Small-scale habitat use of black grouse (Tetrao tetrix L.) and rock ptarmigan (Lagopus muta helvetica Thienemann) in the Austrian Alps

Schweiger, Anna K.; Nopp‐Mayr, Ursula; Zohmann, Margit

doi:10.1007/s10344-011-0537-7

Cited by 34 publications

(37 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…In study area 1, a survey on small-scale habitat use of Black Grouse was conducted in 2008 (Schweiger et al 2012). There, habitat characteristics for Black Grouse as well as indirect signs of its presence (mainly intestinal faecal pellets) were recorded on a 100 m 9 100 m grid.…”

Section: Sampling Designmentioning

confidence: 99%

Analyses of Black Grouse (Tetrao tetrix) faeces with infrared spectroscopic methods

2015

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In recent years, the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) was used to assess the diet, digestibility or nutritional values of food items of ruminants. However, it has never been used to analyse the diet of grouse species. Commonly used methods have so far been direct observations of birds and microscopical analyses of droppings. The sample preparation and comparison of microscopical analyses is a highly time-consuming procedure. The comparison is based on morphological structures of epidermal cells, like the shape of cells, stomata or trichomes. In contrast, the sample preparation for the FT-IR and the subsequent measuring is simple and quickly done. We investigated the diet of Black Grouse (Tetrao tetrix L.) in two study areas with infrared spectroscopic methods comparing summer and winter droppings' content with plant reference material. The study areas are located in the provinces of Salzburg and Upper Austria, Austria. In our study, samples were measured in the mid-and nearinfrared range. We tried to determine the dominating content of faecal samples at species, genera or family level or at least to assign samples to one of four main plants groups (i.e. woody plants, heathers, herbs and grasses). Our results showed a dominance of Larix decidua within the group of woody plants in both areas and, within the group of heathers, a dominance of Calluna vulgaris and Rhododendron hirsutum in one study area. Partially, our results are in marked contrast to other studies conducted in the Alps, as Vaccinium myrtillus was not detected in the samples. For further methodological studies, faecal sampling over larger areas, larger samples of plant reference material (including seeds and other parts of plants at different seasons), taking more samples per dropping and synchronous comparisons of microscopic analyses as well as FT-IR spectroscopy, are recommended.

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Section: Sampling Designmentioning

confidence: 99%

Analyses of Black Grouse (Tetrao tetrix) faeces with infrared spectroscopic methods

2015

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“…Both the landscape topography (e.g., Bennie et al 2008) and the microtopography are very varied in alpine areas and can thus include a variety of microclimates resulting from differences in solar radiation, wind speed, and direction (Young et al 1997;Körner 2003). Several studies have investigated the selection of nest places or habitats at the mesoscale and macroscale by the Alpine Rock Ptarmigan (Scherini et al 2003;Favaron et al 2006;Zohmann and Wöss 2008;Revermann et al 2012;Zohmann et al 2013), but only a few studies have investigated what happens at the microscale (Wilson and Martin 2008;Schweiger et al 2012). …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Microclimate and microhabitat selection by the Alpine Rock Ptarmigan (Lagopus muta helvetica) during summer

Visinoni

Pernollet

Desmet³

et al. 2014

J Ornithol

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The Alpine Rock Ptarmigan (Lagopus muta helvetica)-which is adapted to arctic and alpine environments-is suspected to be vulnerable to climate warming, but direct evidence is limited. Microclimates within a landscape may allow species to exist in regions where the general climate appears to be unsuitable for them. We therefore investigated the diversity of microclimates in alpine habitats used by the Alpine Rock Ptarmigan in summer, and we examined whether Alpine Rock Ptarmigan select places with a microclimate that facilitates heat dissipation during summer days. The study was done in the Haute-Savoie (northern French Alps), where ptarmigan have been equipped with radio transmitters, thus allowing direct observations. We measured the three microclimate variables which determine the thermal environment of an animal: ambient temperature (ground and air temperature), which defines the temperature gradients between the animal and the environment; wind speed, which determines convection; and solar radiation, which determines radiation uptake. Additional measurements at four contrasting microtopographic sites at five locations and at two random sites in July and August showed that the typical habitat of the Alpine Rock Ptarmigan offered a wide variety of microclimates over very short distances, particularly on hot summer days. Compared with control sites at 5 m and 30 m, Alpine Rock Ptarmigan selected places with a particular microtopography and microclimate: slightly cooler places in the shade that were protected from the wind; often small, north-facing depressions with a medium amount of rocks and diverse ground cover. The places selected by ptarmigan during hot summer days conformed well to the requirements of both heat dissipation and predator avoidance, and also offered food. Zusammenfassung Mikroklima und Mikrohabitatwahl beim Alpenschneehuhn (Lagopus muta helvetica) im SommerDas Alpenschneehuhn (Lagopus muta helvetica) ist an arktische und alpine Lebensräume angepasst. Deshalb wird es als empfindlich gegenüber den Auswirkungen der Klimaerwärmung betrachtet, doch sind direkte Nachweise selten. Mikroklimas in speziellen Habitaten können es Arten erlauben, in Gebieten vorzukommen, deren generelles Klima ungeeignet ist. Wir untersuchten die Vielfalt der Mikroklimas in den alpinen Habitaten des Communicated by F. Bairlein. Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (

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“…To ensure that the variables were independent, we only retained the variables with clear biological meaning for those with absolute Person's correlation coefficients above 0.70 (Schweiger et al 2012). Furthermore, we dealt with the remaining variables with a zero-mean normalization transformation before data analysis.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Habitat use by giant panda in relation to man-made forest in Wanglang Nature Reserve of China

Kang

Wang

Yang

et al. 2014

Environ Sci Pollut Res

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To evaluate the effectiveness of human restoration in species conservation, in this study, we undertook a field survey of giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) habitat and man-made forest habitat in Wanglang Nature Reserve of China. Our results revealed that giant panda did not use the man-made forest in this area so far, and that there were significant differences between the giant panda habitat and the man-made forest habitat. Compared with giant panda habitat, the man-made forest habitat was characterized by lower shrub coverage, thinner trees and lower bamboo density. To improve the effectiveness of human restoration, the habitat requirement of giant panda should be fully consider in the whole process of habitat restoration.

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Small-scale habitat use of black grouse (Tetrao tetrix L.) and rock ptarmigan (Lagopus muta helvetica Thienemann) in the Austrian Alps

Cited by 34 publications

References 33 publications

Analyses of Black Grouse (Tetrao tetrix) faeces with infrared spectroscopic methods

Analyses of Black Grouse (Tetrao tetrix) faeces with infrared spectroscopic methods

Microclimate and microhabitat selection by the Alpine Rock Ptarmigan (Lagopus muta helvetica) during summer

Habitat use by giant panda in relation to man-made forest in Wanglang Nature Reserve of China

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