the fish assemblage and diversity in relation to water quality of three coastal rivers sita, swarna and varahi of udupi district, karnataka, india was studied. 71 species representing 7 orders, 20 families and 41 genera were recorded from 21 sites along the three rivers. species composition varied longitudinally in relation to the environmental factors of the habitat. the downstream change in t...

Changes to land use and disturbance frequency threaten disturbance-dependent Lepidoptera within sandplain habitats of the northeastern United States. The frosted elfin (Callophrys irus) is a rare and declining monophagous butterfly that is found in xeric open habitats maintained by disturbance. We surveyed potential habitat for adult frosted elfins at four sites containing frosted elfin populat...

Intraspecific variation in plants plays a major role in the composition and diversity of the associated insect community. Resistance traits of plants are likely candidates mediating community composition. However, it is debated whether total concentrations of chemical compounds or specific compounds determine herbivore resistance, and how chemical diversity among plant genotypes in turn affects...

Monitoring changes in coral cover and composition through space and time can provide insights to reef health and assist the focus of management and conservation efforts. We used a meta-analytical approach to assess coral cover data across latitudes 10-35°S along the west Australian coast, including 25 years of data from the Ningaloo region. Current estimates of coral cover ranged between 3 and ...

________________________________________________________________________________ Abstract Grazing levels and rotational schemes need to be tailored to each individual farm or pasture, and more studies are needed on the resilience of rangelands and on separating the effects of grazing and climate. The direct short-term impact of three rates of stocking (4, 8 and 16 Small Stock Units-SSU/ha) was ...

Mechanical mastication is increasingly prescribed for wildfire mitigation, yet little is known about the ecological impacts of this fuels treatment. Mastication shreds trees into woodchips as an alternative to tree thinning and burning the resulting slash, which can create soil disturbances that favor exotic plants. Previous research on mastication has not simultaneously considered both the res...

Accurate estimation of responses of understory plants to disturbance is essential for understanding the efficacy of management activities. However, the ability to assess changes in the abundance of plants may be hampered by inappropriate sampling methodologies. Conventional methods for sampling understory plants may be precise for common species but may fail to adequately characterize abundance...

Straightforward mapping of detailed heathland habitat patches and their quality using remote sensing is hampered by (1) the intrinsic property of a high heterogeneity in habitat species composition (i.e. high intra-variability), and (2) the occurrence of the same species in multiple habitat types (i.e. low inter-variability). Mapping accuracy of detailed habitat objects can however be improved ...

Remotely sensed multi-spectral and -spatial data facilitates the study of mosquito-borne disease vectors and their response to land use and cover composition in the urban environment. In this study we assess the feasibility of integrating remotely sensed multispectral reflectance data and LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging)-derived height information to improve land use and land cover classific...

Seven citrus orchards on reduced to no pesticide spray programs were sampled for Thysanoptera in central and south central Florida. Inner and outer canopy leaves, fruits, twigs, trunk scrapings, vines and ground cover plants were sampled monthly between January 1995 and January 1996. Thirty-six species of thrips were identified from 2,979 specimens collected from within citrus tree canopies and...