1. It is difficult to establish conservation priorities for cryptic species when their ecological requirements are confounded by problems with species identification. In some cases, such as Chiroptera, cryptic taxa may actually consist of both widespread, abundant species and localized, rare species. Discrimination between these species may be facilitated by phenotypic, species-specific traits ...

Abstract Background and aims Low productivity open lichen ( Cladonia spp.) woodlands have been rapidly expanding in the closed-crown feather moss Pleurozium schreberi (Brid.) Mitt.) boreal forest of eastern Canada. While open-woodland areas are progressing, there is little information on recoverability back to closed-canopy forests. Methods An experimental set-up using transplantation was insta...

The tree species density and basal area form structural functional variables of healthy forest ecosystems. Tree are among useful parameters for management natural resources. A study was carried out in Image Forest Reserve (IFR) 2019 to determine area. total 170 plots measuring 20 m x 40 were set along the land cover types at an interval 250 from each other. Trees with a diameter breast height (...

This study examines the effect of rural residential development and landscape composition on breeding birds in Placer County’s foothill oak woodlands. Point count survey data were used to construct generalized linear models for individual species’ abundance or probability of occurrence, based on two sets of variables: GIS-derived landscape characteristics, including development density, oak woo...

Understanding the evolutionary history of contemporary animal groups is essential for conservation and management of endangered species like caribou (Rangifer tarandus). In central Canada, the ranges of two caribou subspecies (barren-ground/woodland caribou) and two woodland caribou ecotypes (boreal/eastern migratory) overlap. Our objectives were to reconstruct the evolutionary history of the e...

Ecosystems transition quickly in the Anthropocene, whereas biodiversity adapts more slowly. Here we simulated a shifting woodland ecosystem on the Colorado Plateau of western North America by using as its proxy over space and time the fundamental niche of the Arizona black rattlesnake (Crotalus cerberus). We found an expansive (= end-of-Pleistocene) range that contracted sharply (= present), bu...

Vegetation structure influences habitat selection for woodland birds and is a key component determining habitat quality. At Scandlaser 2003, and elsewhere, we have demonstrated the application of airborne LiDAR data for organism-habitat modelling. In this paper we review the results of our pilot study which focussed on two species of tits, Great Tit Parus major and Blue Tit Parus caeruleus, in ...

Factors that negatively affect the quality of wildlife habitat are a major concern for conservation. Non-native species invasions, in particular, are perceived as a global threat to the quality of wildlife habitat. Recent evidence indicates that some changes to understory plant communities in northern temperate forests of North America, including invasions by 3 non-native plant species, are fac...

Black ash (Fraxinus nigra) is a species used for basketmaking by several Native American Tribes in Eastern North America. In recent years, there has been a decline in availability of quality ‘basket trees’, and the purpose of this study was to determine what site characteristics allow for the growth of appropriate ring widths required for black ash splints used to make baskets. Three ecosystems...