Habitat Use ofHipparchia semele(Lepidoptera) in Its Artificial Stronghold: Necessity of the Resource-Based Habitat View in Restoration of Disturbed Sites

Continent-wide parallel urban evolution of increased heat tolerance in a common moth

Urbanization and its urban-heat-island effect (UHI) have expanding footprints worldwide. The UHI means that urban habitats experience a higher mean and more frequent extreme high temperatures than rural habitats, impacting the ontogeny and resilience of urban biodiversity. However, many organisms occupy different microhabitats during different life stages and thus may experience the UHI differently across their development. While evolutionary changes in heat tolerance in line with the UHI have been demonstrated, it is unknown whether such evolutionary responses can vary across development. Here, using common-garden-reared Chiasmia clathrata moths from urban and rural populations from three European countries, we tested for urban evolution of heat shock tolerance in two life stages: larvae and adults. Our results indicate widespread urban evolution of increased heat tolerance in the adult stage only, suggesting that the UHI may be a stronger selective agent in adults. We also found that the difference in heat tolerance between urban and rural populations was similar to the difference between Mid- and North-European regions, suggesting similarity between adaptation to the UHI and natural, latitudinal temperature variation. Our observations incentivize further research to quantify the impact of these UHI adaptations on fitness during urbanization and climate change, and to check whether life-stage-specific adaptations in heat tolerance are typical of other ectothermic species that manage to survive in urbanized settings.

The genome sequence of the Rock Grayling, Hipparchia semele (Linnaeus, 1758)

We present a genome assembly from an individual female Hipparchia semele (the Rock Grayling; Arthropoda; Insecta; Lepidoptera; Nymphalidae). The genome sequence is 403.4 megabases in span. Most of the assembly is scaffolded into 30 chromosomal pseudomolecules, including the W and Z sex chromosomes. The mitochondrial genome has also been assembled and is 15.22 kilobases in length. Gene annotation of this assembly on Ensembl identified 17,540 protein coding genes.

Perishing rich, expanding poor: Demography and population genetic patterns in two congeneric butterflies

In human-altered landscapes, specialist butterflies typically form spatially restricted populations, genetically differentiated due to dispersal restrictions. Generalists, in contrast, display minimum differentiation but high genetic diversity. While local-level actions suffice to conserve specialists and landscape-level actions are necessary for generalists, minimum information exists regarding conservation of species with intermediate features. We targeted two congeneric butterflies, the recently re-expanding Argynnis adippe and the strongly declining A. niobe, co-occurring in the pastoral landscape of the Carpathian Mountains, Czech Republic. We integrated species distribution models, mark-recapture and microsatellite analysis to compare their habitat requirements, adult demography, dispersal and genetic patterns, and expanded the genetic analysis across the Carpathian Arc and beyond to delimit spatial conservation units. In two mountain valleys, both species formed interconnected populations numbering thousands of individuals. Mobility patterns suggested the populations' interconnection across the Czech Carpathians. Genetic diversity was extremely poor in the nonthreatened A. adippe and moderate in the declining A. niobe. No population differentiation was detected within the Czech Carpathians (~1500 km² ). Low genetic diversity and no differentiation was preserved in A. adippe across East Central Europe, whereas in A. niobe, populations from Serbia were differentiated from the Carpathian Arc + Alps. The high adult mobility linked to low differentiation probably reflects the distribution of larval resources, historically widespread but sparse and currently declining for A. niobe (grazing-disturbed grounds), while currently increasing for A. adippe (abandonment scrub, disturbed woodlands). Units as large as entire mountain systems define population boundaries, and hence conservation management units, for both species.

Is the Age of Novel Ecosystem the Factor Driving Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Colonization in Poa compressa and Calamagrostis epigejos?

Some sites transformed or created by humans (novel ecosystem) are different both in vegetation and ecosystems establishment and development. The unknown habitat conditions and new species composition is resulting in new abiotic and biotic systems. To improve the understanding of the process governing the relationships between the environmental factors, plant species assemblages and their arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) inoculation were studied in chronosequence on post-coal mine heaps. We hypothesized that AMF root colonization will be dependent on the age of heap and not on the dominant plant species (vegetation type). The high frequency of mycorrhizal colonization of roots (F%) of Poa compressa- and Calamagrostis epigejos-dominated vegetation type was stated. All mycorrhizal parameters were lower in C. epigejos roots when compared to P. compressa (ranging from 60% to 90%). The highest relative mycorrhizal intensity, M%, and mean abundance of arbuscula, A%, in the roots of both examined plants were recorded in vegetation patches dominated by Daucus carota. Positive and statistically significant correlations were found between F%, M%, and A%, and lack of correlation between the heaps’ age and mycorrhizal parameters, and statistically significant correlations between A% and potassium and magnesium content were revealed. The interspecific relations in the novel ecosystems become more complex along with the increase of diversity.

Restoring a butterfly hot spot by large ungulates refaunation: the case of the Milovice military training range, Czech Republic

Background

Refaunation/rewilding by large ungulates represents a cost-efficient approach to managing natural biotopes and may be particularly useful for areas whose biodiversity depends on disturbance dynamics and is imperilled by successional changes. To study impacts of refaunation on invertebrates, we focused on butterflies inhabiting the former military training range Milovice, Czech Republic, refaunated since 2015 by a combination of Exmoor pony (“wild” horse), Tauros cattle (“aurochs”), and European wisent.

Methods

We analysed butterfly presence-absence patterns immediately after the military use termination (early 1990s), prior to the refaunation (2009), and after it (2016–19); and current abundance data gained by monitoring butterflies at refaunated and neglected plots. We used correspondence analysis for the presence-absence comparison and canonical correspondence analysis for the current monitoring, and related results of both ordination methods to the life history and climatic traits, and conservation-related attributes, of recorded butterflies.

Results

Following the termination of military use, several poorly mobile species inclining towards oceanic climates were lost. Newly gained are mobile species preferring warmer continental conditions. The refaunated plots hosted higher butterfly species richness and abundances. Larger-bodied butterflies developing on coarse grasses and shrubs inclined towards neglected plots, whereas refaunated plots supported smaller species developing on small forbs.

Conclusion

The changes in species composition following the cessation of military use were attributable to successional change, coupled with changes in species pool operating at larger scales. By blocking succession, large ungulates support butterflies depending on competitively poor plants. Restoring large ungulates populations represents a great hope for conserving specialised insects, provided that settings of the projects, and locally adapted ungulate densities, do not deplete resources for species with often contrasting requirements.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12862-021-01804-x.

Vegetation diversity on coal mine spoil heaps – how important is the texture of the soil substrate?

The relationship between the size of the particle fractions of the soil substrate and the diversity of the spontaneously developing vegetation was investigated on coal mine spoil heaps in Upper Silesia (Southern Poland). The analyses were based on 2567 research plots of developed spontaneous vegetation and their associated soil substrate samples collected from 112 coal mine spoil heaps. For each research plot the prevailing particle size fraction was determined (stones, gravel, sand, silt), the species composition and abundance was recorded and the species richness (S), Shannon-Wiener diversity index (H′), Simpson (C) and Evenness (E) indices were used to determine species diversity. From a total of 119 research plots (in all particle size fraction categories), the values of 15 physicochemical properties (pH, electrical conductivity, water holding capacity, moisture, carbon content, total N, available P, Mg and exchange cations Ca, Mg, K, Na, fine particles (%), gravel (%), stone (%)) were obtained to asses their impact on the floristic composition of vegetation patches using Canonical Correspondence Analysis (CCA). Additionally, functional traits of the dominant species of each vegetation patch (life forms, life strategies and socio-ecological groups), were selected to analyse their relation to substrate texture. It was shown that the highest species richness and the highest values for Shannon-Wiener diversity index, as well as Simpson and Evenness indices, were obtained in plots formed on stones. Moreover, the greatest variation in the participation of species representing different habitats, life forms, and life strategies was found on gravelly substrates. Contrary to our expectations, the vegetation diversity (in terms of both species and their functional traits) was not highest in habitats with a high composition of fine size particles.