Effects of Roads on the Structure of Freshwater Turtle Populations

Abstract:  Road mortality has the potential to alter the structure of turtle populations because turtle populations are highly sensitive to additive sources of adult mortality. To address the issue, we captured painted turtles (   Chrysemys picta ; n = 174) and snapping turtles (   Chelydra serpentina ; n = 56) in 18 wetlands surrounded by low road density (≤1.5 km roads/km² of landscape) and 17 wetlands surrounded by high road density (>1.5 km/km²) in central New York in 2002. High road density was associated with male-biased sex ratios in painted turtles (74% vs. 54% males; p = 0.01) and snapping turtles (95% vs. 74% males; p = 0.08), whereas turtle morphology and abundance were not associated with road density. Disproportionate road mortality of females on nesting migrations is the most likely cause of skewed sex ratios.     

Reconciling Salvage Logging of Boreal Forests with a Natural-Disturbance Management Model

Abstract:  In North American boreal forests, wildfire is the dominant agent of natural disturbance. A natural-disturbance model has therefore been promoted as an ecologically based approach to forest harvesting in these systems. Given accelerating resource demands, fire competes with harvest for timber, and there is increasing pressure to salvage naturally burned areas. This creates a management paradox: simultaneous promotion of natural disturbance as a guide to sustainability while salvaging forests that have been naturally disturbed. The major drivers of postfire salvage in Canadian boreal forests are societal perceptions, overallocation of forest resources, and economic and policy incentives, and postfire salvage compromises forest sustainability by diminishing the role of fire as a critical, natural process. These factors might be reconciled through consideration of fire in resource allocations and application of active adaptive management. We provide novel treatment of the role of burn severity in mediating biotic response by examining its influence on the amount, type, and distribution of live, postfire residual material, and we highlight the role of fire in shaping spatial and temporal patterns in forest biodiversity. Maintenance of natural postfire forests is a critical component of an ecosystem-based approach to forest management in boreal systems. Nevertheless, present practices focus heavily on expediting removal of timber from burned forests, despite increasing evidence that postfire communities differ markedly from postharvest systems, and there is a mismatch between emerging management models and past management practices. Policies that recognize the critical role of fire in these systems and facilitate enhanced understanding of natural system dynamics in support of development of sustainable management practices are urgently needed.     

Body Size Variation of Mammals in a Fragmented, Temperate Rainforest

Abstract:  Body size is perhaps the most important trait of an organism, affecting all of its physiological and ecological processes and, therefore, fundamentally influencing its ability to survive and reproduce in different environments, including those that have been modified by human activities. We tested the hypothesis that anthropogenic transformation of old-growth forest landscapes can result in significant intraspecific changes in body size of resident biotas. We collected data on five species of nonvolant mammals (common deer mouse [Peromyscus maniculatus ], northwestern deer mouse [P. keeni] , southern red-backed vole [Clethrionomys gapperi ], montane shrew [Sorex monticolus] , and Trowbridge's shrew [S. trowbridgii] ) to test whether body size (mass and length) of these species varied across types of land cover (macrohabitats) and along elevational gradients of the fragmented, temperate rainforest of Olympic National Forest (Washington, U.S.A.). We measured 2168 and 1134 individuals for body mass and body length, respectively. Three species ( P. keeni , S. monticolus , and S. trowbridgii ) exhibited significantly different body size among macrohabitats: individuals from fragments were smaller than those in old-growth corridors and those in more extensive stands of old-growth forest. Body size of P. keeni was significantly correlated with elevation along corridors, peaking near the medial reaches of the corridors. The effects of anthropogenic transformations of this landscape of old-growth, temperate rainforest, although not universal among the five species, were significant and rapid—developing in just a few decades following tree harvests. Thus, anthropogenic fragmentation may influence not only the diversity, species composition, and densities of local biotas, but also one of the most fundamental and defining characteristics of native species—their body size.     

Designing a Conservation Landscape for Tigers in Human-Dominated Environments

Abstract:  Wildlife populations in small, isolated reserves face genetic and demographic threats to their survival. To increase the probability of long-term persistence, biologists promote metapopulation management, in which breeding subpopulations are protected as source pools. Animals that disperse from the source pools increase the probability of persistence of the metapopulation across the greater landscape. We used a geographic information system (GIS)–based, cost-distance model to design a conservation landscape along the Himalayan foothills for managing a metapopulation of Asia's largest predator, the tiger ( Panthera tigris ). The model is based on data from 30 years of field research on tigers, recent satellite imagery, and a decade of buffer-zone restoration in this region. We used the model to (1) identify potential dispersal corridors for tigers; (2) identify strategic transit refuges; and (3) make recommendations for off-reserve land management and restoration to enhance the potential of corridors for tigers. This tool can aid the design of conservation landscapes for other endangered, wide-ranging species in human-dominated environments.     

Ecological Effectiveness of Agri-Environment Schemes in Different Agricultural Landscapes in The Netherlands

Abstract:  Agri-environment schemes are an instrument used by western European countries to counteract the negative effects of contemporary agriculture on biodiversity, but not much is known about their effectiveness. We investigated the ecological effects of Dutch agri-environment schemes aimed at promoting botanical diversity or meadow birds, and we tested whether the effectiveness of the schemes depends on landscape type or structure. In three different types of landscape, we surveyed plants, birds, bees, and hover flies on 78 paired fields that either had agri-environment schemes or were managed conventionally, and we collected data on a range of different environmental variables. Neither plant species richness nor abundance of meadow birds was higher on fields with agri-environment schemes. Landscape type had a significant effect on both species groups, but the effects of the schemes were independent of landscape type. Neither the diversity of plants nor the abundance of birds was related to any of the environmental variables. Agri-environment schemes designed to promote plant species richness or bird abundance did have positive side-effects because they enhanced the species richness of bees and hover flies, irrespective of the type of landscape. Furthermore, landscape type, groundwater level (hover flies), and area of wooded edges (bees) significantly affected both species groups. The failure of the schemes to promote the target species may be related to the high intensity of land use in The Netherlands. Simple conservation measures taken by farmers may not be sufficient to counteract the impact of factors that are often controlled at the landscape level (e.g., hydrology). Similar studies in other countries are needed to place the results of our study into a European context.     

Postfire Management on Forested Public Lands of the Western United States

Abstract:  Forest ecosystems in the western United States evolved over many millennia in response to disturbances such as wildfires. Land use and management practices have altered these ecosystems, however, including fire regimes in some areas. Forest ecosystems are especially vulnerable to postfire management practices because such practices may influence forest dynamics and aquatic systems for decades to centuries. Thus, there is an increasing need to evaluate the effect of postfire treatments from the perspective of ecosystem recovery. We examined, via the published literature and our collective experience, the ecological effects of some common postfire treatments. Based on this examination, promising postfire restoration measures include retention of large trees, rehabilitation of firelines and roads, and, in some cases, planting of native species. The following practices are generally inconsistent with efforts to restore ecosystem functions after fire: seeding exotic species, livestock grazing, placement of physical structures in and near stream channels, ground-based postfire logging, removal of large trees, and road construction. Practices that adversely affect soil integrity, persistence or recovery of native species, riparian functions, or water quality generally impede ecological recovery after fire. Although research provides a basis for evaluating the efficacy of postfire treatments, there is a continuing need to increase our understanding of the effects of such treatments within the context of societal and ecological goals for forested public lands of the western United States.     

Demographic Models and Reality in Reintroductions: Persian Fallow Deer in Israel

Abstract:  Because most reintroduced species are rare, data on their dynamics are scarce. Consequently, reintroduction programs often rely on data from other species or captive populations to project the performance of the reintroduced population in the wild. We compared the reproductive success and survival of a Persian fallow deer ( Dama mesopotamica ) population reintroduced in Israel over the first 5 years of the project with the survival and reproduction parameters estimated while planning the reintroduction. In addition, we compared the actual growth of the wild population with the growth originally projected by a computer model in the original reintroduction program. We monitored 74 radio-collared individuals (57 females and 17 males) released semiannually 1996–2001. Survival during the first year after release was lower than later years (0.90 and 0.82 versus 0.95 and 0.88, for females and males, respectively). Such an impact was not anticipated in the original plan, but overall survival was higher than originally projected. As assumed in the reintroduction program, reproductive success improved significantly with time since release and overall, was higher than expected. The mean number of animals released annually was lower than planned. Overall, the growth of the reintroduced population was slower than projected, but the deviation was close to confidence limits and the pattern similar. After 5 years it appears that the original time frame of 8–10 years for project completion can be met or at worst will cause a 1-year delay. Over the short term of 5 years, projection models in reintroduction programs are useful tools for assessing the sustained use of the breeding core, depicting the dynamics of the population in the wild, providing a relatively accurate time frame for the successful completion of the project, and assessing project success.     

Historical Evidence of Widespread Chytrid Infection in North American Amphibian Populations

Abstract:  Emerging infectious diseases may be contributing to the global decline of amphibian populations. In particular, chytridiomycosis, a cutaneous fungal infection of amphibians caused by the chytrid Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis , gained attention in the 1990s as an apparently new pathogen. This fungus has been implicated as the causative agent of widespread mortalities among wild amphibians in geographically disparate parts of the world. To investigate the global distribution, historical occurrence, and infectiousness of this pathogen, we examined 3371 postmetamorphic and adult amphibians collected between 1895 and 2001 from 25 countries for the presence of chytrid fungi in the epidermis. Cutaneous chytrid infection was diagnosed in 383 of 2931 (13.1%) specimens of 12 common amphibian species from five Canadian provinces and seven American states, including 30 of 69 locations examined in the St. Lawrence River Valley of Québec. Chytrids were observed in 7.0% (46/655) of the adults collected in the 1960s, the earliest cases being two green frogs (  Rana clamitans ) collected in 1961 from Saint-Pierre-de-Wakefield, Québec. In recent studies, morbidity and mortality attributable to chytridiomycosis were not observed in infected amphibians from Québec despite a 17.8% (302/1698) prevalence of chytrid infection during the period 1990–2001. The prevalence of infection during this latter period was not statistically different when compared with the period 1960–1969. Epidermal chytrid infections were not observed in 440 amphibians examined from 23 other countries. In light of the fact that infection by B. dendrobatidis is widely distributed and apparently enzootic in seemingly healthy amphibians from eastern North America, lethal outbreaks of chytridiomycosis among amphibian populations appear to have complex causes and may be the result of underlying predisposing factors.