Diagnosis of the ecological condition of the drove road network in the Autonomous Community of Madrid (central Spain)

Context: Drove roads are landscape corridors traditionally used for livestock movement in many regions of the world, including Spain, where they cover about 0.8% of the land. They have ecological importance due to their role in connectivity, seed dispersal, soil preservation, habitat and biodiversity conservation, and the provision of ecosystem services. Drove roads are experiencing deterioration due to the abandonment of extensive grazing and transhumance. Objectives: We aim to characterize the conservation status and main predictors of deterioration of the drove roads in the Community of Madrid, a region in Spain with a high presence of these corridors. Methods: We considered all the network of the region, with the main analyses based on a sample of 160 segments of 200 m-long, which were evaluated using GIS and fieldwork. Results: Nearly one third of the network surface is occupied by crops, communication infrastructure, and urban or industrial surfaces. Natural habitats make up 60% of the network and are affected by soil degradation and grazing abandonment. Landscape matrix was the main predictor of drove road status, with urban and cropland matrices leading to a reduction in spatial integrity and availability for natural habitats. Grazing was most preserved in grassland matrices. Eco-district, drove road width, and distance to city center also had influence on conservation status. Conclusions: Despite their concerning state, the network is restorable in many areas of the region. Restoration should focus on intensified and simplified landscapes, where the network plays a more decisive role, and should consider the reintroduction of livestockOpen Access funding provided thanks to the CRUE-CSIC agreement with Springer Nature. This work was supported by the European Union Life Program (project LIFE CAÑADAS, LIFE 18 NAT/ES/000930

Edaphic arthropods as indicators of the ecological condition of temperate grassland ecosystems: A systematic review

Temperate grasslands are part of one of the biggest biomes on earth, sustaining high levels of biodiversity and providing multiple ecosystem services. However, the area covered by this open ecosystem is decreasing worldwide, due to several threats like land use change or climate change. Ground-dwelling arthropods are an important group of the community of grassland soil invertebrates, and they play a key role within this ecosystem, while at the same time being sensitive to the changes caused by management practices like grazing, mowing, prescribed fire, etc. Using the Web of Science database, we conducted a systematic review to identify which groups of arthropods are being used as indicators to evaluate the ecological condition of grasslands in temperate regions, and which indices are being measured. As grasslands have been traditionally managed by humans for centuries, their ecological condition is intrinsically linked to the development of different management practices like grazing, mowing or restoration strategies, which usually affect soil and vegetation structure. We found that macro-arthropods were used in a greater number of studies than micro-arthropods (91% vs 15%), and within that size group, beetles were the preferred indicator in most of the temperate grassland types (49% of the studies), followed by spiders and ants. Few studies used grasshoppers to monitor grasslands changes. The indices more frequently assessed were species richness and abundance, and we identified that the response to the different management practices was quite heterogeneous. Restoration and grazing effects were the two factors more frequently evaluated for macro-arthropods, while micro-arthropods (Acari and Collembola) were dominant to assess land use type. Overall, our findings highlight the need to increase the number of studies in some temperate regions, to explore the potential of overlooked groups of arthropods, and to include indices that measure functional diversity or community compositionThis work was financially supported by the European Union Life Program (project LIFE CANADAS, LIFE 18 NAT/ES/000930

Land use change of transhumant drove roads leads to soil quality degradation: a case study in Central Spain

Grassland soils, beyond their role as biodiversity reservoirs, actively contribute to the provision of numerous ecosystem services. In the Iberian Peninsula, drove roads, the traditional routes used for seasonal livestock movements in search of the most productive pastures, play a key role in the preservation of semi-natural grasslands and in the protection of the upper soil horizon. However, the absence of transhumant pastoralism has led to the degradation of these natural corridors, with unexplored consequences in terms of soil quality and functioning. To investigate the relationship between the conservation state of these livestock routes and soil characteristics, which had not been researched to date, we selected thirty sites within the Madrid drove road network in central Spain. We established three categories: (i) reference well-preserved drove roads and two degraded states: (ii) overgrown abandoned and (iii) eroded drove roads and collected soil samples at each state. We determined soil physicochemical variables like the percentage of C, total N and P, available K, pH and electrical conductivity. We also measured soil enzyme activity using fluorometric methods and assessed litter decomposition through the Tea Bag Index experiment. Our findings demonstrated that the preservation state of drove roads had a significant impact on soil fertility. The mean carbon percentage was up to ten times lower in eroded drove roads compared to reference sites, while nitrogen content was four times higher in reference sites, and phosphorus and potassium content were twice as high in reference drove roads compared to eroded sites. Litter decomposition rate was also half in eroded soils compared to reference sites. Although the nutrient content and litter decomposition of overgrown abandoned drove roads did not differ from reference sites, enzyme activity was significantly higher in reference soils compared to both degraded states. Arylsulfatase activity was six times higher in reference plots, which also showed twice as much phosphatase activity and up to four times as much β-xylosidase activity. Our results confirmed our hypothesis that drove roads suffering from erosion have the most degraded soils. Additionally, we found that both the excessive accumulation of biomass due to grazing abandonment and the loss of vegetation cover through erosion contribute to the loss of soil functionality within the Madrid drove road network. The lack of use and subsequent degradation of drove roads compromise both the stability of the soil ecosystem and the availability of nutrients for plants. Given the vast surface area covered by this network of corridors, the reintroduction of transhumant and local extensive grazing can be an important tool to improve soil characteristic

Role of floral strips and semi-natural habitats as enhancers of wild bee functional diversity in intensive agricultural landscapes

Los autores de la UAM pertenecen al Terrestrial Ecology Group, Department of EcologyInstalling patches of flowering plants is a commonly used strategy to enhance refuge and food resources for pollinators in intensive agricultural landscapes. Here, we evaluated how floral strips and semi-natural habitats impact the taxonomic and functional diversity of wild bees in intensively farmed sunflower fields. Pan traps were used to assess bee richness and functional diversity at 22 sampling sites (11 sites were positioned in sunflower fields with floral strips, and 11 control sites were adjacent to semi-natural habitats). Five sampling levels were established in each field, positioned at different distances from the flower strip or semi-natural habitat. Wild bee species richness and functional richness were significantly higher inside floral strips and semi-natural habitats compared to sunflower fields. Functional redundancy was significantly higher inside agricultural fields compared to inside floral strips and semi-natural habitats. Sunflower fields with floral strips had lower Rao values compared to sunflower fields adjacent to semi-natural habitats. The community-weighted mean (CWM) of intertegular distance (distance between where wings attach to body) of wild bees was significantly higher in sunflower fields adjacent to semi-natural habitats. In comparison, the CWM of wing length varied across sampling levels in sunflower fields with semi-natural habitats. Our results show it is essential to have semi-natural habitats within intensive agricultural landscapes to ensure the conservation of wild bee diversity, while the installation of floral strips offers a partial substitute to enhance wild bee diversity when semi-natural habitats are scarce or absentFinancial support was provided by the European Union FEDER INTERREG SUDOE Program (SOE1/P5/E0129). CPC was supported by the Estonian Ministry of Education and Research (PSG293) and the European Regional Development Fund (Centre of Excellence EcolChange

Spatial patterns of species richness and nestedness in ant assemblages along an elevational gradient in a Mediterranean mountain range

Background The study of biodiversity spatial patterns along ecological gradients can serve to elucidate factors shaping biological community structure and predict ecosystem responses to global change. Ant assemblages are particularly interesting as study cases, because ant species play a key role in many ecosystem processes and have frequently been identified as useful bioindicators. Methods Here we analyzed the response of ant species richness and assemblage composition across elevational gradients in Mediterranean grasslands and subsequently tested whether these responses were stable spatially and temporally. We sampled ant assemblages in two years (2014, 2015) in two mountain ranges (Guadarrama, Serrota) in Central Spain, along an elevational gradient ranging from 685 to 2390 m a.s.l. Results Jackknife estimates of ant species richness ranged from three to 18.5 species and exhibited a hump-shaped relationship with elevation that peaked at mid-range values (1100–1400 m). This pattern was transferable temporally and spatially. Elevation was related to ant assemblage composition and facilitated separation of higher elevation assemblages (> 1700 m) from the remaining lower elevation species groups. Ant assemblages were nested; therefore species assemblages with a decreased number of species were a subset of the richer assemblages, although species turnover was more important than pure nestedness in all surveys. The degree of nestedness changed non-linearly as a cubic polynomial with elevation. These assembly patterns coincided more clearly over time than between the two study regions. Discussion We suggest double environmental stressors typical of Mediterranean mountains explained species richness patterns: drought at low elevations and cold temperatures at high elevations likely constrained richness at both extremes of elevational gradients. The fact that species turnover showed a dominant role over pure nestedness suggested current ant assemblages were context-dependent and highly vulnerable to global change, which threatens the conservation of present day native ant communities, particularly at high elevation

Exploring the effect of soil management intensity on taxonomic and functional diversity of ants in Mediterranean olive groves

Agricultural intensification is one of the major drivers behind biodiversity loss in Mediterranean agroecosystems. The intensification of olive groves as monoculture in large areas of the southern Spain has had important effects on biodiversity and ecological processes. In the present study, we explore the olive grove soil management practices effects on taxonomic and functional diversity of ants along a gradient of soil management intensity. We predict that both species richness and functional diversity decrease with an increasing intensification of olive grove soil management. We used pitfall traps to sample ants in 24 olive groves subject to different soil management regimes in southern Spain, and then compared ant species richness and functional diversity (FD). Nonploughed organic farms showed higher species richness. Ploughing was observed to be the soil management practice with the greatest negative effect on ant species richness. Three functional traits significantly responded to soil management intensity, with tibia length and head width showing a higher FD in organic farms and diet showing a lower FD in ploughed farms. The results of the present study highlight the negative effects of olive grove ploughing on ant biodiversity and provide novel evidence of the nonploughing organic farming role with respect to maintaining higher levels of ant functional diversityFinancial support was received from the Spanish Ministryof Economy and Competitiveness (Project CGL2014-53782-P

Abiotic controls, but not species richness, shape niche overlap and breadth of ant assemblages along an elevational gradient in central Spain

Niche overlap and breadth are fundamental characteristics of ecological niches that have been hypothesized to relate both to environmental conditions and to biotic interactions within a community. Abiotic factors and interspecific competition may have opposing effects on those niche characteristics by respectively filtering out species from the niche space and limiting among-species similarity. Here we set out to assess niche overlap and breadth of ant assemblages in Mediterranean grasslands along a 1668-m elevational gradient in the Guadarrama range (Central Spain). We carried out an outdoor cafeteria experiment considering two niche dimensions on resource acquisition: food type and period of aboveground activity. We compared metrics describing niche overlap and breadth to null models and related the metrics to elevation, temperature at ground level and a proxy of interspecific competition (species richness) with general linear models. Pianka's niche overlap indexes were higher than those calculated with random assemblages, but differences among observed and random assemblages were only significant at mid-elevations and were unrelated to the explanatory variables. Overlap along elevation seemed more due to overlap in period of activity. Niche breadth at the assemblage level was significatively smaller than null expectations and was related to elevation (negatively) and to species richness (positively). These were significantly larger than estimates for the species level. These results show that ant assemblages exploit a subset of available conditions, in a pattern only partially coincident with a scenario of abiotic control. Moreover, their constituent species share time of activity and, to a lesser extent, food resources, in spite of the interspecific competition structuring communities that is often assumed. Overall, the patterns we recorded suggest that other mechanisms should be acting to promote species coexistence, such as trade-offs among ecological functionsThis work was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness [Project 469 CGL2014-53789-R and grant BES-2015-075124 (MS)] and the research group network 470 REMEDINAL3-CM (S-2013/MAE-2719). The Sierra de Guadarrama National Park provided 471 administrative support. Arantxa Aguilar and Celia Santos contributed to the field work and Xavier 472 Espadaler helped to identify some species

Exploring the effect of landscape composition and agroecological practices on wild bees in horticultural farms

How farms and the surrounding landscape are managed locally substantially affects biodiversity, with consequent impacts on the supply of certain ecosystem services, such as pollination. Wild bees provide pollination services for small-scale horticultural farming, and are key to determining and improving farm production, as well as maintaining ecosystem-level diversity. Here, we investigated how landscape composition and agroecological practices affect wild bee community in small-scale horticultural farms. The study was conducted at 16 horticultural farms in the northern part of Madrid. The pan-trapping method was used to collect wild bees during the flowering period of horticultural plants. We interviewed farmers to identify which agroecological practices were primarily adopted to attain a resilient ecosystem. The most common practices adopted were weed control methods, natural fertilizer usage, pest control, and crop diversification. In total, 109 wild bee species were identified, and included individuals from all six bee families present on the Iberian Peninsula. One genus (Lasioglossum) was highly abundant, accounting for 68% of individuals, and is a known ground nester. Areas of sparse vegetation and bare soil and forested areas primarily enhanced the richness of bee species. On the other hand, abundance of wild bees is enhanced by pasture and forest areas. The presence of these habitats in areas surrounding farms might represent the potential nesting sites with important resources for wild bees. Small-scale horticulture production promotes landscape diversity, which strongly promotes the potential of different ecosystem services, including pollination and wild bees. Thus, implementing agroecological practices could transcend farms, and individual fields, to the landscape level, providing long-term sustainability of ecosystemsThis work was supported by the “Simbiosis api-agro” project funded by the European Union, the Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, Food and the Environment and Madrid Regional Government under the Rural Development Programme (rdp-cm 2014-2020); and SAVIA-Sowing Alternatives for Agroecological Innovation project, which was supported by the Madrid Government under the Multiannual Agreement with Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, in the context of the V PRICIT (Regional Programme of Research and Technological Innovation) (SI1/PJI/2019-00444

Clonal chromosomal mosaicism and loss of chromosome Y in elderly men increase vulnerability for SARS-CoV-2

The pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19) had an estimated overall case fatality ratio of 1.38% (pre-vaccination), being 53% higher in males and increasing exponentially with age. Among 9578 individuals diagnosed with COVID-19 in the SCOURGE study, we found 133 cases (1.42%) with detectable clonal mosaicism for chromosome alterations (mCA) and 226 males (5.08%) with acquired loss of chromosome Y (LOY). Individuals with clonal mosaic events (mCA and/or LOY) showed a 54% increase in the risk of COVID-19 lethality. LOY is associated with transcriptomic biomarkers of immune dysfunction, pro-coagulation activity and cardiovascular risk. Interferon-induced genes involved in the initial immune response to SARS-CoV-2 are also down-regulated in LOY. Thus, mCA and LOY underlie at least part of the sex-biased severity and mortality of COVID-19 in aging patients. Given its potential therapeutic and prognostic relevance, evaluation of clonal mosaicism should be implemented as biomarker of COVID-19 severity in elderly people. Among 9578 individuals diagnosed with COVID-19 in the SCOURGE study, individuals with clonal mosaic events (clonal mosaicism for chromosome alterations and/or loss of chromosome Y) showed an increased risk of COVID-19 lethality

Patrones altitudinales de cambio en las comunidades de hormigas en pastizales de la Sierra de Guadarrama

Presentación oral, en el "X Congreso Ibérico de Mirmecología (Taxomara)", del 15 al 17 de julio de 2015 en Lisboa (Portugal).El patrón de distribución biogeográfica de un conjunto de especies puede ser útil para conocer cómo interactúan entre ellas y con el ambiente, así como para anticipar cómo les afectarán cambios futuros como los climáticos. En concreto, el patrón altitudinal de las comunidades de hormigas en pastizales de la Sierra de Guadarrama permite conocer mejor esos aspectos de la ecología de estas hormigas. Para determinar ese patrón se realizaron dos muestreos entre finales de mayo y finales de julio de 2014, mediante la captura indirecta de hormigas con trampas pitfall, situadas en mallas regulares en pastizales de diferentes altitudes, desde los 768m hasta los 2351m de altitud. Los ejemplares recogidos fueron identificados hasta nivel de especie, resultando un total de 43 especies de hormigas. Con esos datos se realizaron los pertinentes análisis estadísticos para determinar si el patrón de distribución espacial es aleatorio, de reemplazamiento o de anidamiento. El resultado fue que el patrón encontrado es una combinación de los patrones de reemplazamiento y de anidamiento, con una mayor influencia del primero. Además se pudo dividir el gradiente altitudinal en tres rangos de altitud caracterizados por diferencias en la riqueza y la incidencia de las especies de hormigas. Se prevé que en un escenario futuro, contemplando el calentamiento climático, los rangos de distribución de las especies se desplacen ascendiendo por el gradiente altitudinal, y provocando alteraciones en los pastizales por la desaparición de algunas especies y la aparición de otras nuevas en las diferentes cotas altitudinales. En particular, cinco de las especies encontradas están restringidas a las altitudes superiores, de manera que son las más susceptibles a desaparecer por completo de la zona; estas especies son: Lasius flavus, Myrmica lobicornis, Myrmica sulcinodis, Myrmica xavieri y Temnothorax albipennis.Peer reviewe