This work represents the first attempt to model the habitat‐species relationships of a species of terrestrial tortoise on a large scale. We applied hierarchical variance partition methodology to Generalised Lineal Models (GLMs), with the presence of the tortoise in 1 km2 cells as the response variable. We posited the existence of a hierarchical scheme of factors (including climate, relief and lithology, and land‐use) that determine the distribution of Testugo graeca in southeastern Spain. We also identified the environmental variables within each factor with the greatest explanatory power and decoupled local vs landscape effects. Climate, followed by relief and lithology, and then land‐use, turned out to be the most important factor shaping the distribution of T. graeca in south‐east Spain as well as determining the presence of the species within its range. Univariate models showed that the main climate constraints were related to rainfall and extreme minimum temperatures, two factors which could be related to constraints imposed by the length of the annual activity period and productivity. Finally, multi‐scale decomposition suggested that neighbouring habitat and local dynamics may also be important in the distribution of the species at the landscape scale.
As a result of human activities, natural Mediterranean landscapes (including agro-ecosystems) are characterised by a mosaic-like structure with habitat-patches at different successional stages. These systems have high biodiversity levels and are home to a large number of species protected by European laws whose habitats should be adequately managed. In the present work, we study habitat use from an applied point of view in the spur-thighed tortoise Testudo graeca, an endangered reptile present in semi-arid Mediterranean agro-ecosystems. Results show that, at a landscape scale, the species selects simplified vegetation structures and includes in its home range re-colonisation shrubland and small non-irrigated fields. Within the home range, habitat selection patterns vary and areas with higher vegetation cover and complexity are selected. Detected patterns are discussed in terms of the ecological requirements of the species and with a hierarchical view of resources and conditions. The implications of our findings for habitat management aimed at the conservation of the species are also discussed.
In this study we propose a model‐building approach based on the hierarchical integration of the main environmental factors (climate, topography/lithology, and land uses) determining the distribution of the spur‐thighed tortoise in south‐east Spain. Data on the presence/absence of the species were primarily based on information derived from interviews to shepherds. The hierarchical modelling exercise consisted of three steps. First, we constructed a model for the entire region using climate variables, thus obtaining a potential climatical model. Second, we introduced variables referring to topography and lithology that fall within the climatic distribution range (potential model). Third, by using this second model as a starting point, we included land use variables to obtain the actual distribution model.
We analysed the changes in the values of probability of the presence of this species for a given cell between the potential and the actual model, assessing areas where habitat quality has decreased, been maintained or increased. The spatial representation of these changes was highly coherent. A discriminant analysis linked areas where habitat quality has dropped with agriculture landscapes, whereas those areas where habitat quality has been maintained or increased were located mainly in shrublands. Twenty‐five per cent (479 km2) of the potential distribution of the species became suboptimal when land use was included, which emphasizes the importance of land use changes in both the range dynamics and the conservation of the spur‐thighed tortoise in south‐east Spain.
This study investigates the exposure of the Spanish population to natural radiation sources. The annual average effective dose is estimated to be 1.6 mSv, taking into account contributions from cosmic radiation (18%), terrestrial gamma radiation (30%), radon and thoron inhalation (34%) and ingestion (18%). Cosmic radiation doses were calculated from town altitude data. Terrestrial gamma ray exposure outdoors were derived from the MARNA (natural gamma radiation map of Spain); indoor exposure was obtained multiplying the corresponding outdoor value by an experimentally calculated conversion factor. Radon doses were estimated from national surveys carried out throughout the country. To assess doses by ingestion, data from a detailed study on consumption habits in Spain and average radioactivity values from UNSCEAR have been considered. The variability in the exposures among individuals in the population has been explicitly taken into account in the assessment.
Cuba has the highest combined animal and 19 reptiles, 51 birds, and three species of mammal. The highest number of species were recorded in montane plant diversity, and the highest degree of endemism, in the West Indies. In 1998 we undertook the first major forest. Thirty-five percent of the taxa recorded are endemic to the area or to Cuba. Information gathered biodiversity survey of the Sierra del Cristal National Park, in the Holguín province in eastern Cuba, to address during the study will form the basis for developing long-term management plans for habitats and resident the need for baseline data on the wildlife of the forest habitats of this biologically important mountain range. species, in conjunction with the authorities responsible for environmental conservation. This area was chosen because it is known to be a major stronghold of the endemic Cuban solenodon Solenodon cubanus (Insectivora, Solenodontidae). The project initiated Keywords biodiversity assessment, Cuba, endemic species, forest, Sierra del Cristal, Solenodon cubanus. and supported field activities of two Cuban institutions involved in nature conservation. The study focused on indicator taxonomic groups. We recorded a total of 220 This article contains supplementary material that can only be found online at http://journals.cambridge.org species of plants, 53 spiders, 28 molluscs, 10 amphibians, cane, rice and coCee plantations. Most of the island was J. E. Fa (Corresponding author) Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, are the most prominent centre of speciation in the
Los nodavirus afectan a gran número de especies de peces, silvestres y cultivadas. En silvestres se ha aislado en diversas especies, pero nunca se había asociado con procesos clínicos en el litoral de Murcia. En otoño de 2017, se detectaron diversos ejemplares de meros (Epinephelus marginatus y E. costae) en la Reserva de Cabo de Palos con sintomatología clínica compatible con nodavirus. La infección por nodavirus fue confirmada mediante RT-PCR en tiempo real y su posterior genotipado (tipo RGNNV). Este hallazgo constituye la primera evidencia regional de infección clínica por nodavirus en peces silvestres, con la relevancia añadida de que la especie afectada es la especie emblemática de la Reserva Marina de Cabo de Palos, el mero.
Nodaviruses affect a large number of fish species, wild and farmed. In the wild it has been isolated in various species, but it had never been associated with clinical processes on the coast of Murcia. In autumn 2017, several specimens of groupers (Epinephelus marginatus and E. costae) were detected in the Cabo de Palos Reserve with clinical symptoms compatible with nodavirus. The infection by nodavirus was confirmed by real time RT-PCR and its subsequent genotyping (RGNNV type). This finding constitutes the first regional evidence of clinical infection by nodavirus in wild fish, with the added relevance that the affected specie, the grouper, is the emblematic specie of the Cabo de Palos Marine Reserve.
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