This study aims at investigating the spatial and temporal variability of the seasonal rainfall over Sinai Peninsula, Egypt, relying on rainfall data taken from gridded data of four gauge stations for 35 years. Moreover, this study determines the teleconnection between the seasonal rainfall and equatorial Pacific sea surface temperature (El Niño SST) over El Arish and Wadi Watir. Due to non-stationary

We studied foraging patterns of Raramuri Criollo (heritage breed, “RC”) and Angus x Hereford (commercial beef breed, “AH”) cows in relation to ambient heat and body temperature during summer (2016 and 2017) and winter (2017 and 2018) in the Chihuahuan Desert. Cows of each breed grazed separately in two adjacent pastures (~1100 ha) in a crossover design for four weeks in each season/year. Animals were

The recent increase of irrigation practices in forage cactus crops makes appropriate irrigation management criteria necessary. In this study, the morphological and yield characteristics of forage cactus cultivars were evaluated for some soil-based irrigation management criteria. Five experiments were carried out simultaneously under semiarid conditions in a randomized block design, with forage cactus

Soil respiration (SR) is an important process and the largest source of carbon cycle of terrestrial ecosystems, which has a significant impact on global climate and environmental changes. The fluctuation of temperature and precipitation caused by climate change is a driving force for the dynamic change of SR. Therefore, we established the field experiment with 5 levels of precipitation by rainout shelters

Burrow system has been proven to be an effective strategy to avoid the interference of adverse circumstances on nesting animals inhabiting the unsuitable environment. To verify the ecological function of burrows in Phrynocephalus przewalskii, 20 sets of thermal characteristics including bottom temperature of real and manmade burrow, and sand surface temperature at burrow entrance were recorded every

Soil respiration is a critical pathway in the carbon cycle, accounting for a major flux of carbon from the biosphere to the atmosphere. However, controls over soil respiration are poorly understood in drylands. Fire is prevalent in many drylands, potentially causing both direct and indirect changes in soil respiration through altering vegetation patterns, soil organic matter, and microclimate. We investigated

Many rangelands in the southwestern United States have experienced increased shrub cover and lower and more variable forage resources during the past 100 years. Criollo cattle are descendants of cattle brought to the Americas by European explorers that spread throughout North and South America. These cattle were displaced in many areas as British breeds became popular, but isolated populations remained

Domestic wood collection affects plant communities through constant biomass removal. We assessed the effects of wood collection for firewood and fence construction on tree community structure in a seasonally dry tropical forest in Brazil. We described the harvest patterns of wood products. Further, we evaluated the effects of rainfall levels and wood collection on tree community structure. Most wood

Fungus-growing termites have long been considered as ecosystem engineers for the modifications they make to the soil, through their ability to concentrate nutrients and create patches of fertile land. However, few studies have highlighted the degree to which, in building their mounds, they are able to modify the grain-size distributions of the sediments and soils in their surroundings. Therefore, the

Dryland agriculture has extensive impacts on surrounding ecosystems through its unintentional provision of food and water resources to local wildlife. We analyzed the response of a predator community of jackals, wolves and foxes to land-management choices, and how that response in turn affects native gazelles and Acacia vegetation in the Arava Valley of Israel. This hyperarid region is characterized

Pinyon jays (Gymnorhinus cyanocephalus) are experiencing range wide population declines primarily in response to habitat degradation. More studies examining pinyon jay nest site selection in pinyon-juniper woodlands would be helpful in determining potential habitat management prescriptions. Therefore, we conducted a nest site selection study in pinyon jay breeding habitat in central New Mexico. We

Feral horse (Equus ferus caballus) grazing can alter arid shrubland habitat in the western United States to the detriment of sympatric wildlife species, including the greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus). To date, studies of horse-influenced habitat alteration have only occurred in a few locations and have infrequently represented gradients of horse use. We investigated whether greater sage-grouse

Co-management requires two or more organizations that collectively manage natural capital. This study aimed to explore the function of social capital in the cycle of establishing co-management in southeastern Iranian rural communities (who participated in the Rehabilitation of Forest Landscapes and Degraded Land (RFLDL) project). Since measuring social capital is important and difficult, and one of

Partial migration occurs when a population of animals contains both migratory and resident individuals. Following anthropogenic changes, the population of Dead Sea Sparrows (Passer moabiticus) in Israel, experienced a rapid expansion of its breeding range, from the Dead Sea northward along the Great Rift Valley. Appropriate climatic conditions, increased water availability and suitable trees to construct

The relationship between nature and culture is conceived as a dialogue, not as a dichotomy. Sociocultural and ecological systems are linked, in which language encodes the foundations of collective knowledge in a way that is often untranslatable but inextricably links its speakers to their landscape and each other. We describe the social practices and ethnotaxonomic knowledge of traditional people living

The Chihuahuan Desert has been overgrazed by livestock ranching since the 16th century. This has changed the structure and dynamics of the ecosystem, and native species have developed physiological adaptations to survive these vegetation changes. We evaluated the changes in packed cell volume (PCV) and plasma protein of Dipodomys merriami, Merriam's kangaroo rats, inhabiting shrubland and grassland

The Caatinga of northeastern Brazil is the largest nucleus of the seasonally dry tropical forest biome. Number of bird species in lists of the Caatinga often are quite different, mainly due to the existence of enclaves of other biomes embedded in this region, and whose species may or may not be included on those lists. While some consider such enclaves as disjunctions of other biomes, and therefore

Woody plants can modify microclimate, nutrients, and seed availability in the soil. We studied the influence of two shrub species on species diversity, and seed density in the northern Monte desert soils. We hypothesized that the presence of shrubs affects species richness and seed density. We predicted a higher richness and seed density under shrubs than open spaces between shrubs, and differences

This study provides a new methodology for simulating environmental water stress index (EWSI) that addresses environmental droughts' stochastic nature at regional and local scales. The current research used a case study of the Upper Ewaso Ngiro river basin in Kenya that possesses regional disparities attributed to climatic, biophysical, and anthropogenic variables. A stochastic modelling approach that

Many species are expected to be at risk from climate change, whereas others may not be threatened because the projected change will occur within their physiological tolerance limits. Particularly, lizards of the genus Uromastyx, known for their narrow climatic and habitat requirements and limited dispersal abilities, might face local or global extinction due to current climate change. To address this

Among the greatest challenges of the arid and semiarid regions is the need for more crop production to meet the increasing demand of the growing population. This study aimed to compare SFI classes with both yield values and vegetation index values derived from satellite images. A total of 281 soil samples were taken at a 1-km resolution in order to quantify the spatial dynamics of soil physical, chemical

The spread of woody plant encroachment is a major concern as it adversely affects herbaceous plant community composition in a savanna ecosystem. Assessing the canopy effects of co-occurring encroaching and non-encroaching woody plant species on the understory herbaceous vegetation biomass and the soil nutrient status can improve our understandings of the link between biological invasions and herbaceous

One of the most recognizable icons of the Namib Desert is the endemic gymnosperm Welwitschia mirabilis. Recent studies indicated that climate change may seriously affect populations in the northern Namibia subrange (Kunene region), but their extinction risk has not yet been assessed. In this study, we apply IUCN criteria to define the extinction risk of welwitschia populations in northern Namibia and

Traditional pastoralism based on free-ranging goats is indispensable for the rural economy of millions of people in the Brazilian Caatinga drylands. The use of landscape as rangelands for domestic herbivores benefits humans, but understanding its impacts on vegetation is crucial to sustainable strategies. Here we assessed how free-ranging domestic goats use mixed working landscapes in the largest dry

Seasonally dry tropical forests are among the most vulnerable ecosystems to the effects of anthropogenic disturbances, and yet their biodiversity is still poorly known. In this study we investigated the composition, activity, structure, and effect of seasonality in mosquitoes’ assemblages of a conservation Caatinga domain unit. The collections consisted of the monthly installation of two Shannon traps

Overgrazing by introduced herbivores is widely recognized as a threatening process in Australia's semi-arid rangelands. Comparatively, grazing by native herbivores is generally considered to have benign effects. Populations of introduced herbivores are controlled in conservation reserves, but populations of native kangaroos and wallabies are seldom subject to control. We investigated the impacts of

The recent study of botanical macro-remains from the Late Sasanian and Early Islamic (5th to 8th century) fort of Fulayj (Batinah, Sultanate of Oman) provides a unique opportunity to discuss food and fuel acquisition strategies in an arid environment and to document periods that are little known from an archaeobotanical perspective in Eastern Arabia. Seed assemblages include the first well-identified

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of different controlled water regimes on the morphophysiological indicators, phenophases, and ideal cutting time of forage cacti clones grown in a semiarid environment. From 2016 to 2018, in the semi-arid region of Brazil, the Miúda (MIU), Orelha de Elefante Mexicana (OEM) and IPA Sertânia (IPA) clones were submitted to three regimes (40%, 80% and 120%

Despite the essential role that vertebrate scavengers play in ecosystems, most studies have been conducted in Europe and North America, and there is a lack of information on vertebrate scavengers in vast regions of the world. Our aim was to describe the functioning and composition of the unknown vertebrate scavenger assemblage in the Gobi Desert, Mongolia, and determine how carcass size and habitat

Information about the variation of biological attributes in species whose distribution covers more than one biome contributes to understanding phenotype variation in different environments. Herein, we evaluated how ecological aspects of the lizard Gonatodes humeralis vary between rainforest populations (Amazon domain) and a recently registered population in a coastal forest influenced by semiarid climate

Crusts on soil surfaces are well recognized for wind erosion control in arid regions and mine tailings. In the last two decades, the use of microorganisms for crust formation on the soil surface has been developed. The topic here is to examine the durability of a biocrust created by Microcoleus vaginatus cyanobacterium and a biocemented sand crust induced by precipitation of calcium carbonate by Bacillus

Nomad, semi-nomad and transhumant used to be the most frequent mobility types of pastoral society. Nowadays, these categories become questionable in regard to the evolution of the pattern life of families in southern Morocco. How do we link past and present mobility? What have been the changes? In this article, we question the relevance of the aforementioned categories of mobility, as defined by the

Biotic modifiers are species that strongly alter environmental conditions, and that often shape local communities. When more than one biotic modifier co-occurs, the potential for interactive effects exists, where the effects of one species may negate or enhance the impacts of a second biotic modifier. Here we test for an interactive effect of aardvark (Orycteropus afer) burrows and tree presence on

Montane desert birds are particularly vulnerable to population declines driven by global climate change that is accelerated at higher elevations. Providing reliable and accurate information about their populations is essential for effective conservation management plans. However, few studies have compared the effectiveness of different survey methods for birds in high altitude arid environments, particularly

For a typical encroacher tree of the thornbush savanna, we studied the responses of water consumption to changes in soil water availability within 80 cm depth, vapor pressure deficit (VPD), and global radiation. Therefore, we monitored the sap velocities of Senegalia mellifera trees over 2 years in a maximum of 20 stems (6–15 plant individuals) per measurement period on a site in central Namibia. For

Fertile islands play an important role in ecosystem structure and function. However, studies on the effects of fine roots of desert shrubson fertile islands in contrasting textured soils are scarce. We investigated soil water and nutrient contents, microbial biomass, fine root densities of Haloxylon ammodendron (C.A.Mey.), and their enrichment indices along a soil profile (100 cm deep and 200 cm wide)

Agricultural drought in a typical semiarid Mediterranean environment is investigated during the growing seasons of 1997 through 2020 using a combination of optical and thermal sensors onboard Landsat satellites. The combination of the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index – Land Surface Temperature (NDVI- LST) space was able to distinguish between drought and non-drought years. A distinct trapezoidal

This essay approaches land degradation by targeting its ultimate thermodynamic causes, rather than its immediate environmental consequences. The objective is to make some propositions that could help understand the essence of the process, and contribute to a theoretical framework to be developed. These propositions are: 1. Human populations are an ecosystem component, not an external driver. 2. Coupled

Hydrogels are a promising management option to increase the efficiency of water use in agriculture in arid and semi-arid regions. However, abiotic factors may affect hydrogel efficacy. The effect of abiotic stress on the swelling and residual acrylamide in hydrogels was evaluated. The treatments were three hydrogels (A, B and C), four temperatures (20, 30, 40 and 65 °C) and two salinities (0.003 and

The Farasan Archipelago is an Important Plant Area near the Arabian Peninsula. The islands are small, low-lying and subject to considerable tourist and industrial development, putting their native flora at risk. Here, we report an updated checklist covering 52 families, including 152 genera and 245 species, which is being published online for the first time. This inventory was performed by a baseline

This study has examined traditional coping systems, emerging adaptation strategies and barriers to the adoption of these strategies. Structured questionnaires on coping and adaptation strategies were conducted among Nyangatom households, expounded by focus group discussions and key informant interviews. Correlations between times series (1987–2016) on rainfall, temperature and the local perceptions

Knowledge about the physical and hydric characterization in the soil is essential for studies on land use and plant development. Thus, this study evaluated water retention and its interrelationships with the physical and chemical attributes of Cambisols under different land uses in a rural settlement in a semiarid region of Brazil. The analysis of soil water retention curves associated with multivariate

Wind erosion results in soil redistribution and textural changes on topsoil. There is little information about how these changes affect plant production. Here, we compared simulations of vegetation growth between a wind-eroded scenario and an actual condition at two sites in Mongolian grasslands (steppe and desert steppe) using an ecosystem model. The wind-eroded scenario, topsoil (0–0.1 m depth) with

To minimize the negative impacts of climate change, adaptation is key. There are, however, a range of factors that, unless recognized and dealt with effectively, can prevent or disrupt adaptation efforts by farmers. Barriers to climate change adaptation in Iran, and their characteristics, are under-researched. They need to be identified and investigated both to inform policymaking and to provide assistance

Drought is a catastrophe that impacts agriculture and causes economic and social damage. An effective monitoring and forecasting system is needed to assess the extent of droughts and to mitigate their effects at both spatial and temporal levels. To this end, we used a Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) in various timescales to classify and track drought events based on CHIRPS rainfall data for

The fourth largest lake in Africa, Lake Chad has shrunk by nearly ninety percent since the 1960s, which has impacted food security and livelihoods for fifty million people residing in the Lake Chad Basin. This short communication discusses how decreased rainfall, exacerbated by climate change, and human activity have contributed to the lake's shrinking and recommends individual, national, and multilateral

We explored the effect of N addition and adult canopy competition on the recruitment of lost preferred species in the Patagonian steppe, where a decelerated N cycling scenario (sensu Ritchie et al., 1998) had been previously detected. In the first experiment we demonstrated that the preferred scarce grass Bromus pictus has typical traits of Competitive species, while the dominant less preferred Pappostipa

Many species occur on unprotected lands, but continuing human pressure makes them rare especially outside protected areas (PAs). The corsac fox is a common predator in Central Asia, but rare in Iran and its conservation status is poorly understood. We aimed to assess its distribution in relation to natural and human factors. Using 31 occurrence records of corsac and 272 of its main prey species, we

Agriculture is one of the most important sectors in the world. It provides food for the growing world populations while also creating employment opportunities. This sector, however, is greatly threatened by climate change, increased water scarcity, droughts, land degradation and poor management of resources. The state of drylands in the world raises great concern given that it largely affects third

The Sultanate of Oman has a rich human history, stretching back millennia, however little is known about the history of human – plant interactions, particularly within the ancient villages and communities in Oman's northern mountains. An ethnobotanical study to document the most utilized wild plant species in Oman's Western Hajar Mountains (Jabal Shams and Jabal Asarah) and assess the threats facing

Sky islands are unique systems composed of well-defined biotic communities established along an elevation gradient. Habitat restrictions associated to climate change make the species vulnerable. This study aimed to forecast the changes in the distribution patterns, altitude and the slope effect in selected plant and vertebrate species inhabiting the sky island Sierra La Laguna as a result of the temperature

Carpophilus beetles have been observed in the flowers of some chiropterophilic columnar cacti. However, the visiting and feeding behavior of these beetles in these flowers has not been described in detail. Here, we describe for the first time the visiting and feeding behavior of Carpophilus lugubris in the flowers of Pilosocereus leucocephalus, a chiropterophilous columnar cactus, in a tropical dry