerland with descriptions of five new relic species occurring in glacial alpine springs and streams (Diptera, Chironomidae)

2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-34 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joel Moubayed-Breil ◽  
Brigitte Lods-Crozet
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Geographical Distribution ◽  
Taxonomic Position ◽  
Swiss Alps ◽  
High Mountain ◽  
Rhône River ◽  
Male Adult ◽  
Mountain Ranges ◽  
Rhone River ◽  
Relic Species

A description of the male adults of fiveChaetocladiuss. str. species (C. castellaesp. n.,C. lencioniaesp. n.,C. lodscrozetaesp. n.,C. macunensissp. n. andC. muttensissp. n.) is provided based on material collected in some glacial alpine springs and cold streams located in the Swiss Alps (altitude 1800–2700 m). Male adult of the nearestChaetocladiusspecies known from Europe and neighbouring areas belong to:C. aedeagolobatusRossaro, Magoga & Montagna, 2017;C. insolitusCaspers, 1987;C. gracilisBrundin 1956;C. antipovaeMakarchenko & Makarchenko, 2011;C. dissipatus(Edwards, 1929),C. holmgreni(Jacobson, 1998),C. egorychMakarchenko & Makarchenko, 2017. Although some resemblance can be found between the five diagnosed and described species and other related members of theChaetocladiusgenus, the taxonomic position cannot be clarified until current comprehensive work on the genus is complete. Geographical distribution of the five new species is currently restricted to the two Alpine Swiss glacial catchments: upper basins of the Rhône River and Muttbach streams; streams and lakes delimited by the Macun area. This highlights the importance of some high mountain ranges, considered as cold glacial enclaves and hotspots of endemism, in the preservation and persistence of autochthonous alpine relic species. Such species are considered as relevant biogeographic representative and their loss would be biologically indicative of global warming and climate change. Currently, there are only seven recordedChaetocladiusspecies from Switzerland:C. coppaiMoubayed-Breil, 2017;C. laminatusBrundin, 1947; C. cf. longivirgatus Stur & Spies, 2011;C. melaleucus(Meigen, 1818);C. perennis(Meigen, 1830);C. piger(Goetghebuer, 1913);C. suecicus(Kieffer, 1916). Consequently, the description of the five new species increases the total number in the genusChaetocladiusto twelve for this country. Remarks and comments on the taxonomic position, ecology and geographical distribution of the new described species, with key to known male adults from the upper catchment of Rhône River (including Muttbach valley) are provided..

Dust dominates high-altitude snow darkening and melt over high-mountain Asia

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 1045-1051 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chandan Sarangi ◽  
Yun Qian ◽  
Karl Rittger ◽  
L. Ruby Leung ◽  
Duli Chand ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High Altitude ◽  
High Mountain

Focus on Thermokarst Lakes in Indian Himalaya: Inception and Implication under Warming Climate

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 59-69
Author(s):  
Pratima Pandey ◽  
S. Nawaz Ali ◽  
Vikram Sharma ◽  
Prashant K. Champati Ray
Keyword(s):  
Western Himalaya ◽  
High Mountain ◽  
Thermokarst Lakes ◽  
Glacial Environments ◽  
Global Warming Scenario ◽  
Scientific Attention ◽  
Topographic Depressions ◽  
Permafrost Thawing ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Thaw Lakes

Thermokarst (Thaw) lakes are landforms found in topographic depressions created by thawing ground ice in permafrost zones. They play an important role in the regulation of climatic functions. These lakes are a manifestation of warming surface temperatures that accelerates the ice-rich permafrost to degrade by creating marshy hollows/ponds. In the current global warming scenario, the thermokarst lakes in the high mountain regions (Himalaya) are expected to grow further. This accelerate permafrost thawing which will affect the carbon cycle, hydrology and local ecosystems. This phenomenon has attracted huge scientific attention because it has led to a rapid mass change of glaciers in the region, including extensive changes occurring on peri-glacial environments. The most striking fact is the release of an enormous amount of greenhouse gases, including methane, carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide that is locked in these lakes. The present study delves into the thermokarst lakes in the upper reaches of Chandra Valley and Western Himalaya. The study also aims at designating the impact of their changes on the ecosystem, particularly their influence on the atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations.

Ecology and biogeography in the introduction to “De bestiis marinis” by Georg Wilhelm Steller

2019 ◽  
Vol 46 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-74
Author(s):  
Stefano Mattioli
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Phenotypic Plasticity ◽  
Geographical Distribution ◽  
Functional Traits ◽  
Marine Mammals ◽  
Main Part ◽  
Wide Distribution ◽  
Restricted Range ◽  
Direct Influence ◽  
Modern Biology

The rediscovery of the original, unedited Latin manuscript of Georg Wilhelm Steller's “De bestiis marinis” (“On marine mammals”), first published in 1751, calls for a new translation into English. The main part of the treatise contains detailed descriptions of four marine mammals, but the introduction is devoted to more general issues, including innovative speculation on morphology, ecology and biogeography, anticipating arguments and concepts of modern biology. Steller noted early that climate and food have a direct influence on body size, pelage and functional traits of mammals, potentially affecting reversible changes (phenotypic plasticity). Feeding and other behavioural habits have an impact on the geographical distribution of mammals. Species with a broad diet tend to have a wide distribution, whereas animals with a narrow diet more likely have only a restricted range. According to Steller, both sea and land then still concealed countless animals unknown to science.

The Methow Beaver Project: the Challenges of an Ecosystem Services Experiment

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Philip Brick ◽  
Kent Woodruff
Keyword(s):  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Climate Adaptation ◽  
Castor Canadensis ◽  
Water Storage ◽  
Climate Projections ◽  
High Mountain ◽  
Natural Resource Policy ◽  
Watershed Scale ◽  
Positive Role ◽  
Climate Conditions

This case explores the Methow Beaver Project (MBP), an ambitious experiment to restore beaver (Castor canadensis) to a high mountain watershed in Washington State, USA. The Pacific Northwest is already experiencing weather regimes consistent with longer term climate projections, which predict longer and drier summers and stronger and wetter winter storms. Ironically, this combination makes imperative more water storage in one of the most heavily dammed regions in the nation. Although the positive role that beaver can play in watershed enhancement has been well known for decades, no project has previously attempted to re-introduce beaver on a watershed scale with a rigorous monitoring protocol designed to document improved water storage and temperature conditions needed for human uses and aquatic species. While the MBP has demonstrated that beaver can be re-introduced on a watershed scale, it has been much more difficult to scientifically demonstrate positive changes in water retention and stream temperature, given hydrologic complexity, unprecedented fire and floods, and the fact that beaver are highly mobile. This case study can help environmental studies students and natural resource policy professionals think about the broader challenges of diffuse, ecosystem services approaches to climate adaptation. Beaver-produced watershed improvements will remain difficult to quantify and verify, and thus will likely remain less attractive to water planners than conventional storage dams. But as climate conditions put additional pressure on such infrastructure, it is worth considering how beaver might be employed to augment watershed storage capacity, even if this capacity is likely to remain at least in part inscrutable.

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