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Kevin D Hunt - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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detecting riparian habitat preferences in savanna chimpanzees and associated fauna with strontium isotope ratios implications for reconstructing habitat use by the chimpanzee human last common ancestor
American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 2019Co-Authors: Marian I Hamilton, Sherry V Nelson, Diego P Fernandez, Kevin D HuntAbstract:Objectives Riparian or gallery Forests are critical Habitats for numerous plants and animals today. Paleoanthropologically, reliance on such Habitats informs behavioral and ecological reconstructions; for example, gallery Forest Habitats likely played a critical role in the transition from ape to hominin in the early Pliocene and may represent a preferred habitat for the last common ancestor of chimpanzees and humans. Direct indicators for gallery Forest Habitats preference are lacking. The objective of this article is to assess whether strontium isotope ratios are a reliable indicator of habitat preference for fauna living in and around gallery Forests. Materials and methods We report bioavailable strontium isotope ratios from the Mugiri River, its tributaries, and its gallery Forest (Toro-Semliki Wildlife Reserve, southwestern Uganda), and compare them to surrounding savanna-grassland values. We compare these environmental values to strontium isotopes ratios in faunal tooth enamel to determine if habitat preferences are accurately reflected. Results Gallery Forest and savanna-grassland vegetations have significantly different strontium isotope ratio profiles. We trace these isotopic differences to the influence of the Mugiri tributaries, which originate on Paleoproterozoic gneiss deposits on top of the surrounding escarpments. These isotopic differences in vegetation are mirrored in the tissues of fauna with habitat preferences for either the gallery Forest or the surrounding grasslands. Discussion This research demonstrates the potential of strontium isotope ratios to identify habitat preferences in modern or fossil fauna under proper geologic variability. It provides a methodological model for future studies seeking to reconstruct habitat preferences in early hominins.
Bart Lievens - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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habitat specific variation in gut microbial communities and pathogen prevalence in bumblebee queens bombus terrestris
PLOS ONE, 2018Co-Authors: Lien Bosmans, Maria I Pozo, Christel Verreth, Sam Crauwels, L Wilberts, Islam S Sobhy, Felix L Wackers, Hans Jacquemyn, Bart LievensAbstract:Gut microbial communities are critical for the health of many insect species. However, little is known about how gut microbial communities respond to anthropogenic changes and how such changes affect host-pathogen interactions. In this study, we used deep sequencing to investigate and compare the composition of gut microbial communities within the midgut and ileum (both bacteria and fungi) in Bombus terrestris queens collected from natural (Forest) and urbanized Habitats. Additionally, we investigated whether the variation in gut microbial communities under each habitat affected the prevalence of two important bumblebee pathogens that have recently been associated with Bombus declines (Crithidia bombi and Nosema bombi). Microbial community composition differed strongly among habitat types, both for fungi and bacteria. Fungi were almost exclusively associated with bumblebee queens from the Forest Habitats, and were not commonly detected in bumblebee queens from the urban sites. Further, gut bacterial communities of urban B. terrestris specimens were strongly dominated by bee-specific core bacteria like Snodgrassella (Betaproteobacteria) and Gilliamella (Gammaproteobacteria), whereas specimens from the Forest sites contained a huge fraction of environmental bacteria. Pathogen infection was very low in urban populations and infection by Nosema was only observed in specimens collected from Forest Habitats. No significant relationship was found between pathogen prevalence and microbial gut diversity. However, there was a significant and negative relationship between prevalence of Nosema and relative abundance of the core resident Snodgrassella, supporting its role in pathogen defense. Overall, our results indicate that land-use change may lead to different microbial gut communities in bumblebees, which may have implications for bumblebee health, survival and overall fitness.
Islam S Sobhy - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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habitat specific variation in gut microbial communities and pathogen prevalence in bumblebee queens bombus terrestris
PLOS ONE, 2018Co-Authors: Lien Bosmans, Maria I Pozo, Christel Verreth, Sam Crauwels, L Wilberts, Islam S Sobhy, Felix L Wackers, Hans Jacquemyn, Bart LievensAbstract:Gut microbial communities are critical for the health of many insect species. However, little is known about how gut microbial communities respond to anthropogenic changes and how such changes affect host-pathogen interactions. In this study, we used deep sequencing to investigate and compare the composition of gut microbial communities within the midgut and ileum (both bacteria and fungi) in Bombus terrestris queens collected from natural (Forest) and urbanized Habitats. Additionally, we investigated whether the variation in gut microbial communities under each habitat affected the prevalence of two important bumblebee pathogens that have recently been associated with Bombus declines (Crithidia bombi and Nosema bombi). Microbial community composition differed strongly among habitat types, both for fungi and bacteria. Fungi were almost exclusively associated with bumblebee queens from the Forest Habitats, and were not commonly detected in bumblebee queens from the urban sites. Further, gut bacterial communities of urban B. terrestris specimens were strongly dominated by bee-specific core bacteria like Snodgrassella (Betaproteobacteria) and Gilliamella (Gammaproteobacteria), whereas specimens from the Forest sites contained a huge fraction of environmental bacteria. Pathogen infection was very low in urban populations and infection by Nosema was only observed in specimens collected from Forest Habitats. No significant relationship was found between pathogen prevalence and microbial gut diversity. However, there was a significant and negative relationship between prevalence of Nosema and relative abundance of the core resident Snodgrassella, supporting its role in pathogen defense. Overall, our results indicate that land-use change may lead to different microbial gut communities in bumblebees, which may have implications for bumblebee health, survival and overall fitness.
Eric Coissac - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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foraging plasticity allows a large herbivore to persist in a sheltering Forest habitat dna metabarcoding diet analysis of the european bison
Forest Ecology and Management, 2019Co-Authors: Rafal Kowalczyk, Jan M. Wójcik, Pierre Taberlet, Alice Valentini, Christian Miquel, Tomasz S Kaminski, Joseph M Craine, Eric CoissacAbstract:Abstract Large herbivores that survived the Pleistocene/Holocene transition are hypothesized to have been forced to take refuge, as a result of environmental changes and human pressure, into Forest Habitats. Today, there is an open question of the degree to which extant large herbivores are well adapted to the Forests that allowed for the herbivores’ persistence. We studied the diet of European bison (Bison bonasus), the largest terrestrial mammal in Europe, to gain insight into the foraging behaviour of a large herbivore, that appears to be primarily adapted to grazing but has been restored to Forested Habitats. The study population resided in the Bialowieza Primeval Forests, Poland. DNA-based analysis of faecal samples revealed strong seasonal and spatial patterns in bison foraging, consistent between sexes. Bison fed on at least 105 different plant taxa. Woody species constituted 59.4% of DNA sequences, and forbs 33.6%. The two most abundant taxa were raspberry (Rubus idaeus) and European hornbeam (Carpinus betulus), which together comprised 31.0% of the dietary sequences and occurred in over 80% of faecal samples. Seasonally, the diversity of plants eaten by bison increased with increasing food availability. During high plant biomass in summer, bison consumed up to 40 different plant taxa. There was little overlap in the composition of the diet from month to month, reflecting the strong seasonality of vegetation abundance and/or its dietary quality. The results indicate high plasticity in bison foraging strategies and response to seasonal changes in biomass and the species composition of plants. Bison are browsers which continuously adjusts their diet with seasonal availability of easily digestible non-grass vegetation. We propose that dietary plasticity and micro-selection for open Habitats (gaps and river valleys) within a Forested landscape allowed bison to persist in sheltering Forest Habitats during the Holocene and accommodate to Forest environments during species restoration.
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influence of management practices on large herbivore diet case of european bison in bialowieza primeval Forest poland
Forest Ecology and Management, 2011Co-Authors: Rafal Kowalczyk, Pierre Taberlet, Eric Coissac, Alice Valentini, Christian Miquel, Tomasz S Kaminski, Jan M. WójcikAbstract:Large herbivores are keystone species in many Forest areas, as they shape the structure, species diversity and functioning of those ecosystems. The European bison Bison bonasus has been successfully restored after extinction in the wild at the beginning of 20th century. As free-ranging populations of the species were re-established mainly in Forest Habitats, knowledge of the impact by the largest European terrestrial mammal on tree stands is essential. This helps to make management and conservation decisions for viable population maintenance of the species in the wild. Using a novel DNA-based method of herbivore diet analysis, the trnL approach (DNA-barcoding), we investigated the influence of different foraging conditions (access to supplementary fodder) on bison diet in winter and its potential impact on woody species. Faecal samples were collected from different bison treatment groups: (1) intensively fed; (2) less intensively fed; (3) non-fed utilising Forest Habitats; and (4) non-fed utilising agricultural areas surrounding the Forest. These were analysed to estimate the proportion of different plant groups consumed by bison. Bison groups differed significantly in their diet. The amount of woody materials (trees and shrubs) consumed by bison increased with decreasing access to supplementary fodder, ranging from 16% in intensively fed bison to 65% in non-fed bison utilising Forest Habitats. Inversely, the amount of herbs, grasses and sedges decreased from 82% in intensively fed bison to 32% in non fed bison utilising Forest Habitats. The species of trees mainly browsed by bison, Carpinus/Corylus, Betula sp. and Salix sp., were of lower economic importance for Forest management. The impact of bison on tree species needs further investigation, however, we can predict that browsing by bison, mainly on Carpinus/Corylus, makes an insignificant impact on Forestry due to the high and increasing representation of this species in the Forest understory. Supplementary feeding has several negative effects on bison ecology and health, therefore reduced and distributed supplementary feeding should be applied as the management practice in the Bialowieza Forest.
Jan M. Wójcik - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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foraging plasticity allows a large herbivore to persist in a sheltering Forest habitat dna metabarcoding diet analysis of the european bison
Forest Ecology and Management, 2019Co-Authors: Rafal Kowalczyk, Jan M. Wójcik, Pierre Taberlet, Alice Valentini, Christian Miquel, Tomasz S Kaminski, Joseph M Craine, Eric CoissacAbstract:Abstract Large herbivores that survived the Pleistocene/Holocene transition are hypothesized to have been forced to take refuge, as a result of environmental changes and human pressure, into Forest Habitats. Today, there is an open question of the degree to which extant large herbivores are well adapted to the Forests that allowed for the herbivores’ persistence. We studied the diet of European bison (Bison bonasus), the largest terrestrial mammal in Europe, to gain insight into the foraging behaviour of a large herbivore, that appears to be primarily adapted to grazing but has been restored to Forested Habitats. The study population resided in the Bialowieza Primeval Forests, Poland. DNA-based analysis of faecal samples revealed strong seasonal and spatial patterns in bison foraging, consistent between sexes. Bison fed on at least 105 different plant taxa. Woody species constituted 59.4% of DNA sequences, and forbs 33.6%. The two most abundant taxa were raspberry (Rubus idaeus) and European hornbeam (Carpinus betulus), which together comprised 31.0% of the dietary sequences and occurred in over 80% of faecal samples. Seasonally, the diversity of plants eaten by bison increased with increasing food availability. During high plant biomass in summer, bison consumed up to 40 different plant taxa. There was little overlap in the composition of the diet from month to month, reflecting the strong seasonality of vegetation abundance and/or its dietary quality. The results indicate high plasticity in bison foraging strategies and response to seasonal changes in biomass and the species composition of plants. Bison are browsers which continuously adjusts their diet with seasonal availability of easily digestible non-grass vegetation. We propose that dietary plasticity and micro-selection for open Habitats (gaps and river valleys) within a Forested landscape allowed bison to persist in sheltering Forest Habitats during the Holocene and accommodate to Forest environments during species restoration.
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influence of management practices on large herbivore diet case of european bison in bialowieza primeval Forest poland
Forest Ecology and Management, 2011Co-Authors: Rafal Kowalczyk, Pierre Taberlet, Eric Coissac, Alice Valentini, Christian Miquel, Tomasz S Kaminski, Jan M. WójcikAbstract:Large herbivores are keystone species in many Forest areas, as they shape the structure, species diversity and functioning of those ecosystems. The European bison Bison bonasus has been successfully restored after extinction in the wild at the beginning of 20th century. As free-ranging populations of the species were re-established mainly in Forest Habitats, knowledge of the impact by the largest European terrestrial mammal on tree stands is essential. This helps to make management and conservation decisions for viable population maintenance of the species in the wild. Using a novel DNA-based method of herbivore diet analysis, the trnL approach (DNA-barcoding), we investigated the influence of different foraging conditions (access to supplementary fodder) on bison diet in winter and its potential impact on woody species. Faecal samples were collected from different bison treatment groups: (1) intensively fed; (2) less intensively fed; (3) non-fed utilising Forest Habitats; and (4) non-fed utilising agricultural areas surrounding the Forest. These were analysed to estimate the proportion of different plant groups consumed by bison. Bison groups differed significantly in their diet. The amount of woody materials (trees and shrubs) consumed by bison increased with decreasing access to supplementary fodder, ranging from 16% in intensively fed bison to 65% in non-fed bison utilising Forest Habitats. Inversely, the amount of herbs, grasses and sedges decreased from 82% in intensively fed bison to 32% in non fed bison utilising Forest Habitats. The species of trees mainly browsed by bison, Carpinus/Corylus, Betula sp. and Salix sp., were of lower economic importance for Forest management. The impact of bison on tree species needs further investigation, however, we can predict that browsing by bison, mainly on Carpinus/Corylus, makes an insignificant impact on Forestry due to the high and increasing representation of this species in the Forest understory. Supplementary feeding has several negative effects on bison ecology and health, therefore reduced and distributed supplementary feeding should be applied as the management practice in the Bialowieza Forest.