A land cover map of South America

A digital land cover map of South America has been produced using remotely sensed satellite data acquired between 1995 and the year 2000. The mapping scale is defined by the 1 km spatial resolution of the map grid‐cell. In order to realize the product, different sources of satellite data were used, each source providing either a particular parameter of land cover characteristic required by the legend, or mapping a particular land cover class. The map legend is designed both to fit requirements for regional climate modelling and for studies on land cover change. The legend is also compatible with a wider, global, land cover mapping exercise, which seeks to characterize the world's land surface for the year 2000. As a first step, the humid forest domain has been validated using a sample of high‐resolution satellite images. The map demonstrates both the major incursions of agriculture into the remaining forest domains and the extensive areas of agriculture, which now dominate South America's grasslands.     

Reliability of map accuracy assessments: A reply to Roff et al. (2016)

Roff et al. (Ecological Management and Restoration, 17 , 2016, 000) provide a discussion of the criteria expected for the best approach to validation of mapping programs and uses Hunter (Ecological Management & Restoration 17 , 2016, 40) to highlight issues involved. While we support the general principles outlined, we note that the review does not apply the same standards to Sivertsen et al. (Greater Hunter Native Vegetation Mapping Geodatabase Guide (Version 4.0). Office of Environment and Heritage, Department of the Premier and Cabinet, Sydney, Australia, 2011), the original document critiqued by Hunter (Ecological Management & Restoration 17 , 2016, 40). The Hunter (Ecological Management & Restoration 17 , 2016, 40) validation was based on a larger sample size, greater sampling within mapping units and greater representation of landscapes than Sivertsen et al. (Greater Hunter Native Vegetation Mapping Geodatabase Guide (Version 4.0). Office of Environment and Heritage, Department of the Premier and Cabinet, Sydney, Australia, 2011). Survey and validation sites being placed along public roads and lands are common to both the general Office of Environment and Heritage (OEH) and Hunter (Ecological Management & Restoration 17 , 2016, 40) validation methodologies. Thus, the criticisms of Roff et al. (Ecological Management and Restoration, 17 , 2016, 000) of the Hunter (Ecological Management & Restoration 17 , 2016, 40) approach apply equally, if not more, to Sivertsen et al. (Greater Hunter Native Vegetation Mapping Geodatabase Guide (Version 4.0). Office of Environment and Heritage, Department of the Premier and Cabinet, Sydney, Australia, 2011). We outline in the article how the Roff et al. (Ecological Management and Restoration, 17 , 2016, 000) critique was selective and in some cases incorrect in its analysis of issues presented in Hunter (Ecological Management & Restoration 17 , 2016, 40) and did not apply the same criteria to their own work. We conclude by discussing future directions for validating and mapping vegetation communities.     

Creating spatially continuous maps of past land cover from point estimates: A new statistical approach applied to pollen data

Reliable estimates of past land cover are critical for assessing potential effects of anthropogenic land-cover changes on past earth surface-climate feedbacks and landscape complexity. Fossil pollen records from lakes and bogs have provided important information on past natural and human-induced vegetation cover. However, those records provide only point estimates of past land cover, and not the spatially continuous maps at regional and sub-continental scales needed for climate modelling.We propose a set of statistical models that create spatially continuous maps of past land cover by combining two data sets: 1) pollen-based point estimates of past land cover (from the REVEALS model) and 2) spatially continuous estimates of past land cover, obtained by combining simulated potential vegetation (from LPJ-GUESS) with an anthropogenic land-cover change scenario (KK10). The proposed models rely on statistical methodology for compositional data and use Gaussian Markov Random Fields to model spatial dependencies in the data.Land-cover reconstructions are presented for three time windows in Europe: 0.05, 0.2, and 6 ka years before present (BP). The models are evaluated through cross-validation, deviance information criteria and by comparing the reconstruction of the 0.05 ka time window to the present-day land-cover data compiled by the European Forest Institute (EFI). For 0.05 ka, the proposed models provide reconstructions that are closer to the EFI data than either the REVEALS- or LPJ-GUESS/KK10-based estimates; thus the statistical combination of the two estimates improves the reconstruction. The reconstruction by the proposed models for 0.2 ka is also good. For 6 ka, however, the large differences between the REVEALS- and LPJ-GUESS/KK10-based estimates reduce the reliability of the proposed models. Possible reasons for the increased differences between REVEALS and LPJ-GUESS/KK10 for older time periods and further improvement of the proposed models are discussed.     

A continent under stress: interactions, feedbacks and risks associated with impact of modified land cover on Australia's climate

Global climate change is the major and most urgent global environmental issue. Australia is already experiencing climate change as evidenced by higher temperatures and more frequent and severe droughts. These impacts are compounded by increasing land use pressures on natural resources and native ecosystems. This paper provides a synthesis of the interactions, feedbacks and risks of natural climate variability, climate change and land use/land cover change (LUCC) impacting on the Australian continent and how they vary regionally. We review evidence of climate change and underlying processes resulting from interactions between global warming caused by increased concentration of atmospheric greenhouse gases and modification of the land surface. The consequences of ignoring the effect of LUCC on current and future droughts in Australia could have catastrophic consequences for the nation's environment, economy and communities. We highlight the need for more integrated, long-term and adaptive policies and regional natural resource management strategies that restore the beneficial feedbacks between native vegetation cover and local-regional climate, to help ameliorate the impact of global warming.     

Comparison of phenology trends by land cover class: a case study in the Great Basin, USA

Direct impacts of human land use and indirect impacts of anthropogenic climate change may alter land cover and associated ecosystem function, affecting ecological goods and services. Considerable work has been done to identify long‐term global trends in vegetation greenness, which is associated with primary productivity, using remote sensing. Trend analysis of satellite observations is subject to error, and ecosystem change can be confused with interannual variability. However, the relative trends of land cover classes may hold clues about differential ecosystem response to environmental forcing. Our aim was to identify phenological variability and 10‐year trends for the major land cover classes in the Great Basin. This case study involved two steps: a regional, phenology‐based land cover classification and an identification of phenological variability and 10‐year trends stratified by land cover class. The analysis used a 10‐year time series of Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer satellite data to assess regional scale land cover variability and identify change. The phenology‐based regional classification was more detailed and accurate than national or global products. Phenological variability over the 10‐year period was high, with substantial shifts in timing of start of season of up to 9 weeks. The mean long‐term trends of montane land cover classes were significantly different from valley land cover classes due to a poor response of montane shrubland and pinyon‐juniper woodland to the early 1990s drought. The differential response during the 1990s suggests that valley ecosystems may be more resilient and montane ecosystems more susceptible to prolonged drought. This type of regional‐scale land cover analysis is necessary to characterize current patterns of land cover phenology, distinguish between anthropogenically driven land cover change and interannual variability, and identify ecosystems potentially susceptible to regional and global change.     

A vegetation-based method to map climatic variation in the arctic–boreal transition area of Finnmark, north-easternmost Norway

Aim To develop a new method for bioclimate mapping where the vegetation layer is the main source of climate information. Location The study area includes four subareas, all situated on the Varangerhalvøya peninsula in Finnmark, north‐easternmost Norway (70–71° N). The four subareas were chosen to represent most of the climatic, topographic, geomorphologic and botanic diversity along the arctic–boreal gradient in the area. The four meteorological stations in the area show a climatic gradient with mean July temperature ranging from 10.1 to 12.3 °C. Methods The new vegetation‐based method is based on the fact that most plant species and plant communities both in the Arctic and adjacent areas have a distribution pattern limited by temperature to some extent. The vegetation is mapped using Landsat TM data and a contextual correction process in a geographic information system. The mapped vegetation units are defined as temperature indicators based on their total distribution patterns and the temperature indicator value of their high frequency and dominant species. The indicator value and degree of cover of all thermophilous vegetation units, within each 500 × 500 m study unit, are combined in a Vegetation‐based Index of Thermophily, VI_tm. This new vegetation‐based method is based on the same basic idea as a recently published floristic‐based method for calculating a Floristic‐based Index of Thermophily, FI_tm. The VI_tm values are tested by comparison with the FI_tm values, and temperature data collected in the field during two growing seasons, and the differences are interpreted ecologically. Results Twenty‐one of the mapped vegetation units were defined as thermophilous and categorized in five groups of temperature indicators. The VI_tm values showed a strong positive linear relationship with the temperatures measured during the years 2001 and 2002, with r² values of 0.79 and 0.85, respectively. The VI_tm values show a high linear relationship (r² = 0.76) with the 71 study units where the FI_tm values were calculated. As interpreted from the relationship with temperature measurements and FI_tm values, the vegetation‐based method seems to work at a broad range of ecological conditions, with very dry, acidic sites being the most important exception. The VI_tm values are related to growing degree‐days of a normal year, and the four subareas are mapped, showing a diversity of 13 bioclimatic classes. The birch forest line is estimated to occur at about 980 °C‐days. The results show climatic gradients with temperatures increasing from the cold coast towards the interior, from wind‐exposed convex hills towards wind‐protected valleys, and from mountain plateaux towards south‐facing lowlands. The north‐easternmost study site at the coast is positioned within the arctic shrub tundra zone. Main conclusions The vegetation‐based method shows a strong positive correlation both with measured temperatures and the floristic‐based method within a broad range of different ecological conditions. The vegetation‐based method has the potential for bioclimatic mapping of large areas in a cost‐effective way. The floristic‐based method has higher accuracy and is more flexible than the vegetation‐based method, and the two methods seem to complement each other.     

Spatial genetic structure and landscape connectivity in black bears: Investigating the significance of using different land cover datasets and classifications in landscape genetics analyses

Landscape genetic analyses allow detection of fine‐scale spatial genetic structure (SGS) and quantification of effects of landscape features on gene flow and connectivity. Typically, analyses require generation of resistance surfaces. These surfaces characteristically take the form of a grid with cells that are coded to represent the degree to which landscape or environmental features promote or inhibit animal movement. How accurately resistance surfaces predict association between the landscape and movement is determined in large part by (a) the landscape features used, (b) the resistance values assigned to features, and (c) how accurately resistance surfaces represent landscape permeability. Our objective was to evaluate the performance of resistance surfaces generated using two publicly available land cover datasets that varied in how accurately they represent the actual landscape. We genotyped 365 individuals from a large black bear population (Ursus americanus) in the Northern Lower Peninsula (NLP) of Michigan, USA at 12 microsatellite loci, and evaluated the relationship between gene flow and landscape features using two different land cover datasets. We investigated the relative importance of land cover classification and accuracy on landscape resistance model performance. We detected local spatial genetic structure in Michigan''s NLP black bears and found roads and land cover were significantly correlated with genetic distance. We observed similarities in model performance when different land cover datasets were used despite 21% dissimilarity in classification between the two land cover datasets. However, we did find the performance of land cover models to predict genetic distance was dependent on the way the land cover was defined. Models in which land cover was finely defined (i.e., eight land cover classes) outperformed models where land cover was defined more coarsely (i.e., habitat/non‐habitat or forest/non‐forest). Our results show that landscape genetic researchers should carefully consider how land cover classification changes inference in landscape genetic studies.     

不同土地覆被格局情景下多种生态系统服务的响应与权衡——以雅砻江二滩水利枢纽为例

在二滩水库集水区,按照当地生态政策发展以坡度为指标构建了10种未来土地覆被格局情景,研究生态系统减轻水库泥沙淤积、减轻水库面源污染、产水发电服务及价值对未来覆被格局的响应程度,并兼顾相关产业收益的变化,权衡各种情景格局的服务效益,优选利益相关方福祉提升幅度最大的情景格局。结果表明:1)现有土地覆被格局对减轻水库泥沙淤积功效的发挥不合理,而以退耕还林政策指导区域土地覆被格局变化,对集水区减轻河道和水库泥沙淤积具有较好功效。10种情景下,保沙价值的高低关系同入库泥沙量正好相反,遵循"随地表林地和草地面积比例的增加,保沙价值增加"的规律。随产沙总量的增加,高产沙强度像元呈现从水库周边逐渐向中上游蔓延的趋势。2)退耕还林政策单纯以坡度作为指标,指导土地覆被的转化,对集水区减轻水环境磷素非点源污染功效较差。除了全为未利用地覆被的情景10,余下9类情景模拟的入库磷素量及过滤磷素经济价值的高低关系完全一致,呈农田草地林地的规律。随入库磷素总量的增加,高强度磷素输出像元从雅砻江流域源区和大河湾区,逐渐蔓延扩散至集水区整个水网。3)随着集水区地表林地覆盖面积比例的减少,集水区生态系统总发电净利润值增加,且高净利润像元呈现从冕宁和喜德县的东部逐渐向整个集水区东南部乃至整个下游蔓延的趋势。4)从减轻对环境的负效应以及提升利益相关方福祉的角度,以坡度6°上下划分林地和耕地的情景5和以坡度15°和6°为阈值划分林草农的情景3为除极端的情景外,综合指标提升最高的两种情景。     

基于区域城市化LUCC的人类生态过程定量研究——以上海市区典型城市化样带为例

借鉴流域研究的范例,根据上海市1987年、1995年和2003年3期Landsat5 TM遥感影像记录的土地利用／覆被数据和有关的社会经济统计数据,运用Rs和GIS技术在上海市中心西南城市边缘建立典型城市化样带。采用生态足迹法分析该样带内人类的生态供给与需求;提出一城市化区域人类生态过程的新研究方法,得出城市化过程中区域的人类生态质量指数与波动指数,并根据模型计算出的指数值,对样带区域总体及其中城乡区域在城市化中的人类生态状况进行了动态分析,以尝试对区域城市化中人类生态过程进行定量化研究。     

国土生态空间中现存建设用地与耕地退出的生态系统服务响应——以昆山市为例

如何管控包括生态保护红线等国土重要生态空间中的存量建设用地和耕地,是目前业界争论的焦点问题,而是否该退出、怎么退出、有何影响,则是值得学界重点探讨的科学问题。以昆山市为例,基于"生态系统服务重要性-生态敏感性-景观连通性"框架识别其国土重要生态空间,在分析重要生态空间与其现存建设用地、耕地的冲突特征及影响因素基础上,多情景模拟并评估重要生态空间中耕地和建设用地不同退出方式下的区域生态系统服务响应特征。研究表明：（1）占全域不足1/4的重要生态空间中,现存耕地和建设用地主要分布在水域周边,且以耕地占用冲突为主。（2）重要生态空间中耕地和建设用地退出方式不同会导致不同的生态系统服务响应特征,整体上生态保护情景能够有效地缓解服务间的权衡关系,但过度生态保护并不是最合适的;需权衡好不同国家既有政策之间关系,在保护中要避免"一刀切"问题。此外,研究尝试探讨了重要生态空间中现存用地斑块退出的生态系统服务响应研究的方法和思路,未来还可就围绕退出斑块的面积阈值、空间配置特征及其生态系统服务响应规律展开深化研究。     

The response of white clover to different strains ofRhizobium trifolii in hill land reseeding: A second trial

Summary S. 184 white clover was surface seeded into natural molinia pasture on wet stagnogley soil containing no indigenousRhizobium trifolii. Seedlings were ‘spray inoculated’ after emergence with each of three strains ofR. trifolii. The best of these treatments produced an eight fold improvement in dry matter in the seeding year, followed by a 28% improvement in the following year. The results confirm the potential benefits which may be achieved by inoculating clover with suitable strains of rhizobia. The data are compared with a previously reported trial on an adjacent site where benefits were much greater in the first year. The difference is attributed to the overall advantages conferred in the present trial by much higher seedling populations and less severe competition from native species in the establishment phase.     

Phase-sensitive fluorescence spectroscopy: A new method to resolve fluorescence lifetimes or emission spectra of components in a mixture of fluorophores

A novel phase fluorometric method is described which permits direct recording of individual emission spectra from a mixture of two flourescent compounds. Additionally, the lifetimes of each component may be determined by examination of the phase-sensitive fluorescence spectra. The method utilizes phase-sensitive detection of the sinusoidally modulated emission from a phase fluorometer. Resolution of the individual emission spectra in the mixture requires different fluorescence lifetimes for each components. Determination of the individual lifetime requires knowledge of the steady-state emission spectra of the components. Use of low-frequency (≈ 10 Hz) cross-correlated signals eliminates the need for high-frequency frequency (≈10⁶ Hz) phase-sensitive detection. A mixture of 2-p-toluidinyl-6-naphthalenesulfonic acid (TNS) and 6-propionyl-2-(dimethylamino)naphthalene (PRODAN) was used to demonstrate the possibility of phase resolution of fluorophore mixture and to confirm theoretical predictions. A mixture of dibenzo[a,h]anthracene and dibenzo[c,g]carbazole was used to demonstrate that phase resolution is possible for spectra which overlap strongly and which are highly structured. In addition, the possibility of using phase-sensitive emission spectra for the resolution of excited-state reactions was demonstrated with anthracene and its diethylaniline exciplex. From a sample whose steady-state emission displayed both components we directly recorded the emission spectrum of anthracene monomer and the exciplex. For all these samples the dependence of the individual intensities on the phase angle of the detector agreed precisely with that expected on the basis of the individual fluorescence lifetimes. The detector phase angles chosen for suppression of each component in the mixture also agreed with the measured lifetimes. Thus, phase-sensitive fluorescence spectra can reveal individual spectral distributions or lifetimes. This method will be useful in the analysis fluorescence emissions which frequently occur from proteins, membranes and other biological samples.