Review
Ecology
Enrico Lunghi, Helena Bilandzija
Summary: This paper reviews the current knowledge on the longevity of cave species, points out the limitations of previous studies, and provides suggestions for future research. It also argues that studying the longevity of cave animals contributes to understanding the evolution of aging.
FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Daniel Suarez, Paula Arribas, Nuria Macias-Hernandez, Brent C. Emerson
Summary: The relationship between local abundance and regional distribution of species is complex and can be influenced by factors such as dispersal ability and niche breadth. This study used data from 123 spider species in the Canary Islands to examine how these factors affect local abundance and occupancy. The results showed that dispersal ability had a stronger effect on occupancy at a regional scale, while species restricted to specific habitats had higher abundance. These findings highlight the importance of considering both dispersal ability and niche breadth in understanding abundance and occupancy patterns among species.
ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Vincent Jung, Lois Morel, Sebastien Bonthoux, Simon Chollet
Summary: The study introduces a new index (VCS) to assess the conservation status of plant communities, which proves to be the most effective in evaluating vegetation conservation status when compared against qualitative assessments by experts. The use of habitat-specific species pools to distinguish between typical and non-typical species, as well as the consideration of species abundances, are critical for an accurate assessment of the vegetation conservation status.
ECOLOGICAL INDICATORS
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Graziella V. DiRenzo, David A. W. Miller, Blake R. Hossack, Brent H. Sigafus, Paige E. Howell, Erin Muths, Evan H. C. Grant
Summary: First-order dynamic occupancy models (FODOMs) capture ecological dynamics caused by covariates, but can be extended with a second-order Markov process to incorporate site memory when covariates are not available. This modeling framework allows for reliable inference on site occupancy, colonization, extinction, turnover, and detection probabilities.
Article
Entomology
Geanina Magdalena Iacob, Cristina Craioveanu, Vladimir Hula, Virgiliu Marius Aurelian, Monica Beldean, Cristian Sitar
Summary: Paracossulus thrips is a locally distributed and endangered moth species in Europe, with little known about its biology and ecology. This study conducted in Transylvania, Romania provides important baseline knowledge on the species, including confirming the host plant and describing habitat types. The discovery of new populations and DNA barcoding sequences contribute to conservation efforts for this endangered species.
Article
Ecology
Valentina Zini, Kristin Waber, Karen Hornigold, Ian Lake, Paul M. Dolman
Summary: The study suggests that habitat, human disturbance, and landscape context influence local deer density in a forest-mosaic landscape in eastern England. However, manipulating forest management to control deer populations has only a subtle effect, with culling remaining the most viable management option.
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF WILDLIFE RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Alberto Jimenez-Valverde, Pedro Aragon, Jorge M. Lobo
Summary: Estimating local suitability with species distribution models (SDMs) can indicate the maximum abundance attainable by species, but the abundance-suitability relationship is typically wedge-shaped. The shape of this relationship is directly related to maximum abundance and is influenced by SDM quality and species prevalence.
GLOBAL ECOLOGY AND BIOGEOGRAPHY
(2021)
Article
Ecology
R. S. K. Barnes
Summary: Intraspecific relationships between patchiness, abundance, and occupancy were investigated in a faunal assemblage for the first time. Most species showed negative relationships between patchiness and occupancy, while patchiness-abundance relationships were weaker and fewer species showed significant ones.
Article
Ecology
Vincent Calcagno, Patrice David, Philippe Jarne, Francois Massol
Summary: The complexity of food webs is influenced by environmental variables, but it is unclear how food-chain length is affected by the adaptive evolution of species. In this study, we modeled the evolution of species colonization rates and found that longer food-chains can persist when colonization rates can evolve. Extinction, perturbation, and habitat loss all impact the evolutionarily stable colonization rates, with weaker trade-offs leading to longer chains.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Minxuan Sun, Zhengxin Ji, Xin Jiao, Fei Lun, Qiangqiang Sun, Danfeng Sun
Summary: Accurate inventories of grasslands are crucial for studying greenhouse gas dynamics. This paper proposes a large-area grassland mapping framework based on grassland occurrence probability and fractional vegetation and soil-related endmember nexuses. The study uses bio-climate data and a random forests method to generate grassland occurrence probability maps. Time series endmember fraction maps are created using linear spectral mixture analysis, and an RF model is used to map grassland distribution. This approach improves mapping accuracy and identifies ecologically sensitive regions.
Article
Ecology
Graziella DiRenzo, David A. W. Miller, Evan H. C. Grant
Summary: The study highlights the importance of distinguishing between availability and detectability in occupancy models. When species availability is low, single-scale occupancy models underestimate occupancy and provide poor parameter coverage, while high availability leads to similar performance between single-scale and multi-scale occupancy models. The results emphasize the impact of unaccounted for availability in species distribution estimates using single-scale occupancy models.
METHODS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Laura E. D'Acunto, Leonard Pearlstine, Stephanie S. Romanach
Summary: The restoration of the Florida Everglades is one of the largest ongoing ecosystem restoration projects in the world, with decision-makers relying on ecological models to predict wildlife response to changes in water management. By using a joint species distribution model, researchers were able to improve the accuracy and applicability of wading bird distribution models in the Everglades, considering the impact of annual hydrologic conditions and landscape characteristics on multiple species simultaneously.
Article
Biology
Joshua P. Twining, Chris Sutherland, Neil Reid, David G. Tosh
Summary: The recovery of native predators can have significant implications for species interactions, and this study shows that these interactions are mediated by habitat. The expansion of the native pine marten was not influenced by human habitat modification, but its effect on the red squirrel was dependent on habitat type. These findings highlight the importance of habitat in shaping the interactions between predators and prey.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2022)
Review
Biodiversity Conservation
Conor Waldock, Rick D. Stuart-Smith, Camille Albouy, William W. L. Cheung, Graham J. Edgar, David Mouillot, Jerry Tjiputra, Loic Pellissier
Summary: The contributions of species to ecosystem functions or services depend on their presence and local abundance, but current predictive spatial models focus more on species occurrence rather than abundance. The study found significant variation in the performance of abundance-based models, with random forests providing the best predictions in certain scenarios.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Yuyang Xian, Yongquan Lu, Guilin Liu
Summary: Global climate change caused by fossil energy consumption threatens the habitat of pangolins. MaxEnt modeling reveals that temperature, precipitation, geomorphology, and vegetation coverage affect the habitats of different pangolin species. Human activities pose a threat to pangolin habitats, but labor transfer in southern China mitigates the negative impact in rural areas. Illegal pangolin trade is a significant threat, and future scenarios show changes in habitat for different pangolin species.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Review
Ecology
Stefano Mammola, Enrico Lunghi, Helena Bilandzija, Pedro Cardoso, Volker Grimm, Susanne I. Schmidt, Thomas Hesselberg, Alejandro Martinez
Summary: Caves and other subterranean habitats are suitable experimental model systems for addressing general questions in ecology and evolution, but the harsh working conditions and uniqueness of subterranean organisms make standardized research challenging. The main obstacles are related to habitat difficulties and the rarity of subterranean species, which limit sample size and complicate laboratory experiments.
ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Enrico Lunghi, Claudia Corti, Marta Biaggini, Stefano Merilli, Raoul Manenti, Yahui Zhao, Gentile Francesco Ficetola, Fabio Cianferoni
Summary: This data set collects capture-mark-recapture data, biometric data, and stomach contents of the Italian cave salamander, providing important parameters for assessing its conservation status. The data set also includes information on recaptures, body condition variation, divergences between populations, and prey categories and trophic specialization.
Editorial Material
Ecology
Enrico Lunghi
Article
Environmental Sciences
Enrico Lunghi, Barbara Valle, Alessia Guerrieri, Aurelie Bonin, Fabio Cianferoni, Raoul Manenti, Gentile Francesco Ficetola
Summary: Environmental DNA metabarcoding is a powerful tool to assess biodiversity in subterranean environments. This study found that eDNA metabarcoding from cave soils can successfully detect springtails and insects, although the majority of detected MOTUs represented taxa living outside caves and freshwater environments. The detection probability of insects was significantly lower than that of springtails. Cave soils contain a mix of autochthonous and allochthonous eDNA, providing unprecedented information on subterranean cave organisms.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Stefano Mammola, Martina Pavlek, Bernhard A. Huber, Marco Isaia, Francesco Ballarin, Marco Tolve, Iva Cupic, Thomas Hesselberg, Enrico Lunghi, Samuel Mouron, Caio Graco-Roza, Pedro Cardoso
Summary: Species traits are crucial in various fields including ecology, evolution, biogeography, and conservation biology. However, trait databases are often unavailable for organisms living in inaccessible habitats like caves. This study compiled a comprehensive trait database for subterranean spiders in Europe, providing valuable resources for studying subterranean ecosystems.
Review
Ecology
Enrico Lunghi, Helena Bilandzija
Summary: This paper reviews the current knowledge on the longevity of cave species, points out the limitations of previous studies, and provides suggestions for future research. It also argues that studying the longevity of cave animals contributes to understanding the evolution of aging.
FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Veronica Nanni, Stefano Mammola, Nuria Macias-Hernandez, Alessia Castrogiovanni, Ana L. Salgado, Enrico Lunghi, Gentile Francesco Ficetola, Corrado Modica, Riccardo Alba, Maria Michela Spiriti, Susanne Holtze, Erica Munhoz de Mello, Barbara De Mori, Pierfrancesco Biasetti, Dan Chamberlain, Raoul Manenti
Summary: Most people rely on media for their perception of wildlife risk, but this can be influenced by how the media frames news. The COVID-19 pandemic intensified negative views on bats due to media reports linking them to the virus. However, conservation communication initiatives helped counter the negative perception and reduce bat persecution. Understanding media influence is vital for species conservation, and collaboration with journalists is important for future conservation management.
BIOLOGICAL CONSERVATION
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Enrico Lunghi, Fabio Cianferoni, Claudia Corti, Yahui Zhao, Raoul Manenti, Gentile Francesco Ficetola, Giorgio Mancinelli
Summary: The trophic niche of the Italian cave salamander, Speleomantes italicus, was studied for the first time, revealing significant differences in diet and body condition among different populations. This variability may play a major role in the diversity of population traits.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2022)
Article
Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science
Enrico Lunghi, Claudia Corti, Marta Biaggini, Yahui Zhao, Fabio Cianferoni
Summary: Study on species' trophic niches is crucial for understanding species ecology, life traits, and conservation strategies. When there is no competition, species prefer the most profitable food resources. In the presence of competitors, species adjust their preferences to reduce competition and maintain the highest benefits. In this study, we investigated the trophic niches of two coexisting salamander species in Italy and explored the mechanisms they adopted to reduce competition. Our findings suggest that the two species did not change their prey preference but had divergences in metabolism and behavior, which likely contributed to their coexistence.
Article
Zoology
Claudia Corti, Marta Biaggini, Valeria Nulchis, Roberto Cogoni, Ilaria Maria Cossu, Salvatore Frau, Manuela Mulargia, Enrico Lunghi, Lara Bassu
Summary: This study provides an update on the distribution of amphibians and reptiles in Sardinia and satellite islands. The data, derived from field observations and literature, include over 7000 records of 11 species of amphibians and 18 species of reptiles. The study finds that species abundance is influenced by environmental heterogeneity and varies with elevation range and edge density.
ACTA HERPETOLOGICA
(2022)
Article
Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science
Roberto Cogoni, Milos Di Gregorio, Fabio Cianferoni, Enrico Lunghi
Summary: This study conducted the first monitoring activities on the endangered Sette Fratelli cave salamander Speleomantes sarrabusensis in Europe. It estimated the abundance of four populations of S. sarrabusensis, providing crucial data for future status assessments of the species.
Review
Zoology
Enrico Lunghi, Stefano Mammola, Alejandro Martinez, Thomas Hesselberg
Summary: Specialized subterranean species provide an ideal model system for studying eco-evolutionary dynamics driven by environmental constraints. This study reviewed the literature and found that the behavioural adaptations of subterranean organisms commonly include exploratory, feeding, social and anti-predator behaviors. These behaviors are likely early adaptations to the constant darkness, limited food resources, and reduced predator pressure in subterranean habitats.
ZOOLOGICAL JOURNAL OF THE LINNEAN SOCIETY
(2023)
Article
Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science
Fabio Cianferoni, Enrico Lunghi
Summary: This article discusses the foraging behavior of European cave salamanders through a detailed analysis of published datasets. It is found that flying insects are the most consumed prey, while strictly-cave prey are rare. The study suggests that Speleomantes mainly forage in surface environments, but also engage in predatory activity in shallow water bodies. The morphology of the prey and their defenses influence the salamanders' prey choice.
Article
Marine & Freshwater Biology
Enrico Lunghi, Raoul Manenti, Roberta Cimmaruta
Meeting Abstract
Zoology
M. K. O'Donnell, E. Lunghi, S. M. Deban
INTEGRATIVE AND COMPARATIVE BIOLOGY
(2021)