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Wildlife Population Ecology and Spatial Ecology under Global Change

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A special issue of Diversity (ISSN 1424-2818). This special issue belongs to the section "Biodiversity Loss & Dynamics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 August 2023) | Viewed by 34674

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Guiming Wang

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Guest Editor

Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Aquaculture, Mississippi State University, Mississippi, MS 39762, USA
Interests: avian migration; AI and machine learning; spatiotemporal dynamics in ecology; wildlife population ecology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Fred L. Cunningham

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Guest Editor

National Wildlife Research Center, Mississippi Field Station, Mississippi State University, Mississippi, MS 39762, USA
Interests: avian predation; catfish, natural fisheries; wildlife diseases; disease transmission; avian migration; feral swine impacts; feral swine disease

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Global changes in climate and land use and land cover due to anthropogenic disturbances have imposed profound impacts on the spatial distribution and population dynamics of wildlife. Understanding wildlife population ecology and spatial ecology across spatial scales can provide insights into the science-based management and conservation of wildlife under the influence of global changes. This Special Issue aims to document both empirical and theoretical studies on the effects of global warming, habit losses, and zoonotic disease epidemiology on the demography, habitat use, geographic range, migration, dispersal, and population dynamics of birds, mammals, amphibians, and reptiles at various spatial scales, from home ranges to geographic ranges. We are inviting papers approaching these issues from both traditional (e.g., experimental or monitoring studies) and inter-disciplinary perspectives (e.g., integrative studies of demography, population genetics, space use, movement, and behavior).

Prof. Dr. Guiming Wang
Dr. Fred L. Cunningham
Guest Editors

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Keywords

demography
geographic range
habitat selection
movement
population dynamics
wildlife disease
epidemiology
aquaculture
avian predation
wildlife disease transmission
feral swine impacts
feral swine zoonotic diseases

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Published Papers (10 papers)

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10 pages, 621 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Seasonal Resource Selection and Use of Hardwood Regeneration by Translocated Wild Turkeys in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley

by M. Kyle Marable, Jerrold L. Belant, Dave Godwin and Guiming Wang

Diversity 2023, 15(9), 1007; https://doi.org/10.3390/d15091007 - 10 Sep 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1407

Abstract

Reforestation practices have intensified in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley (MAV) of the United States of America with the aid of Farm Bill programs during the past three decades. Increases in reforested land also enhance possibilities to restore once-abundant but currently sparse species, such as eastern wild turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo silvestris) in the MAV. However, it is unknown whether <20-year-old hardwood regeneration provides a suitable habitat for re-establishing wild turkey populations in the MAV. We translocated wild turkeys to two study sites in reforested areas of the MAV. We monitored 74 wild turkeys’ habitat use and resource selection using radio telemetry from February 2009 to June 2010. We developed land use and land cover maps for the resource selection analysis of translocated wild turkeys. We found that turkey habitat use varied by site, sex, season, land cover type, and distance to mature hardwoods. Habitat use by wild turkeys decreased as distance to mature hardwood forest increased. Female wild turkeys used more hardwood regeneration during nesting and post-nesting seasons than during pre-nesting seasons. Although wild turkeys did not use regenerating and mature hardwood forests to the same extent, management of these forests appears critical to restoring wild turkeys in the MAV. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wildlife Population Ecology and Spatial Ecology under Global Change)

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15 pages, 1460 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Do Bats Avoid the Urban Core in the Breeding Season? A Case Study from Temperate Latitudes

by Anton Vlaschenko, Olena Rodenko, Vitalii Hukov, Viktor Kovalov, Alona Prylutska and Kseniia Kravchenko

Diversity 2023, 15(9), 967; https://doi.org/10.3390/d15090967 - 27 Aug 2023

Viewed by 1708

Abstract

Seasonal utilization of urban areas by bats remains inadequately explored. This study aimed to comprehensively survey the species composition and population dynamics of bats during both the breeding season (May–July) and autumn migration season (August–September) within a large urban area, specifically Kharkiv city, Ukraine. We conducted multiyear data collection from 2014 to 2016, employing a combination of acoustic recordings, mist-netting, and registration of opportunistically found bats. The results revealed the identification of seven bat species using all methods (Eptesicus serotinus, Nyctalus noctula, N. leisleri, Pipistrellus pygmaeus, P. kuhlii, P. nathusii, and Vespertilio murinus), with notable differences in species composition between the studied periods. During the migration season, N. noctula was a numerically predominant species, while P. kuhlii and E. serotinus were the most abundant during the breeding season. The urban core bat population during the breeding season primarily consisted of males and solitary reproductive females, mainly represented by P. kuhlii and E. serotinus. Acoustic recording data indicated that N. noctula actively avoided the urban core during the breeding season, but was more common on the city periphery. In contrast, during the migration season, the city experienced a significant surge in bat abundance, both in general and specifically among noctule bats, with their numbers increasing tenfold compared to the breeding season. Moreover, a considerable number of young individuals were observed during the migration season. These findings provide evidence that bats tend to avoid the urban core in large cities at temperate latitudes during the breeding season but actively utilize urban areas during autumn migration. Understanding the seasonal preferences and movements of bats in urban environments is crucial for effective conservation and management strategies. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wildlife Population Ecology and Spatial Ecology under Global Change)

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11 pages, 6342 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Drought Influences Annual Survival of Painted Turtles in Western Nebraska

by Allyson N. Beard and Larkin A. Powell

Diversity 2023, 15(5), 597; https://doi.org/10.3390/d15050597 - 27 Apr 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2269

Abstract

Aquatic habitats in the Great Plains of North America have increased risk of droughts under climate forecasts. Droughts have the potential to influence the population dynamics of pond turtles, and long-term studies are useful to assess the impact of climatic variation on turtles. We compiled twelve years of mark-recapture data for painted turtles (Chrysemys picta) captured in a pond in Keith County, Nebraska during 2005–2016 that included two periods of drought. We used a robust design analysis to investigate influences on population size, annual survival, temporary immigration, and capture probability. Estimates of the annual population size ranged from 92 (CI: 90–94) to 180 (CI: 175–186) but did not vary with drought conditions. Despite a relatively stable depth of water in our study pond, the probability of annual survival was reduced by 0.07 in females and 0.10 in males during drought years. Approximately one-fifth (temporary emigration probability: 0.19, CI = 0.16–0.23) of the population was outside the study pond at any given time. Our long-term research provides insights into the potential challenges to turtles in aquatic habitats undergoing prolonged changes in long-term climate conditions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wildlife Population Ecology and Spatial Ecology under Global Change)

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13 pages, 2242 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Navigating Storms: Examining Vultures’ Behavior in Response to Extreme Weather Events

by Adrián Naveda-Rodríguez and Scott A. Rush

Diversity 2023, 15(3), 441; https://doi.org/10.3390/d15030441 - 16 Mar 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 4012

Abstract

Extreme weather events such as hurricanes and tornadoes have been found to change the spatial and temporal abundance of raptors by decreasing survival and forcing the emigration of individuals, or by increasing habitat heterogeneity and facilitating recolonization of disturbed areas. Nonetheless, little is known about how extreme weather events could affect raptors’ movements and their space use in areas disturbed by large-scale weather events. We studied how extreme weather affected the movements of black and turkey vultures (Coragyps atratus and Cathartes aura, respectively) in Mississippi, USA, facing Hurricane Zeta in November 2020, winter storm Viola in February 2021, and tornados MS-43 and MS-44 in May 2021. We GPS-tracked 28 vultures in the paths of these events. We compared movement rates, net-squared displacements, and use of forest cover, before, during, and after the events. Since storm avoidance behavior has been observed in other birds, we expected that vultures would shift their movements out of the path of these events before storms hit. Further, we forecasted that vultures would make greater use of forested areas as protection against harsh conditions such as strong winds and heavy rain. Vultures responded differently to each weather event; they shifted their movements out of the predicted path of the hurricane and tornadoes but not the snowstorm. These findings reveal that both species use avoidance behavior and adjust their navigation and hazard detection accordingly. Avoidance behavior was more pronounced in turkey vultures than in black vultures. In general, vultures did not make greater use of forest areas as we expected, but turkey vultures did select forest areas during the snowstorm. We propose that olfaction and audition may be key in vultures’ response to extreme weather events. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wildlife Population Ecology and Spatial Ecology under Global Change)

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12 pages, 1126 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Dispersal and Space Use of Captive-Reared and Wild-Rehabilitated Harpy Eagles Released in Central American Landscapes: Implications for Reintroduction and Reinforcement Management

by Adrián Naveda-Rodríguez, Edwin Campbell-Thompson, Richard T. Watson, Jennifer McCabe and Félix Hernán Vargas

Diversity 2022, 14(10), 886; https://doi.org/10.3390/d14100886 - 20 Oct 2022

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3519

Abstract

Understanding the spatial context of animal movements is fundamental for the establishment and management of protected areas. We tracked, by telemetry devices, 31 captive-reared and 5 wild-rehabilitated Harpia harpyja and estimated the dispersal and space use after release in Mesoamerica. We evaluated the effectiveness of protected areas in the protection of home ranges and examined how individual traits, release methods and landscape features influenced the dispersal and home range using mixed-effects models. The mean post-release dispersal was 29.4 km (95% CI: 22.5–38.5), and the annual home ranges averaged 1039.5 km² (95% CI: 627–1941). The home ranges were influenced by the release method, patch richness, patch and edge density and contagion. The currently protected areas in Mesoamerica may not be effective conservation units for this species. The Harpy Eagle average home range greatly exceeded the average size of 1115 terrestrial protected areas (52.7 ± 6.1 km²) in Mesoamerica. Due to their wide use of space, including transboundary space, Harpy Eagle conservation efforts may fail if they are not carefully coordinated between the countries involved. Future restoration efforts of umbrella forest-dwelling raptors should select release sites with highly aggregated and poorly interspersed forests. The release sites should have a buffer of approximately 30 km and should be located completely within protected areas. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wildlife Population Ecology and Spatial Ecology under Global Change)

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14 pages, 1367 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Population Dynamics of Wild Mongolian Gerbils: Quadratic Temperature Effects on Survival and Density-Dependent Effects on Recruitment

by Wei Liu and Ke Deng

Diversity 2022, 14(8), 586; https://doi.org/10.3390/d14080586 - 22 Jul 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2366

Abstract

It has been hypothesized that animal populations respond nonlinearly to the environment, and such responses are important to understand the effects of climate change population dynamics of small mammals in arid environments at northern latitudes. The aim of this study was to test the following hypotheses: (1) that small rodent populations increase as their semiarid habitat conditions improve from low to intermediate levels of temperature or precipitation, and decline beyond the optimum climate because of decreased survival, and (2) that increased population density would result in stronger negative effects on recruitment than on survival. A wild population of Mongolian gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus), a granivorous rodent distributed in Inner Mongolia, China, was live-trapped half-monthly between April and October from 2014 to 2017 and the effects of climate and density on their apparent survival probabilities and recruitment rates were estimated using mark-recapture methods. Increased temperatures initially had a positive effect on population growth rates, and then had negative effects on population growth rates primarily, which was mediated by quadratic effects on survival probabilities, further supporting the optimum habitat hypothesis. Moreover, the increases in temperature had a positive effect on the recruitment of gerbils, whereas population density had a more markedly negative effect on recruitment than on survival. The results of this study suggested that the density-dependent feedback to recruitment may be a primary regulatory mechanism of small mammal populations, and the complex responses of populations to temperature, which is a limiting ecological factor, may raise concerns for the fate of populations of small mammals at northern latitudes, in view of the predicted global climate change scenarios. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wildlife Population Ecology and Spatial Ecology under Global Change)

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10 pages, 485 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Large- and Small-Scale Climate Influences Spring Migration Departure Probability of American White Pelicans

by D. Tommy King, Guiming Wang and Frederick L. Cunningham

Diversity 2022, 14(6), 500; https://doi.org/10.3390/d14060500 - 20 Jun 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2340

Abstract

Endogenous (e.g., age and sex) and exogenous (e.g., climate and resource availability) factors influence avian migration phenology. However, little is known regarding the migration ecology of birds at the non-breeding grounds, including the American white pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos). We used Global Positioning System transmitters to track the movements and migration of 51 pelicans from 2002 to 2012. We used the Kaplan–Meier model to estimate pelican spring migration probabilities to quantify partial migration with 94 spring migration events and used the Cox proportional hazards model to evaluate the effects of the North Atlantic Oscillation index (NAOI), Southern Oscillation Index (SOI), and spring daily precipitation on the propensity of pelican spring migration departures. Increases in the NAOI and SOI enhanced the propensity of pelican spring departure. The propensity of spring departure was also positively related to daily precipitation. Male pelicans have greater spring migration probabilities than female pelicans. Spring migration departure probabilities of adult pelicans are greater than those of immature pelicans. Therefore, both large-scale and local climatic conditions affect pelican spring departure probabilities. Advanced migratory phenology of pelicans caused by climate changes with warming temperature and increased precipitation may result in the mismatch of pelican spring arrival with food resource availability of breeding grounds and subsequent pelican population declines. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wildlife Population Ecology and Spatial Ecology under Global Change)

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6 pages, 230 KiB

Open AccessCommunication

Interannual Winter Site Fidelity for Yellow and Black Rails

by Christopher J. Butler, Tabitha W. Olsen, Bailey Kephart, Jennifer K. Wilson and Amanda A. Haverland

Diversity 2022, 14(5), 357; https://doi.org/10.3390/d14050357 - 1 May 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2498

Abstract

Yellow Rail (Coturnicops noveboracensis) is a species of conservation concern, while the Eastern Black Rail (Laterallus jamaicensis jamaicensis) has recently been listed as Threatened. Both species winter primarily in coastal areas from Texas through North Carolina. Between-year winter site fidelities of these species have not previously been reported, so we analyzed the recapture histories of Yellow Rails banded in southeastern Oklahoma (from 2008 to 2018) and coastal Texas (from 2006 to 2018), as well as Black Rails banded in Texas from 2006 to 2018. We banded 111 Yellow Rails in Oklahoma and 421 Yellow Rails in Texas during this time, as well as 94 Black Rails in Texas. Although Yellow Rails were routinely recaptured within season, only five individuals were recaptured between years. All recaptured birds were in Texas. Black Rails likewise exhibited low interannual site fidelity, with no interannual recaptures. The apparent low interannual site fidelity of Yellow Rails (1.1% in Texas, 0% in Oklahoma) and Black Rails (0%) is similar to that reported for other grassland species wintering in grasslands in this area (e.g., LeConte’s Sparrow (Ammodramus leconteii), Henslow’s Sparrow (A. henslowii), and Sedge Wren (Cistothorus stellaris)), and we speculate that low site fidelity could potentially be advantageous for species that use early successional habitats. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wildlife Population Ecology and Spatial Ecology under Global Change)

11 pages, 1484 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Destiny of Living Animals Imported into Chinese Zoos

by Baoxiang Huang, Xiuhua Tian, Aishwarya Maheshwari, Shekhar Kumar Niraj, Nathan James Roberts and Guangshun Jiang

Diversity 2022, 14(5), 335; https://doi.org/10.3390/d14050335 - 25 Apr 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3637

Abstract

Ex situ conservation is one of the major ways to strengthen biodiversity conservation. In China, ex situ conservation institutions mainly include zoos, aquariums, and breeding centers. In 1996, China began to import living animals duty-free for conservation purposes. Here, we built a dataset of nearly 300 vertebrate species (mammals, birds, fish and reptiles) imported into China over this past 20 years by interviewing all 123 institutions importing animals duty-free during 1996–2015. We then analyzed the annual variation of the species composition and individual numbers of these imported species, and quantified the relative population growth rate of each imported species for the first time. We found that the number of living animals imported into China decreased significantly year by year. The number of imported bird species and reptile individuals decreased the most, but the population growth rate was increasing for about half of the imported threatened species. We recommend that conservation institutions should enhance communication and promote cooperative breeding among them. Scientific research and sustainability assessments of threatened species should also be enhanced, which will allocate trade licenses and quotas more effectively. We hope that the data presented in this paper will contribute to the development of conservation policies, leading to stronger management of these imported species in China. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wildlife Population Ecology and Spatial Ecology under Global Change)

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22 pages, 1441 KiB

Open AccessReview

Bird Communities in a Changing World: The Role of Interspecific Competition

by Alban Guillaumet and Ivory Jordan Russell

Diversity 2022, 14(10), 857; https://doi.org/10.3390/d14100857 - 11 Oct 2022

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 8369

Abstract

Significant changes in the environment have the potential to affect bird species abundance and distribution, both directly, through a modification of the landscape, habitats, and climate, and indirectly, through a modification of biotic interactions such as competitive interactions. Predicting and mitigating the consequences of global change thus requires not only a sound understanding of the role played by biotic interactions in current ecosystems, but also the recognition and study of the complex and intricate effects that result from the perturbation of these ecosystems. In this review, we emphasize the role of interspecific competition in bird communities by focusing on three main predictions derived from theoretical and empirical considerations. We provide numerous examples of population decline and displacement that appeared to be, at least in part, driven by competition, and were amplified by environmental changes associated with human activities. Beyond a shift in relative species abundance, we show that interspecific competition may have a negative impact on species richness, ecosystem services, and endangered species. Despite these findings, we argue that, in general, the role played by interspecific competition in current communities remains poorly understood due to methodological issues and the complexity of natural communities. Predicting the consequences of global change in these communities is further complicated by uncertainty regarding future environmental conditions and the speed and efficacy of plastic and evolutionary responses to fast-changing environments. Possible directions of future research are highlighted. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Wildlife Population Ecology and Spatial Ecology under Global Change)

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