Habitat Destruction

Abstract.—Harvesting of chameleons from the East Usambara Mountains of Tanzania for the exotic pet trade is of concern due to the high rates of habitat loss in this region and the fact that many of the species are endemic or near endemic to this isolated montane forest. Export of the majority of chameleons found in the East Usambaras is regulated by their listing under CITES Appendix II. To ensure harvesting is sustainable, however, greater knowledge of the ecology of species is needed.

Fish communities and habitat structures were evaluated by underwater visual censuses a rocky location impacted by thermal discharge (I) and at two control locations, one in a Sargassum bed (C1) and the other in a rocky shore with higher structural complexity (C2). Habitat indicators and fish communities exhibited significant differences between the impacted and control locations, with the impacted one

Fish communities and habitat structures were evaluated by underwater visual censuses a rocky location impacted by thermal discharge (I) and at two control locations, one in a Sargassum bed (C1) and the other in a rocky shore with higher structural complexity (C2). Habitat indicators and fish communities exhibited significant differences between the impacted and control locations, with the impacted one

The diversity of life is ultimately generated by evolution, and much attention has focused on the rapid evolution of ecological traits. Yet, the tendency for many ecological traits to instead remain similar over time [niche conservatism (NC)] has many consequences for the fundamental patterns and processes studied in ecology and conservation biology. Here, we describe the mounting evidence for the importance of NC to major topics in ecology (e.g. species richness, ecosystem function) and conservation (e.g. climate change, invasive species). We also review other areas where it may be important but has generally been overlooked, in both ecology (e.g. food webs, disease ecology, mutualistic interactions) and conservation (e.g. habitat modification). We summarize methods for testing for NC, and suggest that a commonly used and advocated method (involving a test for phylogenetic signal) is potentially problematic, and describe alternative approaches. We suggest that considering NC: (1) focuses attention on the within-species processes that cause traits to be conserved over time, (2) emphasizes connections between questions and research areas that are not obviously related (e.g. invasives, global warming, tropical richness), and (3) suggests new areas for research (e.g. why are some clades largely nocturnal? why do related species share diseases?).

The Bolivian river dolphin, locally known as the bufeo, is the only cetacean in landlocked Bolivia. Knowledge about its conservation status and vulnerability to anthropogenic actions is extremely deficient. We report on the rescue and translocation of 26 Bolivian river dolphins trapped in a shrinking segment of the Pailas River, Santa Cruz, Bolivia. Several institutions, authorities and volunteers collaborated to translocate the dolphins, which included calves, juveniles, and pregnant females. The dolphins were successfully released into the Río Grande. Each dolphin was accompanied by biologists who assured their welfare. No detectable injuries occurred and none of the dolphins died during this process. If habitat degradation continues, it is likely that events in which river dolphins become trapped in South America may happen more frequently in the future.

1. The evidence for anthropogenically induced climate change is overwhelming with the production of greenhouse gases from burning fossil fuels being a key driver. In response, many governments have initiated programmes of energy production from renewable sources.2. The marine environment presents a relatively untapped energy source and offshore installations are likely to produce a significant proportion of future energy production. Wind power is the most advanced, with development of wave and tidal energy conversion devices expected to increase worldwide in the near future.3. Concerns over the potential impacts on biodiversity of marine renewable energy installations (MREI) include: habitat loss, collision risks, noise and electromagnetic fields. These factors have been posited as having potentially important negative environmental impacts.4. Conversely, we suggest that if appropriately managed and designed, MREI may increase local biodiversity and potentially benefit the wider marine environment. Installations have the capacity to act as both artificial reefs and fish aggregation devices, which have been used previously to facilitate restoration of damaged ecosystems, and de facto marine-protected areas, which have proven successful in enhancing both biodiversity and fisheries.5. The deployment of MREI has the potential to cause conflict among interest groups including energy companies, the fishing sector and environmental groups. Conflicts should be minimized by integrating key stakeholders into the design, siting, construction and operational phases of the installations, and by providing clear evidence of their potential environmental benefits.6. Synthesis and applications. MREI have the potential to be both detrimental and beneficial to the environment but the evidence base remains limited. To allow for full biodiversity impacts to be assessed, there exists an urgent need for additional multi and inter-disciplinary research in this area ranging from engineering to policy. Whilst there are a number of factors to be considered, one of the key decisions facing current policy makers is where installations should be sited, and, dependent upon site, whether they should be designed to either minimize negative environmental impacts or as facilitators of ecosystem restoration.

Wildlife diversity has been reported to be dependent on quality of the environment. However, information on wildlife species within Bonny Island forest has not been adequately documented. In fragile ecosystems such as Bonny Island, the lakes, vegetation, wildlife, and freshwater condition are very valuable especially to the indigenous people. Thus, the socioeconomic factors in respect to the consequent effect of wildlife destruction were determined.Structured questionnaire was used to collect information from respondents using systematic sampling techniques in Bonny Satellite Settlement (BSS) and Bonny Island Settlement (BIS). Data were analyzed using simple percentage. Anthropogenic activities: hunting, fishing and other agricultural practices exerted higher pressure of 20.0%, 60.0% and 10.0% respectively on the wildlife resources during dry than wet seasons (17.5%, 43.8% and 38.70% respectively). These however place the communities at a very vulnerable condition because it affected their access to land, protein source and other non timber forest product. Anthropogenic activities were threats to wildlife diversity and the local communities. If biodiversity is lost, the poor rural people will be heavily affected hence measures on conservation and should be put in place and also community participation should be encouraged. Public enlightenment on conservation of natural resources in Bonny Island should be encouraged.

Dynamics of flooding and drying resulting in fragmentation of lotic habitats are a yearly phenomenon in subtropical floodplain rivers but their ecological significance is not known for invertebrate communities. We studied the response of zooplankton and macroinvertebrate communities in 48 dry-season river pools in the Save-Runde river system (Lowveld, Zimbabwe). Patterns and ecological processes influencing invertebrate communities, taxon richness and macroinvertebrate functional richness were investigated with focus on the role of regional (connectivity) and local processes (habitat characteristics). Local factors accounted for 15% of the variability in the zooplankton community but only 3.4% for the macroinvertebrate community. Important factors affecting zooplankton densities in the pools were depth, vegetation cover and presence of fish (planktivorous and omnivorous). The presence of fish in pools can infer predation risk. Macroinvertebrate abundances were affected by the presence of fish only. Zooplankton densities increased in pools with fish while macroinvertebrate densities declined in the presence of fish. Macroinvertebrates could exert top-down pressure on zooplankton either by competition for resources or predation in pools. Regional factors significantly explained zooplankton but not macroinvertebrate community variability. Connectivity had no significant effect on local pool habitat characteristics. There were no significant differences in water quality variables between flowing river sites and the pools. Zooplankton and macroinvertebrate α- and γ-diversity in dry-season pools was higher than in the flowing river. Species additions rather than species replacements by processes that include dispersal and possibly dormancy may explain increased zooplankton and macroinvertebrate taxon diversity in pools. Functional feeding group (FFG) analysis showed that the proportion of macroinvertebrate predator taxa increased significantly in pools compared to the flowing river. Pools create a more suitable and diverse habitat for these widely dispersing taxa. The other FFG were comparable between the river and pools. The pools are strongly heterotrophic. Our results confirm that habitat fragmentation may actually be beneficial for zooplankton and macroinvertebrate biodiversity in dryland rivers.

Species diversity of Nandiar Valley District Battagram, Pakistan was evaluated with special reference to vascular plant diversity of the area. Floristically the area is placed in Western Himalayan Province. It is located on the western edge of Himalayas, dominated by Sino-Japanese elements. Aim of the study was to document the vascular plant resources, conservation issues and usage of the selected plants. An ethno-botanical survey was also carried out for collecting information regarding the various indigenous uses of the vascular ...

Abstract Dynamics of flooding and drying result-ing in fragmentation of lotic habitats are a yearly phenomenon in subtropical floodplain rivers but their ecological significance is not known for invertebrate communities. We studied the response of zooplank-ton and ...