Állattani Közlemények

Preliminary results on the effects of Canadian goldenrod (Solidago canadensis L.) invasion on biological soil quality in an urban meadow

2024-12-16T04:53:19+00:00

Healthy soil is vital to all terrestrial ecosystems, providing a habitat for a wide range of organisms whose activities ensure the continuity of the nutrient cycle. In addition to classical physical, chemical, and microbiological parameters, indicators based on soil arthropods are simple and cost-effective alternatives for assessing soil condition. In our study, we investigated the effects of Canadian goldenrod invasion on soils using arthropod-based soil quality indices. To collect soil arthropods, soil samples were taken in springs (May) over two years from invaded and non-invaded plots in the Felsőrákos Meadows Nature Reserve (Budapest, Hungary). After extraction, the arthropods were sorted into larger groups. As background variables, local (basic soil physical and chemical parameters) and landscape properties were also measured. None of the quality indices showed significant differences between the soils of the invaded and control plots. However, there were significant differences in the taxonomic composition of soil arthropod assemblages, while the functional community structure was separated by the two study years, regardless of habitat vegetation. The main drivers of biological soil quality were soil moisture and the proportion of woody habitats, both had positive effects. In conclusion, based on the spring data, the goldenrod invasion had no detectable effect on biological soil quality, although it significantly affected the taxonomic composition of soil arthropod communities. However, to get a more accurate picture, additional seasonal data are needed, taking into account the temporal variation in goldenrod phenology.

The second occurrence of the crevice weaver spiders in Hungary (Araneae: Haplogynae, Filistatidae)

2024-12-16T04:53:19+00:00

Crevice weaver spiders (Filistatidae) are characteristic and widespread members of the Mediterranean. So far only one occurrence has been known, in 1985 Pekka Lehtinen collected three specimens (data have been published in 2019), which are in the collection of the University of Turku. There were no further Hungarian records of the family despite expectations, but almost four decades later in 2024, on the 20th of April a male specimen has been captured in Budapest, which is deposited in the collection of the Hungarian Natural History Museum. The almost forty years hiatus may have caused by the relatively poorly known status of the family in Hungary. This publication provides therefore numerous habitus, habitat and copulatory organ photos to aid future identification.

Fish faunistical and stream habitat survey of the Torna Creek in the town of Ajka, Hungary

2024-12-16T04:53:19+00:00

The study reports data about the fish fauna in the section of the Torna Creek that flows through the town of Ajka, Hungary, and the basic habitat features that can influence the distribution of the fish within small streams. A single occasion of field survey was conducted in May 2023. There were five sampling reaches, each was 150 m long, within Ajka. As results, 13 individuals of 4 fish species (stone loach Barbatula barbatula, gudgeon Gobio gobio species complex, roach Rutilus rutilus, and chub Squalius cephalus) were captured. The number of the species caught per sampling reach varied between one and two, and the total number of individuals caught ranged from one to five. All species were native in Hungary; two of them were protected by the Hungarian legislation. None of the species is listed by any of the annexes the European Union’s Habitat Directive. Some individuals of the native noble crayfish Astacus astacus and some juveniles of the native green frogs Pelophylax spp. were also encountered as by-catching. The hydrogeological status of the studied section of the Torna Creek is moderately or highly modified. Suggestions for interventions to improve the ecological integrity of the habitat are also discussed.

Data on fish fauna of the river Ipoly from a reach downstream the Ipolytölgyes dam

2024-12-16T04:53:19+00:00

The dam at Ipolytölgyes is the first water management object on the river which functions as a barrier to the longitudinal moving of fishes swimming upstream from the Danube. The fish fauna was sampled in a 762-metre-long reach next to the dam in mid-September 2023 at baseflow conditions. A total of 25 fish species and an invasive decapod (Faxonius limosus) were detected. Compared to previous original researches, the presence of the Danube ruffe (Gymnocephalus baloni) seems to be a new detection of the species in Ipolytölgyes, and the presences of the Danube streber (Zingel streber) and the zingel (Zingel zingel) support former findings arguing that the lower reach of the Ipoly (in the region of the town of Szob and the village of Ipolytölgyes) is an important habitat of many fish species of conservation interest. Although only presence data and not number of the caught specimens were recorded, high proprotion of the caught fishes belonged to the YOY or juvenile age groups. Particularly, YOY of the barbel (Barbus barbus) were found in remarkable abundance. Results indicate that the gravel-bottomed, rich in gravel pads river reach downstream of the dam provides valuable spawning and nursery habitat not only for populations of fishes living in the Ipoly but also for populations living in the Danube.

Revised checklist of Hungarian wild mammals

2024-12-16T04:53:19+00:00

Up-to-date lists of wild species are not just about our curiosity to know what lives around us, but they form the basis for national and international legislation, the listing of protected species, the CITES annexes, and even the IUCN Red List. The recent revision of the legislation on protected and strictly protected species in Hungary and the Atlas of European Mammals project have also necessitated the renewal of the list of wild mammals in Hungary. Due to the regular appearance of new species, the permanent presence of species previously observed only occasionally, the separation of newly recognized cryptic species, and taxonomic revisions, the number of mammal species occurring in Hungary has risen to ninety.

Az Első Magyar Zootaxonómiai Konferencia absztraktjai

2024-12-16T04:53:19+00:00

Az első alkalommal megrendezett konferencia fő célja a szakterületi eredmények bemutatása, megvitatása. Ezen túl azonban szándéka felhívni a figyelmet a tudományág fontosságára, jelentőségére, bemutatni, hogy számos aktív taxonómus van Magyarországon, magyar nyelvterületen, sok érdekes csoporttal, és nem utolsósorban az, hogy ez a tudományág is nyújt karrierlehetőséget, valamint megadja a felfedezés örömét.

Aki a gőték és békák hadait védte – megemlékezés Bakó Botondról

2024-12-16T04:53:19+00:00

Bakó Botond (1967–2023) élete és pályája nehezen szorítható kategóriák közé. Brassóban született, de iskoláit már elsősorban Budapesten végezte. Saját bevallása szerint már kora gyermekkorában minden érdekelte, ami él és mozog, amit lehetett hazavitt, hogy aztán hosszabb rövidebb megfigyelés után elengedje.

Egy kiváló muzeológus, limnológus emlékére - Dr. Forró László (1954–2023)

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Dr. Forró László nemzetközileg elismert muzeológus, hidrobiológus, a világ planktonikus kisrákfaunájának elkötelezett kutatója (Forró et al. 2008, Forró et al. 2013). Taxonómiai, faunisztikai, ökológiai munkássága nagy jelentőségű mind a hazai, mind a nemzetközi limnológia számára.

Az év kiemelkedő szünbiológiai témájú egyetemi doktori (PhD) értekezése-díj, 2024

2024-12-16T04:53:19+00:00

A Diverzitásbiológiai és az Ökológiai Tudományos Bizottság kezdeményezésére alapított díjra olyan tehetséges, magyar állampolgársággal rendelkező kutatók pályázhattak, akik a szünbiológia területén végzik tudományos tevékenységüket, és az előző naptári évben sikerrel védték meg egyetemi doktori (PhD) értekezésüket, továbbá tagjai az MTA Köztestülete Diverzitásbiológiai vagy Ökológiai Tudományos Bizottságának (https://mta.hu/viii-osztaly/az-ev-kiemelkedo-szunbiologiai-temaju-egyetemi-doktori-phd-ertekezese-dij-111523). A díj átadására az alapító okirat értelmében minden évben a Magyar Tudomány Ünnepéhez kapcsolódó eseményen kerül sor. Ezévben a zsűri (elnök: Ódor Péter, tagok: Herczeg Gábor, Molnár V. Attila, Schmera Dénes, Vörös Judit) a nyolc pályázó mindegyikének munkáját magas színvonalúnak ítélte, és a maximális kiadható három díjat kiosztotta. Az előadások – a „Vírusoktól az erdőig” című előadóülés keretében – november 12-én hangzottak el az MTA Könyvtár és Információs Központ Konferenciatermében.

Az Állattani Közlemények elkötelezett a pályázó fiatalok témáinak ismertetésében, így évről évre közöljük a díjazottak és az előadók listáját, és a folyóiratban releváns, zoológiai témájú dolgozatok rövid kivonatát.

Evolutionary ecology of anthropogenic environmental change and sex reversal in amphibians

2024-12-16T04:53:19+00:00

Understanding the biological changes through which organisms cope with the challenges of human-induced environmental changes is a crucial mission of current ecology, evolutionary biology and nature conservation. This paper reviews this issue focusing on ectothermic vertebrates, especially amphibians, many of which are endangered. A series of experiments and field observations proved that common toad populations living in areas exposed to chemical pollution exhibit several physiological changes that enable more effective protection against environmental stress. Field studies also revealed a relatively high frequency of sex reversal, i.e. male phenotype in some of the genotypically female individuals, in wild populations of agile frogs, especially in urban and agricultural areas. The most likely reason for this is the higher frequency of heat waves in such areas. Furthermore, experimental results suggest that heat-induced sex reversal is accompanied by decreased fitness. Theoretical models have shown that the probability of sex reversal, as well as its consequences for population dynamics and microevolution, depend on the type of sex-chromosome system and on mate-choice preferences. These results highlight the diverse implications of chemical pollution, climate change and the urban heat island effect, which especially threaten the survival of animal species whose sexual development is sensitive to environmental effects.

Beetles in the forest: long-term effects of habitat change on the structure of ground beetle assemblages, from community level to individual behaviour

2024-12-16T04:53:18+00:00

In a long-term study (2014–2018), I assessed the effects of four forest management treatments [clear-cutting area, retention tree group, preparation cutting (elements of the cutting regime) and gap-cutting (intervention of the evergreen forest regime)] on the structure of the ground beetle assemblages (Coleoptera: Carabidae), based on taxon-based and functional diversity metrics, relative to untreated control stands. I also combined this research with tracking individual movement patterns to address the behavioural aspect of habitat use. I confirmed that the functional redundancy of the forest specialist gerbil community is a good characterization of the naturalness of forest stands, and that this group is also sensitive to changes in canopy closure. This approach can help to identify forest management strategies that can contribute to sustainable forest management.

Scale – pattern – habitat choice – life history: ecology of terrest-rial isopods (Isopoda, Oniscidea)

2024-12-16T04:53:18+00:00

Species of the suborder Oniscidea (Isopoda) are the most successful invaders of terrestrial habitats within the crustacean class. They are excellent models of terrestrial adaptation. Functionally, they are decomposers of the soil ecosystem. The most important results and conclusions summarized in the MTA doctoral dissertation: Regularities can be recognized in the distribution of species – developed on different scales and due to different background reasons. There is a latitudinal trend in Europe, which means a decreasing number of species north of the Mediterranean and a change in the biogeographical/ecological character of the species. The number of species and the degree of endemism are high in Mediterranean regions. The nature of the habitats of a geographical region determines its species richness and the naturalness of the species. We have expanded the interpretability of the species richness and diversity indices with indices that can be used to classify species and communities. There is a close relationship between a habitat and its isopod fauna. Species can be classified based on their habitat, ecological needs and tolerance, or vice versa: the naturalness and disturbance of a habitat can be judged based on the species living there. Human activity plays a major role in the spread of species. The settlement of introduced species in cities is regular and decisive, causing biotic homogenization. There is a correlation between the morphological character of species and their ecological needs. The intra- and interspecific dynamics of populations differ in their life history strategies. Key environmental factors determine the temporal development of activity density. Female size and number of offspring are closely correlated, fecundity decreases over time regardless of female size.

Polarization vision of aquatic insects, polarized ecological traps

2024-12-16T04:53:18+00:00

The research presented in this review paper provided new data on the polarization vision of different aquatic insect taxa and its biological role. It has also demonstrated the effects of different artificial polarized light sources and their polarization patterns on aquatic insects. In the first part we summarize the light polarization vision-based behaviour of mayflies (Ephemeroptera), dragonflies (Odonata), non-biting midges (Chironomidae) and horseflies (Tabanidae) that play a crucial role in the survival of each taxon. Research presented in the second thematic unit has shown that polarotactic aquatic insects often prefer artificial surfaces that are totally unsuitable as habitat and reflect strongly and horizontally polarized light, rather than the water surface. The striking levels of insect mortality frequently observed near such artificial surfaces have played an important role in the scientific definition of the term ecological trap. A specific form of ecological traps is polarized light pollution, which is a threat to aquatic insects, and whose typical sources are oil lakes, asphalt roads, black plastic sheeting used in agriculture, glass surfaces of greenhouses and buildings, car bodies, black tombstones, solar panels and solar collectors. If a polarotactic aquatic insect has a choice between these horizontally polarizing surfaces and a water surface, it will not choose water because of the supernormal polarization signal of the former. The exploration of this phenomenon has led to the recognition and definition of a new type of ecological light pollution, polarized light pollution.

Az Állattani Szakosztály ülései (2023. november 20. – 2024. október 9.)

2024-12-16T04:53:18+00:00

Az előadásokról videófelvételek készülnek, amelyeket szerkesztés után feltöltünk a Szakosztály nyilvános YouTube-csatornájára. Ennek megfelelően a levezető elnök minden előadóülés elején bejelenti, hogy az előadások a továbbiakban videokamerával rögzítésre kerülnek, és a felvételeken történő megjelenést a hallgatóság tagjai az ülésen történő további részvétellel vállalják. A felvételek rögzítését, szerkesztését és feltöltését Sulyán Péter végzi, akinek ezúton is köszönetemet fejezem ki, mert munkájával nagymértékben megkönnyítette jelen összefoglaló elkészítését.

Köszönettel tartozunk a társrendező Magyar Nemzeti Múzeum Közgyűjteményi Központ – Magyar Természettudományi Múzeumnak, amiért előadóüléseink helyszínét, a Semsey Andor előadótermet 2020-tól térítésmentesen a Magyar Biológiai Társaság rendelkezésére bocsájtja, továbbá biztosítja az előadóülések megtartásához és rögzítéséhez szükséges technikai hátteret.