Volume 73, Issue 3

There is possibly no other location in the world which has been so intensively influenced by human activity over a prolonged period as the Mediterranean. Virtually no ecosystems have been left untouched. Since prehistory, the human settlers of the Mediterranean islands brought about a radical turnover between ancient and modern mammalian faunas, introducing a variety of allochthonous continental taxa. The data available for the Mediterranean islands point to endemic mammalian extinction being largely the result of human activities of land clearance and the introduction of allochthonous animals. Today, this fauna is no longer characterised by the majority of the endemic mammals previously reported. It displays virtually the same species composition, being almost exclusively characterised by continental mammals whose appearance on the islands has essentially been influenced by man, and dominated by generalist species. The invasion of ecosystems by exotic taxa is currently viewed as one of the most important causes of the loss of biodiversity. Today, in view of the vulnerability of the insular ecosystems it is critically important to prevent further introductions. But this results in the question of how to treat the allochthonous mammalian populations of certified ancient anthropochorous origin, which instead deserve to be protected and considered in terms of a veritable “cultural heritage”. Moreover, their protection and their study can provide an opportunity for testing a range of different evolutionary theories.

There is a lack of published information on the current status of the Arabian Sand Gazelle Gazella subgutturosa marica in Saudi Arabia. A review of the available literature, mainly unpublished reports presenting wildlife census data, is collated and supplemented with the most recent counts. The number of free ranging gazelle has declined dramatically in the northern protected areas (Harrat al-Harrah and Al-Khunfah) to the extent that they are currently viewed as virtually extinct, while gazelle numbers in the only fenced protected area in central western Saudi Arabia (Mahazat as-Sayd) fluctuate widely according to food availability. Gazelle numbers in the southern protected area (Uruq Bani Ma'arid) remain changeable but comparatively stable. Uncontrolled hunting and competition with domestic stock are the main reasons for the decline in the northern protected areas. Large numbers of gazelle are thought to be kept in private collections throughout Saudi Arabia, although inconsistent husbandry methods, potential for inbreeding and possibilities for cross-breeding, may compromise the conservation value of these stocks. Overall numbers of reem in Saudi have declined dramatically over the last 50 years. Since the inception of the National Commission for Wildlife and Conservation Development (NCWCD) in 1986 the gains made by managed conservation interventions (mainly in the centre and south) have been offset by serious losses of important wild stocks in the northern reserves. There remains an urgent need to arrest the losses in the north through improved protection and securing of local support. In the south, continued effort to monitor and expand unfenced populations, and introduction of adaptive management to the fenced populations, is also required if the conservation status of this taxon is not to deteriorate.

Habitat use of five ungulate species was assessed in two fragmented sites in the Lacandon Forest, Southern Mexico. Differential habitat use was expected according to the habitat requirements of each species. Repeated track counts were carried out from September 2005 to December 2006 along 19 line transects totaling 683 km, obtaining 2271 ungulate records. We found that Baird's tapir and the white-lipped peccary are actually rainforest specialists avoiding disturbed habitats in the Lacandon Forest, while the red brocket deer, the collared peccary, and the white-tailed deer show different degrees of success in using habitat mosaic derived from human activities. Given that fragmentation patterns have an effect on habitat use of ungulate species in our study area, more information about the effects of landscape configuration on the distribution and abundance of those species is needed. In order to favor conservation of the ungulate species array in the Lacandon Forest, we recommend enforcement of mature rainforest protection and maintenance of heterogeneous landscapes in human settlements through traditional agricultural practices, agroforestry, and intensive pastureland management.

We report new records for the inadequately known Southern birch mouse Sicista subtilis in Poland. This species was found in Poland in 1994 by catching a live specimen by hand and to date there has been no other data on this species. The Polish population is most likely an isolated population of S. subtilis but its taxonomic status has not been studied yet. According to our results, it is a morphometric variation or a new subspecies of S. subtilis . Its craniometrical size is in general smaller than that of the Ukrainian “core” population. Morphometrically, it is similar to the S. subtilis trizona living in Hungary. It is probable that the size reduction and the microevolutionary divergence in morphometry most likely result from a long isolation in the case of trizona or a shorter isolation of the Polish population. However, the geographic isolation of the Polish subpopulations in the Lublin region has not been adequate to produce significant morphologic variation in the crania. Hypothetically, the Polish specimens with smaller skulls may also be affected by differences in prey base, which is reflected in the different habitats. The craniometrical characteristics of the geographically most isolated Hungarian trizona population are the smallest in the superspecies S. subtilis .

Morphometric variation of skulls was studied in jerboas, genus Allactaga , of the Middle East. Standard statistics and principal component and discriminant function analyses demonstrated no significant difference between Allactaga firouzi and Allactaga hotsoni . Ecological niche based modeling of geographic distribution of A. hotsoni demonstrated that A. firouzi is not isolated from the geographic range of A. hotsoni but connected by suitable habitats. According to the results, A. hotsoni and A. firouzi seem to be conspecific and the latter can be provisionally accepted as a subspecies of A. hotsoni .

Although three species of Neacomys (terrestrial spiny mice: Sigmodontinae) are currently recognized from the Guianan Region (northeastern South America), their taxonomic distinctness has not been tested with genetic data, their relationships to other congeneric forms is unknown, and there have been no studies of their intraspecific phylogeographic variation. These three species are very similar in their external morphology, and sympatry has been demonstrated for all three combinations of pairs. We have sequenced the cytochrome- b gene of 26 specimens morphologically identified as Neacomys paracou , Neacomys dubosti , and Neacomys guianae , for assessing their phylogenetic position with regard to other Amazonian taxa of the genus and for assessing their genetic variation within the Guianan Region. Our results (1) confirm that three genetically distinct species of Neacomys species occur in French Guiana, Suriname, and Guyana; (2) suggest that they are not closely related to one another vis-à-vis extralimital species; and (3) reveal shallow phylogeographic structure in only the most widespread form, N. paracou . The morphological examination of molecularly identified individuals of N . paracou and N. dubosti suggests that one external character, namely the relative size of caudal scales, is of dubious diagnostic value.

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