Impact of mining activity of bauxite mines on the hydrogeomorphologic characteristics of forest ecosystems of the mountainous volume of Ghiona
In the framework of this study, the places as well as the methods and techniques of excavation of bauxite used in the north-eastern side of the mountainous volume of Ghiona and more specifically in the region between Kaloskopi- Kastelli and Gravia were located and mapped. The environmental situation in the region adjacent to the mines of bauxite is recorded and the impact to the natural environment and more specifically to the hydro-geomorphologic characteristics of forest ecosystems in the region under investigation from the various methods applied during the mining activity as well as after it is discussed.
Relationship between livestock husbandry and wildlife in semi-mountainous areas of northeast Rodopi
Rangelands, apart from being the place where livestock are grazing, constitute suitable biotopes for several species of wildlife and places where services such as soil protection, recreation etc. are ensured as well. This makes necessary the determination of the relations and the effects of livestock grazing on the survival of rare or threatened species of wildlife that live in a protected region. The Philiouris valley, in the eastern part of Rodopi Prefecture, which is a NATURA 2000 site, an important habitat for a large number of birds and mammals, was chosen as the study area. The evolution of livestock, land uses and wildlife was studied. Shrublands, occupying 65% of the area, dominate the landscape. The relationship between livestock husbandry and wildlife in the area is in most cases positive and important. Preservation of this relationship depends on maintenance and continuation of traditional land uses and practices. Unfortunately, land abandonment and land use changes results to disorganization or even disappearance of these important landscapes. Traditional landscapes however, which are the result of the interaction between human and natural activities, represent the cultural, social, ecological and economic heritage of the people and they should be preserved, without violating the NATURA 2000 directives.
Small landscape elements and landscape change in Livadi Elassonas area: effects on ornithofauna and herpetofauna – a preliminary analysis
The landscape in the Dolihi area of Livadi Elassonas has undergone major modifications during the past decades. This is confirmed by aerial photographs of the period 1960-1995, and by a QuickBird image taken in 2003. The modifications include new land uses, loss of small scale elements of the landscape, as well as changes in the size of cultivated land. These modifications have possibly affected the presence, the biodiversity and the abundance of various species found in the particular landscape. Since past inventories of biodiversity in the area are not available, the assessment of future impacts of further landscape modifications had to be based on present data. For the identification of the impacts on avifauna and herpetofauna a double approach was adopted that was based on four main landscape types: 1. Sparse shrubland (dehesa). 2. Grassland with some Pyrus amygdaliformis. 3. Riverside vegetation and 4. Agricultural landscape with some hedgerows. The first approach included a comparison for each habitat type between sample areas that were present in 1960 and 2003 with sample areas that were present in 1960 but were largely reduced or modified in 2003. In those sample pairs, which had the same origin, a comparative inventory of avifauna and herpetofauna was made. The second approach included the inventory of avifauna in 2004, with the purpose of assessing the monitoring methodology, and the repeatability of the results of the inventory in the sample areas of the same landscape type. The results show that both avifauna and herpetofauna have been influenced by the modifications in the landscape. However, the quantitative measurement of the biodiversity and abundance of avifauna possibly requires a different landscape analysis that would be based on the segregation of evergreen – deciduous, as well as open-type and closed-type landscape. New land uses such as forested agricultural areas with Robinia pseudoacacia require special research.
Comparison of composition and bird fauna distribution on grazed and non-grazed grasslands in lowland and pseudoalpine areas in Menikio Mountain
Species diversity, abundance and distribution of the bird fauna were studied on grazed and nongrazed grasslands of various topographic characteristics at Mount Menikio, located between Central and East Macedonia, Greece, during spring and summer of 2003. Records of bird fauna were made with the point count method and were recorded on the map using the Global Positioning System (GPS). A total of 56 bird species were observed in 433 point counts. Findings show that bird diversity and abundance were affected by altitude, orientation (with the south, east and west-oriented patches supporting the highest diversity and abundance) and the patch size of the grazed land. Of the latter, the smallest patches supported the highest bird abundance, whereas the largest ones supported the highest species diversity. Grazing also played an important role in the distribution of birds.
Effect of grazing in rangeland type biotopes bird fauna in area of Mount Menikio
The domestic and wild animals affect with various ways in the ecosystem and in the structural units with the intensity and the frequency of grazing, the season and the species of animal species. More specifically for the maintenance wild fauna of birds the effects are direct and indirect. The last one influence the populations of birds, mainly via the effect of domestic animals in the vegetation and in the availability of their food. In the present work are presented the results of repercussions of grazing of domestic animals for certain fauna of birds species constitute habitat from selected areas of grasslands and shrublands (protected or not), different edaphic of mount Menikio. The method of sampling was based on the specific measurements (point counts). The results of research have shown that from the total of measurements, fenced and free in the grazing area, only five (5) species of birds of Directive 79/409/EOK were recorded. The (Caprimuglus europaeus), (Melanocorypha calandra), the (Anthus campestris), the (Lanius collurio) and the (Emberiza hortulana) were the species with more frequency. The first preliminary conclusions showed no significant affective of grazing in the number of plant species and in the fauna of birds species.
