Taxonomic diversity of fish assemblages in the Changjiang Estuary and its adjacent waters

Taxonomic diversity of fish assemblages in the Changjiang Estuary （Yangtze River Estuary） and its adjacent waters was analyzed based on bottom trawl surveys carried out by R/V Beidou in June, August and October 2006. Four groups of fishes were identified for each survey by the twoway indicator species analysis （TWIA）. Taxonomic distinctness, species richness and phylogenetic diversity were used to detect changes in taxonomic structure of fish assemblages. Most dominant fish species mainly belonged to Perciformes, Pleuronectiformes, Clupeiformes, Scorpaeniformes and Tetraodontiformes. Species richness in offshore waters of the survey area was higher than that in the other area. The average taxonomic distinctness value （AvTD,△^＋） of each fish assemblage was close to the average taxonomic distinctness of master list in the Changjiang Estuary （79.9）, and had a positive correlation with species richness and Shannon diversity index （H′）. A negative correlation was found between variations in taxonomic distinctness （VarTD, A^＋） and traditional diversity indices, which were caused by fish species component that led to longer average path lengths among species. Taxonomic diversity index （△） had the similar results with species richness, Ht, Simpson diversity index （D） and Pielou＇s evenness index （J′）. VarTD also kept stable, which further certificated that fish assemblages and ecological environment were in equilibrium. Taxonomic distinctness index （△^＋） was relatively stable in most of fish assemblages, and had higher values in some fish assemblages for a few absolutely dominant species. The present study showed that fish community formed new equilibrium stability in 2006 in the Changjiang Estuary when compared with those in the corresponding months of annual survey from 1985 to 1986. And AvTD in each sampling station was lower than AvTD of master list in the Changjiang Estuary, so some ecological niches were absent in each sampling stations from taxonomic or phylogenetic relationships, these would be helpful to stock natural resource and maintain ecological equilibruim of fish assemblages.

Amphibian Species Contribute Similarly to Taxonomic, but not Functional and Phylogenetic Diversity: Inferences from Amphibian Biodiversity on Emei Mountain

Understanding the relationships between species, communities, and biodiversity are important challenges in conservation ecology. Current biodiversity conservation activities usually focus on species that are rare, endemic, distinctive, or at risk of extinction. However, empirical studies of whether such species contribute more to aspects of biodiversity than common species are still relatively rare. The aim of the present study was to assess the contribution of individual amphibian species to different facets of biodiversity, and to test whether species of conservation interest contribute more to taxonomic, functional, and phylogenetic diversity than do species without special conservation status. To answer these questions, 19 000 simulated random communities with a gradient of species richness were created by shuffling the regional pool of species inhabiting Emei Mountain. Differences of diversity values were then computed before and after removing individual species in these random communities. Our results indicated that although individual species contributed similarly to taxonomic diversity, their contribution to functional and phylogenetic diversity was more idiosyncratic. This was primarily driven by the diverse functional attributes of species and the differences in phylogenetic relationships among species. Additionally, species of conservation interest did not show a significantly higher contribution to any facet of biodiversity. Our results support the claims that the usefulness of metrics based only on species richness is limited. Instead, assemblages that include species with functional and phylogenetic diversity should be protected to maintain biodiversity.

Diversity of plants and mammals as indicators of the effects of land management types in woodlands

Background:The ecological indicators are useful tools to determine the effects of human disturbances on woodland biodiversity.Nevertheless,ecological indicators not always responded in the same way to disturbances,and the responses can differ among taxa.In arid and semiarid woodlands,the use of deadwood associated with cattle raising can affect biodiversity and Nature’s contributions to people.Methods:Our study aimed to assess changes in taxonomic and functional diversity of two assemblages,plants and mammals,in Prosopis woodlands under different land management types:grazed woodlands and a protected area.For plants,changes in structural diversity were also analyzed.Prosopis trees under different land management types were selected and their deadwood characteristics were registered.Through live traps and camera traps,we obtained data on the presence-absence of mammals per tree to estimate diversity indices.For plants,we measured the abundance of vegetation by species and by cover type through the Line-Intercept Method to estimated diversity.Finally,we built generalized linear models to assess the responses of diversity of each assemblage to covariables concerning deadwood and different land management types.Results:We found that all diversity indeces for plants were either negatively affected by the presence of deadwood on the ground,or favored by its extraction.For mammals,removal of deadwood increased taxonomic diversity,while functional diversity increased with deadwood on the trees.Both structural diversity of plants and functional diversity of mammals were greater in grazed woodlands.Conclusions:The sustainable use of woodland resources is essential for the activities of rural communities.Our study results indicated that land management of grazed woodlands promoted the structural diversity of plant assemblages and the functional diversity of mammals.The presence of deadwood negatively affected plant diversity but it increased mammal functional diversity.It is advisable to maintain trees that preserve their wooden structure within the managed areas to promote the functional diversity of mammals,while trees with extraction from standing wood will favor the functional diversity of the plant assemblage.Understanding the effects of human disturbances can contribute to management for the conservation of woodlands diversity and Nature’s contributions to people.

Assessing above-ground biomass-functional diversity relationships in temperate forests in northern Mexico

Background:Studies on the relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem productivity have suggested that species richness and functional diversity are the main drivers of ecosystem processes.Several patterns on this relationship have been found,including positive,unimodal,negative,and neutral trends,keeping the issue controversial.In this study,taxonomic diversity and functional diversity as drivers of above-ground biomass(AGB)were compared,and the mechanisms that influence biomass production were investigated by testing the complementarity and the mass-ratio hypotheses.Methods:Using data from 414 permanent sample plots,covering 23%of temperate forest in the Sierra Madre Oriental(México),we estimated the above-gound biomass(AGB),taxonomic and functional diversity indices,as well as community weighted mean values(CWM)for three functional traits(maximum height,leaf size and wood density)for trees≥7.5 cm DBH,in managed and unmanaged stands.To compare taxonomic diversity differences between managed and unmanaged stands we carried out a rarefaction analysis.Furthermore,we evaluated the relationship between AGB and taxonomic and functional diversity metrics,as well as CWM traits throught spatial autoregressive models.Results:We found a hump-shaped relationship between AGB and species richness in managed and unmanaged forests.CMW of maximum height was the most important predictor of AGB in both stands,which suggested that the mechanism underlaying the AGB-diversity relationship is the dominance of some highly productive species,supporting the mass-ratio hypothesis.Above-ground biomass was significantly correlated with three of the five functional diversity metrics,CWM maximum height and species richness.Our results show the importance of taking into account spatial autocorrelation in the construction of predictive models to avoid spurious patterns in the AGBdiversity relationship.Conclusion:Species richness,maximum height,functional richness,functional dispersion and RaoQ indices relate with above-ground biomass production in temperate mixed-species and uneven-aged forests of northern Mexico.These forests show a hump-shaped AGB-species richness relationship.Functional diversity explains better AGB production than classical taxonomic diversity.Community weighted mean traits provide key information to explain stand biomass in these forests,where maximum tree height seems to be a more suitable trait for understanding the biomass accumulation process in these ecosystems.Although the impact of forest management on biodiversity is still debated,it has not changed the AGB-diversity relationships in the forests of the Sierra Madre Occidental,Mexico.

Diversity Dimensions of Freshwater Fish Species around the World

The quality and coverage of the available taxonomical and geographical information and the recognition that diversity is multi-faceted are two main factors that hinder to understand the spatial and temporal variations of biodiversity. In this study, we aim to quantify the global distribution of five diversity components used to assess freshwater fish diversity in river basins around the world. The multidimensional character of these diversity components was estimated and the so obtained diversity dimensions mapped. This was done taking into account those well-surveyed basins discriminated by considering collector’s curves, and additionally by controlling for the effect of survey effort on all considered diversity components. A total of 1,472,109 occurrence records were analysed, corresponding to 17,292 species of freshwater fishes. Five diversity components were considered: functional richness, species richness, taxonomic diversity, and two rarity measures. Well-surveyed river basins were discriminated using accumulation curves. The effects of survey biases and knowledge gaps were minimized by determining the relationship of each component with the completeness values calculated for each river basin. The geographical pattern derived from raw data is skewed by the unequal knowledge available, and all diversity components were positively correlated with completeness values. The first dimension described the association between species richness and functional diversity. The second dimension represented rarity and taxonomic diversity. The congruence between species richness and functional diversity suggests that ecosystem functions increase with the number of fish species present in river basins and that a decrease in species richness may involve a loss of functionality. The levels of rarity and taxonomic diversity of many species-poor basins found in arid and cold regions suggest that the distinctiveness of their freshwater fishes is primarily a consequence of how isolated these basins are.

Determination of the Taxonomic Diversity of the Intertidal Fish Communities on the Pacific Coast of Baja California Sur, México from 2015-2019

The coastal areas of the Baja California peninsula are characterized mainly by rocky areas, where rock pools dominate as important coastal habitats because of the tide cycle, when the water is trapped during the low tide, forming the pools. Environmental parameters like temperature, salinity and dissolved oxygen of the water trapped in the pools are key factors for the flora and fauna that inhabit these areas, particularly during the warmer months when the mean values of these parameters are usually higher than the mean values of the sea surface. The aim of the present study was to determine the variation of the taxonomic diversity of the fish communities that inhabit the rock pools in the common land known as Conquista Agraria in the Pacific coast of Baja California Sur, México, from 2015 to 2019. A total of 59 visual censuses were carried out monthly during the second low tide of the full moon. Temperature, salinity, and dissolved oxygen showed variation throughout the study period, with two distinct seasons (warm and cold), which influenced the taxonomic diversity and taxonomic distinctness of the species recorded in the area. There was a higher diversity in the warmer months (summer) and years (2015 and 2016). In addition, according to the MDS analysis, 2017 and 2018 showed high similarity of species.

A New Mesopsychid (Mecoptera) from the Middle Jurassic of Northeastern China

The family Mesopsychidae Tillyard, 1917 presently consists of ten described genera from the Early Permian to the Early Cretaceous of Australia, China, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, South Africa, Tajikistan, and Ukraine. Herein, a new genus and a new species of fossil mesopsyehid, Epicharmesopsyche pentavenulosa gen. et sp. nov., is described from the Middle Jurassic Jiulongshan Formation of Inner Mongolia, China, supplementing the family-level diversity. The well-preserved, new material reveals many characters, including antennae, wing venation, shape and genitalia that increase our morphological understanding of the family, although unfortunately the mouthparts and most of the legs are not preserved. Diagnosis of the Mesopsychidae is emended to include a four- or five-branched MP in both the fore- and hind wings. This is the first documentation of a wing coupling structure in the Mesopsychidae, consisting of three to four frenula bristles on the humeral lobe at the base of the costal margin of both hind wings. Asymmetrical shape and size of the left and right wings on a specimen of E. pentavenulosa gen. et sp. nov., seems to be a common condition for mesopsychid taxa from northeastern China.

Total nitrogen and community turnover determine phosphorus use efficiency of phytoplankton along nutrient gradients in plateau lakes

Numerous studies support that biodiversity predict most to ecosystem functioning,but whether other factors display a more significant direct impact on ecosystem functioning than biodiversity remains to be studied.We investigated 398 samples of the phytoplankton phosphorus resource use efficiency(RUE_(P)=chlorophyll-a concentration/dissolved phosphate)across two seasons in nine plateau lakes in Yunnan Province,China.We identified the main contributors to phytoplankton RUEP and analyzed their potential influences on RUEP at different lake trophic states.The results showed that total nitrogen(TN)contributed the most to RUEP among the nine lakes,whereas community turnover(measured as community dissimilarity)explained the most to RUEP variation across the two seasons.Moreover,TN also influenced RUEP by affecting biodiversity.Species richness(SR),functional attribute diversity(FAD2),and dendrogram-based functional diversity(FDc)were positively correlated with RUEP in both seasons,while evenness was negatively correlated with RUEP at the end of the rainy season.We also found that the effects of biodiversity and turnover on RUEP depended on the lake trophic states.SR and FAD2 were positively correlated with RUEP in all three trophic states.Evenness showed a negative correlation with RUEP at the eutrophic and oligotrophic levels,but a positive correlation at themesotrophic level.Turnover had a negative influence on RUEP at the eutrophic level,but a positive influence at the mesotrophic and oligotrophic levels.Overall,our results suggested that multiple factors and nutrient states need to be considered when the ecosystem functioning predictors and the biodiversityecosystem functioning relationships are investigated.