Characterization of Franz Josef Land Soil Mycobiota by Microbiological Plating and Real-time PCR

Microbiology - The mycobiota of the following soils of the Franz Josef Land archipelago was characterized using the classical plating techniques and real-time PCR methods: Cryosols (Arenic),...     

Migration of Walruses (Odobenus rosmarus) in the Svalbard and Franz Josef Land area

Thirty-four walruses ( Odobenus rosmarus ) were fitted with satellite transmitters (PTTs) from 1990 to 1993 in order to study the distribution of the population in the Svalbard area. Twenty-eight were caught at Svalbard and six at Franz Josef Land. All were males except one female caught at Franz Josef Land. At Svalbard, one walrus was caught on the west coast of Spitsbergen, while the others were caught at southern Edgeøya. All walruses were caught in the period from mid-July to early September. The PTTs provided information on location for periods ranging from 0 to 212 days. The results of the satellite trackings show that there is a migration of male walruses between most of the walrus areas at Svalbard and Franz Josef Land. In particular, it seems that migration of males from southern Edgeøya to Kvitøya, Viktoria Island, and Franz Josef Land is common. The walruses winter in the southern parts of Svalbard, as well as within the winter pack-ice of north-eastern Svalbard, which contains numerous open leads. The only walrus at Franz Josef Land that was followed to mid-winter stayed in the area and therefore supports the view that walruses also winter in that area. It is assumed that the majority of walruses at Svalbard are males from one common Svalbard-Franz Josef Land stock. The walrus in the Svalbard-Franz Josef Land area today belong to a recovering population. Their current distribution and behaviour may therefore differ from that found in Svalbard in former times.     

The finding of a cestode in the little auk Alle alle on Franz Josef Land

One of 14 dovekeys (Alle alle) investigated in August 1993 on Hooker Island (Franz Joseph Land) was found to harbour a single specimen of an early immature dilepidid cestode attributed as Alcataenia sp. The rostellum bears a double crown of 22 hooks, 0.025-0.027 mm in length. Except Threlfall (1971) there was no information concerning dovekey's parasites.     

Island-sharing by archipelago species

Summary Diamond (1975) formulated assembly rules for avian species on islands in an archipelago, which made a successful colonisation depend essentially on which other species were present. Critically examining these rules, Connor and Simberloff (1979) maintained that, in the Vanuatu (New Hebrides) archipelago, the field data on species distribution was quite compatible with a null hypothesis, in which species colonise at random with no species interaction. Their work was in turn criticised (Diamond and Gilpin (1982), Gilpin and Diamond (1982)) and a vigorous controversy has ensued.Here we contribute a method in which a simple but hitherto neglected statistic is used as a probe: the number of islands shared by a pair of species, with its first and second moments. The matrix of these sharing values is given as a simple product of the incidence matrix, and its properties are examined — first, for the field data, and then in the random ensemble used by Connor and Simberloff (1979). It is shown that their constraints hold constant the mean number shared, so that any fall in the number that one pair of species share, due to their excluding each other, must imply a rise in the number shared by some other species pair-i.e., an aggregation.Turning to the second moment of the numbers shared, it is shown that its value in the Vanuatu field data exceeds the largest value to be found in a sample of 1000 matrices, these latter being constructed so that they obey the Connor and Simberloff constraints but are otherwise random. This indicates that exclusion and/or aggregation effects are present in the actual distribution of species, which are not catered for by the null hypothesis.The observed distribution thus emerges as much more exceptional than found by Connor and Simberloff (1979), and even by Diamond and Gilpin (1982), when examining the same ensemble. The reason for this disagreement are sought, and some cautions are offered, supported by numerical evidence, concerning the use of the chi-square test when the data points involved are mutually dependent.     

On a typical Jurassic sauropterygian from the Upper Triassic of Wilczek Land (Franz Josef Land,Arctic Russia)

A new elasmosaurid genus and species, Alexeyisaurus karnoushenkoi, from the Lower-Middle Norian (Wilczek Formation) of the Upper Triassic of the island of Wilczek Land (Franz Josef Land) is described based on an incomplete skeleton. The new form combines characters of typical late plesiosaurs and structural features unique to this form. It is probably the earliest representative of typical late sauropterygians (plesiosaurs).     

黄河口潮间带大型底栖动物群落特征

2013年2月、5月和8月对黄河入海口附近潮间带的大型底栖动物进行了调查,调查工作涵盖3个季节2条断面的样品,分析了黄河口潮间带大型底栖动物的群落结构特征,包括群落种类组成、丰度和生物量、优势种、多样性,采用CLUSTER聚类分析了大型底栖动物的群落结构,并用AMBI和m-AMBI对底栖群落和环境质量进行了评估。本次调查共鉴定出大型底栖动物52种,其中,多毛纲动物24种,软体动物14种,甲壳动物12种,鱼类1种,纽虫1种。多毛纲动物为该海域底栖群落的主要成分,占据了群落总种数的46.15%。从季节来看,物种数春季最高(38种),夏季则处于最低水平(16种)。群落丰度和生物量均具有明显的季节变化,丰度在春季达到最高,为3 549.33 ind/m2,远高于冬季的256.67 ind/m2和夏季的100.67 ind/m2,其中扁玉螺(Neverita didyma)是丰度的主要贡献者,贡献了全年群落总丰度的75.44%。生物量春季最高,夏季次之,冬季最低。在全年尺度上,甲壳动物的日本大眼蟹(Macrophthalmusjaponicus)是生物量的主要贡献者,占据总生物量的49.86%。群落的季节变化也得到了群落CLUSTER分析与SIMPER分析结果的验证。这与黄河入海口附近底质不稳定,易受侵蚀、环境条件如盐度等具有明显季节差异,以及一定程度的人为扰动密切相关。AMBI和m-AMBI的分析结果显示,该区域环境质量状况较好,仅受到了轻微扰动影响。     

Abundance, biomass and small-scale distribution of cryopelagic amphipods in the Franz Josef Land area (Arctic)

Arctic sea ice is inhabited by several amphipod species. Abundance, biomass and small-scale distribution of these cryopelagic (=ice associated) amphipods were investigated near Franz Josef Land in summer 1994. The mean abundance of all species was 420 ind./m²; the mean biomass was 10.61 g ww/m². Gammarus wilkitzkii was the dominant species, whereas Apherusa glacialis, Onisimus nanseni and O. glacialis were only scarcely found. Amphipods were concentrated at the edges of ice floes and were less frequent in areas further away under the ice. The relationship between the distribution and ecological/physiological requirements of cryopelagic amphipods, as well as the small-scale morphology of Arctic sea ice, are discussed. Received: 14 January 1998 / Accepted 14 April 1998     

Diversity and biogeographical relationships of the Australian cestode fauna

The Australian cestode fauna remains poorly documented with a total of 342 species recorded to date. The best-studied host groups are the elasmobranchs and the marsupials, but even in these groups, only 32 and 25% of known host species, respectively, have been examined for parasites. Overall, cestodes have been reported from only 5% of the known vertebrate species. Representatives of virtually all cestode orders and most of the cyclophyllidean families have been recorded from Australia. In spite of these deficiencies, some biogeographical patterns are discernible. In the elasmobranchs, a significant proportion of the known cestodes is endemic while other associations exist with eastern Pacific and Indo-west Pacific faunas. Also identifiable is a group of cosmopolitan species. The nematotaeniids of amphibians suggest Gondwanan affiliations, while the known proteocephalideans, parasitic in reptiles and amphibians, may represent an Asian invasion. Associations of the avian cestodes represent an unexplored but potentially rewarding avenue of biogeographical study. The cestodes of mammals include families with a Gondwanan distribution (Linstowiidae, Hymenolepididae) as well as those (Anoplocephalidae) with an apparent origin in southeast Asia. In addition, a number of genera of cyclophyllidean cestodes (Anoplotaenia, Dasyurotaenia) occurring in marsupials represent biogeographical challenges, not being accommodated within any of the known cestode families. The Australian cestode fauna therefore provides potentially outstanding opportunities for studies of the biogeographical relationships of a number of cestode groups.     

Copepod communities off Franz Josef Land (northern Barents Sea) in late summer of 2006 and 2007

Copepods are considered to be the main component of the Arctic marine zooplankton. We examined the copepod distribution and diversity off Franz Josef Land (northern Barents Sea) in August 2006 and 2007. A total of 18 and 14 copepod taxa were identified from the sampling layers (100–0 m or bottom–0 m) in 2006 and in 2007, respectively. There were no significant differences in the total copepod abundance between the years (means ± SE: 118,503 ± 24,115 individuals m⁻² in 2006 vs. 113,932 ± 28,564 individuals m⁻² in 2007). However, the copepod biomass in 2006 (4,518 ± 1,091 mg C m⁻²) exceeded clearly the value in 2007 (1,253 ± 217 mg C m⁻²). The copepod community showed low species richness and diversity in both years (Simpson index D: 0.34 and 0.38, respectively). Biomass of the large and small copepod species strongly decreased from 2006 to 2007. The total abundance of copepods was negatively correlated with water temperature in 2006 and positively correlated with salinity in 2007. The patchiness in copepod distribution was associated with local hydrography and temperature conditions.     

长江口潮下带春季大型底栖动物的群落结构

2005年4月对长江口全区域潮下带共10个采样站位的大型底栖动物进行了调查。调查采获大型底栖动物38种,分属5个生态类型,种类数较少,河口外缘站位种类数多于口内站位。各站位大型底栖动物的平均丰度为32.9个/m2、平均生物量为5.035g/m2(湿重);与20世纪七八十年代相比,平均生物量显著降低;口外缘站位的总丰度和总生物量均高于口内站位。环境因子相关分析表明,盐度是决定长江口大型底栖动物种类分布最重要的环境因子。群落聚类、标序分析显示,春季长江口潮下带大型底栖动物群落结构空间分异明显,完全符合目前长江口支、港、槽“三级分汊”的空间格局。其中,北支的大型底栖动物以混合高盐水种类为主,而南支则以淡水和半咸水种类为主。南支的南北槽分界处内外站位的群落差异也由盐度决定,因为靠近口内的群落均受长江冲淡水影响较大;而口外站位群落则受咸淡水影响。南支的南北港分界点内外的群落差异则主要受长江来水的影响,原因在于处在港分界点以内的群落所在区域,直接受长江来水的冲刷,底质环境极不稳定;而港、槽分界点之间的群落所在区域由于河口上段的诸多明暗沙体的阻挡,水势较为稳定,所以底质环境较稳定,从而使得港、槽分界点之间的群落出现了更多的沙蚕等底质环境类型种类。     

辽宁獐子岛马牙滩潮间带及近岸海区大型底栖动物群落特征

为摸清辽宁獐子岛潮间带及近岸海区的大型底栖动物的分布现状和群落受扰动情况,作者于2011年11月中旬在马牙滩潮间带和近岸海区采集大型底栖动物,采用优势度指数、Shannon-Wiener多样性指数、Margalef丰富度指数、Pielou均匀度指数,Bray-Curtis相似性聚类分析、MDS标序和ABC曲线等方法,分析该区域内大型底栖动物群落的生态学特点.结果表明,在潮间带共鉴定大型底栖动物39种,优势类群为多毛类、甲壳类和软体类;优势种均为多毛类,即小头虫(Capitella capitata)、多美沙蚕(Lycastopsis augenari)、仙居虫(Naineris laevigata)和短叶索沙蚕(Lumbrineris latreilli);平均生物量为25.76±41.08 g/m2,以软体动物占优势;平均栖息密度为315.11±160.73个/m2,以多毛类占优势;丰富度指数、均匀度指数与Shannon-Wiener多样性指数的平均值分别为1.17±0.89,0.74±0.17和1.80±1.09.近岸海区共鉴定大型底栖动物40种,优势类群为多毛类、甲壳动物、软体动物和棘皮动物.优势种包括4种棘皮动物和1种多毛类,即紫蛇尾(Ophiopholis mirabilis)、日本倍棘蛇尾(Amphioplus japonicus)、短叶索沙蚕、心形海胆(Echinocardium cordatum)和浅水萨氏真蛇尾(Ophiura sarsiivadicola).近岸海区的平均生物量和平均栖息密度分别为218.86±152.24g/m2和700.00±471.51个/m2,均以棘皮动物占优势.丰富度指数、均匀度指数与Shannon-Wiener多样性指数的平均值分别为1.40±0.60,0.64±0.19和2.04±0.78.聚类分析结果表明,潮间带不同潮区间和近岸海区不同断面间群落差异显著.ABC曲线分析显示,獐子岛潮间带底质环境受到中度扰动,大型底栖动物群落结构处于不稳定状态;近岸海区受到轻度干扰,群落结构未发生明显变化.     

Biogeography of limno-terrestrial Tardigrada, with particular reference to the Antarctic fauna

The Tardigrada is a cosmopolitan phylum of pre-Pangaean origin, yet tardigrade families and genera show distinct biogeographic components isolated by two major geological events. Separate Laurasian and Gondwanan familial clusters correlate with the Triassic disintegration of Pangaea, while discrete Antarctic, Australian and New Zealand familial/generic clusters relate to the subsequent Jurassic/Cretaceous disintegration of Gondwana.     

胶州湾潮间带大型底栖动物的群落生态

潮间带是沿岸带位于最大高潮水面到最小低潮水面之间的区域,处于陆海过渡带,生物资源非常丰富,也是受各种理化环境因子以及人类活动影响最大的区域。我国近年来对各地不同类型的潮间带进行了一些生态调查研究,包括对胶州湾也进行了数次生态调查,如劭晓阳等(2001)研究了浙江省岛     

Colonization and demographic expansion of freshwater fauna across the Hawaiian archipelago

It is widely accepted that insular terrestrial biodiversity progresses with island age because colonization and diversification proceed over time. Here, we assessed whether this principle extends to oceanic island streams. We examined rangewide mtDNA sequence variation in four stream‐dwelling species across the Hawaiian archipelago to characterize the relationship between colonization and demographic expansion, and to determine whether either factor reflects island age. We found that colonization and demographic expansion are not related and that neither corresponds to island age. The snail Neritina granosa exhibited the oldest colonization time (~2.713 mya) and time since demographic expansion (~282 kya), likely reflecting a preference for lotic habitats most prevalent on young islands. Conversely, gobioid fishes (Awaous stamineus, Eleotris sandwicensis and Sicyopterus stimpsoni) colonized the archipelago only ~0.411–0.935 mya, suggesting ecological opportunities for colonization in this group were temporally constrained. These findings indicate that stream communities form across colonization windows, underscoring the importance of ecological opportunities in shaping island freshwater diversity.     

长江口湿地三个演替阶段大型底栖动物群落特征

2001—2005年对长江口新生沙洲九段沙(上沙、中沙、下沙)盐沼演替序列不同阶段[盐渍藻类阶段(SA)、海三棱草(Scirpusmariqueter)—草(Scirpustriqueter)阶段(MT)、芦苇(Phragmitesaus-tralis)—互花米草(Spartinaalterniflora)阶段(AA)]的大型底栖动物群落特征进行了分析研究。大型底栖动物群落的物种数、Shannon-Wiener多样性指数、Pielou均匀度指数、密度及生物量都是MT>AA>SA。SA、AA优势种的生活型分别是底内型、穴居型;MT优势种的生活型是底上附着型和穴居型。不同沙洲相同盐沼演替阶段大型底栖动物群落结构都较为相似,盐渍藻类阶段的相似性最高;不同演替阶段间差别明显,SA和AA间差别最大。不同盐沼演替阶段大型底栖动物群落特征的明显差异,既反映了环境沿盐沼演替序列的梯度变化,也体现了不同盐沼对底栖动物群落作用的差别,同时也显示了大型底栖动物对不同盐沼演替阶段生境的适应。