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In this paper, we investigate the determinants of contact between citizens and Members of Parliament (MPs) in Africa by combining theories of contact developed in advanced Western democracies with theories of clientelism developed in the Global South. Based on Afrobarometer data matched with constituency‐level electoral data, we provide a first analysis of the determinants of citizen–MP contact in 32 African countries, encompassing a broad range of regime types. We find that smaller districts and single‐member districts strengthen contact across regime types, while electoral competitiveness is only positively associated with contact in more democratic settings. In line with clientelist theories of public resource access, district links to national ruling coalitions are positively associated with contact, but we find little evidence of partisan bias. Overall, we find that contact theories travel remarkably well across regions and regime types, and we caution against interpreting clientelistic contacts as harmful for democracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The western capercaillie Tetrao urogallus, hereafter capercaillie, is the largest galliform bird present in the boreal and montane forests of the Western Palearctic. Precise and accurate methods for estimating the number of individuals and/or their densities are crucial for the proper management of its free‐ranging populations. However, obtaining reliable estimates of the abundance of populations of wild species and, particularly, of birds is not a simple task. In the case of lek‐mating birds such as capercaillie, surveys are traditionally based on lek counts, that is, counts of calling males present in their mating areas: the leks. This study was carried out on the Pyrenees at six capercaillie leks where two different lek counting approaches were performed: hide‐based and walk‐based. The results were compared with those obtained from an estimate of minimum population size (MPE) derived from genotyping all faeces samples found in the lek area, and with a population size estimate derived from a genetic mark‐recapture model (N^o) of each capercaillie lek. The results of N^o were used to estimate the detection rate (D) of both lek count approaches. Our results show that traditional lek counts do not detect all male capercaillies since the detection rate was 0.34 (95% CI: 0.26–0.43) for hide‐ and 0.56 (95% CI: 0.43–0.68) for walk‐based lek counts. Our results suggest that the walk‐based lek counts were more efficient than the hide‐based ones, providing more accurate results compared to the N^o estimate. The combination of non‐invasive sampling with genetic mark‐recapture model was found to be the most reliable method for obtaining the N^o of leks given that traditional lek counts underestimate the number of capercaillie and, furthermore, can cause disturbance to the species at these sites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Shiqu County, in Sichuan Province, is the eastern edge of the distribution area of the kiang (Equus kiang) on the Tibetan Plateau. However, there is a lack of understanding about the kiang population and its habitat in this region. This study aims to assess the population and habitat status of kiangs. The results showed that the area of suitable habitat for kiangs is 3402.45 km2, with an estimated population of 1395.00 ± 272.20, and a population density of 0.41 ± 0.08/km2. These findings provide a scientific reference for the conservation of the kiang population and its habitat in the region. Shiqu County, Sichuan Province, forms the eastern edge of the distribution area of the kiang (Equus kiang). It is important to assess the population and habitat status of peripheral populations, as these play a significant role in the development of conservation strategies for kiangs. Based on field transect data collected from July to August 2023, this study predicted the suitable habitat distribution of kiangs in Shiqu County using a MaxEnt model and estimated the population size and density using the 'Distance' package. Additionally, it analyzed the responses of the group size of kiangs to environmental factors in Shiqu County. The results showed that the area of suitable habitat for kiangs is 3402.45 km2, accounting for 13.51% of the total area of Shiqu County. The estimated population was 1395.00 ± 272.20, with a population density of 0.41 ± 0.08/km2. Additionally, the group size of kiangs was significantly positively correlated with the distance from the road and grazing site. The distance from the grazing site, elevation, and temperature annual range are the main environmental factors affecting the distribution of kiangs. This study initially revealed the peripheral population Status and suitable habitat of the kiang on the eastern Tibetan Plateau, and the potential threat of grazing interference and road obstruction. The research results can provide a scientific reference for the population and habitat protection of kiangs in this area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the big challenges in machine learning is difficulty of achieving high accuracy in a short completion time. A more difficulties appeared when the algorithm needs to be used for solving real dataset from the survey-based data collection. Imbalance dataset, insufficient strength of correlations, and outliers are common problems in real dataset. To accelerate the modelling processes, automated machine learning based on meta-heuristics optimization such as genetic programming (GP) has started to emerge and is gaining popularity. However, identifying the best hyper-parameters of the meta-heuristics' algorithm is the critical issue. This paper demonstrates the evaluation of GP hyper-parameters in modeling machine learning on house affordability dataset. The important hyper-parameters of GP are population size (PS), that has been observed with different setting in this research. The machine learning with GP was used to predict house affordability among employers with transport expenditure and job mobility as some of the attributes. The results from testing that run on hold-out samples show that GP machine learning can reach to 70% accuracy with split ratio 0.2 and GP PS 30. This research contributes to the advancement of automated machine learning techniques, offering potential for faster and more accurate real survey-based datasets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To optimize the operational availability of the series-parallel system and provide useful insights for maintenance planning, the study attempts to investigate the availability of a ball mill unit. These four different components make up the ball mill production system: "drum," "ring-gear," "gearbox," and "electric motor." There is a chain mechanism connecting all four components. The "ring gear" and "electric motor" components are composed of two independent units, one of which serves the desired purpose and the other is maintained in cold standby. The "drum" and "gearbox" of the components each contain only one unit. Therefore, a novel mathematical model is designed and implemented in this work by assuming arbitrary repair rates and exponentially distributed failure rates using the Markov process and Chapman-Kolmogorov equations. This study explored the availability with a normalization method and used genetic algorithm techniques to optimize ball mill availability. Putting this article into practice is of great benefit when developing an appropriate maintenance program. Through this, the study achieves maximum production. To investigate the behavior of several performance characteristics of the ball mill production system, numerical results and corresponding graphs are also specifically created for specific values of subsystem parameters, such as failure rate, and repair rate to increase the system's overall efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The issue of population disparity is a subject of interest for researchers, as the study of population distribution is related to the place and society, and their demographic movement according to administrative units. The research aimed to identify the nature of the demographic balance of the population variables in the study area and their population characteristics, including their distribution and the geographic factors affecting this distribution. However, this study relied on both theoretical and practical aspects, which addressed the development of the population and its relationship to natural and human factors. The result was that geographic factors have a clear impact on the distribution of the population of the district and the difference in their demographic balance, and the varying degree of influence of these factors in drawing the geographic distribution of the population. We note that the population of the district increased from (85,952 people) in 1997 to (172,116 people) in 2022, as these numbers varied according to the administrative unit and the environment. The urban environment recorded the highest population of (129,490 people), while in the rural environment, the population reached (42,626 people) in 2022. The district center represents the highest distribution in the urban environment, with a population of (101,493 people), while the lowest distribution of the population is in the Al-Khayr district, with a population of (9,682 people). This is due to the difference in the demographic balance of the population of the study area at the level of the two environments due to the availability of services and the high economic level, and the presence of administrative institutions in the urban environment, which made the district center a center for attracting the population and migration to it from other areas, while the rural environment suffers from low economic and service levels, dry climatic conditions, lack of job opportunities, and weak community services, which encouraged migration towards urban centers in general and the district center in particular. The population density recorded (105.9 people/km²) in 2022, after it was (35 people/km²) in 1997, due to the small area of the district compared to the size of its population. This density was not evenly distributed among its administrative units due to the variation in the distribution of geographic factors between the parts of the district, as the highest level was recorded in the district center, reaching (241.8 people/km²) due to the small area of (506 km²), which contributed to the high population density, and the lowest level was in the Al-Khayr district, with a rate of (36 people/km²) due to the large area of the district, which is (729 km²), in addition to being a repulsive environment for the population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In capture–recapture experiments, the presence of overdispersion and heterogeneity necessitates the use of the negative binomial regression model for inferring population sizes. However, within this model, existing methods based on likelihood and ratio regression for estimating the dispersion parameter often face boundary and nonidentifiability issues. These problems can result in nonsensically large point estimates and unbounded upper limits of confidence intervals for the population size. We present a penalized empirical likelihood technique for solving these two problems by imposing a half-normal prior on the population size. Based on the proposed approach, a maximum penalized empirical likelihood estimator with asymptotic normality and a penalized empirical likelihood ratio statistic with asymptotic chi-square distribution are derived. To improve numerical performance, we present an effective expectation-maximization (EM) algorithm. In the M-step, optimization for the model parameters could be achieved by fitting a standard negative binomial regression model via the R basic function glm.nb(). This approach ensures the convergence and reliability of the numerical algorithm. Using simulations, we analyze several synthetic datasets to illustrate three advantages of our methods in finite-sample cases: complete mitigation of the boundary problem, more efficient maximum penalized empirical likelihood estimates, and more precise penalized empirical likelihood ratio interval estimates compared to the estimates obtained without penalty. These advantages are further demonstrated in a case study estimating the abundance of black bears (Ursus americanus) at the U.S. Army's Fort Drum Military Installation in northern New York. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Superabundant microbes (SAMs), such as marine phytoplankton, are extremely important in Earth's ecosystems. Evolutionary processes have been mainly studied in much smaller populations, and it is poorly understood how evolution works in the huge populations of SAMs. The standard tools of evolutionary genetics were developed for populations of smaller sizes, and many of these tools may not be suitable to study evolution in astronomically large SAM populations. Nucleotide sequence polymorphism is surprisingly low in SAMs, corresponding to a population of a few million individuals, but the reasons for this lack of diversity are unclear. Marine phytoplankton play crucial roles in the Earth's ecological, chemical, and geological processes. They are responsible for about half of global primary production and drive the ocean biological carbon pump. Understanding how plankton species may adapt to the Earth's rapidly changing environments is evidently an urgent priority. This problem requires evolutionary genetic approaches as evolution occurs at the level of allele frequency change within populations driven by genetic drift and natural selection (microevolution). Plankters such as the coccolithophore Gephyrocapsa huxleyi and the cyanobacterium Prochlorococcus 'marinus' are among Earth's most abundant organisms. In this opinion paper we discuss how evolution in astronomically large populations of superabundant microbes (SAMs) may act fundamentally differently than it does in the populations of more modest size found in well-studied organisms. This offers exciting opportunities to study evolution in the conditions that have yet to be explored and also leads to unique challenges. Exploring these opportunities and challenges is the goal of this article. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The state of the invasive species Dreissena polymorpha (Pallas) was studied in Ivan'kovskoe (Ivan'kovo) Water Reservoir in 2018–2022 to obtain the quantitative parameters of the mollusk development at the larval and definitive stages in all pleses (moderately wide stretches of a water body that is deeper compared to the surrounding waters) of the water reservoir during different seasons, as well as to show the interannual dynamics of their population size and spatial distribution. In the Ivan'kovo Water Reservoir, the southern invasive species Dreissena polymorpha (Pallas) has adapted rather successfully and has occurred continuously in the subsaline water conditions with a persistent lack of dissolved oxygen in summer in the near-bottom waters, which caused a shift in the mollusk niche down to a depth of 4 m; the mussel did not occur in silty biotopes. Range expansion of the southern immigrant D. polymorpha to the northern regional water bodies is influenced by climate warming, which prolongs the reproductive process of this mollusk. Currently, the end dates of mussel spawning in the Upper Volga water reservoirs approach those in southern water bodies. Eutrophication enhancement due to climate changes may pose a serious threat to Ivan'kovo Water Reservoir. Overall, the mussel population (adult mollusks + veligers) play a significant role in the process of self-purification of the water reservoir. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Abstract Differential Evolution (DE) stands as a potent global optimization algorithm, renowned for its application in addressing a myriad of practical engineering issues. The efficacy of DE is profoundly influenced by its control parameters and mutation strategies. In light of this, we introduce a refined DE algorithm characterized by adaptive parameters and dual mutation strategies (APDSDE). APDSDE inaugurates an adaptive switching mechanism that alternates between two innovative mutation strategies: DE/current-to-pBest-w/1 and DE/current-to-Amean-w/1. Furthermore, a novel parameter adaptation technique rooted in cosine similarity is established, with the derivation of explicit calculation formulas for both the scaling factor weight and crossover rate weight. In pursuit of optimizing convergence speed whilst preserving population diversity, a sophisticated nonlinear population size reduction method is proposed. The robustness of each algorithm is rigorously evaluated against the CEC2017 benchmark functions, with empirical evidence underscoring the superior performance of APDSDE in comparison to a host of advanced DE variants.

The suburban zone of Wroclaw is characterised by dynamic population changes and increased construction traffic. However, the pace of the changes taking place is not fully reflected in official population statistics, based on registration data, presenting a much lower population than actually resides in the suburban municipalities. The purpose of the article is to estimate the actual population of the Wroclaw suburban zone for data from 2012/13 and 2020, and to show the degree of the differentiation of the population transition taking place in individual reference units. The estimation of the population size was made on the basis of the author’s method, based on the aggregation and comparison of statistical data on registrations from the register of the General Electronic System of Population Registration (PESEL) and vector spatial data from the Database of Topographic Objects (BDOT10k). From 2012/13 to 2020, the population of suburban zone of Wrocław almost doubled compared to official statistics data. The highest level of the underestimation of the actual population was observed in villages located near main communication routes and in the closet vicinity to Wrocław city. Those are places where the suburbanistion processes were observed the earliest.

Background. Today, the black-headed gull inhabits man-made areas of wastewater treatment facilities (WTF) to comensate for the the reduction of natural aquatic and wetland habitats. Over the last decade, a nearly tenfold increase in its population has been recorded, despite a low reproduction rate. This fact indicates the lack of stability in the bird population, necessitating thorough research. Materials and Methods. The analysis of the population size and biological charac­teristics of black-headed gulls involved censuses and observations at the WTF of the city of Kharkiv using conventional methods during the spring-summer periods of 2020–2021 and 2023. Results. The population of the black-headed gull reached its peak in the third decade of May 2020 (2637 individuals) and 2023 (2124 individuals), as well as in the second decade of May 2021 (3949 individuals). The maximum nesting density was observed on sludge sites (SS) of wastewater treatment facilities that are most similar to natural habitats, where dried mud alternates with water patches and vegetation at the bottom and around the perimeter (Type V): 236.7±26.7 pairs/ha in 2020 and 242.9±28.5 pairs/ha in 2021. The majority of nests were found in the first decade of May 2021 and the third decade of May 2020. The black-headed gull forms mixed-species, occasionally monospecific subcolonies. Nesting in association with it were: Sterna hirundo, Anas platyrhynchos, Spatula clypeata, Vanellus vanellus, Charadrius dubius, Himantopus himantopus, Fulica atra, Gallinula chloropus, and Aythya ferina. The size of the complete black-headed gull clutch was 3.1±0.4 eggs (n = 190). The egg dimensions were 50.9±2.1 ´ 36.2±1.1, with a mass of 34.6±2.8 g. Regarding shell coloration, five types of background colors were identified. Mass egg laying occurred from the third decade of April to the first decade of May, constituting 40.3 % (n = 993) in 2020 and 62.3 % (n = 1757) in 2021. The egg-laying period extended from April to July, with the latest non-incubated clutches recorded in the first decade of July (3.07.2020). The first chicks were found in nests in the first decade of May, while mass hatching occurred in the second half of May. The latest registration dates of the birds on nesting territories were in the second decade of July for 2020 and 2023, and the first decade of August for 2022. The nesting season duration varied from 125 to 140 days in different years. Autumn migration commenced with summer relocations and concluded from late October to early November. The reproductive success – the percentage of nestlings that fledged and successfully achieved flight – constituted 29.2 % (n = 2404 of laid eggs) in 2020, and 15.5 % (n = 6138) in 2021. The majority of offspring perished due to changes in water levels (prolonged rainfall or industrial wastewater discharge), predation, disturbance factors, etc. Conclusion. The colonial nesting of the black-headed gull creates favorable conditions for the habitation and reproduction of various bird species, including rare ones, which is essential for their conservation.

Differential Evolution (DE) stands as a potent global optimization algorithm, renowned for its application in addressing a myriad of practical engineering issues. The efficacy of DE is profoundly influenced by its control parameters and mutation strategies. In light of this, we introduce a refined DE algorithm characterized by adaptive parameters and dual mutation strategies (APDSDE). APDSDE inaugurates an adaptive switching mechanism that alternates between two innovative mutation strategies: DE/current-to-pBest-w/1 and DE/current-to-Amean-w/1. Furthermore, a novel parameter adaptation technique rooted in cosine similarity is established, with the derivation of explicit calculation formulas for both the scaling factor weight and crossover rate weight. In pursuit of optimizing convergence speed whilst preserving population diversity, a sophisticated nonlinear population size reduction method is proposed. The robustness of each algorithm is rigorously evaluated against the CEC2017 benchmark functions, with empirical evidence underscoring the superior performance of APDSDE in comparison to a host of advanced DE variants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the high diversity of elasmobranch fishes in the Balearic Islands, knowledge of their biology and population dynamics is still scarce. A recent mark-and-recapture experiment off the Balearic Islands tagged 3738 individuals of 23 shark and batoid species during MEDITS and CANAL bottom trawl scientific surveys from June 2021 to August 2023. Retrieval was reported for the sharks Scyliorhinus canicula and Mustelus mustelus, revealing relatively small home ranges for these species (0.2–38.5 km and 7.8–15.3 km for S. canicula and M. mustelus, respectively). Recapture efficiency was higher from scientific surveys than from commercial catches, highlighting potential challenges in collaboration with fishermen and recapture reports. Density estimates obtained from the MEDITS bottom trawl survey suggest a much larger population for S. canicula than estimates from the mark–recapture data, indicating MEDITS density estimates for this species may be overestimated due to its scavenger behavior perhaps favoring individuals searching for discards aggregated in the fishing grounds. This study emphasizes the importance of monitoring, collaborative efforts, and improved reporting mechanisms to enhance our understanding of elasmobranch populations and provide support for sustainable management of these vulnerable marine species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reef manta rays (Mobula alfredi) face threats from human exploitation and activity in several regions of the world and crucial information on the ecology of the species is needed. The species is observed at several sites in all parts of the archipelago of New Caledonia where anthropogenic influence is presumed to be minimal. This study is the first to investigate the population of New Caledonia and focuses on its characteristics and its habitat use. Photographs of reef manta rays were collected directly from the authors (14.4%) between 2017 and 2020 and gathered from recreational divers and snorkelers (85.6%) from 11 sites around New Caledonia. The authors used the unique ventral coloration patterns of the manta rays that were clearly identifiable from 1741 of these photographs to identify 391 individuals and record their physical characteristics (sex, injuries, and colour morph) and resighting rates. These results highlight the widespread distribution of the species in the archipelago (11 sites) with little connectivity between all aggregations sites, with only 5.4% of the individuals observed at more than one site. Strong and long-term site fidelity was recorded at all studied sites through re-sighting rates (52.2% overall) and residency analysis. The population also records the world highest known proportion of melanistic manta rays (43%) to date, and a balanced male: female ratio (1.0:1.15). The analysis of injuries reported that 44.8% of all reef manta rays identified (n = 391) had noticeable wounds or injuries with no significant difference in the proportions of males and females injured. From these injured individuals only 9.8% of injuries judged to be of anthropogenic origin and 29.7% from attempted predation. Our study complements and correlates previous findings on this population that revealed strong site fidelity and low connectivity. The different characteristics of this population of reef manta rays also emphasize that concerns about species in New Caledonia are limited and that such favourable context needs to be preserved as reference for conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The forest musk deer (Moschus berezovskii) is a national Class I protected wild animal in China, and the IUCN Red list classifies it as globally endangered. It has significant value in traditional Chinese medicine and spices. However, wild M. berezovskii has faced a severe population decline due to human hunting, habitat loss, and fragmentation. Thus, studying its population size and distribution pattern is of great importance to develop effective conservation measures. Here, we determined the optimal MaxEnt model and used stratified sampling and the fecal pile counting method to predict the population size and potential habitat distribution of wild M. berezovskii in Chongqing using 133 species distribution points and 28 environmental variables. The results were as follows: (1) When the optimal model parameters were RM = 3.5 and FC = LQHPT, it had high model prediction accuracy (AUC = 0.909 ± 0.010, TSS = 0.663). (2) Under various climatic, topographic, vegetation, and anthropogenic disturbance scenarios, M. berezovskii was primarily distributed in northern, eastern, southwestern regions of Chongqing, covering an area of approximately 5562.80 km2. (3) The key environmental factors affecting the potential habitat distribution of M. berezovskii were elevation (36.5%), normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI, 16.6%), slope (11.8%), and land-use type (7.6%), whereas climate and anthropogenic disturbance factors had relatively little influence. (4) A population estimation for M. berezovskii identified approximately 928 ± 109 individuals in Chongqing. We recommend prioritizing the preservation of high-altitude habitats and native vegetation to mitigate human interference and minimize road damage. In summary, our results can enhance the understanding of M. berezovskii distribution and provide a basis for effective conservation and management initiatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates how language‐internal constraints regulate the future temporal reference (FTR) alternation across nine varieties of English around the world. We specifically marshal Variation‐Based Distance & Similarity Modeling (VADIS) to calculate distances between the varieties under study as a function of the non‐correspondence of the ways in which language users choose between FTR variants. Our linguistic data come from the spoken component of the International Corpus of English: the dataset covers 500 future marker observations per variety of English (Ntotal = 4500), richly annotated for seven language‐internal constraints (such as polarity and sentence type). VADIS uncovers a number of probabilistic grammar differences between the varieties of English under study, which are subsequently correlated with four language‐external distance measures: geographical distance, travel time distance, population size and GDP per capita. Mantel correlation analysis shows that language‐internal distances do not correlate with language‐external distances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Juvenile survival is critical to population persistence and evolutionary change. However, the survival of juvenile plants from emergence to reproductive maturity is rarely quantified. This is especially true for long‐lived perennials with extended pre‐reproductive periods. Furthermore, studies rarely have the replication necessary to account for variation among populations and cohorts. We estimated juvenile survival and its relationship to population size, density of conspecifics, distance to the maternal plant, age, year, and cohort for Echinacea angustifolia, a long‐lived herbaceous perennial. In 14 remnant prairie populations over seven sampling years, 2007–2013, we identified 886 seedlings. We then monitored these individuals annually until 2021 (8–15 years). Overall, juvenile mortality was very high; for almost all cohorts fewer than 10% of seedlings survived to age 8 or to year 2021. Only two of the seedlings reached reproductive maturity within the study period. Juvenile survival increased with distance from the maternal plant and varied more among the study years than it did by age or cohort. Juvenile survival did not vary with population size or local density of conspecific neighbors. Our results suggest that low juvenile survival could contribute to projected population declines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examine whether electoral preferences depend on a community's population size by studying post-Second World War Baden-Württemberg in Southwest Germany. Our identification strategy exploits the fact that the French administration zone prohibited German expellees from entering, contrary to the contiguous American zone. Population size positively predicts voting for the Social Democrats (the party advocating substantial government involvement in practically all domains) and negatively for the Christian Democrats (the small-government party advocating free-market policies). Results are neither driven by pre-existing voting patterns, religious compositions, and location- and time-specific unobservables, nor other measurable cultural, demographic, economic, or political characteristics. Alternative explanations pertaining to expellee voting behaviour or a backlash of natives against expellees appear unlikely – population size prevails as a predominant voting predictor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper summarizes a two-year (2021 and 2022) survey which sought to determine the breeding population of White-backed Woodpecker (Dendrocopos leucotos) in Hungary. The survey was initiated by the Hungarian Woodpecker Group of MME/BirdLife Hungary and was the first to be conducted nationwide on this species. All hill ranges where the species was historically known to occur were visited. A total of 31 observers were involved, and 102 UTM squares in which White-backed Woodpeckers were known to breed, or potentially breed, were visited. The results suggest that the Hungarian breeding population of this endangered species ranges between 480 and 800 pairs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There has been a limited number of studies on the effects of harmful algal blooms (HABs) on natural rocky intertidal ecosystems. From mid-September to early November 2021, an unprecedented HAB caused by Karenia selliformis hit the Pacific coast of southeast Hokkaido, Japan, for the first time, causing massive mortalities among marine organisms. To clarify the immediate impacts of the HAB on the abundance of 10 rocky intertidal species in four functional groups (macroalgae, sessile invertebrates, molluscan grazers, and molluscan carnivores), we focused on two questions: (1) How did the HAB affect the abundance of each species differently at the regional scale? and (2) How did the impacts of the HAB on the abundance of each functional groups vary spatially, and was the spatial variation of the HAB impacts related to the spatial distribution of the cell density of HAB species? To study these issues, we compared census data for 17 years before the HAB and within one month after it for five shores on the southeast coast of Hokkaido. The results showed that two macroalgae species and all three molluscan grazer species declined significantly after the HAB. Moreover, the decrease in molluscan grazers was significantly correlated with cell density. These results suggest that the impacts of the HAB in southeast Hokkaido on the abundance of rocky intertidal organisms are highly variable depending on species and locality, presumably because of differences in species-specific tolerances to HAB toxins and the spatial variation in the density of the HAB organisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Quantitative assessment of fish abundance is the basis of scientific research and management of their population. Demographic studies of stream-dwelling salmonids have shown that variation in their abundance on a spatio-temporal scale is common, and trout populations are no exception. Understanding this variation is crucial for several reasons, including designing and interpreting environmental impact assessment studies and monitoring fishery management strategies. The present study aimed to estimate the spatial and temporal variations in the density of Caspian Sea trout in some of the Lar National Park streams and investigate the relationship between the density of fish in these streams and the density of benthic invertebrates as their primary food sources. Material and Methods: Fish densities were calculated using the Le Cren depletion method to achieve reliable population estimates. After two removal steps, the total number of fish caught was standardized and expressed as density per 100 m² of the river channel. To investigate the temporal changes of fish abundance, the study results in 2009 were qualitatively compared with the results of another study in 2017. Results and Discussion: According to the 2009 results, the highest Caspian Sea trout density was recorded in the Delichay (44 per 100 m² ), Lar (43.2 per 100 m² ), and Siah Palas sites (33.4 per 100 m² ), respectively, and the lowest densities were recorded in the Lar (Kharsang, 10.5 per 100 m² ) and Lar (Sorkhak, 11.5 per 100 m² ). In 2017, the highest density of trout was documented in Siah Palas (175 per 100 m² ), Delichay (Vararo, 118 per 100 m² ), and Elam (112 per 100 m² ) streams, and the lowest density was recorded in the Delichay (downstream, 48 per 100 m² ) and Absefid (49 per 100 m² ) streams. The distribution and abundance of stream-dwelling salmons are primarily regulated by food and space. The abundance of Caspian Sea trout on a local scale indicates variety in quality and habitat access for Caspian Sea trout in the Lar National Park. We speculated that habitat diversity has influenced the density of Caspian Sea trout in various streams in the region by affecting the abundance of aquatic invertebrates, which are the main prey source. However, the results of regression (R²= 0.02, p value = 0.72) and correlation (Spearman, r = 0.24) analyses showed no significant relationship between the density of fish and benthic invertebrates in the Lar National Park streams. Despite the enough abundance of prey in Lar streams, the fish were low in density. The cause of this incongruence is probably related to the salmon fishing in Lar National Park in the past. Comparing fish densities in 2009 and 2017 showed that the trout density in 2017 was higher than the trout density in 2009. Conclusion: Considering that in 2014, the Department of Environment stopped issuing fishing licenses in this area, one of the reasons for the increase in fish density is probably a positive effect of the fishing prohibition on this species. Since Caspian Sea trout abundances in the Lar National Park streams are spatio-temporally variable, it is necessary to provide reasonable management strategies and continuous monitoring to prevent them from global warming and conserve them in the streams of the Lar National Park. Furthermore, due to climate change and being at risk of other populations of Caspian Sea trout in different habitats in Iran, this population should be protected as a support population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Harvested wildlife populations should ideally be monitored to inform harvest policies and decision‐making to help achieve management objectives. When the age of harvested individuals can be obtained, these data (i.e., age‐at‐harvest data) can be used to estimate trends of abundances, demographic rates, and harvest probabilities by the statistical reconstruction of the living population. This approach was developed primarily within the frequentist framework and requires the inclusion of auxiliary data (e.g., radiotelemetry data). We developed a novel Bayesian hierarchical approach allowing the population reconstruction from the definition of the species' life cycle without auxiliary data. The hierarchical model assumes that individuals are harvested from an open population whose fluctuations result from demographic processes, and the definition of a superpopulation composed of pseudo‐individuals from which the harvested population is drawn. We evaluated the ability of our model to estimate abundances, survival, recruitment, and harvest probabilities based on simulations guided by the demographic processes of a long‐lived mammal population. We considered model performance across scenarios, including varying age and temporal structures, superpopulation size, and prior information. We showed how prior information selected based on life history characteristics affects the accuracy of estimated parameters. We found that the model estimates accurate demographic parameters and abundances when the age‐at‐harvest matrix comprises more than two age classes. Furthermore, an increase in demographic information (number of age groups and years) increased the precision of the estimated parameters. We apply our model to a population of harvested (2012–2021) white‐tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and a mammalian carnivore, the fisher (Pekania pennanti), from Rhode Island, USA. Our model estimated biologically realistic population size and demographic rates for both species. Our approach provides robustness to track the population abundance of harvested species through time and estimate fundamental demographic parameters. Such results can be used to monitor whether population objectives are being met and whether harvest policy changes are required. Furthermore, this information can be critical for evaluating the effect of harvest on population growth and projecting trajectories of age‐structured populations under different harvest scenarios. Therefore, our framework can help to guide management decisions and species conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Forests help to reduce global warming by capturing and storing atmospheric carbon. Understanding the genetics of keystone species at a population level is vital for the management and sustainable utilization of forest genetic resources. A comprehensive population genetics study was carried out on Rubroshorea curtisii, an important widespread hill dipterocarp species in Peninsular Malaysia. A total of 41 populations across its distribution range in Peninsular Malaysia were collected to elucidate the genetic diversity and ultimately provide management guidelines for this species. The population samples were analysed using 10 polymorphic microsatellite loci and sequenced with three chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) regions. A total of 145 alleles were derived from the microsatellite loci, and 21 haplotypes were identified based on 1,113 bp of concatenated cpDNA sequences. The populations showed moderately high genetic diversity (mean HE = 0.627 for microsatellite gene diversity and HT = 0.574 for average haplotype diversity) but low genetic differentiation (FST = 0.036). Using Bayesian clustering, the studied populations can be divided into two groups, one of which shows further substructuring. Further sub-structuring in Cluster 1 led to sub-clustering of 1a and 1b. Bottleneck analysis did not detect any recent bottleneck events. Based on our findings, priority areas for in situ and ex situ conservation and minimum population size are recommended for the sustainable utilization of R. curtisii. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this study is to investigate the spatial distribution of municipal waste production and its impact on urban environmental sustainability in greater Amman. The GIS techniques were used to analyze the distribution pattern within the municipality regions and the factors that affect this pattern. The analysis shows that the presence of a positive correlation is significant at a 0.01 confidence level between the population size, and education level type graduate, postgraduate, and read and write with 0.888, 0.754, and 0.687, respectively. There is an obvious positive relationship between the income level and waste production, and this is shown clearly in the Western part of Amman. On the other hand, the low‐income level in the Eastern part of Amman has resulted in a lower amount of municipal solid waste production. The amount of waste generated in the city of Amman represents a significant increase in the rates of municipal solid waste production, rising from 0.77 kg per capita per day in 2007 to 0.84 kg per capita per day over the past 15 years. The increase in economic and commercial activities in some regions has played the main role in increasing the quantities of solid waste produced in the central business regions. This result provides a better vision for the environmental management planners and decision‐makers regarding solid waste production management in Amman municipality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Shorebirds represent key indicator species for evaluating the health of wetlands, as they rely on specific habitats for breeding and foraging. Several restoration actions were initiated to restore these wetlands in the Hortobágy (Hungary), however, their effects have never been assessed. Since birds are good indicators of the health and quality of natural environment and sensitive to changes in land use and climate, we evaluated the restoration actions conducted in the last 20 years using bird monitoring data. Our study focuses on the long-term effects of different habitat restoration actions implemented in the region, which involved no restoration, targeted and non-targeted type of interventions for shorebird management as well as long-term and short-term management. The evaluation is based on long-term monitoring data of shorebird species: Black-winged Stilt, Northern Lapwing, Black-tailed Godwit, Common Redshank and Common Snipe. The effectiveness of restoration actions found to have a species-specific aspect, but in general, our findings indicate positive effects of targeted and long-term restoration actions on breeding shorebird populations. By contrast, targeted but short-term actions led to even worse results for shorebird breeding population size than where no restoration actions were initiated. These findings contribute to a better understanding of the specific habitat requirements of breeding shorebirds in the steppe region and can inform future habitat management strategies. The results can be used in conservation planning and management and highlight the importance of long-term and targeted habitat reconstruction projects in restoring and maintaining breeding shorebird populations.

Musk deer (Moschus spp.) are widely known for its musk and are globally endangered as a result of poaching, habitat loss, and fragmentation. To facilitate restoration of the alpine musk deer (M. chrysogaster) in existing areas, reliable estimates of population size and influencing factors are essential to assess effectiveness of conservation interventions, particularly for isolated musk deer populations in patches. In this paper, we used line transect and camera trap data collected from 2020 to 2022 in the Helan mountains to assess the population status and characterized the influencing factors of alpine musk deer. Our findings indicate that musk deer are patchily distributed in three areas of high elevation, with the population limited to less than 200 individuals, remaining below historic levels (compared to 1995). There was a significant positive correlation between the role of sympatric species on musk deer, with red fox (Vulpes vulpes), badger (Meles meles) and blue eared-pheasant (Crossoptilon auritum) having a significant effect on the out-modeled pathway. Variable but insignificant effects of anthropogenic activities were observed across all species categories, which could be due to mutual adaptation over time. Our results imply that the recovery of sensitive population in island-like habitats remains challenging and may be exacerbated by limited environment and resources. Our study underscores the necessity of establishing ecological corridors to enhance habitat connectivity for alpine musk deer, undertaking conservation genetics research on isolated populations, controlling stray dogs to maintain interspecific balance, and implementing electronic fencing to mitigate human disturbance and resource competition. This study provides basic information for understanding the population status of alpine musk deer and offers insights for conservation efforts.

Protected species require targeted studies to establish population sizes, their dispersal capacity and the possible genetic bottleneck effect that could impair the future of the remaining populations. In this study, we used the genotyping-by-sequencing technique (SNP: single nucleotide polymorphism) combined with Capture-Mark-Recapture (CMR) method to measure the dispersal ability and subpopulation sizes of the protected butterfly Zerynthia polyxena in 14 sites of NW Italian Alps. The study species form a metapopulation divided into several small subpopulations (ranging from 90 to 859 estimated subpopulation sizes). The species showed low mobility, likely due to habitat fragmentation, with individuals travelling an average of 80 m from their original capture site. SNPs highlighted high observed heterozygosity, low genetic substructuring at short distances, and large genetic differentiation only for individuals found in sites located at 46 km distance, suggesting high gene flow at short distances and limited gene flow between distant populations. Although CMR data did not detect movement beyond 700 m, the genetic results revealed remarkable connectivity among nearby subpopulations. The results indicate that gene flow still exists among the subpopulations despite the fragmented habitat. Considering that the species is locally threatened by habitat loss due to the planning of a European high-speed railway, our data suggest that it is not too late to adopt conservation measures. In conclusion, combining genetic and ecological studies can be utilised to design proper conservation plans for protected and threatened insect metapopulations.

The aim of this study was to investigate to what extent fragments of the HEV genome could be used for accurate diagnostics and inference of viral population-scale processes. For this, we selected all the published whole genome sequences from the NCBI GenBank and trimmed them to various fragment lengths (ORF1,2,3, ORF1, ORF2, ORF3, 493 nt in ORF2 and 148 nt in ORF2). Each of the fragment lengths was used to infer the richness and diversity of the viral sequence types, typing accuracy, and potential use in phylodynamics. The results obtained from the different fragments were compared. We observed that, generally, the longer the nucleic acid fragment used in typing, the better the accuracy in predicting the viral subtype. However, the dominant HEV subtypes circulating in Europe were relatively well classified even by the 493 nt fragment, with false negative rates as low as 8 in 1000 typed sequences. Most fragments also give comparable results in analyses of population size, albeit with shorter fragments showing a broader 95 % highest posterior density interval and less obvious increase of the viral effective population size. The reconstructed phylogenies of a heterochronous subset indicated a good concordance between all the fragments, with the major clades following similar branching patterns. Furthermore, we have used the HEV sequence data from the Netherlands available in the HEVnet database as a case study for reconstruction of population size changes in the past decades. This data showed that molecular and epidemiological results are concordant and point to an increase in the viral effective population size underlying the observed increase in incidence of acute HEV infection cases. In the absence of whole genome sequencing data, the 493 bp fragment can be used for analyzing HEV strains currently circulating in Europe, as it is informative for describing short term population-scale processes.

At the moment, there are no universal tools for forecasting indicators of socio-economic development in general and demographic in particular. However, the amount of budget allocations that are directed to solving personnel issues, creating social facilities and implementing other activities significant for economic, social and infrastructural development, development vectors depend on the forecast of demographic indicators by one-year-olds. In this article, a meaningful analysis is carried out an analysis of the researchers' work, based on the results of which it is determined that artificial intelligence models, in particular the most adaptive neural networks, are almost not used in predicting demographic indicators, forecasts based on models of artificial neural networks for all ages or by age groups, have almost no significance from the point of view of managing socio-economic development. The result of the research is a neural network methodological approach, methodology and tools for forecasting demographic processes for one-year-olds. The developed methodological approach to forecasting and tools are universal in the field of forecasting socio-economic indicators. In addition, the results described in the article can be used in other research in the field of forecasting, planning of any indicators.

AbstractNumerous studies have attempted to identify potential risk-factors associated with COVID-19 infection, including inter alia: age, diet, higher population density, and the quality and availability of health services. The objective of the current study is to analyze the weight of four covariates on a daily infection rate from SARS-COV2 virus. The method used is regression analysis, where each variable is converted to the standard normal distribution function. Results demonstrate that of the four investigated covariates, vaccination and population size have the highest weights. Given the empirical analysis, the most efficient way to achieve a reduction in the spread of the pandemic is via appropriate vaccination programs.

Solid waste (SW) is produeed by domestie, eommereial, eonstruetion and demolition aetivities due to an inerease in population size and urbanization. Solid waste management (SWM) is a major ehallenge for eities in Pakistan beeause of the inereasing generation of solid waste and its poor management praetiees. This study ealeulated the determinants of solid waste and measures the impaets of dumping sites on nearby eommunities by devising a questionnaire teehnique. The seeondary sources of data ineluded a eomprehensive literature review of SWM. The results of this study identified the eolleetion meehanisms for solid waste and the harmful impaets of solid waste on agrieultural land, human health, biodiversity loss, groundwater pollution and air pollution. The variables of SWM were tested by statistieal analysis, i.e., the ANOVA test, identified the differenee among the means of the variables at P<0.5. The pearson eorrelation analysis of variables identified the relationship among the variables of SWM at P<0.5, for 500 respondents. Faetor analysis provided the eigenvalues, the KMO measure of sampling adequaey, Bartlett's test of spherieity and the Total Varianee Explained (TVE) at P>0.5, n=500 for the larger data set. In Pakistan, about 5 million people have died beeause of solid waste-related disorders. About 20 million tonnes of solid waste is generated in Pakistan everyyear, with an annual growth rate of2.4%. By improving management, enforcing laws, properly planning dumping sites and adopting eost-effeetive methods, we ean save ourselves and future generations from the harmful impaets of solid waste. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Baseline information about declining North American shorebird populations is essential to determine the effects of global warming at low-lying coastal areas of the Arctic and subarctic, where numerous taxa breed, and to assess population recovery throughout their range. We estimated population sizes on the Yukon–Kuskokwim Delta (YKD) in western Alaska on the eastern edge of the Bering Sea. We conducted ground-based surveys during 2015 and 2016 at 589 randomly selected plots from an area of 35,769 km2. We used stratified random sampling in 8 physiographic strata and corrected population estimates using detection ratios derived from double sampling on a subset of plots. We detected 11,110 breeding individuals of 21 taxa. Western Sandpiper (Calidris mauri), Red-necked Phalarope (Phalaropus lobatus), Dunlin (subspecies C. alpina pacifica), and Wilson's Snipe (Gallinago delicata) were the most abundant taxa. We estimated that ~7 million individual shorebirds were breeding on the entire YKD in 2015 and 2016. Our surveys of this region provided robust population estimates (coefficient of variations ≤ 0.35) for 14 species. Our results indicate that the YKD supports a large proportion of North America's breeding populations of the Pacific Golden-Plover (Pluvialis fulva), the western population of a Whimbrel subspecies (Numenius phaeopus hudsonicus), a Bar-tailed Godwit subspecies (Limosa lapponica baueri), Black Turnstone (Arenaria melanocephala), a Dunlin subspecies (C. alpina pacifica), and Western Sandpiper. Our study highlights the importance of breeding shorebirds of this relatively pristine but climatically sensitive deltaic system. Estuaries and deltaic systems worldwide are rapidly being degraded by anthropogenic activities. Our population estimates can be used to refine prior North American population estimates, determine the effects of global warming, and evaluate conservation success by measuring population change over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dynamic linear functions on the boolean hypercube are functions which assign to each bit a positive weight, but the weights change over time. Throughout optimization, these functions maintain the same global optimum, and never have defecting local optima. Nevertheless, it was recently shown [Lengler, Schaller, FOCI 2019] that the (1 + 1) -Evolutionary Algorithm needs exponential time to find or approximate the optimum for some algorithm configurations. In this experimental paper, we study the effect of larger population sizes for dynamic binval, the extreme form of dynamic linear functions. We find that moderately increased population sizes extend the range of efficient algorithm configurations, and that crossover boosts this positive effect substantially. Remarkably, similar to the static setting of monotone functions in [Lengler, Zou, FOGA 2019], the hardest region of optimization for (μ + 1) -EA is not close the optimum, but far away from it. In contrast, for the (μ + 1) -GA, the region around the optimum is the hardest region in all studied cases.Kindly check and confirm the inserted city name is correctly identified.Correct. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Globally, grassland degradation is an acute ecological problem. In alpine grassland on the Tibetan Plateau, increased densities of various small mammals in degraded grassland are assumed to intensify the degradation process and these mammals are subject to lethal control. However, whether the negative impact of small mammals is solely a result of population size or also a result of activity and behavior has not been tested. In this study, we use plateau pika as a model to compare population size, core area of colony, and the number of burrow entrances and latrines between lightly and severely degraded grassland. We test whether the alleged contribution of pika to grassland degradation is a result of increased population size or increased burrowing activities of individuals in response to lower food abundance. We found that grassland degradation resulted in lower plant species richness, plant height, and biomass. Furthermore, the overall population size of pika was not significantly affected by location in lightly and severely degraded grassland. However, pika core areas in severely grassland degradation were significantly larger and had significantly higher densities of burrows and latrines. Our study provides convincing evidence that habitat‐induced changes in the behavior of small, burrowing mammals, such as pika, can exacerbate grassland degradation. This finding has significant implications for managing small mammals and restoring degraded grassland ecosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This research considers the current New Zealand conventional wisdom of a Māori contact‐era population of 100,000 circa‐1770 using a variety of population density analogues. The first set of analogues examines estimated population densities of six districts in early‐contact period New Zealand for which reasonable population estimates can be constructed using methods of historical demography. The second set examines estimated population densities of pre‐industrial societies on large, relatively isolated temperate islands outside of New Zealand. The density research indicates that a contact‐era Māori population in excess of 200,000 is a distinct possibility. Based on this density analysis the current conventional wisdom's figure of 100,000 appears to be—considerably—on the low side, and suggesting considerable catastrophic early post‐contact population decline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A pervasive threat regarding human health, ecological balance, progress, and sustainability marks the current era. Many nations are grappling with the consequences of the overabundance of carbon emissions from a wide range of destructive human activities, which is the primary driver of air pollution, global warming, and warming. Thus, while some countries are squandering their riches, others are making great strides to keep the environment clean and green so that future generations may thrive. National governments and policymakers are now focusing a lot of energy on addressing the dangers posed by environmental concerns and the threat of climate change. A very contentious issue in recent years has been the link between environmental change and tourism and its vulnerability. This study focuses on the impact of fluctuating visitor numbers on greenhouse gas emissions, the primary gas responsible for the acceleration of global warming and other environmental changes. Therefore, we look at how the most visited countries' carbon emissions have changed due to increased tourism. The ecological effects of tourism on a regional scale are investigated using a panel data analysis spanning the years 2001–2018 in China, including the top 80 countries. The best-modified assessment methodologies determine the overall, direct, and indirect impact of tourist spending on carbon emissions. The findings demonstrate that CO2 emissions might be reduced by environmental regulation, urbanization, and tourist revenue and that they could be increased through economic expansion, population, and tourism. Due to this distinction, tourists' overall impact is much more harmful than their direct impact. In addition, a U-shape is formed by the direct effects of carbon emissions and a growing economy, and vice versa. Several factors impact environmental regulation, including population density, population growth, pollution, and GDP growth. Spending on infrastructure development and economic expansion also considerably mitigates the impacts of tourism and environmental alteration. The results reveal that a nation's emissions often rise with the expansion of its tourism industry. Still, they begin to decline after certain levels and show that the link between the two has important policy implications.

Prospects of resumption the Baikal seal (Pusa sibirica) commercial hunting are discussed. Inconsistency of the materials annually submitted by BaikalNIRO for the State report «On the state of Lake Baikal and measures for its protection» for making important decisions regarding the population of Baikal seal is shown. Studies on the population dynamics and methods of its assessment are considered critically, the problems in monitoring of the population are revealed. Adequacy of the presented data on the seals abundance to their real number is doubtful. Current state of the population is considered as quite prosperous, its abundance is high but not excessive. Carrying capacity of the habitat is a variable and difficult to determine, its dynamics is vague and cannot be considered as a reliable basis for resuming the commercial hunting. Groundlessness of such proposals is substantiated and possible negative consequences are shown.

Species living in spatially structured populations require a network of interconnected habitat patches. Due to changes in forest management, this network of habitat patches has been lost for insect species inhabiting open spots within forests. We studied two of the last populations of the Southern White Admiral (Limenitis reducta) in Germany. The aim of our study was to provide information for the conservation of this species. We conducted a capture-mark-recapture study over three consecutive years and we estimated population sizes and demographic parameters using Jolly-Seber and Cormack-Jolly-Seber models. Furthermore, we used different dispersal kernels to study the dispersal of L. reducta. We found that apparent survival rates differed greatly between the sexes. The mean residence times were eight to nine days for males and only two to four days for females. Apparent survival rates of both sexes decreased with increasing wing deterioration. Total population sizes of L. reducta varied between sites and years and ranged between 61 and 123. Daily abundances were generally low, especially that of females. The mean dispersal distance of individual recaptured butterflies increased in years with higher population densities, suggesting density-dependent dispersal. The dispersal data in our study was clearly bimodal, probably reflecting ‘routine movement’ at short distances and ‘displacement movement’ between habitat patches at longer distances. Consequently, the processes generating the dispersal data were better represented by the lognormal mixture model than by the negative exponential and the inverse power function. The mixed kernel predicted that about 9 % of the population disperses over > 1 km but that long-distance dispersal is rare. Our study highlights the urgent need for conservation measures to protect L. reducta in Germany and, based on our data, we recommend to create new habitat patches at distances of 1 to 1.5 km from existing habitats.

The Irrawaddy dolphin is found in the coastal and estuarine areas of West Penang, Malaysia. Studies were conducted to estimate the site fidelity, residence index, and population size of Irrawaddy dolphins in West Penang. Photo-identification studies were conducted using boat surveys from 2019 to 2021. Thirty-nine marked Irrawaddy dolphins were identified, with thirty-six newly identified individuals and three individuals observed in 2013. Resightings of four individuals indicated that they were found north of Sungai Burung and Sungai Pinang in West Penang. The majority of individuals had low sighting rates, ranging from 2.6 to 7.7%, with three individuals having medium sighting rates, the highest being 15.4%. The residence index was 0.01 for all 36 individuals, and the highest value of 0.36 was recorded for one individual. Using open population models and closed models, the population size was determined to be 64 or and 52, respectively. The results suggest that although there is a population present, it is probably open, as the residence index is low. The population size appeared to be stable from 2013 to 2021. This information will inform conservation managers of the best way forward for the conservation of Irrawaddy dolphins in Penang.

The study aimed to analyse the spatial structure of moose (Alces alces) in central-eastern Poland, taking into account sex structure and preferences regarding the composition of social groups. The density of animals in forest and swamp areas was analysed. Moose were shown to strongly prefer forest areas. Females moving with fawns and single females and males were most often observed. Statistical analysis confirmed that the biotope preference of this species does not depend on the type of social group in which the animals migrate. In the territory of the Regional Directorate of State Forests in Lublin, the moose density per 1000 ha of forest and swamp averaged 5.9 individuals. Reproductive success and the number of young born were typical of the species. In 73% of cases, they moved in three dominant types of social groups, i.e. a hind with fawns, solitary stags and solitary hinds. The animals were found mainly in forest areas (65.1%). It should be remembered that in European forests it is very rarely possible to maintain Cervidae populations at a level that guarantees the absence of foraging effects on forest regeneration and the maintenance of its sustainability. Therefore, continuous monitoring of the species’ population size is recommended.

Urban population size dynamic adjustment has been widely studied for a long time; however, the dynamic adjustment at the urban hierarchy level remains unknown. This study utilises China’s urban population data to investigate the dynamic adjustment. Specifically, we utilise methods of the Gini coefficient, linear regression, and coefficients of Spearman, and Moran’s I to explore the dynamic adjustment tendency, adjustment rate and correlation of urban population size distribution of different urban hierarchies and groups of different urban hierarchies. We find that the urban population size spatial distribution is gradually even within the same urban hierarchy. The adjustment rate to be even of Megacity II is the highest, and Megacity I is the bottom. We also find the population size spatial distribution of the whole urban system is gradually uneven. We explore the dynamic process by sorting urban hierarchies into six groups. Furthermore, we find there is a complex correlation between different urban hierarchies and global spatial correlation among China cities. These results are valuable as references for Chinese policy-makers and practitioners and will enable them to adopt sustainable land use and urban population management measures. The study outcomes will also benefit future studies on spatial population size distribution in international communities.

AbstractThe Clouded Apollo, Parnassius mnemosyne is a charismatic West Palaearctic butterfly, threatened in some European countries and listed in Appendix IV of the Habitats’ Directive. We investigated a large lowland population of the species inhabiting a complex of irregularly coppiced light forest and adjacent wet meadows in the anthropogenic landscape in the valley of the Narew river in NE Poland. A mark-release-recapture (MRR) method was used over 4 years to estimate population size, adult catchability, daily survival and lifespan. The beginning and length of the flight period (which lasted 4–6 weeks) differed over the years and was clearly related to weather conditions (temperature, sunshine) in April, i.e. the most important period for larval development. The seasonal population size varied from 555 to 942 adults. In contrast to some previous studies, the sex ratio turned out to be well balanced, although the catchability of males was significantly higher than that of females in each year. The quality of the wings deteriorated during the season in both sexes, but it was generally better in the case of females, which indicates that they are less active. Inter-seasonal variation in the lifespan (6.36–12.45 days) is more difficult to interpret, but it is worth noting that individuals lived the longest in the coldest and least sunlit flight period. The temporal fragmentation index (i.e. the ratio of flight-period length to adult lifespan) also varied (3.37–5.97) but was generally relatively low, which suggests that there is no threat of reduction of the effective population size at the moment. Nevertheless, the investigated population may be at risk of decline due to the observed intensification of meadow use and especially the possible conversion of grasslands into cornfields.

Shiqu County, Sichuan Province, forms the eastern edge of the distribution area of the kiang (Equus kiang). It is important to assess the population and habitat status of peripheral populations, as these play a significant role in the development of conservation strategies for kiangs. Based on field transect data collected from July to August 2023, this study predicted the suitable habitat distribution of kiangs in Shiqu County using a MaxEnt model and estimated the population size and density using the ‘Distance’ package. Additionally, it analyzed the responses of the group size of kiangs to environmental factors in Shiqu County. The results showed that the area of suitable habitat for kiangs is 3402.45 km2, accounting for 13.51% of the total area of Shiqu County. The estimated population was 1395.00 ± 272.20, with a population density of 0.41 ± 0.08/km2. Additionally, the group size of kiangs was significantly positively correlated with the distance from the road and grazing site. The distance from the grazing site, elevation, and temperature annual range are the main environmental factors affecting the distribution of kiangs. This study initially revealed the peripheral population Status and suitable habitat of the kiang on the eastern Tibetan Plateau, and the potential threat of grazing interference and road obstruction. The research results can provide a scientific reference for the population and habitat protection of kiangs in this area.

Agricultural intensification is leading to conversion of cocoa agroforestry towards monocultures across the tropics. In the context of cocoa agriculture, arthropods provide a range of ecosystem services and dis‐services. Arthropod pests (e.g., mirids and mealybugs) can cause major damage to crops, whilst pollinators and natural enemies (e.g., predatory insects and parasitoids) have the potential to enhance agricultural yields. Understanding how intensification of cocoa farming affects different arthropod groups is therefore important in maximising the abundance of beneficial arthropod taxa and reducing pest burdens. However, little is known about the influences of agricultural intensification on tropical arthropod communities, especially in Africa, where ~70% of the world's cocoa is produced.Most research on arthropod communities considers data from different sampling methods separately, as proxies of abundance; whilst these proxies can be informative, estimating true abundance enables direct comparison between arthropod taxa, and therefore the study of community dynamics. Here, we develop a Bayesian hierarchical model that integrates data from three common arthropod survey techniques to estimate population size of arthropod orders and to investigate how arthropod community composition responds to farm shade cover (an indicator of management intensity).Our results show that eight of 11 arthropod taxa responded to farm shade cover; importantly, brown capsids (the primary pest of cocoa in Africa), Coleoptera pests and Hemiptera pests decreased with increasing farm shade cover, whilst Araneae (natural enemies) and Diptera (potential pollinators) were more abundant in shady farms.Synthesis and applications. To achieve lower pest burdens and higher abundances of potential pollinators and natural enemies, African cocoa farms should maintain a dense canopy of shade trees. The current shift towards high‐intensity cocoa farming in Africa could result in long‐term losses due to pest infestations and loss of arthropod‐mediated ecosystem services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]