江西高天岩自然保护区生态系统服务功能价值评估

高天岩自然保护区位于江西省莲花县,为当地人提供了多项生态服务功能。根据高天岩自然保护区生态与社会经济系统的特征,构建其生态系统服务功能价值评估指标体系,并以2014年数据为基础,综合运用成本替代、市场价值、影子工程、造林成本、成果参数和旅行费用等定量分析方法,评估其生态系统的经济价值。结果表明:2014年,高天岩自然保护区生态系统服务总经济价值为7.20×10~8元,其中,土壤保持和固碳释氧的经济价值居前两位,分别为4.39×10~8元和1.16×10~8元,各占服务总经济价值的60.89%和16.11%。9项服务指标按评估的经济价值大小排序为:土壤保持固碳释氧产品供给生物多样性保护环境净化气候调节旅游休憩调洪蓄水社会保障。直观的经济数字反映了高天岩自然保护区生态系统对人类社会的重要贡献,一方面有利于强化管理者和公众保护高天岩自然保护区的意识,另一方面为政府制定高天岩自然保护区生态系统补偿标准提供数据支撑。     

退耕区域发展碳汇产业的生态经济学思考

碳汇产业,即利用植物吸收二氧化碳的潜力及规律,在人工适度干预下获得清洁空气、满足人们生产和生活对生态环境需求的产业,为原有相对均衡或稳定的农业产业-资源系统的优化升级提供突破口和新的增长点.退耕区域生态系统服务中,固碳释氧功能的经济显化、碳汇潜力的迅速提高,以及国内外碳汇交易与碳汇市场的兴起等,为碳汇产业的发展奠定了理论和现实基础.随着碳汇产业的发展,生产经营者必然以提高碳汇产出为核心,形成对碳源的控制及对碳贮量增加路径的开发,重新布局农业产业-资源结构,因而为退耕区域可持续发展带来新的活力;同时,也隐含了下一步需要研发的重点,即碳汇产业融入后的农业产业-资源的配置结构及良性耦合机制.     

崇义客家梯田生态系统服务功能

开展崇义客家梯田系统生态服务功能价值评估,有助于人们更好地了解梯田系统对崇义客家社会的重要贡献,为当地政府保护客家梯田系统提供重要依据.本研究基于崇义客家梯田系统及其所处区域的社会经济特征,构建了相应的生态服务功能价值评估指标体系;运用定性分析法对客家梯田系统的生态服务功能机理及其重要性作了识别;以2014年统计数据为基础,采用物质量和价值量相结合的定量评价方法,对客家梯田系统的9项生态服务指标进行评估.结果表明: 在评估的9项指标中,土壤保持的物质量和价值量同居各指标之首,分别为76457 kg·hm^-2和105033 元·hm^-2,相应地占梯田系统总物质量和总价质量的72.2%和30.0%.文化传承和景观体现了客家梯田系统独特的生态服务功能,价值量分别为100000和46333元·hm^-2,位居9项指标的2、3位.产品供给是客家梯田系统提供给崇义客家人的重要福祉,但其物质量和价值量只占梯田系统生态服务总物质量和总价值量的6.1%与10.4%,因此仅考虑产品供给将严重低估梯田系统的生态服务功能.直观的经济数字反映了客家梯田系统对社会的巨大贡献,不仅有利于提高管理者和公众保护农业文化遗产的意识,也为政府制定客家梯田系统生态补偿标准提供了数据支撑.     

Decoupled evolution of display morphology and display behaviour in phrynosomatid lizards

A widespread trend in animals is the evolution of morphological ornaments and behaviours that are involved in aggressive and courtship displays. These display traits are important from the standpoint of communication, sexual selection, and speciation. Previous authors have suggested that the evolution of display morphology and display behaviour should be closely linked. In this study, I tested for this association with behavioural and morphological data for 59 taxa of phrynosomatid lizards using phylogenetic comparative methods (Mad-dison's concentrated changes test and Felsenstein's independent contrasts). The results showed little significant association between features of display morphology and behaviour, suggesting that the evolution of these traits is not tightly coupled. This decoupling is particularly evident in the genus Sceloporus , in which several species have lost the display coloration but retain unmodified display behaviour. The results also suggest that display morphology is more evolutionarily labile than display behaviour in this group.     

新菠萝灰粉蚧生活习性初探

新菠萝灰粉蚧是严重为害剑麻的外来害虫。该虫主要为害剑麻的根、茎、叶片部位。本文对新菠萝灰粉蚧各个虫态的形态特征进行了描述,并对其生活习性进行了初步的研究。     

Character displacement in the fighting colours of Hetaerina damselflies

Aggression between species is a seldom-considered but potentially widespread mechanism of character displacement in secondary sexual characters. Based on previous research showing that similarity in wing coloration directly influences interspecific territorial aggression in Hetaerina damselflies, we predicted that wing coloration would show a pattern of character displacement (divergence in sympatry). A geographical survey of four Hetaerina damselfly species in Mexico and Texas showed evidence for character displacement in both species pairs that regularly occurs sympatrically. Hetaerina titia, a species that typically has large black wing spots and small red wing spots, shifted to having even larger black spots and smaller red wing spots at sites where a congener with large red wing spots is numerically dominant (Hetaerina americana or Hetaerina occisa). Hetaerina americana showed the reverse pattern, shifting towards larger red wing spots where H. titia is numerically dominant. This pattern is consistent with the process of agonistic character displacement, but the ontogenetic basis of the shift remains to be demonstrated.     

Electron microscopical studies ofThorea ramosissima (Thoreaceae,Rhodophyta): Taxonomic implications ofThorea pit plug ultrastructure

The thallus ofThorea ramosissima was studied electron microscopically. The cells of the medulla, the cortex and the assimilatory hairs differ not only in size and number of plastids and their equipment with thylakoids but also in cell wall structure, the number of mitochondria and the activity of the Golgi apparatus, with dictyosomes transforming complete cisternae into Golgi vesicles with mucilaginous contents in the outer region of the cortex. The pit connections have plugs with a distinct plate—like (not dome-like) outer cap layer. BecauseT. riekei was reported to have dome-like outer cap layers and because this character was the main reason to place theThoreaceae into theBatrachospermales (Pueschel & Cole 1982),T. riekei was reinvestigated, too. A distinct outer cap could not be detected. The reliability of pit plug structure as a taxonomic character and the taxonomic position ofThorea is discussed.     

Determining the economic value of daily dry matter intake and associated methane emissions in dairy cattle

Feed represents a substantial proportion of production costs in the dairy industry and is a useful target for improving overall system efficiency and sustainability. The objective of this study was to develop methodology to estimate the economic value for a feed efficiency trait and the associated methane production relevant to Canada. The approach quantifies the level of economic savings achieved by selecting animals that convert consumed feed into product while minimizing the feed energy used for inefficient metabolism, maintenance and digestion. We define a selection criterion trait called Feed Performance (FP) as a 1 kg increase in more efficiently used feed in a first parity lactating cow. The impact of a change in this trait on the total lifetime value of more efficiently used feed via correlated selection responses in other life stages is then quantified. The resulting improved conversion of feed was also applied to determine the resulting reduction in output of emissions (and their relative value based on a national emissions value) under an assumption of constant methane yield, where methane yield is defined as kg methane/kg dry matter intake (DMI). Overall, increasing the FP estimated breeding value by one unit (i.e. 1 kg of more efficiently converted DMI during the cow’s first lactation) translates to a total lifetime saving of 3.23 kg in DMI and 0.055 kg in methane with the economic values of CAD $0.82 and CAD $0.07, respectively. Therefore, the estimated total economic value for FP is CAD $0.89/unit. The proposed model is robust and could also be applied to determine the economic value for feed efficiency traits within a selection index in other production systems and countries.