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"This is the end, beautiful friend": the evaluation

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"This is the end, beautiful friend": the evaluation

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Now I feel a bit bad because seeing the work of other participants, I think the majority of them immersed more into the subject as I did. I admit I was tight on time, so the moral is: don’t procrastrinate!
Also, my BioArea was maybe too small so it was hard to find specific sources, especially in English. This is one of the reason I was constrained to draw more from personal communication and experiences, on the other hand... A bit personal touch is not necessarily bad, I suppose. :)

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Theme 3/5: Possible signs of climate change in your BioArea, such as weather  extremes

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Theme 3/5: Possible signs of climate change in your BioArea, such as weather  extremes

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There was a year (2012) when the lake at Dinnyési Marsh completely dried out. The Carpathian region (along with the Mediterranean area) is showing a a drought frequency, duration, and severity increase in the past decades due to climate change.

Sources:
http://termeszetiertekeklencsevegen.blogspot.com/2012/09/aszaly-dinnyesi-ferton.html (Hungarian)
https://www.climatechangepost.com/hungary/climate-change/

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Theme 3/4: Possible invasions of alien species in your BioArea during the last decade: the brown bullhead

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Theme 3/4: Possible invasions of alien species in your BioArea during the last decade: the brown bullhead

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The brown bullhead (Ameiurus nebulosus) is originated from North America. It's an abundant species both in Lake Velencei and the channel flowing from the lake through Dinnyési Marsh. It causes harm to native fish species by competing for food and consuming their eggs.

Sources:
https://www.cabi.org/isc/datasheet/94468
http://www.horgasz.hu/page/20/cikkid/402/html/torpeharcsa.html (Hungarian)

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Theme 3/3: Species of your BioArea that appear on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: the fen orchid

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Theme 3/3: Species of your BioArea that appear on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: the fen orchid

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The fen orchid (Liparis loeselii) is currently classified Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List. It can be found in the floating mats of Lake Velencei, see the video below (fen orchid is at 1:48).

Sources:
https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/161960/5519865
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-UmLGnOXao (Hungarian)

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Theme 3/2: Wildlife overexploitation in your BioArea for the food industry, pet market, traditional medicine or the fashion industry

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Theme 3/2: Wildlife overexploitation in your BioArea for the food industry, pet market, traditional medicine or the fashion industry

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Although might not count as overexploitation, illegal angling and fishing activities are frequent in protected areas (from personal communications of rangers). The article below is a small proof to this: a man was found dead in Lake Velencei in January 2016, as he tried to place a prohibited angling tool, but somehow fell in the ice cold water.
If we look from a historical scale, the great egret was hunted in Hungary for its long ornamental feathers, to the point where only six mating pairs remained in the swamps of Kis-Balaton in 1919.

Sources:
http://www.peca.hu/hirek/cikk/belefulladt_a_jeges_velenceitoba_egy_orvhorgasz/ (Hungarian)
https://maptia.com/kudich_zsirmon/stories/changing-fortunes-of-the-great-egret

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Theme 3/1: Habitat loss, habitat fragmentation or habitat degradation in your BioArea

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Theme 3/1: Habitat loss, habitat fragmentation or habitat degradation in your BioArea

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Habitat fragmentation at Lake Velencei and Dinnyési Marsh is mostly caused by roads, hindering animals in free moving. Two personal examples (see pictures): 1. in May 2016, a family brought a greylag gosling* (Anser anser) to the Bird Observatory István Chernel at Agárd. They found it on the road, searching for its parents, but got somehow lost; the family picked the gosling as it was in danger. *(Curiously late brood, by the way.) 2. I ride my bicycle on the bike lane along the lake when I found a young pond turtle (Emys orbicularis) on the middle of the road. I put it back in the reed.
Habitat degradation is an interesting question at Dinnyési Marsh, as its an area that need nature conservation actions - so, it actually deteriorates when humans not intervene. In a good way, of course, which means: 1. the habitat needs frequent water supply, which is fulfilled by treated wastewater. But there were times when this water supply was discontinued, which - along with a drastic drought - resulted desiccation of Lake Nádas (see Theme 3/5 too). 2. the proper amount of grazing is also important. The mosaical grazing and trampling of hungarian grey cattle herd, which was brought to the area around 2000, opened new microhabitats and attracted new bird species' for breeding.

Sources (Hungarian):
https://mmebudapest.wordpress.com/2012/11/15/programvaltozas-dinnyesi-ferto-helyett-pilismaroti-obol/
https://hellovelence.hu/images/uploaded//Image/hirek_kepek/hirlevel_2017_februar.pdf
http://www.dunaipoly.hu/hu/hir/50-eves-a-dinnyesi-ferto-termeszetvedelmi-terulet-2-resz

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Theme 2/5: based on the simplified trophic pyramid found in slide 6 of the resource topic 2.1 'Relationship of organisms in ecosystems', make an analogous one with plants and animals from your own BioArea

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Theme 2/5: based on the simplified trophic pyramid found in slide 6 of the resource topic 2.1 'Relationship of organisms in ecosystems', make an analogous one with plants and animals from your own BioArea

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Theme 2/4: two organisms that share the same food (niche partitioning) and the way that they manage it: the red fox and the golden jackal

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Theme 2/4: two organisms that share the same food (niche partitioning) and the way that they manage it: the red fox and the golden jackal

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The golden jackal (Canis aureus) is a predator that was once extinct from Hungary, but started to colonise again from the 1990s and the population is expanding. As a generalist omnivore that feeds on small to medium size mammals and birds, reptiles, fruit and carrion (and the list goes on), the food niche of the golden jackal considerably overlaps with the one of the red fox (Vulpes vulpes), even up to 73%. With its larger size and social hunting behaviour, the jackal is advantaged and can possibly outcompete the fox. A study in Romania aimed to understand more of their competition: they found that where foxes and jackals live together, foxes have a broader food niche, and in the absence of jackals, foxes tend to specialize to certain prey groups, for example rodents. So, when foxes can exploit a prey group to a lesser extint because jackals take their share of that cake, they react by shifting to a more versatile diet. Or maybe prey populations are big enough for both. So that's how these two canine predators can live together in Romania.
...and also at the Lake Velencei. Results of acoustic playback monitoring from 2007 showed that golden jackals successfully settled down in the region and there was a huge leap in their numbers in 2014. Still, the red fox population hasn't declined yet. One possible reason (again) is that preys are abundant enough to sustain both population. Another possible explanation is that golden jackal population have not reached the critical value where competition with red fox occurs.

Sources (Hungarian):
http://volgy-hid.blogspot.com/2016/02/a-velencei-tavi-aranysakalokrol.html
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/316408430_Az_aranysakal_Canis_aureus_es_voros_roka_Vulpes_vulpes_kozotti_taplalkozasi_kompeticio_vizsgalata_Romaniaban_Study_of_competition_between_golden_jackal_Canis_aureus_and_red_fox_Vulpes_vulpes_in_Romani

Golden jackal and red fox:

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Theme 2/3/2: The ecological niche of two characteristic animals: the bearded tit / bearded reedling

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Theme 2/3/2: The ecological niche of two characteristic animals: the bearded tit / bearded reedling

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This species is the mascot of a nature trail at the Dinnyési Marsh (Madárdal Tanösvény). The bearded tit (Panurus biarmicus) is a wetland specialist, it breeds colonially in large reed beds (consist of common reed Phragmites australis or reed-mace Thypha latifolia) by lakes or swamps. The reed bed doesn't need to be old, bearded tit settles even in two-years old stands. It consumes small insects, spiders, snails and seeds in the winter (since it's a resident species); reed aphids and reed seeds are especially important. The population in Hungary is stable as its habitat is preserved.

Sources:
http://www.mme.hu/magyarorszagmadarai/madaradatbazis-panbia (Hungarian)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bearded_reedling

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Theme 2/3/1: The ecological niche of two characteristic animals: the white-tailed eagle

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Theme 2/3/1: The ecological niche of two characteristic animals: the white-tailed eagle

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This species breeds at the Dinnyési Marsh. The white-tailed eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla) is Europe's largest eagle; as an apex predator, it needs a large territory. This species breeds near to water, in Hungary, its habitat is mostly riparian forests or old lowland oak forests. The white tailed eagle chooses tree for nesting which is sturdy enough but also easy to approach; also, it prefer undisturbed areas since this species is sensitive to human disturbance. An opportunistic feeder, it preys on fish, small mammals and water birds, but also frequently consumes carrion, especially in winter. It's resident in Hungary.

Sources:
https://www.arkive.org/white-tailed-eagle/haliaeetus-albicilla/
http://www.mme.hu/magyarorszagmadarai/madaradatbazis-halalb (Hungarian)

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Theme 2/2/2: Two parasitic organisms: the swallow louse fly

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Theme 2/2/2: Two parasitic organisms: the swallow louse fly

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One can meet this species at the autumn bird ringing in Dinnyési Marsh, when lot of barn swallows are caught. The swallow louse fly (Stenepteryx hirundinis), member of the Hippoboscidae family, is an ectoparasite which sucks blood of swallows, martins and swifts, but its main host is the house martin (Delichon urbicum). This fly has a flat, yellow-brownish body, strong claws at the end of all six feet and very narrow wings and imagos are about 5 mm long. Both the females and males are parasitic; the female doesn't lay eggs but gives birth to larvae which almost inmediately go to the pupal stage. The range of the swallow louse fly is not well known but it might be linked with the range of the house martin.

Sources:
http://www.schaedlingskunde.de/Steckbriefe/htm_Seiten/Stenepteryx-hirundinis-Schwalbenlausfliege.htm (German)
https://www.naturepl.com/stock-photo-swallow-louse-fly-stenepteryx-hirudinis-parasitic-on-swallows-swifts-image01289496.html

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Theme 2/2/1: Two parasitic organisms: the medicinal leech

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Theme 2/2/1: Two parasitic organisms: the medicinal leech

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A species can be found in the water bodies of Dinnyési Marsh. The medicinal leech (Hirudo medicinalis) is an annelid up to 80 mm with a slightly flattened cylindrical body with 33-34 segments and a disk-shaped sucker. It's a blood parasite, adults feed on warm-blooded animals but young individuals feed on amphibians such as newts and frogs. The leech releases anaestetics in the victim's body so it won't be detected, and anticoagulants so the blood won't clot during the feeding. As an amphibious species, it's typical habitat is a small freshwater pond with muddy bottom, surrounded with reed. It's range is Europe and Asia up to the Urals, but it's mostly rare everywhere and classified Near Threatened in the IUCN Red List. Before the modern and industrialised healthcare, they were possibly overexploited for medical use, but these days the main reason is habitat loss and the decline of amphibians.

Sources:
https://www.arkive.org/medicinal-leech/hirudo-medicinalis/
https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Hirudo_medicinalis/

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Theme 2/1/2: Two examples of animals with a predator-prey relation: northern lapwing and worms (annelids)

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Theme 2/1/2: Two examples of animals with a predator-prey relation: northern lapwing and worms (annelids)

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Lapwings prefer grazed meadows with shallow water, therefore Dinnyési Marsh is an ideal habitat for them and they frequently breed here. They feed on small invertebrates. However, food is scarce in early spring so they developed a sophisticated hunting method. They raise a foot and vibrate the surface of the water with it, which lures annelids (mainly earthworms Lumbricus terrestris, I reckon; exact species) from their holes so the lapwings can easily catch them. This method is successful approx. 2 in 3 trials. However, the drawback of this method is that it attracts the attention of starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) who often steals the prey from the lapwings (this behaviour is called kleptoparasitism).

Source (page 11, Hungarian):
http://www.mme.hu/binary_uploads/2_magunkrol/madartavlat/madartavlat_2004_6.pdf

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Theme 2/1/1: Two examples of animals with a predator-prey relation: glossy ibis and medicinal leech

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Theme 2/1/1: Two examples of animals with a predator-prey relation: glossy ibis and medicinal leech

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Glossy ibises tend to aggregate where the Hungarian grey cattles rest in the marshes, because the cattles attract the leeches of the pond, so its an easy food source for the ibises. Glossy ibises have a broad diet, so of course, they are not specialised for leeches; but I think it's a good example of learning and temporal exploitation of food sources. (Although that wasn't the question, this doubles as a mutualistic relationship as well: ibises and cattles both benefit from the presence of each other.)

Sources:
https://www.arkive.org/glossy-ibis/plegadis-falcinellus/
https://www.nlcafe.hu/ezvan/20090606/fenyvesi_laszlo_a_dinnyesi_forto_or
e_tanitoja_szolgaloja_szerelmese_/ (Hungarian)

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Theme 2/1: Two examples of animals with a predator-prey relation: pre-bonus

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Theme 2/1: Two examples of animals with a predator-prey relation: pre-bonus

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pre-bonus: to make my BioArea a bit more personal, both the prey-predator examples I present are the observations of László Fenyvesi, former ranger and now environmental educator in Dinnyési Marsh. He is very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the local wildlife. Here's a picture of him, showing a merlin (Falco columbarius)* to the audience during a ringing event (source: http://www.dunaipoly.hu/hu/helyek/tanosvenyek/madardal-tanosveny).
*(I identified, I hope it's correct.)

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Theme 2: Come up with possible reasons for the decision to reintroduce grey wolves into the National Park.

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Theme 2: Come up with possible reasons for the decision to reintroduce grey wolves into the National Park.

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I choose this one:

3.     The wolves were brought in because the increased elk population was overgrazing the deciduous, woody species such as aspen and cottonwood.

Well, it was easy because I've already heard about the story. But even if I try to imagine that I know nothing, the introductory text implies that mostly experts wanted to reintroduce the grey wolves, but it was controversial from other sides. So, it couldn't be for visitors' sake, which is more connected to the first and second answers.

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Theme 1/5: Does it contain volcanoes or mountains? 

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Theme 1/5: Does it contain volcanoes or mountains? 

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The rocking stones in Velence Hills, in village Pákozd, definitely worth a mention. Velence Hills is located north from Lake Velencei and it's the only
mountain in Hungary where basement rock is granite, therefore it's also the oldest in geographical sense. Weathering and erosion cracks and the granite into cubic blocks, the bigger ones remain balancing on the surface and become unique figures of the landscape.

Sources:
https://www.telepules.com/en/pakozd/tourism/sights/rocking-stones-granite-stones-4482.html
https://www.dunaipoly.hu/hu/helyek/vedett-teruletek/adonyi-termeszetvedelmi-terulet/pakozdi-ingokovek-tt (Hungarian)

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Theme 1/4: Are there areas currently under protection from human presence and/or activities?

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Theme 1/4: Are there areas currently under protection from human presence and/or activities?

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Yes, these are protected areas. See the exact map at the source!

Source:

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Theme 1/3: Can you find evidence of damaging human activities?

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Theme 1/3: Can you find evidence of damaging human activities?

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Yes, especially at Lake Velencei. The increasing pressure from tourism is damaging, not just because of direct disturbance, but because of the removal of
reed and the build-in of shores. Illegal water sport activities and illegal angling is also present sometimes.

Source (Hungarian):
http://www.ramsar.hu/teruletek/23.htm

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Theme 1/2: Does it contain endemic species?

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Theme 1/2: Does it contain endemic species?

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Yes, it has, or HAD. In fact, there is an interesting couple. Two types of wetland habitats coexist in Lake Velencei: the ice age relict floating mat in the
western basin and alkaline water in the eastern basin. But due to the current draining regime and usage, the alkaline water frequently floods the floating mat, which is detrimental to this acidic habitat. That's why one of the signature species of this habitat, the endemic Urtica kioviensis, can't be found in
the area. However, another endemic species, Cirsium brachycephalum, thrives because it belongs to the alkaline marshes.

Sources:
http://www.termeszetvilaga.hu/szamok/tv2017/tv1701/szili.html (Hungarian)
http://natura2000.eea.europa.eu/Natura2000/SDF.aspx?site=HUDI20054

Urtica kioviensis and Cirsium brachycephalum:

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Theme 1/1: Does your BioArea belong to a biodiversity hotspot area?

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Theme 1/1: Does your BioArea belong to a biodiversity hotspot area?

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Dinnyési Marsh and Lake Velencei belong to the Pannonian biogeographical region on a larger scale. Although this region has a high number of endemic species due to the isolating effect of the Carpatians, it doesn't fulfill the first criterion of a biodiversity hotspot, since it doesn't have 1500 endemic vascular plants.

Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biodiversity_hotspot
https://www.conservation.org/How/Pages/Hotspots.aspx
https://hu.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kateg%C3%B3ria:Magyarorsz%C3%A1g_endemikus_n%C3%B6v%C3%A9nyei (Hungarian)

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Theme 1/0: Brief introduction of the area: Dinnyési Fertő and Velencei-tó

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Theme 1/0: Brief introduction of the area: Dinnyési Fertő and Velencei-tó

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But let's call them from now in English, Dinnyési Marsh and Lake Velencei. I chose this area because I started birding there. These are protected wetlands in Fejér county, Hungary. The development of the basin of the lake took place in the boreal warm period of the Holocene; at this time, Dinnyési Marsh and Lake Velencei were connected, but due the gradual decrease of water level and the sedimentation, the parts at Dinnyés became marshy (hence the name). The railway constuction in the 19th century separated the Nádas-tó (part of Dinnyési Marsh) and Lake Velencei for all. Both areas are really important for wetland birds, both for breeding and migratory species', and the floating mats and alkaline plains are plant communities which represent a unique value.

Source: