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Bacillus anthracis is a gram-positive, rod-shaped and endospore-forming bacterium that causes anthrax, a deadly disease to livestock and, occasionally, to humans. The spores are extremely hardy and may remain viable for many years in soil. Previous studies have identified East Qinghai and neighbouring Gansu in northwest China as a potential source of anthrax infection. This study was carried out to identify conditions and areas in the Qinghai Lake basin that are environmentally suitable for B. anthracis distribution. Anthrax occurrence data from 2005–2016 and environmental variables were spatially modeled by a maximum entropy algorithm to evaluate the contribution of the variables to the distribution of B. anthracis. Principal Component Analysis and Variance Inflation Analysis were adopted to limit the number of environmental variables and minimize multicollinearity. Model performance was evaluated using AUC (area under the curve) ROC (receiver operating characteristics) curves. The three variables that contributed most to the suitability model for B. anthracis are a relatively high annual mean temperature of -2 to 0°C, (53%), soil type classified as; cambisols and kastanozems (35%), and a high human population density of 40 individuals per km2 (12%). The resulting distribution map identifies the permanently inhabited rim of the Qinghai Lake as highly suitable for B. anthracis. Our environmental suitability map and the identified variables provide the nature reserve managers and animal health authorities readily available information to devise both surveillance strategy and control strategy (administration of vaccine to livestock) in B. anthracis suitable regions to abate future epidemics.

African swine fever (ASF) is a transcontinental, contagious, fatal virus disease of pig with devastating socioeconomic impacts. Interaction between infected wild boar and domestic pig may spread the virus. The disease is spreading fast from the west of Eurasia towards ASF-free China. Consequently, prediction of the distribution of ASF along the Sino-Russian-Korean borders is urgent. Our area of interest is Northeast China. The reported ASF-locations in 11 contiguous countries from the Baltic to the Russian Federation were extracted from the archive of the World Organization for Animal Health from July 19, 2007 to March 27, 2017. The locational records of the wild boar were obtained from literature. The environmental predictor variables were downloaded from the WorldClim website. Spatial rarefication and pair-wise geographic distance comparison were applied to minimize spatial autocorrelation of presence points. Principal component analysis (PCA) was used to minimize multi-collinearity among predictor variables. We selected the maximum entropy algorithm for spatial modelling of ASF and wild boar separately, combined the wild boar prediction with the domestic pig census in a single map of suids and overlaid the ASF with the suids map. The accuracy of the models was assessed by the AUC. PCA delivered five components accounting for 95.7% of the variance. Spatial autocorrelation was shown to be insignificant for both ASF and wild boar records. The spatial models showed high mean AUC (0.92 and 0.97) combined with low standard deviations (0.003 and 0.006) for ASF and wild boar, respectively. The overlay of the ASF and suids maps suggests that a relatively short sector of the Sino-Russian border has a high probability entry point of ASF at current conditions. Two sectors of the Sino-Korean border present an elevated risk.

Three questions have been addressed. Firstly, where in the pre-nineteenth-century landscape did farmers hold strips, camps, meadows and shares in the commons? Secondly, did farmers each own strips ...

Since the mid-20th century, trees in the Andalusian oak dehesa and forests have exhibited stress that often ends in the death of the tree. These events have been associated with Phytophthora cinnamomi, a soil-borne root pathogen, which causes root rot, bark cankers, decay and mortality – known as oak decline. Phytophthora cinnamomi is most virulent under high ambient temperatures combined with moist soils, i.e., in Mediterranean areas. We used presence/absence point locations of the Andalusian Network for Damage Monitoring in Forest Ecosystems (RED SEDA) pathogen survey and four categories of environmental variables – meteorological, edaphic, topographic and tree cover – to accurately predict Phytophthora cinnamomi current and future potential distribution within Andalusia, for a range of climate change scenarios, using ensemble species distribution models (SDMs). We assessed which categories of environmental variables explained the distribution of the pathogen, obtained accurate predictions for the current potential distribution of Phytophthora cinnamomi (AUC > 0.95, TSS > 0.70, Kappa > 0.65) and forecasted its future potential distribution. Subsequently, we classified the sites of the pathogen survey within the RED SEDA network in three zones according to the already-recorded presence of the pathogen and the current and future predicted probability of occurrence. Finally, we suggested phytosanitary management strategies for each zone.

The dynamics of Pinus mugo krummholz during concomitant change in pastoral land use and climate in central Italy since the mid-20th century was investigated. Krummholz dynamics were detected using sequential aerial photography and fitted to a logistic regression model with elevation, grazing, proximity to beech forest, and proximity to krummholz as explanatory variables. Dendrochronological series were correlated with temperature and precipitation and fitted to a linear model. During this period krummholz doubled in extent and migrated 35–65 m upslope. Expansion was positively associated with krummholz proximity, residual pastoral grazing, and proximity to beech forest beyond 10 m and negatively associated with elevation and beech forest closer than 10 m. The logistic regression model forecasts krummholz migration by an additional 30 m upslope by 2060. During the 20th century, winter and spring minimum temperatures increased but did not result in increased radial stem growth of P. mugo. The combined evidence suggests that krummholz dynamics can be explained by the legacy of summer pastoralism and the dispersal limitations of P. mugo, rather than by climate change.

This paper presents a novel methodological approach to countrywide vegetation mapping. We used green vegetation biomass over the year as captured by coarse resolution hyper-temporal NDVI satellite-imagery, to generate vegetation mapping units at the biome, ecoregion and at the next lower hierarchical level for Namibia, excluding the Zambezi Region. Our method was based on a time series of 15 years of SPOT-VGT-MVC images each representing a specific 10-day period (dekad). The ISODATA unsupervised clustering technique was used to separately create 2–100 NDVI-cluster maps. The optimal number of temporal NDVI-clusters to represent the information on vegetation contained in the imagery was established by divergence separability statistics of all generated NDVI-clusters. The selected map consisted of legend of 81 cluster-specific temporal NDVI-profiles covering each a 15-year period of averaged NDVI data representing all pixels classified to that cluster. Then, by legend-entry using the dekad-medians of all 15 annual repeats, we produced generalized legend-entries without year-specific anomalies for each cluster. Subsequently, a hierarchical cluster analysis of these temporal NDVI-profiles was used to produce a dendrogram that generated grouping options for the 81 legend-entries. Maps with cluster-groups of 8 and 4 legend-entries resulted. The 81-cluster map and its 65 legend-entries vector version have no equivalent in published vegetation maps. The 8 cluster-group map broadly corresponds with published ecoregion level maps and the 4 cluster-group map with the published biome maps in their number of legend units. The published vegetation maps varied considerably from our NDVI-profile maps in the location of mapping unit boundaries. The agreement index between our map and published biome maps ranges from 70−93. For the ecoregion level, the agreement index is much lower, namely 51−75. Our methodological approach showed a considerably higher discretionary power for hierarchical levels and the number of vegetation mapping units than the approaches applied to previously published maps. We recommended an approach to transform our three hyper-temporal NDVI-profiles based legend-entries into more specific vegetation units. This might be accomplished by re-analysis of available, spatially-comprehensive plant species occurrence data.

A right of commoners to pastures existed since the Early Middle Ages in Anglo-Saxon England and the European mainland, including Tyrol in Austria. Lowland commons institutions were largely dissolved by the 19th century; however, in the European Alps contiguous commons remain alive. Some two thousand alpine commons institutions are registered in the Tyrolean parcel cadaster and land registry. A specific study of West-Tyrolean commons (known as Agrargemeinschaft or AGMs), framed by Ostrom's design principles is presented. General lessons for land policy and land administration are extracted. An interview period was split between the Inn valley and the Otztal. Roughly half are considered independent: others are regulated by the Tyrolean Agricultural Authority. Some AGMs hold the full bundle of land rights: others only hold pastoral and forestry rights. AGMs consisted either of a single cadastral parcel or several contiguous parcels. In the Inn valley villages the pastoral commons were owned by the municipalities, while in the researched Otztal, AGMs are frequently the full owners of the commons. AGM membership ranges between 5 and 60 farm households. The number of livestock units pastured was in most cases stipulated in approved regulations. Alpine commons larger than 200 ha are also hunting-zones: revenue is collected from the lease of hunting rights. Most of the alpine commons are designated and used as ski-zones. Upper portions of two alpine commons in the Otztal are state protected natural areas. The number of farms with pastoral rights is declining at District and State level. Key lessons for land policy and land administration include: Ostrom's design principles being a precondition rather than a panacea; commons institutions requiring one clear ownership party; both public and collective ownership producing success; publically owned commons requiring a local representative; small membership numbers being preferable; small shareholdings not being preferable; decentralized governance being beneficial; internal democratic elections being beneficial; internal boundary records being superfluous; explicit sanctions being superfluous; mixed economies being acceptable; and geography being a significant influence on the longevity of pastoral commons.

The Brown bear ( Ursus arctos Linnaeus, 1758) occupies contiguous areas in Eastern and Northern Europe. In Western Europe, the largest remnant populations occur in Cantabria, Spain and the Apennines, Italy. Under Italian law the bear and its occupied range are protected. The occupied range of the Apennine brown bear includes Majella National Park. However, information on the distribution within Majella NP is extrapolated and inconsistent, thus precluding evidence-based protected area and species management. To address this lack of information, bear presence records (1996–2010) were collated and corrected for observational bias. Multiple Species Distribution Models (SDMs) were created at 800 m resolution to predict year-round and seasonal bear distribution. A hierarchical, stepwise maxent SDM approach was applied using climatic, terrain, vegetation, and anthropogenic predictors of bear distribution. Occupied ranges were identified by point density analysis of bear presence. Our climate-only SDMs predicted bear presence in areas with relatively low snowfall and temperate temperatures. Year-round bear distribution was also accurately predicted by using temperate-montane elevations and mesic, mesotrophic vegetation substrates, irrespective of vegetation. Ski-resorts were negative predictors of year-round bear occurrence. Bears were predicted in autumn and winter by beech forest, in spring by meadows and in summer by a variety of vegetation categories. The regional and our local models predicted bear throughout the south. However, our predicted and occupied range in the north includes the Orta valley and exclude alpine heights, contrary to the regional models. Only our summer bear range is similar to a regional SDM. We demonstrated that multiple maxent SDMs using a modest number of observations and a comprehensive set of environmental variables may generate essential distributional information for protected area and species management where full wildlife and food source censuses are lacking.

Crop-raiding elephants affect local livelihoods, undermining conservation efforts. Yet, crop-raiding patterns are poorly understood, making prediction and protection difficult. We hypothesized that raiding elephants use corridors between daytime refuges and farmland. Elephant counts, crop-raiding records, household surveys, Bayesian expert system, and least-cost path simulation were used to predict four alternative categories of daily corridors: (1) footpaths, (2) dry river beds, (3) stepping stones along scattered small farms, and (4) trajectories of shortest distance to refuges. The corridor alignments were compared in terms of their minimum cumulative resistance to elephant movement and related to crop-raiding zones quantified by a kernel density function. The “stepping stone” corridors predicted the crop-raiding patterns. Elephant presence was confirmed along these corridors, demonstrating that small farms located between refuges and contiguous farmland increase habitat connectivity for elephant. Our analysis successfully predicted elephant occurrence in farmland where daytime counts failed to detect nocturnal presence. These results have conservation management implications.

In order to estimate carbon stock in above ground biomass (CS-AGB) of M. Pizzalto forest in the Central-Apennines in Italy, the moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) vegetation index data (NDVI and EVI) were used in combination with field data. Biotic and abiotic parameters (slope angle, slope gradient, elevation, seasonal incoming solar radiation, length of growing season (LGS), soil type and forest management type) has been used in the modelling. NDVI and EVI values of field samples were extracted and used to estimate the LGS of beech forest for the six year period (2005-2010).Two management types, old-growth forest and young forest, showed average AGB and CS-AGB were 247 and 123 tons.ha-1 respectively in 2010 comparable to values for beech forests in the Apennines and Europe. LGS and management are the significant variables in a linear regression model for CS - AGB. Therefore, the forest authority can manage the young forest as sinks of carbon in agreement with the Kyoto protocol of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

Alternative hypotheses on post-fire successions of monospecific European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) and black pine (Pinus nigra Arnold) forests are investigated. The research area is located in the centre of the Apennine montane belt, Italy and covers portions of the Roccamorice and Lettomanoppello municipalities within the Majella National Park. Temporal moderate-resolution (MODIS) and spatial mid-resolution (ASTER) imagery are combined for the assessment of the 2007-fire features. Tree seedlings were surveyed on the ground in post-fire forests and their unburnt equivalents during September 2008. The satellite imagery analysis provides records on spread, intensity, location and extent of the forest fires. The evidence suggests an abandoned farmland fire spreading secondarily uphill into the forests. The early post-fire beech forest manifests primarily beech seedlings and beech sprouts, rarely interspersed with seedlings of maples (Acer spp.) and manna-ash (Fraxinus ornus L.), indicating a low probability of succession to mixed forest. The post-fire pine plantation appears to convert to a manna-ash bush-woodland, whereas the unburnt pine manifests succession to a mixed forest with beech and maples. Based on our findings, specific fire control and silvicultural interventions are recommended.

We investigated the ranging patterns of elephants in the Marsabit protected area, north eastern Kenya, to ascertain the range of bachelor and female family herds in different seasons, and to identify corridor and noncorridor areas. Data were acquired for five bachelor and four female family herds equipped with satellite-linked geographical positioning system collars, and monitored from December 2005 to December 2007. Distinct dry (about 260 km 2 ) and wet seasons (about 910 km 2 ) ranges were observed, with connecting corridors (north-eastern corridor: about 90 km long, about 2-7 km wide; southern corridors: about 10-20 km long, about 2-3 km wide). The dry season range corresponded with Marsabit evergreen forest, while the wet season range matched with dry deciduous lowland shrubs. The ranging elephants moved at speed of about 0.2-20 kmh )1 . Bachelor herds moved faster than female family herds. Elephants moved fast during the intermediate and wet seasons than during the dry season. The speed of ranging elephants was over 1 kmh )1 in the corridor areas and about 0.2 to less than 1 kmh )1 in the non-corridor

We investigated the factors that influenced the distribution of the African elephant around a volcanic shield dominated by a mosaic of forest and savanna in northern Kenya. Data on elephant distribution were acquired from four female and five bull elephants, collared with satellite-linked geographical positioning system collars. Based on the eigenvalues (variances) of the correlation matrix, the six factors that contributed significantly to high total variances were distance from drinking water (24%), elevation (15%), shrubland (10%), forest (9%), distance from settlements (8%) and distance from minor roads (7%), contributing to 73% in the observed variation of the elephant distribution. The elephants were found at high forested elevations during the dry season but they moved to the lowlands characterized by shrubland during the wet season. Elevation acts as a proxy for the vegetation structure. The presence of elephants near permanent water points (13%) and seasonal rivers (11%) during the dry and wet seasons, respectively, demonstrates that water is the most important determinant of their distribution throughout the year. We conclude that the distribution of elephants in Marsabit Protected Area and its adjacent areas is influenced mainly by drinking water and vegetation structure.

Question: Can the pattern and pace of spontaneous Fagus forest expansion from 1975 to 2003 be accurately detected with mid-resolution satellite imagery? Can the historical Fagus expansion be modelled on the basis of environmental predictors? If so, where are the highest probabilities for future Fagus expansion? What are the implications for park management? Location: Majella National Park, Italy, > 1000 m a.s.l.; municipalities of S. Eufemia and Pacentro. Methods: Fagus cover change was detected by overlaying three classified sequential satellite images. Historical Fagus expansion was related to environmental variables using ordinary logistic and autologistic regression models. Fagus expansion probabilities were generated with the best predictive model. Results: From 1975 to 2003 Fagus advanced into abandoned farmland and subalpine pastures from the contiguous, mid-altitudinal Fagus forest and from Fagus outliers, at a rate of 1.2 % per year. Substantial spatial and temporal variations in expansi...

The Crested Ibis Nipponia nippon was once thought to be extinct in the wild until seven birds were discovered in a remote mountain village in China in 1981. Studies suggested that winter-flooded rice fields play an essential role in nest site selection by the Crested Ibis and hence in their survival. Considerable efforts were therefore made to conserve the winter-flooded rice fields, but these have caused conflicts between the agricultural and conservation communities. The population and geographical range of the wild Crested Ibis has expanded greatly since 1981, but there is no spatial information on the winter-flooded rice fields, nor on the current association of nest sites and winter-flooded rice fields. We mapped winter-flooded rice fields across the entire current range of Crested Ibis using innovative remote sensing and geographical information systems (GIS) techniques. The spatial relationships between the nest site clusters and winter-flooded rice fields were quantified using Ward's hierarchical clustering method and Ripley's K-function. We show that both have significantly clumped distribution patterns and that they are positively associated. However, the dependence of Crested Ibis on the winter-flooded rice fields varied significantly among the nest site clusters and has decreased over the years, indicating the absence of winter-flooded rice fields is not constraining their recovery and population expansion. We therefore recommend that efforts should be made to protect the existing winter-flooded rice fields and to restore the functionality of natural and semi-natural wetlands, to encourage both in-situ conservation and the re-introduction of the Crested Ibis. In addition, we recommend that caution should be exercised when interpreting the habitat requirements of species with a narrow distribution, particularly when that interpretation is based only on their current habitat.

There is growing concern that increasing eutrophication causes degradation of coastal ecosystems. Studies in terrestrial ecosystems have shown that increasing the concentration of nitrogen in soils contributes to the acidification process, which leads to leaching of base cations. To test the effects of eutrophication on the availability of base cations in mangroves, we compared paired leaf and soil nutrient levels sampled in Nypa fruticans and Rhizophora spp. on a severely disturbed, i.e. nutrient loaded, site (Mahakam delta) with samples from an undisturbed, near-pristine site (Berau delta) in East Kalimantan, Indonesia. The findings indicate that under pristine conditions, the availability of base cations in mangrove soils is determined largely by salinity. Anthropogenic disturbances on the Mahakam site have resulted in eutrophication, which is related to lower levels of foliar and soil base cations. Path analysis suggests that increasing soil nitrogen reduces soil pH, which in turn reduces the levels of foliar and soil base cations in mangroves.

Conversion of mangroves to shrimp ponds creates fragmentation and eutrophication. Detection of the spatial variation of foliar nitrogen is essential for understanding the effect of eutrophication on mangroves. We aim (i) to estimate nitrogen variability across mangrove landscapes of the Mahakam delta using airborne hyperspectral remote sensing (HyMap) and (ii) to investigate links between the variation of foliar nitrogen mapped and local environmental variables. In this study, multivariate prediction models achieved a higher level of accuracy than narrow-band vegetation indices, making multivariate modeling the best choice for mapping. The variation of foliar nitrogen concentration in mangroves was significantly influenced by the local environment: (1) position of mangroves (seaward/landward), (2) distance to the shrimp ponds, and (3) predominant mangrove species. The findings suggest that anthropogenic disturbances, in this case shrimp ponds, influence nitrogen variation in mangroves. Mangroves closer to the shrimp ponds had higher foliar nitrogen concentrations.

This study investigates the impact of contrasting wildlife management regimes on the probability of elephant presence in the Tsavo ecosystem base on the New York “zero tolerance policing”. Point data for the location of elephant, elephant carcasses, cattle, buffalo, giraffe, occupied bomas, charcoal kilns, settlements and farms, and water points were collected through aerial survey from 7-12 February 2011. Secondary data layers included main rivers, 30m resolution digital elevation model, and moderate resolution imaging spectro-radiometer (MODIS) 250m spatial resolution normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) data for January 2011. Information on the three management regimes (none, passive, and active) adopted by protected areas and ranches in Tsavo ecosystem was identified through interviews. The Maxent algorithm was used for modeling the probability of elephant presence in the ecosystem. Multicollinearity of the fourteen explanatory variables was tested using Eigen values and Condition Index (CI). We used Maxent with elephant location points as the presence only data and the twelve explanatory variables as environmental variables. Bootstrapping of ten replications was included in the model. The accuracy of the model was determined using the area under the curve (AUC) of the Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) function. The results indicated that elephants were significantly more likely to be found in the protected areas than the non-protected areas. The northern sector of Tsavo West and the Voi sector of Tsavo East were the most likely areas to record elephants. Sectors with protected areas and ranches that practiced active management were more likely to show elephant than those with passive or no management. The areas with high probability of elephant occurrence coincided with actual high elephant density. Elephant carcasses, buffalo, giraffe, and settlements were the main variables that predicted the probability of elephant presence. Elephants are more likely to be in protected areas and ranches that were managed actively than those passively or not managed. In order to capitalize on the notion of protection and active management, we propose a wildlife management model based on the New York ‘zero tolerance’ policing. Any misdemeanor is not tolerated, especially illegal charcoal burning and livestock grazing in the ranches.

Comparisons of national forest inventories have been undertaken at coarse resolutions in Europe, but not at fine resolutions and not in Africa. This study compares the consecutive (1990, 2000, 2005, 2010), census-based Food and Agriculture Organisation Forest Resources Assessments (FRAs) of Rwanda with contemporary fine-resolution, image-based inventories. Natural forest and forest plantation were extracted from 1985 to 1989 topographic maps, Africover 2002 and Centre of Geographic Information Systems and Remote Sensing (CGIS) 2007. The natural forest area estimates over the years obtained by image-based inventories are fairly constant from the earliest inventory (topo-1988; 140 000 ha), through Africover (135 500 ha) to CGIS (125 300 ha). FRA 2000 (46 000 ha), 2005 (61 000 ha) and 2010 (62 000 ha) estimates are lower, whereas FRA 1990 (164 000 ha) reported the largest extent of natural forest. The extent of forest plantations is at its lowest level in Africover (68 600 ha). However, CGIS (114 000 ha) detected a larger area of forest plantation, more similar to the levels reported in the FRA 1990 (125 000 ha) and topo-1988 (125 200 ha). The three recent FRAs (2000: 261 000 ha; 2005: 419 000 ha; 2010: 373 000 ha) report larger plantation extents. For the image-based inventories, we could estimate the uncertainty in each step of the inventory, while for the census-based cases, the required transparency is lacking. Uncertainty may be caused by definition of forest, forest versus forestland, image classification errors, image resolution, forest fragmentation or time-lags between imagery and reporting. In our pairwise comparison of the census and contemporary image-based inventories, all uncertainties are added. The FRA 2000 (307 000 ha) reports a larger total forest area than Africover (204 100 ha). The uncertainties of Africover add up to maximally 64 100 ha, which may explain part of the difference. The uncertainties in the CGIS inventory add up to nearly 15 000 ha and cannot explain the difference between FRA 2005 (480 000 ha) and GCGIS 2007 (239 300 ha).We conclude that FRAs starting in 2000 over-report the forest plantation area and under-estimate the extent of natural forest. Finally, we suggest technical and organizational improvements for national forest inventories

The taungya agro-forestry system is an under-researched means of forest restoration that may result in high tree diversity. Within a forest reserve in Ghana, the forest core and its surrounding Teak- and Cedrela-taungya on logged, cropped and burned land were mapped with ALOS satellite imagery. Native trees, seedlings and saplings were enumerated in 70 random, nested plots, equally divided between forest and taungya. The native tree regeneration was assessed by species richness (SR), Shannon-Wiener Index (SWI), Shannon Evenness Index (SEI) and species density (SeD) for seedlings, saplings and trees separately and combined and subsequently correlated with canopy covers (CC) in taungya. As anticipated, the taungya diversity was lower than the forest diversity but higher than reported from nontaungya exotic plantations. In the forest, the diversity of native trees increased from seedlings through saplings to trees. The reverse was found in the taungya. Taungya seedling diversity was not significantly different from the forest, while the sapling and tree diversity were significantly lower. Weak correlations of CC with SR, SWI, SEI and SeD were found. Our results suggest the need for treatment to maintain the tree diversity beyond the seedling stage in the taungya. Resume Le systeme d'agroforesterie appele taungya est un moyen, encore a l'etude, de restauration forestiere qui peut aboutir a une grande diversite d'arbres. Au sein d'une reserve forestiere du Ghana, le cœur de la foret et ses environs constitues de taungya de teks et de Cedrela sur terrain totalement exploite, partiellement exploite et brule ont ete cartographies par imagerie satellitaire ALOS. Les essences indigenes, les plants et les jeunes arbres ont ete denombres sur 70 parcelles prises au hasard, partagees a part egale entre foret et taungya. On a evalue la regeneration des arbres natifs par la richesse en especes(SR), l'Indice de Shannon-Wiener (SWI), l'Indice d'equitabilite de Shannon (SEI) et la densite des especes (SeD) separement pour les jeunes plants, les jeunes arbres et les arbres et on l'a combinee et ensuite correlee avec le couvert de la canopee (CC) dans la taungya. Comme prevu, la diversite de la taungya etait plus faible que celle de la foret, mais plus elevee que celle qui est relevee dans des plantations exotiques qui n'utilisent pas ce systeme. Dans la foret, la diversite des arbres natifs augmentait en passant des jeunes plants aux jeunes arbres puis aux arbres. C'etait l'inverse dans la taungya. La diversite des jeunes plants n'y etait pas significativement differente de celle de la foret, alors que la diversite des jeunes arbres et des arbres etait significativement plus faible. On a trouve de faibles correlations de CC avec SR, SWI, SEI et SeD. Nos resultats suggerent qu'il est necessaire de traiter pour maintenir la diversite des arbres au-dela du stade de jeunes plants dans la taungya.

The role of corridors in mitigating the effects of landscape fragmentation on biodiversity is controversial. Recent studies have highlighted the need for new approaches in corridor design using long-term datasets. We present a method to identify transit corridors for elephant at a population scale over a large area and an extended period of time using long-term aerial surveys. We investigated environmental and anthropogenic factors directly and indirectly related to the wet versus dry season distribution of elephant and its transit corridors. Four environmental variables predicted the presence of elephant at the landscape scale in both seasons: distance from permanent water, protected areas and settlements and vegetation structure. Path analysis revealed that altitude and monthly average NDVI, and distance from temporary water had a significant indirect effect on elephant distribution at local scale in dry and wet seasons respectively. Five transit corridors connecting Tarangire National Park and the northern as well as south-eastern wet season dispersal areas were identified and matched the wildlife migration routes described in the 1960s. The corridors are stable over the decades, providing landscape connectivity for elephant. Our approach yielded insights how advanced spatial analysis can be integrated with biological data available from long-term datasets to identify actual transit corridors and predictors of species distribution.

The compatibility of natural resource use by people and mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei) within the Parc National des Volcans was studied. The distribution of gorillas was modelled using a Maximum Entropy algorithm. Biophysical predictor variables were trained with daily GPS locations of gorillas during 2006. Elevation, as a climate surrogate, was the best predictor (58%) of the occurrence of gorillas. The mid-altitudes (2500–3500 m a.s.l.) contained the bulk of the gorilla groups. Incoming solar radiation, as proxy for comfortable nesting sites, was the second best predictor (17%). Vegetation types, as foliage provider, (13%) and slope steepness for providing security (12%) were contributing predictors. The modelled and actual gorilla distributions were together overlaid with people’s resource use in the park. Both people and gorillas were congregated in the areas identified as most suitable for gorillas. However, within these areas spatial segregation was found between human natural resource-users and gorillas. Therefore, the number of gorillas is likely to be limited by the human natural resource use within the park. A perimeter fence, the introduction of communitybased natural resource management, and a buffer zone are discussed as short-, medium- and long-term mitigation

The cheetah is currently recognized by IUCN as a threatened species. Kenya is one of country with significant cheetah population in the world though it fundamental niche is not well known. Wildlife can live in an area only if basic resources such as food, water, and cover are present and if the species is adapted in ways that allow them to cope with the climatic extremes, selection involves several levels of discrimination and spatial scales and a number of potentially interacting factors. This study was to model cheetah fundamental niche using suitable environmental predictors and evaluates suitability of current protected area coverage in its conservation. Two types of model input data used were cheetah occurrence locations and a suite of environmental variables thought to have a direct physiological role in limiting the ability of the species to survive. The species occurrence records and environmental variables were entered into a MaxEnt model which uses maximum entropy algorithm to identify environmental conditions that are associated with species occurrence. Ideal fundamental niche for cheetah were found to be localities within an elevation range of 1600-2100 meters above sea level, receiving mean annual precipitation of 800 mm, with the warmest quarter of the year receiving 250 mm, the wettest month receiving 120 mm, precipitation of coldest quarter 10 mm and temperature seasonality ranges of 150°. Cheetah fundamental niche run across protected areas and for effective conservation, Results could be used to direct conservation effort go beyond parks and reserves by encouraging community conservancies and development of ecological corridors. Protected area planning could benefit too from these results.

Die Arbeit beschreibt die synsystematische Stellung und die primaren Standortsfaktoren der xerothermen Staudengesellschaften im Wallis und in angrenzender Waadt (Schweizer Zentral-Alpen). Diese Gesellschaften sind alsBrachypodio pinnati-Geranion sanguineiTx. inMuller 1962 emvan Gils etKozlowska 1977,BrachypodietaliaKorneck 1974 undFestuco-BrometeaBr.-Bl. etTx. 1943 klassifiziert.