Botanically, the Mayoko district is known only through anecdotal descriptions made in the colonial era. The present study was undertaken as part of the prerequisite for a mining feasibility study where a benchmark of ...Botanically, the Mayoko district is known only through anecdotal descriptions made in the colonial era. The present study was undertaken as part of the prerequisite for a mining feasibility study where a benchmark of the floristic composition, diversity and structure of the vegetation was needed to evaluate potential biodiversity offset areas and to guide species selection for post-mining re-vegetation. The study area comprised approximately 160,000 ha and 235 sample sites were surveyed using the Braun-Blanquet method of phytosociology. Diversity of each plant association was expressed in terms of various diversity parameters. Twelve associations were described and mapped. The associations ranged from highly disturbed and degraded to fairly intact forest associations. A wet to dry gradient and permanently inundated to temporary inundated gradient could also be distinguished. The approach followed here proved remarkably robust in illustrating the complexity in a topographically complex region of the Chaillu Massif. The data provided a high level of insight into the possible dynamics of the rainforest and indications as to possible successional pathways. This information provides a better level of understanding of forest structure and evolution potential than studies limited to trees, remote sensing carbon assessments, or time change series.展开更多
Understanding of animal spatial behavior is essential for informed management decisions.In southern Africa,reintroduction of lions(Panthera leo)to small reserves(<1000 km2)has increased since the early 2000s,howeve...Understanding of animal spatial behavior is essential for informed management decisions.In southern Africa,reintroduction of lions(Panthera leo)to small reserves(<1000 km2)has increased since the early 2000s,however studies on their ranging behavior in these enclosed systems remain lacking.We applied Time Local Convex Hull(T-LoCoH)methods to study the home range establishment and utilization of 11 lions reintroduced to Dinokeng Game Reserve,South Africa,during 2011 through 2014.Lions established home ranges close to their release sites and during the following 3 years their home range sizes continued to increase,but in each individual case the size remained smaller than half of the reserve area(<70 km2).Space use strategies differed between the core and the entire home range,with higher frequency of visits found in core areas.Exceptionally high rates(>60 separate visits)around the largest dam and along rivers suggest the importance of water and its surrounding vegetation in the lions’space utilization pattern.The home range size did not differ with season or sex of the individuals,whereas shifts in locations of home ranges revealed differences in the response of the 2 sexes to territorial conflicts and management interventions.Our study shows a dynamic home range utilization pattern and highlights the importance of both fine-scale space use patterns(frequency and duration of visits)and broadscale home range changes in understanding the ranging behavior of reintroduced animals.展开更多
Recursion by herbivores is the repeated use of the same site or plants. Recursion by wild animals is rarely investigated but may be ubiquitous. Optimal foraging theory predicts site recursion as a function of the qual...Recursion by herbivores is the repeated use of the same site or plants. Recursion by wild animals is rarely investigated but may be ubiquitous. Optimal foraging theory predicts site recursion as a function of the quality of the site, extent of its last use, and time since its last use because these influence site resource status and recovery. We used GPS collars, behaviour and site sampling to investigate recursion to foraging sites for two elephant Elephas maximus borneensis herds in the Lower Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary, Borneo, over a 12 month period. Recursion occurred to 48 out of 87 foraging sites and was most common within 48 hours or between 151-250 days, indicating two different types ofrecursion. Recursion was more likely to occur if the site had previously been occupied for longer. Moreover, the time spent at a site at recursion was the same as the time spent at the site on the first occasion. The number of days that had passed between the first visit and recursion was also positively correlated with how much time was spent at the site at recursion. Habitat type also influenced the intensity of site-use, with more time spent at recursion within riverine/open grass areas along forest margins compared to other habitat types. Recursion is a common behaviour used by the elephants and its pattern suggests it may be a foraging strategy for revisiting areas of greater value. The qualities of recursion sites might usefully be incorporated into landscape management strategies for elephant conservation in the area [Current Zoology 60 （4）： 551-559, 2014].展开更多
文摘Botanically, the Mayoko district is known only through anecdotal descriptions made in the colonial era. The present study was undertaken as part of the prerequisite for a mining feasibility study where a benchmark of the floristic composition, diversity and structure of the vegetation was needed to evaluate potential biodiversity offset areas and to guide species selection for post-mining re-vegetation. The study area comprised approximately 160,000 ha and 235 sample sites were surveyed using the Braun-Blanquet method of phytosociology. Diversity of each plant association was expressed in terms of various diversity parameters. Twelve associations were described and mapped. The associations ranged from highly disturbed and degraded to fairly intact forest associations. A wet to dry gradient and permanently inundated to temporary inundated gradient could also be distinguished. The approach followed here proved remarkably robust in illustrating the complexity in a topographically complex region of the Chaillu Massif. The data provided a high level of insight into the possible dynamics of the rainforest and indications as to possible successional pathways. This information provides a better level of understanding of forest structure and evolution potential than studies limited to trees, remote sensing carbon assessments, or time change series.
文摘Understanding of animal spatial behavior is essential for informed management decisions.In southern Africa,reintroduction of lions(Panthera leo)to small reserves(<1000 km2)has increased since the early 2000s,however studies on their ranging behavior in these enclosed systems remain lacking.We applied Time Local Convex Hull(T-LoCoH)methods to study the home range establishment and utilization of 11 lions reintroduced to Dinokeng Game Reserve,South Africa,during 2011 through 2014.Lions established home ranges close to their release sites and during the following 3 years their home range sizes continued to increase,but in each individual case the size remained smaller than half of the reserve area(<70 km2).Space use strategies differed between the core and the entire home range,with higher frequency of visits found in core areas.Exceptionally high rates(>60 separate visits)around the largest dam and along rivers suggest the importance of water and its surrounding vegetation in the lions’space utilization pattern.The home range size did not differ with season or sex of the individuals,whereas shifts in locations of home ranges revealed differences in the response of the 2 sexes to territorial conflicts and management interventions.Our study shows a dynamic home range utilization pattern and highlights the importance of both fine-scale space use patterns(frequency and duration of visits)and broadscale home range changes in understanding the ranging behavior of reintroduced animals.
文摘Recursion by herbivores is the repeated use of the same site or plants. Recursion by wild animals is rarely investigated but may be ubiquitous. Optimal foraging theory predicts site recursion as a function of the quality of the site, extent of its last use, and time since its last use because these influence site resource status and recovery. We used GPS collars, behaviour and site sampling to investigate recursion to foraging sites for two elephant Elephas maximus borneensis herds in the Lower Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary, Borneo, over a 12 month period. Recursion occurred to 48 out of 87 foraging sites and was most common within 48 hours or between 151-250 days, indicating two different types ofrecursion. Recursion was more likely to occur if the site had previously been occupied for longer. Moreover, the time spent at a site at recursion was the same as the time spent at the site on the first occasion. The number of days that had passed between the first visit and recursion was also positively correlated with how much time was spent at the site at recursion. Habitat type also influenced the intensity of site-use, with more time spent at recursion within riverine/open grass areas along forest margins compared to other habitat types. Recursion is a common behaviour used by the elephants and its pattern suggests it may be a foraging strategy for revisiting areas of greater value. The qualities of recursion sites might usefully be incorporated into landscape management strategies for elephant conservation in the area [Current Zoology 60 （4）： 551-559, 2014].
