PNRP 42(1)
Diet composition of the barn owl Tyto alba in Goniądz and Wizna at the edge SUMMARY Diet composition of the barn owl Tyto alba was studied in two localities on the border between peatbogs of the Biebrza and Narew valleys and higher plains. Total material contained 1,416 vertebrate prey items (Table 1): in Wizna (249) collected in 1985, in Goniądz (1,167) collected in years 2008-2017. Mammals clearly dominated the diet of Tyto alba in the study area (97.2-99.4%). Owls captured 16 species of small mammals from the taxa: Soricomorpha (3), Chiroptera (1) and Rodentia (12). Soricomorphs were important components of barn owls’ diet (62.3% in Wizna, 44,3% in Goniądz). Species associated with wet habitats (Neomys fodiens, Arvicola amphibius, Microtus oeconomus, Sicista betulina) as well as those from arable fields, pastures and meadows (Microtus arvalis, Mus musculus, Apodemus agrarius) were components of the diet. Bats represented by one species (Eptesicus serotinus) were found only in Goniądz. Birds and amphibians were rather scarce prey (respectively 2.0-7.6% and 0-1.6%). House sparrow was the most frequent avian prey. Its share in Wizna was higher (6.4%) than in Goniądz (1.4%). Sorex araneus, M. musculus and M. arvalis were captured more frequently, and M. oeconomus less frequently as compared to the structure of small mammal community in open wet habitats of the Biebrza Valley (Fig. 1). Hunting territories of barn owls at both sites covered a mosaic of habitats, including peatbogs (close to Goniądz located in the Biebrza National Park), arable fields and pastures, and also a vicinity of human settlements.
Protected species of aquatic molluscs in the river-lake system SUMMARY Krutynia is one of the most important rivers of the Masurian Lakeland. It is 100 km long and flows through 19 lakes, forming a characteristic river-lake system typical for the lakeland landscape of northern Poland. A relatively well-known group of organisms in Krutynia River are molluscs, whose history has been studied for over 100 years. The aim of the study was to investigate the situation of protected aquatic molluscs in the conditions of strong human impact on the Krutynia river-lake system at the beginning of the 21st century. Studies were carried out in 2005-2015 (in selected sites also earlier and later), analyzing the occurrence of molluscs in all lakes of the Krutynia system and in ten river sections from the source to the outlet. The collected material includes five protected species of molluscs. They were three species of bivalves of the family Unionidae: Unio crassus, Anodonta cygnea and Pseudanodonta complanata, as well as fingernail clam Sphaerium rivicola and snail Borysthenia naticina. The most common protected species in the Krutynia system was A. cygnea, recorded in most lakes and in almost half of the studied river sections. Its highest density (10 indiv./m2) was found in Lake Zyzdrój Wielki in the middle of the system. In the river (in the upper part), there was a maximum of 6 ind./m2. The length of the largest individuals exceeded 10 cm (maximum 11.3 cm). The age of the oldest bivalves was estimated at 9-10 years. U. crassus and S. rivicola were found only in the river sections. They reached a density of 1-2 ind./m2. The length of U. crassus was 17-64 mm, and its age was up to 6 years. Live P. complanata were found only in the outlet section of the Krutynia River, although empty shells of this species were also recorded in the middle part of the river and in Lake Lampasz in the upper part of the system. Only in one lake (Zyzdrój Mały) the presence of the snail B. naticina was confirmed, but these were only empty shells. Old literature data from 100 years ago prove that the species composition of the molluscs of the Krutynia system is still similar, which may indicate the persistence of environmental conditions there. Hopefully, despite the considerable tourist pressure, Krutynia River will also remain a refuge for protected species.
Dragonflies (Odonata) of the “Bagno Pogorzel” Nature Reserve (east-central Poland) SUMMARY
The aim of the study was to determine the species composition of dragonflies (Odonata) of the “Bagno Pogorzel” Nature Reserve (east-central Poland), comprising, i.a., complex of Sphagnum bogs and dystrophic lakes. The study was conducted in 2021-2022 and consisted of the observation of imagines and the collection of exuviae.
Flora of vascular plants of the Liwiec river valley (Mazovia) SUMMARY
In the study area 544 vascular plant species were found. The identified species belong to 99 families. The most abundant are: Asteraceae – 69 species, Poaceae – 56 sp., Rosaceae – 38 sp., Fabaceae – 29 sp., Caryophyllaceae – 25 sp. Others are: 51 families with 2 to 20 species and 36 families with only one representative recorded. The study area 9 protected species have been found: two species under strict protection Jovibarba sobolifera, Dianthus superbus and seven species under partial protection Centaurium erythraea, Epipactis helleborine, Helichrysum arenarium, Lycopodium annotinum, Allium angulosum, Matteuccia struthiopteris, Taxus baccata.
SHORT FLORISTIC, FAUNISTIC AND MICOBIOTIC NOTES
The Sites of the Water Chestnut Trapa natans L. in the nature reserve SUMMARY In Poland, the Water Chestnut is considered a rare and endangered species, the maintenance of which requires active protection. Until recently, populations of this species were found only in the immediate vicinity of the Vistula, Odra and San rivers, as well as in the Sandomierz, Oświęcim and Śląska valleys. However, in recent years, the Water Chestnut has been returning to historical positions and found in completely new locations. An example can be the area of Milicz Ponds, where the Water Chestnut began to appear in 2013. In the Barycz valley, the water nut Water Chestnut has never been recorded before. The sites described above are the only ones known in the entire area of Milicz Ponds and indicate the recent and gradual settlement of the local reservoirs. Until 2022, 10 sites of this species were recorded, of which only 3 sites proved to be sufficiently stable for the species to survive here - in the Wilczy Mały Pond and Mieszko Górny Pond. Monitoring in the described area should be continued, which will allow to observe the spreading process of the Water Chestnut in the conditions of extensive fishing management.
The Moss Amblyodon dealbatus (Meesiaceae) in the Tatra National Park. SUMMARY Amblyodon dealbatus (HEDW.) BRUCH ET SCHIMP. is one of the rarest species of mosses in the flora of Poland, under strict protection and endangered, placed in category E. It was recorded most of all from the northern and western parts of the country, mainly in the 19th and the first half of the 20th century. In the Polish part of the Carpathians, it was known only from one long-unconfirmed site on Giewont in the Tatra Mountains. During botanical research conducted in 2022, the second site of this species was found here. It is located on the north-western slopes of Upłaziańska Kopa, in a patch of spring vegetation of the Montio-Cardaminetea class. The paper contains a description of the new site, its location, a short physical and chemical characteristics of the habitat and the floristic composition of the plant community where A. dealbatus was found.
CHRONICLE
European bison and Białowieża Primeval Forest in Leon Zienkowicz’s book SUMMARY In 1841, the book “Les costumes du peuple polonais: suivis d'une description exacte de ses moeurs, de ses usages et de ses habitudes: ouvrage pittoresque” was published in France and Germany. This work contains illustrations depicting inhabitants of Białowieża Primeval Forest, along with descriptions of the forest and European bison. Our article analyses this information in the context of publications of Polish emigration after the fall of the November Uprising, as well as popularisation of knowledge in that era. The figure of Leon Zienkowicz, writer, publisher, scholar and democratic political activist, is also recalled. The article contains the Polish translation of the French original. |