Response of bird assemblages to windstorm and salvage logging — Insights from analyses of functional guild and indicator species

Geobotanical survey of floodplain natural complexes near gypsum outcrops in the Pinega river valley was done in 2015. Large-scale geobotanical map of the key polygon (scale 1 : 30 000) was composed. Typological units of vegetation were selected on the basis of the composition of dominant species and groups of indicator species. Homogeneous and heterogeneous territorial units of vegetation (serial series, combinations, environmental series) were used. 53 mapped unit types (25 homogeneous types and 28 heterogeneous types) were recognized. The floodplain vegetation consists of 17 homogeneous types of plant communities, 3 series, 14 combinations and 6 ecological series. The sites of old floodplain forests, such as willow forests with Urtica sondenii rare in the Arkhangelsk region and oxbow wet meadows with Scolochloa festucacea were identified.

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Canaries In A Coal Mine: Best-Indicator Species For Detecting Abrupt Community Shifts

10.31988/scitrends.47084 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Vasilis Dakos

Keyword(s):

Coal Mine ◽

Indicator Species ◽

Community Shifts

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Current Condition of Pannonic Salt Steppes at Their Distribution Limit: What Do Indicator Species Reveal about Habitat Quality?

Plants ◽

10.3390/plants10030530 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (3) ◽

pp. 530

Author(s):

Zuzana Dítě ◽

Róbert Šuvada ◽

Tibor Tóth ◽

Pavol Eliáš Jun ◽

Vladimír Píš ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Habitat Quality ◽

Indicator Species ◽

Good Condition ◽

Central Area ◽

East Central Europe ◽

Conservation Practice ◽

Ecological Conditions ◽

Typical Habitat ◽

Priority Habitat

Little is known about the suite of ecological conditions under which characteristic species may continue to develop under the pressure of recent habitat deterioration. We aimed to determine the niche of three indicator species of the priority habitat Pannonic salt steppes and to find out how their vegetation composition, land use, and soil chemistry mirror the current condition of their typical habitat. A plot-based vegetation survey was conducted in degraded and in pristine (reference) inland salt steppes in East-Central Europe. We confirmed decreased habitat quality at their northern geographical limit. Most of the sites there showed a strong prevalence of generalists (e.g., Elytrigia repens) and lack of specialists, both resulting from lowered habitat extremity and inappropriate land use (abandonment). A small proportion of plots (19%) were in the same good condition as the reference vegetation in the central area. Soil analyses revealed that the studied halophytes are able to persist on desalinized soils if the land use is suitable. The occurrence of the annual Camphorosma annua (Amaranthaceae) was driven largely by abiotic stress; grazing alone is insufficient for its long-term persistence, while the perennial Artemisia santonicum (Asteraceae) and Tripolium pannonicum (Asteraceae) have higher survival chances as they are able to coexist with generalists. Overall habitat quality can be reliably determined from the analyzed ecological conditions of indicator species. The outcomes of the presented work are relevant for conservation practice and can serve as a quick tool for assessing the current stage of other grassland habitats.

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Effects of landscape attribute towards bird assemblages in urban areas of Peninsular Malaysia

Urban Ecosystems ◽

10.1007/s11252-021-01151-1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Farah Shafawati Mohd-Taib ◽

Wardah Mohd-Saleh ◽

Siti Noor Radiah Ismail

Keyword(s):

Urban Areas ◽

Peninsular Malaysia ◽

Bird Assemblages

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The intensity of slope and fluvial processes after a catastrophic windthrow event in small catchments in the Tatra Mountains

Journal of Mountain Science ◽

10.1007/s11629-021-6726-2 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (6) ◽

pp. 1405-1423

Author(s):

Dariusz Strzyżowski ◽

Elżbieta Gorczyca ◽

Kazimierz Krzemień ◽

Mirosław Żelazny

Keyword(s):

Environmental Changes ◽

Bedload Transport ◽

Strong Wind ◽

Tatra Mountains ◽

Salvage Logging ◽

Fluvial Processes ◽

Wind Events ◽

And Control ◽

The Tatra Mountains ◽

The Impact

AbstractStrong wind events frequently result in creating large areas of windthrow, which causes abrupt environmental changes. Bare soil surfaces within pits and root plates potentially expose soil to erosion. Absence of forest may alter the dynamics of water circulation. In this study we attempt to answer the question of whether extensive windthrows influence the magnitude of geomorphic processes in 6 small second- to third-order catchments with area ranging from 0.09 km2 to 0.8 km2. Three of the catchments were significantly affected by a windthrow which occurred in December 2013 in the Polish part of the Tatra Mountains, and the other three catchments were mostly forested and served as control catchments. We mapped the pits created by the windthrow and the linear scars created by salvage logging operations in search of any signs of erosion within them. We also mapped all post-windthrow landslides created in the windthrow-affected catchments. The impact of the windthrow on the fluvial system was investigated by measuring a set of channel characteristics and determining bedload transport intensity using painted tracers in all the windthrow-affected and control catchments. Both pits and linear scars created by harvesting tend to become overgrown by vegetation in the first several years after the windthrow. The only signs of erosion were observed in 10% of the pits located on convergent slopes. During the period from the windthrow event in 2013 until 2019, 5 very small (total area <100 m2) shallow landslides were created. The mean distance of bedload transport was similar (t-test, p=0.05) in most of the windthrow-affected and control catchments. The mapping of channels revealed many cases of root plates fallen into a channel and pits created near a channel. A significant amount of woody debris delivered into the channels influenced the activity of fluvial processes by creating alternating zones of erosion and accumulation.

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