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Animals
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Mammal Ecology and Conservation in Southeastern Europe
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Mammal Ecology and Conservation in Southeastern Europe

A special issue of Animals (ISSN 2076-2615). This special issue belongs to the section "Mammals".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 May 2023) | Viewed by 11745

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Dionisios Youlatos

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Zoology, School of Biology, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece
Interests: anatomy; conservation; ecology; evolution; locomotion; mammals; paleontology
Dr. Christos Astaras

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Forest Research Institute, ELGO-DIMITRA, Vassilika, 57006 Thessaloniki, Greece
Interests: terrestrial mammals; species distribution models; non-invasive monitoring techniques; passive acoustic monitoring; human-wildlife coexistence; carnivores; wildlife crime

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In recent decades it has become increasingly clear that we are amidst an overwhelming wave of biodiversity loss that is affecting most taxonomic groups—mammals included. Habitat loss and degradation, pollution, human exploitation and persecution, disease, and climate change are key threats. At the European level, 16.5% of both terrestrial and marine mammal species are threatened with extinction and a further 9% are near-threatened. For an additional 8% we know too little to be able to assess their conservation status (data-deficient). At the regional level, Southeastern Europe is a hotspot of mammalian diversity and also home to the highest number of European threatened species. This ominous first position for the region highlights the need for an increased understanding of the ecology, conservation status, and threats of Southeastern European mammals, so as to provide the foundational work that is often lacking for their effective conservation. This Special Issue aims to publish studies of threatened, near-threatened, and data-deficient mammals from Southeastern Europe, and in doing so a) raise awareness about their status, b) facilitate region- and mammal-specific methodological, management, and conservation knowledge exchange, and c) contribute to the development of tailored measures for their protection.

Prof. Dr. Dionisios Youlatos
Dr. Christos Astaras
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Animals is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • mammals
  • Southeastern Europe
  • conservation
  • ecology
  • behavior
  • genetics
  • population dynamics
  • human–wildlife coexistence
  • wildlife monitoring
  • climate adaptation

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

47 pages, 8864 KiB  
Article
The Bats of Greece: An Updated Review of Their Distribution, Ecology and Conservation
by Panagiotis Georgiakakis, Artemis Kafkaletou Diez, Ioanna Salvarina, Petr Benda, Geoffrey Billington, Christian Dietz, Jacquie Billington, David Cove, Stephen Davison, Martyn Cooke and Eleni Papadatou
Animals 2023, 13(15), 2529; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13152529 - 05 Aug 2023
Viewed by 3416
Abstract
Bats of Greece have been studied since the second half of the 19th century. Their distribution and ecology, however, remain poorly understood. Conservation efforts for the protection of the roosting and foraging habitats of their populations in Greece are limited. To date, 35 [...] Read more.
Bats of Greece have been studied since the second half of the 19th century. Their distribution and ecology, however, remain poorly understood. Conservation efforts for the protection of the roosting and foraging habitats of their populations in Greece are limited. To date, 35 bat species have been recorded from Greece. Four species (Eptesicus anatolicus, Plecotus auritus, Myotis brandtii and Rousettus aegyptiacus) have a limited distribution in the country and the presence of one species (Myotis mystacinus) requires verification. The present study summarises all existing knowledge and adds several hundred new records on the distribution of bats of Greece. Additionally, it provides a summary of new insights on various aspects of their roosting ecology, foraging habitat use, altitudinal distribution, winter activity and landscape characteristics around major roosts. Finally, it discusses the current research and conservation needs of Greek bats. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mammal Ecology and Conservation in Southeastern Europe)
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12 pages, 1184 KiB  
Article
Status and Numbers of the Brown Bear (Ursus arctos L.) in Bulgaria
by Ruslan Serbezov and Nikolai Spassov
Animals 2023, 13(8), 1412; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13081412 - 20 Apr 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3041
Abstract
Until recently, the Bulgarian bear population (Ursus arctos L.) was considered one of the significant ones in Europe and one of the few with more than 500 bears. While the numbers of some neighboring populations may be increasing, the Bulgarian population has [...] Read more.
Until recently, the Bulgarian bear population (Ursus arctos L.) was considered one of the significant ones in Europe and one of the few with more than 500 bears. While the numbers of some neighboring populations may be increasing, the Bulgarian population has been on a downward trend since the early 1990s. The probable numbers of the species at the end of the 1980s was about 700–750 individuals. Calculations based on field data from national monitoring and statistical analysis show probable numbers in Bulgaria in 2020 of about 500 individuals (data for the autumn state). This decline is mostly related to poaching due to weaker control activity, the reduction of forest areas and habitat fragmentation. The preservation of the Bulgarian population, which, together with the other Balkan populations and the Apennine bear, has a unique gene pool, is particularly important from the point of view of preserving the biodiversity of the species in Europe. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mammal Ecology and Conservation in Southeastern Europe)
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15 pages, 19993 KiB  
Article
First Description of the Underwater Sounds in the Mediterranean Monk Seal Monachus monachus in Greece: Towards Establishing a Vocal Repertoire
by Isabelle Charrier, Chloé Huetz, Léa Prevost, Panagiotis Dendrinos and Alexandros A. Karamanlidis
Animals 2023, 13(6), 1048; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani13061048 - 14 Mar 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2363
Abstract
The Mediterranean monk seal Monachus monachus is one of the most endangered pinnipeds in the world, and is classified as “Endangered” by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. Any additional knowledge about the species is invaluable to its effective conservation. In [...] Read more.
The Mediterranean monk seal Monachus monachus is one of the most endangered pinnipeds in the world, and is classified as “Endangered” by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. Any additional knowledge about the species is invaluable to its effective conservation. In the present study, we deployed an autonomous underwater recorder in an important reproductive area of the Mediterranean monk seal in Greece to describe its underwater vocal repertoire. Over the 330 h of continuous recordings, 9231 vocalizations were labelled as potentially produced by Mediterranean monk seals, and 1694 good quality calls were analyzed. We defined 18 call types divided into three main call categories: harmonic, noisy, and pulsative calls. We also described the soundscape in which this endangered species lives and found that human activities around the two main pupping caves had a strong impact on the sonic environment of these seals: the noise level produced by boat traffic was high, and occurred on an hourly (25 to 50 min/hour) and daily basis (10.8 to 16.9 h/day). Such high levels of noise might not only impair the communication of the species, but also impact its survival, as chronic noise can induce physiological stress. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mammal Ecology and Conservation in Southeastern Europe)
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21 pages, 3725 KiB  
Article
Artificial Water Troughs Use by the Mountain Ungulate Ovis gmelini ophion (Cyprus Mouflon) at Pafos Forest
by Nicolas-George Homer Eliades, Christos Astaras, Belle Verheggen Messios, Rob Vermeer, Kostas Nicolaou, Ilias Karmiris and Nicolaos Kassinis
Animals 2022, 12(21), 3060; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12213060 - 07 Nov 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1922
Abstract
For large herbivores inhabiting arid/semi-arid environments, water can be a limiting resource affecting their distribution and abundance for periods when water requirements are not met via forage. The Cyprus mouflon (Ovis gmelini ophion) is such a species, which is endemic to [...] Read more.
For large herbivores inhabiting arid/semi-arid environments, water can be a limiting resource affecting their distribution and abundance for periods when water requirements are not met via forage. The Cyprus mouflon (Ovis gmelini ophion) is such a species, which is endemic to the mountain habitats of Cyprus. Recognizing water scarcity to be a major pressure to the mouflon, and with global warming projected to intensify hot and dry periods in the region, the Game and Fauna Service has been maintaining a network of locally designed watering troughs in Pafos Forest—the mouflon’s stronghold—since 1997. This study describes the mouflon’s use of the water troughs and examines whether visitation rates differed at the daily or weekly scale in response to environmental, climatic or anthropogenic parameters. Using camera traps, ten troughs were monitored from September 2017 to March 2018 (1,065 days; range 29–164 days per trough). Mouflon were detected at seven troughs (mean herd size 1.5 ± 1.2) during 373 independent detections (≥30 min interval between photographs), with visits peaking during late morning and midday hours. Generalized mixed-effect models showed mouflon visiting water troughs more frequently during hotter days, regardless of recent precipitation. Visits were also more frequent at water troughs located close to tar roads. Moreover, there was no evidence of mouflon avoiding water troughs used by predators (red foxes, feral dogs) at either daily or weekly scale, or during hunting days. The study supports the value of artificial water troughs for mediating, partially at least, the effects of climate change on mountain ungulates such as the Cyprus mouflon. Additional studies are proposed that will examine both mouflon drinking patterns across all seasons and ways of improving the effectiveness of the current water trough grid. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mammal Ecology and Conservation in Southeastern Europe)
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