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Rare Species of Shield-Head Vipers in the Caucasus
Nature Conservation Research. Заповедная наука 2016. 1 (3): 11–25 RARE SPECIES OF SHIELD-HEAD VIPERS IN THE CAUCASUS Boris S. Tuniyev Sochi National Park, Russia e-mail: [email protected] Received: 03.10.2016 An overview is presented on shield-head vipers of the genus Pelias distributed in the post-Soviet countries of the Caucasian Ecoregion. The assessment presents the current conservation status and recommendations to vipers’ ter- ritorial protection. Key words: Caucasian Ecoregion, shield-head vipers, current status, protection. Introduction The Caucasian Ecoregion (the territory south- to-landscape descriptions (Tunieyv B.S. et al., 2009; ward from the Kuma-Manych depression to north- Tuniyev S.B. et al., 2012, 2014). The stationary works eastern Turkey and northwestern Iran) is the centre (mostly on the territory of the Caucasian State Nature of taxonomic diversity of shield-head vipers within Biosphere reserve and Sochi National Park) conducted the genus Pelias Merrem, 1820, of which 13–18 a study of the microclimatic features of vipers’ habitats species are found here. Without exception, all spe- including temperature and humidity modes of air and cies have a status of the different categories of rare- the upper soil horizon. The results were compared with ness, they are included on the IUCN Red list, or in thermobiological characteristics of the animals (Tuni- the current and upcoming publication of National yev B.S. & Unanian, 1986; Tuniyev B.S. & Volčik, and Regional Red Data Books. Besides the shield- 1995). In a number of cases difficult to determine the head vipers the Caucasian Ecoregion inhabit three taxonomic affiliation, in addition to the classical meth- representatives of mountain vipers of the genus ods of animal morphology and statistics, biochemistry Montivipera Nilson, Tuniyev, Andren, Orlov, Joger and molecular-genetic analysis methods have been ap- & Herrman, 1999 (M. -
The Adder (Vipera Berus) in Southern Altay Mountains
The adder (Vipera berus) in Southern Altay Mountains: population characteristics, distribution, morphology and phylogenetic position Shaopeng Cui1,2, Xiao Luo1,2, Daiqiang Chen1,2, Jizhou Sun3, Hongjun Chu4,5, Chunwang Li1,2 and Zhigang Jiang1,2 1 Key Laboratory of Animal Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China 2 University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China 3 Kanas National Nature Reserve, Buerjin, Urumqi, China 4 College of Resources and Environment Sciences, Xinjiang University, Urumqi, China 5 Altay Management Station, Mt. Kalamaili Ungulate Nature Reserve, Altay, China ABSTRACT As the most widely distributed snake in Eurasia, the adder (Vipera berus) has been extensively investigated in Europe but poorly understood in Asia. The Southern Altay Mountains represent the adder's southern distribution limit in Central Asia, whereas its population status has never been assessed. We conducted, for the first time, field surveys for the adder at two areas of Southern Altay Mountains using a combination of line transects and random searches. We also described the morphological characteristics of the collected specimens and conducted analyses of external morphology and molecular phylogeny. The results showed that the adder distributed in both survey sites and we recorded a total of 34 sightings. In Kanas river valley, the estimated encounter rate over a total of 137 km transects was 0.15 ± 0.05 sightings/km. The occurrence of melanism was only 17%. The small size was typical for the adders in Southern Altay Mountains in contrast to other geographic populations of the nominate subspecies. A phylogenetic tree obtained by Bayesian Inference based on DNA sequences of the mitochondrial Submitted 21 April 2016 cytochrome b (1,023 bp) grouped them within the Northern clade of the species but Accepted 18 July 2016 failed to separate them from the subspecies V. -
The Feather Lice of the Levantine Shearwater Puffinus Yelkouan And
68 Zonfrillo & Palma Atlantic Seabirds 2(2) The feather lice of the Levantine Shearwater Puffinus yelkouan and its taxonomic status Veerluizen van de Yelkouanpijlstormvogel Puffinus yelkouan en de taxonomische status daarvan 2 Bernard Zonfrillo1 &Ricardo+L. Palma ‘Applied Ornithology Unit. Zoology Department. Glasgow University, Glasgow G12 8QQ. Scotland. U.K.; 'Museum ofNew Zealand, P.O. Box 467, Wellington, New Zealand. lice Four species of feather (Insecta: Phthiraptera) were found on one fresh dead and five museum skins of Levantine Shearwaters Puffinus yelkouan from various localities in the Mediterranean. Two of them, Halipeurus diversus (Kellogg, 1896) and Saemundssonia (Puffinoecus) kosswigi Timmermaan, 1962 (uniqueto P. yelkouan), had been recorded previously from this host; the other two, Austromenopon paululum (Kellogg & Chapman, 1899) and A. echinatum Edwards, 1960, represent new host-louse records. One bird collected fresh in Cyprus yielded the most lice, including 20 specimens of A. echinatum. The taxonomic position of the Levantine Shearwater is discussed it briefly and the opinion that be regardedas a distinct species is supported. Zonfnllo B. & Palma R.L. 2000 The feather lice of the Levantine Shearwater Puffinus yelkouan and its taxonomic status. Atlantic Seabirds 2(2): 68-72. INTRODUCTION Two species of feather lice (Insecta; Phthiraptera) have been recorded from Puffinus shearwaters in the Mediterranean.The Levantine Shearwater Puffinus is host diversus yelkouan to Halipeurus (Kellogg, 1896) and a unique louse, Saemundssonia (Puffinoecus) kosswigi Timmermann, 1962 (on the status of Puffinoecus, see Palma 1994). Palma et ai (1997) recorded only a single species of feather louse H. diversus) on 19 systematically deloused specimens of Balearic Shearwater Puffinus mauretanicus Lowe, 1821 from the Balearic archipelago. -
Varnham, K. J. & Meier G. G. 2007. Rdum Tal-Madonna Rat Control
Rdum tal-Madonna rat control project December 2006 - March 2007 Final Report to BirdLife Malta & RSPB Karen Varnham Independent Invasive Species Consultant & Guntram G. Meier InGrip-Consulting & Animal Control, Senior Consultant March 2007 Contents 1. Introduction 3 2. Methods 4 3. Results 8 4. Future of the rat control project 12 5. Recommendations 12 6. References 13 7. Acknowledgements 13 Appendices 1. Text of warning signs displayed at the site 14 2. Distribution of rat activity 15 3. Warden’s manual 19 Suggested citation: Varnham, K. J. & Meier G. G. (2007) Rdum tal-Madonna rat control project, December 2006 – March 2007, Final report. Unpublished report to BirdLife Malta & RSPB, 28pp. Contact details: [email protected] Front cover illustration: rock pool on the South Cliffs of the Rdum tal-Madonna SPA 2 1. Introduction Rat control at the Rdum tal-Madonna Special Protected Area (SPA) was carried out as part of BirdLife Malta’s ongoing project to protect the Yelkouan shearwater, Puffinus yelkouan (EU Life Project LIFE06/ NAT/ MT/ 000097, SPA Site and Sea Actions saving Puffinus yelkouan in Malta). These cliff-nesting birds are known to be at great risk from rat predation, with annual losses of eggs and chicks between 40 and 100%. Around one-third of Malta’s 1500 breeding pairs of P. yelkouan nest at this site, making it an obvious focal point for conservation efforts (references in EU Project Proposal). The relatively small size of the SPA (75.3ha), and that it is surrounded by the ocean on three sides, make it a good site for rat control. -
Rediscovery of the Steppe Viper in Georgia
Proceedings of the Zoological Institute RAS Vol. 322, No. 2, 2018, рр. 87–107 УДК 598.115 REDISCOVERY OF THE STEPPE VIPER IN GEORGIA B.S. Tuniyev1*, G.N. Iremashvili2, T.V. Petrova1, 3 and M.V. Kravchenko1 1Federal State Institution Sochi National Park, Moskovskaya Str. 21, 354000 Sochi, Russia; e-mails: [email protected], [email protected] 2I. Javaxishvili Str. 8, 0102 Tbilisi, Georgia; e-mail: [email protected] 3Zoological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Universitetskaya Emb. 1, 199034 Saint Petersburg, Russia; e-mail: [email protected] ABSTRACT The steppe viper was rediscovered in Georgia after 75 years. A comprehensive analysis of external morphology, altitude gradient in habitats, typology of biotopes and genetic analysis revealed a high degree of similarity of popula- tions of the steppe vipers from Azerbaijan, known as Pelias shemakhensis Tuniyev et al., 2013, and from East Georgia. These data were used for comparative study and description of a new subspecies – P. shemakhensis kakhetiensis ssp. nov. The subspecies name is after historical region of Georgia – Kakheti, where a large part of the range is located. In the pattern of recent distribution of P. shemakhensis, there are common habitat and climatic characteristics in Georgian and Azerbaijan parts of this its range. Its position among the species complex and relations with other taxa of this complex are discussed. Based on the results of the cluster and discriminant analyses, P. eriwanensis and P. lo- tievi should be given a subspecies rank, whereas P. shemakhensis clearly deserves a species rank. Results of the genetic analysis are opposite: P. -
For the Hungarian Meadow Viper (Vipera Ursinii Rakosiensis)
Population and Habitat Viability Assessment (PHVA) For the Hungarian Meadow Viper (Vipera ursinii rakosiensis) 5 – 8 November, 2001 The Budapest Zoo Budapest, Hungary Workshop Report A Collaborative Workshop: The Budapest Zoo Conservation Breeding Specialist Group (SSC / IUCN) Sponsored by: The Budapest Zoo Tiergarten Schönbrunn, Vienna A contribution of the IUCN/SSC Conservation Breeding Specialist Group, in collaboration with The Budapest Zoo. This workshop was made possible through the generous financial support of The Budapest Zoo and Tiergarten Schönbrunn, Vienna. Copyright © 2002 by CBSG. Cover photograph courtesy of Zoltan Korsós, Hungarian Natural History Museum, Budapest. Title Page woodcut from Josephus Laurenti: Specimen medicum exhibens synopsin reptilium, 1768. Kovács, T., Korsós, Z., Rehák, I., Corbett, K., and P.S. Miller (eds.). 2002. Population and Habitat Viability Assessment for the Hungarian Meadow Viper (Vipera ursinii rakosiensis). Workshop Report. Apple Valley, MN: IUCN/SSC Conservation Breeding Specialist Group. Additional copies of this publication can be ordered through the IUCN/SSC Conservation Breeding Specialist Group, 12101 Johnny Cake Ridge Road, Apple Valley, MN 55124 USA. Send checks for US$35 (for printing and shipping costs) payable to CBSG; checks must be drawn on a US bank. Visa or MasterCard are also accepted. Population and Habitat Viability Assessment (PHVA) For the Hungarian Meadow Viper (Vipera ursinii rakosiensis) 5 – 8 November, 2001 The Budapest Zoo Budapest, Hungary CONTENTS Section I: Executive Summary 3 Section II: Life History and Population Viability Modeling 13 Section III: Habitat Management 37 Section IV: Captive Population Management 45 Section V: List of Workshop Participants 53 Section VI: Appendices Appendix A: Participant Responses to Day 1 Introductory Questions 57 Appendix I: Workshop Presentation Summaries Z. -
Shearwaters Yelkouan the Life Arcipelagu Garnija Project
WHAT CAN YOU DO TO HELP? THE LIFE ARCIPELAGU KEEPING YELKOUAN Avoid using bright lights and loud GARNIJA PROJECT SHEARWATERS music close to nesting sites SAFE AT SEA For the location of the nesting sites, The LIFE Arċipelagu Garnija project aims to see the map on this leaflet secure the Maltese Islands for the Yelkouan Shearwater. Through monitoring, conservation and awareness-raising actions the project is Dispose of litter and plastic responsibly working to reduce the threats faced by this to prevent marine pollution seabird species both on land and at sea. Take care when fishing close to seabird colonies, especially in the evening FOUND A SEABIRD CAUGHT The project is being carried out by BirdLife Malta over a five-year period (2015-2020) and is IN FISHING GEAR? part-funded by the EU (60%). If you accidentally catch a Yelkouan Shearwater while fishing, carefully Keep in touch: remove the hook and safely release www.birdlifemalta.org/arcipelagugarnija +356 2134 7646 | [email protected] CAUTION! facebook/arcipelagugarnija If the hook has been swallowed, do not Werde van Veerle @MaltaSeabirds pull it out. Instead call BirdLife Malta Design LIFE14 NAT/MT/991 immediately for assistance. Telephone number: +356 2134 7646 If you find a Yelkouan Shearwater Project partners: entangled in nets but otherwise • Tanti Aron & Paris Victor uninjured, gently free the bird and Photos release safely at sea Further information on seabird bycatch can be found The project is co-funded by: here: www.birdlife.org/bycatch Paulo Lago & Jessica Irwin • Irwin Jessica & Lago Paulo Text Gozo THREATS AT SEA Comino THE YELKOUAN The Yelkouan Shearwater faces an uncertain future. -
Strasbourg, 22 May 2002
Strasbourg, 21 October 2015 T-PVS/Inf (2015) 18 [Inf18e_2015.docx] CONVENTION ON THE CONSERVATION OF EUROPEAN WILDLIFE AND NATURAL HABITATS Standing Committee 35th meeting Strasbourg, 1-4 December 2015 GROUP OF EXPERTS ON THE CONSERVATION OF AMPHIBIANS AND REPTILES 1-2 July 2015 Bern, Switzerland - NATIONAL REPORTS - Compilation prepared by the Directorate of Democratic Governance / The reports are being circulated in the form and the languages in which they were received by the Secretariat. This document will not be distributed at the meeting. Please bring this copy. Ce document ne sera plus distribué en réunion. Prière de vous munir de cet exemplaire. T-PVS/Inf (2015) 18 - 2 – CONTENTS / SOMMAIRE __________ 1. Armenia / Arménie 2. Austria / Autriche 3. Belgium / Belgique 4. Croatia / Croatie 5. Estonia / Estonie 6. France / France 7. Italy /Italie 8. Latvia / Lettonie 9. Liechtenstein / Liechtenstein 10. Malta / Malte 11. Monaco / Monaco 12. The Netherlands / Pays-Bas 13. Poland / Pologne 14. Slovak Republic /République slovaque 15. “the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia” / L’« ex-République yougoslave de Macédoine » 16. Ukraine - 3 - T-PVS/Inf (2015) 18 ARMENIA / ARMENIE NATIONAL REPORT OF REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA ON NATIONAL ACTIVITIES AND INITIATIVES ON THE CONSERVATION OF AMPHIBIANS AND REPTILES GENERAL INFORMATION ON THE COUNTRY AND ITS BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY Armenia is a small landlocked mountainous country located in the Southern Caucasus. Forty four percent of the territory of Armenia is a high mountainous area not suitable for inhabitation. The degree of land use is strongly unproportional. The zones under intensive development make 18.2% of the territory of Armenia with concentration of 87.7% of total population. -
Standard Data Form
NATURA 2000 - STANDARD DATA FORM For Special Protection Areas (SPA), Proposed Sites for Community Importance (pSCI), Sites of Community Importance (SCI) and for Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) SITE MT0000027 SITENAME Rdumijiet ta' Għawdex: Ta' Ċenċ TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. SITE IDENTIFICATION 2. SITE LOCATION 3. ECOLOGICAL INFORMATION 4. SITE DESCRIPTION 5. SITE PROTECTION STATUS 6. SITE MANAGEMENT 7. MAP OF THE SITE 1. SITE IDENTIFICATION Back to top 1.1 Type 1.2 Site code A MT0000027 1.3 Site name Rdumijiet ta' Għawdex: Ta' Ċenċ 1.4 First Compilation date 1.5 Update date 2006-08 2018-05 1.6 Respondent: Name/Organisation: Environment and Resources Authority Address: Hexagon House, Spencer Hill, Marsa MRS 1441 Email: [email protected] 1.7 Site indication and designation / classification dates Date site classified as SPA: 2006-08 Government Notice No. 859 of 2008, in accordance National legal reference of SPA designation with the Flora, Fauna and Natural Habitats Protection Regulations, 2016 (S.L. 549.44) 2. SITE LOCATION Back to top 2.1 Site-centre location [decimal degrees]: Longitude Latitude 14.2616 36.0191 2.2 Area [ha]: 2.3 Marine area [%] 152.06 0.0 2.4 Sitelength [km]: 0.0 2.5 Administrative region code and name NUTS level 2 code Region Name MT00 Malta 2.6 Biogeographical Region(s) (100.0 Mediterranean %) 3. ECOLOGICAL INFORMATION Back to top 3.1 Habitat types present on the site and assessment for them 3.2 Species referred to in Article 4 of Directive 2009/147/EC and listed in Annex II of Directive 92/43/EEC and site evaluation for them Species Population in the site Site assessment Scientific G Code S NP T Size Unit Cat. -
REHABILITATION COUNCIL Volume 38, Number 1, 2018 REHABILITATION
JOURNA L OF ILDLIFE INTERNATIONAL WILDLIFE W REHABILITATION COUNCIL Volume 38, Number 1, 2018 REHABILITATION IN THIS ISSUE: Does food provided to captive scavenging wildlife contain veterinary agent residues? First hand-rearing and translocation of the vulnerable yelkouan shearwater in Malta. Revisiting the meaning of “science” in the new political climate. ABOUT THE JOURNAL THE Journal of Wildlife Rehabilitation is designed to provide useful information to wildlife rehabilitators and others involved in the care and treatment of native wild species with the ultimate purpose of returning them to the wild. The journal is published by the International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council (IWRC), which invites your comments on this issue. Through this publication, rehabilitation courses offered online and on-site in numerous locations, and its outreach to those in the profession, the IWRC works to disseminate information and improve the quality of the care provided to wildlife. On the cover: Bearded vulture (Gypaetus barbatus). PHOTO © ZWEER DE BRUIN, FLICKR. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0. Left: Black bear cub (Ursus americanus). (See In the News, page 6.) PHOTO ©MIGUELB, FLICKR. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0. International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council PO Box 3197 Eugene, OR 97403 USA Phone: 866.871.1869 Fax: 408.876.6153 Toll free: 866. 871.1869 Email: [email protected] [email protected] www.theiwrc.org JOURNA L OF ILDLIFE Providing science-based education W and resources on wildlife rehabilitation to promote wildlife conservation REHABILITATION and welfare worldwide. -
Another Population of Vìpera Ursinii Macrops MÉHELY, 1911 in Montenegro (Central Balkans) (Squamata: Serpentes: Viperidae)
©Österreichische Gesellschaft für Herpetologie e.V., Wien, Austria, download unter www.biologiezentrum.at HERPETOZOA 14 (3/4): 137-141 137 Wien, 28. Februar 2002 Another population of Vìpera ursinii macrops MÉHELY, 1911 in Montenegro (Central Balkans) (Squamata: Serpentes: Viperidae) Eine weitere Population von Vipera ursinii macrops MÉHELY, 1911 in Montenegro (Zentral-Balkan) (Squamata: Serpentes: Viperidae) JELKA CRNOBRNJA-ISAILOVIC KURZFASSUNG Die Gebirgs-Unterart der Wiesenotter, Vìpera ursinii macrops MÉHELY, 1911, wurde kürzlich auf dem Berg Bjelasica in Montenegro nachgewiesen. Dieser Fund schließt die Beobachtungslücke zwischen den Populationen im Durmitor- und Prokletije-Gebirge. ABSTRACT The montane subspecies of the Meadow Viper Vìpera ursinii macrops MÉHELY, 1911 has been recently found on Bjelasica Mountain (Montenegro). This record bridges the observational gap between the populations living in the Durmitor and Prokletije Mountains. KEY WORDS Squamata: Serpentes: Viperidae: Vìpera ursinii macrops, new record, Bjelasica Mountain, Montenegro INTRODUCTION The Meadow Viper Vipera ursinii paring to neighbouring Bosnia and Herze- (BONAPARTE, 1833), is discontinuously dis- govina (BOLKAY & CURCIC 1920; BOLKAY tributed in Europe, with a number of sub- 1924). Concerning Montenegro, DZUKIC species described (NILSON & ANDREN 1997). (1991) confirmed the snake's presence in its Alpine and subalpine dry meadows and north-western and south-eastern parts (table mountain pastures of the Balkan Peninsula 1, fig. 1). In Serbia, V. ursinii macrops was (Bosnia, Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia, found in the south-western, as well as south- northern Albania, western Macedonia) ernmost mountainous areas (SCHWARZ 1936; above 1000 m altitude provide the habitats KARAMAN 1938; PASULJEVIC 1968; table 1, of the subspecies V. u. macrops MÉHELY, fig. 1). -
Steffen Oppel A, , André F
Biological Conservation 144 (2011) 2255–2263 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Biological Conservation journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/biocon Is the Yelkouan shearwater Puffinus yelkouan threatened by low adult survival probabilities? ⇑ Steffen Oppel a, , André F. Raine b, John J. Borg c, Helen Raine b, Elsa Bonnaud d, Karen Bourgeois e, André R. Breton f a Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, The Lodge, Sandy, Bedfordshire SG19 2DL, UK b BirdLife Malta, 57/28 Triq Abate Rigord, Ta’ Xbiex, XBX 1120, Malta c National Museum of Natural History, Heritage Malta, Vilhena Palace, St. Publius Square, Mdina, MDN 1010, Malta d Island Ecology and Evolution Research Group (IPNA-CSIC), Avda. Astrofísico Francisco Sánchez, n° 3 38206 La Laguna, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain e A dos d’Îles, Association for the Study and Conservation of Insular Biodiversity, 12 rue de l’Europe, 29840 Porspoder and Institut Méditerranéen d’écologie et de Paléoécologie (UMR CNRS 6116), Université Paul-Cézanne, Europôle méditerranéen de l’Arbois, avenue Philibert, BP 80, 13545 Aix-en-Provence cedex 04, France f Colorado Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523-1484, USA article info abstract Article history: Many seabird species are experiencing population declines, with key factors being high adult mortality Received 14 December 2010 caused by fishery by-catch and predation by introduced predators on nesting islands. In the Mediterra- Received in revised form 21 May 2011 nean, both of these pressures are intensive and widespread. We studied the adult survival of an endemic Accepted 31 May 2011 Mediterranean seabird, the Yelkouan shearwater (Puffinus yelkouan), between 1969–1994 and 2007– Available online 24 June 2011 2010 in Malta and between 2004–2010 in France using mark–recapture methods.