scholarly journals Contrasting Winter Moose Nutritional Carrying Capacity Models on a Dynamic Landscape

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 163-179
Author(s):  
Sharon E. Smythe ◽  
Dana M. Sanchez ◽  
Clinton W. Epps
Keyword(s):  
Carrying Capacity ◽  
River Delta ◽  
Large Herbivore ◽  
Large Herbivores ◽  
South Central ◽  
Dynamic Landscape ◽  
Model Components ◽  
Low Sensitivity ◽  
Copper River Delta ◽  
Model Structures

Abstract Many models used to estimate nutritional carrying capacity (NCC) for ungulates differ structurally, but the implications of those differences are frequently unclear. We present a comparative analysis of NCC estimates for a large herbivore in a dynamic landscape, using models that differ in structure and scope. We compared three model structures across three estimates of winter ranges under three winter-severity scenarios for an isolated, introduced moose Alces alces population on the Copper River Delta of south-central Alaska. Model estimates of NCC ranged from 205 to 4,592 moose, demonstrating the critical influences of model structure and assumptions when applying NCC. Furthermore, population estimates during recent severe winters suggest that past models underestimated NCC on the Copper River Delta. We conducted a sensitivity analysis of a preferred model and determined that model components with the highest and lowest sensitivity were snow depth and lignin- and tannin-caused reductions in forage nutritional quality, respectively. Our low sensitivity values for lignin and tannin influences on NCC contrast with results in other NCC estimates. Overall, our results reinforce the need for, and will hopefully assist, adaptive management in response to landscape, population, behavioral, and climatic changes on the Copper River Delta, and demonstrate the importance of understanding model assumptions and structure in application of NCC estimates in the management of large herbivores in variable ecosystems.

scholarly journals Continuous presence of proto-cereals in Anatolia since 2.3 Ma, and their possible co-evolution with large herbivores and hominins

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Valérie Andrieu-Ponel ◽  
Pierre Rochette ◽  
François Demory ◽  
Hülya Alçiçek ◽  
Nicolas Boulbes ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Large Herbivore ◽  
Large Lakes ◽  
Coprophilous Fungi ◽  
Large Herbivores ◽  
Genetic Modifications ◽  
Bioclimatic Zone ◽  
Central Resource ◽  
Sedimentary Core ◽  
Continuous Presence ◽  
Lake Acıgöl

AbstractCereals are a central resource for the human diet and are traditionally assumed to have evolved from wild grasses at the onset of the Neolithic under the pressure of agriculture. Here we demonstrate that cereals may have a significantly longer and more diverse lineage, based on the study of a 0–2.3 Ma, 601 m long sedimentary core from Lake Acıgöl (South-West Anatolia). Pollen characteristic of cereals is abundant throughout the sedimentary sequence. The presence of large lakes within this arid bioclimatic zone led to the concentration of large herbivore herds, as indicated by the continuous occurrence of coprophilous fungi spores in the record. Our hypothesis is that the effects of overgrazing on soils and herbaceous stratum, during this long period, led to genetic modifications of the Poaceae taxa and to the appearance of proto-cereals. The simultaneous presence of hominins is attested as early as about 1.4 Ma in the lake vicinity, and 1.8 Ma in Georgia and Levant. These ancient hominins probably benefited from the availability of these proto-cereals, rich in nutrients, as well as various other edible plants, opening the way, in this region of the Middle East, to a process of domestication, which reached its full development during the Neolithic.

Population structure, density and biomass of large herbivores in the tropical forests of Nagarahole, India

1992 ◽  
Vol 8 (01) ◽  
pp. 21-35 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Ullas Karanth ◽  
Melvin E. Sunquist
Keyword(s):  
Population Structure ◽  
Tropical Forests ◽  
Primate Species ◽  
Line Transect ◽  
Large Herbivore ◽  
Large Herbivores ◽  
Transect Sampling ◽  
Structure Density ◽  
Density And Biomass ◽  
Turn Over

ABSTRACTWe studied the population structure, density and biomass of seven ungulate and two primate species in the tropical forests of Nagarahole, southern India, using line transect sampling and roadside/platform counts, during 1986–87. The estimated ecological densities of large herbivore species in the study area are: 4.2 muntjac km−2, 50.6 chital km−2, 5.5 sambar km−2, 0.8 four-horned antelope km−2, 9.6 gaur km−2, 4.2 wild pig km−2, 3.3 elephant km−2, 23.8 hanuman langur km−2and 0.6 bonnet macaque km−2. Most ungulates have female-biased adult sex ratios. Among common ungulate species, yearlings and young of the year comprise about a third of the population, suggesting relatively high turn-over rates. Three species (muntjac, sambar and four-horned antelope) are solitary, while others form groups. The study area supports a wild herbivore biomass density of 14,744 kg km−2. Among the three habitat types within the study area, biomass is lower in dry deciduous forests when compared with moist deciduous or teak plantation dominant forests. Using our results, we have examined the factors that may contribute towards maintenance of high ungulate biomass in tropical forests.

Large herbivores suppress liana infestation in an African savanna

2021 ◽  
Vol 118 (41) ◽  
pp. e2101676118
Author(s):  
Tyler C. Coverdale ◽  
Ryan D. O’Connell ◽  
Matthew C. Hutchinson ◽  
Amanda Savagian ◽  
Tyler R. Kartzinel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stable State ◽  
Life Forms ◽  
Tree Canopy ◽  
Alternative Stable State ◽  
African Savanna ◽  
Large Herbivore ◽  
Large Herbivores ◽  
Woody Vines ◽  
Plant Life Forms ◽  
Canopy Area

African savannas are the last stronghold of diverse large-mammal communities, and a major focus of savanna ecology is to understand how these animals affect the relative abundance of trees and grasses. However, savannas support diverse plant life-forms, and human-induced changes in large-herbivore assemblages—declining wildlife populations and their displacement by livestock—may cause unexpected shifts in plant community composition. We investigated how herbivory affects the prevalence of lianas (woody vines) and their impact on trees in an East African savanna. Although scarce (<2% of tree canopy area) and defended by toxic latex, the dominant liana, Cynanchum viminale (Apocynaceae), was eaten by 15 wild large-herbivore species and was consumed in bulk by native browsers during experimental cafeteria trials. In contrast, domesticated ungulates rarely ate lianas. When we experimentally excluded all large herbivores for periods of 8 to 17 y (simulating extirpation), liana abundance increased dramatically, with up to 75% of trees infested. Piecewise exclusion of different-sized herbivores revealed functional complementarity among size classes in suppressing lianas. Liana infestation reduced tree growth and reproduction, but herbivores quickly cleared lianas from trees after the removal of 18-y-old exclosure fences (simulating rewilding). A simple model of liana contagion showed that, without herbivores, the long-term equilibrium could be either endemic (liana–tree coexistence) or an all-liana alternative stable state. We conclude that ongoing declines of wild large-herbivore populations will disrupt the structure and functioning of many African savannas in ways that have received little attention and that may not be mitigated by replacing wildlife with livestock.

Copper River Delta, Alaska (USA)

2016 ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Frederic A. Reid ◽  
D. Fehringer ◽  
R. G. Kempka
Keyword(s):  
River Delta ◽  
Copper River Delta

Copper River Delta, Alaska (USA)

2016 ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Frederic A. Reid ◽  
D. Fehringer ◽  
R. G. Kempka
Keyword(s):  
River Delta ◽  
Copper River Delta

Rewilding

Ecology ◽  
2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meredith Root-Bernstein
Keyword(s):  
The United States ◽  
Large Species ◽  
Large Carnivores ◽  
Apex Predators ◽  
Ecological Processes ◽  
Large Herbivore ◽  
Large Herbivores ◽  
True Nature ◽  
The Public ◽  
Wide Range

Rewilding is an increasingly recognized approach to conservation and restoration, among academics, land managers, and the public. Although a number of different definitions have been proposed for rewilding (see Definitions of Rewilding), most approaches called “rewilding” include ideas about restoring a habitat to a less-anthropogenic state, restoring ecological processes and allowing them to take their own course without managing for a target ecosystem condition and (re)-introducing missing (usually large) species as a way to restore those ecological processes. Conceptualizations of rewilding and actual rewilding projects draw on a wide range of cultural and ecological ideas and practical knowledge, which are detailed in this article. Several organizations now represent rewilding interests to policymakers and the public and set up or facilitate rewilding initiatives in Europe and the Americas. Much of their philosophies, practice, data, and outcomes are not published. The Wildland Research Institute is an influential source of research on wilderness mapping, rewilding, restoration, and policy analysis in Europe. The European Centre for Nature Conservation (ECNC) supports and facilitates the conservation of large herbivore populations and their habitats at large scales in Eurasia through its Large Herbivore Network. Rewilding Europe implements rewilding projects throughout Europe, bringing together financing for large herbivore reintroductions and luxury wilderness tourism. Their European Rewilding Network brings together rewilding-related services and knowledge exchange. Similarly, the True Nature Foundation is a European foundation that works to restore habitats, reintroduce primarily large herbivores, and create sustainable tourism in nature areas. Wild Europe seeks to promote and lobby for the protection of large, “wild” natural areas. Similarly, the European Wilderness Society is an advocacy organization that identifies and promotes the stewardship and protection of large wilderness areas. The Rewilding Foundation is an international organization promoting and working toward the conservation of large areas of habitat and corridors for large carnivores. The Wildlands Network is an American organization that similarly seeks to conserve and connect large habitat areas and reintroduce apex predators. The Rewilding Institute in the United States also promotes protecting large habitats and creating corridors for large carnivores. There are also numerous site-based rewilding projects, which largely preceded the consolidation of rewilding as a concept. Many of these, through their creative rethinking of ecological and paleo-ecological orthodoxy, have influenced the development of rewilding practice and theory.

scholarly journals Risks and opportunities of trophic rewilding for arthropod communities

2018 ◽  
Vol 373 (1761) ◽  
pp. 20170441 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roel van Klink ◽  
Michiel F. WallisDeVries
Keyword(s):  
Biodiversity Conservation ◽  
A Priori ◽  
Grey Literature ◽  
Control Treatment ◽  
Arthropod Communities ◽  
Large Herbivore ◽  
Large Herbivores ◽  
Natural Processes ◽  
Published Evidence ◽  
Eukaryotic Organisms

Trophic rewilding is a restoration strategy focusing on the restoration of trophic interactions to promote self-regulating, biodiverse ecosystems. It has been proposed as an alternative to traditional conservation management in abandoned or defaunated areas. Arthropods constitute the most species-rich group of eukaryotic organisms, but are rarely considered in rewilding. Here, we first present an overview of direct and indirect pathways by which large herbivores and predators affect arthropod communities. We then review the published evidence of the impacts of rewilding with large herbivores on arthropods, including grey literature. We find that systematic monitoring is rare and that a comparison with a relevant control treatment is usually lacking. Nevertheless, the available data suggest that when the important process of top-down control of large-herbivore populations is missing, arthropod diversity tends to decrease. To ensure that rewilding is supportive of biodiversity conservation, we propose that if natural processes can only partially be restored, substitutes for missing processes are applied. We also propose that boundaries of acceptable outcomes of rewilding actions should be defined a priori , particularly concerning biodiversity conservation, and that action is taken when these boundaries are transgressed. To evaluate the success of rewilding for biodiversity, monitoring of arthropod communities should be a key instrument. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Trophic rewilding: consequences for ecosystems under global change’.

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