National Park Service

Understanding of the Everglades’ ecological vulnerabilities and restoration needs has advanced over the past decade but has not been applied in an integrated manner. To address this need, we developed the Everglades Vulnerability Analysis (EVA), a decision support tool that uses modular Bayesian networks to predict the ecological outcomes of a subset of the ecosystem’s health indicators. This tool takes advantage of the extensive modeling work already done in the Everglades and synthesizes information across indicators of ecosystem health to forecast long-term, landscape-scale changes. In addition, the tool can predict indicator vulnerability through comparison to user-defined ideal system states that can vary in the level of certainty of outcomes. An integrated understanding of the Everglades system is essential for evaluation of trade-offs at local, regional, and system-wide scales. Through EVA, Everglades restoration decision makers can provide effective guidance during restoration planning and implementation processes to mitigate unintended consequences that could result in further damage to the Everglades system.

Objective: to characterize age-length composition of fish population in the lake Ozeryavki at National Park «Sebezhsky» and to estimate the density and biomass of main species using A method for estimating fish density through the catches of gillnets Methods: a method for estimating density by catches of gill nets applied to the catches of different mesh size. Methods: a method for estimating density by catches of gill nets applied to the current data. Novelty: estimates of mortality of 3 main species, roach, white bream and perch, in one of the lakes of the national park were obtained for the first time; the density and biomass of 3 species are calculated and the proportion of mortality from predation is estimated. Results : instantaneous natural mortality coefficients for roach, white bream and perch corresponds to Z = 0.59 year-1, Z = 0.51 year ⁻¹ and Z = 0.71 year ⁻¹ , respectively; the general density of all age groups is: for roach 2.7 ind./m ³ , for white bream 0.9 ind./m ³ and for perch 2.0 ind./m ³ ; average biomass: for roach 14.3 g/m ³ , for white bream 4.5 g/m ³ , for perch 3.0 g/m ³ ; mortality rate from pike predation accounts for 0.34 of biomass of three species. Conclusion. The study of fish population of lake Ozeryavki as a typical medium-sized reservoir in the Sebezhsky National Park gives an idea of local ichthyocenoses parameters and aquatic ecosystem condition as a whole.

Forests in Europe are exposed to increasingly frequent and severe disturbances. The resulting changes in the structure and composition of forests can have profound consequences for the wildlife inhabiting them. Moreover, wildlife populations in Europe are often subjected to differential management regimes as they regularly extend across multiple national and administrative borders. The red deer Cervus elaphus population in the Bohemian Forest Ecosystem, straddling the Czech-German border, has experienced forest disturbances, primarily caused by windfalls and bark beetle Ips typographus outbreaks during the past decades. To adapt local management strategies to the changing environmental conditions and to coordinate them across the international border, reliable estimates of red deer density and abundance are highly sought-after by policymakers, wildlife managers, and stakeholders. Covering a 1081-km2 study area, we conducted a transnational non-invasive DNA sampling study in 2018 that yielded 1578 genotyped DNA samples from 1120 individual red deer. Using spatial capture-recapture models, we estimated total and jurisdiction-specific abundance of red deer throughout the ecosystem and quantified the role of forest disturbance and differential management strategies in shaping spatial heterogeneity in red deer density. We hypothesised that (a) forest disturbances provide favourable habitat conditions (e.g., forage and cover), and (b) contrasting red deer management regimes in different jurisdictions create a differential risk landscape, ultimately shaping density distributions. Overall, we estimated that 2851 red deer (95% Credible Interval = 2609–3119) resided in the study area during the sampling period, with a relatively even overall sex ratio (1406 females, 95% CI = 1229–1612 and 1445 males, 95% CI = 1288–1626). The average red deer density was higher in Czechia (3.5 km−2, 95% CI = 1.2–12.3) compared to Germany (2 km−2, 95% CI = 0.2–11). The effect of forest disturbances on red deer density was context-dependent. Forest disturbances had a positive effect on red deer density at higher elevations and a negative effect at lower elevations, which could be explained by partial migration and its drivers in this population. Density of red deer was generally higher in management units where hunting is prohibited. In addition, we found that sex ratios differed between administrative units and were more balanced in the non-intervention zones. Our results show that the effect of forest disturbances on wild ungulates is modulated by additional factors, such as elevation and ungulate management practices. Overall density patterns and sex ratios suggested strong gradients in density between administrative units. With climate change increasing the severity and frequency of forest disturbances, population-level monitoring and management are becoming increasingly important, especially for wide-ranging species as both wildlife and global change transcend administrative boundaries.

Foundation species, such as trees, corals, grasses, oysters, and rockweeds, must be common and abundant to effectively modify the physical environment and increase biodiversity by buffering environmental stress. Yet many of these important species have been declining due to disease, climate change, and other factors. A prime example is the precipitous population decline of marine rockweeds, which is attributed to increased urbanization and its accompanying impacts. Rockweeds provide three-dimensional habitat in harsh rocky intertidal environments and regulate ecosystem functioning, essential roles that no substitute species are capable of filling. Recovery of impacted rockweed populations is typically slow and unpredictable due to their limited dispersal capacity. These issues have motivated efforts to conserve remaining populations of rockweeds and reestablish or enhance depleted ones. Successfully doing so requires a robust understanding of factors that affect survival of the species and the processes that influence ecosystem structure, along with rigorous scientific testing of restoration methods and the factors that affect restoration success. In this comprehensive review, we summarize the current knowledge of rockweed ecology, highlight studies that could inform restoration practices, and recommend ways to improve our ability to implement scalable restoration of rockweeds and accompanying ecosystem-wide benefits.

Wolves (Canis lupus) can exert top-down pressure and shape ecological communities through the predation of ungulates and beavers (Castor spp.). Therefore, understanding wolf foraging is critical to estimating their ecosystem-level effects. Specifically, if wolves are consumers that optimize tradeoffs between the cost and benefits of prey acquisition, changes in these factors may lead to prey-switching or negative-density dependent selection with potential consequences for community stability. For wolves, factors affecting cost and benefits include prey vulnerability, risk, reward, and availability, which can vary temporally. We described the wolf diet by the frequency of occurrence and percent biomass and characterized the diet using prey remains found in wolf scats on Isle Royale National Park, Michigan, USA, during May-October 2019 and 2020. We used logistic regression to estimate prey consumption over time. We predicted prey with temporal variation in cost (availability and/or vulnerability) such as adult moose (Alces alces), calf moose, and beaver (Castor canadensis) to vary in wolf diets. We analyzed 206 scats and identified 62% of remains as beaver, 26% as moose, and 12% as other species (birds, smaller mammals, and wolves). Adult moose were more likely to occur in wolf scats in May when moose are in poor condition following winter. The occurrence of moose calves peaked during June-mid-July following birth but before calf vulnerability declined as they matured. By contrast, beaver occurrence in wolf scat did not change over time, reflecting the importance of low-handling cost prey items for recently introduced lone or paired wolves. Our results demonstrate that the wolf diet is responsive to temporal changes in prey costs. Temporal fluctuation in diet may influence wolves' ecological role if prey respond to increased predation risk by altering foraging or breeding behavior.

Wetlands in the Mekong Delta of southern Vietnam support populations of globally threatened species, including Hairy-nosed otter ( Lutra sumatrana ) and, historically, Fishing cat ( Prionailurus viverrinus ). However, protected areas in the southern wetlands have become terrestrial islands, surrounded by aquaculture and agriculture, leading to intensified interactions between humans and wildlife. This research explored different human-wildlife interactions to assess whether they bear potential threats to populations of threatened, wetland-dwelling carnivores such as otters, wild cats, and other small carnivores. 400 semi-structured interviews were conducted in communities living in the buffer zones of two protected areas: U Minh Thuong National Park and U Minh Ha National Park. Our results revealed that fish farmers who live closer to protected area boundaries were more likely to experience conflict with otters, wild cats, and other small carnivores. While the effect of distance to the protected area’s edge on small carnivore impacts were similar in both study sites, prior impacts were found to influence increasingly severe actions of respondents against the impacting wildlife. Overall, most locals had little-to-no knowledge of Fishing cats. This evidence corresponds with other studies which suspect the Fishing cat to be in extremely low densities or potentially extirpated from the wetlands in the last few decades. High prices of wildlife have driven intensive illegal hunting in the region. More people in U Minh Thuong were aware of illegal wildlife trade activities than in U Minh Ha and men tended to have more knowledge and willingness to share about those illicit activities. Our results suggested community engagement activities to tackle human-otter conflict and illegal activities related to wildlife should target mostly men, older villagers, and fish farmers living near the edges of both protected areas. Education and outreach campaigns to improve community awareness of wildlife should target women and young people, who were significantly less aware of wildlife issues in the area overall.

We conducted a spatially explicit study of bat foraging activity in the terrestrial coastal habitats of the eastern Kenai Peninsula along the northern Gulf of Alaska. We confirmed the species and presence of foraging bats within these coastal habitats using spectral analysis from 24 automated acoustic recording devices that captured 24,058 recordings of bat vocalizations across 1,332 acoustic survey nights between June and September (2018–2 022. We used machine learning (TreeNet) to model and map the spatial relationship of bat foraging behavior and six habitat types (conifer forest, subalpine shrubland, water, barren, herbaceous meadows, and alpine). Bats foraged in areas close to fresh waterbodies with moderately sloped terrain along southwestern to north-facing aspects ≤ 50 m from conifer forests, < 150 m from the coastline, and at elevations < 200 m above sea level. These coastal habitats were largely discontinuous, but extensively distributed as a patchwork along the eastern Kenai Peninsula. Our model highlights specific areas where strategic planning and hypothesis-based research can be focused. Our results fill a fundamental data gap in this understudied region of Alaska that provides a foundation for proactive research, partnerships, and conservation as white-nose syndrome presents an eminent threat to bats inhabiting coastal habitats along the North Pacific.

Sedum jinglanii , a new species of Crassulaceae from Mount Danxia in Guangdong, China, is described and illustrated. Phylogenetic analysis based on the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of nr DNA suggests that the new species belongs to S. sect. Sedum sensu Fu and Ohba (2001) in the “Flora of China”, and is sister to a clade comprising S. alfredi and S. emarginatum with high support values (SH-aLRT = 84, UFBS = 95) but is distantly related to S. baileyi . The new species is morphologically similar to S. alfredi but it can be distinguished from the latter in its opposite leaves (vs. alternate leaves), its usually wider leaves (0.4–1.2 cm vs. 0.2–0.6 cm), its usually shorter petals (3.4–4.5 mm vs. 4–6 mm), its shorter nectar scales (0.4–0.5 mm vs. 0.5–1 mm), its shorter carpels (1.5–2.6 mm vs. 4–5 mm), and its shorter styles (0.6–0.9 mm vs. 1–2 mm). The new species can be easily distinguished from S. emarginatum which both have opposite leaves by its short, erect or ascending rhizome (vs. long and prostrate rhizome in the latter), shorter petals (3.4–4.5 mm vs. 6–8 mm) and shorter carpels (1.5–2.6 mm vs. 4–5 mm). It can also be easily distinguished from S. baileyi by its short, erect or ascending rhizome (vs. long and prostrate rhizome) and its shorter style (0.6–0.9 mm vs. 1–1.5 mm).

Some of the largest climatic changes in the Arctic have been observed in Alaska and surrounding marginal seas. Near-surface air temperature (T2m), precipitation (P), snowfall, and sea ice changes have been previously documented, often in disparate studies. Here we provide an updated, long-term trend analysis (1957-2021; n=65 years) of such parameters in ERA5, NOAA NClimGrid, NOAA NCEI Alaska climate division, and composite sea ice products preceding the upcoming Fifth National Climate Assessment (NCA5) and other near-future climate reports. In the past half century, annual T2m has broadly increased across Alaska, and during winter, spring, and autumn on the North Slope and North Panhandle (T2m>0.50°C decade ⁻¹ ). P has also increased across climate divisions, and appears strongly interrelated with temperature-sea ice feedbacks on the North Slope, specifically with increased (decreased) open water (sea ice extent). Snowfall equivalent (SFE) has decreased in autumn and spring, perhaps aligned with a regime transition of snow to rain, while winter SFE has broadly increased across the state. Sea ice decline and melt season lengthening also have a pronounced signal around Alaska, with the largest trends in these parameters found in the Beaufort Sea. Alaska’s climatic changes are also placed in context against regional and contiguous U.S. air temperature trends, and show ~50% greater warming in Alaska relative to the lower-48 states. Alaska T2m increases also exceed those of any contiguous U.S. sub-region, positioning Alaska at the forefront of U.S. climate warming.

A new species of Hedyotis L. (Rubiaceae), Hedyotis konhanungensis B.H. Quang, T.A. Le, K.S. Nguyen & Neupane, is described and illustrated from the central highlands of Vietnam based on morphological and phylogenetic evidence. The new species belongs to the morphologically diverse tribe Spermacoceae (ca. 1000 species) of the family Rubiaceae, which is represented by 70–80 species in Vietnam. The phylogenetic analysis, based on four DNA regions (ITS, ETS, petD, rps 16), confirms the new species’ placement within the genus Hedyotis – one of the largest genera in the tribe, comprising ca. 180 species across Asia and the Pacific. Hedyotis konhanungensis is morphologically distinct from all southeastern Asian Hedyotis L. in its set of traits such as leaf type (shape and thickness), growth habit, and floral parts (color of inflorescence axis and the shape of calyx lobes). The new species shows similarities with Hedyotis shenzhenensis , H. shiuyingiae , and H. yangchunensis from China in its herbaceous habit, fleshy ovate leaf blades, and dark purple floral parts, but it is phylogenetically distinct and can be distinguished from them by the following combination of morphological traits: habit with slightly smaller stature (<25 cm), broadly ovate or deltoid stipules with cuspidate apex and entire margin, and ovate or nearly ovate calyx lobes.

Forest restoration thinning has the potential to enhance structural complexity and accelerate development of large trees important to wildlife, aesthetics, and wildfire resistance. These are key objectives for restoration of even-aged secondary forests within Redwood National Park in Humboldt County, California, USA. We evaluated tree growth and stand structure 10 years after two thinning methods were applied at two intensities in a 40-year-old mixed redwood (Sequoia sempervirens (Lamb. ex D. Don) Endl.))/Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco var. menziesii) stand. Heavy thinning enhanced diameter growth of redwood and Douglas-fir trees more than light thinning. Crown thinning generally enhanced structural diversity more than low thinning, and structural diversity increased progressively over the 10 years following thinning. Understory plant richness fluctuated between measurement years. Heavy thinning enhanced understory shrub cover. The fastest-growing trees in heavily-thinned stands were much more likely to sustain bear damage, especially redwood trees. Overall, different thinning methods and intensities induced a different suite of outcomes, yet none restored redwood dominance, but all treatments enhanced some other ecosystem values important for old-growth restoration such as large overstory trees, understory plant and shrubs, and elements of structural complexity including tree-size variability, snags, down logs, and trees exhibiting stem or top damage.

Advanced regeneration, in the form of tree seedlings and saplings, is critical for ensuring long-term viability and resilience of forest ecosystems in the eastern United States. Lack of regeneration and/or compositional mismatch between regeneration and canopy layers, called regeneration debt, can lead to shifts in forest composition, structure, and in extreme cases, forest loss. Here we examined status and trends in regeneration across 39 national parks from Virginia to Maine, spanning 12 years to apply the regeneration debt concept. We further refined the concept by adding new metrics and classifying results into easily interpreted categories adapted from the literature: imminent failure, probable failure, insecure, and secure. We then used model selection to determine the potential drivers most influencing patterns of regeneration debt. Status and trends indicated widespread regeneration debt in eastern national parks, with 27 of 39 parks classified as imminent or probable failure. Deer browse impact was consistently the strongest predictor of regeneration abundance. The most pervasive component of regeneration debt observed across parks was a sapling bottleneck, characterized by critically low sapling density of native canopy species and significant declines in native canopy sapling basal area or density for most parks. Regeneration mismatches also threaten forest resilience in many parks, where native canopy seedlings and saplings were outnumbered by native subcanopy species, particularly species that are less palatable deer browse. The devastating impact of emerald ash borer eliminating ash as a native canopy tree also drove regeneration mismatches in many parks that contain abundant ash regeneration, demonstrating the vulnerability of forests that lack diverse understories to invasive pests and pathogens. These findings underscore the critical importance of an integrated forest management approach that promotes an abundant and diverse regeneration layer. In most cases, this can only be achieved through long-term (i.e. multi-decadal) management of white-tailed deer and invasive plants. Small-scale disturbances that increase structural complexity may also promote regeneration where stress from deer and invasive plants is minimal. Without immediate and sustained management intervention, the forest loss we are already observing may become a widespread pattern in eastern national parks and the broader region.

The Siberian roe deer (Capreolus pygargus) is distributed throughout the continental Asia. Nowadays in eastern Europe there have been detected individuals of C. capreolus with mtDNA of C. pygargus but the origin of this introgression is not clear as there have been not many data available concerning the phylogenetic pattern of the Siberian roe deer. To reveal the source of the introgression and to provide the most comprehensive picture of Siberian roe deer phylogeography we analyzed mtDNA control region fragment (610bp) of 352 roe deer samples combined with 139 sequences available in GenBank. We detected 105 haplotypes and seven mtDNA haplogroups. The proportion of different haplogroups in the regional populations varied longitudinally, with a major shift in Central Siberia. Haplogroups A, C and E were the most frequent in Europe, in the areas defined as introgression regions. In Asia, their shares declined (E) or vanished (A). Seven genetic populations of the Siberian roe deer, including two populations in the range of the European roe deer with the Siberian mtDNA lineage, were detected. Genetic diversity of mtDNA in the Siberian roe deer proved to be greater than it was documented earlier. Two ancient haplogroups, occurring predominantly in Europe, have been a remnant of the past natural interbreeding between the Siberian and the European roe deer that most probably had occurred hundred(s) kyr BP. Translocations of the Siberian roe deer to Eastern Europe performed in the 19th and 20th centuries have also left signals in the populations of the European roe deer.

The moose (Alces alces) is the largest herbivore in the boreal forest biome, where it can have dramatic impacts on ecosystem structure and dynamics. Despite the importance of the boreal forest biome in global carbon cycling, the impacts of moose have only been studied in disparate regional exclosure experiments, leading to calls for common analyses across a biome‐wide network of moose exclosures. In this study we use airborne laser scanning (ALS) to analyse forest canopy responses to moose across 100 paired exclosure‐control experimental plots distributed across the boreal biome, including sites in the United States, (Isle Royale), Canada (Quebec, Newfoundland), Norway, Sweden and Finland. We test the hypotheses that canopy height, vertical complexity and aboveground biomass are all reduced by moose, and that the impacts vary with moose density, productivity, temperature and pulse disturbances such as logging and insect outbreaks. We find a surprising convergence in forest canopy response to moose. Moose had negative impacts on canopy height, complexity and aboveground biomass as expected. The responses of canopy complexity and aboveground biomass were consistent across regions and did not vary along environmental gradients. The difference in canopy height between exclosures and open plots was on average 6 cm per year since the start of exclosure treatment (± 2.1 SD). This rate increased with temperature, but only when moose density was high. The difference in aboveground biomass between moose exclosures and open plots was 0.306 Mg ha‐1 yr‐1 (± 0.079). In browsed plots, stand aboveground biomass was 32% of that in the exclosures, a difference of 2.09 Mg ha‐1. The uniform response allows scaling of the estimate to a biome‐wide impact of moose on the loss of 448 (±115) Tg per year, or 224 Tg of carbon. Synthesis: Analysis of ALS data from distributed exclosure experiments identified a largely uniform response of forest canopies to moose across regions, facilitating scaling of moose impacts across the whole biome. This is an important step towards incorporating the effect of the largest boreal herbivore on the carbon cycling of one of the worlds’ largest terrestrial biomes.

Our understanding of the mechanisms that maintain forest diversity under changing climate can benefit from knowledge about traits that are closely linked to fitness. We tested whether the link between traits and seed number and seed size is consistent with two hypotheses, termed the leaf economics spectrum and the plant size syndrome, or whether reproduction represents an independent dimension related to a seed size–seed number trade‐off. Most of the data come from Europe, North and Central America and East Asia. A minority of the data come from South America, Africa and Australia. 1960–2022. Trees. We gathered 12 million observations of the number of seeds produced in 784 tree species. We estimated the number of seeds produced by individual trees and scaled it up to the species level. Next, we used principal components analysis and generalized joint attribute modelling (GJAM) to map seed number and size on the tree traits spectrum. Incorporating seed size and number into trait analysis while controlling for environment and phylogeny with GJAM exposes relationships in trees that might otherwise remain hidden. Production of the large total biomass of seeds [product of seed number and seed size; hereafter, species seed productivity (SSP)] is associated with high leaf area, low foliar nitrogen, low specific leaf area (SLA) and dense wood. Production of high seed numbers is associated with small seeds produced by nutrient‐demanding species with softwood, small leaves and high SLA. Trait covariation is consistent with opposing strategies: one fast‐growing, early successional, with high dispersal, and the other slow‐growing, stress‐tolerant, that recruit in shaded conditions. Earth system models currently assume that reproductive allocation is indifferent among plant functional types. Easily measurable seed size is a strong predictor of the seed number and species seed productivity. The connection of SSP with the functional traits can form the first basis of improved fecundity prediction across global forests.

Alpine grassland is one of the most critical grassland types in the world, and it is vulnerable and sensitive to external disturbances. The development and outbreak of locust might result in the irreversible degradation. However, most locust studies have been on the tropical, temperate, and desert areas. Our knowledge of inhabitable areas in alpine grassland still needs to be explored. This study was carried out in the alpine grassland in the Qilian Mountain National Park. Environmental factors (remote sensing vegetation index, meteorology, soil, topography, and grassland types) and their impact on locust density were investigated. Finally, the inhabitable areas of locust in the study area were mapped. The results showed that: (1) six out of 26 factors [including precipitation, solar radiation (average and maximum value), normalized vegetation index (NDVI), soil, and temperature] had great influence on locust density, with a relative contribution (RC) more than 10%. (2) Among all locust density estimation models, those based on average and maximum solar radiation, maximum precipitation, maximum NDVI, average temperature, and clay content in deep soil performed better than others, with R ranging from 0.58 to 0.73 and root mean square error ranging from 21.70 to 25.82 head/m2. (3) The areas most suited for locust growth, development, and frequent outbreak were found in the south of Tianjun County, middle and northwest of Qilian County (account for 27% of the study area), while the inhabitability was weak in south of Gangcha County, northwest of Tianjun County, and most of Delingha City. Thus our study clarified the distribution region and occurrence variation of the locust and provided a scientific basis for locust prevention and control in alpine grassland in the Qilian Mountain National Park.

Land use influences the variation of river water quality. This effect varies depending on the region of the river and the spatial scale at which land use is calculated. This study investigated the influence of land use on river water quality in Qilian Mountain, an important alpine river region in northwestern China, on different spatial scales in the headwaters and mainstem areas. Redundancy analysis and multiple linear regression were used to identify the optimal scales of land use for influencing and predicting water quality. Nitrogen and organic carbon parameters were more influenced by land use than phosphorus. The impact of land use on river water quality varied according to regional and seasonal differences. Water quality in headwater streams was better influenced and predicted by land use types on the natural surface at the smaller buffer zone scale, while water quality in mainstream rivers was better influenced and predicted by land use types associated with human activities at the larger catchment or sub-catchment scale. The impact of natural land use types on water quality differed with regional and seasonal variations, while the impact of land types associated with human activities on water quality parameters mainly resulted in elevated concentrations. The results of this study suggested that different land types and spatial scales needed to be considered to assess water quality influences in different areas of alpine rivers in the context of future global change.

Livestock removal is increasingly used as a management option to mitigate the negative impacts of grazing-related disturbances on rangelands. Removal generally increases plant cover, but it is unclear when, where, and by how much plant and soil cover changes can be expected. On the Colorado Plateau, complex geology, topography, soils, and climate all interact to mediate the relationship between land cover, climate, and disturbance. In this study we used new developments in land cover mapping and analysis to assess landscape plant and bare soil cover up to 30 years after livestock removal from two grazing allotments in Capitol Reef National Park, Utah, USA. Results indicate that livestock removal increases plant cover 0.17-0.32% per year and reduces bare soil cover 0.34-0.41% per year, although these rates may be suppressed by warming temperatures. Soils, assessed through Soil Geomorphic Units, played a strong but complex role in mediating land cover changes through time. These results suggest that livestock removal is an effective strategy for increasing plant cover and reducing bare soil on the Colorado Plateau, but including soil information in decision making will enhance efficiency by improving manager’s ability to prioritize management actions effectively across space and through time.