Patterns of grassland productivity, composition and seed abundance, and the diet of the flock bronzewing pigeon Phaps histrionica at one site in northern Australia over a period of marked seasonal change

2014 ◽  
Vol 41 (4) ◽  
pp. 343 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. L. Dostine ◽  
J. C. Z. Woinarski ◽  
B. Mackey ◽  
H. Nix
Keyword(s):  
Remote Sensing ◽  
Community Structure ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Dietary Patterns ◽  
Resource Availability ◽  
Conservation Management ◽  
Food Resource ◽  
Food Plant ◽  
Seed Density ◽  
Grassland Community

Context Multiple scales of research are needed to understand the ecology and conservation requirements of species whose ecology is characterised by marked spatial and temporal dynamism. The flock bronzewing pigeon may provide a model for the conservation management of species with similar dispersive ecologies. Aims This study aimed to document the species composition and its variability in seeds consumed by flock bronzewing pigeons across a period of contrasting seasonal conditions, and to relate this diet to variation in food resource availability. Methods The diet of the flock bronzewing pigeon was described by analysis of the crop contents of samples collected over the period from June 2006 to September 2007 at one pastoral property on the Barkly Tablelands, Northern Territory. Variation in food resource availability was assessed using data from remote sensing, grassland community structure, and direct measurement of soil seed density. Multivariate statistical methods were used to test variation in plant community structure between years and among land units; generalised linear modelling was used to examine inter-annual variation in the abundance of key food plant species and seasonal variation in seed abundance. Key results Across the period of this study, the diet of flock bronzewing pigeons on the Barkly Tableland was largely restricted to seeds of a small number of plant species within Mitchell grasslands. Dietary patterns varied between years; evidence from remote sensing, grassland community structure, and seed density was consistent with these dietary patterns. Conclusions Flock bronzewing pigeons appear to be adapted to exploiting rare, episodic events, leading to high seed production by the ephemeral or annual component of perennial tussock grasslands. Key food plant species include the forbs Wedelia asperrima, Trichodesma zeylanicum and Phyllanthus lacerosus and the large-seeded annual grass Chionachne hubbardiana. These species may not be those that provide critical resources during unfavourable periods. Implications Conservation management of flock bronzewing pigeons will entail strategies to maintain key food species in grazed landscapes, and to ensure replenishment of seed reserves of annual and ephemeral plant species. Management practices to achieve these goals may include rotational wet season spelling of paddocks. More information is required on the focal areas for persistence within these black-soil grassland landscapes.

scholarly journals Feeding ecology of the Green-cheeked Parakeet, Pyrrhura molinae (Psittaciformes, Psittacidae), in a subtropical forest of Argentina

2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 205-219
Author(s):  
Analía Benavídez ◽  
Ever Tallei ◽  
Echevarría Ada Lilian ◽  
Luis Rivera
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Feeding Ecology ◽  
Resource Availability ◽  
Food Resource ◽  
Fruit Production ◽  
Fleshy Fruit ◽  
Wet Season ◽  
Food Items ◽  
Trema Micrantha ◽  
High Flexibility

Although there are studies on certain aspects of the feeding ecology of several species of Neotropical parrots, there is scarce ecological information about Pyrrhura molinae – a Psittacidae species which is widely distributed in South America and abundant in the Yungas of Argentina. For two years (May 2014 to June 2016), the composition and seasonal variation in the Green-cheeked Parakeet diet in the Yungas Piedmont forest in Jujuy, Argentina were examined. Furthermore, fruiting phenology transects were established to evaluate food resource availability and the patterns of food resource used by the Green-cheeked Parakeet. In 214 food plant trees, it was found that flower and dry fruit availability was highest in the dry season, and fleshy fruit production peaked in the wet season, but these phenology patterns for aged plant species suggest that there were no significant differences in food availability. The consumption of 18 plant species was recorded, being Celtis iguanaea (30.73%) and Trema micrantha (22.01%) the most consumed species. In terms of food items, fruits were the most consumed items, followed by seeds and flowers and, to a lesser extent, nectar and leaves. Levins’ niche breadth showed varying levels of diet specialisation amongst seasons, which was narrower (B = 0.28) in the wet season, indicating specialisation in diet during this season. There was a medium overlap in parakeet diet between seasons (Morisita Index = 0.59). We did not find a statistically significant relationship between resource availability and food use, but expansion and contraction in Levins Index and variation in food items consumed throughout the year and season demonstrate high flexibility in the diet. Like other congeners, the Green-cheeked Parakeet has a flexible diet that could be adjusted to the seasonal availability of food resources. These data may contribute to the design of conservation plans for the species and its habitat.

Long‐term impact of legume‐based cropping with chemical and integrated fertilisation on viable weed seed density, diversity and community structure

Weed Research ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chaitanya P. Nath ◽  
Kali K. Hazra ◽  
Chandra S. Praharaj ◽  
Ummed Singh ◽  
Sati S. Singh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Community Structure ◽  
Seed Density ◽  
Weed Seed ◽  
Long Term Impact

scholarly journals Relationships between resource availability and elevation vary between metrics creating gradients of nutritional complexity

Oecologia ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 195 (1) ◽  
pp. 213-223
Author(s):  
Mark A. Lee ◽  
Grace Burger ◽  
Emma R. Green ◽  
Pepijn W. Kooij
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Resource Availability ◽  
Plant Biomass ◽  
Plant Species Richness ◽  
Mineral Contents ◽  
Nutritive Values ◽  
Animal Community ◽  
Nutritional Chemistry ◽  
The Relationship

AbstractPlant and animal community composition changes at higher elevations on mountains. Plant and animal species richness generally declines with elevation, but the shape of the relationship differs between taxa. There are several proposed mechanisms, including the productivity hypotheses; that declines in available plant biomass confers fewer resources to consumers, thus supporting fewer species. We investigated resource availability as we ascended three aspects of Helvellyn mountain, UK, measuring several plant nutritive metrics, plant species richness and biomass. We observed a linear decline in plant species richness as we ascended the mountain but there was a unimodal relationship between plant biomass and elevation. Generally, the highest biomass values at mid-elevations were associated with the lowest nutritive values, except mineral contents which declined with elevation. Intra-specific and inter-specific increases in nutritive values nearer the top and bottom of the mountain indicated that physiological, phenological and compositional mechanisms may have played a role. The shape of the relationship between resource availability and elevation was different depending on the metric. Many consumers actively select or avoid plants based on their nutritive values and the abundances of consumer taxa vary in their relationships with elevation. Consideration of multiple nutritive metrics and of the nutritional requirements of the consumer may provide a greater understanding of changes to plant and animal communities at higher elevations. We propose a novel hypothesis for explaining elevational diversity gradients, which warrants further study; the ‘nutritional complexity hypothesis’, where consumer species coexist due to greater variation in the nutritional chemistry of plants.

Proliferative Effect of Food Plant Species from Brazil's Cerrado on Cultured Fibroblasts

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fernanda L.B. Mügge ◽  
Sarah M.S. Prates ◽  
Aretha P.S. Andrade ◽  
Jean C. Melo ◽  
Aristóbolo M. Silva ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Food Plant ◽  
Cultured Fibroblasts ◽  
Proliferative Effect ◽  
Effect Of Food

scholarly journals Reproductive phenology in a riparian rainforest in the south of Santa Catarina state, Brazil

2013 ◽  
Vol 85 (4) ◽  
pp. 1449-1460 ◽  
Author(s):  
MAINARA F. CASCAES ◽  
VANILDE CITADINI-ZANETTE ◽  
BIRGIT HARTER-MARQUES
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Resource Availability ◽  
Forest Ecosystems ◽  
Seasonal Pattern ◽  
Riparian Forests ◽  
Reproductive Phenology ◽  
Environmental Restoration ◽  
Fruit Availability ◽  
One Year ◽  
Riparian Plant

Phenological studies assist in forest ecosystems comprehension and evaluation of resource availability for wildlife, as well as in improving the understanding of relationships between plants and their pollinators and dispersers. This study aims to describe the reproductive phenophases of riparian plant species and correlate them with climatic variables. The reproductive phenology was analyzed biweekly throughout one year, recording the absence or presence of flowers/fruits. The flowering phenophase occurred throughout the year, with an increase in number of species in blossom in October, November, and December. The flowering peak of the community was observed in November. The fruiting phenophase also occurred throughout the year and showed an increase of species fruiting in June with a slight decrease in August and September. The data obtained in this study, when compared with other studies in different Atlantic Rainforest areas, indicates a seasonal pattern for the flowering phenophase and a variation in fruit availability throughout the year as well as in the fruiting peaks. Therefore, studies that observe flowering and fruiting events in loco are of main importance because they provide information on reproductive seasons of species for use in environmental restoration projects and thus alleviate the situation of degradation of riparian forests.

scholarly journals Altitudinally coordinated pattern of plant community structure in the Shivapuri National Park, Nepal

1970 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shalik Ram Sigdel
Keyword(s):  
Community Structure ◽  
Species Diversity ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Plant Community ◽  
National Park ◽  
Climatic Factors ◽  
Flower Colour ◽  
Basal Area ◽  
Plant Community Structure ◽  
Closed Canopy

Study on plant community structure was undertaken in different altitudinal ranges of Shivapuri National Park. The general objective of this study is to analyse different plant community structure in Shivapuri National Park with regards to altitudinal variation. The forest was divided into three distinct altitudinal ranges on the basis of dominancy. In each altitudinal range standard quadrats method was applied for vegetation analysis. The highest number of species was found in site II. All the ecological parameters of the plant species were higher in site II except Basal Area of tree that was highest in site III. The pattern of distribution of plant species was not uniform according to altitude. At higher elevation, the forest was mature with almost closed canopy and trees were large; so the tree density was low. Species richness was highest in site II. Species diversity among tree and shrub species was higher in site I. But for herb species diversity was higher in site II for both seasons. Such type of variations may be due to nature of soil i.e. acidity, nutrient availability and other micro-climatic factors. The most noteworthy thing was that variation in flower colour of Rhododendron arboreum i.e. deep scarlet at low altitude, but it gradually changed into pinkish white as altitude increased. Key words: Altitude, Density, Plant community, Species diversity doi: 10.3126/banko.v18i1.2161 Banko Janakari, Vol. 18, No. 1, 11-17

scholarly journals Nutrtional profile of some selected food plants of Otwal and Ngai sub counties Oyam district, northern Uganda

2013 ◽  
Vol 13 (57) ◽  
pp. 7428-7451
Author(s):  
A Acipa ◽  
◽  
M Kamatenesi-Mugisha ◽  
H Oryem-Origa
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Food Plant ◽  
Food Plants ◽  
Wild Plants ◽  
Mineral Nutrient ◽  
Wild Food ◽  
Wild Food Plants ◽  
Nutrient Deficiencies ◽  
Indigenous Plants ◽  
General Decline

Wild food plants play an important role in the diet of inhabitants of Oyam District. Some of these plants are drought -resistant and gathered throughout the year . These wild foods are an important source of nutrients. However, there is a lack of comprehensive data re garding the nutrient content s of these indigenous plants. The purpose of this study was to document and assess the nutrient and mineral content s of the selected food plants. Ethnobotanical surveys were used to collect data through formal and informal inter views and focused group discussions. Voucher specimens were collected during field excursions and taken to Makerere Herbarium for proper identification . Nutrients and mineral analyses of wild and cultivated fruits, seeds, underground organs and vegetables from Ngai and Otwal sub counties were carried out using known procedures. They were analysed for mineral nutrients such as calcium, iron, potassium, and phosphorus concentrations. Additionally nutrients such proteins, beta carotene, vitamin C and dietary fibre were determined . On average, vegetables were found to be richer in organic nutrients and minerals followed by fruits and seeds in that order . Generally the wild food plant species were found to be richer sources of mineral nutrient than their cultivated relatives. F or example , the highest concentration of calcium 867.59 mg/100g was found in Acalypha bipartita leaves compared to 294.18 mg/100g in Cleome gynandra . Plant species that showed high iron contents [>30% ] were leaves of swamp hibiscus , African spider flowers , fruits of Tamarind , Black night shade and Jews mallow . It was also noted that among the food plant species analysed, fruits were low in nutrients and mineral elements. Some of these food plants were also considered to have medicinal properties by the locals such as African spider flower, Rattle pod among others. However, it should be noted that there is a general decline in the consumption of wild plants , despite the apparent high nutritional values . T he conservation of wild food plants is not taking place among the communities in the study area, thus the poor rural communities who are limited on balancing their diet could be faced with diseases associated with nutrient deficiencies .

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