Ekologia 

About: Ekologia is an academic journal published by De Gruyter Open. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Biology & Environmental science. It has an ISSN identifier of 1335-342X. It is also open access. Over the lifetime, 181 publications have been published receiving 1019 citations. The journal is also known as: Ecology & Ecology (Bratislava).

Geographic patterns in plant/pollinator mutualistic networks

Abstract: Recent reviews of plant-pollinator mutualistic networks showed that gen- eralization is a common pattern in this type of interaction. Here we examine the ecological correlates of generalization patterns in plant-pollinator networks, especially how interaction patterns covary with latitude, elevation, and insularity. We review the few published anal- yses of whole networks and include unpublished material, analyzing 29 complete plant- pollinator networks that encompass arctic, alpine, temperate, Mediterranean, and subtrop- ical-tropical areas. The number of interactions observed (I) was a linear function of network size (M) the maximum number of interactions: ln I 5 0.575 1 0.61 ln M; R 2 5 0.946. The connectance (C), the fraction of observed interactions relative to the total possible, decreased exponentially with species richness, the sum of animal and plant species in each community (A 1 P): C 5 13.83 exp(20.003(A 1 P)). After controlling for species richness, the residual connectance was significantly lower in highland (.1500 m elevation) than in lowland networks and differed marginally among biogeographic regions, with both alpine and trop- ical networks showing a trend for lower residual connectance. The two Mediterranean networks showed the highest residual connectance. After correcting for variation in network size, plant species were shown to be more generalized at higher latitude and lowland habitats, but showed increased specialization on islands. Oceanic island networks showed an im- poverishment of potential animal pollinators (lower ratio of animal to plant species, A : P, compared to mainland networks) associated with this trend of increased specialization. Plants, but not their flower-visiting animals, supported the often-repeated statements about higher specificity in the tropics than at higher latitudes. The pattern of interaction build- up as diversity increases in pollination networks does not differ appreciably from other

Inventory and classification of historical structures of the agricultural landscape in slovakia

Abstract: Spulerova J., Dobrovodska M., Lieskovský J., Baca A., Halabuk A., Kohut F., Mojses M., Kenderessy P., Piscova V., Barancok P., Gerhatova K., Krajci J., Boltižiar M.: Inventory and classification of historical structures of agricultural landscape in Slovakia. Ekologia (Bratislava), Vol. 30, No. 2, p. 157–170 , 2011. Historical structures of the agricultural landscape (HSAL) hold a special position among historical landscape structures. The HSAL inventory in Slovakia aimed at countryside mapping entitled “Research and maintaining of biodiversity in historical structures of agricultural landscape of Slovakia”. This was established to provide new knowledge of HSAL distribution and conditions in Slovakia. The HSAL database provides outcomes of field mapping and identification of HSAL and their classification throughout Slovakia. The sum of 626 HSAL polygons was recorded in the field, and a total of 3033 polygons were identified as HSAL based on aerial photos. From a land use viewpoint, 4 classes of HSAL were distinguished under the following classification scheme: (1) Historical structures of the agricultural landscape with dispersed settlement, (2) Historical structures of vineyards’ landscape, (3) Historical structures of arable-land, grasslands and orchards and (4) Historical structures of arable-land and grasslands. The most frequent classes encountered are the Historical structures of arable-land and grasslands, and then the HSAL with dispersed settlement.

Evaluation of integrated protected area management in Slovak national parks

Abstract: National park management institutions must adapt as society’s goals and preferences change. This is especially true in countries that recently joined the European Union and have ungone rapid institution change. Tools for evaluating national park management are important for guiding such institutional changes. We evaluate the ability of the Integrated Protected Area Management (IPAM) toolbox to identify areas of management that should be targeted for improvement. We find that the IPAM toolbox breaks the complex task of protected area management into specific tangable action areas, and that IPAM assessment can aid managers in identifing specific areas of protected area management that need revisitng. We conduct an IPAM assessment for all nine Slovak national parks and identify commonalities among the assessment results. These commonalities point to necessary institutional changes beyond the control of individual park administrators. The IPAM toolbox is a useful tool to aid national protected area institutions adapt to changing social and environmental conditions. Ultimately, such adaptiation will lead to more efficent and effective park management.