Effect of the Zagros Mountains on the Spatial Distribution of Precipitation

In order to examine the effect of the Zagros Mountains on precipitation, first, the annual and Seasonal rainfall indices （rain days frequency, rain amount, daily rainfall intensity, and heavy rains） from 43 stations in 1995 - 2004 between the 30° N to 35° N parallels over the mountain range were analyzed. Second, the effect of the Zagros Mountains was studied through the computation of the spatial correlations between the precipitation parameters and the topographic indices （station site elevation, station mean elevation within a radius of 2.5 km, mean elevation of 9 blocks along each of the eight Cartesian directions, and the elevation differences of these 9 blocks from the station mean elevation）. The results showed that in the cold season the maximal rainfall occurs on the upper range of west slope, while in warm season it spreads over the study area. The correlations between precipitation and elevation indices were positive on the north of the stations and negative on the south of the stations, that is, the higher elevations of the stations to the north force the uplifting of the moist air masses and increase rainfall at the stations, while the lower elevations to their south lead the movement of the moist air masses to the stations. This is due to the fact that these stations or slopes are exposed to the moist air masses coming from the Mediterranean Sea and the Persian Gulf. The heavy rain days and the summer sporadic rain events do not show significant correlations with the topographic indices. The findings indicate that the Zagros Mountains intensify the cold period frontal rains especially over the west slope and block the moist air masses from entering the interior parts of the country. Moreover, these mountains play a secondary role in creating rain days. But they are very important in the production of precipitation in the area. Therefore, their absence will decrease the amount of rainfall to their west and, in return, expand the dry climates of their west and east.

Structural geometrical analysis and simulation of decollement growth folds in piedmont Fauqi Anticline of Zagros Mountains, Iraq

This study carried out detailed structural analyses of the plane structural deformation pattern and sectional structural deformation styles of the Fauqi Anticline by the 3D seismic section with full cover collection, and carried out the kinematical simulation of the Fauqi anticlinal deep decollement coupling shallow growth folds and faults based on the fault decollement fold model and the forward balanced geological section technique. The study subsequently evaluated the differentiated petroleum enrichment mechanism of the Fauqi Anticline by utilizing the results of the structural analysis and combining the spatial-temporal relationship analysis of the source, the reservoir, and the caprock. The results showed that the differentiated plane structural deformation pattern and hierarchical sectional structural deformation style were developed by the superposed coupling of deep decollement, syntectonic sedimentation of shallow growth strata, and the compression of the south-west horizontal tectonic stress from the Zagros Mountains. It was found that the differentiated structural deformation caused the differentiated enrichment of petroleum in the Fauqi Anticline. It was also found that the horizontal slip distance of the Fauqi Anticlinal Folds reached around 3.5 km by the simulation of deep decollement coupling the movement of the shallow growth folds and the faults.

Tectonic Setting of the Barm Firuz Lake,Zagros Mountains,Iran:Inferred from Structural and Karstic Evidence

This paper presents the role of tectonic and karstic processes in the formation and evolution of Barm Firuz Lake within the Zagros Mountains of Iran. This lake with elevation of 3 340 m from sea level is located in the crest of the Barm Firuz anticline. Results show that the structural evolution of the Barme Firuz Lake is related to both tectonic and karst processes. Therefore the term of tectonokarstic has been used for structural evolution of the lake. Structural studies especially on the stylolite structures revealed the occurrence of an important component of simple shear deformation in the study area. Based on structural and karstic evidence around the lake, the fault-dissolution sink model with oblique pure shear component is suggested as kinematic model of the Barm Firuz Lake evolution in the Zagros Mountains of Iran.

Relationship between niche breadth and range shifts of Rhinopoma muscatellum(Chiroptera:Rhinopomatidae)in climate change scenarios in arid and semiarid mountainous region of Iran

Rapid climate change has provided the opportunity for many species to learn to adapt fast enough to modify their range distribution.The positive and negative responses of the species in terms of distribution are related to parameters such as kind of species,degree of specialization,size and movement skills,and such factors.Moving to high elevations and transitions to higher latitudes are among the strategies proposed as a solution to the negative effects of climate change.Therefore,predicting how different species respond to climate change can help predict the conservation program for them.Species distribution models(SDMs)are widely used to predict the geographical distribution of habitat suitability and species occurrence.Rhinopoma muscatellum is one of the three mousetailed bats(Rhinopomatidae)inhabiting the southeastern,southern,and southwestern parts of Iran and its distribution range to the interior and northern parts of Iran has been limited by the Elburz and Zagros Mountain.To study the effect of climate change on this species,range shifts and coverage of protected regions,74 presence points and environmental variables(climate,topography,anthropogenic,and vegetation)in MaxEnt software were used.Before the implementation of the model,the autocorrelation of the presence points was reduced and the selection of pseudo absent points was limited by using the bias grid.Climate variables were prepared for Mid-Holocene,Current,Climate Current,and Future scenarios in 2070(RCP2.6,RCP4.5,RCP6,and RCP8.5).In order to evaluate the overlap of ecological niche,the Schoener’s D and I statistic metrics were used.Also,to measure the breadth of the niches,B1(inverse concentration)and B2(uncertainty)metrics in ENMTOOLS software were employed.TSS statistics were used as a threshold.Species distribution trend changes in climatic scenarios were performed by the Mann Kendall(MK)test.Based on the results,the AUC values for current and future climate models were calculated to be 0.89 and 0.85,respectively.The distance from settlement,soil organic carbon,and altitude variables have the greatest impact on the current distribution of the species;and among the climatic variables,Isothermality(Bio3),Temperature Seasonality(Bio4),and Max Temperature of Warmest Month(Bio5)had the greatest impact on species distribution.The results showed that in climate change scenarios by 2070,the distribution range and breadth of climatic niche of Rhinopoma muscatellum will be significantly increased(P-value<0.05),habitat fragmentation will be reduced,and in RCP8.5 scenario it will reach the maximum distribution(39.38%of total Iran).This increase will cover the Elburz and Zagros mountain ranges,and a large part of the country will be suitable for the species.In response to current climate change,migration to higher latitudes was identified in this study.Among the main different classes of protected regions in Iran(National parks,Wildlife refuges,and Protected areas),protected areas in all scenarios had the most coverage of the suitable species habitat.

Effects of vegetation patterns and environmental factors on woody regeneration in semi-arid oak-dominated forests of western Iran

This study assesses the effects of vegetation natural tree and shrub regeneration in semi-arid forests patterns and environmental factors on the abundance of of the Zagros Mountains, western Iran. We sampled 120 releves at different topographic positions in a protected area of the studied region. Floristic composition, slope, elevation and soil properties were recorded at each releve, and woody seedling density was measured. We have first discerned five floristic groups using two-way indicator species analysis （TWINSPAN）, detrended correspondence analysis （DCA）, and canonical correspondence analysis （CCA） and then explored the relationships among the floristic group compositions, environmental factors and seedling densities. The indicator species of the five groups were Quercus brangi, Acer monspessulanum, Cerasus microcarpa, Rhamnus arvensis and Astragalus licyoides. Our results indicated that these groups were significantly affected by elevation and soil properties and the soil properties refer to： EC （electrical conductivity）, N （nitrogen）, K （potassium）, OM （organic matter）, and bulk density. Woody regeneration was composed of Q. brangi, A. monqJessulanum, C microcarpa, Amygdalus scopada and Crataeguspongca seedlings. The highest density of seedlings was found for Q. brantii （97.14 （_＋48.00） plants/hm2） and the lowest for A. scoparia （2.28 （＋1.50） plants/hm2）. Quercus brantii was the dominant species and the seedling density was positively correlated with soil pH and P （phosphorus） values. Amygdalus scoparia regeneration was negatively correlated with elevation, and the seedling density peaked in C. microcarpa group. There was no significant variation in distribution of C. pongca seedlings among the groups, but the seedling density of this species was positively correlated with slope and K. Cerasus microcarpa seedlings were more abundant in the Q. brantii group than in other groups. This study showed that the regeneration of tree and shrub species was unequally distributed in different floristic groups for some species （A. scopada and C microcarpa） but not for other （Q. branlii and C. pongca） and was generally correlated with some environmental factors, particularly elevation, slope and soil nutrients （P and K）. These results are a first step to implement future management and restoration strategies for promoting forest regeneration.

Rediscovery of Microgecko helenae fasciatus(Schmidtler and Schmidtler, 1972) from Kermanshah Province, Western Iran with Notes on Taxonomy, Morphology, and Habitat

During extensive field work in the Zagros Mountains, western Iran, from October 2013 to November 2014, twenty five localities in different areas of the Kermanshah Province were investigated. Nineteen specimens of Schmidtler＇s dwarf gecko, Microgecko helenae fasciatus, were collected from six localities in western and southeastern regions of the Kermanshah Province. This new collection verifies the presence of M. h. fasciatus in the area after the description of Schmidtler and Schmidtler of the holotype specimen in 1972. All of the collected specimens are consistent with the described specimens in diagnostic characters, as have a uniform dorsal pattern with five distinct dark crossbars and white posterior margins as well as the higher number of dorsal scales between axilla and groin. Detailed morphology of the new specimens is discussed and compared with those of rare previous records. Taxonomy, distribution, and habitat types of this tiny gecko in the western foothills of the Zagros Mountains are also discussed.

A New Subspecies of Darevskia raddei(Boettger,1892)(Sauria:Lacertidae)from the West Azerbaijan Province,Iran

Based on extensive field work in the northern Zagros Mountains, a new subspecies of Darevskia raddei （Boettger, 1892） from the west Azerbaijan Province, northwestern Iran is described. The new subspecies is distinguishable from all the other three subspecies of D. raddei based on the combination of several distinguishing characters, such as dorsal body with 50-55 oval to round, smooth, or very weakly keeled, scales, 25-31 scales across the gular region, 18-20 femoral pores on each side of body （reaching the knee）, 29-31 tuberculate lamellae under the fourth toe, 11-12 supraciliaries, 9-11 collars and a specific color pattern. The new subspecies meets all the morphological characters described by Eiselt et al. （1993） for an undefined and intermediate form between D. raddei raddei in the east of and D. r vanensis in the west of the distribution range of the species.