Markov models of territory occupancy: Implications for the management and conservation of competing species

Markov chains have been frequently used in community ecology to model successional changes, but little attention has been paid to its application in population ecology as a tool to explore the outcomes of species interactions. Markov models can be regarded as >null models> that provide predicted values under a no-change scenario against which the consequences of changes in variables of interest can be assessed. Here we explore Markov chains' potential to project population trends of competing species and derive sensible management strategies. To do that we use six years of field data on territory occupancy and turn-over of two competing top predators in a Mediterranean landscape: the golden and Bonelli's eagles. The results suggest that long-term coexistence of both species in the study area is likely, with the main limitation for their coexistence being the difficulties Bonelli's eagles have in colonising new territories that become available. To avoid future declines in the population of Bonelli's eagle, it is important to take into account that the positive effects of conservation strategies focused on encouraging colonization (e.g. decreasing disperser mortality) are likely to be larger than those focused on avoiding territory abandonment (e.g. decreasing adult mortality). Markov chains are likely to be useful to evaluate the relative merit of alternative management options in other territorial species when patterns of territory occupancy are the only reliable data available, as often happens with large predators. © 2008 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.Peer Reviewe

Towards a holistic understanding of pastoralism

Pastoralism is a globally-important livelihood, with large social, environmental and economic importance across much of our planet. Yet, it is also a vulnerable practice with widespread crises, urgently calling for better systemic understanding. The current disciplinary compartmentalization of research not only hampers this but allows perpetuation of unfortunate misconceptions. Furthermore, a long-standing marginalization of the livelihood prevails, with pastoralism being largely overlooked in international environmental and economic forums or sustainability agendas. Here we call for transformative approaches to pastoralism research that can advance an integrated understanding of these social-ecological systems through a comparative lens. We develop a framework that uses: i) timescales from the distant past to the present, ii)social, economic and environmental dimensions, and iii) diverse geographic contexts and scales, to capture emerging properties allowing for cross-cultural comparisons. We provide specific guidelines for formally developing a coherent set of sustainability indicators that are transferable across time and space, and can track sustainability. In an exploratory exercise, we also show that very distinct pastoralist systems have undergone similar transitions across time, approaching critical thresholds and then either collapsing or recovering. An integrated view of the interactions between the environmental, social and economic dimensions of these transitions allows for an improved understanding of potential tipping points, hence supporting more proactive and informed decision-making. We conclude that the need for a paradigm shift in pastoralism science and policy is pressing. Determining when, where and how is pastoralism not only sustainable, but also the most adaptive livelihood, has become a priority. This paper is based on Manzano et al. (2021).Peer reviewe

Toward a holistic understanding of pastoralism

Pastoralism is globally significant in social, environmental and economic terms. However, it experiences crises rooted in misconceptions and poor interdisciplinary understanding, while being largely overlooked in international sustainability forums and agendas. Here we propose a transdisciplinary research approach to understand pastoralist transitions using i) social, economic and environmental dimensions, ii) diverse geographic contexts and scales to capture emerging properties, allowing for cross-system comparisons, and iii) timescales from the distant past to the present. We provide specific guidelines to develop indicators for this approach, within a social-ecological resilience analytical framework to understand change. Distinct systems undergo similar transitions over time, crossing critical thresholds and then either collapsing or recovering. Such an integrated view of multidimensional interactions improves understanding of possible tipping points, thereby supporting better-informed decision-making. The need for a paradigm shift in pastoralism science and policy is pressing. This research approach, including participatory methods, can provide the solutions urgently needed.Peer reviewe

Supplementary information for the article: Brodschneider, R.; Schlagbauer, J.; Arakelyan, I.; Ballis, A.; Brus, J.; Brusbardis, V.; Cadahía, L.; Charrière, J.-D.; Chlebo, R.; Coffey, M. F.; Cornelissen, B.; da Costa, C. A.; Danneels, E.; Danihlík, J.; Dobrescu, C.; Evans, G.; Fedoriak, M.; Forsythe, I.; Gregorc, A.; Johannesen, J.; Kauko, L.; Kristiansen, P.; Martikkala, M.; Martín-Hernández, R.; Mazur, E.; Mutinelli, F.; Patalano, S.; Raudmets, A.; Simon Delso, N.; Stevanovic, J.; Uzunov, A.; Vejsnæs, F.; Williams, A.; Gray, A. Spatial Clusters of Varroa Destructor Control Strategies in Europe. J Pest Sci 2022. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10340-022-01523-2.

Table S1. Utilized packages of the statistical software R version 4.0.4.Supplementary material for: [https://vet-erinar.vet.bg.ac.rs/handle/123456789/2469]Related to the published version: [https://vet-erinar.vet.bg.ac.rs/handle/123456789/2469

Honey bee colony loss rates in 37 countries using the COLOSS survey for winter 2019–2020 : the combined effects of operation size, migration and queen replacement

This article presents managed honey bee colony loss rates over winter 2019/20 resulting from using the standardised COLOSS questionnaire in 37 countries. Six countries were from outside Europe, including, for the first time in this series of articles, New Zealand. The 30,491 beekeepers outside New Zealand reported 4.5% of colonies with unsolvable queen problems, 11.1% of colonies dead after winter and 2.6% lost through natural disaster. This gave an overall colony winter loss rate of 18.1%, higher than in the previous year. The winter loss rates varied greatly between countries, from 7.4% to 36.5%. 3216 beekeepers from New Zealand managing 297,345 colonies reported 10.5% losses for their 2019 winter (six months earlier than for other, Northern Hemisphere, countries). We modelled the risk of loss as a dead/empty colony or from unresolvable queen problems, for all countries except New Zealand. Overall, larger beekeeping operations with more than 50 colonies experienced significantly lower losses (

Honey bee colony loss rates in 37 countries using the COLOSS survey for winter 2019–2020: the combined effects of operation size, migration and queen replacement

Publication history: Accepted - 12 July 2022; Published online - 6 September 2022.This article presents managed honey bee colony loss rates over winter 2019/20 resulting from using the standardised COLOSS questionnaire in 37 countries. Six countries were from outside Europe, including, for the first time in this series of articles, New Zealand. The 30,491 beekeepers outside New Zealand reported 4.5% of colonies with unsolvable queen problems, 11.1% of colonies dead after winter and 2.6% lost through natural disaster. This gave an overall colony winter loss rate of 18.1%, higher than in the previous year. The winter loss rates varied greatly between countries, from 7.4% to 36.5%. 3216 beekeepers from New Zealand managing 297,345 colonies reported 10.5% losses for their 2019 winter (six months earlier than for other, Northern Hemisphere, countries). We modelled the risk of loss as a dead/empty colony or from unresolvable queen problems, for all countries except New Zealand. Overall, larger beekeeping operations with more than 50 colonies experienced significantly lower losses (p<0.001). Migration was also highly significant (p<0.001), with lower loss rates for operations migrating their colonies in the previous season. A higher proportion of new queens reduced the risk of colony winter loss (p<0.001), suggesting that more queen replacement is better. All three factors, operation size, migration and proportion of young queens, were also included in a multivariable main effects quasi-binomial GLM and all three remained highly significant (p<0.001). Detailed results for each country and overall are given in a table, and a map shows relative risks of winter loss at the regional level.Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (BO-43-011.03-005); Republic of Serbia, MPNTR-RS, through Grant No. III46002; Slovakia the project "Sustainable smart farming systems taking into account the future challenges 313011W112"; Slovenian Research Program P1-0164; Danish Beekeepers Association for their funding and support of the international LimeSurvey platform used by many participating countries; “Zukunft Biene 2” (grant number 101295/2) in Austria; University of Graz for open access

Satellite tracking of juvenile dispersal in Golden and Bonelli’s eagles in Spain

Comunicación presentada en ARGOS Users Conferece, Annapolis, Maryland, USA, 5-7th April 2005

Bonelli's Eagle Hieraaetus fasciatus juvenile dispersal: hourly and daily movements tracked by GPS

Birds cover daily distances not normally exceeding 20 km during the initial phase of dispersal, with the daily peak of movement/activity in the afternoon.This project was funded by Terra Natura Foundation. L. Cadahía is supported by a grant of the Spanish Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia (reference AP2001-1444)