Modeling Habitat Suitability of the Red-backed Shrike (Lanius Collurio) in the Irano-Anatolian Biodiversity Hotspot

Identifying suitable habitats of species is essential knowledge to conserve them successfully. Human activities cause the reduction of population size and habitat suitability of many species. Red-backed Shrike is widespread in western Palearctic. However, the population of this specie has declined in its geographical range due to the loss of suitable habitats. Therefore, it is necessary to identify its suitable habitats and factors affecting species habitat suitability and to protect its reduction population size. The aim of the present study was to identify the suitable habitat of the Red-backed Shrike and determine the most important predictors of its suitable habitat in Irano-Anatolian biodiversity hotspot.To achieve this goal,species presence points were first collected and seven environmental variables related to climate, topography and anthropogenic activities, were used to construct the species habitat suitable model. Models were built using five distribution modeling methods: Maxent, GAP, GLM, RF and GBM in sdm package. Then the models were ensemble from 5 different models and the final model was constructed. The results of this study showed that the most suitable habitats of this species are in the western and northern parts of the area of study. The mean annual temperature with 41% contribution was the most important variable in constructing the habitat suitability model for this specie. In addition, climate variables with 75% contribution were identified as the most important habitat suitability factor for this specie.Also in relation to conservation of the Red-backed Shrike species in the Irano-Anatolian region, it can be stated that the extent of distribution and presence of this specie has been extended to the northern latitudes due to climate change. As a result, the temperature and climate factor should be given special attention in the management of bird habitats in this area

Understanding the summer roosting habitat selection of the greater mouse-tailed bat (Rhinopoma microphyllum) and the small mouse-tailed bat (Rhinopoma muscatellum) in Iran

Roost for bats, which are responsible for a wide range of vital ecological and economic services, is crucial. Their availability affects both the geographic occurrence and the diversity of bat communities. Hence, understanding how bats use roosts and variables that influence these patterns could contribute to the development of management plans to ensure their survival. In this study, species distribution modeling of two bat species, the greater mouse-tailed bat (Rhinopoma microphyllum) and the small mouse-tailed bat (Rhinopoma muscatellum), were carried out using the sdm package in R. To do so, 16 environmental variables were used as the predictors to explore their relationships with the occurrence of the two species using 12 modeling algorithms. The prediction models for each species were then combined into an ensemble model. The random forest modeling algorithm showed better performance than the other individual models in this modeling. Moreover, the prediction performance of the ensemble model was more substantial than all the individual models for both species. For the greater mouse-tailed bat, elevation, annual mean temperature, temperature seasonality, and distance to roads-railways were identified as the essential variables for summer roosting habitat selection. Meanwhile, distance to roads-railways, annual mean temperature, elevation, and distance to the ridge were significant for the small mouse-tailed bat. Since this study facilitates the management of future and suitable habitats by identifying important environmental conditions, it can be used in conservation plans

Trophic niche partitioning of cryptic species of long-eared bats in Switzerland: implications for conservation

Dietary niche partitioning is postulated to play a major role for the stable coexistence of species within a community, particularly among cryptic species. Molecular markers have recently revealed the existence of a new cryptic species of long-eared bat, Plecotus macrobullaris, in the European Alps. We studied trophic niches as well as seasonal and regional variations of diet in eight colonies of the three Plecotus species occurring in Switzerland. Faeces were collected monthly from individuals returning to roost after foraging. Twenty-one arthropod categories were recognized from the faeces. All three species fed predominantly on Lepidoptera, which made up 41%, 87% and 88% (means across colonies) of the diet composition of P. auritus, P. macrobullaris and P. austriacus, respectively. The occurrence of numerous fragments of both diurnal and flightless insects in the diet of P. auritus (but rarely in the diet of the other two species) indicates that this species mostly gleans prey from substrates. P. austriacus and P. macrobullaris are more typical aerial feeders. The latter two species have narrow trophic niches, whilst P. auritus has a much broader diet. Comparison of intraspecific and interspecific niche overlaps in P. auritus and P. macrobullaris in sympatry suggests dietary niche partitioning between these two species. In contrast, the high similarity of the trophic niches of P. austriacus and P. macrobullaris, associated with a typical parapatric distribution, indicates competitive exclusion. The best conservation measures are preservation and restoration of habitats offering a high abundance of moths, the major prey of the three Plecotus specie

Cadmium and arsenic bioaccumulation and bio-concentration in the endemic toothed carp Aphanius arakensis in salt water

Heavy metals are released to aquatic ecosystems from natural and anthropogenic recourses and accumulate to the body of organisms. This study aimed to assess the accumulation of As and Cd in the gill, liver, and muscle of the toothed carp Aphanius arakensis in salt water exposed to three concentrations of Cd and As (5, 10 and 20 mg L-1) for 18 days. The specimens were collected from the Shoor River with an average weight of 1.5±0.3 g (mean±SD) and length of 3.4±0.4 cm. The findings showed that the bio-concentration factor (BCF) of Cd and As were in the following order: liver > gill > muscle, however, for 5 ppm of As the order was gill > liver > muscle. BCF in As concentrations were more than Cd concentrations. Also, the highest BCF was found at 5 ppm. The present study showed that the liver is the organ that accumulates the highest concentrations of As and Cd

Climate Change and Its Impact on Brown Bear Distribution in Iran

Climate change is one of the threats in the recent century, affecting biodiversity directly and indirectly. Modeling the patterns of species distribution is one of useful tools for predicting the impacts of climate change on endangered species. Brown bear (Ursus arctos) plays an important role as a focal species in mountainous ecosystems. This study was aims to investigate the effects of future climate changes on the distribution of this species using an ensemble modeling method in R-software. For this purpose five algorithms including MAXENT, RF, MARS, GAM, GLM and BRT were used to predict the distribution of the species in the present climatic conditions as well as in the 2050s and 2070s. The results showed that temperature and precipitation were two main factors in the distribution of brown bears in Iran. Investigating the distribution of the brown bear in the future showed that suitability of its habitat will decrease in the western and central parts and increase in the northern parts. So a shift toward higher altitude will be expected for brown bear in the future. Therefore, in this condition it is imperative to upgrade the extent of protected areas for better conservation of brown bear

Habitat selection of three cryptic Plecotus bat species in the European Alps reveals contrasting implications for conservation

Assessing the ecological requirements of species coexisting within a community is an essential requisite for developing sound conservation action. A particularly interesting question is what mechanisms govern the stable coexistence of cryptic species within a community, i.e. species that are almost impossible to distinguish. Resource partitioning theory predicts that cryptic species, like other sympatric taxa, will occupy distinct ecological niches. This prediction is widely inferred from eco-morphological studies. A new cryptic long-eared bat species, Plecotus macrobullaris, has been recently discovered in the complex of two other species present in the European Alps, with even evidence for a few mixed colonies. This discovery poses challenges to bat ecologists concerned with planning conservation measures beyond roost protection. We therefore tested whether foraging habitat segregation occurred among the three cryptic Plecotus bat species in Switzerland by radiotracking 24 breeding female bats (8 of each species). We compared habitat features at locations visited by a bat versus random locations within individual home ranges, applying mixed effects logistic regression. Distinct, species-specific habitat preferences were revealed. P. auritus foraged mostly within traditional orchards in roost vicinity, with a marked preference for habitat heterogeneity. P. austriacus foraged up to 4.7km from the roost, selecting mostly fruit tree plantations, hedges and tree lines. P. macrobullaris preferred patchy deciduous and mixed forests with high vertical heterogeneity in a grassland dominated-matrix. These species-specific habitat preferences should inform future conservation programmes. They highlight the possible need of distinct conservation measures for species that look very much alik

Genetic structure of Afghan Pika (Ochotona rufescens) in Northern Khorasan Province

The aim of this research was to study the genetic structure of the Afghan Pika’s (Ochotona rufescens) populations in Northern Khorasan province in order to determine their isolation rate. A total of 122 samples from four sample groups (Ghorkhod, Golol-Sarani, Salouk and Sarigol) were selected and the genotypic features were detected using 7 microsatellite loci. The results showed that all of the loci were subject to polymorphism and the allele ranged from 2 – 7. Significant Fst and Rst values were found among the populations based on the AMOVA test. Based on the Assignment Test, more than 90 percent of the individuals of the populations belonged to their original population (only 10 percent of the individuals belonged to other populations). A Paired comparison of genetic differentiation between the populations revealed significant deferences among them. The results of the Prichard model grouping showed that the samples collected in this study were approximately 7 groups. The results of AMOVA analysis revealed a significant genetic structure among different populations. Also, the majority of the variance is related to the variance within the population. There seems to be a different but small genetic structure among the studied populations

Dynamics of earthworm species at different depths of orchard soil receiving organic or chemical fertilizer amendments

We investigated the dynamics of different earthworm species through the soil profile, which had received short-term amendments of either organic or inorganic fertilizer in an orchard during the spring of 2016. Earthworm populations were sampled at two consecutive depths of soil on 20 and 60 days after addition of fertilizers. The dominant earthworm species were Eisenia fetida (Savigny, 1826), Dendrobaena veneta (Rosa, 1886), Dendrobaena hortensis (Michaelsen, 1890), Lumbricus terrestris (Linnaeus, 1758) and Aporrectodea longa (Ude, 1885). Seven different types of fertilizers including Urea, Ammonium sulfate (AS), Diammonium phosphate (DAP), Solupotas, NPK (15-5-25), (NPK+OM) and organic manure (OM) as experimental treatments were studied. Fluctuations in earthworm numbers and biomass were attributed to changes in time and depth of sampling, in addition to the types of fertilizers. The results of the means comparison showed that on the 20th day, at 0-20 cm soil depth, E. fetida species abundance was decreased significantly in AS and Urea treatments compared to the control plot (p˂0.05). We highlighted that from epigeic group, D. hortensis species had a better chance to survive and its population in AS treatment was more than that of Urea treatment. Results also showed that the anecic L. terrestris, had a greater tolerance to chemical fertilizers compared to the A. Longa species. The results of this study outline more clear horizons in managing the use of chemical fertilizers while simultaneously maintaining the biodiversity of soil organisms

Porous barriers? Assessment of gene flow within and among sympatric long‐eared bat species

Species are the basic units for measuring biodiversity and for comprehending biological interactions. Yet, their delineation is often contentious, especially in groups that are both diverse and phenotypically conservative. Three cryptic species of long‐eared bats, Plecotus auritus, P. austriacus, and P. macrobullaris, co‐occur over extensive areas of Western Europe. The latter is a fairly recent discovery, questioning the overall diversity of the entire Plecotus complex. Yet, high morphological and acoustic similarities compromise the reliable identification of long‐eared bats in the field. We postulate that such extensive phenotypic overlap, along with the recurrent observation of morphologically intermediate individuals, may hide rampant interspecific hybridization. Based on a geographic sampling centered on areas of sympatry in the Alps and Corsica, we assessed the level of reproductive isolation of these three Plecotus species with mitochondrial and nuclear markers, looking at both inter‐ and intraspecific genetic population structuring. No sign of hybridization was detected between these three species that appear well separated biologically. Genetic structuring of populations, however, reflected different species‐specific responses to environmental connectivity, that is, to the presence of orographic or sea barriers. While the Alpine range and the Ligurian Sea coincided with sharp genetic discontinuities in P. macrobullaris and P. austriacus, the more ubiquitous P. auritus showed no significant population structuration. There were clear phylogeographic discrepancies between microsatellite and mitochondrial markers at the intraspecific level, however, which challenges the reliance on simple barcoding approaches for the delineation of sound conservation units

Environmental predictors for the distribution of the Caspian green lizard, Lacerta strigata Eichwald, 1831, along elevational gradients of the Elburz Mountains in northern Iran

Within its range, the Caspian green lizard, Lacerta strigata, occurs in the Elburz Mountains (northern Iran) at elevations from below sea level to approximately 2700 m a.s.l. To determine the environmental factors affecting the distribution of this lizard, we used an ensemble approach to model the distribution of the Caspian green lizard (Lacerta strigata) in Iran using four algorithms (generalized boosted model, maximum entropy, generalized linear model, random forest). Results revealed that low-elevation habitats between the Elburz Mountains and the Caspian Sea are the most suitable habitats for the species. The normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), annual precipitation (both with positive relationships), and altitude (with a negative relationship) were the most important environmental variables influencing the distribution of the species. NDVI was likely the most important variable because it is an indicator of plant productivity, which presumably influences the availability of food resources such as insects. We also tested the validity of an old distribution record for the species near Shiraz in southwestern Iran. The results show that southwestern Iran is not ecologically suitable for the species. As our results highlighted that the NDVI strongly affects distribution of the species, we suggest protection of vegetation cover in the habitat of the species for conservation of Lacerta strigata