Phytoplankton composition and abundance assessment in the Nador lagoon (Mediterranean coast of Morocco)

We evaluated phytoplankton abundance, composition and trophic state of the Nador lagoon (Morocco) on the basis of data taken in the period November 2007 to August 2008. Sampling was performed at 11 stations (bottle samples at 0.5 m depth and horizontal plankton net tows with mesh size of 20 mm). Among seven identified phytoplankton classes, diatoms and dinoflagellates dominated with 133 and 169 species, respectively. Frequent phytoplankton blooms were contributed by one to three species in the lagoon. Abundance and seasonality of phytoplankton characterized the Nador lagoon as a highly eutrophicated environment

Multi-scale habitat selection and foraging ecology of the eurasian hoopoe (Upupa epops) in pine plantations

Bird conservation can be challenging in landscapes with high habitat turnover such as planted forests, especially for species that require large home ranges and juxtaposition of diVerent habitats to complete their life cycle. The eurasian hoopoe (Upupa epops) has declined severely in western Europe but is still abundant in south-western France. We studied habitat selection of hoopoes in pine plantation forests using a multi-scale survey, including point-counts at the landscape level and radio-tracking at the home-range scale. We quantiWed habitat use by systematically observing bird behaviour and characterized foraging sites according to micro-habitat variables and abundance of the main prey in the study area, the pine processionary moth (Thaumetopoea pityocampa). At the landscape scale, hoopoes selected habitat mosaics of high diversity, including deciduous woods and hedgerows as main nesting sites. At the home-range scale, hoopoes showed strong selection for short grassland vegetation along sand tracks as main foraging habitats. Vegetation was signiWcantly shorter and sparser at foraging sites than random, and foraging intensity appeared to be signiWcantly correlated with moth winter nest abundance. Hoopoe nesting success decreased during the three study years in line with processionary moth abundance. Thus, we suggest that hoopoes need complementation between foraging and breeding habitats to establish successfully in pine plantations. Hoopoe conservation requires the maintenance of adjacent breeding (deciduous woods) and foraging habitats (short swards adjacent to plantation edges), and consequently depends on the maintenance of habitat diversity at the landscape scale