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Background: The gut microbiota plays an important role in primates, which may be associated with their habitat. In Malaysia, pig‐tailed macaques (Macaca nemestrina) live in different habitat environments and have traditionally been used for coconut plucking for more than a century. There is currently no information regarding the gut microbiota of this macaque in Malaysia. To address this oversight, this study employed a fecal metabarcoding approach to determine the gut microbiota composition of pig‐tailed macaques and establish how these microbial communities correspond with the macaque external environments of residential area, forest edge, and fragmented forest. Methods: To determine this connection, 300 paired‐end sequences of 16S rRNA were amplified and sequenced using the MiSeq platform. Results: In the pig‐tailed macaque fecal samples, we identified 17 phyla, 40 orders, 52 families, 101 genera, and 139 species of bacteria. The most prevalent bacterial families in the gut of pig‐tailed macaques were Firmicutes (6.31%) and Proteobacteria (0.69%). Our analysis did not identify a significant difference between the type of environmental habitat and the gut microbiota composition of these macaques. Conclusions: There was great variation in the population richness and bacterial community structure. The abundance of Firmicutes and Proteobacteria helps this macaque digest food more easily while maintaining a healthy gut microbiota diversity. Exploring the gut microbiota provides an initial effort to support pig‐tailed macaque conservation in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent investigations have revealed the coordination and trade-offs between above- and belowground traits in structuring functional strategies of plant communities, but none of these have addressed ferns, a diverse plant lineage in tropical forests. We investigated terrestrial ferns from the perspective of how below- and aboveground traits are coordinated with functional responses to forest edges, which represent a significant part of the world's forest cover. Specifically, we examined differences in functional strategies between forest edges and forest interior as well as traits associated with species dominance. Fern richness and abundance were sampled in 24 edge plots and 44 interior plots within the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. We obtained data for five leaf traits and three rhizome traits. Ferns did not express any functional coordination between above- and belowground traits. At the edge, ferns did not display functional homogenization. In both the interior and at the edge, ferns exhibited multiple trait covariations across a broad spectrum of plant sizes and leaf numbers, associated with rhizome type and the presence of leaf trichomes and stolons. There were no cohesive functional groups of generalists or of exclusive species of forest edges and the forest interior. Fern species dominance was related to the species-specific number of leaves and the presence of stolons. We conclude that below- and aboveground traits did neither respond in conjunction nor as a functional response to edge effects. However, both kinds of traits affected the functional structure and species dominance of fern communities at the edge and in the interior of the forest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The clearing and fragmentation of tropical forests is the single biggest threat to primate populations who depend on this habitat for survival. In contrast to primates that live in continuous, undisturbed forests, primate communities of fragmented forests need to adapt to decreased food availability and increased inter‐ and intraspecific competition typical of these degraded and anthropogenically disturbed habitats. Some primate species are highly sensitive to habitat fragmentation, whilst other species can adapt and even thrive in fragmented and degraded forests. Here, we assessed how forest fragmentation and associated edge effects impact the population density of four species of nocturnal lemur in the Sahamalaza‐Iles Radama National Park, North West Madagascar. We conducted 118 transect walks over a 3‐year period covering a total distance of 107 km to collect encounter rate (N/km) and population density (N/Ha) data for each species, which we then compared between the edge and core areas of a continuous forest and a fragmented forest. Our results were highly species‐specific, with the population densities of two species (Lepilemur sahamalaza and Microcebus sambiranensis) increasing in edge and fragmented habitat, whilst we observed the opposite for Cheirogaleus medius. Mirza zaza density appeared consistent between the continuous and fragmented forest and in both edge and core areas. We also found evidence of species‐specific population density relationships with fragment size, core area and fragment shape; however, further work is needed to support these findings. This study demonstrates that some nocturnal lemurs can adapt to degraded habitats and thrive within fragmented forests, whilst other species are less capable of doing so. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The proliferation of forest edges and invasive predators have been identified as two primary threats to carnivore populations globally. These threats often occur in unison, facilitated by anthropogenic activities (e.g., fragmentation), and together may pose a greater influence than when they occur separately. Targeted conservation actions for forest carnivores, including Madagascar carnivores, have been hindered by a failure to understand the relative contributions of these factors in driving species declines. To fill this gap, we conducted an extensive camera survey along the edge of intact, continuous protected rainforests in eastern Madagascar to evaluate the extent invasive predators and forest edge separately and in combination affect native carnivore space use. We hypothesized that structural vegetation changes at the forest edge interact with invasive predator trap success and occurrence to reduce native carnivore space use near the forest edge and separately have less influence than when combined. In contrast to findings in fragmented and degraded forests of Madagascar, we found hard forest edge and invasive predators alone do not indiscriminately reduce native carnivore space use in continuous intact forest. Instead, we found free‐roaming dogs and cats interact with their surrounding environment (i.e., forest edge) in unique ways that shape species response differently than within interior forest. At the forest edge, vegetational changes of increasing shrub cover and the occurrence of dogs reduce space use of three of four native carnivores. However, we found greater effects of proximity to villages, especially with high invasive predator activity (free‐roaming cats). Ultimately, native carnivores showed variable sensitivities to pressures we examined, providing support for species‐specific management actions to maximize conservation outcomes. We encourage future studies to consider evaluating the magnitude of separate and combined threats to carnivores. In doing so, conservationists can better identify when threats can be managed in isolation and when they require simultaneous mitigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: Plant herbivory and disease, which are often associated with each other but subject to different processes, are pivotal in biodiversity maintenance and ecosystem function. Although drivers of plant herbivory and disease have been widely studied separately, their relationships, patterns and determinants remain unclear in fragmented landscapes. Methods: We surveyed incidence and severity of foliar herbivory and disease of 2,027 adult trees within 30 sites in 17 tropical forest fragments in Xishuangbanna, southwestern China. We aim to explore the relationship of plant herbivory and disease, and effects of local environmental variables (forest type, plant richness, elevation, slope, soil properties) and landscape environmental variables (patch size, edge distance, isolation). Results: We found that incidence, but not severity of disease was positively correlated with that of herbivory. Herbivory severity and incidence were more associated with local variables; both increased with plant richness but decreased with soil nutrients and pH. In contrast, the landscape variable isolation was the dominant driver of disease, with lower severity and incidence in contiguous forests than forest fragments. Conclusion: In summary, we show that herbivory and disease are associated with drivers at different scales in fragmented landscapes. Herbivory is mainly driven by local-scale variables, while disease is mainly driven by landscape-scale variables. To control plant herbivory and disease in fragmented landscapes, increasing landscape connectivity and conserving different forest types are urgently required to maintain ecosystem functions under global land use change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social wasps play an important role in controlling agricultural pests. The present study aimed to investigate the differences in abundance, species richness and composition of social wasps (Vespidae: Polistinae) between a Cerrado legal reserve, edge and agricultural matrix in an agricultural farm in Mato Grosso, Brazil. We delimited three transects and used Malaise traps which remained active for 48 hours, and were distributed equidistant over five distances from the edge to the legal reserve and agricultural matrix. In total, we collected 618 individuals and 31 species of social wasps. Our results showed that social wasp abundance was similar between the legal reserve and agricultural matrix during three stages and species richness only non-cropping stage. A similar pattern was observed for composition similarity, which presented a lower value between the legal reserve and agricultural matrix during the non-cropping stage. Our results indicate that although monoculture areas can offer food resources and be attractive to social wasps during the active cropping stages, these areas cannot host and conserve the diversity of social wasps. Legal reserve areas, for maintaining the diversity and ecosystem services provided by social wasps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Forestry Reclamation Approach (FRA) is a practical guide to reforesting surface mined lands. Bats, a group of mammals with declining populations, could benefit from mine reforestation. To determine if the FRA can provide suitable bat foraging habitat, we surveyed bat activity at created depressional wetlands on 1-year-old and 8-year-old FRA reforested lands (FRA1; FRA8), wetlands in naturally regenerating forest on traditionally reclaimed mined land (~40 years old; REGEN), and wetlands in mature forest not previously mined (MAT). We passively recorded echolocation calls for 12 nights across 16 sites between June and August 2021. We analyzed bat activity using the number of recordings, pulses, and feeding buzzes in conjunction with nocturnal insect abundance and biomass, microhabitat characteristics, and landscape characteristics via generalized linear mixed effects modeling. Both FRA1 and FRA8 had activity levels similar to MAT. REGEN had significantly greater foraging activity than the other three land classes, possibly due to its distance from roads and proximity to forest edges. Insect abundance and biomass were comparable across sites, indicating FRA practices do not hinder the establishment of a prey base for bats. Overall, bats are utilizing the restored mined land for foraging. Reforestation of mined lands, complemented with wetland creation, provides habitat that could benefit bat species conservation in Appalachia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since being described in the year 2000, little ecological information has accumulated for South Mountains Gray-Cheeked Salamanders (Plethodon meridianus), a narrowly distributed salamander in southern Appalachia. In this study, we used repeat surveys to model occupancy and abundance of P. meridianus along a transect running from the approximate range center to range edge. We found a strong effect of elevation and distance to streams as predictors of occupancy and abundance. The number of days since rain had a strong impact on detection probability, likely due to its effect on salamander surface activity (i.e., time outside of burrow), as opposed to observer error. Treating elevation as a proxy for distance to the range edge, we found that occupancy and abundance declined toward the range edge, supporting the center-periphery hypothesis. Our findings matched that of similar previous studies: at low elevations in dry habitat, salamanders are only found along the cooler microhabitat of streams, whereas at high elevations, salamanders are more widespread across the landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Journal of Field Ornithology is the property of Resilience Alliance and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper assesses the impact of inheritance tax on population growth exploiting the quasi-random differences in the inheritance tax across different Spanish regions over the last 20 years. Using a dynamic difference-in-differences approach to municipality population data, we found a robust-positive short-term effect (1–4 years) on the population growth for small inheritances. The impact is sizable and represents roughly 6% of the standard deviation, but this dissipates after 7 years. The heterogeneity analysis by age group reveals a clear positive and lasting response to the inheritance tax benefits for those aged 50–69 years. This is especially seen in municipalities close to the border pointing to migration costs as a key factor in changes of residence in response to the inheritance tax law differences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Forests worldwide are experiencing fragmentation, with especially important consequences for ecosystems bordering urbanized areas. Urban forests are exposed to local warming due to the urban heat island which affects their biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. A key ecosystem function affecting carbon and nutrient cycling in forests is litter decomposition, a process driven by the local microclimate. Thus, our aim was to clarify the impact of the urban heat island on litter decomposition in urban forests. We studied soil microclimate and litter decomposition in six urban forests across Europe and along local gradients from the urban forest edge to the interior. To quantify decomposition independent from local forest composition and litter quality, we used standardized green tea and rooibos tea litterbags. We determined the role of the soil microclimate and other environmental drivers for litter decomposition. Secondly, we assessed effects of edge proximity and landscape context on the soil microclimate. Soil characteristics were only driving green tea and not rooibos tea decomposition. On the contrary, higher soil temperatures resulted in faster rates of litter decomposition for both green and rooibos tea and were related to the proximity to the forest edge and the proportion of built-up area in the landscape. Via structural equation modelling we detected cascading effects of the urban heat island on litter decomposition. Such changes in litter decomposition have the potential to alter the soil food web, nutrient cycling and carbon drawdown in urban forests, and could result in significant interactions between urbanisation and ongoing climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Globally, terrestrial invertebrates are in decline, in part due to habitat fragmentation. Footpaths provide nature-based recreation to the public but can present small-scale spatially continuous changes in forest dynamics. However, their effects on terrestrial invertebrate communities are unknown. Pitfall trapping was undertaken to identify whether terrestrial invertebrate communities were disrupted by a popular recreational footpath in Blean Woods, an ancient UK woodland. The study identified 720 invertebrates across 36 taxa from 20 footpath edge and forest interior traps. It was found that footpaths did not significantly affect terrestrial invertebrate communities. There was no difference in the taxonomic abundance, richness, and diversity; invertebrate trait abundance and richness; or invertebrate community composition between the footpath edge and woodland interior traps. Thus, footpaths in Blean Woods do not disturb the terrestrial invertebrate community, and therefore present a sustainable mechanism for facilitating public engagement with conservation in a nationally important protected ancient woodland. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Urban forests provide necessary habitat for many forest-associated bee species amidst development and fragmentation. These forest fragments provide a variety of important floral and non-floral resources for bees that encompass a diversity of functional guilds characterized by size, diet breadth, nesting, sociality, origin, and seasonality. The relative importance of forest edge vs. interior habitats to these organisms is not well understood. Methods: Here, we compare bee communities between forest edge and interior locations at eight locations in Athens, GA, USA. We also explore the effects of stand structure, tree composition, ground cover type, and the presence of snags and downed wood on these organisms. Results: We found bee abundance and richness to be higher at the forest edge than interior with distinct community compositions at both locations. Canopy cover, invasive shrub cover, ground cover, and tree diversity influenced the observed community composition. We also determined that the most impactful functional traits influencing bee community structure in urban forest fragments were nesting substrate, origin (native or exotic to North America), sociality, and diet breadth. Discussion: Our findings will help establish the effects of local forest characteristics on the community composition, diversity, and abundance of wild bees and further our knowledge of the conservation value of urban forests for preserving wild bee communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Biotropica is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Therya is the property of Asociacion Mexicana de Mastozoologia, A. C. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Preservation of undeveloped land near urban areas is a common conservation practice. However, ecological processes may still be affected by adjacent anthropogenic activities. Ground-dwelling arthropods are a diverse group of organisms that are critical to ecological processes such as nutrient cycling, which are sensitive to anthropogenic activities. Here, we study arthropod dynamics in a preserve located in a heavily urbanized part of the Sonoran Desert, Arizona, U.S.. We compared arthropod biodiversity and community composition at ten locations, four paired sites representing the urban edge and one pair in the Preserve interior. In total, we captured and identified 25,477 arthropod individuals belonging to 287 lowest practical taxa (LPT) over eight years of sampling. This included 192 LPTs shared between interior and edge sites, with 44 LPTs occurring exclusively in interior sites and 48 LPTs occurring exclusively in edge sites. We found two site pairs had higher arthropod richness on the preserve interior, but results for evenness were mixed among site pairs. Compositionally, the interior and edge sites were more than 40% dissimilar, driven by species turnover. Importantly, we found that some differences were only apparent seasonally; for example edge sites had more fire ants than interior sites only during the summer. We also found that temperature and precipitation were strong predictors of arthropod composition. Our study highlights that climate can interact with urban edge effects on arthropod biodiversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Snake response to habitat changes is frequently investigated at the species level, but it is still poorly known how snakes respond to habitat changes at the community level and at which spatial scale. Here, we used a multi-model inference approach to evaluate the effects of local and landscape composition (percentage of forest cover and silviculture) and habitat fragmentation (number of forest patches and total edge) on species, functional, and phylogenetic diversity of snake communities in tropical fragmented landscapes. Additionally, we tested whether silviculture acted as an environmental filter for snakes. Species and functional diversity responded primarily to landscape elements: species richness, abundance, and functional diversity decreased with deforestation. In addition, species richness and abundance increased with the proportion of forest and the number of patches in the landscape. In contrast, phylogenetic diversity was driven by the local habitat composition. Although habitat types did not filter entire clades and functional groups, each species tended to have a co-occurring species with similar traits (at landscape level) and a close relative (at both levels) in impacted habitats. In contrast, the co-occurrence of close relatives and functionally similar species was avoided in the native forest. Our findings indicate that snake responses to habitat changes occur on multiple scales and highlight the importance of conserving native forests to maintain multiple components of biodiversity. Strategies for conserving snake diversity in tropical fragmented landscapes should therefore consider management practices at both the local and landscape scales. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores the resilience and damage dynamics of agroforests, a critically important yet understudied agroecological system, in the aftermath of Category-5 Cyclone Winston in Fiji. As agroforestry gains prominence globally as a versatile production system able to support agrobiodiversity and food security for climate resilience, understanding the characteristics that contribute to its resistance and resilience to disturbance becomes increasingly important. Here we examine the effects of individual and species-specific traits, and management (planted and fallow vs forest areas) on the probability of tree stem survival and damage, and discuss the resistant and resilient qualities of trees and management actions in these systems. We found that the probability of post-cyclone survival increased as a function of wood density, irrespective of management type. Damage severity increased with tree size (diameter at breast height). Some of the species with the highest wood density were native trees, emphasizing the role of native species in agroforests, and the value of agroforests to conservation. Overall, agroforest trees experienced relatively low stem mortality (12.2%), suggesting that these agroforests may resist extreme disturbances despite their potential vulnerabilities such as landscape edge effects and altered species compositions. Our study provides insight into the potential of agroforests as resilient agroecological systems capable of withstanding escalating cyclone intensities, and the role of effective management strategies for fostering resilience amid a rapidly changing climate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Habitat management is necessary for the conservation of threatened species, yet best practices in fragmented human-dominated landscapes have remained difficult to generalise. We show that multi-scale vegetation management decisions in heathlands can be supported by integrating opportunistic citizen science data and multispectral satellite data. Opportunistic observations were gathered from ten typical, mostly threatened animal species of dry heathlands in Flanders as point records with specified precision. We considered vegetation structure at the local scale, quantified by image texture within 0.25 ha derived from multispectral satellite data, and heathland heterogeneity at the habitat scale, quantified by the diversity in heathland vegetation communities within 50 ha. Additionally, locations inside heathlands were attributed to an open, closed or anthropogenic landscape context. Point process models were used to test the impact of heathland size, vegetation structure and heathland heterogeneity on the habitat suitability of the studied species. We found that (1) heathland vegetation management can benefit habitat suitability in fragmented heathlands, but with a different approach for local management of vegetation structure in small versus large heathlands (e.g. due to micro-fragmentation effects), (2) the landscape induces positive and negative edge effects (e.g. due to a high versus low resource availability), especially in small heathlands and (3) habitat suitability is driven by both vegetation structure and heathland heterogeneity but with different relative importance for birds, butterflies and grasshoppers (e.g. due to differences in mobility). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Passive forest restoration can buffer the effects of habitat loss on biodiversity. We acoustically surveyed aerial insectivorous bats in a whole‐ecosystem fragmentation experiment in the Brazilian Amazon over a 2‐year period, across 33 sites, comprising continuous old‐growth forest, remnant fragments, and regenerating secondary forest matrix. We analyzed the activity of 10 species/sonotypes to investigate occupancy across habitat types and responses to fragment size and interior‐edge‐matrix (IEM) disturbance gradients. Employing a multiscale approach, we investigated guild (edge foragers, forest specialists, flexible forest foragers, and open space specialists) and species‐level responses to vegetation structure and forest cover, edge, and patch density across six spatial scales (0.5–3 km). We found species‐specific habitat occupancy patterns and nuanced responses to fragment size and the IEM disturbance gradient. For example, Furipterus horrens had lower activity in secondary forest sites and the interior and edge of the smallest fragments (1 and 10 ha) compared to continuous forest, and only two species (Pteronotus spp.) showed no habitat preference and no significant responses across the IEM and fragment size gradients. Only the Molossus sonotype responded negatively to vegetation structure. We uncovered no negative influence of forest cover or edge density at guild or species‐level. Our results indicate that reforestation can buffer the negative effects of fragmentation and although these effects can still be detected in some species, generally aerial insectivorous bats appear to be in recovery after 30 years of passive forest restoration. Our findings reinforce the need to protect regenerating forests while conserving vast expanses of old‐growth forest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Species–environment relationships are often studied at large spatial scales, but effective conservation requires an understanding of local-scale environmental drivers and pressures. Widespread degradation and fragmentation of forests have increased the proportion of tropical mammal habitat that is affected by edge effects. Edge effects include greater exposure to anthropogenic disturbance and abiotic changes that synergistically influence how well populations can cope with climate change. We investigated relationships between distance to the forest edge, forest structure, microclimate and terrestrial mammal detections in a selectively logged forest at the boundary of Gunung Leuser National Park in Sumatra, Indonesia. We collected mammal detection data from motion-activated camera traps, microclimate data from automated climate data loggers and forest structure data from vegetation plots. Daily mean and maximum temperatures significantly decreased with distance from the forest edge, whereas tree height and minimum temperature increased. Mammal diversity was lower at the forest edge compared to the interior. Mammals were detected less frequently at the forest edge, although this relationship varied between mammal orders. Mammal detections were best explained by temperature, tree height and tree diameter at breast height. These results demonstrate that abiotic changes in forests brought on by edge effects have negative impacts on mammals, but these effects vary between mammal taxa because of differing sensitivities to human disturbance. Our findings highlight the importance of considering local-scale environmental drivers in determining species–environment relationships to identify key habitat features such as microclimate refuges that should be prioritized in ecosystem management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of SHILAP Revista de Lepidopterologia is the property of Sociedad Hispano-Luso-Americana de Lepidopterologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Species respond differently to landscape structures and environmental changes. In nature conservation, however, responses of a few indicator groups are often generalised to the ecosystem level. In this study, we analyse how birds and butterflies respond to identical landscape structures and environmental gradients across a habitat mosaic in southern Kenya. The study area represents natural coastal forest (forest interior and forest edge) as well as different agro-environments (such as orchards and pastures), which partly may also be suitable surrogate habitats for forest species. We assessed birds and butterflies during the same time along identical line transects, covering the dry and the rainy season. The obtained results indicate that both species groups depict habitat types in some aspects similarly but in others in somewhat different ways. Thus, strongest differences in community similarity were visible between forest interior and the open landscape like pastures for both taxa. The forest community strongly overlapped with orchards for birds but less so for butterflies. Thus, orchards in close geographic proximity to natural forests might be a possible surrogate habitat for certain forest bird species, but less so for more sedentary forest butterfly species. The temporal variation in species richness, abundances, and community structures was much stronger for butterflies compared to birds. Thus, seasonality in tropical ecosystems has to be considered especially when interpreting community structures of butterflies, but much less so in birds. In general, birds and butterflies proved to be suitable indicator groups to evaluate ecologically landscape structures in East Africa, with birds more representing the landscape level and butterflies more the fine-grained habitat scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The edge is a meeting place between two ecosystems, or it can also be interpreted as a boundary where two habitats meet and interact. The presence of edges can create an edge effect and increase richness and species abundance. In the present study, we analyzed how edge and vegetation diversity affect a) bird communities and b) how birds respond to edges. Observation plots were placed in jamblang stands and coconut plantations (edge and interior). Bird communities were observed using point counts with a fixed radius of 25 m, and the distance between plots was 50 m. A survey of vegetation diversity was conducted using a combination of the transect and plot methods. The research showed that the highest species richness and diversity of birds (128 individuals of 18 species) and vegetation (168 individuals of 20 species) were found at the edge, although there were only slight differences in the number of species in each habitat. This was influenced by the structure and composition of the vegetation at the observation site. Nevertheless, this proves that the edge effect shapes the composition of bird communities. There are 9 species of bird can be mapped into 4 response models: generalis neutral, generalist edge exploiter, specialist edge exploiter, and edge specialist. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The regenerative pattern of lianas was studied across an environmental gradient from treefall gaps to gap edges to the forest interior of a subtropical montane primary forest in southwestern China. Specifically, the following questions were addressed: (1) How do the species composition, species richness and abundance of regenerative lianas change across the environmental gradients? (2) What is the regeneration mode of lianas at the community and species levels under different forest habitats? I established sample plots in each of the three forest habitats and counted all liana stems ≤ 50 cm in height or length. I found that the species composition of regenerative lianas varied between treefall gaps, gap edges and the forest interior, with light-demanding species primarily growing in the first two habitats and shade-tolerant species growing in the last habitat. PCA ordination also showed clear clustering of the plots between treefall gaps, gap edges and forest interior. The species' distribution changed from the leftmost shade-tolerant to the rightmost light-demanding species along the first axis of the PCA ordination. The abundance and species richness of regenerative lianas were significantly higher in the treefall gaps and at the gap edges than in the forest interior. Of the 25 species recorded, fifteen regenerated only from seed, while the others regenerated from rhizomes (five species) or from stolons (five species), as well as from seed. Seed regeneration was common in the three forest habitats, while clonal growth mainly occurred in the forest interior. Result from the two-way ANOVA indicated that species, habitats and their interactions had significant effects on the regeneration pattern of lianas at the community level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The tropical forests in the Amazon store large amounts of carbon and are still considered a carbon sink. There is evidence that deforestation can turn a forest landscape into a carbon source due to land use and forest degradation. Deforestation causes fragmented forest landscapes. It is known from field experiments that forest dynamics at the edge of forest fragments are altered by changes in the microclimate and increased tree mortality ("edge effects"). However, it is unclear how this will affect large fragmented forest landscapes, and thus the entire Amazon region. The aim of this study is to investigate different forest attributes in edge and core forest areas at high resolution, and thus to identify the large-scale impacts of small-scale edge effects. Therefore, a well-established framework combining forest modelling and lidar-generated forest structure information was combined with radar-based forest cover data. Furthermore, forests were also analyzed at the landscape level to investigate changes between highly fragmented and less-fragmented landscapes. This study found that the aboveground biomass in forest edge areas is 27% lower than in forest core areas. In contrast, the net primary productivity is 13% higher in forest edge areas than in forest core areas. In the second step, whole fragmented landscapes were analyzed. Nearly 30% of all forest landscapes are highly fragmented, particularly in the regions of the Arc of Deforestation, on the edge of the Andes and on the Amazon river banks. Less-fragmented landscapes are mainly located in the central Amazon rainforest. The aboveground biomass is 28% lower in highly fragmented forest landscapes than in less-fragmented landscapes. The net primary productivity is 13% higher in highly fragmented forest landscapes than in less-fragmented forest landscapes. In summary, fragmentation of the Amazon rainforest has an impact on forest attributes such as biomass and productivity, with mostly negative effects on forest dynamics. If deforestation continues and the proportion of highly fragmented forest landscapes increase, the effect may be even more intense. By combining lidar, radar and forest modelling, this study shows that it is possible to map forest structure, and thus the degree of forest degradation, over a large area and derive more detailed information about the carbon dynamics of the Amazon region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: The microclimate and light conditions on the forest floor are strongly modified by tree canopies. Therefore, we need to better consider the micro‐environment when quantifying trait–environment relationships for forest understorey plants. Here, we quantify relationships between micro‐environmental conditions and plant functional traits at the community level, including intraspecific trait variation, and their relationship with microclimate air temperature, light and soil properties. Location: Deciduous temperate forests across Europe. Time period: 2018. Major taxa studied: Herbaceous vegetation. Methods: We sampled 225 plots across 15 regions along four complementary gradients capturing both macro‐ and microclimatic conditions including latitude, elevation, forest management and distance to forest edges. We related the community‐weighted mean of five plant functional traits (plant height, specific leaf area [SLA], plant carbon [C], plant nitrogen [N] and plant C:N ratio) across 150 vascular plant species to variation in local microclimate air temperature, light and soil properties. We tested the effect of accounting for intraspecific variation in trait–environment relationships and performed variation partitioning to identify major drivers of trait variation. Results: Microclimate temperature, light availability and soil properties were all important predictors of community‐weighted mean functional traits. When light availability and variation in temperature were higher, the herb community often consisted of taller plants with a higher C:N ratio. In more productive environments (e.g. with high soil nitrogen availability), the community was dominated by individuals with resource‐acquisitive traits: high SLA and N but low C:N. Including intraspecific trait variation increased the strength of the trait–micro‐environment relationship, and increased the importance of light availability. Main conclusions: The trait–environment relationships were much stronger when the micro‐environment and intraspecific trait variation were considered. By locally steering light availability and temperature, forest managers can potentially impact the functional signature of the forest herb‐layer community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heterogeneity at local and landscape scales can promote insect diversity and moderate insect declines that stem from global change. Determining how species respond to different landscape components provides insight into the role of heterogeneity in landscapes undergoing change. We examine how indigenous forest-grassland edges are used by butterflies. We assessed butterfly diversity and behaviour at forest edges and adjoining grassland, and tested whether these patterns are influenced by differing weather conditions between seasons. Forest edges supported a species rich butterfly assemblage. Forest specialists were more diverse at forest edges than in grassland, whereas grassland specialists and habitat generalists were as diverse at forest edges as in grassland. All butterfly groups showed more inter- and intra-specific interactions and more patrolling behaviour at forest edges, but more feeding and transient behaviour in grassland. Occurrence and behavioural patterns were not mediated by season, suggesting that the influence of forests does not change with varying environmental conditions. Nonetheless, certain species preferentially utilized forest edges in the hot and windy season, indicating that shelter provided by forest edges influences butterfly habitat use. We found no evidence that complementary nectar sources influence butterfly distribution patterns. Implications for insect conservation: The diverse butterfly assemblages and range of behaviours supported by indigenous forest edges indicate that forest patches are an important habitat component for butterflies. Conserving forest patches in these coastal grasslands may help buffer butterfly populations against global change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polygala seyfegoluensis Dönmez, Uğurlu & Yüzb. (Polygalaceae) is herein described and illustrated as a new species from Kırşehir Province around Seyfe Lake in Central Türkiye. This new species is similar to P. pruinosa and P. supina is distinctly characterized by its prostrate habit, nearly glabrous and smaller flower parts, and an unwinged capsule. A phylogenetic analysis was conducted to show the placement of the new species within selected Polygala taxa using the trnL-F and rbcL markers. Based on the field observation, an evolutionary scenario is proposed for the new species under the driving forces of climate change, the shrinking of Seyfe Lake, and its surrounding man-made habitat. The evolutionary significance of the style and stigma of the new species and the closely related taxa has been discussed since the breeding biology. Considering the ecological issues, population size, and the accounted individuals of the new species, it is here assessed as Critically Endangered. Additionally, lectotype is selected here with a new description for the closest relative of the new species, Polygala pruinosa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Questions: Forests are highly fragmented across the globe. For urban forests in particular, fragmentation increases the exposure to local warming caused by the urban heat island (UHI) effect. We here aim to quantify edge effects on herbaceous understorey vegetation in urban forests, and test whether these effects interact with forest structural complexity. Location: We set up a pan‐European study at the continental scale including six urban forests in Zurich, Paris, Katowice, Brussels, Bremen, and Stockholm. Methods: We recorded understorey plant communities from the edge towards the interior of urban forests. Within each urban forest, we studied edge‐to‐interior gradients in paired stands with differing forest structural complexity. Community composition was analysed based on species specialism, life form, light, nutrient, acidity and disturbance indicator values and species' thermal niches. Results: We found that herbaceous communities at urban forest edges supported more generalists and forbs but fewer ferns than in forests' interiors. A buffered summer microclimate proved crucial for the presence of fern species. The edge communities contained more thermophilous, disturbance‐tolerant, nutrient‐demanding and basiphilous plant species, a pattern strongly confirmed by corresponding edge‐to‐interior gradients in microclimate, soil and light conditions in the understorey. Additionally, plots with a lower canopy cover and higher light availability supported higher numbers of both generalists and forest specialists. Even though no significant interactions were found between the edge distance and forest structural complexity, opposing additive effects indicated that a dense canopy can be used to buffer negative edge effects. Conclusion: The urban environment poses a multifaceted filter on understorey plant communities which contributes to significant differences in community composition between urban forest edges and interiors. For urban biodiversity conservation and the buffering of edge effects, it will be key to maintain dense canopies near urban forest edges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Negative landscape‐scale fragmentation effects are often inferred from negative patch‐scale edge effects. I tested this cross‐scale extrapolation using two evaluations. First, I searched for studies that estimated the direction of both a patch‐scale edge effect and a landscape‐scale fragmentation effect. The directions were concordant and discordant in 55% and 45% of cases, respectively. Second, I extracted from the literature a sample of landscape‐scale fragmentation effects on individual species. Then, for each species I searched for studies from which I could calculate the slope of its patch‐scale edge effect. Species showing negative patch‐scale edge effects were nearly equally likely to show negative or positive landscape‐scale fragmentation effects, and likewise for species showing positive patch‐scale edge effects. The results mean that the efficacy of policies related to habitat fragmentation cannot be inferred from observed patch‐scale edge effects. Such policies require landscape‐scale evidence, comparing species' responses in landscapes with different levels of fragmentation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study tested the utility of a rope bridge across a road that traversed restored rainforest habitat (5--8 years old) to assess the use of these new habitats by arboreal mammals. Camera-trapping revealed common brushtail possums (Trichosurus vulpecula), green ringtail possums (Pseudochirops archeri) and Herbert River ringtail possums (Pseudochirulus herbertensis) used the rope bridge regularly while striped possums (Dactylopsila trivirgata), fawn-footed melomys (Melomys cervinipes), long-tailed pygmy-possums (Cercartetus caudatus) and Lumholtz's tree-kangaroos (Dendrolagus lumholtzi) were recorded at the bridge accesses, but no crossings could be proven. No Lemuroid ringtail possums (Hemibelideus lemuroides) were recorded near the rope bridge. Differences in the use of the restored rainforest habitat and the crossing structure are likely to be caused by differences in the species' reliance on features in mature forests, and their responses to rainforest edges. The results support the utility of canopy crossing structures to facilitate the use of restored habitat by arboreal mammals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Global biodiversity has suffered a decline primarily attributed to landscape simplification and intensified agricultural practices. Agricultural environments, characterized by homogeneity and frequent disturbances, are often suboptimal habitats for various insect species. While agricultural fields do favour pests, they generally fail to provide suitable habitats for natural enemies. The inclusion of diverse supporting habitats, such as semi-natural habitats, grassy and woody field margins etc. surrounding agricultural fields, play a crucial role in fostering effective biodiversity conservation. Moreover, determining the influence of different adjacent habitat types is essential in elucidating their influence on pest abundance and parasitism rates. Our two-year field study focused on assessing the abundance of Brassicogethes aeneus and its parasitism rate. The findings revealed that the adjacent habitat type did not significantly increase pest abundance and the parasitism rate of B. aeneus larvae consistently stayed over the threshold for effective biological control throughout the fields. This was attributed to the high proportion (35 and 38% in the 2 study years) of semi-natural habitats within most of the 1 km radius study areas. While our study did not identify any specific adjacent habitat type or habitat within a 1 km radius that directly impacted B. aeneus abundance, it emphasises the intricate interplay between the pests, parasitism and the surrounding environment because the interactive effect of distance from the crop edge and habitat type had a significant influence on B. aeneus infestation levels but not on parasitism. Decision tree analysis suggests that > 18% semi-natural habitat is needed to ensure sufficient levels of parasitism for effective biological control. A comprehensive understanding of habitats that influence not only B. aeneus but also other pests is critical for the successful implementation of IPM strategies and conservation initiatives within the agricultural sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Habitat fragmentation could potentially affect tree architecture and allometry. Here, we use ground surveys of terrestrial LiDAR in Central Amazonia to explore the influence of forest edge effects on tree architecture and allometry, as well as forest biomass, 40 years after fragmentation. We find that young trees colonising the forest fragments have thicker branches and architectural traits that optimise for light capture, which result in 50% more woody volume than their counterparts of similar stem size and height in the forest interior. However, we observe a disproportionately lower height in some large trees, leading to a 30% decline in their woody volume. Despite the substantial wood production of colonising trees, the lower height of some large trees has resulted in a net loss of 6.0 Mg ha−1 of aboveground biomass – representing 2.3% of the aboveground biomass of edge forests. Our findings indicate a strong influence of edge effects on tree architecture and allometry, and uncover an overlooked factor that likely exacerbates carbon losses in fragmented forests. Forest responses can have major effects on tree architecture and community structure near the edges of forest fragments. Here, using terrestrial LiDAR scanning data from long-term forest plots, the authors find a net negative effect of fragmentation on Amazonian Forest aboveground biomass. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research was conducted in two types of urban forests: Peucedano-Pinetum and Tilio-Carpinetum. The aim of the study was to determine the differences in plant species compositions in the herbaceous layer of urban forests with different habitat fertility adjacent to the road in the northern part of Warsaw (Poland). Seven transects were laid out in each type of forest, with 10 plots spread out from the edge zone (forest border) to the interior of the forests. The size of each plot was 100 m2. The other seven transects were located within the forest, 150 to 200 m away from the forest's edge. The field research included phytosociological relevés carried out on the existing transects. The indoor studies included an analysis of forest community disturbance. Furthermore, an analysis of abiotic environmental conditions using ecological indicator numbers was carried out. Ecotones of Peucedano-Pinetum are more likely to be colonized by the species inconsistent with the habitat due to processes that increase habitat fertility. The Tilio-Carpinetum forest is more easily colonized by invasive plant species than the Peucedano-Pinetum. The range of road effects can be determined as an area located within 90 m inward of the forest in the case of the Peucedano-Pinetum community and 100 m in the case of the Tilio-Carpinetum community. The presented research is important for formulating directions about how to manage the forests and their surroundings in terms of shaping forests of more natural character, with species more consistent with a forest habitat. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anthropogenic disturbance of tropical humid forests leads to habitat loss, biodiversity decline, landscape fragmentation, altered nutrient cycling and carbon sequestration, soil erosion, pest/pathogen outbreaks, among others. Nevertheless, the impact of these alterations in multitrophic interactions, including host–pathogen and vector–pathogen dynamics, is still not well understood in wild plants. This study aimed to provide insights into the main drivers for the incidence of herbivory and plant pathogen damage, specifically, into how vegetation traits at the local and landscape scale modulate such interactions. For this purpose, in the tropical forest of Calakmul (Campeche, Mexico), we characterised the foliar damage caused by herbivores and pathogens in woody vegetation of 13 sampling sites representing a gradient of forest disturbance and fragmentation in an anthropogenic landscape from well preserved to highly disturbed and fragmented areas. We also evaluated how the incidence of such damage was modulated by the vegetation and landscape attributes. We found that the incidence of damage caused by larger, mobile, generalist herbivores, was more sensitive to changes in landscape configuration, while the incidence of damage caused by small and specialised herbivores with low dispersal capacity was more influenced by vegetation and landscape composition. In relation to pathogen symptoms, the herbivore-induced foliar damage seems to be the main factor related to their incidence, indicating the enormous importance of herbivorous insects in the modulation of disease dynamics across tropical vegetation, as they could be acting as vectors and/or facilitating the entry of pathogens by breaking the foliar tissue and the plant defensive barriers. The incidence of pathogen damage also responded to vegetation structure and landscape configuration; the incidence of anthracnose, black spot, and chlorosis, for example, were favoured in sites surrounded by smaller patches and a higher edge density, as well as those with a greater aggregation of semi-evergreen forest patches. Fungal pathogens were shown to be an important cause of foliar damage for many woody species. Our results indicate that an increasing transformation and fragmentation of the tropical forest of southern Mexico could reduce the degree of specialisation in plant–herbivore interactions and enhance the proliferation of generalist herbivores (chewers and scrapers) and of mobile leaf suckers, and consequently, the proliferation of some symptoms associated with fungal pathogens such as fungus black spots and anthracnose. The symptoms associated with viral and bacterial diseases and to nutrient deficiency, such as chlorosis, could also increase in the vegetation in fragmented landscapes with important consequences in the health and productivity of wild and cultivated plant species. This is a pioneering study evaluating the effect of disturbances on multitrophic interactions, offering key insights on the main drivers of the changes in herbivory interactions and incidence of plant pathogens in tropical forests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A study aimed at assessing the structure of rodent and shrew assemblages inhabiting a degradation gradient while considering rainfall patterns, was conducted in one of few remaining lowland tropical forests in eastern Africa. We collected a unique dataset of rodents and shrews, representing 24 species (19 rodents, 5 shrews). The most abundant species alternated in dominance as species abundance significantly fluctuated across the study period following a degradation gradient. While only generalist species were observed near the degraded forest edge, habitat specialists such as Deomys ferrugineus, Malacomys longipes and Scutisorex congicus, were observed in the primary forest interior suggesting a significant association between species and their associated habitats and habitat attributes. There was also an observed correlation between rainfall patterns and species abundance. Capturing more species in adjacent fallows and along the degraded forest edge suggests that many species are able to live in degraded habitats that offer a variety of food resources. The study has highlighted the importance of habitat heterogeneity through species associations and also recommend an assessment of the effect of habitat homogeneity due to the proliferation of paper mulberry on small mammal community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context: Agricultural intensification and land-use patterns impact biodiversity and reduce ecosystem functions. Organic farming is often seen as a more biodiversity friendly way of farming. However, not all organic farming is equally supportive for biodiversity, structural diversity of the farms has a great impact and the often high intertwinement of organic and conventional farmland causes spill-over problems. Objective: On organic farmland in central Italy, we analysed butterfly diversity and community structures in different land-use categories across a heterogeneous landscape. We aim to analyse the impact of the different land-use structures such as hedges and forest edges on this farmland, as well as the influence of adjoining conventionally farmed areas. Methods: We studied butterflies on organic farmland including olive and hazelnut plantations, as well as meadows and fallow land, surrounded by hedges and forests. Hereby we considered the effects of land-use on the studied site and the adjoining land, e.g., semi-natural habitats (as hedges or forest edges), organic or conventional farmland. We counted butterflies along line transects and recorded habitat parameters for each transect. All encountered butterflies were classified according their ecological demands, behaviour, and life-history. Results: We found highest mean butterfly species richness in fallow land and lowest in hazelnut plantations. Species community structures differed hardly between plantations and meadows, but considerably compared to fallow land. Butterfly abundances are reduced for olive plantations adjacent to agricultural fields treated with pesticides, compared to such surrounded by organic fields. Habitat para-meters such as the number of flowering plant species and shade impact butterfly diversity and abundance. Forest edges producing considerable shadow to the transects had a significantly negative effect on diversity and abundance, while the influence of hedges was positive. Conclusions: Based on our findings, we conclude that also organic farmland has different degrees of biodiversity depending on a variety of land-use pattern. In particular, habitat heterogeneity and a high diversity of flowers positively influence butterfly diversity. The intensive mixing of organic and conventional agriculture must be seen critical for conservation as negative effects might spill over to organic fields, but might be compensable by landscape structures like hedges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social Forestry (SF) in Indonesia has emerged as a keystone strategy for Sustainable Forest Management. By allocating 12.7 million ha of forest to be managed by local communities, the government has set in motion an ambitious plan for SF to reduce poverty, empower local people, and improve forest conditions. More recently, SF is framed for its opportunity to contribute to climate change mitigation and adaptation. This study focused on examining the contribution of SF to the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) goals in Yogyakarta and Lampung. By analyzing spatial data of SF areas and land cover changes using ArcView 10.8, the study assessed the carbon stock potential in SF areas. Carbon stock calculations were based on the 2022 National Forest Reference Level (FRL) for the periods before and after SF implementation. The finding of the study indicated that the carbon stock of SF areas in Yogyakarta and Lampung ranged from 9,214,381 to 9,923,420 ton CO2eq prior to SF, while the current carbon stock ranges from 8,703,489 to 9,393,706 ton CO2eq, representing a decrease (around 5.4%) rather than an increase. Overall, the changes in carbon stock were relatively small and localized, and the magnitude of the increase was insufficient to offset the overall decrease. To achieve the objectives of SF, such as meeting emission targets and achieving sustainable land use, it is crucial to carefully manage forest edges and fragmented forests, as they can contribute to carbon stock losses. Additionally, further studies and research are needed to improve the accuracy of carbon stock calculations, particularly for non-forest categories, which have higher uncertainty in the reference levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Semi-natural, nutrient-poor calcareous grasslands are local biodiversity hotspots that are increasingly threatened by land use intensification, abandonment, or indirect effects from adjacent habitats. The habitat quality of these grasslands is often influenced by neighbouring forests or intensively managed agricultural land. For example, shrubs encroaching on grassland reduce the sensitive habitat, but at the same time represent a new habitat type (transition zone at gradual forest edge). We investigated the effects of gradual and abrupt forest edges on the species richness, abundance, species composition, functional diversity and number of species of conservation importance (red-listed species) of land snail assemblages at forest–pasture transitions in the Jura Mountains, Switzerland. Forest edge type influenced the snail assemblages in different ways. Transition zones at abrupt forest edges had a higher species richness and more snail individuals than transition zones at gradual forest edges. Transition zones also differed in land snail species composition. At gradual forest edges, the transition zones contained some openland snail species, while those at abrupt forest edges had a similar species composition to the forest interior. Functional diversity was significantly higher for snails in the forests and transition zones at both abrupt and gradual edges than in pastures. In contrast, pastures and transition zones at both abrupt and gradual edges had a significantly higher number of red-listed snail species. Based on our findings, we recommend the creation of gradual forest edges through regular forest management practices, rather than through shrub encroachment into pasture, which could reduce the size of the threatened habitat. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highways are structures that cause major impacts and threats to biodiversity. We analysed the effects of a highway on the abundance of the Rufous-capped Antthrush (Formicarius colma) in the stretch that intersects the Sooretama Biological Reserve, located in southeastern Brazil. Data were collected using the point-count census method, with points located on the forest edge near the highway, the forest edge near a pasture and random points in the interior of the forest area. Noise was recorded at each point in all areas and related to the abundance of antthrushes. Across habitat types, Rufous-capped Antthrushes were least abundant at the highway-edge, intermediate at the pasture-edge, and highest at the interior of the forest. Within habitat types, species abundance was highest in points 600 m away from the pasture but only in points 800 m away from the highway. The abundance of antthrushes was inversely correlated to noise, irrespective of habitat type (highway or pasture). These results suggest that the presence of the highway and the noise it produces are important threats to the Rufous-capped Antthrush, decreasing its abundance and possibly constraining movements across the highway. For a regionally threatened bird, these impacts could be significant for species viability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multi-Access Edge Computing (MEC) is known as a promising communication paradigm that enables IoT and 5G scenarios by using edge servers located in the proximity of end users. As an integral part of MEC, edge servers provide virtualized resources and host different MEC applications. Therefore, user equipment and IoT devices can offload tasks to edge servers instead of remote cloud data centers. A proper edge server placement strategy can significantly improve the performance of mobile applications. The optimum number of edge servers and their placement is a problem called edge server placement. This optimization problem is NP-hard. In recent years, the research community has made great efforts to solve this problem. To achieve Quality of Service (QoS), various metrics are considered in different research papers. However, a comprehensive overview of the different aspects of the Edge Server Placement Problem (ESPP) is still missing. This paper first highlights the edge server's importance and gives its applications. Then, it provides a comprehensive summary and taxonomies based on the objectives, applications, datasets, frameworks, and strategies of the different research on the placement of edge servers. Also, this paper summarizes the ESPP and other optimization problems raised as joint optimization problems. Finally, considering the capabilities and features of the MEC environment, some open issues are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The food chain length represents how much energy reaches different trophic levels in food webs. Environmental changes derived from human activities have the potential to affect chain length.We explore how habitat area and edges affect chain length through: (1) a bottom‐up effect of abundance ('pyramid hypothesis'); (2) the truncation of the highest trophic level ('trophic‐rank hypothesis'); and (3) changes in species connectivity patterns ('connectivity hypothesis').We built plant‐leaf miner‐parasitoid food webs in 19 remnants of a fragmented Chaco forest from central Argentina. On each remnant, we constructed food webs from different locations at the forest interior and edges. For each food web, we registered the abundance of species, the species richness of each trophic level, estimated the connectivity of their networks, and the average food chain length. We used structural equation models to evaluate the direct and indirect effects of habitat area and edge/interior location on food chain length mediated by species richness, abundance and connectivity.We found no direct effects of habitat area on chain length but chains were longer at forest edges than at their interior. The three mechanisms were supported by our results, although they showed different strengths. First, we found that the interior favours a bottom‐up abundance effect from herbivores to parasitoids that positively affected chain length; second, we found that the forest area positively affects plant richness, which has a strong effect on the number of resources used by consumers, with a positive effect on chain length. Third, the remnant area and interior position favoured plant richness with a negative effect on the abundance of parasitoids, which had a positive effect on chain length. In general, the strongest effects on chain length were detected through changes in abundance rather than species richness although abundance was less affected by habitat fragmentation.We evaluated for the first time the effects of human‐driven habitat fragmentation on the length of trophic chains in highly diverse plant‐herbivore‐parasitoid networks. Despite the loss of species, small habitat fragments and edges embedded in the agricultural matrix can support interaction networks, making them conservation targets in managed landscapes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context. The tall forests of Victoria, Australia, which are available for logging, are foreshadowed to be converted from mature forest to hostile environments for mature-forest dependent species by 2030. This has occurred within a 60-year time-frame since the advent of industrial-scale logging in the region. In this light, Protection Areas (PAs) of approximately 100 ha have been implemented to protect habitat with high density populations of Yellow-bellied Gliders (Petaurus australis) and Southern Greater Gliders (Petauroides volans). Aims and methods. Ten considerations are provided to guide location and design of PAs, and to provide set asides and other forms of protection for mature-forest dependent species in the context of the temporal and spatial scale of logging activity. Key results. Considerations are grouped into Overall approach (precautionary), Survey records and habitat attributes (occurrence, habitat, vegetation types), Size and shape considerations (edge and fragmentation effects); Management history (logging and fire), and Boundary considerations (context and conditions). In addition, set asides encompassing home ranges; and high levels of basal area retention, are also required in the remainder of planned logging coupes. Conclusions. Addressing these considerations in PAs, in set asides and in retention will provide some protection for mature-forest dependent species, but will be insufficient without ecologically sustainable forest management at the coupe level, forthe sustained yield of all habitat components of these forests. Implications. The conservation of mature-forest dependentspeciesin the context of an ongoing timber industry requires logging return times well beyond current expectations, resulting in a substantial reduction in resource commitment to industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Protected areas are the cornerstone of biodiversity and serve as a haven for biodiversity conservation. However, due to immense anthropic pressures and ongoing changes in climate, the protected reserves are under immense threat. Human interference through land system changes is a major precusor of fragmentation of landscapes resulting in the decline of Himalayan biodiversity. In this context, this research assessed land use land cover changes (LULCCs) and fragmentation within and outside the Dachigam National Park (DNP) using remote sensing data, GIS-based models and ground truth over the past 55 years (1965–2020). Landscape Fragmentation Tool (LFT) helped to compute edge effect, patchiness, perforation and core areas. The Land Change Modeller (LCM) of IDRISI TerrSet was used for simulating the future LULC for the years 2030, 2050, 2700 and 2100. The analysis of LULCCs showed that built-up and aquatic vegetation expanded by 326% and 174%, respectively in the vicinity of the DNP. The area under agriculture, scrub and pasture decreased primarily due to intensified land use activities. Within the DNP, the area under forest cover declined by 7%. A substantial decrease was observed in the core zone both within (39%) and outside (30%) the DNP indicative of fragmentation of natural habitats. LCM analysis projected 10% increase in the built-up extents besides forests, shrublands and pastures. This knowledge generated in this study shall form an important baseline for understanding and characterising the human-wildlife relationship, initiating long-term ecological research (LTER) on naturally vegetated and aquatic ecosystems (primarily Dal Lake) of the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exploring the dynamics of an urban landscape pattern is significant for urban ecological environment evaluation. Previous studies on urban landscape monitoring are relatively few, making it difficult to comprehensively reflect the characteristics of urban landscape patterns. Here, we proposed a methodological framework to monitor the dynamics of the landscape pattern, vegetation coverage, and the habitat quality using the Landsat imagery obtained from 1999 to 2021 in Beijing, China. First, changes in the landscape characteristics associated with land use were explored by the transfer matrix and landscape metric analysis methods. Subsequently, the dimidiate pixel model was employed to analyze changes in regional vegetation coverage on a landscape perspective. Finally, the habitat quality was evaluated on the basis of remote sensing ecological index (RSEI) model, and the correlation between the habitat quality and the landscape index was retrieved using the gray correlation degree model. The results showed that the landscape pattern underwent fragmentation, and the edge effect was strong. A high vegetation coverage was dominant throughout the landscape, and a medium vegetation coverage was relatively scattered, especially in built-up areas. The landscape was highly fragmented in areas with a low vegetation coverage. There were significant regional differences in habitat quality, and the quality was higher in the northwest and western mountainous areas. Furthermore, there was a strong correlation between the habitat quality and the index-based landscape pattern, which demonstrated the distribution pattern of landscape types significantly impacts habits quality. Overall, these findings are significant for future urban planning and construction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Large forested tracts are increasingly rare in the tropics, where conservation managers are often presented with the challenge of preserving biodiversity in small and isolated fragments. The Atlantic Forest is one of the world's most important biodiversity hotspots, jeopardized by habitat loss and fragmentation. The Pernambuco Endemism Center (PEC) is the most degraded of the Atlantic Forest regions and because of the dramatic levels of deforestation, fragmentation, and ongoing species losses, studies on the distribution and configuration of the PEC's forest cover are necessary. However, across dynamic tropical landscapes, investigating changes over time is essential because it may reveal trends in forest quality attributes. Here, we used Google Earth Engine to assess land use and land cover data from MapBiomas ranging from 1985 to 2020 to calculate current landscape metrics and to reveal for the first time the spatiotemporal dynamics of the PEC's forests. We identified a forest cover area that ranged from 571,661 ha in 1985 to 539,877 ha in 2020, and about 90% of the fragments were smaller than 10 ha. The average fragment size was about 11 ha, and only four fragments had more than 5,000 ha. Deforestation was mostly concentrated in northern Alagoas, southern Pernambuco, and non-coastal Paraíba and Rio Grande do Norte. On average, borders represented 53.6% of the forests from 1985 to 2020, and younger forests covered 52.3% of the area in 2017, revealing a vegetation rejuvenation process 2.5 times higher than in total Atlantic Forest. In 2017, older forest cores in fragments larger than 1000 ha (i.e., higher-quality habitats) represented only 12% of the remaining forests. We recommend that the amount of forest cover alone may poorly assist conservation managers, and our results indicate that ensuring legal protection and increasing surveillance of the PEC's few last higher-quality habitats is urgently needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Lyme disease is an emerging health threat in Canada due to the continued northward expansion of the main tick vector, Ixodes scapularis. It is of particular concern to populations living in expanding peri-urban areas where residential development and municipal climate change response impact neighbourhood structure and composition. The objective of this study was to estimate associations of socio-ecological characteristics with residential Lyme disease risk at the neighbourhood scale. We used Lyme disease case data for 2017–2020 reported for Ottawa, Ontario to determine where patients' residential property, or elsewhere within their neighbourhood, was the suspected site of tick exposure. Cases meeting this exposure definition (n = 118) were aggregated and linked to neighbourhood boundaries. We calculated landscape characteristics from composited and classified August 2018 PlanetScope satellite imagery. Negative binomial generalized linear models guided by a priori hypothesized relationships explored the association between hypothesized interactions of landscape structure and the outcome. Increases in median household income, the number of forest patches, the proportion of forested area, forest edge density, and mean forest patch size were associated with higher residential Lyme disease incidence at the neighbourhood scale, while increases in forest shape complexity and average distance to forest edge were associated with reduced incidence (P<0.001). Among Ottawa neighbourhoods, the combined effect of forest shape complexity and average forest patch size was associated with higher residential Lyme disease incidence (P<0.001). These findings suggest that Lyme disease risk in residential settings is associated with urban design elements. This is particularly relevant in urban centres where local ecological changes may impact the presence of emerging tick populations and how residents interact with tick habitat. Further research into the mechanistic underpinnings of these associations would be an asset to both urban development planning and public health management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]