Ekaterina Boyarova(1), Alexey Andreychev(2)*, Irina Kozlova(1), and Vyacheslav Kuznetsov(2)
 

1. Center for Hygiene and Epidemiology in the Republic of Mordovia, Saransk 430030, 1a Dal’naya Str., Russia.
2. Department of Zoology, National Research Mordovia State University, Saransk 430005, Russia. *E-mail: andreychev1@rambler.ru

Rabic infection currently determines the epidemic and epizootic state in many countries. In this study, we revealed the value of red fox (Vulpes vulpes Linnaeus, 1758) as a carrier of rabies in the forest zone. Altogether, the research was conducted in 22 districts and the city of Saransk during the period from 2009 to 2018. The work uses a comprehensive epizootological analysis, including methods of modern diagnostics, veterinary and sanitary statistics, epizootological examination, as well as other methods generally accepted in epizootology. When determining the boundaries of the risk of rabies virus in the Republic, we found that the main clusters of epizootic foci of infection are located on the territory of Bolsheignatovskiy, Ichalkovskiy, Chamzinskiy and Atyashevskiy districts. It was found that the expansion of the infection zone over the years on the territory of the Republic is associated with the dynamics of the main host of the pathogen – red fox. In our Republic, the population density of foxes varies from 1.1 to 1.6 individuals per 1000 ha. In some areas, it is twice the average. The highest population density was observed in 2010 – 1.6 individuals per 1000 ha. The same year, there was a large proportion (66 %) of infected foxes with rabies, compared to other animals. The first rise of diseases coincides with the period of fox rut (early spring) and the second-with the settlement of young animals (autumn-winter).

Boyan Milchev(1)* and Valeri Georgiev(2)

1. University of Forestry, Department of Wildlife Management, 10 K. Ochridski Blvd., 1797 Sofia, Bulgaria. *E-mail: boyan.m@abv.bg
2. Ministry of Environment and Water, 22 Maria Luisa Blvd., 1000 Sofia, Bulgaria. E-mail: valege@abv.bg

Changes in land use practices such as livestock rearing and crop farming are crucially important for conserving biodiversity in the modern world. This study characterizes the shifts in the diet of the Eagle Owl Bubo bubo population in SE Bulgaria mainly as a result of agro-economic changes and depopulation of settlements. The share of predominant prey species in preferred weight classes from urban and open (mainly gallinaceous birds) habitats decreased significantly after the collapse of traditional livestock husbandry and local abandonment of agricultural land. These species were replaced by wetland ones when available and small rodents especially during population eruptions. The Northern white-breasted hedgehog Erinaceus roumanicus and the European hare Lepus europaeus contributed more as prey for Eagle Owls. Other significantly increased replacement prey species in the Eagle owl diet consisted of predatory mammals and birds as well as many smaller species typical of open and wood-shrubby habitats. High proportions of the latter prey groups characterized the annual diets of the studied population after resumption of farming operations and indicated at least temporary food shortages for Eagle Owls. The characteristic direction of diet shifts at the subpopulation level in the particular breeding clusters responded to the agro-economic changes and the landscapes of hunting territories. Despite diet changes, the average prey weight and the food niche breadth of successfully breeding Eagle Owl pairs differed insignificantly at a population level over the time series, except during two years with vole outbreaks.

Halyna Lesiuk*, Ihor Soloviy, and Ion Dubovich

Ukrainian National Forestry University, Department of Ecological Economics, 103 Gen. Chuprynky Str., Lviv 79057, Ukraine. *E-mail: halyna.lesiuk@nltu.edu.ua

Every forest governance model development has unique features and lessons to be learned. The institutional reforms in Ukrainian forestry are still in progress but there is lack of assessment and diagnosis of its impacts on Ukrainian forest governance. This paper provides such an assessment for the current status of the Ukrainian forest governance system, using FAO and PROFOR approach. It is based on the assessment of three fundamental pillars of forest governance (I) policy, legal, institutional and regulatory frameworks, (II) planning and decision-making process- es, and (III) implementation enforcement and compliance. A set of indicators, developed within these pillars, was assessed by 53 experts. The results show that Ukrainian forest governance is far from achieving the status of ‘good forest governance’, and can be described rather as ‘poor forest governance’. However, some positive tendencies such as performing well the functions of planning, organization, and control in the Ukrainian forestry are identified.

Vasyl Lavnyy(1)*, Vasyl G. Mazepа(1), and Ivan F. Shyshkanynets(2)
 

1. Department of Silviculture, Ukrainian National Forestry University, 103 Gen. Chuprynky Str., Lviv, 79057, Ukraine. *E-mail: lavnyy@gmail.com
2. Zacharovanyi Krai Natural Park, Transcarpathian district, Ilnytsia, 90130, Ukraine.

The objects of the study were pure and mixed middle-aged beech stands that grow on humid fertile hornbeam-beech forest type conditions on the southern and northern slopes at the altitude of 550–600 m a.s.l. We found a correlative relationship between beech radial increment and climate indices. Average radial increment of beech varies within the limits of 1.71 to 2.41 mm depending on tree composition with the maximum in the mixed stands. The share of early wood and late wood of the annual ring of beech fluctuates within the limits of 83–88 % and 12–17 %, respectively. In the mixed stands that grow on the northern slopes, annual radial increment of beech is maximal. In the mixed and pure forest stands average radial increment of beech on the northern side of the slope compared to the southern side is higher. It has been found that radial increment of the south-facing side of beech trees growing on the southern mountain slope and the north-facing side of them growing on the northern mountain slope is higher in comparison to the opposite side of the trees. Radial increment extremes in many cases are identical with climate indices extremes. In the years of the most intensive solar activity beech radial increment is minimal. Relationship between beech increment and climate indices is stronger in the pure beech stands than it is in the mixed stands. Relationship between beech increment and air temperature as well as precipitation becomes weak in the mixed stands and it is moderate in the pure stands. Beech increment correlates greatly with humidity deficiency, air temperature and precipitation, which is especially marked during the period from 2003 to 2013. Beech wood radial increment correlates closely with air humidity and humidity deficiency both in the pure and in the mixed stands.

Panagiotis Michopoulos(1)*, Alexandra Solomou(1), Theodoros Grigoratos(2), and Constantini Samara(2)

1. HAO-DEMETER – Institute of Mediterranean Forest Ecosystems, Terma Alkmanos, Athens 115 28, Greece. *E-mail: mipa@fria.gr
2. Environmental Pollution Control Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, Aristotle University, Thessaloniki 541 24, Greece.

The aim of this work was to assess the availability and uptake of phosphorus in the soils of four forest ecosystems in Greece, i.e. a maquis, a deciduous oak, a beech and a fir forest. The highest concentrations of total P were observed in FH (mixture of F and H) horizons (914 to 1269 mg∙kg-1). In the mineral layers (up to 80 cm depth), the range was 439 to 850 mg∙kg-1. The percentages of the available P with regard to the total P were very low. In the FH horizons, they ranged from 2.4 % in the fir plot to 6.5 % in the beech plot. In the mineral layers, all percentages were less than 1.0 % in all forest types. The concentrations of available P were significantly and positively affected by the contents of soil organic C, total nitrogen and the clay percentage. Negative and significant relations were observed for the ratios P/C, P/N and the percentage of sand, whereas the content of total P did not affect the availability of P significantly. The P uptake by trees was based on the calculation of the above ground litterfall. It was found that, at least for the fir plot, the amounts of available P in soils up to the depth of 20 cm were not enough to cover the tree needs. It is hypothesized that the extra P needed is acquired by the dissolution of secondary minerals by root exudates.