scholarly journals The value of transhumance for biodiversity conservation: Vulture foraging in relation to livestock movements

AMBIO ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Natividad Aguilera-Alcalá ◽  
Eneko Arrondo ◽  
Roberto Pascual-Rico ◽  
Zebensui Morales-Reyes ◽  
José M. Gil-Sánchez ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Farming Systems ◽  
Foraging Activity ◽  
Farming Practices ◽  
Wild Ungulates ◽  
Traditional Farming ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Seasonal Movements ◽  
Gyps Fulvus ◽  
Vulture Conservation ◽  
Landscape Level

AbstractIn recent decades, intensive techniques of livestock raising have flourished, which has largely replaced traditional farming practices such as transhumance. These changes may have affected scavengers’ behaviour and ecology, as extensive livestock is a key source of carrion. This study evaluates the spatial responses of avian scavengers to the seasonal movements of transhumant herds in south-eastern Spain. We surveyed the abundance of avian scavengers and ungulates, and analysed the factors affecting the space use by 30 GPS-tracked griffon vultures (Gyps fulvus). Griffons’ foraging activity increased in the pasturelands occupied by transhumant herds, which implied greater vulture abundance at the landscape level during the livestock season. In contrast, facultative scavengers were more abundant without transhumant livestock herds, and the abundance of wild ungulates did not change in relation to livestock presence. We conclude that fostering transhumance and other traditional farming systems, to the detriment of farming intensification, could favour vulture conservation.

scholarly journals Ecotype-Level Genetic Biodiversity of Five Italian Traditional Crops

Scientifica ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesco Guarino ◽  
Stefano Castiglione ◽  
Giovanni Improta ◽  
Maria Triassi ◽  
Angela Cicatelli
Keyword(s):  
Simple Sequence Repeat ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Farming Practices ◽  
High Mountains ◽  
Traditional Farming ◽  
Campania Region ◽  
Genetic Biodiversity ◽  
High Level ◽  
First Time ◽  
Simple Sequence

Italy displays a high level of agrobiodiversity due to its diversified pedoclimatic zones. The Administrative Region of Campania includes several and divergent biomes, occurring close to each other. In fact, the distance between a sea level environment and that of high mountains can be less than 20 km. These environmental conditions allow the cultivation of many different crops and vegetables, represented by diverse ecotypes and varieties that are well adapted to the distribution range where they have been selected and grown. Efforts to maintain and further increase biodiversity in farming systems require a better understanding of the existing diversity created by traditional farming practices. The aim of our study was to identify and molecularly characterize several ecotypes belonging to five horticultural species commonly cultivated in Campania. In particular, we analysed five ecotypes of maize, two of garlic, four of onion, one of escarole, and two of courgette by means of simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers in order to evaluate their level of genetic biodiversity. The results reveal, for the first time, the high genetic biodiversity of horticultural ecotypes of the Campania Region. This feature is very important to improve the quality and productivity of agroecosystems.

scholarly journals Environmental factors affecting the wintering raptor community in Armenia, Southern Caucasus

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gianpasquale Chiatante ◽  
Michele Panuccio
Keyword(s):  
General Pattern ◽  
Abundant Species ◽  
Theoretic Approach ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Milvus Migrans ◽  
Gyps Fulvus ◽  
Black Kite ◽  
Southern Caucasus ◽  
And Migration ◽  
Information Theoretic Approach

AbstractThe species–habitat relationships can change during the year because of the seasonality of resources. Therefore, the investigation of habitat use by animals in each season plays a fundamental role in their conservation. The main aim of this research was to investigate the raptor community that spends the winter in Armenia, southern Caucasus, and to explore its relationship with environmental features, such as land use and topography. During January 2012, we collected data by carrying out 15 roadside counts along which we calculated three community parameters: the relative abundance, the species richness, and the species diversity. Then, we carried out a multiple linear regression with the Information-Theoretic Approach, to explain the relationship between the parameters and environmental variables. Besides, we computed a Canonical Correspondence Analysis (CCA) between the species and the environment around their observations. As a general pattern, the community was associated with permanent crops, maybe because of their heterogeneity, which in turn allows them to support higher densities of prey during the winter. The most abundant species was the Black Kite (Milvus migrans), followed by the Common Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus) and the Griffon Vulture (Gyps fulvus). To our knowledge, this is one of the first studies investigating the wintering raptor community in the Caucasus, with raptors generally studied in this area during the breeding season and migration.

scholarly journals Yam: a neglected and underutilized crop in Brazil

2011 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 16-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
MVBM Siqueira
Keyword(s):  
Cropping Systems ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Traditional Farming ◽  
Local Varieties ◽  
Adequate Information ◽  
Brazil Current ◽  
Underutilized Crop ◽  
Dioscorea Species ◽  
Colonization Period ◽  
Traditional Communities

In Brazil current studies and investments on yams are incipient. Similarly, the literature in recent decades lacks adequate information on this group of plants. The existing literature, on its turn, requires more than ever to be revised and organized. Yams have joined the so-called "neglected" group of crops for several reasons, but particularly because they are associated with poor and traditional communities. Many vegetables introduced in Brazil during the colonization period have adapted to different cropping systems, yams being an excellent example. This diversity resulted very widespread, yet poorly recognized in the country. In turn, the gardens using traditional farming systems continue to maintain and enhance yam local varieties. Studies from other countries, with an emphasis on characterization and genetic breeding, brought to light an urgent need for Brazil to invest in yams as a food rich in carbohydrates, even to the point of alterations in food public policy. Reversal of the yam's current stigma is both a challenge to the scientific community and to the population as a whole. This paper aims to raise pertinent questions about Dioscorea species, an important key group for many communities in tropical countries, yet still unrecognized as so in Brazil.

Cultivating Empire

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steve Kosiba
Keyword(s):  
Indigenous Peoples ◽  
Agricultural Intensification ◽  
Farming Practices ◽  
Traditional Farming ◽  
Sustainable Practices ◽  
Inca Empire

The Inca Empire extended across myriad Andean environments where indigenous peoples had previously developed diverse, locally sustainable practices of agricultural intensification and land modification. Inca expansion disrupted these indigenous landscapes by introducing new laborers, tribute obligations, and land divisions. Many Inca agricultural facilities, such as state farms and estates, were primarily designed to satisfy the demands of the imperial nobility and military, and introduced social contradictions between state officials and commoners that reshaped Andean landscapes. Some subject populations withstood or even resisted Inca domination by continuing traditional farming practices despite the development and implementation of state agrarian infrastructure.

Support programmes and the diversity of young farmers in Thailand: A good match?

2019 ◽  
Vol 48 (4) ◽  
pp. 300-308 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kassirin Phiboon ◽  
Cécile Cochetel ◽  
Nicolas Faysse
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Farming Practices ◽  
Good Match ◽  
Chiang Mai ◽  
Environmentally Sustainable ◽  
Staff Members ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Building Activities ◽  
Support Programmes

Many countries have programmes to help young people start farming. However, some of the programmes have been criticized for not providing enough support, particularly because they do not adequately account for the diverse profiles of young farmers. The present study analyses the profiles of young farmers in Thailand and to what extent they benefit from support programmes. Eighty-four farmers under the age of 40 were interviewed in Chiang Mai and Prachinburi Provinces, along with 15 staff members of support programmes for young farmers. Five types of young farmers were identified, who differed in their motivation, farming systems and engagement in farming. Some farmers focused on economic profitability, while others considered environmentally sustainable farming practices to be important or were actively engaged in other activities at domestic or village level. This wide range of goals and situations entailed varying constraints during the first years of farming. The support programmes helped farmers overcome their lack of farming knowledge and helped them integrate into rural communities, but the support they provided in accessing land and capital was sometimes limited, and often non-existent. To improve support for young farmers in Thailand, the diversity of young farmers’ profiles should be accounted for not only in capacity-building activities but also to help them access other types of resources.

scholarly journals Abundance and distribution of Ixodid tick species infesting cattle reared under traditional farming systems in Tanzania

2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 286-299 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ibrahim Kerario Isack ◽  
Muleya Walter ◽  
Chenyambuga Sebastian ◽  
Koski Marja ◽  
Hwang Seong-Gu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tick Species ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Ixodid Tick ◽  
Traditional Farming ◽  
Abundance And Distribution

scholarly journals Social and environmental factors in the diversity of tomato landraces from the South-Central region of Mexico

2019 ◽  
Vol 49 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yolanda del Rocio Moreno-Ramírez ◽  
Aurelio Hernández-Bautista ◽  
Porfirio Ramírez-Vallejo ◽  
Fernando Castillo-Gónzalez ◽  
Mario Rocandio-Rodríguez ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Diversity ◽  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Central Region ◽  
Selection Criteria ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
The South ◽  
Traditional Farming ◽  
South Central ◽  
Morphological Differences ◽  
Ethnolinguistic Group

ABSTRACT: In the present study, we investigated the influence of social and environmental factors in the genetic diversity of tomato landraces in the South-Central region of Mexico. A total of 30 tomato landraces, collected in 18 villages with different ethnolinguistic affiliations, were analyzed. We reported that the genetic diversity of tomato landraces is associated with the ethnolinguistic group, weather, and soil-type present in the region studied. Our results showed that there are morphological differences between landraces grown by different ethnolinguistic groups; however, there was also evidence of morphological similarities between landraces from groups with different ethnolinguistic affiliations. Finally, different selection criteria, mainly fruit color, size and shape, plays an important role in the phenotypic divergence among landraces grown in different traditional farming systems.

Preliminary observations on factors affecting foraging activity in the limpet Patella vulgata

1990 ◽  
Vol 70 (1) ◽  
pp. 181-195 ◽  
Author(s):  
Colin Little ◽  
David Morritt ◽  
David M. Paterson ◽  
Penny Stirling ◽  
Gray A. Williams
Keyword(s):  
Relative Humidity ◽  
Heavy Rainfall ◽  
Feeding Activity ◽  
Activity Patterns ◽  
High Water ◽  
Irish Sea ◽  
Foraging Activity ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Calm Water ◽  
Lough Hyne

Activity patterns of limpets were studied at two adjacent sites in an Irish sea lough, Lough Hyne, in order to relate timing of activity to physical and biological influences. Activity was suppressed during heavy rainfall, and osmotic stress from dilution appears to have led to increased mortality in transplanted limpets. Activity increased as tides progressed from neaps to springs, and for limpets low on the shore it was enhanced by wave action. It is suggested that lack of activity in calm water may reduce predation pressure from crabs, which caused high mortality in transplanted limpets. Either low relative humidity or dryness of the rock diminished activity of low-water limpets. Differences in feeding activity between low-water limpets and high-water limpets may relate to food supply, since more food was available low on the shore, and the guts of low-water limpets contained more diatoms than those of high-water individuals. Differences between the two sites are at present unexplained but may relate to differences in micro habitats.

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