The Effect of Three Gorge Project on the Small Mammals in Yangtze River of China

Zhang, Meiwen

doi:10.24966/azs-7779/100005

Cited by 2 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…The rodent-preference of O. bacoti would increase the potential risk of the mite’s attacking humans and spreading some zoonoses. The Asian house rat ( R. tanezumi ) and the Norway rat ( R. norvegicus ) are two major species of rodents associated with human settlements in Yunnan Province and some other places of China [ 52 , 53 ]. Rattus tanezumi (often called R. flavipectus in China) is widely distributed in the vast areas south of the Yangtze River, in Southern China.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Distribution and Host Selection of Tropical Rat Mite, Ornithonyssus bacoti, in Yunnan Province of Southwest China

Yin

Guo

Jin

et al. 2021

Animals

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(1) Background: As a species of gamasid mite, the tropical rat mite (Ornithonyssus bacoti) is a common ectoparasite on rodents and some other small mammals. Besides stinging humans to cause dermatitis, O. bacoti can be a vector of rickettsia pox and a potential vector of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS). (2) Objective: The present study was conducted to understand the host selection of O. bacoti on different animal hosts and the distribution in different environmental gradients in Yunnan Province of Southwest China. (3) Methods: The original data came from the investigations in 39 counties of Yunnan, between 1990 and 2015. The animal hosts, rodents and some other small mammals were mainly trapped with mouse traps. The O. bacoti mites on the body surface of animal hosts were collected and identified in a conventional way. The constituent ratio (Cr), prevalence (PM), mean abundance (MA) and mean intensity (MI) were used to reflect infestations of animal hosts with O. bacoti mites. The patchiness index and Taylor’s power law were used to measure the spatial distribution pattern of O. bacoti mites on their hosts. (4) Results: A total of 4121 tropical rat mites (O. bacoti) were identified from 15 species and 14,739 individuals of hosts, and 99.20% of them were found on rodents. More than half of O. bacoti mites (51.78%) were identified from the Asian house rat (Rattus tanezumi), and 40.09% of the mites from the Norway rat (R. norvegicus) (p < 0.05). The infestations of R. tanezumi (PM = 7.61%, MA = 0.40 and MI = 5.31) and R. norvegicus (PM = 10.98, MA = 1.14 and MI = 10.39) with O. bacoti mites were significantly higher than those of other host species (p < 0.05). The infestations of two dominant rat hosts (R. tanezumi and R. norvegicus) with O. bacoti mites varied in different environmental gradients (latitudes, longitudes, altitudes, landscapes and habitats) and on different sexes and ages of the hosts. The prevalence of juvenile R. norvegicus rats with O. bacoti mites (PM = 12.90%) was significantly higher than that of adult rats (PM = 9.62%) (p < 0.05). The prevalence (PM = 38.46%) and mean abundance (MA = 2.28 mites/host) of R. tanezumi rats with O. bacoti mites in the high latitude were higher than those in the low latitudes (p < 0.05). The majority of the total collected 4121 O. bacoti mites was found in the flatland landscape (91.28%) and indoor habitat (73.48%) (p < 0.05). The PM (10.66%) and MA (0.49 mites/host) of R. tanezumi rats with O. bacoti mites were significantly higher in the indoor habitat than in the outdoor habitat (p < 0.05). The tropical rat mites showed an aggregated distribution pattern on their first dominant host, R. tanezumi. Conclusion: The tropical rat mite (O. bacoti) is a widely distributed species of gamasid mite in Yunnan Province, Southwest China, and its dominant hosts are two synanthropic species of rats, R. tanezumi and R. norvegicus. It is mainly distributed in the flatland landscape and indoor habitat. It has some host-specificity, with a preference to rodents, especially R. tanezumi and R. norvegicus. The O. bacoti mites are of aggregated distribution on R. tanezumi rats.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Distribution and Host Selection of Tropical Rat Mite, Ornithonyssus bacoti, in Yunnan Province of Southwest China

Yin

Guo

Jin

et al. 2021

Animals

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“…This was suggested by Appiah et al (2017) who emphasized an increased utilization of resources at Bui National Park by settlers within and outside the reserve after the dam construction. Similarly, several studies have confirmed significant declines in species population after dam construction on tropical rivers globally (Nilsson and Dynesius 1994;Peris and Morales 2004;Welbergen et al 2008;Alho 2011;Passamani and Cerboncini 2013;Benchimol and Peres 2015;Zhang and Xu 2018). This study, however, acknowledges weaknesses due to the limitation in the number of data points; although other studies have applied similar point data set successfully (Alhassan 2013;Smokorowski and Randall 2017;Dos Santos et al 2022).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 75%

“…One such anthropogenic activitiy is hydroelectric dam construction. Hydroelectric dams higher than 15 m have been constructed on more than 50% of large rivers worldwide, affecting the eco-physiochemical features of rivers (McAllister et al 2001), and resulting in population decline in numerous species (Peris and Morales 2004;Passamani and Cerboncini 2013;Benchimol and Peres 2015;Zhang and Xu 2018). Most hydroelectric dams are built on freshwater ways, which cover about 1% of the surface of the earth, but support 30% of vertebrate biodiversity (Flitcroft et al 2019).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Understanding the response of H. amphibius to dam construction on rivers could contribute to the fundamental measures necessary to alleviate the ecological pressure and enhance conservation (Reitan and Thingstad 1999;Hunt et al 2013;Dos Santos et al 2022). Unlike some small mammals that have been well-researched (Thibault and Brown 2008;Passamani and Cerboncini 2013;Zhang and Xu 2018), studies on the effects of hydroelectric dam constructions on the megafauna are limited and a grey area in the literature (Nilsson and Dynesius 1994;Heinen and Singh 2001), especially in sub-Saharan Africa. This is particularly important for semi-aquatic species because of the severe changes in the terrestrial ecosystem resulting from flooding and the increase in water volume affecting the habitat.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The direct and indirect effects of damming on the Hippopotamus amphibius population abundance and distribution at Bui National Park, Ghana

Bempah¹,

Grant²,

Lu³

et al. 2022

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Landscape changes resulting from human activities have resulted in range restrictions and substantial reductions in population sizes of most animals. The construction of hydroelectric dams has the same effect on species, but the study of their impact on semi-aquatic megafauna species is limited. We examined the response of a Hippopotamus amphibius population to the inundation of their habitat after the construction of a hydroelectric dam in Bui National Park, Ghana. We conducted an abundance and distribution survey of H. amphibius and compared the population size from our results with a pre-dam construction survey to determine changes in the abundance and distribution of the species within the focal area. Furthermore, we conducted a landscape analysis to estimate land cover before and after the dam construction and determined if the changes in land cover were related to the changes in population of H. amphibius. Finally, we conducted selected interviews to understand additional threats to the species perceived by the local population, as indirect effects of the dam construction. Contrary to our original hypothesis on an increase in the abundance of H. amphibius in the medium term (within a decade) through population recovery after the disturbances caused by the construction of the dam, we found lower numbers of H. amphibius after the dam construction, compared to the pre-dam results. The results indicated a reduced abundance from 209 H. amphibius individuals in 2003 to 64 H. amphibius individuals in 2021. Some individuals may have migrated to areas outside the reserve during damming when their habitat was disturbed. The amount of land covered by water increased from 0.41% before damming to 19.01% after damming, which flooded the resting and grazing sites of the H. amphibius. We conclude that the abundance and distribution of H. amphibius significantly and negatively decreased after the construction of the dam at the Bui National Park. We tentatively relate this decrease to the species’ semi aquatic ecology and sensitivity to changes in both the terrestrial and aquatic environment. The activities of human settlement encroachment such as poaching, as well as associated land cover changes, affected the stability of the H. amphibius population. However, as the species can survive in the medium to long term when effective management plans are implemented, we recommend H. amphibius to be given high conservation priorities by enhancing strict laws for habitat protection.

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The Effect of Three Gorge Project on the Small Mammals in Yangtze River of China

Cited by 2 publications

References 40 publications

Distribution and Host Selection of Tropical Rat Mite, Ornithonyssus bacoti, in Yunnan Province of Southwest China

Distribution and Host Selection of Tropical Rat Mite, Ornithonyssus bacoti, in Yunnan Province of Southwest China

The direct and indirect effects of damming on the Hippopotamus amphibius population abundance and distribution at Bui National Park, Ghana

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The Effect of Three Gorge Project on the Small Mammals in Yangtze River of China

Cited by 2 publications

References 40 publications

Distribution and Host Selection of Tropical Rat Mite, Ornithonyssus bacoti, in Yunnan Province of Southwest China

Distribution and Host Selection of Tropical Rat Mite, Ornithonyssus bacoti, in Yunnan Province of Southwest China

﻿The direct and indirect effects of damming on the Hippopotamus amphibius population abundance and distribution at Bui National Park, Ghana

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The direct and indirect effects of damming on the Hippopotamus amphibius population abundance and distribution at Bui National Park, Ghana