Article
Environmental Sciences
Wieland Heim, Alexander Thomas, Isabelle Berner, Tim Korschefsky, Norbert Hoelzel, Johannes Kamp
Summary: This study investigates the impact of anthropogenic fire on breeding habitat use and niche overlap of five sympatric bunting species. The findings suggest that fire frequency is a major determinant for niche separation among the species, while recent fire does not affect niche overlap.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science
Farah Abou Zeid, Federico Morelli, Juan Diego Ibanez-Alamo, Mario Diaz, Jiri Reif, Jukka Jokimaki, Jukka Suhonen, Marja-Liisa Kaisanlahti-Jokimaki, Gabor Marko, Raphael Bussiere, Marko Magi, Piotr Tryjanowski, Theodoros Kominos, Antonia Galanaki, Nikos Bukas, Fabio Pruscini, Leszek Jerzak, Olaf Ciebiera, Yanina Benedetti
Summary: Understanding habitat and spatial overlap in sympatric species of urban areas would aid in predicting species and community modifications in response to global change. Habitat overlap has been widely investigated for specialist species but neglected for generalists living in urban settings. This work aimed to determine the urban habitat requirements and spatial overlap of five corvid species in sixteen European cities during the breeding season. All five studied corvid species had high overlap in their habitat selection while still having particular tendencies. We found three species, the Carrion/Hooded Crow, Rook, and Eurasian Magpie, selected open habitats. The Western Jackdaw avoided areas with bare soil cover, and the Eurasian Jay chose more forested areas. The species with similar habitat selection also had congruent spatial distributions. Our results indicate that although the corvids had some tendencies regarding habitat selection, as generalists, they still tolerated a wide range of urban habitats, which resulted in high overlap in their habitat niches and spatial distributions.
Article
Forestry
Jenjira Fungjanthuek, Man-Juan Huang, Alice C. Hughes, Jian-Feng Huang, Huan-Huan Chen, Jie Gao, Yan-Qiong Peng
Summary: This study used the ecological niche model MAXENT to evaluate habitat suitability and predict potential habitats for two fig species in the Xishuangbanna region of China. The results showed that key variables influencing habitat suitability differ for the two species, and suitable distribution areas may decrease in the future. Specific actions are needed to conserve these species.
Article
Ecology
Werther P. Ramalho, Vitor H. M. Prado, Luciana Signorelli, Kimberly A. With
Summary: The study found that local-scale environmental filtering plays a significant role in shaping patterns of species co-occurrence among pond-breeding anurans in the Brazilian Cerrado, with competition being relatively weaker. Arboreal species are predominantly influenced by habitat filtering, leading to a checkerboard distribution, while terrestrial species exhibit limiting similarity within small ponds.
Article
Ecology
Kimberly A. Lato, Matthew Fuirst, Richard R. Veit, Lesley H. Thorne
Summary: Urban habitats can create empty trophic niche space, allowing generalist species to shift or expand their trophic niches. However, the effects on interspecific interactions and competition in peri-urban systems are less clear. This study found that peri-urban environments can facilitate trophic niche expansion and decrease niche overlap in mobile generalist species. These results highlight the importance of studying how peri-urban systems influence wildlife to understand the impact of urbanization on ecosystem structures.
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Slade Allen-Ankins, Lin Schwarzkopf
Summary: This study examined the relationship between spectral overlap and temporal overlap in a tropical savannah frog community. While there was no relationship found at the night or minute level, a negative relationship was found at the call level, indicating that species pairs with greater mean spectral overlap called together less frequently than expected. The study suggests that factors other than avoiding spectral overlap may be driving calling activity at gross timescales in tropical savannah frog communities.
Article
Ecology
Wenke Bai, Jindong Zhang, Ke He, Shanshan Zhao, Xiaodong Gu, Jie Hu, Melissa Songer, Caiquan Zhou, Xin Dong, Qiongyu Huang
Summary: This study analyzes the overlap in habitat area and suitability between giant pandas and sambars in the Wolong National Nature Reserve. The results indicate a high similarity in habitat requirements between the two species, and potential competition over space utilization. Therefore, habitat restoration and corridor construction should be recommended as conservation strategies to alleviate the increased competition associated with niche overlap among sympatric species.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Luca Luiselli, Daniele Dendi, Fabio Petrozzi, Gabriel Hoinsoude Segniagbeto
Summary: The community structures of lizards in suburban Lome were analyzed and compared with nearby savannah and forest sites. The results showed that lizard communities in tropical cities are less species-rich than in natural habitats, usually clustered into specific habitat types, and not assembled through competitive interactions.
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Ryoga Watabe, Masayuki U. Saito
Summary: This study revealed that the temporal niche overlap of three carnivores in northeastern Japan was higher in winter than that in other seasons due to their simultaneous activity under similar weather conditions, indicating that coping with the weather may be more important than avoiding interspecific competition as a winter survival strategy. The results conflict with the hypothesis predicting temporal niche partitioning among carnivores in winter.
BEHAVIORAL ECOLOGY AND SOCIOBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Jakub Z. Kosicki
Summary: This study examines niche divergence and interspecific competition in the spatial distribution of sister species within a sympatric zone in Poland, showing how different habitat preferences can lead to co-existence of related congeners due to ecological mechanisms.
ECOLOGICAL MODELLING
(2022)
Article
Biology
Peter J. Lawrence, Ally J. Evans, Tim Jackson-Bue, Paul R. Brooks, Tasman P. Crowe, Amy E. Dozier, Stuart R. Jenkins, Pippa J. Moore, Gareth J. Williams, Andrew J. Davies
Summary: Habitat structural complexity plays a crucial role in supporting biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. Artificial coastal structures like seawalls and rock armour are found to be less complex than natural rocky shorelines, which raises concerns about the negative impact of simplifying coastlines on organisms. This study provides insight into how artificial structures can be modified to better mimic the complexity of natural rocky shores.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Guido J. Parra, Zachary Wojtkowiak, Katharina J. Peters, Daniele Cagnazzi
Summary: The coexistence of Australian snubfin and humpback dolphins is likely facilitated by subtle differences in prey selection and habitat use, despite their similarities in trophic levels and dietary overlap.
ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Jeffrey M. Goessling, Jonathan M. Stober, Sybil G. Gyengo, Sharon M. Hermann, Tracey D. Tuberville, Craig Guyer
Summary: Conservation biologists studied the abundance and dynamics of gopher tortoise populations in a forest in Alabama, finding low overall densities but higher densities in local populations, with some populations experiencing significant growth. The study suggests that small populations on high-density sites can exhibit long-term stability or growth even if they do not meet current viability criteria.
JOURNAL OF WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Wentao Dai, Aoqiang Li, Yang Chang, Tong Liu, Lin Zhang, Jun Li, Haixia Leng, Zhongle Li, Longru Jin, Keping Sun, Jiang Feng
Summary: Understanding trophic niche differentiation among species is crucial for exploring interspecific competition and stable coexistence. Bats are an ideal model for studying trophic niche differentiation due to their taxonomic and ecological diversities, as well as their unique life history traits. However, few studies have investigated the influences on bat trophic niches by combining multiple factors.
FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2023)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Fabio Petrozzi, Stephanie N. Ajong, Nic Pacini, Daniele Dendi, Sery Gonedele Bi, Julia E. Fa, Luca Luiselli
Summary: In riverine/wetland habitats in southern Ivory Coast, two congeneric species in the family Pelomedusidae, Pelusios castaneus and P. cupulatta, exhibit distinct habitat preferences, particularly in terms of banks and aquatic vegetation selection. This indicates potential competition between these two turtle species in freshwater habitats.
Article
Ecology
Narendra Nelli, Diana Francis, Ricardo Fonseca, Olivier Masson, Mamadou Sow, Emmanuel Bosc
Summary: This study investigates the changes in the atmospheric electric field (Ez) during foggy conditions in the hyperarid region of the United Arab Emirates. The results show that as fog persists, Ez becomes more variable due to the absorption and redistribution of charges by the fog, which alters the ion balance and affects electrical conductivity in the atmosphere.
JOURNAL OF ARID ENVIRONMENTS
(2024)
Article
Ecology
Ezra Hadad, Amir Balaban, Jakub Z. Kosicki, Reuven Yosef
Summary: This study investigated whether the prey of striped hyenas has adapted to the change in the natural environment caused by human activities, particularly artificial light at night (ALAN). The results showed that ALAN had no impact on the diet or den distribution of the hyenas in central Israel. The study also found that domestic animals were the most common prey, and there were also some vegetative species in their diet. Overall, the feeding behavior of striped hyenas is influenced by geographical region, habitat, and human activities.
JOURNAL OF ARID ENVIRONMENTS
(2024)
Article
Ecology
Rahim Najafi Tireh Shabankareh, Pardis Ziaee, Mohammad Javad Abedini
Summary: This study evaluated the IMERG satellite-based precipitation product in the Fars province of Iran using daily rain gauges as reference data. The results showed that the product tends to overestimate light rainfall and underestimate heavy rainfall, with the best performance in the 40-80 mm/day range. The accuracy of the product varies by month and is less biased in months with milder temperatures. Additionally, there was a higher correlation in mid-elevated areas, positive bias in low-elevated areas, and negative bias in high-elevated areas. Longer time scales showed considerable improvement in the IMERG estimates.
JOURNAL OF ARID ENVIRONMENTS
(2024)
