Anadolu çaprazı'nın orta bölümündeki bozkırların biyolojik çeşitliliğini etkileyen faktörler ve bunların doğa korumada kullanımı.

This study aims to find out major factors acting on steppe biodiversity of Inner Anatolia by focusing on one million hectares of mountainous land. Quantitative data on common plants, breeding birds and butterflies as well as environmental and land use data were collected at 33 sites determined by environmental stratification. Data has been analyzed with Spearman’s rank correlation, canonical correspondence analysis, detrended correspondence analysis, two-way indicator species analysis and hierarchical partitioning. Results show that elevation, current grazing intensity, distance to woodlands and arable lands are the main determinants of richness and diversity. Other important factors are soil Magnesium and organic matter for plants; local heterogeneity and shrub/tree density for birds; plant richness and mud-puddling sites or wind shelters attracting butterflies. Altitude and grazing intensity have negative effects on biodiversity whereas soil Magnesium and proximity to other vegetation types have positive effects. In sites with more than 90% herbaceous coverage, shrub/tree density is a good indicator for the richness patterns of all groups. The richest sites are low mountain shrubby steppes close to woodlands and arable lands, ploughed 30-100 years ago but then abandoned and experienced light or no grazing afterwards. Six major plant communities are distinguished by gypsum bedrock, altitude and years since land abandonment. Four main bird assemblages are differentiated with landscape and local heterogeneity and composition and wood density of the sites. Various factors act on richness and diversity patterns on steppes, differing for species groups and assemblages. Conservation actions should encompass conservation priority species, represent different species assemblages, consider all major factors mentioned above especially landscape and local heterogeneity including different seral stages and sustaining conservation through nature-friendly land use. Planning afforestation in the way not to destroy rich steppes and building awareness on steppes as a value are important conservation actions.Ph.D. - Doctoral Progra

Population genetics of the main population of brown bears in southwest Asia

Genetic studies of the Eurasian brown bear (Ursus arctos) have so far focused on populations from Europe and North America, although the largest distribution area of brown bears is in Asia. In this study, we reveal population genetic parameters for the brown bear population inhabiting the Grand Kaçkar Mountains (GKM) in the north east of Turkey, western Lesser Caucasus. Using both hair (N = 147) and tissue samples (N = 7) collected between 2008 and 2014, we found substantial levels of genetic variation (10 microsatellite loci). Bear samples (hair) taken from rubbing trees worked better for genotyping than those from power poles, regardless of the year collected. Genotyping also revealed that bears moved between habitat patches, despite ongoing massive habitat alterations and the creation of large water reservoirs. This population has the potential to serve as a genetic reserve for future reintroductions in the Middle East. Due to the importance of the GKM population for on-going and future conservation actions, the impacts of habitat alterations in the region ought to be minimized; e.g., by establishing green bridges or corridors over reservoirs and major roads to maintain habitat connectivity and gene flow among populations in the Lesser Caucasus

The Eurasian Dry Grassland Group (EDGG) in 2016-2017

This report summarizes the activities and achievements of the Eurasian Dry Grassland Group (EDGG) from mid-2016 through to the end of 2017. During this period, the 13th Eurasian Grassland Conference took place in Sighişoara, Romania, and the 14th conference was held in Riga, Latvia. The 10th EDGG Field Workshop on Biodiversity patterns across a precipitation gradient in the Central Apennine mountains was conducted in the Central Apennines, Italy, this time in addition to multi-scale sampling of vascular plants, bryophytes and lichens, also including one animal group (leaf hoppers). Apart from the quarterly issues of its own electronic journal (Bulletin of the Eurasian Dry Grassland Group), EDGG also finalised five grassland-related Special Features/Issues during the past 1.5 years in the following international journals: Applied Vegetation Science, Biodiversity and Conservation, Phytocoenologia, Tuexenia and Hacquetia. Beyond that, EDGG facilitated various national and supra-national vegetationplot databases of grasslands and established its own specialised database for standardised multi-scale plot data of Palaearctic grasslands (GrassPlot). © by Stephen Venn 2018.Peer reviewe

Step(pe) up! Raising the profile of the Palaearctic natural grasslands

Peter, Torok/0000-0002-4428-3327; Dengler, Jurgen/0000-0003-3221-660XWOS: 000386500700001Palaearctic steppes are primary grasslands dominating the landscape of the Eurasian Grassland Belt from Central and Eastern Europe to Northern China across the temperate zone of Eurasia. We also include structurally and floristically similar habitats in North Africa, Anatolia, and Iran. The biota of the steppes are diverse, including many endemic species. As a result of the high rate of anthropogenic conversion and widespread degradation, the Palaearctic steppes have become one of the most endangered terrestrial biomes of the world. These facts underline the importance of sustaining landscape-scale biodiversity in steppes and stress the necessity of their conservation and restoration. Literature about the ecology, biodiversity, and conservation of Palaearctic steppes is not easily accessible for an international audience. Therefore, summarising the current state of knowledge as well as knowledge gaps is very timely. This Special Issue on "Palaearctic steppes: ecology, biodiversity and conservation", comprises 17 research papers from many different regions throughout the biome, as well as a broad review synthesising current knowledge

Mitogenome Phylogeny Including Data from Additional Subspecies Provides New Insights into the Historical Biogeography of the Eurasian lynx Lynx lynx.

Previous molecular studies of the wide-ranging Eurasian lynx Lynx lynx focused mainly on its northern Palearctic populations, with the consequence that the reconstruction of this species' evolutionary history did not include genetic variation present in its southern Palearctic distribution. We sampled a previously not considered Asian subspecies (L. l. dinniki), added published data from another Asian subspecies (L. l. isabellinus), and reassessed the Eurasian lynx mtDNA phylogeny along with previously published data from northern Palearctic populations. Our mitogenome-based analyses revealed the existence of three major clades (A: Central Asia, B: SE Europe/SW Asia, C: Europe and Northern Asia) and at least five lineages, with diversification in Lynx lynx commencing at least 28kyr earlier than hitherto estimated. The subspecies L. l. isabellinus harbors the most basal matriline, consistent with the origin of Lynx lynx in this subspecies' current range. L. l. dinniki harbors the second most basal matriline, which is related to, and may be the source of, the mtDNA diversity of the critically endangered Balkan lynx L. l. balcanicus. Our results suggest that the Anatolian peninsula was a glacial refugium for Eurasian lynx, with previously unconsidered implications for the colonization of Europe by this species

Foraging ecology of Eurasian lynx populations in southwest Asia: Conservation implications for a diet specialist

Intraspecific variation in key traits of widespread species can be hard to predict, if populations have been very little studied in most of the distribution range. Asian populations of the Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx), one of the most widespread felids worldwide, are such a case in point. We investigated the diet of Eurasian lynx from feces collected Mediterranean, mixed forest‐steppe, and subalpine ecosystems of Turkey. We studied prey preferences and functional responses using prey densities obtained from Random Encounter Modelling. Our analysis revealed that the main prey was brown hare (Lepus europaeus) in all three areas (78%–99% of biomass consumed) and lynx showed a strong preference for brown hare (Chesson's selectivity index, α = 0.90–0.99). Cannibalism contributed at least 5% in two study areas. The type II functional response of lynx populations in Turkey was similar to the Canada lynx (Lynx canadensis) and daily food intake in grams per lynx matched that of Canada lynx and Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus), both lagomorph specialists, rather than those of Eurasian lynx from Europe. Therefore, lynx in Turkey may be better described as a lagomorph specialist even though it coexists with ungulate prey. We suggest that ungulate‐based foraging ecology of Eurasian lynx in Europe may be a recent adjustment to the availability of high densities of ungulates and cannot be representative for other regions like Turkey. The status of lagomorphs should become an essential component of conservation activities targeted at Eurasian lynx or when using this species as a flagship species for landscape preservation

Insights from regional and short-term biodiversity monitoring datasets are valuable: a reply to Daskalova et al. 2021

Reports of major losses in insect biodiversity have stimulated an increasing interest in temporal population changes. Existing datasets are often limited to a small number of study sites, few points in time, a narrow range of land-use intensities and only some taxonomic groups, or they lack standardised sampling. While new monitoring programs have been initiated, they still cover rather short time periods. Daskalova et al. 2021 (Insect Conservation and Diversity, 14, 1-18) argue that temporal trends of insect populations derived from short time series are biased towards extreme trends, while their own analysis of an assembly of shorter- and longer-term time series does not support an overall insect decline. With respect to the results of Seibold et al. 2019 (Nature, 574, 671–674) based on a 10-year multi-site time series, they claim that the analysis suffers from not accounting for temporal pseudoreplication. Here, we explain why the criticism of missing statistical rigour in the analysis of Seibold et al. (2019) is not warranted. Models that include ‘year’ as random effect, as suggested by Daskalova et al. (2021), fail to detect non-linear trends and assume that consecutive years are independent samples which is questionable for insect time-series data. We agree with Daskalova et al. (2021) that the assembly and analysis of larger datasets is urgently needed, but it will take time until such datasets are available. Thus, short-term datasets are highly valuable, should be extended and analysed continually to provide a more detailed understanding of insect population changes under the influence of global change, and to trigger immediate conservation actions

Human–Bear Conflicts at the Beginning of the Twenty-First Century: Patterns, Determinants, and Mitigation Measures

Edited by Vincenzo Penteriani and Mario Melletti.-- Part III - Human–Bear Coexistence.-- This material has been published in "Bears of the World. Ecology, Conservation and Management" by / edited by Vincenzo Penteriani and Mario Melletti / Cambridge University Press. This version is free to view and download for personal use only. Not for re-distribution, re-sale or use in derivative works.Conflicts between humans and bears have occurred since prehistory. Through time, the catalogue of human–bear conflicts (HBC) has been changing depending on the values and needs of human societies and their interactions with bears. Even today, conflict situations vary among the eight species of bears and geographically across these species’ ranges. This results in a broad range of interactions between bears and humans that may be considered as conflicts, including: (1) predation of domestic or semiwild animals, including bees, hunting dogs, and pet animals; (2) damage due to foraging on cultivated berries, fruits, agricultural products, and the tree bark in forest plantations; (3) economic loss due to destruction of beehives, fences, silos, houses, and other human property; (4) bear attacks on humans causing mild or fatal trauma; (5) bluff charges, bear intrusions into residential areas; and (6) vehicle collisions with bears and traffic accidents. In this chapter we aim to outline the principal types of HBC and geographical differences in the occurrence of conflicts and the coexistence between people and bears

The relationship between energy consumption and economic growth: time series analysis for Turkey 1972-2017

Yapmış olduğumuz bu çalışmada ülkemizdeki enerji kaynaklarıyla iktisadi büyüme arasındaki ilişki zaman serisi kullanılarak araştırılmaya çalışılmıştır. Analizde, serilerin durağanlıkları için Genişletilmiş Dickey-Fuller (ADF) birim kök testi, serilerin uzun dönem ilişkileri için Engle-Granger eş-bütünleşme testi, kısa dönem ilişkileri için Hata Düzeltme Mekanizması ve seriler arasındaki nedensellik ilişkisi için Granger nedensellik testi kullanılmıştır. Ekonometrik analizler, enerji tüketimindeki artışın sadece kısa dönemde ekonomik büyümeden pozitif şekilde etkilendiğini göstermektedir. Uzun dönemde ise enerji tüketimi büyüme haricindeki diğer faktörler ile ilişkilidir. Bununla birlikte Granger nedensellik test sonuçları; enerji tüketimi ile iktisadi büyüme arasında, enerji tüketiminden ekonomik büyümeye doğru tek yönlü bir nedensellik ilişkisinin olduğunu gözler önüne sermektedir.The interaction between energy consumption and economic growth in Turkey is investigated in this study by using a time-series analysis. In the analysis, it is used the Augmented Dickey-Fuller (ADF) unit root test for stationarity of series, Engle-Granger Cointegration test for long-run relationships of series, Error Correction Mechanism for short-run relationships and Granger Causality Test for the Causality Relationship between series. The econometric analysis shows that the increase in energy consumption is positively influenced by economic growth only in the short run. Long run energy consumption is related to factors other than growth. However, the results of Granger Causality Test reveal that there is a unidirectional causality relationship between energy consumption and economic growth, from energy consumption to economic growth