سهراب اشرفی

Forest management involves resource management, natural disturbance, and wildlife habitat. To achieve a sustainable equilibrium, managers require explicit ecological information about the distribution of biodiversity hotspots in the matrix of the mountain-forest landscape. Cave-roosting bats are a keystone species in caves and an ecological indicator of forest quality that are sensitive to ecosystem changes caused by human activities. Spatial explicit models are appropriate tools to identify biologically sensitive areas in achieving key habitats of the forest. In this study, we used the geographical locations of caves in the study area for habitat suitability modeling of cave-dwelling bats. We used spatial explicit models with variables of agriculture, aspect, climate, forest, NDVI, precipitation, range, and water resources (a combination of rivers and streams) and six algorithms: Boosted Regression Tree, Multivariate Adaptive Regression Splines, Mixture Discriminant Analysis, Random Forest, Recursive Partitioning and Regression Trees, and Support Vector Machines in the sdm package. According to the AUC criterion, the best models were RF and BRT with a value of 0.87, and the RPART model with a value of 0.67 had the lowest value of this measure. In explaining the models, water resources and forest variables had the highest scores. We determined the suitable habitats predicted by the ensemble model as a unit of forest ecosystem management at the landscape level. An area of the management unit that has been disrupted by roads and other activities such as sand extraction and tourism development has been determined as a conservation unit.

Phylogenetic inference is a keystone in evolutionary biology research, providing the foundations for thinking and answering a wide range of questions, from population dynamics to species classification statistically. Barbastelle bats have geographically isolated populations, and the possibility of cryptic species within the distribution range of this genus has been predicted in previous studies. Previously, different populations of Barbastelle bats in Iran were assigned to two species: 1) Caspian Barbastelle (Barbastella caspica), and 2) European Barbastelle (Barbastella barbastellus). In the present study, the phylogeny of the Egyptian Barbastelle population in Qazvin province in Iran was investigated. Molecular phylogeny of Egyptian barbastelle which based on last findings thought to belong to the Caspian Barbastelle was compared with other taxa of this genus based on the mitochondrial COI gene. The results of the study showed that the populations of the southern slopes of the Alborz Mountains and possibly the populations of central and western Iran cannot be classified as Caspian Barbastelle. Rather, from a Phylogenetic point of view and based on the observed genetic similarity, this population is closer to the Egyptian form (Barbastella leucomelas) of this genus.

Saccostrea cucullata is one of the widely spread oysters in south coasts of Iran. This study was conducted on 80 specimens of S. cucullata from coastal areas of the Laft port in the Qeshm Island in order to determine the relationships between growth factors and age. The population was divided into five age groups. The 2 year-old and 5 year-old oysters had the highest and lowest number of individuals in the population, respectively. The lowest and highest values of the length, width, height, shell thickness and wet soft tissue weight of S. cucullata were 20-70 mm, 10-50 mm, 3.50-26.50 mm, 1.00-5.90 mm , 0.75-7.68 g, respectively. After testing the normality of the data, their relationships were investigated using correlation and regression. A weak but positive correlation with a significant linear relationship was found between age and growth factors. However, because of the weakness of the correlation, no precise criteria can be found for determination of age based on growth factors.

Conservation of biodiversity under changing environment is a real challenge for conservation biologists. Previous studies have shown that climate change will have negative impacts on bat species. However very little is known about the potential impacts of climate change on bats of Iran. Pipistrellus pipistrellus is a small insectivore bat which live in vast area in Iran. Despite being widespread, the species ecology remains unknown. In the present study we predicted the impacts of climate change on the species distribution, identified future climate refugia for the species and assessed protected areas effectiveness in covering the species suitable habitats. We applied an ensemble approach using four distribution modeling methods (Generalized Linear Models, Generalized Additive Models, Maximum Entropy Modelling and Random Forest). then projected the ensemble model in to the future. We found that the species will lose 118551 km2 of its suitable habitats while gaining 59303 km2 new climatically suitable habitats. Results showed that 7.1 percent of the species suitable habitats covered by protected areas under current climatic condition but in the future suitable habitats will decrease to 6.7 and 6.2 percent under RCP2.6 and RCP8.5 respectively. Climatically stable habitats identified in this study can play important role in species survival under climate change thus they have high priority for conservation.

Biodiversity is one of the most prominent features of a biological community, and bats are considered as indicator in forest ecosystems. The purpose of this study was to estimate the parameters of bat community using bioacoustic method in Hyrcanian forests in Roudbar district of Gilan province. Sampling was performed in the summer (July and August) of 2019 using the bat logger's automatic recorder in the reproductive and wintering habitats of the bats. A total of 20 species of bat from 3 families and 8 different genera were identified in the study area. The genus Myotis with 8 species followed by Pipistrellus with 4 species had the highest number of species. The genera Plecotus and Nyctalus each with two species and the genera Rhinolophus, Miniopterus, Barbastella and Eptesicus each with one species had least number of species. Species richness was estimated to be 26.9 (18.7-35) by Jackknife method. The Simpson diversity criterion was 0.79 (0.77- 0.81) and the Smith and Wilson homogeneity criterion was 0.22. It was generally found that the study area had a high diversity of bat due to its diverse mountainous, forest, aquatic and agricultural habitats. Finally, considering the application of Bioacoustics in forest biodiversity conservation and management programs, it is recommended to use BATLOGGER (M, C) devices for ease of use and efficiency in field sampling in monitoring of forest ecosystems in landscape level

Earthworms have been used as adsorption markers to prove the biological availability of chemical fertilizers in soil. This study aimed to determine the amount of nutrient uptake in some earthworm species in an orchard soil. In this study, the uptake of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, zinc and iron by the application of different chemical fertilizers urea, ammonium sulfate, diammonium phosphate, solupotas, NPK compound fertilizer, NPK fertilizer with cow manure, zinc chelate and iron chelate in five Earthworm species were studied. Treatments were applied in three replications in a randomized complete block design and data were analyzed by ANOVA. Results showed that epigeic species were more active in the uptake of elements such as nitrogen and phosphorus. Meanwhile, E. fetida was more active in nitrogen uptake of urea (72%) and ammonium sulfate but was not active in uptake of phosphorus from diammonium phosphate fertilizer. On the other hand, the presence of organic matter in the fertilizer treatments caused less nitrogen and phosphorus uptake by the worms and under these conditions, the anecic species have performed poorly in the adsorption process. Chelating of nitrogen and phosphorus in organic compound molecules has reduced their adsorption power. In addition, E. fetida showed a higher tendency to adsorb iron (52%) and zinc (50%) in treated soil than control soil. In order to reduce the negative effects of chemical fertilizers on soil organisms, it is recommended to reduce their consumption in shallow soils.

Species distribution model is important to protect and to manage the roe deer as an elusive and national protected herbivore species in Iran. In this study habitat modeling was carried out via Biomod2 package in R software environment using 91 presence points of the spices as well as environmental and human factors. Ensemble model of habitat suitability was prepared based on six species distribution model algorithms for a study area of 74000 km2. AUC for ensemble model was 0.97 which showed an excellent performance. Suitable habitat for roe deer covered an area about 15 percent of the studied area. Also, the results showed that altitude (29%) and land-use (29%) then, maximum temperature in the warmest month and slope variables were the most influential factors on species distribution. Also, the results indicate that anthropogenic factors were not much effective on the species presence. Roe deer prefers the denser forests since this habitat can reduce its visibility and provide sufficient cover and food for the species.

Climate change, land use, and human-factor are some of the most important biodiversity changes currently, as many of the surveys through the recent decades have shown the fact. Steppe habitats are one of the most impressed habitats by the mentioned elements. So this study aims to identify the most important climate variables, land cover and human cover on distribution of Clandra Lark in biodiversity hot spot, Iran-Anatoly. Clandra Lark is used as one of the Indicator species of farm land birds in modeling in order to predict how other birds of the same habitat get influenced. We modeled the habitat for the Clandra lark after assembling presence point of this species in study area, and by the use of climatical, environmental, and human elements, and the Maximum Entropy (MaxEnt) in the Modeling Package (SDM). Analysis and modeling data show that this species is largely dependent on the habitats of west, north and central of Irano-Anatolian region. Also average annual rain and average seasonal rain changes, and human footprint provided about 80 percent of the prediction process respectively. Totally agricultural intensification and changing the rain pattern seem to be one of the most effective elements on choosing the farm land birds’ habitat. Therefore, in order to protect these species we should notice the mentioned elements in land management.

Species distribution models (SDMs) are a tool for the management of wildlife including the roe deer, Capreolus capreolus, as an elusive and national protected herbivore in Iran. Habitat suitability modeling can be one of the most important steps to protect this species. This study was carried out to evaluate the potential distribution of the roe deer in the north and northwest of Iran and to identify the important habitat patches for this species. The habitat suitability modeling was applied 95 presence points and nine environmental variables by MaxEnt®. Thereafter, we focused on the extraction of important habitat patches based on presence points. The land cover, as the most important variable on the habitat suitability model of roe deer and its highest probability presence, is classified as the high and moderate densities in the forest. Habitat patches covered an area of about 4467.81 km2 (i.e., 6.04%of the study area). The largest habitat patch, covering an area about 4022 km2, created a continuous patch in the east of the study area. There were several inter-connected small patches in the most western part of the study area in Arasbaran forests. Actually, Habitat patches should be taken into consideration in the conservation of the roe deer.

 Sea turtles are considered of the globally threatened species in the world. Mortality range of sea turtles in utero is very high due to several natural and human threats, affecting survival and regeneration of these reptiles.

Therefore, identification and control threats are vital to support habitat and survival rate. Eggs transfer to a safe place immediately after laying is a management tool for increasing the emergence success of these critically endangered species. In this study, emergence success of Eretmochelys imbricata in the coasts of Qeshm Island was studied.

 The emergence success rate was 59/92% out of 102 transferred nests (from Shib-deraz and shib- poiee beach). Results showed that no significant differences between Shib-deraz and shib- poiee beach, considering the emergence success of the transferred eggs.

According to the results, we believe that best way to protect hawks-bill turtles in this area is transferring eggs and protecting nests in a safe place to raise emerging success.

Earthworms have been used for many toxicity assay and environmental assessments because of the remarkable role they play in the biological, chemical and physical processes of the soil. The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of chemical fertilizers on the density of earthworms in the soil of an orchard. One square meter area was considered as experimental plot. Seven different types of fertilizers including Urea, Ammonium sulfate (AS), Diammonium phosphate (DAP), Solupotas, NPK (15-5-25), (NPK+OM) and organic manure (OM) as experimental treatments were studied, based on the soil test. Abundance of worms were evaluated in two stages of time and in 2 depths of 0-20 and 20-40 cm of soil. In the first stage, 20 days after the addition of fertilizers, and in the second stage, 60 days after fertilization, earthworms were sampled and their number changes were measured. Treatments were applied in three replications and the data were analyzed using one-way ANOVA (using the GLM process) by SPSS software. The results of the means comparison showed that on the 20th day, at 0-20 cm soil depth, E. fetida species abundance was decreased significantly in AS and Urea treatments compared to the control plot (p˂0.05). From epigeic group, D. hortensis species showed more compatibility and its population in AS treatment was more than that of Urea treatment. Results also showed that the anecic L. terrestris, had a greater tolerance to chemical fertilizers compared to the A. Longa species.

Little is known about altitudinal distribution of lizards in Iran. In the present study we studied distribution pattern of members of family Lacertidae along the eleveatinal gradient in Iran. To determine environmental drivers of distribution pattern of 48 lizard species, all known valid members of family Lacertidae, along elevational gradient in Iran. Firstly, we classified Iran digital elevation model (DEM) based on 100m intervals, that resulted in 56 altitudinal bands and number of species in each band was recorded. Secondly, we extracted mean value of following variables; altitude, slop, area, solar radiation index (SRI), normalized differences vegetation index (NDVI), annual precipitation, precipitation of wettest month, precipitation of driest month precipitation, precipitation of wettest quarter, precipitation of driest quarter, and precipitation of warmest quarter, and using VIF measure correlated variables were removed. Finally, we performed a multiple regression and found that area and precipitation of warmest quarter are the most important drivers of distribution pattern of family Lacertidae along elevational gradient in Iran. General distribution pattern of family Lacertidae was unimodal and maximum number of species living from 1475 m to 1675 m.

Currently, there is little information on the high mountain species' response to the climate change in Iran, and it seems that these species are significantly affected by the climate change. In the current research, the spatial vulnerability of Caspian snowcock (Tetraogallus caspius) to the climate change in Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province was predicted using the ensemble modelling approach, based on seven species distribution models. According to the findings, about 19.43% of the province was estimated to be the suitable habitat of Caspian snowcock. The variables of annual precipitation (23.23%), annual temperature range (21.82%), human footprints (15.77%) and slope (14.46%) had the highest contributions to the model. Findings also showed that about 12.9- 32.28% of the suitable habitats might be lost by 2050 due to the climate change, based on the two scenarios of increased greenhouse gases (RCP4.5 and RCP8.5) and the HadGEM2-CC model. At the same period, it is expected that the suitable habitats of the Caspian snowcock in the low altitude areas would be lost. Additionally, due to the climate change, some populations, especially in the far southern regions of the province, will undergo local extinction or may be completely isolated. Findings of this research can be, therefore, useful for adopting more appropriate approaches in order to manage and protect the Caspian snowcock populations in the country.

Earthworms, due to their beneficial role in agroecosystems, are used as indicator species for monitoring the impact of pollutants, changes in soil structure and agricultural practices. The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of chemical fertilizers management on the density and live weight of earthworms in the soil of an orchard.
Research was carried out in an orchard in Isfahan province. One square meter area was considered as experimental plot. After plowing and grooving at a depth of 5 centimeters per plot, common fertilizers were applied, based on the soil test. Chemical fertilizers such as urea, ammonium sulfate, diammonium phosphate, solupotas, NPK (15, 5, 25), zinc chelate, iron chelate and cow manure were used as experimental treatments with control (no fertilizer). Abundance and live weight of worms were evaluated in two stages of time and in 2 depths of 0-20 and 20-40 cm of soil. In the first stage, 20 days after the addition of fertilizers, and in the second stage, 60 days after fertilization, earthworms were sampled and their number and biomass changes were measured. Treatments were applied in three replications and the data were analyzed using two-way ANOVA (using the GLM process) by SPSS software. In addition, the means were tested with the least significant difference (LSD) at the probability level of 5%.
The assessment of the worms was accomplished at two different depths and at two different times. Sampling in 20th day of experiment showed that at soil depths of 0-20 cm, urea, ammonium sulfate, diammonium phosphate, macro fertilizer NPK and iron chelate had significant negative effect on the abundance and weight of earthworms (p≤0.05). Meanwhile, cow manure (OM) and NPK treatments increased the population and biomass of earthworms. In the depth of 20 to 40 cm, the negative role of urea, ammonium sulfate, diammonium phosphate, NPK fertilizer and iron chelate was decreased, and the NPK maintained its positive role. On the 60th day of sampling, at 0-20 cm depth, urea, ammonium sulfate, diammonium phosphate and iron fertilizer reduced the population and biomass of worms in the soil. However, NPK, OM and zinc chelate (Zn) treatments increased the number of earthworms. At a lower depth (20-40 cm) on the 60th day, the earthworm population was not affected by any of the inorganic fertilizers and nitrogen and phosphate fertilizers not only had no negative effect on the activity of earthworms but also significantly increased their biomass (p≤0.05).
The results showed that chemical fertilizers could have a significant effect on soil organisms, including earthworms. These effects could vary according to the nature and extent of fertilization, as well as the depth of fertilizer usage. Accordingly, in order to reduce the negative effects of chemical fertilizers on soil organisms, it is advisable to reduce their application in shallow soils and when applying, organic fertilizers should be used along with chemical fertilizers.

Understanding phylogeography and genetic variation is a crucial to enhance conservation planning of species. Due to high level of fragmentation affecting many endangered species, unveiling their genetic status is prioritized to promote long-term persistence. Accordingly, the current investigation was carried out on a wide-ranging predator, the Persian leopard. We examined sequence variation in the mitochondrial NADH-5 gene with 550 base pairs for 38 leopards from different parts of Iran. Three closely related haplotypes were identified for the entire country. Apart from one commonly found haplotype throughout Iran, south Caucasus and Turkmenistan, two localized haplotypes were sequenced from southern Zagros and eastern Alborz. Our data supported that leopards do now show spatially differentiated genetic variation based on investigated gene in Iran as well as neighboring countries and possess lower genetic diversity comparing to other leopard subspecies or larger carnivores. It is essential to enhance conservation of the Persian leopard within southern Zagros where a specific haplotype occurs.

This study predicates the prone areas for developing Avicennia Marina forests along the coastal areas of Hormozgan province by studying the oceanography features influencing these forests and using logistic regression models. Tidal areas, flooding level, salinity of water and waves were considered as independent variables. The prediction of prone areas was based on using logistic regression model and the validity of the model was studied by ROC test and Pseudo-R2 . The results of this study indicates that; firstly the maximum wave height, the average maximum flooding level and the level of sanity of water are significantly associated with the presence of Mangrove and the high level of parameters of ROC and Pseudo-R2 confirm the validity of the model. Secondly the maximum wave height was introduced as the main marine parameter influencing the Mangrove communities. Finally the eastern part of the Persian Gulf coast, the west coast of Oman, and a few small spots in the easternmost parts of the coastal zone of Hormozgan province, were found as the most suitable areas for developing Mangrove forest.

This study was conducted to survey population variation of Capoeta heratensis in Hari River and Dasht-e Kavir basins of Iran using geometric morphometric technique. For this purpose, 3 populations of C. heratensis, with 30 specimens for each population, were collected from the Aal, Hari and Bidvaz rivers. The specimens were fixed into buffered formalin after anaesthetizing and transported to the laboratory. The left side of each specimen was photographed using digital camera and fifteen landmark points were digitized on 2D images using TpsDig2. The landmark data after generalised procrustes analysis were analyzed using PCA, CVA and cluster analysis using Past and MorphoJ softwares. CVA analysis displayed significant differences among three studied populations. Based on the results, Bidvaz population showed greater differences compared to two other populations. The observed differences can be attributed to the diversity of habitat and feeding habits of the studied populations as well as geographical separation.

The aim of this research was to study the genetic structure of the Afghan Pika’s (Ochotona rufescens) populations in Northern Khorasan province in order to determine their isolation rate. A total of 122 samples from four sample groups (Ghorkhod, Golol-Sarani, Salouk and Sarigol) were selected and the genotypic features were detected using 7 microsatellite loci. The results showed that all of the loci were subject to polymorphism and the allele ranged from 2 – 7. Significant Fst and Rst values were found among the populations based on the AMOVA test. Based on the Assignment Test, more than 90 percent of the individuals of the populations belonged to their original population (only 10 percent of the individuals belonged to other populations). A Paired comparison of genetic differentiation between the populations revealed significant deferences among them. The results of the Prichard model grouping showed that the samples collected in this study were approximately 7 groups. The results of AMOVA analysis revealed a significant genetic structure among different populations. Also, the majority of the variance is related to the variance within the population. There seems to be a different but small genetic structure among the studied populations.

Rhizophora mucronata forest stands are among the unique mangrove association in the coastline of southern Iran. These stands along with Avicennia marina constitute the only mixed mangrove forest in Sirik site. Despite the long-standing presence of Rhizophora mucronata among mangrove forests of Iran, few studies have been done about its habitat conditions. Understanding these conditions and their comparison with the environmental characteristics of adjacent habitats, could help to identify the leading factors in presence of Rhizophora mucronata only in Sirik habitat. For this purpose, based on the same experiences in Iran and other countries, 14 effective indices on distribution of R. mucronata were recognize and mapped. Such indices as tidal zone, temperature properties, annual rainfall, climate, seawater salinity, soil acidity, wave, substrate, and slope of habitat are among the indices considered in this study. The prepared maps were exported into GIS software. Then, 5% of each map in Sirik, Jask and Minab habitats was randomly selected for exploring the Pearson correlation coefficient and normality test via Kolmogrov-Smirnov test by using Minitab 16 software. The environmental conditions of the mentioned habitats were compared by using independent t-test. The results showed that there are significant difference between fluctuation of temperature, wave height, average maximum flooding level, water salinity and pH of soil in Sirik habitat (with R.mucronata species) and Jask and Minab (without R. mucronata species).

Iran as the last shelter population of the Asiatic cheetah in the world. However, relatively few individuals of this subspecies have been recorded in the last3 decades (50 to 60 collards). Food habits are an important aspect of the ecological niche of carnivores. Here, we studied the diet of the Asiatic cheetah using scat analysis in Bafgh protected area. This area in comparison of the other habitat of the Asiatic cheetah is mountainous. Wild goat is predominant wild ungulate in this area. The result of the analysis of 51 scats of Asiatic cheetah showed that this species preyed mainly on ungulates, which most consumed ungulate respectively are wild goat (frequency of occurrence: 43.14%, relative biomass: 40%), wild sheep (frequency of occurrence: 43.18% , relative biomass: -36.85%) and chinkara (frequency of occurrence: 43.18% , relative biomass: 14.25%) also result showed that after ungulate most consumed prey is livestock.

Efficiency of the existing protected areas network in conservation of biodiversity is one of the most important challenges of protected areas custodians. Despite there are numerous articles on evaluating the efficiency of the protected areas for conserving the habitat and species on national and international scales, in Iran this subject has not been studied yet. The aim of the present study is to investigate the efficiency of Iran’s protected areas in country's biome protection. The results showed large differences in country's biomes coverage by protected areas categories. Given that each category of protected area has different goals and existence of all categories is essential to achieve the goal of biodiversity conservation, it is recommended that in the future development of protected areas in country, the appropriate coverage of each biome should be considered. This means that the map of country's biomes is suggested being the basis for selection of new protected areas in country.

Pollution of agricultural lands is a widespread problem in mine regions. The transport of the pollutants through the food chain, causes their accumulation s in tissues of plants and animals which endangers their health. This study aimed to measure the concentrations of heavy metals (lead, copper, zinc and manganese) in wheat roots of Darreh Zaresh villages which might be used for future environmental monitoring. Ten wheat samples, were collected from each of four villages. After dry acid digestion, the metal concentrations were measured using an ICP-OES instrument. Statistical analyzes were performed using the SPSS(17) software. Concentration of Cu, Zn, Pb and Mn in the roots of wheat samples collected from different villages were significantly different.The highest concentrations of copper, lead and zinc, were observed in wheat roots of Darreh Zereshk village (60.3, 164.3, 123.1, 197.8) mg/kg dry weight, respectively and the highest concentrations of manganese were observed in wheat roots of Hasan Abad village (224.8) mg/kg dry weight. The lowest concentrations of copper, lead, zink and manganese were observed in wheat roots of Darreh Gazeh village (9.8, 21.1, 43.1 and 118.1) mg/kg dry weight, respectively. It is necessary to exploit the mine observing the environmental standards until the transfer contaminations is prevented.

Leopard population has declined sharply during the past 100 years. Persian leopard (Panthera pardus), categorized as Endangered in IUCN Red List of Threatened Species is the largest felid in Iran following the extinct12 Persian lion (P. leo persica) and Caspian tiger (P. tigris virgata). In order to determine the diet and food habits of the Persian leopard in one of its most important habitat in central Iran, Bafgh protected Iran a two–year study (2012-2013) was conducted. The results of this study, which included analysis of 127 Leopard scats, showed that wild sheep (Capra aegagrus), with a frequency of occurrence of 73.23% is the major prey of the Persian leopard in Bafgh protected area, followed by wild sheep (Ovis orientalis), with a frequency of 20.47%. This study revealed that livestock (domestic goat and camel) fed by Persian leopard that can a serious threat for the Persian leopard in close future. Trophic niche breadth of Persian leopard in Bafgh protected area using Levin’s index 0.11 and Shannon-Winner 0.48 was calculated. Two factors that causes decline of trophic niche breadth of this species includes low density of potential prey and high food availability of wild goat.