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\"Over the past 20 years dramatic declines have taken place in UK insect populations. Eventually, such declines must have knock-on effects for other animals, especially high profile groups such as birds and mammals. This authoritative, yet accessible account details the current state of the wildlife in Britain and Ireland and offers an insight into the outlook for the future. Written by a team of the country's leading experts, it appraises the changes that have occurred in a wide range of wildlife species and their habitats and outlines urgent priorities for conservation. It includes chapters on each of the vertebrate and major invertebrate groups, with the insects covered in particular depth. Also considered are the factors that drive environmental change and the contribution at local and government level to national and international wildlife conservation. Essential reading for anyone who is interested in, and concerned about, UK wildlife\"-- Provided by publisher.

Fil: Zuloaga, Fernando Omar. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Botánica Darwinion. Academia Nacional de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales. Instituto de Botánica Darwinion; Argentina

1. In a rapidly urbanising world, the ability of plant species to survive and build selfsustaining populations in urban environments is increasingly important for biodiversity conservation. Yet, the contribution of cities to biodiversity conservation remains unclear because ecologists have studied biodiversity patterns, largely without considering the population establishment of plants and the ways in which different kinds of urban ecosystems harbour native and endangered plant species. These limitations can mislead conservation policies for cities. 2. To better understand how urban ecosystems can contribute to biodiversity conservation, we propose a framework that links the population status (casual or established) of plant species with ecosystem novelty and highlights barriers to population establishment in different types of urban ecosystems, from natural remnants to novel ecosystems. 3. To quantify the relative importance of natural remnants vs. human-shaped ecosystems for the conservation of self-sustaining urban plant populations, we reanalyse a unique dataset from a metropolitan region in Europe with information on the population status of 1,199 plant species. 4. Results demonstrate that urban ecosystems harbour many established native and endangered species although a considerable share (37%) of species of conservation concern are confined to natural remnants. In hybrid and immature novel ecosystems, high species numbers reflect many species with only casual populations. The role of novel ecosystems as habitats for native and endangered plant species increases as novel ecosystems mature. 5. Synthesis and applications. General information about plant species richness in urban environments may mislead conservation policies as different kinds of urban ecosystems can play different roles in harbouring species of conservation concern. Moreover, presence/absence data can mask establishment failures of species. This proposed framework helps to distinguish between casual and established populations of plant species, and highlights barriers to population persistence in urban ecosystems, reflecting different land uses and land use histories over time. Revealing the role of natural remnants vs. hybrid vs. novel ecosystems as habitats for species of conservation concern illustrates opportunities for biodiversity conservation in all urban ecosystems and can support setting priorities for conservation.

Field based ecological studies are efficient tools enabling decision makers to keep an eye on the health of forest ecosystem especially under anthropogenic stress. In current work, by employing the Floristic Quality Index (FQI) technique, we have evaluated the ecological health status of 3 riverine forests comprising of 110 plants species. The results revealed a negative connection of anthropogenic activities with the FQI. FQI scores and Principal Component Analysis (PCA) exhibited a good correlation and co-variance at the places with high degree of human interference. The mean FQI score of these forests was 25.31. The Coefficient of Conservatism (CC value) score ranked 40 species at grade 0, 33 species into the range 1–3, 25 species into the range 4–6, 9 species in the range 7–8 and only 3 plant species attained the top score in the range 9–10. Bela Qila Jawar Singh (QJS) forest had the highest number of exotic species i.e., 36% followed by Khangarh (KG) forest (33%) and Thatha Faqir Ullah (TFU) forest (32%). Cluster Analysis (CA) revealed that QJS and TFU forests showed closer similarity in species composition, while Khangarh forest was ecologically distinct. Indicator species analysis revealed that intermediate groupings (Rankings 1–3 and 4–6) contained the majority of significant indicator species, with several species exhibiting high fidelity and specificity, indicating distinct compositional differentiation. The p-value (≤ 0.05) confirms their strong statistical reliability as indicator species evident of the disturbed health status of this environment. This study can assist in developing efficient management techniques, which makes it quite intriguing to protect ecosystems especially riverine forests from anthropogenic and climatic threats to biodiversity. Strengthening habitat restoration and reducing human-induced disturbances are recommended to improve forest health. The recovery of indicator and native species should be the main focus of efforts. To monitor development and preserve ecosystem stability, it is also recommended to conduct ecological evaluations on a regular basis.

Phytoremediation is an environmentally friendly alternative to traditional remediation technologies, notably for soil restoration and agricultural sustainability. This strategy makes use of marginal areas, incorporates biofortification processes, and expands crop alternatives. The ecological and economic benefits of phytoremediation are highlighted in this review. Native plant species provide cost-effective advantages and lower risks, while using invasive species to purify pollutants might be a potential solution to the dilemma of not removing them from the new habitat. Thus, strict management measures should be used to prevent the overgrowth of invasive species. The superior advantages of phytoremediation, including psychological and social improvements, make it a powerful tool for both successful cleanup and community well-being. Its ability to generate renewable biomass and adapt to a variety of uses strengthens its position in developing the bio-based economy. However, phytoremediation faces severe difficulties such as complex site circumstances and stakeholder doubts. Overcoming these challenges necessitates a comprehensive approach that balances economic viability, environmental protection, and community welfare. Incorporating regulatory standards such as ASTM and ISO demonstrates a commitment to long-term environmental sustainability, while also providing advice for unique nation-specific requirements. Finally, phytoremediation may contribute to a pleasant coexistence of human activity and the environment by navigating hurdles and embracing innovation.

The New Zealand flora has a high proportion of endemic species but has been invaded by almost the same number of non-native plant species. To support management of invasive plant species, we provide an updated inventory of New Zealand’s naturalised flora and compare it with the native flora to identify key taxonomic and functional distinctions. We also assess how the naturalised flora may impact ecosystem processes differently than the native flora using functional traits related to plant resource use strategy. The 1798 species in the naturalised flora currently comprise 43.9% of the total number of vascular plant species, and add 67 plant families and 649 genera to the total vascular flora. The naturalised flora has a greater proportion of herbaceous species and annual species than the native flora, which could influence ecosystem processes such as decomposition and nutrient cycling. Naturalised trees have higher leaf nitrogen concentration for a given leaf area than native trees, which could increase rates of nutrient cycling in invaded forest ecosystems. A greater number of naturalised species are present in larger, more northerly, and more populated regions of New Zealand. Our results demonstrate both taxonomic and functional differences between the native and naturalised flora of New Zealand that can be used to guide management of naturalised plants, including the 314 species currently managed as environmental weeds, from the local to national scale.

The search for predictions of species diversity across environmental gradients has challenged ecologists for decades. The humped-back model (HBM) suggests that plant diversity peaks at intermediate productivity; at low productivity few species can tolerate the environmental stresses, and at high productivity a few highly competitive species dominate. Over time the HBM has become increasingly controversial, and recent studies claim to have refuted it. Here, by using data from coordinated surveys conducted throughout grasslands worldwide and comprising a wide range of site productivities, we provide evidence in support of the HBM pattern at both global and regional extents. The relationships described here provide a foundation for further research into the local, landscape, and historical factors that maintain biodiversity.

Forests provide crucial ecosystem services and are increasingly threatened by invasive plant species. The spread of these invasive species has affected biodiversity and has become a trending topic due to its impact on both endemic species and biodiversity. Therefore, it is imperative to implement conservation measures to protect native species such as mapping and monitoring invasive plant species in the forest realm. Mapping understory herb invasive plant species within forest categories is challenging, for example species such as Ageratum conyzoides and Cassia tora do not occur in distinct clusters, making them difficult to distinguish from the surrounding forest. In this paper, phenology plays a vital role for analysing the separability of both inter and intra-species discrimination to examine temporal curves for different vegetation indices that affect plant growth during the green and senescence periods. Machine learning algorithms, including regression tree-based algorithms, decision tree-based algorithms, and probabilistic algorithms, were used to determine the most effective algorithm for pixel-based classification. Support Vector Machine (SVM) classifier was the most effective method, with an overall accuracy of this classifier was calculated as 90.28% and a kappa of 0.88. The findings indicate that machine learning algorithms remain effective for pixel-based classification of understory invasive plant species from forest class. Thus, this study shows a technical method to distinguish invasive plant species from forest class which can help forest managers to locate invasion sites to eradicate them and conserve native biodiversity.

Invasive species are a real threat to biodiversity worldwide, and Egypt is no exception for that threat. In Egypt, there is thirty protected areas, representing most of the ecological important areas in Egypt, is declared and managed by the Nature Conservation Sector Agency, Egypt, with an approximate area of 142,664 km 2 (representing 14.3 % of Egypt’s country area). Until 2012, the declared protectorates include the following four groups: 7 marines, 7 wetlands, 10 deserts and 6 geological protectorates. The goals of the present study were: 1) creating an inventory of alien species in the Egyptian protected areas, 2) assessing the protection effect on the spread of invasive species in different protected areas, and 3) assessing the pathway of alien species into the protected areas and how to control them. This study was conducted by reviewing current and available literature, field trips, and herbaria consultation. Our results indicated that Lake Burullus has the highest number of alien species (27= 13.7%), while Abu-Galum has the lowest (2= 1.2%). On the other hand, some protected areas (e.g. Nabq, Wadi Degla, White Desert, El-Gilf El-Kebir) have no alien species. This indicates that some protected areas are experiencing high levels of protection, and their locations are less affected by human activities. Three non-native invasive species ( Azolla filiculoides, Bassia indica , and Eichhornia crassipes ) are threating the ecosystem of Ashtum El-Gamil, Wadi El-Rayan and Lake Burullus Qaroun. On the other hand, however, Ziziphus spina-christi was recorded in seven protected areas as sand controllers and has medicinal and grazing benefits. Among the three different categories of the alien species, the naturalized species group has the highes According to the national strategy for biodiversity in Egypt – For a sustainable Future 2030 (CBD 2020) this study provides a comprehensive assessment of alien species dynamics in the ecosystem of Egyptian protected area.

Human activities have shaped large-scale distributions of many species, driving both range contractions and expansions. Species differ naturally in range size, with small-range species concentrated in particular geographic areas and potentially deviating ecologically from widespread species. Hence, species’ responses to human activities may be influenced by their geographic range sizes, but if and how this happens are poorly understood. Here, we use a comprehensive distribution database and species distribution modeling to examine if and how human activities have affected the extent to which 9,701 vascular plants fill their climatic potential ranges in China. We find that narrow-ranged species have lower range filling and widespread species have higher range filling in the human-dominated southeastern part of China, compared with their counterparts distributed in the less human-influenced northwestern part. Variations in range filling across species and space are strongly associated with indicators of human activities (human population density, human footprint, and proportion of cropland) even after controlling for alternative drivers. Importantly, narrow-ranged and widespread species show negative and positive range-filling relationships to these human indicators, respectively. Our results illustrate that floras risk biotic homogenization as a consequence of anthropogenic activities, with narrow-ranged species becoming replaced by widespread species. Because narrow-ranged species are more numerous than widespread species in nature, negative impacts of human activities will be prevalent. Our findings highlight the importance of establishing more protected areas and zones of reduced human activities to safeguard the rich flora of China.