The Northern pine processionary moth, Thaumetopoea pinivora (Treitschke, 1834) shows a highly scattered distribution with fragmented populations across Europe. A previous study exploring the postglacial history of T. pinivora defined it as a cold-tolerant relict species and concluded that a progressive reduction of suitable habitats after the postglacial expansion from refugia in the southern Iberian peninsula best explained the distribution and genetic structure of populations of this species. However, recent records, both by us and others, challenge this view. Surprisingly, some of the newly found populations from southern Spain use black pine, Pinus nigra J.F. Arnold as a host plant despite the fact that the typical host of the species, Scots pine, Pinus sylvestris L. occurs in the area. We provide genetic data for one of these recently found southern populations where the larvae feed on P. nigra, and compare this with previously published data on individuals collected on P. sylvestris. This data reveals that populations from different host trees are no more genetically differentiated than populations sharing the same host plant. The findings of a wider diet breadth open the way to widen the search for the still unidentified glacial refugium of T. pinivora, and as such may contribute to a better understanding about how the species has spread across Europe., José A. Hódar, Anna Cassel-Lundhagen, Andrea Battisti, Stig Larsson., and Obsahuje bibliografii
We compared the habitat use by giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) in selectively logged forests and timber plantations in the Changqing National Reserve, Shaanxi, China. The results indicated that giant pandas preferred selectively logged forests to abandoned timber plantations. Habitat use of the giant panda was strongly influenced by the over storey canopy cover. Dense over storey canopy in abandoned timber plantations appeared to impede bamboo growth and then resulted in low food availability for the giant pandas. Thus, the abandoned timber plantations were not suitable habitats for giant panda.
So called small basins were originally specified with the aim to obtain more accurate data about the hydrological and hydrometeorological regimes of an extensive region. Later on the attention was also paid to the monitoring of chemical components and geochemical processes. Gradually it was discovered that small basins can also supply valuable information about the ecological stability and social and economic processes in relation to the ethnic features and local history of the studied region. Obviously, a decision about the size of small basins should be adapted to the nature of solved problems and with respect to the size of the region under consideration. A proposal how to define a small basin is presented as one of the conclusions. and Malá povodí byla původně zakládána s cílem získat zpřesněná data o hydrologickém a hydrometeorologickém režimu v rámci širšího regionu. Později se pozornost soustředila i na sledování chemismu a geochemických procesů. Postupně se ukázalo, že povodí poskytují další významné informace o ekologické stabilitě, a o procesech sociálních a ekonomických ve vztahu k etnickému složení populace; také o místní historii. Rozhodování o velikosti povodí je postupně podřizováno povaze řešených úloh a lze je posuzovat především ve vztahu k velikosti povodí, pro něž se informace získávají. Proto je návrh možné definice malého povodí uveden až v samém závěru tohoto příspěvku. V následujícím příspěvku jsou diskutovány některé typické úlohy, při jejichž řešení se významně uplatnily různé informace získané z malých povodí.