Necrophagous insect species succession on decomposed pig carcasses in North Dakota, USA.

Necrophagous insect species are widely used during death investigations primarily for the estimation of the minimum postmortem interval, since these species use decomposing organic matter for feeding, oviposition, and larval development. The development stages and successional colonization patterns provide important information for shorter or longer postmortem time intervals. Diptera species are the predominant taxa recovered from decomposed bodies. The temperature variance/seasonality is the main factor affecting the time presence and activity of these species. Other factors, such as geographical location, antemortem conditions, and cause of death, can influence the presence and succession of necrophagous entomofauna. Consequently, successional studies and information regarding species colonization patterns are needed for each geographical region to be used as reference data during death investigations. This study addressed the need to collect forensic entomological data for the State of North Dakota, within the first necrophagous entomofauna diversity report for the month of July 2022, using pig carcasses as human analogs. During the experimental period, 18 species of Diptera and Coleoptera were identified, with 10 new state records, while Calliphoridae was found to be the predominant family. The resulted data on necrophagous insect species diversity and dynamics from exposed pig carcasses will strengthen the current knowledge on forensic entomology in North Dakota and will serve as reference data to be used during death investigations in the Great Plains region.

Population and Conservation Status of Buxbaumia viridis (DC.) Moug. & Nestl. in Romania.

The field survey made in the last 20 years revealed that large areas of Romania's territory are still unexplored concerning moss distribution. The long-term research in natural and mature spruce forest habitats of this country shows that many sites are well protected, a status that is also confirmed by reports of Buxbaumia viridis. However, many other sites where this species was identified still lack legal protection. We also generated a potential distribution of the species based on an ensemble model, useful in guiding extensive field surveys and also management and conservation measures. In a country where the volume of wood cut by illegal logging is larger than the legal one, according to official data, it is very important that all habitats for B. viridis be included in protected areas. Our paper brings important data to aid in this goal.

Ecological corridors for the amphibians and reptiles in the Natura 2000 sites of Romania.

Landscape heterogeneity and fragmentation are key challenges for biodiversity conservation. As Earth's landscape is increasingly dominated by anthropogenic land use, it is clear that broad-scale systems of nature reserves connected by corridors are needed to enable the dispersal of flora and fauna. The European Union currently supports a continent-wide network of protected areas, the Natura 2000 program, but this program lacks the necessary connectivity component. To examine whether a comprehensive network could be built in order to protect amphibians and reptiles, two taxonomic groups sensitive to environmental changes due to their physiological constrains and low dispersal capacity, we used species' distribution maps, the sites of community interest (SCIs) in Romania, and landscape resistance rasters. Except Vipera ursinii rakosiensis, all amphibians and reptiles had corridors mapped that, when assembled, provided linkages for up to 27 species. Natura 2000 species were not good candidates for umbrella species as these linkages covered only 17% of the corridors for all species. Important Areas for Connectivity were identified in the Carpathian Mountains and along the Danube River, further confirming these regions as hot spots for biodiversity in Europe, where successful linkages are most likely. In the end, while such corridors may not be created just for amphibians and reptiles, they can easily be incorporated into more complex linkages with corridors for more charismatic species, therefore enhancing the corridors' value in terms of quality and structure.

A revision of the distribution of sea kraits (Reptilia, Laticauda) with an updated occurrence dataset for ecological and conservation research.

The genus Laticauda (Reptilia: Elapidae), commonly known as sea kraits, comprises eight species of marine amphibious snakes distributed along the shores of the Western Pacific Ocean and the Eastern Indian Ocean. We review the information available on the geographic range of sea kraits and analyze their distribution patterns. Generally, we found that south and south-west of Japan, Philippines Archipelago, parts of Indonesia, and Vanuatu have the highest diversity of sea krait species. Further, we compiled the information available on sea kraits' occurrences from a variety of sources, including museum records, field surveys, and the scientific literature. The final database comprises 694 occurrence records, with Laticauda colubrina having the highest number of records and Laticauda schistorhyncha the lowest. The occurrence records were georeferenced and compiled as a database for each sea krait species. This database can be freely used for future studies.

Dynamics of Necrophagous Insect and Tissue Bacteria for Postmortem Interval Estimation During the Warm Season in Romania.

The estimation of postmortem interval (PMI) is affected by several factors including the cause of death, the place where the body lay after death, and the weather conditions during decomposition. Given the climatic differences among biogeographic locations, the understanding of necrophagous insect species biology and ecology is required when estimating PMI. The current experimental model was developed in Romania during the warm season in an outdoor location. The aim of the study was to identify the necrophagous insect species diversity and dynamics, and to detect the bacterial species present during decomposition in order to determine if their presence or incidence timing could be useful to estimate PMI. The decomposition process of domestic swine carcasses was monitored throughout a 14-wk period (10 July-10 October 2013), along with a daily record of meteorological parameters. The chronological succession of necrophagous entomofauna comprised nine Diptera species, with the dominant presence of Chrysomya albiceps (Wiedemann 1819) (Calliphoridae), while only two Coleoptera species were identified, Dermestes undulatus (L. 1758) and Creophilus maxillosus Brahm 1970. The bacterial diversity and dynamics from the mouth and rectum tissues, and third-instar dipteran larvae were identified using denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis analysis and sequencing of bacterial 16S rRNA gene fragments. Throughout the decomposition process, two main bacterial chronological groups were differentiated, represented by Firmicutes and Gammaproteobacteria. Twenty-six taxa from the rectal cavity and 22 from the mouth cavity were identified, with the dominant phylum in both these cavities corresponding to Firmicutes. The present data strengthen the postmortem entomological and microbial information for the warm season in this temperate-continental area, as well as the role of microbes in carcass decomposition.

Refining climate change projections for organisms with low dispersal abilities: a case study of the Caspian whip snake.

Climate warming is one of the most important threats to biodiversity. Ectothermic organisms such as amphibians and reptiles are especially vulnerable as climatic conditions affect them directly. Ecological niche models (ENMs) are increasingly popular in ecological studies, but several drawbacks exist, including the limited ability to account for the dispersal potential of the species. In this study, we use ENMs to explore the impact of global climate change on the Caspian whip snake (Dolichophis caspius) as model for organisms with low dispersal abilities and to quantify dispersal to novel areas using GIS techniques. Models generated using Maxent 3.3.3 k and GARP for current distribution were projected on future climatic scenarios. A cost-distance analysis was run in ArcGIS 10 using geomorphological features, ecological conditions, and human footprint as "costs" to dispersal of the species to obtain a Maximum Dispersal Range (MDR) estimate. All models developed were statistically significant (P<0.05) and recovered the currently known distribution of D. caspius. Models projected on future climatic conditions using Maxent predicted a doubling of suitable climatic area, while GARP predicted a more conservative expansion. Both models agreed on an expansion of suitable area northwards, with minor decreases at the southern distribution limit. The MDR area calculated using the Maxent model represented a third of the total area of the projected model. The MDR based on GARP models recovered only about 20% of the total area of the projected model. Thus, incorporating measures of species' dispersal abilities greatly reduced estimated area of potential future distributions.