In sub-Saharan Africa, and particularly within Ghana’s savanna ecosystem, scientific studies on the distribution patterns and habitat use of raptors, including vultures, are scarce. Despite global research on vulture abundance and habitat preferences, data from West Africa remain limited. This study examines the abundance of four vulture species, focusing on their seasonal activity, age distribution, and preference for three specific habitats, i.e. woodlands, riparian forests, and grasslands, in the southern part of Mole National Park (MNP), Ghana. We conducted a survey using 39 line transects during both dry and wet seasons to make an inventory of these species. Employing a generalised linear model, we assessed the influence of seasons, age, and habitat types on vulture abundance. Our survey recorded a total of 466 vultures, with Hooded Vulture Necrosyrtes monachus and White-backed Vulture Gyps africanus being the most frequently observed. Vulture numbers were notably higher in riparian and woodland areas than in grasslands, and adults were more prevalent than juveniles across all observed species. The study highlights the need for continuous monitoring and the protection of critical riparian habitats to aid in the conservation of these threatened species within the MNP.

Citizen science is becoming very useful in surveying and monitoring biodiversity. Within the European Union LIFE medCLIFFS project, a network of volunteers has been established for the detection and long-term monitoring of invasive plant species that threaten the endemic flora of Mediterranean cliffs in north-eastern Spain. Through iNaturalist, volunteers record various data along a series of 1 km transects. Based on the ca. 700 observations collected by volunteers in 2023 (the first year of the project), a simple and visually-attractive methodology for assessing the recorded populations has been developed. This method classifies populations into one of three population dynamics categories: (1) propagative behavior (i.e., populations with seedlings or young plants but lacking senescent or dead individuals); (2) senescent behavior (i.e., showing senescent/dead plants but lacking seedlings/juveniles); and (3) a mixed behavior (i.e., containing both). This methodology, whose outputs are easily interpretable as heatmaps, allows the collection of large datasets on invasive plants by citizen scientists, with two main purposes: (1) knowing which species are most concerning based on simple, straightforward observations of their population dynamics; and (2) identifying which regions of the study area are more problematic and, thus, where management efforts should be directed.

The entomopathogenic nematode (EPN), Steinernema yirgalemense, is an effective biological control agent against a variety of important insect pests in South Africa. To develop a South African EPN product feasibly in South Africa, EPNs need to be mass-produced. This study aimed to record the population dynamics of S. yirgalemense with in vitro liquid production in shake flasks, with a protein source of powdered egg yolk. The Erlenmeyer flask results indicated variation between flasks, albeit still achieving high yields. The reasons for attaining such variability in the recovery, yield, and growth stages are unclear, hence requiring further studies seeking to increase consistency. The results obtained indicate that, when IJ recovery is low, yields are also low due to relatively few reproductive adults being present in solution, which, in turn, produces more offspring, which later converts to the desired infective juvenile used for product formulation development. For commercial viability, a consistent production system is required that produces predictable yields. This study showed comparable high yields achieved with the flasks and in an early-stage bioreactor setup, being a positive development for S. yirgalemense mass production. Prior to the bioreactor scale-up process, protocol of mass production, the population and growth dynamics of the nematodes in the flask environment requires understanding. This is a positive step, leading to the future commercialisation of a local EPN product.

The intensity of changes in the population dynamics of the Early Neolithic (ca. 6250–5300 cal BC) communities in the Central Balkans was addressed by estimating the growth rate values. The Bayesian approach (Crema and Shoda 2021) of estimating intrinsic growth rates by fitting different models of population growth was applied to radiocarbon dates from the Early Neolithic sites in Serbia. We explored two possible episodes of population growth based on the results of the population dynamics reconstruction using the summed calibrated radiocarbon probability distributions (SPD) method. The results have shown that, within the first episode of growth, the intrinsic growth rate mean values are higher than the estimated continental average (between 1% and 2%). The results indicate a sudden and fast rise in population size, possibly due to the influx of the new population settling in the region at the beginning of the Neolithic. Lower values for the second episode could indicate more gradual population growth due to the mechanisms associated with the Neolithic Demographic Transition and the rise in fertility.

Aulacophora lewisii Baly (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) is an important pest of Luffa acutangula (L.) Roxb. (Cucurbitaceae) in India. Larvae of A. lewisii feed on the roots, while adults consume leaves of L. acutangula. In the current study, effects of three L. acutangula cultivars (Abhiskar, Debsundari, and Jaipur Long) on the life table parameters by age-stage, two-sex approach, and key digestive enzymatic activities (amylolytic, proteolytic, and lipolytic) of the larvae and adults of A. lewisii were determined. Further, nutrients (total carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, amino acids, and nitrogen content) and antinutrients (total phenols, flavonols, and tannins) present in the roots and leaves of three cultivars were estimated. The development time (egg to adult emergence) was fastest and slowest on Jaipur Long (31.80 days) and Abhiskar (40.91 days), respectively. Fecundity was highest and lowest on Jaipur Long (279.91 eggs) and Abhiskar (137.18 eggs), respectively. The intrinsic rate of increase (r) was lowest on Abhiskar (0.0511 day−1) and highest on Jaipur Long (0.0872 day−1). The net reproductive rate (R0) was lowest on Abhiskar (23.32 offspring female−1). The mean generation time (T) was shortest on Jaipur Long (52.59 days) and longest on Abhiskar (61.58 days). The amylolytic, proteolytic, and lipolytic activities of larvae and adults of A. lewisii were highest and lowest on Jaipur Long and Abhiskar, respectively. The lower level of nutrients and higher level of antinutrients influenced higher larval development time and lower fecundity of A. lewisii on Abhiskar than other cultivars. Our results suggest that Abhiskar cultivar could be promoted for cultivation.

Cyathostoma lari is a parasite of the nasal and orbital sinuses of gulls and other hosts in Europe and Canada. Here, we provide an overview of previously published data on the prevalence and infection intensity of C. lari in gulls. Furthermore, based on our data, we analyze the spatiotemporal trends in the prevalence and intensity of infection by C. lari in Chroicocephalus ridibundus in Czechia (central Europe; data from 1964 to 2014) and compare them with those obtained from five species of gulls in Karelia (Northwest Russia; data from 2012–2020). Based on our preliminary observations, we hypothesized that C. lari is subject to a decline in certain regions, but this decline is not necessarily applicable throughout its distribution range. We found that the C. lari population crashed in specific parts of its distribution range. The reasons are unknown, but the observed population changes correspond with the diet switch of their core host in Czechia, C. ridibundus. We previously observed a diet switch in Czech C. ridibundus from earthworms (intermediate hosts of C. lari) to other types of food. This diet switch affected both young and adult birds. Nevertheless, it may not necessarily affect populations in other regions, where they depend less on earthworms collected from agrocenoses affected by agrochemicals and trampling. Correspondingly, we found that these changes were limited only to regions where the gulls feed (or fed) on arable fields. In Karelia, where arable fields are scarce, gulls likely continue to feed on earthworms and still display high infection rates by C. lari. Therefore, C. lari, a parasite of the nasal and orbital sinuses of gulls, nearly disappeared from their central European nesting grounds but is still present in better-preserved parts of its distribution range.

Exact solutions are constructed for a class of nonlinear hyperbolic reaction-diffusion equations in two-space dimensions. Reduction of variables and subsequent solutions follow from a special nonclassical symmetry that uncovers a conditionally integrable system, equivalent to the linear Helmholtz equation. The hyperbolicity is commonly associated with a speed limit due to a delay, $\tau $, between gradients and fluxes. With lethal boundary conditions on a circular domain wherein a species population exhibits logistic growth of Fisher–KPP type with equal time lag, the critical domain size for avoidance of extinction does not depend on $\tau $. A diminishing exact solution within a circular domain is also constructed, when the reaction represents a weak Allee effect of Huxley type. For a combustion reaction of Arrhenius type, the only known exact solution that is finite but unbounded is extended to allow for a positive $\tau $.

We present the results of two population surveys conducted 10 years apart (December 2010–February 2011 and December 2020–January 2021) of the Critically Endangered white-headed langur Trachypithecus leucocephalus in the Chongzuo White-Headed Langur National Nature Reserve, Guangxi Province, China. In the first survey, we recorded 818 individuals in 105 groups and 16 solitary adult males. In the second survey, we recorded 1,183 individuals in 128 groups and one solitary adult male. As a result of government policies, poaching for food and traditional medicine is no longer a primary threat to these langurs. However, severe forest loss and fragmentation caused by human activities could limit any future increase of this langur population.

The present study was designed to investigate the age distribution and growth properties of Symphodus cinereus in the south-eastern Black Sea. Data on the growth and age of S. cinereus were obtained by investigating sagittal otoliths. A total of 384 specimens (220 female, 164 male) were collected between June 2015 and May 2016 in the south-eastern Black Sea. Total lengths of male specimens ranged from 10–16.4 cm, whereas they ranged from 8.2–15.8 cm for females. The von Bertalanffy growth curve was used to describe length at age and considerable differences were seen between females (t0 = −2.85, k = 0.296 and L∞ = 16.46 cm) and males (t0 = −2.84, k = 0.272 and L∞ = 17.23 cm). The maximum age was 5 years. The relationship for males was W = 0.009L3.2596 (r2 = 0.9174, P < 0.005) and that for females was W = 0.0011L3.1821 (r2 = 0.9012, P < 0.005). While the highest condition (K) value was calculated in spring, the lowest value was determined in winter for both sexes. The obtained data also revealed monthly changes in the gonadosomatic index and maturity stages of male and female specimens, and the annual spawning season of this population began in March and ended in June. Fecundity ranged between 1375 and 5493 eggs/individual (mean: 2868.11 ± 36–59.69 eggs), and the relationship between total length and egg production was highly statistically significant (P < 0.0001). This study provides the first data on the growth and reproduction of S. cinereus along the south-eastern Black Sea coast of Turkey.

The Final Neolithic and the Bronze Age (3000–800 BC) are periods of great transformations in the communities inhabiting the area of modern-day Belgium, as testified by archaeological evidence showing an increasing complexity in social structure, technological transformations, and large-scale contacts. By combining 599 available radiocarbon dates with 88 new 14C dates from 23 from funerary sites, this paper uses kernel density estimates to model the temporality in the use of inhumation vs. cremation burials, cremation deposits in barrows vs. flat graves, and cremation grave types. Additionally, by including 78 dates from settlements, changes in population dynamics were reconstructed. The results suggest a phase of demographic contraction around ca. 2200–1800 BC highlighted by a lack of dates from both settlements and funerary contexts, followed by an increase in the Middle Bronze Age, with the coexistence of cremation deposits in barrows and, in a lower number, in flat graves. At the end of the 14th–13th century BC, an episode of cultural change with the almost generalized use of flat graves over barrows is observed. Regional differentiations in the funerary practices and the simultaneous use of different grave types characterize the Late Bronze Age.

In this paper we introduce new birth-and-death processes with partial catastrophe and study some of their properties. In particular, we obtain some estimates for the mean catastrophe time, and the first and second moments of the distribution of the process at a fixed time t. This is completed by some asymptotic results.

Globally, vultures are one of the most threatened of all groups of birds. European vulture populations are benefited by several anthropogenic food sources such as landfills. Current European Union directives aim to decrease the amount of organic matter dumped in landfills, reducing this important food source for some vulture species. In this context, we assessed the effect of the reduction of organic waste available and accessible for scavengers in a landfill on the visitation probability and abundance of a local Eurasian Griffon Vulture Gyps fulvus population in Central Catalonia (NE Iberian Peninsula), using a long-term dataset of captured-marked-recaptured individuals in the period 2012–2018. Our results indicated a decrease in the visitation probability due to a significant reduction of organic matter dumped into the landfill after a waste treatment centre was built (0.82 to 0.76) that may cause a permanent emigration of vultures in response to food reduction. However, the estimated annual abundance of vultures tended to grow over time due to the positive trend that regional vulture populations have experienced in recent decades. These results suggest that population processes occurring at regional scales are more relevant to vulture populations than local waste management measures. A reduction in locally available food can make a site less attractive, but species with high dispersal capacity such as vultures may overcome this issue by moving to other suitable sites. Although Griffon Vultures obtain most of the food from domestic and wild ungulates, a regional application of European directives could threaten an important alternative feeding source, especially in food shortage seasons where landfills could be supporting the energetic requirements of the species. Conservation strategies should be planned to counteract the possible negative effects of new European directives on scavenger populations.

The adoption of dicamba-resistant cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) cultivars allows using dicamba to reduce weed populations across growing seasons. However, the overuse of this tool risks selecting new herbicide-resistant biotypes. The objectives of this research were to determine the population trajectories of several weed species and track the frequency of glyphosate-resistant (GR) Palmer amaranth (Amaranthus palmeri S. Watson) over 8 yr in dicamba-resistant cotton. An experiment was established in North Carolina in 2011, and during the first 4 yr, different herbicide programs were applied. These programs included postemergence applications of glyphosate, alone or with dicamba, with or without residual herbicides. During the last 4 yr, all programs received glyphosate plus dicamba. Biennial rotations of postemergence applications of glyphosate only and glyphosate plus dicamba postemergence with and without preemergence herbicides were also included. Sequential applications of glyphosate plus dicamba were applied to the entire test area for the final 4 yr of the study. No herbicide program was entirely successful in controlling the weed community. Weed population trajectories were different according to species and herbicide program, creating all possible outcomes; some increased, others decreased, and others remained stable. Density of resistant A. palmeri increased during the first 4 yr with glyphosate-only programs (up to 11,739 plants m−2) and decreased a 96% during the final 4 yr, when glyphosate plus dicamba was implemented. This species had a strong influence on population levels of other weed species in the community. Goosegrass [Eleusine indica (L.) Gaertn.] was not affected by A. palmeri population levels and even increased its density in some herbicide programs, indicating that not only herbicide resistance but also reproductive rates and competitive dynamics are critical for determining weed population trajectories under intensive herbicide-based control programs. Frequency of glyphosate resistance reached a maximum of 62% after 4 yr, and those levels were maintained until the end of the experiment.

The coffee berry borer, Hypothenemus hampei Ferrari (Coleoptera: Curculionidae, Scolytinae), is the most devastating insect pest of coffee worldwide. It feeds on the beans inside the berries leading to significant crop losses and unmarketable products. This study aims to model the impact of temperature on H. hampei fecundity and population growth parameters, as a contribution to the prediction of infestation risk. The fecundity was assessed on fresh coffee beans at six constant temperatures in the range 15–30°C, with RH 80 ± 5% and photoperiod 12:12 L:D. Nonlinear models were fitted to the relationship between fecundity and temperature using the ILCYM software. The best fecundity model was combined to development models obtained for immature stages in a previous study in order to simulate life table parameters at different constant temperatures. Females of H. hampei successfully oviposited in the temperature range 15–30°C, with the highest fecundity observed at 23°C (106.1 offspring per female). Polynomial function 8 model was the best fitted to the relationship between fecundity and temperature. With this model, the highest fecundity was estimated at 23°C, with 110 eggs per female. The simulated net reproductive rate (R0) was maximal at 24°C, with 50.08 daughters per female, while the intrinsic rate of increase (rm) was the highest at 26°C, with a value of 0.069. Our results will help understand H. hampei population dynamics and develop an ecologically sound management strategy based on a better assessment of infestation risk.

Habitat fragmentation threatens biodiversity worldwide, particularly affecting large-bodied species that require vast territories and move across long distances, including most large felids. The jaguar Panthera onca has lost more than half of its habitat throughout its range and its subpopulations are becoming isolated, making them susceptible to local extinction. Knowledge about the status of its subpopulations in highly fragmented environments is lacking but urgently needed. Using camera traps during 2019–2020, we estimated number of individuals, age classes and sex ratio, occupancy, relative abundance and density of jaguars in Nayarit, western Mexico. We also determined the relative abundance of potential prey and estimated the land-cover change rate during 1999–2019, using GIS. We found that a resident subpopulation of five adult females, two adult males and one cub, at a high density (5.3 individuals/100 km2), is supported by at least 14 wild prey species. Natural habitat in the area is rapidly decreasing because of expanding agriculture and shrimp farming: agricultural areas increased from 39 to 50% and mangroves decreased from 35 to 26% of the study area over 20 years. The high jaguar population density and the diversity and relative abundance of remaining wild prey are remarkable, considering that natural habitat in the area is highly fragmented, shrinking rapidly and embedded in a matrix of human-dominated land-cover types. Effective conservation actions are needed urgently, including the protection of patches with native vegetation, reforestation to maintain connectivity between these patches, and the involvement of local communities.

A model for the Aedes aegypti lifecycle is developed that takes into account temperature-dependent maturation and death rates for several life stages, wet and dry egg oviposition with flooding, as well as three classes of larval habitat with different temperature profiles: outdoor (subject to external temperature fluctuations, human-inhabited), indoor (temperature moderated, human-inhabited, interior), and enclosed (temperature moderated, human free, exterior). An equilibrium analysis shows that the temperature range of outdoor viable equilibrium populations aligns closely with reported risk levels. Temperature patterns for El Paso, Texas; New York, New York; New Orleans, Louisiana; Orlando, Florida; and Miami, Florida, are considered. In four of these locations (all but New York), enclosed habitats can support mosquito populations even if all outdoor and indoor habitats are removed. In two locations (El Paso and New York) the model shows that in spite of the disappearance of adult mosquitoes during colder temperatures, populations reach seasonal steady state due to the survival of eggs. The results have implications for both vector and disease control.

For a one-locus haploid infinite population with discrete generations, the celebrated model of Kingman describes the evolution of fitness distributions under the competition of selection and mutation, with a constant mutation probability. This paper generalises Kingman’s model by using independent and identically distributed random mutation probabilities, to reflect the influence of a random environment. The weak convergence of fitness distributions to the globally stable equilibrium is proved. Condensation occurs when almost surely a positive proportion of the population travels to and condenses at the largest fitness value. Condensation may occur when selection is favoured over mutation. A criterion for the occurrence of condensation is given.