Space use and microhabitat selection of wild giant pandas in Meigu Dafengding National Nature Reserve, China

Chen, Yuxiang; Wang, Xiao; Zheng, Xiaoguang; Gong, Yihua; Chen, Minghua; Qiu, Lei; Zhou, Hong; Wei, Wei; Han, Han

doi:10.3389/fevo.2022.1000841

Cited by 4 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…The soil is mainly represented by yellow, purple, yellow-brown, brown and other soil types, which facilitate the growth of bamboo, the giant panda's staple food. Six bamboo species, including Bashania fangiana, Yushania brevipaniculata and Yushania ailuropodina, are widely distributed in the area with good growing conditions [32].…”

Section: Overview Of the Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

A Survey of the Wild Giant Panda Population and Habitat Reflects an Urgent In Situ Conservation Need: A Case of Meigu Dafengding National Nature Reserve

Zhang,

Wei,

Qubi

et al. 2023

Diversity

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An important tool for conserving species and their habitats and achieving sustainable development is the establishment of national parks. The population ecology of the species to be conserved, including their population size and suitable habitat, needs to be assessed prior to integrating protected areas into national parks. The Liangshan Mountains are currently the southernmost habitat of giant pandas and lie outside the newly established Giant Panda National Park (GPNP). The population is threatened with extinction due to severe isolation and human disturbance. However, there has been a ten-year gap in the census of giant pandas in this critical area. This means that conservation managers are unable to keep up to date with population and habitat dynamics. The Meigu Dafengding National Nature Reserve is the core area of the giant panda population in Liangshan and the link for gene exchange. The focus of this study is to assess the spatial distribution pattern of suitable habitat, habitat fragmentation and the habitat selection characteristics of giant pandas in the Meigu Dafengding Nature Reserve in Liangshan in order to lay the foundation for the future inclusion of Liangshan into the national park. A total of 151 giant panda fecal samples were collected in 2023. Using the distance–bamboo stem fragments method, this indicated that nearly 28 to 29 giant pandas exist within the reserve. Based on MaxEnt and FRAGSTATS, the giant panda population is concentrated in Wahei–Yiziyakou. They tend to choose gentle slopes of 10–30°, at altitudes between 2500 m and 3500 m, with average annual temperatures between 8.5 °C and 10 °C. They also select the areas close to roads and settlements for their frequent activities. Unsuitable habitat is widespread and surrounds low-, medium- and high-suitability habitats with poor habitat connectivity. In situ conservation measures are urgently needed due to the restricted distribution of populations and poor habitat suitability. This lays the foundation for the future inclusion of Liangshan into the national park, providing greater protection for the giant panda and other species in the region, and for other national parks to integrate all habitats into a single management unit. This will address conservation gaps and overlapping management, and promote the conservation of rare or endangered species.

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Section: Overview Of the Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

A Survey of the Wild Giant Panda Population and Habitat Reflects an Urgent In Situ Conservation Need: A Case of Meigu Dafengding National Nature Reserve

Zhang,

Wei,

Qubi

et al. 2023

Diversity

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“…The original intention of establishing Giant Panda National Park was to preserve the giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) and its habitat and to restore and enhance ecosystem multifunctionality. Studies have demonstrated that giant pandas' habit are found in primary forests [33] and in secondary forests [34], whereas giant pandas are more abundant in traces in primary forests in comparison to secondary forests [35]. The soil bacterial community is a critical participant in the ecological process and thus an important resource to utilize in ecological restoration.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Association between Soil Physicochemical Properties and Bacterial Community Structure in Diverse Forest Ecosystems

Yang,

Feng,

Zhou

et al. 2024

Microorganisms

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Although the importance of the soil bacterial community for ecosystem functions has long been recognized, there is still a limited understanding of the associations between its community composition, structure, co-occurrence patterns, and soil physicochemical properties. The objectives of the present study were to explore the association between soil physicochemical properties and the composition, diversity, co-occurrence network topological features, and assembly mechanisms of the soil bacterial community. Four typical forest types from Liziping Nature Reserve, representing evergreen coniferous forest, deciduous coniferous forest, mixed conifer-broadleaf forest, and its secondary forest, were selected for this study. The soil bacterial community was analyzed using Illumina MiSeq sequencing of 16S rRNA genes. Nonmetric multidimensional scaling was used to illustrate the clustering of different samples based on Bray–Curtis distances. The associations between soil physicochemical properties and bacterial community structure were analyzed using the Mantel test. The interactions among bacterial taxa were visualized with a co-occurrence network, and the community assembly processes were quantified using the Beta Nearest Taxon Index (Beta-NTI). The dominant bacterial phyla across all forest soils were Proteobacteria (45.17%), Acidobacteria (21.73%), Actinobacteria (8.75%), and Chloroflexi (5.06%). Chao1 estimator of richness, observed ASVs, faith-phylogenetic diversity (faith-PD) index, and community composition were distinguishing features of the examined four forest types. The first two principal components of redundancy analysis explained 41.33% of the variation in the soil bacterial community, with total soil organic carbon, soil moisture, pH, total nitrogen, carbon/nitrogen (C/N), carbon/phosphorous (C/P), and nitrogen/phosphorous (N/P) being the main soil physicochemical properties shaping soil bacterial communities. The co-occurrence network structure in the mixed forest was more complex compared to that in pure forests. The Beta-NTI indicated that the bacterial community assembly of the four examined forest types was collaboratively influenced by deterministic and stochastic ecological processes.

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“…However, the growth of some bamboo appropriate for giant pandas requires a certain tree environment [7][8][9]. More generally, giant pandas tend to use forest habitats [10][11][12][13][14][15]. Therefore, trees are important in the habitat composition and habitat use of giant pandas, and must be protected.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Characteristics and Roles of Large Trees in Giant Panda Habitat of Wanglang Nature Reserve

Yang,

Wang,

Kang

2023

Forests

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Specific studies of large trees in giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) habitats are currently lacking. To fill this research gap, a field survey on large trees in Wanglang Nature Reserve of China was conducted. According to a previous definition of a large tree (DBH ≥ 60 cm), a total of 19 large trees, composed of Abies fargesii var. faxoniana (73.7%), Betula albosinensis (15.8%), and Juniperus saltuaria (10.5%), were found in 50% of 30 10 m × 10 m giant panda habitat plots (contained feces of giant panda). Compared to the habitat where large trees were absent, the giant panda habitat where large trees were present was characterized by larger-sized tree diameter and more bamboo clumps. The mean proportion of large trees in the basal area of the tree layer in habitats where large trees were present was 65.5%. Considering large trees are a scarce resource and play a crucial role in habitat composition and habitat use, large trees and their habitats need to be given priority protection. To achieve more accurate protection, continuous and dynamic monitoring of large trees is needed, and the investigation of large trees should form a part of future national surveys of giant pandas.

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Space use and microhabitat selection of wild giant pandas in Meigu Dafengding National Nature Reserve, China

Cited by 4 publications

References 31 publications

A Survey of the Wild Giant Panda Population and Habitat Reflects an Urgent In Situ Conservation Need: A Case of Meigu Dafengding National Nature Reserve

A Survey of the Wild Giant Panda Population and Habitat Reflects an Urgent In Situ Conservation Need: A Case of Meigu Dafengding National Nature Reserve

Association between Soil Physicochemical Properties and Bacterial Community Structure in Diverse Forest Ecosystems

Characteristics and Roles of Large Trees in Giant Panda Habitat of Wanglang Nature Reserve

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