Monsoon rain forest seedling dynamics, northern Australia: contrasts with regeneration in eucalypt-dominated savannas

Aim To explore: (1) the relative influences of site conditions, especially moisture relations, on pathways and rates of monsoon rain forest seedling and sapling regeneration, especially of canopy dominants, in northern Australia; and (2) contrasts between regeneration syndromes of dominant woody taxa in savannas and monsoon rain forest. Location Four monsoon rain forest sites, representative of regional major habitat and vegetation types, in Kakadu National Park, northern Australia. Methods A decadal study involved: (1) initial assessment over 2.5 years to explore within‐year variability in seed rain, dormant seed banks and seedling (< 50 cm height) dynamics; and (2) thereafter, monitoring of seedling and sapling (50 cm height to 5 cm d.b.h.) dynamics undertaken annually in the late dry season. On the basis of observations from this and other studies, regeneration syndromes of dominant monsoon rain forest taxa are contrasted with comparable information for dominant woody savanna taxa, Eucalyptus and Corymbia especially. Results Key observations from the monsoon rain forest regeneration dynamics study component are that: (1) peak seed rain inputs of rain forest taxa were observed in the wet season at perennially moist sites, whereas inputs at seasonally dry sites extended into, or peaked in, the dry season; (2) dormant soil seed banks of woody rain forest taxa were dominated by pioneer taxa, especially figs; (3) longevity of dormant seed banks of woody monsoon rain forest taxa, including figs, was expended within 3 years; (4) seedling recruitment of monsoon rain forest woody taxa was derived mostly from wet season seed rain with limited inputs from soil seed banks; (5) at all sites rain forest seedling mortality occurred mostly in the dry season; (6) rain forest seedling and sapling densities were consistently greater at moist sites; (7) recruitment from clonal reproduction was negligible, even following unplanned low intensity fires. Main conclusions By comparison with dominant savanna eucalypts, dominant monsoon rain forest taxa recruit substantially greater stocks of seedlings, but exhibit slower aerial growth and development of resprouting capacity in early years, lack lignotubers in mesic species, and lack capacity for clonal reproduction. The reliance on sexual as opposed to vegetative reproduction places monsoon rain forest taxa at significant disadvantage, especially slower growing species on seasonally dry sites, given annual–biennial fires in many north Australian savannas.     

People and mammals in Mexico: conservation conflicts at a national scale

Contrary to much supposition, recent studies, typically at global and continent-wide scales, have documented a positive relationship between spatial variations in human density and species richness of selected groups of vertebrates. How widely this pattern generalises remains unknown, and particularly how well it extends to analyses at the extent of a country and at reasonably fine spatial resolution, and to regions with well-developed mechanised agricultural infrastructure. Here, we demonstrate that there is a positive relationship between human density and mammal species richness across Mexico, and that this appears to follow from similar patterns between spatial environmental variation (particularly net primary productivity, precipitation and temperature) and both human density and mammal species richness. These results have some potentially important implications for conservation planning in the region, particularly given that optimal complementary sets of areas to represent all mammal species in Mexico tend to lie in areas of disproportionately high human density.     

The Influence of Previous Mountain Pine Beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae) Activity on the 1988 Yellowstone Fires

We examined the historical record of mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins) activity within Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, for the 25-years period leading up to the 1988 Yellowstone fires (1963–86) to determine how prior beetle activity and the resulting tree mortality affected the spatial pattern of the 1988 Yellowstone fires. To obtain accurate estimates of our model parameters, we used a Markov chain Monte Carlo method to account for the high degree of spatial autocorrelation inherent to forest fires. Our final model included three statistically significant variables: drought, aspect, and sustained mountain pine beetle activity in the period 1972–75. Of the two major mountain pine beetle outbreaks that preceded the 1988 fires, the earlier outbreak (1972–75) was significantly correlated with the burn pattern, whereas the more recent one (1980–83) was not. Although regional drought and high winds were responsible for the large scale of this event, the analysis indicates that mountain pine beetle activity in the mid-1970s increased the odds of burning in 1988 by 11% over unaffected areas. Although relatively small in magnitude, this effect, combined with the effects of aspect and spatial variation in drought, had a dramatic impact on the spatial pattern of burned and unburned areas in 1988.     

Phosphorus Translocation by Red Deer on a Subalpine Grassland in the Central European Alps

We examined the role of red deer (Cervus elaphus L.) in translocating phosphorus (P) from their preferred grazing sites (short-grass vegetation on subalpine grasslands) to their wider home range in a subalpine grassland ecosystem in the Central European Alps. Phosphorus was used because it is the limiting nutrient in these grasslands. When we compared P removal of aboveground biomass due to grazing with P input due to the deposit of feces on a grid of 268 cells (20 m × 20 m) covering the entire grassland, we detected distinct spatial patterns: the proportion of heavily grazed short-grass vegetation increased with increasing soil-P pool, suggesting that red deer preferably grazed on grid cells with a higher soil-P pool. Biomass consumption related to increased proportion of short-grass vegetation, and therefore P removal, increased with increasing soil-P pool. However, within the two vegetation types (short-grass and tall-grass), consumption was independent from soil-P pool. In addition, P input rates from defecation increased with increasing soil-P pool, resulting in a constant mean net P loss of 0.083 kg ha⁻¹ y⁻¹ (0.03%–0.07% of soil-P pool) independent of both soil-P pool and vegetation type. Thus, there was no P translocation between grid cells with different soil-P pools or between short-grass and tall-grass vegetation. Based on these results, it is likely that the net rate of P loss is too small to explain the observed changes in vegetation composition from tall-herb/meadow communities to short-grass and from tall-grass to short-grass on the grassland since 1917. Instead, we suggest that the grazing patterns of red deer directly induced succession from tall-herb/meadow communities to short-grass vegetation. Yet, it is also possible that long-term net soil-P losses indirectly drive plant succession from short-grass to tall-grass vegetation, because nutrient depletion could reduce grazing pressure in short-grass vegetation and enable the characteristic tall-grass species Carex sempervirens Vill. to establish.     

Isolation and Phylogenetic Analysis of Halophilic Archaeon AJ6

Halophilic archaeon A J6 was isolated and purified from the Altun Mountain National Nature Reserve of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.Strain AJ6 is a Gram-negative rod whose size is 0.2-0.6 by 1.6-4.2 μm,wherein a few cells are globular.The optimum salt concentration for its growth is 20% NaC1 and 0.6% Mg2+,and the optimum pH is 6.0-7.0.Morphological,physiological,and biochemical characteristics of strain AJ6 were observed.The 16S rRNA encoding gene (16S rDNA)sequence of strain A J6 was amplified by PCR,and its nucteotide sequence was determined subsequently."Clustalw"and"PHYLIP"software bags were used to analyze the 16S rDNA sequence;the homology was compared,and then the phylogenetic tree was established.The results indicate that strain AJ6 is a novel species of the genus Natrinema.The GenBank accession number of the 16S rDNA sequences of strain AJ6 is AY277584.     

武夷山国家公园及其周边鱼类多样性

武夷山国家公园是中国正式设立的第一批国家公园之一, 其所处的武夷山脉在动物地理区划上是东洋区南亚亚区华南小区、东洋区东亚亚区华东小区的分界线。为查明武夷山国家公园及其周边的鱼类区系和多样性现状, 本研究在梳理历史研究资料的基础上, 对调查区域内的崇阳溪、麻阳溪、九曲溪、北溪和铅山河5条河流进行了实地调查, 从物种多样性和功能多样性两个层面对武夷山国家公园及其周边地区鱼类多样性水平进行了分析。结合历史数据, 武夷山国家公园及其周边地区分布的土著鱼类为113种, 隶属于5目17科61属, 其中以鲤形目鱼类为主, 共82种, 占物种总数的72.6%, 其次为鲈形目, 共16种, 占总数的14.2%。受威胁鱼类3种, 包括2种国家II级野生水生保护动物, 即胭脂鱼(Myxocyprinus asiaticus)和花鳗鲡(Anguilla marmorata)。武夷山国家公园的第一优势种为拟腹吸鳅(Pseudogastromyzon fasciatus), 与其周边地区以点纹银鮈(Squalidus wolterstorffi)为第一优势种不同。多样性分析结果显示武夷山国家公园的鱼类物种丰富度指数、多样性指数和均匀度指数均低于周边区域。通过比较调查区域内5条河流的鱼类多样性, 麻阳溪鱼类多样性显著高于其他河流, 铅山河的多样性显著低于其他河流。位于国家公园内的九曲溪鱼类多样性比周边地区的崇阳溪要低。鱼类功能多样性结果显示, 武夷山国家公园的功能丰富度指数显著低于周边地区, 功能离散度和功能均匀度均高于周边地区; 在河流方面, 北溪的功能丰富度显著高于其他河流, 崇阳溪的功能均匀度较高, 九曲溪的功能离散度显著高于其他河流。综合鱼类多样性分析结果, 武夷山国家公园鱼类多样性低主要是自然生境异质性低和人为活动共同作用形成, 而周边地区的河流受到捕捞、水利设施、水质污染等因素的影响。这些干扰改变了鱼类的群落结构, 使得鱼类多样性降低。因此应该加强对该区域的鱼类多样性保护工作, 未来还应进一步开展针对公园内鱼类多样性的调查工作。     

华南国家植物园发展历史与未来展望

该文系统回顾了华南国家植物园近百年来几个关键时期的历史发展、主要成就和社会贡献,从国家、中国科学院、地方政府三个层面分析了华南国家植物园率先设立的缘由,展望了华南国家植物园的未来发展前景,提出了我国国家植物园体系建设的思考和建议。     

四川格西沟国家级自然保护区鸟类多样性初探

鸟类多样性研究是国家级自然保护区的重要工作。2020年6月—2021年5月,采用样线法和样点法,调查了四川格西沟国家级自然保护区的鸟类多样性。结果显示:结合历史文献资料,保护区共有鸟类19目56科249种。其中,国家一级重点保护动物10种,国家二级重点保护动物35种,中国特有种11种。居留型以留鸟为主,共156种(62.65%),其次是夏候鸟60种(24.10%)、旅鸟19种(7.63%)、冬候鸟14种(5.62%)。区系组成以东洋界为主,共116种(46.59%),古北界103种(41.37%)、广布种30种(12.04%)。各生态系统中森林和灌丛生态系统Shannon-Wiener指数最高,其他生态系统最低,森林和灌丛生态系统的Sorenson相似性指数最高;夏、秋季的Shannon-Wiener指数和Pielou均匀度指数最高,冬季最低。建议保护区建立长期监测体系,并持续开展鸟类保护宣传活动,加大巡护和管控力度,降低保护区内的人为干扰,同时注重鸟类所利用栖息地的保护。     

青海祁连山国家公园赤麻鸭早春繁殖记述北大核心CSCD

赤麻鸭(Tadornaferruginea)为雁形目鸭科麻鸭属的大型黄褐色鸭类,繁殖于中国东北、内蒙古、青海、甘肃和西藏等地,越冬于华北、长江流域至西藏、广东等地(郑作新等1979,Roberts1991,Cramp1994)。赤麻鸭在中国与印度等地的种群数量相当丰富,但局部种群存在因过度狩猎和生境破坏导致种群数量下降现象(Vyas 2005,宋亚统等2016)。     

中华虎凤蝶湖南种群栖息地特性及其生态保护策略

自2009年首次在湖南乌云界国家级自然保护区发现中华虎凤蝶种群以来,在该保护区持续开展了10余年的野外调查监测。通过对中华虎凤蝶湖南种群6个分布点的野外观测数据分析,结果表明中华虎凤蝶湖南种群栖息环境中的植被以禾本科、菊科、蔷薇科、百合科及豆科植物为主,共计有46科96属128种;不同栖息生境中种群数量差异较大,高山灌草丛为中华虎凤蝶湖南种群的主要生境,而梯田生境、乔木林生境中,其种群数量均很低,展现出与低矮芒草丛的保温遮阴特性以及寄主植物的分布密切相关。寄主植物的复壮和围栏的建设对中华虎凤蝶湖南种群的栖息环境起到了明显的保护作用、对其种群数量的增效作用显著。为深入研究中华虎凤蝶湖南种群的生物学和生态学特性提供了基础数据,为中华虎凤蝶湖南种群的保育工作开展奠定了理论基础,也为当地保护区的保护措施优化提供了科学依据。