Insect herbivory may cause changes in the visual properties of leaves and affect the camouflage of herbivores to avian predators

Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology - An individual’s metabolic competence is important when escalating to costly behaviours in agonistic encounters. The use of broken shells in the wild...     

A systematic survey of the integration of animal behavior into conservation

The role of behavioral ecology in improving wildlife conservation and management has been the subject of much recent debate. We sought to answer 2 foundational questions about the current use of behavioral knowledge in conservation: To what extent is behavioral knowledge used in wildlife conservation and management, and how does the use of animal behavior differ among conservation fields in both frequency and types of use? We searched the literature for intersections between key fields of animal behavior and conservation and created a systematic heat map (i.e., graphical representation of data where values are represented as colors) to visualize relative efforts. Some behaviors, such as dispersal and foraging, were commonly considered (mean [SE] of 1147.38 [353.11] and 439.44 [108.85] papers per cell, respectively). In contrast, other behaviors, such as learning, social, and antipredatory behaviors were rarely considered (mean [SE] of 33.88 [7.62], 44.81 [10.65], and 22.69 [6.37] papers per cell, respectively). In many cases, awareness of the importance of behavior did not translate into applicable management tools. Our results challenge previous suggestions that there is little association between the fields of behavioral ecology and conservation and reveals tremendous variation in the use of different behaviors in conservation. We recommend that researchers focus on examining underutilized intersections of behavior and conservation themes for which preliminary work shows a potential for improving conservation and management, translating behavioral theory into applicable and testable predictions, and creating systematic reviews to summarize the behavioral evidence within the behavior‐conservation intersections for which many studies exist.     

Integration of solid phase extraction with HILIC-MS/MS for analysis of free amino acids in source water

Amino acids (AAs) are prevalent in source water, particularly during spring run-off. Monitoring of amino acids in source water is desirable for water treatment plants (WTP) to indicate changes in source water quality. The objective of this study was to establish analytical procedures for reliable monitoring of amino acids in source water. Therefore, we examined two different methods, large volume inject (LVI) and solid phase extraction (SPE), for sample preparation prior to HILIC-MS/MS. The LVI-HILIC-MS/MS method can provide fast and sensitive detection for clean samples, but suffers from matrix effects, resulting in irreproducible separation and shortening column lifetime. We have demonstrated that SPE was necessary prior to HILIC-MS/MS to achieve reproducible and reliable quantification of AAs in source water. A natural heterocyclic amine 1-methyl-1,2,3,4-tetrahydro-β-carboline-3-carboxylic acid (MTCCA) was also included in the method to indicate changes in other natural nitrogenous compounds in source water. The SPE-HILIC-MS/MS method was able to achieve limits of detection from 2.6-3400 ng/L for the amino acids and MTCCA with RSDs (n=3) of 1.1%-4.8%. As well, retention times (RT) of the analytes were reproducible with variation less than 0.01 min (n=3) through the entire project. We further applied the SPE-HILIC-MS/MS method to determine AAs in authentic source water samples collected from two drinking water treatment plants (WTPs) during the 2021 spring run-off season. The results support that the SPE-HILIC-MS/MS method does not require derivatization and can provide reliable, accurate, and robust analysis of AAs and MTCCA in source water, supporting future monitoring of source water quality.     

Relevance of rangeland degradation in semiarid northeastern South Africa to the nonequilibrium theory.

According to the nonequilibrium theory, livestock grazing has a limited effect on long-term vegetation productivity of semiarid rangelands, which is largely determined by rainfall. The communal lands in northeastern South Africa contain extensive degraded areas which have been mapped by the National Land Cover (NLC) program. Much evidence suggests that long-term heavy grazing is the cause of this degradation. In order to test for the prevalence of nonequilibrium dynamics, we determined the relative effects of rainfall- and grazing-induced degradation on vegetation productivity. The vegetation production in the NLC degraded areas was estimated using growth-season sums of the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (sigmaNDVI), calculated using data from both the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) (1985-2003) and Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) (2000-2005). On average, rainfall and degradation accounted for 38% and 20% of the AVHRR sigmaNDVI variance and 50% and 33% of the MODIS sigmaNDVI variance, respectively. Thus, degradation had a significant influence on long-term vegetation productivity, and therefore the rangelands did not behave according to the nonequilibrium model, in which grazing is predicted to have a negligible long-term impact.     

Using Presence-Absence Data to Build and Test Spatial Habitat Models for the Fisher in the Klamath Region, U.S.A.

Abstract: Forest carnivores such as the fisher ( Martes pennanti ) have frequently been the target of conservation concern because of their association in some regions with older forests and sensitivity to landscape-level habitat alteration. Although the fisher has been extirpated from most of its former range in the western United States, it is still found in northwestern California. Fisher distribution, however, is still poorly known in most of this region where surveys have not been conducted. To predict fisher distribution across the region, we created a multiple logistic regression model using data from 682 previously surveyed locations and a vegetation layer created from satellite imagery. A moving-window function in a geographic information system was used to derive landscape-level indices of canopy closure, tree size class, and percent conifer. The model was validated with new data from 468 survey locations. The correct classification rate of 78.6% with the new data was similar to that achieved with the original data set (80.4%). Whereas several fine-scale habitat attributes were significantly correlated with fisher presence, the multivariate model containing only landscape- and regional-scale variables performed as well as one incorporating fine-scale data, suggesting that habitat selection by fishers may be dominated by factors operating at the home-range scale and above. Fisher distribution was strongly associated with landscapes with high levels of tree canopy closure. Regional gradients such as annual precipitation were also significant. At the plot level, the diameter of hardwoods was greater at sites with fisher detections. A comparison of regional fisher distribution with land-management categories suggests that increased emphasis on the protection of biologically productive, low- to mid-elevation forests is important to ensuring the long-term viability of fisher populations.     

Connecting today's climates to future climate analogs to facilitate movement of species under climate change

Increasing connectivity is an important strategy for facilitating species range shifts and maintaining biodiversity in the face of climate change. To date, however, few researchers have included future climate projections in efforts to prioritize areas for increasing connectivity. We identified key areas likely to facilitate climate‐induced species’ movement across western North America. Using historical climate data sets and future climate projections, we mapped potential species’ movement routes that link current climate conditions to analogous climate conditions in the future (i.e., future climate analogs) with a novel moving‐window analysis based on electrical circuit theory. In addition to tracing shifting climates, the approach accounted for landscape permeability and empirically derived species’ dispersal capabilities. We compared connectivity maps generated with our climate‐change‐informed approach with maps of connectivity based solely on the degree of human modification of the landscape. Including future climate projections in connectivity models substantially shifted and constrained priority areas for movement to a smaller proportion of the landscape than when climate projections were not considered. Potential movement, measured as current flow, decreased in all ecoregions when climate projections were included, particularly when dispersal was limited, which made climate analogs inaccessible. Many areas emerged as important for connectivity only when climate change was modeled in 2 time steps rather than in a single time step. Our results illustrate that movement routes needed to track changing climatic conditions may differ from those that connect present‐day landscapes. Incorporating future climate projections into connectivity modeling is an important step toward facilitating successful species movement and population persistence in a changing climate.