肯尼亚Shimba山生态系统两栖爬行动物的生物地理学

Abstract

The Shimba Hills ecosystem along the south coast of Kenya is a key East African biodiversity hotspot. Historically, it is biogeographically assignable to the East African coastal biome. We examined the current Shimba Hills herpetofauna and their zoogeographical affinities to the coastal forests and nearby Eastern Arc Mountains biodiversity hotspots. The key studied sites included the Shimba Hills National Reserve, forest reserves, Kaya forests, and adjacent private land. Data on herpetofaunal richness were obtained from recent field surveys, literature, and specimens held at the National Museums of Kenya, Herpetology Section Collection, Nairobi. The Makadara, Mwele, and Longo-Mwagandi forests within the Shimba Hills National Reserve hosted the highest number of unique and rare species. Generally, the forest reserves and Kaya forests were important refuges for forest-associated species. On private land, Mukurumudzi Dam riparian areas were the best amphibian habitat and were host to three IUCN (Red List) Endangered-EN amphibian species, namely, Boulengerula changamwensis, Hyperolius rubrovermiculatus, and Afrixalus sylvaticus, as well as one snake species Elapsoidea nigra. Using herpetofauna as zoogeographic indicators, the Shimba Hills were determined to be at a crossroads between the coastal forests (13 endemic species) and the Eastern Arc Mountains (seven endemic species). Most of the Eastern Arc Mountains endemic species were from recent records, and thus more are likely to be found in the future. This ‘hybrid’ species richness pattern is attributable to the hilly topography of the Shimba Hills and their proximity to the Indian Ocean. This has contributed to the Shimba Hills being the richest herpetofauna area in Kenya, with a total of 89 and 38 reptile and amphibian species, respectively. Because of its unique zoogeography, the Shimba Hills ecosystem is undoubtedly a key biodiversity area for conservation investment.

Anthropogenic effects of habitat modification on anuran species diversity in a swamp forest area, Kenya

“…Not only did it support feeding items but also gave more emphasis on their distributions in Eastern and Western African ecosystems in relation to observations respectively by Schiøtz (1975, 1999), Malonza et al. (2006, 2018), Malonza and Bwong (2023), Measey et al. (2009) and Vlok et al.…”

“…Similarly with the current study, it is true because most species were found as predominantly insect and frog eaters. Not only did it support feeding items but also gave more emphasis on their distributions in Eastern and Western African ecosystems in relation to observations respectively bySchiøtz (1975Schiøtz ( , 1999,Malonza et al (2006Malonza et al ( , 2018,Malonza and Bwong (2023),Measey et al (2009) andVlok et al (2013).5 | CON CLUS IONSDue to the fact that observations of this current study showed anuran diversity and distribution in and around habitats in the study area, it may have generated and added to the baseline data for the anurans biodiversity in Kingwal Swamp and North Nandi Forest Reserve. Anuran biodiversity is a function of habitat diversity and season, with the associated differences in microhabitat structure that provide diverse niches and ways of exploring resources.…”

“…Two people walked along each transect twice a day at a constant speed from 06:00 to 09:00 am (diurnal) and from 5:00 to 8:00 pm (nocturnal) to maximise detection (Heyer et al., 1994). Pitfall traps with X‐drift fence were set along each transect to capture or detect species which may not be easily found physically and visually, that is, small, primarily nocturnal or crawling herpetofauna, and these were checked twice a day, early in the morning and late afternoons before sunset (Malonza et al., 2018). Employed active random searches in locations a few metres away from transects, which included logs, leaf litter, tree holes, rocks and potential hiding places.…”

“…In some Kenyan localities, other taxonomic groups have attracted attention, for example invertebrates (Clausnitzer, 2003; Lehmann & Kioko, 2005), mammals (McDonald & Hamilton, 2010) and plants (Achieng et al., 2014; Luke, 2005) but other groups have been underexplored, for example, herpetofauna (Malonza & Bwong, 2023). Although, there has been past studies aimed at understanding the diversity, richness and distribution of amphibians in Key Biodiversity areas (KBA), and particularly diverse in forest areas of Kenya (Bwong et al., 2009, 2017; Lötters et al., 2007; Malonza et al., 2010, 2018; Malonza & Veith, 2012; Ng'endo et al., 2011; Wagner et al., 2008) but there is still a significant gap in our knowledge regarding some parts of western Kenya's anuran biodiversity patterns, that includes largely underexplored North Nandi Forest Reserve (Malonza, 2011) and Kingwal Swamp.…”

肯尼亚山非飞行小型兽类多样性及其垂直分布格局

“…Baseline information on biodiversity is important in ecosystem management planning. Clarifying species distribution provides useful information on ecology, habitat preference, and species replacement (Goodman et al, 1996; Malonza et al, 2018; Stanley & Kihaule, 2016). Studies investigating the relationship between species richness and altitude have yielded diverse patterns (Taylor et al, 2015).…”