Waterhole detection using a vegetation index in desert bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis cremnobates) habitat

Jonathan Gabriel Escobar Flores (2019, [Artículo])

In arid ecosystems, desert bighorn sheep are dependent on natural waterholes, particularly in summer when forage is scarce and environmental temperatures are high. To detect waterholes in Sierra Santa Isabel, which is the largest area of desert bighorn sheep habitat in the state of Baja California, Mexico, we used the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and normalized difference water index (NDWI) from Sentinel-2 satellite images. Waterhole detection was based on the premise that sites with greater water availability, where NDVI was higher, can be identified by their density of vegetation greenness. For the detected waterholes, we estimated the escape terrain (presence of cliffs or steep, rocky slopes) around each by the vector ruggedness measure to determine their potential use by desert bighorn sheep based on the animals’ presence as documented by camera traps. We detected 14 waterholes with the NDVI of which 11 were known by land owners and 3 were unrecorded. Desert bighorn were not detected in waterholes with high values of escape terrain, i.e., flat areas. Waterhole detection by NDVI is a simple method, and with the assistance and knowledge of the inhabitants of the Sierra, it was possible to confirm the presence each waterhole in the field. © 2019 Escobar-Flores et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Article, bighorn sheep, environmental aspects and related phenomena, environmental parameters, habitat, Mexico, nonhuman, normalized difference vegetation index, normalized difference water index, water availability, waterhole, animal, bighorn sheep, CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA CIENCIAS AGRARIAS CIENCIA FORESTAL CIENCIA FORESTAL

Using Sentinel-2 to track field-level tillage practices at regional scales in smallholder systems

Preeti Rao ML JAT Balwinder-Singh Deepak Bijarniya Urs Schulthess Rajbir Singh Meha Jain (2021, [Artículo])

Sentinel-2 Random Forest Google Earth Engine CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA SATELLITES ZERO TILLAGE CONVENTIONAL TILLAGE SMALLHOLDERS

Enviromic prediction enables the characterization and mapping of Eucalyptus globulus Labill breeding zones

Germano Costa Neto Jose Crossa (2024, [Artículo])

Forest Tree Breeding Genomic Relationship Matrix Genomic Selection Best Linear Unbiased Prediction CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA FOREST TREES BREEDING MARKER-ASSISTED SELECTION MYRTACEAE EUCALYPTUS GLOBULUS

Distribución del carbono forestal y la riqueza de especies en la Reserva Ecológica Cuxtal, Yucatán, México

JOSE LUIS HERNANDEZ STEFANONI Juan Andrés Mauricio Fernando de Jesús Tun Dzul LUIS ANGEL HERNANDEZ MARTINEZ KARINA ELIZABETH GONZALEZ MUÑOZ VÍCTOR ALEXIS PEÑA LARA ERIC ANTONIO GAMBOA BLANCO (2023, [Artículo])

En este estudio se generaron mapas de la densidad de carbono y la riqueza de especies de árboles en la Reserva Ecológica Cuxtal, así como mapas bivariados para evaluar la relación espacial entre ambas variables. La correlación entre la densidad de carbono y la riqueza de especies en la reserva fue positiva con un valor de 89%. Además, el 16.9% de la superficie de la reserva presentó valores altos de carbono almacenado y riqueza de especies. Los resultados destacan la importancia de combinar mapas de carbono y riqueza de especies para identificar áreas relevantes para la conservación de la biodiversidad y el mantenimiento del servicio ecosistémico de almacenamiento de carbono.

AREAS NATURALES PROTEGIDAS BIOMASA AEREA BOSQUES TROPICALES SECOS DIVERSIDAD DE ESPECIES BIOLOGÍA Y QUÍMICA CIENCIAS DE LA VIDA BIOLOGÍA VEGETAL (BOTÁNICA) ECOLOGÍA VEGETAL ECOLOGÍA VEGETAL

Uso tradicional de plantas: patrimonio de las comunidades indígenas del Parque Nacional Lagunas de Montebello

NAYELY MARTINEZ MELENDEZ Manuel Martínez Meléndez JUANA PATRICIA HERNANDEZ RODRIGUEZ MAURICIO JOSE RIOS (2022, [Artículo])

El Parque Nacional Lagunas de Montebello en Chiapas (México) y su zona de influencia se caracterizan por ser áreas de gran diversidad biológica. Las comunidades indígenas de esta región usan las plantas como un recurso aprovechable que puede satisfacer sus necesidades. Nuestro objetivo fue documentar las especies de uso tradicional y de valor ecológico que las personas reconocen en su localidad. Se realizaron recorridos de campo y talleres comunitarios en los cuales identificamos 88 especies de plantas útiles, la mayoría árboles. Identificar la riqueza de especies del entorno en que viven, es una forma de encaminar acciones de desarrollo enfocadas en la conservación y el manejo de sus recursos forestales como medios de vida.

CHIAPAS ETNOBOTANICA MANEJO DE RECURSOS FORESTALES MUNICIPIO LA TRINITARIA BIOLOGÍA Y QUÍMICA CIENCIAS DE LA VIDA BIOLOGÍA VEGETAL (BOTÁNICA) ECOLOGÍA VEGETAL ECOLOGÍA VEGETAL

First record of Band-tailed Pigeon, Patagioenas fasciata (Columbiformes: Columbidae) in the Sonoran Desert of Baja California

Jonathan Gabriel Escobar Flores MARIANA DELGADO FERNANDEZ OSCAR EDUARDO DELGADO GONZALEZ (2016, [Artículo])

"We report the presence of the Band-tailed Pigeon, which was not previously recorded in the Sonoran Desert in Baja California. The site was 140 km south of the nearest forest. The presence of the pigeon further documents the propensity of Band-tailed Pigeons to wander widely."

Baja California Peninsula; Cataviña; desert; forest; riparian vegetation BIOLOGÍA Y QUÍMICA CIENCIAS DE LA VIDA BIOLOGÍA ANIMAL (ZOOLOGÍA) ECOLOGÍA ANIMAL ECOLOGÍA ANIMAL

Assessing the Spatiotemporal Relationship between Coastal Habitats and Fish Assemblages at Two Neotropical Estuaries of the Mexican Pacific

VICTOR MANUEL MURO TORRES FELIPE AMEZCUA MARTINEZ Gerogina Ramírez Ortiz FRANCISCO JAVIER FLORES DE SANTIAGO Felipe Amezcua Linares Yareli Hernández Álvarez (2022, [Artículo])

"Differences in fish assemblages’ structures and their relations with environmental variables (due to the variations in sampled seasons, habitats, and zones) were analyzed in two adjacent estuaries on the north Pacific coast of Mexico. Environmental variables and fish catches were registered monthly between August 2018 and October 2020. Multivariate analyses were conducted to define habitats and zones based on their environmental characteristics, and the effect of this variability on fish assemblages’ composition, biomass, and diversity (α and β) was evaluated. A total of 12,008 fish individuals of 143 species were collected using different fishing nets. Multivariate analyses indicated that fish assemblages’ structures were different between zones due to the presence, height, and coverage of distinct mangrove species. Additionally, depth and salinity showed effects on fish assemblages’ diversity (α and β-nestedness), which presented higher values in the ocean and remained similar in the rest of the analyzed zones and habitats. These results and the differences in species replacement (β-turnover) indicate the singularity of fish assemblages at estuaries (even in areas close to the ocean) and the necessity to establish local management strategies for these ecosystems."

mangrove forests, marine protected areas, alpha diversity, beta diversity, multivariate analyses CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA CIENCIAS AGRARIAS PECES Y FAUNA SILVESTRE DINÁMICA DE LAS POBLACIONES DINÁMICA DE LAS POBLACIONES

Freshwater exchanges and surface salinity in the Colombian basin, Caribbean Sea

Emilio Beier (2017, [Artículo])

Despite the heavy regional rainfall and considerable discharge of many rivers into the Colombian Basin, there have been few detailed studies about the dilution of Caribbean Surface Water and the variability of salinity in the southwestern Caribbean. An analysis of the precipitation, evaporation and runoff in relation to the climate variability demonstrates that although the salt balance in the Colombian Basin overall is in equilibrium, the area south of 12N is an important dilution sub-basin. In the southwest of the basin, in the region of the Panama-Colombia Gyre, Caribbean Sea Water is diluted by precipitation and runoff year round, while in the northeast, off La Guajira, its salinity increases from December to May by upwelling. At the interannual scale, continental runoff is related to El Niño Southern Oscillation, and precipitation and evaporation south of 12°N are related to the Caribbean Low Level Jet. During El Niño years the maximum salinification occurs in the dry season (December-February) while in La Niña years the maximum dilution (or freshening), reaching La Guajira Coastal Zone, occurs in the wet season (September-November). © 2017 Beier et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

sea water, fresh water, Article, Caribbean, dilution, dry season, El Nino, environmental parameters, evaporation, freshwater exchange, geographic distribution, molecular weight, oscillation, precipitation, river basin, salinity, seasonal variation, s CIENCIAS FÍSICO MATEMÁTICAS Y CIENCIAS DE LA TIERRA CIENCIAS DE LA TIERRA Y DEL ESPACIO OCEANOGRAFÍA OCEANOGRAFÍA

Contrasting spatial patterns in active-fire and fire-suppressed mediterranean climate old-growth mixed conifer forests

Danny L. Fry  (2014, [Artículo])

In Mediterranean environments in western North America, historic fire regimes in frequent-fire conifer forests are highly variable both temporally and spatially. This complexity influenced forest structure and spatial patterns, but some of this diversity has been lost due to anthropogenic disruption of ecosystem processes, including fire. Information from reference forest sites can help management efforts to restore forests conditions that may be more resilient to future changes in disturbance regimes and climate. In this study, we characterize tree spatial patterns using four-ha stem maps from four old-growth, Jeffrey pine-mixed conifer forests, two with active-fire regimes in northwestern Mexico and two that experienced fire exclusion in the southern Sierra Nevada. Most of the trees were in patches, averaging six to 11 trees per patch at 0.007 to 0.014 ha-1, and occupied 27-46% of the study areas. Average canopy gap sizes (0.04 ha) covering 11-20% of the area were not significantly different among sites. The putative main effects of fire exclusion were higher densities of single trees in smaller size classes, larger proportion of trees (≥56%) in large patches (≥10 trees), and decreases in spatial complexity. While a homogenization of forest structure has been a typical result from fire exclusion, some similarities in patch, single tree, and gap attributes were maintained at these sites. These within-stand descriptions provide spatially relevant benchmarks from which to manage for structural heterogeneity in frequent-fire forest types.

article, climate, controlled study, ecosystem fire history, forest structure, geographic distribution, geographic mapping, land use, mathematical computing, mathematical model, Mexico, spatial analysis, taiga, United States, comparative study, conife CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA