海蜇养殖对池塘底泥营养盐和大型底栖动物群落结构的影响

2009年5-9月,对荣成靖海湾大型养殖池塘海蜇(Rhopilema esculentum Kishinouye)养殖期间与养殖期前后底泥营养盐及大型底栖动物群落结构变化进行了研究。结果表明,7月份海蜇养殖期间,由于海蜇的避光性而产生的上下浮动的行为特征造成了对水体的扰动作用, 与海蜇的生物沉积作用共同导致养殖海区(实验点)与邻近非养殖海区(对照点)之间各项底泥营养盐指标均存在显著性差异,其中,实验点氨氮(NH₄-N)、硝氮(NO₃-N)和沉降速率(sedimentation rate, SR)显著高于对照点,实验点叶绿素a(Chla)、总有机物(TOM)和总有机碳(TOC)含量显著低于对照点。多变量聚类分析结果表明,海蜇养殖对养殖池塘的大型底栖动物群落结构产生显著影响,并且7月份实验点大型底栖动物生物多样性指数(H')和均匀度指数(J) 随海蜇放养显著增大,并显著高于对照点。大型底栖动物群落多样性指数与沉降速率(SR)和底泥TOM含量分别表现出显著正相关和负相关,而与其他营养盐指标无显著相关性。     

干旱荒漠区斑块状植被空间格局及其防沙效应研究进展

斑块状植被相对稳定的空间格局是其适应环境的结果,也是干旱区植被存在的主要形式.干旱荒漠区植被对土壤风蚀的防护功能不仅与盖度、高度有关,而且与植被空间格局有关.以往的研究多侧重于植被盖度和高度对防护功能的影响,而对植被格局影响防沙效应的研究相对薄弱.干旱区斑块状格局的植被能否防沙、防沙效应如何一直是防沙治沙工程研究中的焦点问题.综述了干旱区斑块状植被空间格局特征、形成演化及防风固沙效应等方面的研究进展,提出未来应借助3S技术手段和模型模拟方法,加强对斑块状植被空间格局与风蚀风积过程的互馈关系、斑块动态的驱动因素和斑块状植被格局防沙功能的尺度效应研究.     

南极沉积物来源抗菌细菌的筛选及抑菌物质的鉴定

【背景】科学研究表明,由于南极环境条件特殊,微生物资源丰富,有望筛选出功效显著的抗菌微生物。【目的】以黄瓜枯萎病致病菌木贼镰刀菌(Fusarium equiseti)为指示菌,从南极沉积物中分离筛选具有拮抗作用的细菌菌株并对其抑菌物质进行初步鉴定。【方法】应用平板对峙法和琼脂扩散法分别对样品和发酵液进行初筛和复筛,筛选出对F. equiseti抑菌效果最强的菌株,基于形态学、生理生化、分子生物学分析,对该菌株进行鉴定。之后,对目标菌株发酵上清中的抑菌物质进行抑菌谱研究,并对其抑菌成分进行温度和pH的稳定性检测,通过硫酸铵沉淀的方法初步鉴定发酵液中的抑菌物质。【结果】从南极沉积物样品中共分离纯化出62株细菌,有5株具有较好的抑菌效果,其中抑菌效果最强的菌株鉴定为枯草芽孢杆菌斯氏亚种(Bacillus subtilis subsp.spizizenii),命名为JYM35。抑菌谱检测结果显示,菌株JYM35对丝瓜枯萎病致病菌层生镰刀菌(Fusarium proliferatum)和辣椒枯萎病致病菌F. equiseti具有较强的抑菌效果,对长豆褐腐病致病菌笄霉属(Choanephora)有较明显的拮抗作用,对水产致病菌副溶血弧菌(Vibrio parahaemolyticus)和溶藻弧菌(V.alginolyticus)也有一定的拮抗作用。菌株JYM35发酵上清中所含的抑菌物质热稳定性强且耐碱不耐酸,硫酸铵沉淀后可初步确定其抑菌物质隶属蛋白类。【结论】菌株JYM35是一株产蛋白类活性物质的广谱型抑菌菌株,对枯萎病致病菌的拮抗作用最强。因此具有较好的开发利用价值。     

Taphonomic experiments imply a possible link between the evolution of multicellularity and the fossilization potential of soft‐bodied organisms

The reliability of evolutionary reconstructions based on the fossil record critically depends on our knowledge of the factors affecting the fossilization of soft‐bodied organisms. Despite considerable research effort, these factors are still poorly understood. In order to elucidate the main prerequisites for the preservation of soft‐bodied organisms, we conducted long‐term (1–5 years) taphonomic experiments with the model crustacean Artemia salina buried in five different sediments. The subsequent analysis of the carcasses and sediments revealed that, in our experimental settings, better preservation was associated with the fast deposition of aluminum and silicon on organic tissues. Other elements such as calcium, magnesium, and iron, which can also accumulate quickly on the carcasses, appear to be much less efficient in preventing decay. Next, we asked if the carcasses of uni‐ and multicellular organisms differ in their ability to accumulate aluminum ions on their surface. The experiments with the flagellate Euglena gracilis and the sponge Spongilla lacustris showed that aluminum ions are more readily deposited onto a multicellular body. This was further confirmed by the experiments with uni‐ and multicellular stages of the social ameba Dictyostelium discoideum. The results lead us to speculate that the evolution of cell adhesion molecules, which provide efficient cell–cell and cell–substrate binding, probably can explain the rich fossil record of soft‐bodied animals, the comparatively poor fossil record of nonskeletal unicellular eukaryotes, and the explosive emergence of the Cambrian diversity of soft‐bodied fossils.     

Long‐term dynamics of a cladoceran community from an early stage of lake formation in Lake Fukami‐ike,Japan

An increase in nutrient levels due to eutrophication has considerable effects on lake ecosystems. Cladocerans are intermediate consumers in lake ecosystems; thus, they are influenced by both the bottom‐up and top‐down effects that occur as eutrophication progresses. The long‐term community succession of cladocerans and the effects cladocerans experience through the various eutrophication stages have rarely been investigated from the perspective of the early‐stage cladoceran community assemblage during lake formation. In our research, long‐term cladoceran community succession was examined via paleolimnological analysis in the currently eutrophic Lake Fukami‐ike, Japan. We measured the concentration of total phosphorus and phytoplankton pigments and counted cladoceran and other invertebrate subfossils in all layers of collected sediment cores, and then assessed changes in the factors controlling the cladoceran community over a 354‐year period from lake formation to the present. The cladoceran community consisted only of benthic taxa at the time of lake formation. When rapid eutrophication occurred and phytoplankton increased, the benthic community was replaced by a pelagic community. After further eutrophication, large Daphnia and high‐order consumers became established. The statistical analysis suggested that bottom‐up effects mainly controlled the cladoceran community in the lake''s early stages, and the importance of top‐down effects increased after eutrophication occurred. Total phosphorus and phytoplankton pigments had positive effects on pelagic Bosmina, leading to the replacement of the benthic cladoceran community by the pelagic one. In contrast, the taxa established posteutrophication were affected more by predators than by nutrient levels. A decrease in planktivorous fish possibly allowed large Daphnia to establish, and the subsequent increase in planktivorous fish reduced the body size of the cladoceran community.     

The Effect of Soil Erosion on Europe’s Crop Yields

Abstract Soil erosion negatively affects crop yields and may have contributed to the collapse of ancient civilizations. Whether erosion may have such an impact on modern societies as well, is subject to debate. In this paper we quantify the relationship between crop yields and soil water available to plants, the most important yield-determining factor affected by erosion, at the European scale. Using information on the spatial distribution of erosion rates we calculate the potential threat of erosion-induced productivity losses. We show that future reductions in productivity in Europe as a whole are relatively small and do not pose a substantial threat to crop production within the coming century. However, within Europe there is considerable variability, and although productivity in northern Europe is not likely to be significantly reduced by soil erosion, for the southern countries the threat of erosion-induced productivity declines is stronger.     

Indication of antagonistic interaction between climate change and erosion on plant species richness and soil properties in semiarid Mediterranean ecosystems

We analyzed the consequences of climate change and the increase in soil erosion, as well as their interaction on plant and soil properties in semiarid Mediterranean shrublands in Eastern Spain. Current models on drivers of biodiversity change predict an additive or synergistic interaction between drivers that will increase the negative effects of each one. We used a climatic gradient that reproduces the predicted climate changes in temperature and precipitation for the next 40 years of the wettest and coldest end of the gradient; we also compared flat areas with 20° steep hillslopes. We found that plant species richness and plant cover are negatively affected by climate change and soil erosion, which in turn negatively affects soil resistance to erosion, nutrient content and water holding capacity. We also found that plant species diversity correlates weakly with plant cover but strongly with soil properties related to fertility, water holding capacity and resistance to erosion. Conversely, these soil properties correlate weaker with plant species cover. The joint effect of climate change and soil erosion on plant species richness and soil characteristics is antagonistic. That is, the absolute magnitude of change is smaller than the sum of both effects. However, there is no interaction between climate change and soil erosion on plant cover and their effects fit the additive model. The differences in the interaction model between plant cover and species richness supports the view that several soil properties are more linked to the effect that particular plant species have on soil processes than to the quantity and quality of the plant cover and biomass they support. Our findings suggest that plant species richness is a better indicator than plant cover of ecosystems services related with soil development and protection to erosion in semiarid Mediterranean climates.     

Emission of methane from chalk streams has potential implications for agricultural practices

1. The emission of biogenic gases, particularly methane, is usually associated with wetlands rather than clean streams. Here, we investigated methane production from a southern English chalk stream, where increased sedimentation, compounded by extensive macrophyte growth, may have altered ecosystem function. 2. Cover of the channel by the dominant macrophyte, Ranunculus penicillatus, peaked in August, when plant beds were associated with low water velocity and the accumulation of sediment (<2000 μm) dominated by the sand‐sized fraction (63–1000 μm). 3. Over spring and summer there was a marked increase in the silt/clay fraction of the sediment, a concomitant drop in mean particle size and, hence, inferred permeability. At the same time there was an increase in CH₄ transport through Ranunculus stems and an increase in water column CH₄ concentration, while the sediment CH₄ concentration increased 100‐fold between February and April. A marked seasonal enrichment in the δ¹⁵N of N₂ dissolved in the pore water correlated with CH₄ flux and, coupled to the shift in particle size, suggested a transient input of organic matter, possibly of terrestrial origin. 4. Potential areal methane production and measured efflux were similar to that from some U.K. peatlands and represent one of the first accounts of significant methanogenesis to be measured in a stream channel. Most (>90%) of the methane flux is transported to the atmosphere through the Ranunculus stems. 5. Although the total flux of methane from U.K. chalk streams is probably relatively modest (estimated at 3.2 × 10⁻⁶ Tg CH₄ year⁻¹), this phenomenon changes our perception of the health of these ecosystems and indicates another deleterious side effect of agriculture.     

Natural and anthropogenic forcing of aquatic macrophyte development in a shallow Danish lake during the last 7000 years

Aim To investigate the long‐term changes in aquatic vegetation in a lowland, shallow lake, and to assess the relationship between aquatic vegetation and natural and anthropogenic catchment changes. Location Gundsømagle Sø, Zealand, Denmark: a shallow (mean depth 1.2 m), hypereutrophic lake (mean annual total phosphorus (TP) c. 700 μg TP L^?1) located in a predominantly agricultural catchment (88% cultivated land). The lake is presently devoid of macrophytes. Methods One hundred and forty‐seven contiguous samples from a sediment core (taken in 2000) were analysed for macrofossil remains together with loss‐on‐ignition and dry weight. From an earlier sediment core (taken in 1992), 67 samples were analysed for pollen and the two cores were correlated using the ignition residue profiles. Core chronology was determined by ²¹⁰Pb and ¹³⁷Cs dating of the recent lake sediments, while older sediments were dated by pollen‐stratigraphical correlation, as ¹⁴C dating proved problematical. Aquatic macrofossil abundance was used to reconstruct past changes in the lake's plant community and water‐level. The contemporary catchment land‐use change was inferred from sedimentary pollen data, and soil erosion to the lake was deduced from the minerogenic content of the lake sediments. Results The macrofossil record covers the last 7000 years, but aquatic plant remains were scarce prior to c. 1300 bc . After this date the abundance of submerged and emergent macrophyte remains increased dramatically, paralleled by an increase in sediment minerogenic matter and non‐arboreal pollen (NAP). Aquatic plant remains were abundant for more than 3000 years until the mid 1900s. Macrofossils of Linum usitatissimum (L.) (flax) and high pollen percentages of ‘Cannabis type’ (hemp) were recorded in periods between c. 1150 bc and 1800 ad . Main conclusions Our study suggests that, between c. 5000 bc and 1300 bc , the submerged plant community was confined to the littoral zone. From 1300 bc onwards, the submerged macrophyte vegetation expanded rapidly across the lake bed, presumably as a response to lake shallowing caused by a combination of climatic‐induced water‐level lowering and enhanced erosional infilling of the lake basin due to intensified anthropogenic activities in the catchment. The lake was meso‐eutrophic and had an extensive and diverse aquatic flora for more than 3000 years, until the middle of the twentieth century. In periods between c. 1150 bc and 1800 ad , the lake experienced direct anthropogenic impact from retting of fibre plants (Linum and Cannabis). Over the last 200 years, erosional infilling of the lake basin increased drastically, probably as a result of agricultural intensification. In the twentieth century, the lake was strongly affected by nutrient enrichment from both point sources (sewage from built‐up areas) and diffuse agricultural run‐off which led to hypertrophic conditions and the collapse of the submerged vegetation c. 1950–60. The concept of ‘naturalness’ and the implications for lake conservation are discussed.     

Succession of cable bacteria and electric currents in marine sediment

Filamentous Desulfobulbaceae have been reported to conduct electrons over centimetre-long distances, thereby coupling oxygen reduction at the surface of marine sediment to sulphide oxidation in sub-surface layers. To understand how these ‘cable bacteria'' establish and sustain electric conductivity, we followed a population for 53 days after exposing sulphidic sediment with initially no detectable filaments to oxygen. After 10 days, cable bacteria and electric currents were established throughout the top 15 mm of the sediment, and after 21 days the filament density peaked with a total length of 2 km cm⁻². Cells elongated and divided at all depths with doubling times over the first 10 days of <20 h. Active, oriented movement must have occurred to explain the separation of O₂ and H₂S by 15 mm. Filament diameters varied from 0.4–1.7 μm, with a general increase over time and depth, and yet they shared 16S rRNA sequence identity of >98%. Comparison of the increase in biovolume and electric current density suggested high cellular growth efficiency. While the vertical expansion of filaments continued over time and reached 30 mm, the electric current density and biomass declined after 13 and 21 days, respectively. This might reflect a breakdown of short filaments as their solid sulphide sources became depleted in the top layers of the anoxic zone. In conclusion, cable bacteria combine rapid and efficient growth with oriented movement to establish and exploit the spatially separated half-reactions of sulphide oxidation and oxygen consumption.