Slaheddine Selmi's research while affiliated with University of Gabès and other places
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Publications (71)
Investigating the spatial response of scavenging behaviors to roads may help in understanding the relevance of this overlooked ecosystem service. Roads can provide suitable foraging sites for scavengers, whether they are obligate or facultative. However, only a few studies have investigated the impact of roads on the spatial distribution of scaveng...
As an indicator of physiological state of lizards, thermoregulatory behavior has been proposed as an assessment tool of environmental contamination, particularly in desert ecosystems where lizards represent a major biological component. Although pesticide contamination has been shown to induce behavioral fever in lizards, the possible pyrogenic eff...
Background
The Maghreb Magpie ( Pica mauritanica ) is an endemic North African species. Available knowledge on this species is limited to historic descriptive data with no ecological information provided. Populations continue to dramatically decline in Tunisia, where only one relic population survives. Investigating the breeding biology of this spe...
Understanding spatio-temporal patterns of animal-vehicle collisions is a crucial step for the implementation of efficient mitigation measures of this worldwide threat against biodiversity. In this study we investigated vertebrate road-kills in a pre-Saharan area in southern Tunisia. In particular, we assessed how road mortality varied according to...
The distribution of urban ecosystem services (UES) is often uneven across socioeconomic groups, leading to environmental justice issues. Understanding the distribution of UES across a landscape can help managers ensure an equitable distribution of services.
While many past studies have focused on the distribution of green spaces in relation to soci...
Lizards increasingly are recognized as suitable contaminant biomonitors in terrestrial ecosystems. Previously, we have shown that Bosk’s fringe-toed lizards (Acanthodactylus boskianus) living close to the Gabès-Ghannouche industrial complex for fertilizer and acid production in southern Tunisia were contaminated by heavy metals. However, the impact...
Asynchronous hatching is a common hatching pattern in the Little Egret Egretta garzetta, however, its role in maintaining dominance relationships and feeding hierarchy among siblings remains poorly studied. In this study, we investigated this issue using data on feeding and aggressive behaviours of Little Egrets nestlings in a southern Tunisian bre...
Background
Investigating the ecological factors and processes shaping nest survival is of great importance for assessing the breeding success of bird populations and understanding their spatio-temporal dynamics. Here, this question is addressed for the Laughing Dove ( Spilopelia senegalensis ), an expanding Afro-tropical bird in the Tunisian oasis...
Investigating the breeding ecology of waterbirds in the Mediterranean is essential for understanding their population dynamics and for conservation purposes. Here, the reproductive parameters of the Little Egret (Egretta garzetta) were investigated in Boughrara Lagoon, a poorly known breeding area in southeastern Tunisia. In total, 152 nests were m...
Bird migration has long been hypothesized as the main mechanism for long‐distance dispersal of flaviviruses, but the role of migratory birds in flaviviruses spillover is not well documented. In this study, we investigated the eco‐epidemiology of West Nile virus (WNV) and Usutu virus (USUV) in trans‐Saharan passerines during their spring stopover in...
The effect of asynchronous hatching on nestling health and condition in ardeids is still in need of empirical evidence from populations living in different environmental conditions. Using morphometric and hematologic data from Little Egret Egretta garzetta nestlings in a Tunisian breeding colony, we assessed the relationship between hatching order...
Efficiently tracking and anticipating the dynamics of infectious agents in wild populations requires the gathering of large numbers of samples, if possible at several locations and points in time, which can be a challenge for some species. Testing for the presence of specific maternal antibodies in egg yolks sampled on the colonies could represent...
Assessment of the effectiveness of nature conservation measures is a crucial step to
ensure that the actions undertaken have achieved the expected results. Depending on the
results of such evaluations, managers may need to reframe or even change their approaches. In this analysis, the effectiveness of establishing strictly protected areas was asses...
Identifying the ecological factors shaping bird nest survival is essential for understanding bird population dynamics, as well as for conservation purposes. Using data obtained by monitoring natural bird nests in one oasis in south-eastern Tunisia, we fitted logistic exposure models to investigate the effects of nesting microhabitat, nest position...
Understanding the environmental factors shaping wetland attractiveness for waterbirds is an important question in wetland ecology and for conservation purposes. However, detailed data from numerous North African wetlands, notably those situated in inland areas, are still lacking. Thus, the aim of this study was to identify the factors influencing w...
Environmental pollution can have significant detrimental effects on animal populations (Hughes et al. in Science, 278:689–6923, 1997). Anthropogenic pressures have been increasing in the past decades in Gabès region, due to the installation of the Gabès-Ghannouche factory complex of phosphate treatment for fertilizer and acid production in the earl...
Many lizard species show ontogenetic changes in tail colour that are coupled with changes in the antipredatory strategy. However, the ecological factors that influence the relationships between age, tail colour and antipredatory strategy remain poorly understood. In this work, we investigated how antipredatory behaviours vary according to age in Bo...
Oases are semi-natural woodlots surrounded by an inhospitable desert environment. This insular-like habitat system is known to support a mixture of sedentary and migratory bird species originating from different areas. However, little is known about the interactions between these birds and parasites. In this study, we investigated the diversity, pr...
It has previously been suggested that southern Tunisian oases may be suitable areas for the circulation of flaviviruses. In order to anticipate and prevent possible epidemiological spread of flaviviruses in humans and domestic animals, the ecology of their transmission in the oasis system needs to be better understood. Thus, the aim of this study w...
Chez les oiseaux, la femelle dépose dans ses œufs diverses substances indispensables pour la survie et le développement des poussins,
entre autres des caroténoïdes. Toutefois la quantité de caroténoïdes transférés aux œufs est susceptible de varier, en rapport avec la
disponibilité de cette ressource dans le corps maternel. L’objectif de ce travail...
We investigated the accumulation of heavy metals in Bosk’s fringe-toed lizards (Acanthodactylus boskianus) living in Gabès region (southeastern Tunisia), in relation to habitat, diet, and distance from the Gabès-Ghannouche factory complex of phosphate treatment. More specifically, we compared the concentrations of cadmium, lead, and zinc in the sto...
Conservation of Anatidae in North Africa is hindered by lack of information concerning population size, population trends, and species-habitat relationships. In this work, we used a 2-year survey data in 25 wetlands distributed throughout Morocco to model duck spatial distribution and to assess the relevance of a set of environmental and anthropoge...
Although the Gulf of Gabès is recognised as an Important Bird Area, several aspects of the ecology of waterbirds inhabiting this area still need to be investigated. We observed how waterbird foraging guilds varied among habitats. In total, 49 species belonging to 16 families were recorded. Winter visitors accounted for 73% of counts. The avifauna w...
Capsule: The spatial distribution and feeding efficiency of Little Egrets Egretta garzetta wintering in the gulf of Gabès, Tunisia, are affected by a commensal association with the Eurasian Spoonbills Platalea leucorodia.
Aims: To investigate the role of the interspecific interaction between Little Egrets and Eurasian Spoonbills in shaping the spat...
Like the majority of Columbiformes, the Laughing Dove Spilopelia senegalensis is sexually monomorphic in plumage, but seems to be slightly dimorphic in size. However, due to the lack of studies little is known about the sexual size dimorphism in this species. In this work, we used morphometric data on a sample of 61 Laughing Doves from southern Tun...
Capsule: Mediterranean Yellow-legged Gulls mate assortatively according to carotenoid-based colouration but not in relation to size.
The Gulf of Gabès, in south-eastern Tunisia, is one of the most important Mediterranean wintering areas for the Greater Flamingo (Phoenicopterus roseus). However, information on the ecological factors shaping the distribution of this species in this wintering area are lacking. During the winter of 2012-2013, we conducted repeated counts of flamingo...
In this study, several species of Isospora infecting
lizards were genetically characterized. Specifically, five described
and four newly described species of Isospora were
included in a phylogeny of the family Eimeriidae. These species
were isolated from hosts originally inhabiting all geographic
continents except Europe. Phylogenetic analyses of
t...
This study aimed to test the hypothesis that clutch size covaries with egg volume and hatching success in the Yellow-legged Gull Larus michahellis. We determined clutch size and egg volume in a sample of 131 nests, and we used the data to check whether egg volume varied among nests according to clutch size, while taking into account the effects of...
Understanding ecological factors and processes affecting waterbird abundance is a major question in ecology and important for conservation purposes. In the Mediterranean, studies dealing with the determinants of waterbird abundance and distribution have mainly been concerned with European coastal habitats, whereas less attention has been paid to co...
Investigating how patterns of sexual size dimorphism vary among local populations may be useful for understanding size evolution in lizards. We investigated patterns of sexual size dimorphism in a Tunisian population of Bosk's fringe-toed lizards Acanthodactylus boskianus asper, in relation to a Middle-eastern population of the same subspecies. Our...
During the last few years, several cases of West Nile virus (WNV) infection in humans have been reported in Tunisia. However, detailed information on WNV infection in wild birds, the primary amplifying host of WNV, are lacking. In this work, we investigated the exposure of wild sparrows (hybrid
Passer domesticus
×
hispaniolensis
) living in two oas...
We investigated whether the proximity to the Gabès-Ghannouche factory complex of phosphate treatment, in south-eastern Tunisia, was associated with notable changes in the condition and health of Rufous bush robin (Cercotrichas galactotes) nestlings hatched in the neighbouring oasis habitat. Results demonstrated that excrements of nestlings hatched...
We explored whether antibody detection in egg yolks could serve as an alternative to antibody detection in plasma samples when monitoring yellow-legged gulls (Larus michahellis) for exposure to avian influenza viruses (AIVs). We tested female plasma and eggs for anti-AIV antibodies and used the data we obtained to: (1) check whether the two sample...
In gull species, the level of carotenoids in egg yolks is known to decrease along the egg laying sequence. However, the extent of this laying order effect is expected to vary among clutches according to laying date, due to possible differences between early-nesting and late-nesting females with regards to their ability to control the transfer of ma...
Gabès region, in south-eastern Tunisia, is nowadays considered as one of the most remarkable pollution hotspots in the Mediterranean due to the emissions of the Gabès-Ghannouche factory complex of phosphate treatment. However, because of the lack of detailed studies, the impact of such pollution on the terrestrial wildlife inhabiting this area stil...
In recent years, a number of zoonotic flaviviruses have emerged worldwide, and wild birds serve as their major reservoirs. Epidemiological surveys of bird populations at various geographical scales can clarify key aspects of the eco-epidemiology of these viruses. In this study, we aimed at exploring the presence of flaviviruses in the western Medit...
The Gulf of Gabès, in south-eastern Tunisia, is one of the most important Mediterranean wintering areas for the Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus. However, information on the ecological factors shaping the abundance and distribution of this species in this wintering area are lacking. During the winter of 2010-2011, we conducted repeated counts...
Discriminant analysis functions have previously been determined for sexing Mediterranean Yellow-legged Gulls Larus michahellis michahellis from the western Mediterranean basin. However, data from eastern Mediterranean populations are lacking. In this work, we used morphometric data from a sample of 81 Mediterranean Yellow-legged Gulls (39 males and...
Modelling the distribution of species of conservation concern is an important issue in population ecology. Classically, logistic regression analyses are conducted to estimate species' distributions from detection/non-detection data in a sample of sites and to test for the significance of several environmental variables in predicting the probability...
Female birds transfer antibodies to their offspring via the egg yolk, thus possibly providing passive immunity against infectious diseases to which hatchlings may be exposed, thereby affecting their fitness. It is nonetheless unclear whether the amount of maternal antibodies transmitted into egg yolks varies with female quality and egg laying order...
In 2010, nine colonies of Slender-billed Gull Chroicocephalus genei bred at Sfax salina in south-eastern Tunisia totalling 7 912 breeding pairs. This amounted to >50% of the breeding population for the entire Mediterranean region. Colony initiation and egg laying occurred between late April and late May, with two distinct nesting peaks. Colony size...
Importance relative de la disponibilité en îlots et du risque de prédation terrestre pour la sélection de l’habitat de nidification des Charadriiformes coloniaux dans le salin de Sfax (Tunisie).
En zone Méditerranéenne, les salins sont de plus en plus considérés comme un habitat particulièrement important pour la nidification
des oiseaux d’eau colo...
Investigating the prevalence of anti-influenza A viruses (AIV) antibodies in wild birds can provide important information for the understanding of bird exposure to AIV, as well as for prevention purposes. We investigated AIV exposure in nature by measuring the prevalence of anti-AIV antibodies in the nests and adults of an abundant and anthropophil...
The relationship between breeding site characteristics and breeding parameters of Little Egrets were investigated in the Sfax salt marshes (salina), Tunisia. Thirty colonies distributed among 14 breeding sites were monitored weekly during four breeding seasons (2004-2007). The number of breeding pairs varied among years in parallel with the number...
Capsule The edge effect hypothesis of nest predation in habitat patches and colonies is supportedAims To test whether nest predation rates in Pied Avocet colonies are a function of distance from the colony edge.Methods The study was conducted in Sfax salina (34°39′N, 10°42′E) in Tunisia. We monitored Pied Avocet nests in 30 colonies established at...
Even though Sfax salina in Tunisia hosts a significant part of the Mediterranean population of Pied Avocet Recurvirostra avosetta, data on the breeding ecology of this species in this area are lacking. Such data are nonetheless necessary, not only for the understanding of the ecology and dynamics of this species in general, but also for conservatio...
Capsule Rocky platforms provide better nesting conditions than sandy beaches.Aim To investigate the breeding ecology of Collared Pratincoles Glareola pratincola in two different coastal Atlantic habitats in northwest Morocco.Methods Collared Pratincole nests were monitored in two coastal Atlantic habitats (sandy and rocky habitats) during two years...
Risk-taking by incubating birds is commonly assumed to increase with reproductive stage due to increased nest value, and also
with time of the breeding season due to decreased renesting opportunity. Nonetheless, the potential for these two factors
to interact has not been given much importance. However, the extent to which risk-taking may increase...
In this paper we present data on breeding parameters of Little Tern Sterna albifrons, Common Tern Sterna hirundo and Gull-billed Tern Sterna nilotica nesting in Sfax salina in south-eastern Tunisia. The abundance peak was reached between the end of April and the beginning of May for the Little Tern and Common Tern and during May for Gull-billed Ter...
The Common Blackbird has extended its geographic range in Tunisia recently and colonised oases in the southern part of the country. Here, I examine the role of oasis spatial distribution and local vegetation structure in shaping Blackbird distribution and abundance patterns in the oasis system. I also provide preliminary results on the breeding bio...
The cork oak forest of Ma'amora in north-western Morocco was the largest cork oak forest in the world until the beginning of the 20th century. Due to growing land use for agriculture and urbanization, however, this forest has become fragmented into relatively small and isolated patches. The effects of this fragmentation on the diversity of wild ani...
Numerous ornithological studies conducted in patchy habitats have linked high intensity of nest predation with habitat edges. This “edge effect” hypothesis was primarily investigated in temperate, boreal and tropical fragmented forests, and there is a need for investigations from different habitat systems. Here we provide the results of one study o...
The dorcas gazelle Gazella dorcas was very common and widespread in Tunisia. Nowadays, only some small isolated populations still survive in the desert areas of the southern part of the country. Factors affecting the distribution of this species in Tunisia have never been investigated despite the importance of such investigations for elaborating lo...
We studied time allocation and vigilance behaviour of Greater Flamingos (Phoenicopterus roseus) wintering in the Gulf of Gabès. In particular, we tested the relationships between time devoted to vigilance and that devoted to foraging and sleeping, and investigated variation in individual vigilance level with group size and group activity. Our resul...
Decrease in individual vigilance with flock size is a widely recognized pattern in group-living species. However such a relationship may be affected by other factors, such as age and flock composition. For instance, because young animals generally lack experience and have higher nutritional needs than adults, they can be expected not only to be les...
Local species richness in highly fragmented landscapes is expected to be affected by characteristics of both the considered patch and its surrounding matrix, especially in areas dominated by human activities. However, the proximity of other suitable habitat patches may also be determinant for the conservation of biodiversity by enhancing dispersal...
The positive relationship between local abundance and distribution of species is a widely recognized pattern in community ecology. However, it has been suggested that this relationship can simply be an artefact of sampling because locally rare species are less detectable then locally abundant ones, and hence their distribution can easily be underes...
We investigated the effect of time of season on the accuracy of species number estimation from point-count data collected at 28 oases from southern Tunisia. Each oasis was visited at the beginning of the breeding season and two months later, which allowed us to conduct counts on five points per oasis per visit. For each oasis, we considered the obs...
We investigated distribution and abundance patterns of a recently arrived species in the oases of southern Tunisia: the Common Blackbird Turdus merula. In this system, we expected that the vegetation structure and geographical locations of oases would have played an important part in shaping the patterns of oasis occupancy and local abundance. Usin...
We investigated the diversity of breeding bird communities in 53 oases in southern Tunisia. In particular, we examined the similarity of bird communities among oases in relation to vegetation structure and geographic location. We found that oases close to each other supported similar bird communities, suggesting that the spatial distribution of oas...
We used data on breeding bird communities of the oases of southern Tunisia to investigate variation in species richness and composition among local communities in relation to spatial configuration of the oasis system and to assess significance of the relationship between oasis size and local richness. Oases could be grouped into three regional syst...
We used data on breeding bird communities of the oases of southern Tunisia to investigate variation in species richness and composition among local communities in relation to spatial configuration of the oasis system and to assess significance of the relationship between oasis size and local richness. Oases could be grouped into three regional syst...
Understanding patterns of among-island variation in species richness has long been an important question in ecology and biogeography. However, despite the clear spatial nature of the data used for such investigations, the spatial distribution of the different sampled locations is rarely explicitly considered, which may be critical for statistical a...
Livestock, especially small ruminants and camels, have been implicated for negatively affecting the abundance and distribution of other large wild animals in desert areas. We tested whether the occurrence of two emblematic species, the Dorcas gazelle (Gazella dorcas) and Houbara bustard (Chlamydotis undulata undulata), in south-eastern Tunisia was...
Citations
... On highways, medium-sized species were the most implicated in AVC. According to Dhiab et al. [56], the roads can provide suitable foraging sites for scavengers. Guinard et al. [37] reported the difference in bird carcasses' persistence in different roads according to traffic density. ...
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... 6% of the identified individuals and 4.6% of the undetermined cats. In Tunisia, Dhiab and Selmi [33] reported a significant rate of dogs and cats among AVC-killed mammals (59%). They explained that by the fact that carrion abundance on the road verges seems to be attractive for such animals. ...
... Based on the previous observations of both doves in North African orchards [16] and the current breeding case of Magpie in olives [28], birds were particularly monitored in olive orchards. Investigations of the reproductive season were realized between the end of March and mid-September based on the phenological status of both doves in Morocco [26]. ...
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... Multiple Deprivation Indices link to the concept of slum severity that promotes an understanding that areas are not homogenous but face different aspects of deprivation (Roy et al., 2020). European deprivation frameworks also exist outside the UK, e.g., Germany (Maier, 2017), France (Selmi et al., 2021) and Romania (Cochec, 2015). Such deprivation frameworks commonly use several domains to collect indicators reflecting diverse deprivation aspects. ...
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... Reptiles, more specifically lizards, play significant roles within ecosystems, and their biology and life history suggest they are sound bioindicators of environmental contaminants. Lizards tend to have generalist omnivorous diets, are longlived, inhabit a range of habitats pertaining to a large geographic distribution (Fossi et al., 1995) and tend to display site fidelity (Crain and Guillette Jr, 1998;Amaral et al., 2012b;Lambert, 2005;Nasri et al., 2020). The ecological role of lizards is more crucial in arid ecosystems given the high lizard abundance and their importance within the food chain, as omnivores and secondary consumers (Pianka, 1986). ...
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... The daily nest survival rate appeared to be higher than egg daily survival at the temperate site. Studies on the nest survival of the laughing dove (Spilopelia senegalensis) have shown that the daily nest survival rate increased with the increasing nest age, possibly due to the increased intensity of parental defensive behavior with reproduction progress [50]. The different patterns at the tropical site, i.e., a higher daily egg survival rate and a lower daily nest survival rate may be related to greater nest predation pressure [51]. ...
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... The nest's height above the ground affects the breeding success while not influencing the clutch size (Ashoori and Barati 2013). Neb and Selmi (2019) showed that the clutch size and hatching success decreased when the breeding season progressed. ...
... The avifauna of Algerian oases were reported by Heim de Balsac and Mayaud (1962) and Dupuy (1966) followed by updated data (Ledant et al., 1981;Isenmann and Moali, 2000;Samraoui, 2008). In southern Tunisia, many surveys were undertaken on the diversity and distribution of this avifauna (Selmi et al.,2002). Some studies were available on birds of oases in Algeria (Boukhemza, 1990;Chenchouni, 2012;Bensaci et al., 2013) but these were limited to few regions and were occasionally observed. ...
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... It corroborated previous results, where infection rates were highest in regions with WNV outbreaks, including in the north-eastern governorates (Jendouba, 74%), the eastern coast (Monastir, 64%) and the lowlands of Chott El Jerid and Chott el Gharsa (Kebili, 58%, Tozeur, 52%) [79]. In addition, anti-WNV and anti-USUV antibodies were detected in 32% and 1% respectively of tested birds in Tunisian oases [80]. ...
... Water depth can be the threshold to the ability of waterbirds to access the foraging patch depending on their tarsus. The average measurement of tarsus was 6.54 cm for little egret (Neb et al. 2019), 16.9 cm for the great egret (Maccarone and Brzorad 2016), and 24.6 cm for lesser adjutant stork (Saikia 1995). There is an exception to purple heron due to little information about its tarsus measurement. ...
