Environment, phylogeny, and photosynthetic pathway as determinants of leaf traits in savanna and forest graminoid species in central Brazil.

Leaf traits are closely linked to plant responses to the environment and can provide important information on adaptation and evolution. These traits may also result from common ancestry, so phylogenetic relationships also play an important role in adaptive evolution. We evaluated the effects of the closed forest environment (gallery forest) and the open savanna environment (cerrado) on the selection of leaf traits of graminoid species. The two plant communities differ in light, nutrients, and water availability, which are important drivers in the selection and differentiation of these traits. We also investigated the functional structure and the role of phylogeny in the functional organization of species, considering leaf traits. Patterns of leaf trait variation differed between forest and savanna species suggesting habitat specialization. Wider and longer leaves, with higher values of specific leaf area, chlorophyll, and nitrogen, seem to be an advantage for graminoid species growing in forest environments, while thicker leaves, with higher values of leaf dry-matter content and carbon, benefit species growing in savanna environments. We found few phylogenetic signals related to leaf traits in each environment. Therefore, the functional similarity that the gallery forest and cerrado graminoid species share within their group is independent of their phylogenetic proximity. Environmental filters affect the functional structure of communities differently, generating communities with trait values that are more distant than expected by chance in cerrado (functional dispersion), and closer than expected by chance in the gallery forest (functional convergence).

Arachnid Fauna (Araneae and Opiliones) from the Castro Verde Special Protection Area, southern Portugal.

Background: With the increasing recognition of the significance of arachnid conservation, it is crucial to allocate greater efforts towards implementing targeted monitoring programmes. Despite recent studies, our understanding of arachnid populations in Portugal remains limited. This study serves as the initial inventory of arachnids (Araneae and Opiliones) within the Castro Verde Special Protection Area (SPA) located in Beja, southern Portugal. The surveys were conducted during the spring of 2012 across 80 open grasslands that were grazed by cattle and sheep. New information: A total of 71 species of Araneae and two species of Opiliones have been identified. Notably, three spider species, namely Argennasubnigra, Civizelotesibericus and Walckenaeriacucullata, are documented for the first time in Portugal. Additionally, two harvestmen species (Dasylobusibericus and Homalenotusbuchneri) and 14 spider species (Cheiracanthiumpennatum, Haplodrassusrhodanicus, Marinarozelotesminutus, Tapinocybaalgirica, Agraecinalineata, Tibellusmacellus, Talaverapetrensis, Tetragnathaintermedia, Dipoenaumbratilis, Enoplognathadiversa, Neottiurauncinata, Ruborridionmusivum, Theridionpinastri and Xysticusgrallator) are recorded for the first time in the Beja District. The occurrence of each documented species within the SPA, including family and species details, is presented, underscoring the significance of the Castro Verde SPA for arachnid conservation. These findings contribute novel insights into the biodiversity of the Castro Verde SPA, emphasising the necessity of incorporating this area into arachnid diversity conservation efforts.

Establishment and Maintenance of Power Lines are Important for Insect Diversity in Central Europe.

Open habitats are disappearing from European forests. This is mainly due to various management-related practices, such as afforestation and the maintenance of closed canopy plantation forests. Open forests are also declining as a result of the abandonment of traditional forest use practices and natural succession. The effects of the establishment and maintenance of power lines as highly artificial but open habitats in forests on native insect biodiversity remain relatively poorly investigated. We investigated differences in biodiversity between forests and open habitats under power lines in Poland. Namely, we focused on nine insect taxa using the most suitable methods for data collection, i.e., observation and trapping. The studied habitats were forests used for timber production dominated by Scots pine, which is the most commercially important tree species in Poland. In total, we recorded the presence of more than 400 insect species. We found that butterflies as well as ground beetles were significantly more biodiverse under the power lines compared with the forest interior. Furthermore, jewel beetles, long-horned beetles, weevils and bark beetles, rove beetles and darkling beetles appeared to be more species rich under the power lines, click beetles were indifferent, and only lady-bird beetles appeared to be more abundant in forests. Additionally, ground beetles with a strict affinity for forests were surprisingly not negatively affected by power lines. We highlighted the importance of forest-free areas under power lines for the improvement of native forest biodiversity. Artificial and relatively intensive management activities related to the distribution of electric energy play important roles in creating novel or alternative habitats for many insects. Our paper contributes much to the knowledge about the importance of artificial open areas for the diversity of insects.

Ecological Specialization and Rarity of Arable Weeds: Insights from a Comprehensive Survey in France.

: The definition of "arable weeds" remains contentious. Although much attention has been devoted to specialized, segetal weeds, many taxa found in arable fields also commonly occur in other habitats. The extent to which adjacent habitats are favorable to the weed flora and act as potential sources of colonizers in arable fields remains unclear. In addition, weeds form assemblages with large spatiotemporal variability, so that many taxa in weed flora are rarely observed in plot-based surveys. We thus addressed the following questions: How often do weeds occur in other habitats than arable fields? How does including field edges extend the taxonomic and ecological diversity of weeds? How does the weed flora vary across surveys at different spatial and temporal scales? We built a comprehensive dataset of weed taxa in France by compiling weed flora, lists of specialized segetal weeds, and plot-based surveys in agricultural fields, with different spatial and temporal coverages. We informed life forms, biogeographical origins and conservation status of these weeds. We also defined a broader dataset of plants occupying open habitats in France and assessed habitat specialization of weeds and of other plant species absent from arable fields. Our results show that many arable weeds are frequently recorded in both arable fields and non-cultivated open habitats and are, on average, more generalist than species absent from arable fields. Surveys encompassing field edges included species also occurring in mesic grasslands and nitrophilous fringes, suggesting spill-over from surrounding habitats. A total of 71.5% of the French weed flora was not captured in plot-based surveys at regional and national scales, and many rare and declining taxa were of Mediterranean origin. This result underlines the importance of implementing conservation measures for specialist plant species that are particularly reliant on arable fields as a habitat, while also pointing out biotic homogenization of agricultural landscapes as a factor in the declining plant diversity of farmed landscapes. Our dataset provides a reference species pool for France, with associated ecological and biogeographical information.

The Orthoptera of Castro Verde Special Protection Area (Southern Portugal): new data and conservation value.

With the increasing awareness of the need for Orthoptera conservation, greater efforts must be gathered to implement specific monitoring schemes. Despite recent surveys, little is known about Portuguese Orthoptera populations. This study was performed in 2014 and 2015 mainly in Castro Verde Special Protection Area (SPA), southern Portugal, and is the first Orthoptera inventory conducted in the area. A total of 35 Orthoptera species was recorded, with two new species reported for Portugal. We provide species' habitat occurrences within the protected area and use information on the conservation status and the Iberian distribution of each documented species to discuss the importance of Castro Verde SPA for Orthoptera conservation. The data presented here sheds new light on Castro Verde SPA biodiversity and emphasizes the inclusion of this area in the conservation of Orthoptera diversity, particularly in the protection of threatened endemic species.