Cetaceans are negatively affected by anthropogenic activities, including acoustic and physical disturbance from boat traffic. Behavioural responses to such disturbances are context-dependent, and site-specific insights are needed for effective local management plans. In this study, the impact of speed and proximity of recreational boats on the swimming speed and surfacing interval of one of the most common coastal cetacean species, the harbour porpoise (Phocoena phocoena), is investigated using data collected by unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) within a key habitat for the vulnerable Belt Sea population. In August 2024, two UAVs were flown simultaneously on predefined routes within the area. One UAV searched for and followed detected porpoises, while the other monitored recreational boats. All data was captured as UAV video and used to determine surfacing intervals of individual porpoises, measure speed of porpoises and boats, and calculate the closest distance between porpoises and boats for each simultaneous sighting. A total of 91 synchronous flights were conducted, resulting in 28 porpoise observational events. GLM analyses showed that an interaction between mean boat speed and distance to the boat influenced the mean speed of the porpoises. At close range, a higher mean speed of the boat reduced the swimming speed of the porpoises, but over greater distances, it increased the mean swimming speed. Also, porpoise surfacing intervals decreased with decreasing distance to boats. No effect of maximum boat speed on porpoise behaviour was observed. This study demonstrates that recreational boats influence the behaviour of porpoises, with potential negative individual- and population-level effects.

Hunting and wildlife trade in Lao PDR (also known as Laos) has left species of larger wild fauna existing at low densities, almost exclusively in remote areas of rugged forest, and wary of human presence. This makes surveying of larger fauna in the country difficult as observation of individuals is remarkably rare. Due to the critical nature of faunal conservation in Lao PDR (many globally threatened species facing the immediate risk of extirpation) the difficulty of conducting faunal surveys does not supersede the need to do so. Occupancy estimation and modeling, using repeated sampling of presence/non-detection of a site, offers a potential solution to this challenge. We conducted presence/non-detection sampling of 80 sites spread across the potentially suitable habitat for the Critically Endangered northern white-cheeked gibbon in Nam Et-Phou Louey National Park in the northeast of Lao PDR. We used maximum likelihood models to test the significance of several natural and anthropogenic covariates on the population’s detection and occupancy probability to assess the drivers of the population’s distribution. Detection was found to be a function of cloud cover, the proportion of bamboo forest, and topographic roughness of the site. Occupancy was found to be a function of human usage of the site, distance from the nearest road, and the uninterruptedness of forest cover. These results suggest that the viability of this species in Nam Et-Phou Louey National Park relies on preventing the expansion of all forms of roads into the park, maintaining continuous forest cover, and mitigating human presence in the habitat.

Semi-arid mallee landscapes are shaped by wildfires. Due to climate change, wildfires are expected to become more frequent and intense, making their management a conservation priority. Ants are often used as bioindicators in land management studies, as their composition and diversity respond to disturbances, including wildfires, both directly and indirectly through habitat modification. In the semi-arid zone of western New South Wales, Australia, we examined how time-since-fire influences ant species richness, abundance, and community composition, and assessed whether fire-induced changes in vegetation composition explain the observed patterns in ant community structure. We sampled ants at five sites that last burned 3, 5, 9, 26, and 34 years ago, respectively. We identified 59 ant species from 20 genera in a total of 16,360 sampled ants. We found that post-fire ant communities exhibited higher abundance immediately after fire, while species richness increased with time-since-fire. Early successional stages with greater shrub density favoured dominant and opportunistic ant species, whereas later stages with increased tree and grass cover supported more diverse ant communities. These results demonstrate that fire drives successional specialization in ant communities through niche filtering. Maintaining heterogeneous fire-age vegetation mosaics is therefore critical for conserving landscape-level biodiversity in fire-regulated mallee ecosystems.

Eastern Oysters (Crassostrea virginica) are a keystone species and an important product to the commercial shellfish industry in Delaware. Oysters are known as “environmental engineers” that provide a structured habitat to the ecosystem, thus promoting biodiversity. In order to further investigate the role oysters play in increasing biodiversity, real-time monitoring and environmental DNA (eDNA) were conducted at different sites around Rehoboth Bay, Delaware, USA. The sites include pilot artificial reefs, private aquaculture farms, and a control site without any oysters or habitat structure. Underwater GoPro Hero 3+ and 8 cameras were deployed every two weeks from June – October in 2022 and 2023. Cameras were deployed for approximately 2-3 hours at a time, and upon retrieval, cameras were reviewed for any signs of aquatic life, and all documented species were identified and recorded for comparisons between sampling sites. Water samples were collected simultaneously for eDNA analysis to serve as a complementary method for species identification. DNA Isolation and Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) were performed to amplify gene sequences for targeted species. Using camera technology, 23 different animal species were recorded across the five study sites. The most abundant species included Spot (Leiostomus xanthurus), Atlantic Silverside (Menidia menidia), Atlantic Menhaden (Brevoortia tyrannus), Horseshoe Crab (Limulus polyphemus), Blue Crab (Callinectes sapidus), and Hermit Crabs (Pagurus longicarpus). The eDNA analysis also successfully detected these species, highlighting the effectiveness of eDNA as a tool for species monitoring. Notably, there was considerable overlap between species identified through both real-time monitoring and eDNA methods. These findings contribute to ongoing oyster restoration initiatives and sustainable aquaculture practices in the Delaware Inland Bays (DIB), while also enhancing our understanding of complementary biodiversity monitoring techniques.

Newly established grasslands and flower strips on arable land aim to counteract ongoing biodiversity loss, often specifically designed to promote pollinators. However, their effectiveness in supporting diverse and stable plant--pollinator networks remains not fully understood. We compared plant--pollinator interactions in newly established grasslands, 5-6 years after sowing on arable land, and old, permanent grasslands in a Central European agricultural region. Across 1095 recorded interactions, we found significantly higher pollinator visitation frequency and diversity per plant species in newly established grasslands than old grasslands, particularly for solitary bees and syrphids. Network analyses revealed comparable nestedness and specialization in newly established grasslands and old grasslands. Distinct plant family and colour preferences emerged among pollinator groups, with bumble bees favoring Fabaceae, syrphids visiting especially Apiaceae and Rubiaceae, and butterflies preferring Fabaceae and Caryophyllaceae. Several generalist pollinators and key plant species played central roles in both grassland types, highlighting their importance for network connectivity. Our findings suggest that carefully designed new grasslands can support diverse plant-pollinator networks and contribute meaningfully to biodiversity conservation and ecosystem services in agricultural landscapes.

Hyalomma rufipes is a widely distributed tick species and a competent vector of Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever Virus (CCHFV), a serious zoonotic pathogen endemic to over 30 countries. Despite the epidemiological importance of CCHFV and H. rufipes in East Africa, little is known about the genetic structure and movement of H. rufipes populations, limiting the understanding of CCHFV transmission dynamics in this region. This study developed and characterized 14 polymorphic microsatellite markers to support population genetic studies of H. rufipes. H. rufipes ticks were collected from livestock in Garissa and Isiolo counties in northern Kenya. Morphological identification was confirmed using 16S rRNA Sanger sequencing and phylogenetic analysis. Low-pass whole genome sequencing was performed on representative samples, and the Quality and Diversity of DNA (QDD) pipeline was used to identify and design microsatellite primers. Of 59,201 candidate loci, 30 were selected for initial screening; 14 loci consistently amplified and were polymorphic. These included mostly tetranucleotide repeats and showed high allelic richness and gene diversity. Several loci showed signs of null alleles, but no evidence of stuttering or allelic dropout was found. These newly developed microsatellite markers provide a valuable tool for investigating H. rufipes population dynamics and dispersal, with the ultimate goal of understanding CCHFV transmission dynamics in East Africa.

Global climate change and human activities have led to the loss and fragmentation of habitats for wild orchids in recent years. Liparis campylostalix is widely distributed in northeast China and is an important component of orchids resources in the region. Previously, we conducted a field survey on the distribution of L. campylostalix in northeast China and obtained 244 distribution sites. In this study, the Maxent model, ENMTools and ArcGIS were utilized to predict the potential habitat of L. campylostalix in China based on its geographical distribution and 19 environmental factors, which will be of great significance for the utilization and biodiversity conservation of this species. The results showed that under the current climate scenario, L. campylostalix was mainly distributed in Liaoning, Jilin and Shandong provinces of China, with a total suitable growth area of approximately 1.845 million square kilometers and a distribution center located in Sichuan province. The four key environmental variables affecting the distribution of L. campylostalix were annual precipitation (Bio12, contribution rate 27.9%), temperature seasonality (Bio4, contribution rate 19.4%), warmest season precipitation (Bio18, contribution rate 11.9%), and annual average temperature (Bio1, contribution rate 8.4%), accounting for 67.6% of the total contribution. Under global warming conditions in the future, the potential suitable area for L. campylostalix would show an expanding trend. It would radiate from the edge of the current suitable area to the surrounding areas, while the distribution center still located in Sichuan province and not changed. The results of this study could provide theoretical reference for the conservation of orchids biodiversity.

Assessing how elements are transferred through ecosystems provides key insights into nutrient cycling, food web interactions, and ecosystem functioning. However, studies investigating the effects of intraspecific variation on organismal elemental composition remain limited, especially for trace elements. This study investigated sex-based differences in the elemental content of whole-body and excreta of Hogna carolinensis (Carolina wolf spiders). We hypothesized that males and females would differ in whole-body and excreta elemental composition due to divergent life history strategies. Our findings partially supported our hypothesis. Male spiders had significantly higher whole-body concentrations of Fe, Ni, and S, whereas females had significantly more Sr. In excreta, males excreted significantly greater concentrations of Ca, Mn, Si, and Zn, while females excreted significantly higher concentrations of K and P. Principal component analysis revealed distinct elemental profiles between excreta and whole-body samples, with both sexes exhibiting higher concentrations of Ba, Ca, Fe, K, N, Na, P, S, and Si in excreta, and lower concentrations of Cu, Li, and Ni than in their whole body. These results suggest that sex-specific excretion patterns may influence micronutrient cycling and ecosystem function, particularly regarding the deposition of nutrients such as Ca, K, Mn, P, Si, and Zn. Given the potential ecological implications of sex-based nutrient fluxes, future research should further examine how intraspecific variation and sexual dimorphism shape stoichiometric phenotypes and trophic interactions.

1. Anurans are the most exploited amphibians on earth. However, within Africa, exploitation is often recorded as single-site case studies, making it difficult to accurately understand the scale of use, its livelihood importance, and impact on species. 2. We conducted a systematic review to: compile available literature on anuran exploitation in Africa; identify important species and ecoregions; and identify gaps and opportunities for monitoring anuran exploitation. From an initial pool of 3,335 articles, 85 studies on anuran exploitation were reviewed. We augmented this with data from records on levels of anuran trade within CITES from 2012 to 2021, IUCN redlist, UNdata, and WILDMEAT databases. 3. We found 131 amphibian (124 anuran) species belonging to 18 families and 42 genera exploited within Africa. 31.5% of exploited anuran species are only used as food and 2.4% only used in traditional medicine. Another 23.4% are exploited in multiple ways. Larger-bodied species, including Hoplobatrachus occipitalis and Pyxicephalus edulis, are most preferred as food, whereas smaller and colourful ones (mostly in the Mantellidae family) are traded as pets. The use of anurans as food and traditional medicine is concentrated in Guineo-Congolian and Guineo-Sudanian ecoregions, whilst Madagascar & the Indian Ocean dominates the international pet trade. Wild populations of anuran species are collected mainly by local men and sold to intermediaries to supply food and pet markets. African countries import froglegs more than they export possibly, to supply locally based international restaurants. 4. We identified the inability of most international databases to accurately capture the extent of anuran exploitation with literature review identifying 28 additional species missed by these platforms. Also, there are few scientific studies that quantify the impacts of exploitation on anurans in Africa. 5. Synthesis and applications: We recommend the monitoring of anuran exploitation be incorporated into national biodiversity monitoring plans.

The anadromous hilsa shad (Tenualosa ilisha) is a commercially and ecologically important fish species distributed across the Bay of Bengal, the Arabian Sea, and the river systems of South and Southeast Asia and the Middle East. Despite its significance, the genetic diversity, population structure, and demographic history of T. ilisha populations are poorly understood, particularly across the regions. This study provides the first comparative genetic analysis with extensive sampling of T. ilisha populations from Bangladesh and Iraq, utilizing mitochondrial DNA markers—Cytochrome c Oxidase I (COI) and Cytochrome b (CYTB)—to assess genetic variation, population connectivity, and evolutionary history. Genetic analyses of 278 COI and 268 CYTB sequences revealed significant inter-regional genetic differentiation, with Bangladeshi populations exhibiting higher genetic diversity, while Iraqi populations displayed extreme genetic homogeneity. Population structure analyses using analysis of molecular variance and F-statistics (Fst) demonstrated strong genetic differentiation between Bangladeshi and Iraqi populations, with inter-regional variation accounting for over 65% (COI) and 73% (CYTB) of the total genetic variation. Intra-regional differentiation was low among Bangladeshi populations, suggesting gene flow and a largely panmictic population structure, whereas Iraqi populations showed no significant genetic differentiation, indicating a single, genetically uniform stock. Haplotype network analyses supported inter-regional isolation and intra-regional connectivity, with no shared haplotypes between Bangladesh and Iraq. Neutrality tests (Tajima’s D and Fu’s Fs) suggested recent demographic expansions in several Bangladeshi populations. Conversely, Iraqi population the Shatt al-Arab showed little sign of expansion. The results underscore the need for region-specific conservation measures. Preserving ecological integrity and sustainable fisheries management in Bangladesh and habitat degradation mitigation and restoration in Iraq are important to avoid further loss of genetic diversity. Future studies should integrate genomic analysis and environmental monitoring for T. ilisha across its distribution so that adaptive management practices can be developed.

Reliable estimates of population density are essential for the conservation of apex predators such as the jaguar (Panthera onca), particularly in peripheral regions of their distribution where existing data are insufficient to guide effective management. In Mexico, northeastern landscapes remain underrepresented in jaguar research, limiting the development of context-specific conservation strategies. To address this gap, we conducted a camera trap survey in the El Cielo–Sierra de Tamalave biological corridor, a transitional zone located at the northeasternmost limit of the species’ range. Over a 91-day sampling period, we deployed 104 cameras across 52 paired stations and applied a random thinning spatial capture–recapture model (rt-SCR), which integrates both identified and unidentified photographic detections. This represents the first application of rt-SCR to jaguar data in Mexico. The model yielded a density estimate of 1.29 (0.93–1.70) individuals per 100 km², with adequate goodness-of-fit across multiple detection metrics. Despite low detection rates, the rt-SCR framework allowed for robust inference by maximizing data use and reducing bias associated with exclusion of unidentified detections. Our findings provide a baseline for future monitoring in northeastern Mexico and demonstrate the utility of rt-SCR models in data-limited contexts. These results support the implementation of localized conservation actions and long-term monitoring programs in peripheral jaguar habitats, where population viability may depend on maintaining ecological continuity and minimizing anthropogenic pressures.

The Trichechus manatus latirostris (Florida manatee) is known to seasonally range into the northern Gulf of Mexico, but evidence of mating behavior in Mississippi has not previously been documented. On 24 September 2024, the first known instance of active manatee mating behavior in Mississippi waters was observed using an uncrewed aerial system (UAS) at the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. Behavioral analyses, including all-occurrence and continuous sampling methods, revealed high frequencies of mounting interactions characteristic of manatee reproductive behavior. The focal group consisted of three individuals, with one identified female (Manatee B) and presumed male (Manatee A) engaging repeatedly in mounting behaviors. This novel mating behavior differs from the typical “mating herd” of manatees consisting of multiple males with a single female. These findings suggest that Mississippi coastal habitats may support not only seasonal foraging but also reproductive activity, indicating a potential range expansion and reproductive plasticity of the species. This observation underscores the need for enhanced monitoring and conservation efforts in northern Gulf habitats to account for emerging manatee behaviors and potential establishment of reproductive use areas beyond Florida.

Hybridisation is a naturally occurring evolutionary process important in the facilitation of both adaptation and speciation but is often considered an extinction risk for threatened species. Anthropogenic novel distributions of species, exacerbated by habitat destruction and climate change, accelerates the rate, frequency, and extent to which populations interact, thereby increasing the opportunity for hybridisation. Hybridisation can be considered a threat to, or an opportunity for, species' population viability, and this dilemma creates challenges in conservation management. We used non-invasive sampling combined with nuclear and mitochondrial DNA markers to gain a greater understanding of the extent and source of introgression and levels of genetic diversity in the critically endangered Wild camel, Camelus ferus, in both the in-situ population and the ex-situ insurance population in Mongolia. Our results show evidence of both nuclear, mitochondrial and historic introgression of Bactrian camel, Camelus bactrianus, genes in the C. ferus population in-situ, and in some individuals within the ex-situ herd. We also show reduced heterozygosity and elevated inbreeding in the in-situ population and reveal similar characteristics in the ex-situ herd. Our findings illustrate that, whilst the global conservation community currently adopts largely arbitrary thresholds for what is an acceptable level of introgression, a detailed genetic perspective is crucial in increasing our understanding of hybridisation in conservation and is an important first step towards identifying options for conservation management.

The global warming phenomenon leads to elevated water temperatures in freshwater habitats, which in turn alters the motility responses of hemimetabolous macroinvertebrates. Ephemeroptera nymphs are highly active in different types of micro-habitats. Its movement complexity may shift with increasing temperature, but how this dynamic occurs has received little attention. Our work studies the two-dimensional and anisotropic movement behavior of Ephemeroptera nymphs (Baetidae and Leptophlebiidae) under an experimental setting that provides controlled induced thermal stress. Increasing temperatures could influence the movement patterns according to Fractal Dimension Index (FDI). FDI methods (radial, box-counting, and dilation) indicate the complexity of trajectories and directionality (anisotropy). Experiments were conducted in a controlled arena, recording the movement of nymphs under three thermal conditions: control (temperature from sampling sites), control +5°C and control +10°C, from several micro-habitats of rithronic streams. The results showed that thermal stress led to a decrease in FDI, suggesting a shift towards more directional and less complex movement patterns, i.e., an increase in anisotropy. This response was influenced by taxonomic family, with Baetidae showing greater sensitivity and a steeper drop in FDI compared to Leptophlebiidae. Micro-habitat complexity also played a crucial role; nymphs from structurally complex habitats (macrophytes and boulders) tended to maintain higher FDI values under stress, as opposed to those from simpler substrates (gravel and sand), which showed a sharper reduction in movement complexity. This indicates that habitat structural heterogeneity may mitigate the negative effects of heat stress on behavior. Positive correlations were found between habitat fractal dimensions and locomotor traits such as Mean speed and Total path length, suggesting that complex habitats may enhance nymph mobility. These findings support the use of fractal metrics as sensitive indicators of behavioral plasticity and complexity of animal movement under environmental stress.

The communication of African and Asian elephants based on seismic and acoustic waves has been studied for decades. However, research within anthropogenic zoo environments, particularly with respect to seismic signals, remains limited compared to studies in natural habitats. This study analyses low-frequency elephant rumbles recorded at the Opel-Zoo near Frankfurt am Main, Germany, by comparing characteristics from datasets obtained using non-invasive, co-located seismic and infrasound sensors. Analysis of recordings from August 2024 revealed over 1350 rumbles, indicating significant temporal variability. These rumbles are characterized by signal durations of 1–8 seconds and fundamental frequencies between 10 and 25 Hz, with harmonics above. Due to high seismic background noise during zoo opening hours, infrasound detections are more abundant during the day, while seismic and infrasound detection rates are comparable at night. Our results show that the number of rumbles significantly increases approximately every second night, in agreement with the elephants changing nocturnal housing schedule, with one pair of elephants being much more communicative than the other pair. We find indication for a diurnal correlation of rumble activity with visitor numbers. Many rumbles occur in rapid sequences within minutes, suggesting elephant interaction or external triggers. Most rumbles are accompanied by motion-induced signals associated with locomotion or trampling, phenomena not detectable with infrasound sensors measuring acoustic waves only. This highlights the value of combined seismic and infrasound data. To enable a robust automated classification of rumbles and noise for continuous monitoring, we train and test two CNNs using spectrogram images of the hand-picked seismic and infrasound rumbles as inputs. The model achieves up to 98% classification accuracy, while cross-domain applications demonstrate better generalization and robustness of the CNN trained with seismic data. The seismo-acoustic monitoring approach and resulting findings have the potential to enhance our understanding of zoo elephant behavior, social interactions, and welfare.

Invasive species, loss of habitat, and climate change are just some of the many threats accelerating biodiversity loss, and understanding their impacts on endangered species is key to implementing effective conservation. The endemic Grenada frog (Pristimantis euphronides) is found only in high elevation cloud forests, habitat that is being invaded by the introduced Lesser Antillean frog (Eleutherodactylus johnstonei) and threatened by climate change. Between 2004 and 2020, our field team surveyed three key sites in the central highlands of Grenada to monitor populations of both frogs. We used generalized linear models and Spearman’s rank analysis to evaluate the effects of site and invasive frog relative abundance on the endemic frog. Although the relative abundances of the two species were negatively correlated overall (ρ = -0.501, 95% CI: (-0.660, -0.300)), the relationship between them was weakly positive in the model that included site as a covariate. The two species appear to respond similarly to environmental fluctuations at local scales, but the negative overall correlation implies that competition with the Lesser Antillean frog may have affected the distribution of the Grenada frog across the island. Grenada frogs were much more abundant than Lesser Antillean frogs at the highest elevation site, while the reverse was true at the lower sites. If higher elevation sites are indeed acting as refugia for the Grenada frog from its invasive competitor, the effects of climate change at those high elevation sites will likely be critical to the future of the species.

Studies of population genetic structure are typically conducted at the scale of species distributions and encompass large distances and substantial environmental variation. However, population genetic structure could also be present in species with highly restricted global distributions, such as habitat specialists with threatened or vulnerable conservation status. For these organisms, low dispersal distances coupled with fine-scale environmental heterogeneity could influence population genetic composition, potentially creating spatial genetic structure and genotype by environment associations. Here we use the serpentine endemic plant Calochortus tiburonensis, with a global distribution of 160 ha, to evaluate whether fine-scale structure in soil composition and low seed dispersal distances result in the development of population genetic structure. We paired soil elemental analysis with a RAD-seq SNP dataset for 24 C. tiburonensis individuals. Although no population structure was detected between C. tiburonensis sampling locations, multiple analyses identified associations between soil composition and genetic distance between individuals. This included associations with nickel and magnesium, two elements that were expected a priori to impact plant fitness in serpentine landscapes. However, redundancy analyses and a generalized dissimilarity model both suggest that total soil variation better explains differences in genetic composition between individuals, implying that selection from the holistic soil environment has a role in matching plant genotypes to the microenvironment. Our results indicate that fine-scale environmental heterogeneity could influence genetic differences between individuals in plant populations, even in the absence of population genetic structure. Additionally, these associations between genetic composition and fine-scale environmental heterogeneity implicate extremely fine-scale environmental heterogeneity as an essential mechanism for preserving genetic variation, particularly within range-limited species.

Fish nursery areas need to be determined at the appropriate spatial scale with an understanding of how juvenile fish are distributed across combinations and arrangements of habitat types within seascapes. A seascape approach allows the influence of seabed type, patch sizes, boundaries and habitat combinations on species distributions to be understood. This study investigated the influence of seascape ecology and species co-occurrence patterns on the distribution of three juvenile gadoids, Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua), haddock (Melanogrammus aeglefinus), and whiting (Merlangius merlangus), while also accounting for the interactions between species as latent variables. We used 757 stereo baited remote underwater video (SBRUV) deployments between 2021 and 2023 across two sea lochs and adjacent bays on the north and west coasts of Scotland to gather relative abundance data. A joint species distribution model was used to determine the seascape drivers of 10 fish species as well as using an unobserved random variable to understand how species co-occurrences influence individual species distributions. Atlantic cod, haddock and whiting distributions were driven by distinct ecological factors yet had limited areas of overlap. Atlantic cod and haddock were most abundant in areas with a diverse mix of habitats. However, whiting were most abundant in areas with lower habitat diversity. Consistently higher relative abundance of all species near habitat patch boundaries indicates that edge effects and access to multiple habitat types are critical determinants of nursery habitat. Despite their distinct distributions explained by environmental variables, species-to-species co-occurrence patterns were very similar across the three species. This may be indicative of similar ecological roles and biological interactions or similar response to an unrecorded variable. The inclusion of how species respond to seascape structures is valuable because it gives a greater level of understanding of what juvenile fish need in nursery areas at the relevant spatial scale.