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Reproductive traits are central to organismal fitness, and so the factors influencing patterns of reproduction and offspring survival are at the heart of biology. Making use of breeding data collected over 16 years at the King Khalid Wildlife Research Centre in Saudi Arabia, we investigated the reproductive biology of Arabian gazelles Gazella arabica. Offspring survival was mainly a function of birth weight, with heavier offspring having higher survival rates than lighter offspring. However, while sons were heavier than daughters, daughters had higher survival rates. We could not find evidence that giving birth to sons negatively impacts offspring weight in the following year. We uncovered large narrow-sense heritability (h 2) in offspring weight at birth, while maternal effects (m 2) on birth weight were of lesser importance. However, maternal effects on offspring survival were strong until weaning age, while paternal effects dominated survival to sexual maturity and first reproduction. We propose that variation in maternal postnatal care might overshadow the effects of maternal inheritance of birth weights, while the overall strong heritability of weight at birth and the paternal effects on survival illustrates strong variance in sire fitness based on genetic quality, suggesting a role for sexual selection by female mate choice in wild populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated the land-snail fauna in Afromontane forest along three transects on the eastern slopes of the Rwenzori Mountains in Uganda. Forty plots at altitudes between 1,770 and 2,932 m were studied. A total of 4,823 specimens were collected and were assigned to 91 land-snail species. Considering additional literature records, the land-snail fauna of the Rwenzori Mountains includes at least 174 species (142 on the Ugandan side). Currently, no area in Africa of a similar size is known to harbour such high regional land-snail species richness. The high species richness and endemism are partly the result of radiations of several Afromontane groups within the Rwenzori Mountains. The regional richness in the Albertine Rift is mainly affected by the distance from Pleistocene forest refugia. The majority of the species recorded in the Rwenzori Mountains extends from the lowest investigated altitudinal levels to different upper altitudinal levels, but there are also groups of species that are restricted to higher altitudes. Thus, the change of the composition of the land-snail communities along the altitudinal gradient is not completely gradual, but there is a rapid turnover in parallel with the transition from the montane rainforest zone to the bamboo zone. Whereas minute Afromontane species often have wide, disjunct distributions across East Africa, larger sized Afromontane snail groups are usually represented by endemic species in different mountain ranges. The better passive dispersal abilities of microsnails probably resulted in a higher gene flow between mountain ranges, resulting in coherence of the populations and a reduced likelihood of speciation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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It has been suggested that all species of spiral-horned antelopes (Tragelaphini) lack territoriality. Furthermore, some authors suggested that bushbuck ( Tragelpahus scriptus) males form dominance hierarchies. In this study, we investigated the dominance relationships in two groups of free-ranging bushbuck males in Queen Elizabeth National Park, Uganda. Adult males dominated young-adult bachelors and subadult males, but no distinct dominance relationships were found among adult males. Landau′s index of linearity revealed no linear dominance hierarchy in the study populations. Our results support the idea that adult males are territorial, and overt aggression is directed almost exclusively towards bachelors that challenge territory holders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intersexual and seasonal variation in foraging behaviour of impala (Aepyceros melampus), was studied in the Lake Mburo National Park, Uganda. There was a moderate seasonal difference in foraging efficiency (as measured by 'acceptable food abundance'), with a minimum in dry season and a maximum in Rainy season. The variation between sexes was more distinct with a pronounced minimum in time spent browsing of males in early wet season. By distinguishing between feeding time spent grazing and feeding time spent browsing the seasonal variation was confirmed. The proportion of foraging time spent feeding (expressed as 'food ingestion rate') showed an inverse pattern with a maximum in the late dry season (75.5%), decreasing values throughout the Rainy season and a minimum in early dry season (57.8%). Differences between sexes were explained in terms of reproductive demands and seasonal balance in terms of moderate climate throughout the year. Impala foraging patterns in the bimodal tropics (two Rainy seasons) is discussed and compared with unimodal tropics. The findings are matched against current ideas on optimal foraging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Western Tragopan is a globally threatened pheasant species of the Western Himalayan Biodiversity Hotspot, whereas protected areas are tools used to protect species and their habitat. In this study, we selected protected areas falling within the potential habitat of the Western Tragopan and evaluated their management effectiveness to understand their role in the protection of the pheasants of global conservation concern. Our results show that only Machiara National Park scored just above 40% (indicating relatively weak management), 22 of the PAs fell within the 25–50% quantile (indicating weak management), and 3 scored below 25% (indicating poor management). PAs within the species distributional range covered 92,387 ha which is only 2% of the total potential habitat of the tragopan. Thus, we concluded that protected areas are not sufficiently contributing to protecting species and its habitat and need to revise their plans. We further recommended establishment of more protected areas within the potential habitat of the species to help protect this iconic species of Western Himalaya. Protected areas are a critical tool to conserve biodiversity in the face of the global crisis of species extinction. Here, we present the first ever management effectiveness assessment of Pakistan's Protected Areas (PAs). We link these assessments to the delivery of conservation outcomes focusing on the threatened Western Tragopan (Tragopan melanocephalus) endemic to Pakistan and India. We used two approaches, first mapping the spatial distribution of potential habitat coverage using machine learning ensemble models and second, an assessment of the management effectiveness of protected areas. Our results show that only Machiara National Park scored just above 40% (indicating relatively weak management), 22 of the PAs fell within the 25–50% quantile (indicating weak management), and 3 scored below 25% (indicating poor management). PAs within the species distributional range covered 92,387 ha which is only 2% of the total potential habitat of the Tragopan. Scoring of Planning element was insufficient both in term of the site and species. Likewise, inputs (e.g., research and monitoring program, staff numbers, staff training, current budget, security of budget, and management after process) were also inadequate. Finally, we recommend the establishment of more protected areas within the species potential habitat and inclusion of species-specific plans in Pakistan's PAs management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]