Contemporary State of Preservation of the Lichen Biota in the Eastern Part of the “Paprocie Serpentynitowe w Masywie Ślęży” Ecological Area

The purpose of this study was to assess the contemporary conditions of the lichen biota in the eastern part of the “Paprocie Serpentynitowe w Masywie Ślęży” ecological area in the Sudetes Foothills. The studies were carried out at three localities selected from 10 sites that were designed to protect the Asplenium fern genus. A total of 47 lichen species were found in the three localities. For each of the recorded species, the state of preservation in the Ślęża Massif area was assessed according to three factors: frequency at all three localities, general viability of the thalli, and stability in occurrence on the habitat. Stability was defined based on contemporary and historical data. From the analysis, most of the species (17) were classified as taxa with “moderate preservation status” in the study area. However, the preservation status of the 18 newly recorded taxa was defined as “insufficient data” due to the lack of previous records. Other species received a “very good preservation status” (three taxa) and “good preservation status” (nine taxa). The analyses allowed us to document the current number of taxa, determine their health condition, and indicate trends in the transformation within the lichen biota of the serpentinite rocks in the study area. Moreover, some actions were proposed to actively protect the valuable lichens in the ecological area of “Paprocie Serpentynitowe w Masywie Ślęży.”

MONITORING PROPOSAL OF THE SPECIES VIOLET CARPENTER BEE XYLOCOPA VIOLACEA IN POLAND

The main purpose of this scientific publication is to present the suggested methods of monitoring the species violet carpenter bee Xylocopa violacea, which belongs to Hymenoptera of the bee family Apidae. Despite the fact that this insect is only partially protected under Polish national law, there are very few identified localities of these animals in Poland. The main problem related to the uncertainty of the number of the violet carpenter bee Xylocopa violacea is the lack of monitoring within national borders. The proposed method of population status assessment is based on the field research. These studies include the observations of many elements of the population and the environment and on predicting what are the prospects for protecting the violet carpenter bee Xylocopa violacea in Poland. The proposed method of population status assessment is based on the analysis of species presence and abundance and the proposed method of habitat status assessment is based on the analysis of area, food base, type of environment, elements of the habitat, the nature of the surroundings and habitat stability. The proposed methods can be also applied for Xylocopa valga, which can be easily confused with the violet carpenter bee Xylocopa violacea. What is the most important – regular monitoring may contribute to the recognition of other places of occurrence and will enable effective protection of the violet carpenter bee Xylocopa violacea in Poland.

Immature Insect Assemblages from the Early Cretaceous (Purbeck/Wealden) of Southern England

The record of immature insects from the non-marine Purbeck and Wealden groups (Lower Cretaceous) of southern England is reviewed and expanded. Fossils of adult terrestrial insects are locally common, but terrestrial immature remains are restricted to transported hemipterans, most of which are sessile nymphs or puparia resembling those of extant whiteflies (Aleyrodidae). Remains of immature aquatic insects are more diverse and comprise the extant orders Plecoptera, Ephemeroptera, Odonata, Trichoptera, Hemiptera and Diptera. The Trichoptera are represented by larval cases constructed from a variety of materials corresponding to several ichnogenera. The Wealden immature insects were preserved in predominantly freshwater fluvial settings, whereas the Purbeck ones occur in lagoonal palaeoenvironments, ranging in salinity from brackish to hypersaline. The composition of aquatic immature insect faunas in the latter offers potential for palaeosalinity analysis, although there are complicating factors relating to habitat stability. Uncommon trace fossils such as beetle borings in wood provide evidence of immature insects not represented by body fossils.

Confluences and Land Cover As Agents of Change: Temporal Habitat Variability Modifies the Movement and Assemblage Change of Headwater Fishes

Interspersed inputs of wood and sediment brings about morphological change at confluences and the extent to which these processes are modified by anthropogenic disturbance has ramifications for stream fish assemblages. In this study, we use three functional groups of headwater fishes to assess the influences of confluence size and land cover on habitat stability, distance moved, movement rate, and assemblage change in a Gulf Coastal Plain drainage in the southeastern United States using a 2X2 design. Our results suggest that differences in habitat stability were described by a hydrogeomorphic gradient, and urban reaches characterized by a confluence size > 0.6 displayed the greatest habitat instability. Water-column specialists in urban reaches were more likely to move when habitat change was limited, whereas movement by this functional group in forested reaches was more likely in response to greater habitat instability. Therefore, the distance moved by water-column specialists was related to land cover. Assemblage change also occurred at a more constant rate in urban reaches in response to habitat instability. There was little evidence that confluence size influenced movement or assemblage stability in these headwater assemblages. Our understanding of the extent to which land cover alters the geomorphic and ecological gradients associated with headwater confluences will be critical to ensure the conservation of sensitive species whose fitness is dependent on the integrity of these habitats.

Wind plays a major but not exclusive role in the prevalence of insect flight loss on remote islands

Terrestrial species on islands often show reduced dispersal abilities. For insects, the generality of explanations for island flight loss remains contentious. Although habitat stability is considered the most plausible explanation, others are frequently highlighted. Adopting a strong inference approach, we examined the hypotheses proposed to account for the prevalence of flightlessness in island insect assemblages, for a region long suspected to be globally unusual in this regard—the Southern Ocean Islands (SOIs). Combining comprehensive faunal inventories, species' morphological information, and environmental variables from 28 SOIs, we provide the first quantitative evidence that flightlessness is exceptionally prevalent among indigenous SOI insect species (47%). Prevalence among species which have evolved elsewhere is much lower: Arctic island species (8%), species introduced to the SOIs (17%), and globally (estimated as approx. 5%). Variation in numbers of flightless species and genera across islands is best explained by variation in wind speed, although habitat stability (thermal seasonality proxy) may play a role. Variables associated with insularity, such as island size, are generally poor predictors of flightlessness. The outcomes redirect attention to Darwin's wind hypothesis. They suggest, however, that wind selects for flightlessness through an energy trade-off between flight and reproduction, instead of by displacement from suitable habitats.

Late Quaternary habitat suitability models for chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) since the Last Interglacial (120,000 BP)

AimPaleoclimate reconstructions have enhanced our understanding of how past climates may have shaped present-day biodiversity. We hypothesize that habitat stability in historical Afrotropical refugia played a major role in the habitat suitability and persistence of chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) during the late Quaternary. We aimed to build a dynamic model of changing habitat suitability for chimpanzees at fine spatio-temporal scales to provide a new resource for understanding their ecology, behaviour and evolution.LocationAfrotropics.TaxonChimpanzee (Pan troglodytes), including all four subspecies (P. t. verus, P. t. ellioti, P. t. troglodytes, P. t. schweinfurthii).MethodsWe used downscaled bioclimatic variables representing monthly temperature and precipitation estimates, historical human population density data and an extensive database of georeferenced presence points to infer chimpanzee habitat suitability at 62 paleoclimatic time periods across the Afrotropics based on ensemble species distribution models. We mapped habitat stability over time using an approach that accounts for dispersal between time periods, and compared our modelled stability estimates to existing knowledge of Afrotropical refugia. Our models cover a spatial resolution of 0.0467 degrees (approximately 5.19 km2 grid cells) and a temporal resolution of every 1,000–4,000 years dating back to the Last Interglacial (120,000 BP).ResultsOur results show high habitat stability concordant with known historical forest refugia across Africa, but suggest that their extents are underestimated for chimpanzees. We provide the first fine-grained dynamic map of historical chimpanzee habitat suitability since the Last Interglacial which is suspected to have influenced a number of ecological-evolutionary processes, such as the emergence of complex patterns of behavioural and genetic diversity.Main ConclusionsWe provide a novel resource that can be used to reveal spatio-temporally explicit insights into the role of refugia in determining chimpanzee behavioural, ecological and genetic diversity. This methodology can be applied to other taxonomic groups and geographic areas where sufficient data are available.