Species richness patterns and functional traits of the bat fauna of arid southern Africa

The bat fauna of arid regions is still poorly studied mostly due to a lack of interest in areas with low species richness and a low number of threatened species. In this study, we reviewed the status of bat diversity in the arid parts of southern Africa, with the aim of setting up a baseline for future work. In particular, we described species richness patterns across four arid zones within the region (Namib Desert, Kalahari, Nama Karoo and Succulent Karoo), exploring abiotic gradients and local landscape structure. Additionally, we examined bat functional groups in this region and compared them with those of three other arid regions of the world to identify potential similarities and differences. The southern African arid region hosted 17 bat species, representing eight families, of which three are endemic to the region (Rhinolophus denti, Laephotis namibensis and Cistugo seabrae) and one is vagrant (the fruit bat Eidolon helvum). Species richness varied spatially within this arid region, being highest in the drier but topographically heterogeneous Namib Desert, probably as a result of roost availability. With regards to functional groups, the southern African arid region had few bat species adapted to foraging in open spaces, particularly when compared with the neighbouring savannahs. Drawing from this study, we suggest that: a) despite species richness decreasing with increasing aridity at the sub-continental scale, at a more local scale landscape features (e.g. habitat structure) might be more relevant than aridity in determining bat species richness; and b) an unknown factor, possibly patterns of temperature limiting the availability of insects flying high above the ground, restricted the diversity of the open air foragers throughout the region. We highlight additional areas of research worth investigation

Vereistes en toets om testamentêre bevoegdheid te bepaal

Die beginsels van testeerbevoegdheid en testeervryheid is gebaseer op gemeenregtelike beginsels. Artikel 4 van die Wet op Testamente 7 van 1953 bevestig die gemeenregtelike beginsels ten aansien van testeerbevoegdheid en stel twee vereistes waaraan voldoen moet word. Eerstens is daar ouderdomsbegrensing van sestien jaar en tweedens mag persoon nie onbevoeg wees om die aard en uitwerking van sy handeling te begryp nie. Die artikel skep voorts die vermoede dat persoon testeerbevoeg is. Persoon wat beweer dat die testateur nie sodanig bevoeg was om testament te verly nie, sal op oorwig van waarskynlikhede moet bewys dat die testateur onbevoeg was. Vooruitgang op die mediese terrein ten aansien van kognitiewe gestremdheid en vermoëns van ouer, geestesbelemmerde persone, het daartoe gelei dat daar skerp toename in hofsake is wat verband hou met testeerbevoegdheid en veral met die tweede been van die vereistes, naamlik dat persoon die aard en uitwerking van sy handeling moet begryp. Die vraag na onbevoegdheid om te testeer is feitevraag waaroor die hof telkens moet beslis. Ten einde te bepaal of persoon onbevoeg was om die aard en uitwerking van sy handelinge rakende die verlyding van testament te begryp, is daar oor die afgelope 150 jaar hoofsaaklik gesteun op die Engelse saak Banks v Goodfellow. Dié saak is reeds in 1870 beslis en word steeds vandag in Anglo-Amerikaanse jurisdiksies as die aanvaarde toets voorgehou om te bepaal of die testateur oor die nodige geestesvermoë beskik het om testament te verly. Banks het toets neergelê vir die “assessering van testeerbevoegdheid”. Met verloop van tyd het die “vereistes vir testeerbevoegdheid” met die “assessering daarvan” ineengestrengel geraak. In hierdie bydrae word die komponente van die vierledige toets (soos geformuleer in Banks), wat deur die howe oorweeg word, aan die hand van onlangse regspraak uit verskeie jurisdiksies bespreek. Die oogmerk is om vas te stel of dié toets, soos dit destyds geformuleer is, hedendaags steeds die geldende toets is en of dié toets tred gehou het met moderne ontwikkelinge op die terrein van mediese navorsing en veral vooruitgang op die gebied van kognitiewe gestremdhede by ouer persone. Daar word met verwysing na ontwikkelinge en regshervorming in ander jurisdiksies besin oor die relevansie van Banks. Daar word aan die hand gedoen dat die riglyne soos neergelê in Banks v Goodfellow wel die toets van tyd deurstaan het aangesien dit met verloop van tyd aangepas is om voorsiening te maak vir moderne vooruitgang. Daar word geredeneer dat die trefwydte van die toets so ver strek dat die neergelegde riglyne, met inagneming van onlangse ontwikkelinge, toegepas kan word. Ten spyte van hervormingstappe in sekere jurisdiksies blyk dit dat die Banks v Goodfellow-toets steeds die aanvaarde toets is en daar blyk geen rede te wees om af te wyk van die beginsels soos daarin neergelê en oor die afgelope 150 jaar toegepas nie.http://www.lexisnexis.co.zaam2016Private La

Testamentary capacity of cognitive-impaired elderly - when is old too old to execute a will?

Freedom of testation is a foundational principle of South African testate succession, and there are relatively few restrictions on a testator’s sudden and impulsive change of heart. Two requirements need to be met, namely a person must have testamentary capacity and the prescribed formalities must be complied with. The requirement for testamentary capacity is assumed if one complies with the formalities. Testamentary capacity has a minimum age but is not restricted by old age. However, it calls for the testator to be of an unsound mind and therefore to have mental capacity at the time of executing a will. World statistics show that there is an increase in the number of older and often also wealthier people as modern research and medicine allow people to live longer and healthier lives, resulting in the increase in the average lifespan. Cognitive impairments such as dementia and Alzheimer’s disease often arise with the elderly which have become more prevalent over the last 30 years. This article explores testamentary capacity of the elderly against the backdrop of cognitive impairments and the ability to accumulate wealth, which means that old people often have more assets that can devolve (often to their relatives) upon their demise. In the contest of wills testamentary incapacity of the testator (at the time of the execution of the will), has become the most frequent reason for challenging a will. In this contribution, recent case law from South African and other jurisdictions relating to testamentary capacity, from which we can gain knowledge, are discussed to establish how the courts deal with old age combined with cognitive impairments such as dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. The focus is on impairments affecting the mental status of older testators and to observe to what degree these aspects influence or negate testamentary capacity. The conduct of another person, such as undue influence, fraud and duress are distinguished from the testamentary capacity of an individual and is not the focus of this contribution. In conclusion the question is considered whether elderly people, who are vulnerable due to age and other impairments, enjoy freedom of testation and if their testamentary capacity is sufficiently protected by the common-law principles.http://reference.sabinet.co.za/sa_epublication/obiteram201

Pienaar v Master of the Free State High Court Bloemfontein : 2011 (6) SA 338 (SCA)

No abstract available.http://www.dejure.up.ac.za

Cross-species chromosome painting in bats from Madagascar: the contribution of Myzopodidae to revealing ancestral syntenies in Chiroptera

The chiropteran fauna of Madagascar comprises eight of the 19 recognized families of bats, including the endemic Myzopodidae. While recent systematic studies of Malagasy bats have contributed to our understanding of the morphological and genetic diversity of the island’s fauna, little is known about their cytosystematics. Here we investigate karyotypic relationships among four species, representing four families of Chiroptera endemic to the Malagasy region using cross-species chromosome painting with painting probes of Myotis myotis: Myzopodidae (Myzopoda aurita, 2n=26), Molossidae (Mormopterus jugularis, 2n=48), Miniopteridae (Miniopterus griveaudi, 2n=46), and Vespertilionidae (Myotis goudoti, 2n=44). This study represents the first time a member of the family Myzopodidae has been investigated using chromosome painting. Painting probes of Myotis. myotis were used to delimit 30, 24, 23, and 22 homologous chromosomal segments in the genomes of Myzopoda aurita, Mormopterus jugularis, Miniopterus . griveaudi and Myotis . goudoti, respectively. Comparison of GTG-banded homologous chromosomes/chromosomal segments among the four species revealed the genome of M. aurita has been structured through 15 fusions of chromosomes and chromosomal segments of Myotis. myotis chromosomes leading to a karyotype consisting solely of bi-armed chromosomes. In addition, chromosome painting revealed a novel X-autosome translocation in Myzopoda. aurita. Comparison of our results with published chromosome maps provided further evidence for karyotypic conservatism within the genera Mormopterus, Miniopterus and Myotis. Mapping of chromosomal rearrangements onto a molecular consensus phylogeny revealed ancestral syntenies shared between Myzopoda and other bat species of the infraorders Pteropodiformes and Vespertilioniformes. Our study provides further evidence for the involvement of Robertsonian (Rb) translocations and fusions/fissions in chromosomal evolution within Chiroptera

Implementation of a science-action partnership to manage a threatened ecosystem in an urban context

Abstract: The gap between scientific knowledge and implementation of such knowledge in the fields of biodiversity conservation, environmental management and climate change adaptation, is widely recognized. The state of knowledge of urban ecosystems is generally quite poor, and there is a shortage of human capacity to implement scientifically-sound management practices at the local level, especially within institutions having the mandate of regulating land use planning. The need to bridge the science-action gap to improve decision-making for local land use planning and management, and thereby reduce the impacts of urbanization on ecosystems, has been recognized by eThekwini Municipality in the city of Durban, South Africa..

Ecological correlates of small mammal assemblage structure at different spatial scales in the savannah biome of South Africa

We sampled the seasonal diversity of rodents and shrews in two neighboring game reserves in the savannah biome and assessed the influence of competition and abiotic processes on species composition patterns at habitat and reserve scales. We used null models and multivariate analyses to test whether the observed patterns differed significantly from those expected by chance. Species richness estimators indicated that rodent and shrew inventories were relatively complete. Rarefaction curves showed that small mammal species richness was higher at the Mkhuze Game Reserve than the Kube Yini Game Reserve, though it was highest in the Acacia woodlands. Rodent diversity was highest during winter. Rodent and shrew species composition was significantly correlated with grass height, tree density, and ground cover. Furthermore, rodent and shrew assemblages were nested at the reserve scale. Only nestedness at the broadest scale (both reserves, both seasons combined) was significantly correlated with landscape and microhabitat variables. Conversely, there was little evidence that competition influenced rodent and shrew species composition. Results showed that species composition patterns of small mammals in the savannah biome are related to abiotic processes operating at local and regional scales, suggesting that microhabitat characteristics and regional processes like immigration and extinction drive assemblage structure

Vermiste persone – huidige tendense

Elke jaar verdwyn derduisende mense wêreldwyd. Statistiek toon dat talle vermiste persone steeds spoorloos verdwyn ondanks die feit dat dit in moderne tye makliker is om mense op te spoor. Verdwynings kan aan talle faktore toegeskryf word. Indien ’n vermiste persoon se liggaam nie gevind kan word nie skep dit verskeie regsprobleme vir sy of haar naasbestaandes. Ingevolge die Romeins-Hollandse reg is dit moontlik om by die Hoë Hof aansoek te doen vir ’n bevel dat ’n persoon geag word “vermoedelik dood” te wees sodat ’n doodsertifikaat uitgereik kan word. Die gemeenregtelike vermoede-van-doodbevel het egter beperkte aanwending en is gemik op die administrasie van die vermiste persoon se boedel. Alhoewel beide die Romeins-Hollandse reg en die Engelse gemenereg (common law) die Suid-Afrikaanse erfreg beïnvloed het, volg die Suid-Afrikaanse howe die Romeins- Hollandse reg telkens wanneer daar ’n aansoek dien vir ’n gemeenregtelike vermoedevan- doodbevel van ’n vermiste persoon. Die uitgangspunt is dat ’n persoon geag word te lewe en dat daar nie ’n vermoede is dat die persoon dood is na verloop van ’n sekere tydperk nie. Die “vermoedelike dood” van die verdwene persoon moet deur belanghebbendes op ’n oorwig van waarskynlikhede bewys word aan die hand van alle relevante feite. Die tradisioneel Engelse gemeenregtelike jurisdiksies volg egter ’n benadering dat ’n persoon wat langer as sewe jaar vermis word, vermoedelik dood is. Die vermoede bring mee dat, na verloop van sewe jaar, die bewyslas rus op die persoon wat aanvoer dat die vermiste nog lewe. Tans het feitlik alle Europese siviele (civil law) en gemeenregtelike (common law) jurisdiksies wetgewing wat vermoede-van-doodbevele reguleer. Suid Afrika maak slegs statutêr voorsiening vir ’n ondersoek na die dood van ’n persoon wat (vermoedelik) aan onnatuurlike oorsake gesterf het en wie se liggaam nie opgespoor kan word nie. In alle ander omstandighede geld die gemeenregtelike posisie (Romeins-Hollandse reg). Hierdie bespreking handel met die gemeenregtelike vermoede-van-doodbevel wat die uitreiking van ’n doodsertifikaat en administrasie van die boedel van ’n vermiste persoon magtig. Die historiese agtergrond van die vermoede dat “die vermiste persoon lewe” of dat “die vermiste persoon dood is” (na verloop van ’n tyd) word ondersoek. Die posisie in Suid-Afrika word vergelyk met statutêre ontwikkelinge in Engeland en Wallis waar die Presumption of Death Act in 2013 gepromulgeer is. Enkele probleme wat deur naasbestaandes ondervind word, word aan die hand van die Suid-Afrikaanse reg en die Engelse gemenereg onder die loep geneem. Ten slotte word oorweging geskenk aan die vraag of Suid-Afrika regshervorming behoort te oorweeg.The National Research Foundationhttp://www.lexisnexis.co.zaam2019Private La

Condonation confusion

Some problems have arisen with the interpretation of the formalities for the execution of wills in sec. 2(1) of the Wills Act 7 of 1953. The courts were given the power of condonation in sec. 2(3) of the Act to prevent wills from being declared invalid when some of the formalities had not been complied with. The provisions in sec. 2(3) appear to be controversial. The basic principles have become the subject of continuing debate through case law. The High Courts constantly disagree when they have to interpret the basic principles for the condonation of non-compliance with formalities. The reform envisaged by the legislator at the outset has not resulted in a satisfactory solution. Sec. 2(3) has been deliberated from every possible perspective. Despite Supreme Court of Appeal judgements on the interpretation of concepts such as ‘document’, ‘drafted or executed’ and ‘intention’, sec. 2(3), in its current form, can never provide for all possibilities. The more one analyses and discusses sec. 2(3), the more indistinguishable the interaction between the applicable principles becomes. This article discusses recent cases that have come before the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria, in which two vastly different sets of facts resulted in identical judgements on sec. 2(3). This inquiry reveals that practical challenges remain for the courts and it is concluded that urgent intervention by the legislature has become a necessity.https://journals.co.za/content/journal/juridicam2018Private La

Bedrog en vervalsing van die testament of handtekening van die testateur : die vlug weg van formaliteite na geen formaliteite

Falsification of wills by fraud or forgery is an offence all over the world. It is, unfortunately, not an uncommon occurrence for a will to be tampered with, especially when large sums of money are involved. Kahn indicated that "the number of relevant cases, civil and criminal, in our law reports, on falsification and forgery concerned with a will, apart from several bringing no success to the plaintiff or prosecution, of course is no reflection of the extent of the problem". Contesting a will on the grounds of fraud and/or forgery is not unique to South Africa. Recently a contribution in The Wall Street Journal stated that forged wills are no longer just a fiction.Bedrog en vervalsing is wêreldwyd 'n bekende misdryf. By die opstel en verlyding van testamente kom bedrog en vervalsing vry algemeen voor deurdat óf die testament óf die handtekeninge van die erflater en/of getuies vervals word. In hierdie artikel word die toename in bedrieglike handelinge ten aansien van 'n testament, en meer spesifiek met betrekking tot vervalsing van handtekeninge, onder die loep geneem. Die vraag word eerstens gevra of daar 'n toename in vervalsing van testamente is wat deur uitgifte van die vervalste dokument as bedrog manifesteer. In die bespreking word die voorkoms van bedrog en vervalsing by onderhandse testamente, wat "tuisgemaakte" en, meer onlangs, ook holografiese testamente insluit, met die notarieel verlyde testament vergelyk. Daar word geredeneer oor die afwatering van streng formaliteitsvereistes deur wetgewing in sekere jurisdiksies en die verlening van 'n kondonasiebevoegdheid in die verband aan die howe. Die toename van bedrog in jurisdiksies wat deur die Engelse Wills Act van 1837 beïnvloed is, word beoordeel en die impak en voorkoms van bedrieglike handelinge op testamente ondersoek. In die proses om wég te beweeg van die gedetailleerde vormvereistes, het die klem verskuif van formalisme by verlyding van die testament na die bedoeling van die testateur wat na die dood bepaal word. Verskeie jurisdiksies het die formaliteitsvereistes verslap en in sommiges gevalle 'n reddingsboei in die vorm van 'n kondoneringsbevoegdheid van die howe verleen. Nadat die probleem geïdentifiseer is, word moontlike oplossings oorweeg en tot die gevolgtrekking gekom dat die instelling van 'n notariële testament moontlik nie aanvaarbaar vir wetgewers is nie en dat in die alternatief 'n stelsel van registrasie van testamente oorweeg behoort te word. Uit die evaluasie blyk dit dat die vereenvoudiging van formaliteite en kondonering van nienakoming van formaliteitsvereistes tog meewerk tot die algemene voorkoms van en toename in gerapporteerde sake waarby ook bedrog ter sprake mag wees. Die verskoning van gebreke met die nakoming van formaliteitsvereistes het ontwikkel tot op die punt wat 'n "dokument" in enige vorm van skrif oogluikend gekondoneer word en daar met alle handtekeninge weggedoen kan word.http://www.uj.ac.za/EN/Faculties/law/about/Pages/TSAR.aspxhttp://reference.sabinet.co.za/sa_epublication/ju_tsar?am2016Private La