The features of peat-accumulation process at the southern slope of the Great Vasyugan Bog

The peat-forming process of the southern margin of the taiga zone in West Siberia depends on climatic fluctuations, which have an effect on the peat stratigraphy and chemical composition of peat. It is shown that the contemporary warming does not interrupt the bog formation, which is due to the lateral flooding by water came from adjoining peatlands and periodical waterlogging of floodplain depressions during the years of excessive water supply.     

Substrate dependency of Lateglacial forests in north-east Germany: untangling vegetation patterns, ecological amplitudes and pollen dispersal in the past by downscaling regional pollen

Aim Palynology has revealed that during the Lateglacial Allerød period, Pinus and Betula dominated the forests of north‐east Germany. Because of implicit restrictions, however, palynology fails to reconstruct in detail the distributional patterns and whether monospecific or mixed forests prevailed. Here we test the hypothesis that the distributional patterns of Pinus and Betula were largely determined by substrate. Location Fifteen sites in north‐east Germany. Methods As pollen data reflect the abundance of taxa around a sample site, our hypothesis implies that the abundance of e.g. Pinus pollen should reflect the abundance of substrate types that are favoured by Pinus. (In order to differentiate clearly between taxa and pollen types, the latter are displayed in small capitals. ) We analysed the percentage of Pinus and Betula pollen from an interval in the Allerød, and their relationship to the present‐day proportion of the two dominant substrate types (sand and boulder clay). The substrate proportion was determined in rings from 1 to 50 km around all sites, using four distance‐weighting functions. Results Pollen percentages of Pinus are linearly related to the proportion of sand, and Betula percentages to the proportion of boulder clay. The highest coefficients of determination (r² = 0.89 and 0.91, respectively) were observed for radii of c. 30 km, with distance weighting by 1 and 1/d. Main conclusions The present‐day distributional pattern of substrate types strongly indicates the distributional pattern of Pinus and Betula in north‐east Germany in the Allerød. Assuming that the pattern of substrates remained broadly constant, Pinus dominated on sand and Betula on boulder clay. Our new method thus enables us to refine significantly the reconstruction of habitat characteristics and distributional patterns of taxa in the Lateglacial and Holocene, independent of their present‐day ecological amplitudes. The good performance of the distance‐weighting functions 1 and 1/d indicates that the pollen source area of a site has rather discrete boundaries determined by convective air movements during daytime. Within these boundaries, pollen is evenly distributed over various distances. This implies that light pollen types are transported further than predicted by Sutton’s equation on particle dispersal.     

Rectal temperatures of immobilized, snare-trapped black bears in Great Dismal Swamp

Rectal temperature was determined for 84 black bears (Ursus americanus) during 99 handlings in Great Dismal Swamp, Virginia and North Carolina (USA). All bears had been trapped with cable snares and immobilized with a 2:1 ketamine hydrochloridexylazine hydrochloride mixture. Temperatures were significantly greater in males and varied significantly by season. Immobilized bears began panting at rectal temperatures greater than 42.0 C. One death occurred at 43.0 C. We recommended cooling measures on black bears at rectal temperatures of greater than or equal to 40.0 C.     

Phytosociological amplitudes of some Dutch coastal species and their ecological interpretation

A 4-axis Reciprocal Averaging ordination of phytosociological tables of Dutch plant communities revealed environmentally interpretable gradients: (1) overall moisture, (2) salinity, (3) soil fertility, and (4) structural complexity of vegetation. The quantitative occurrence of all species along these gradients has been computed. Some examples of the distribution of species from coastal communities are given, to show how these data may help to summarize and visualize existing knowledge and how they can form a basis for further study.Nomenclature of species follows Heukels-van Ooststroom (1975), that of syntaxonomical units Westhoff & den Held (1969).     

Modern state of zooplankton in Vasyugan River

This paper studies the specific diversity and quantitative indicators of zooplankton of the Vasyugan River in the middle and lower reaches, as well as in the estuaries of major tributaries. The dominant zooplankton complex is noted to have changed according to 50- and 10-year-old data. The succession of the plankton community is taking place, which is possibly due to global warming and the restructuring of the entire Vasyuganye ecosystem. No oil pollution has been detected in the river by bioindication methods.     

Geographical and ecological differentiation in Greek Fagus forest vegetation

Question: Which are the gradients of floristic differentiation in Greek beech (Fagus sylvatica) forests? Which is the role of geographical and ecological factors in this differentiation? Location: Beech forests of the plant geographical regions Northeast, North Central and East Central Greece. Methods: A total of 1404 published and unpublished phytoso‐ciological relevés were used in the analyses. TWINSPAN and DCA were applied to classify and ordinate the relevés. Altitude, Indicator Values of relevés and their X and Y coordinates were used in a posteriori interpretation of the ordination axes. Kendall's correlation coefficients were calculated between DCA relevé scores and explanatory variables. Multiple linear regression was used to partition the variation explained by the first two DCA axes, between the geographical and the ecological variables. Results: Classification resulted in 14 vegetation units defined by species composition. Two types of gradients, ecological and geographical, were revealed by the DCA of all releves. The partition of the variation accounted for by the first and second DCA axis was attributed mainly to ecological and geographical variables, respectively. Conclusions: Beech forests of northeast and Central Greece show phytogeographical differences, while ecologically similar vegetation units occur in both regions. A west‐east gradient is revealed in Greek beech forest vegetation. The extent of the study area, its position along regional gradients and the comprehensiveness of the data set that is analysed determine the types of the gradients which can be revealed in a vegetation study.     

Trait positions for elevated invasiveness in adaptive ecological networks

Our ability to predict the outcome of invasion declines rapidly as non-native species progress through intertwined ecological barriers to establish and spread in recipient ecosystems. This is largely due to the lack of systemic knowledge on key processes at play as species establish self-sustaining populations within the invaded range. To address this knowledge gap, we present a mathematical model that captures the eco-evolutionary dynamics of native and non-native species interacting within an ecological network. The model is derived from continuous-trait evolutionary game theory (i.e., Adaptive Dynamics) and its associated concept of invasion fitness which depicts dynamic demographic performance that is both trait mediated and density dependent. Our approach allows us to explore how multiple resident and non-native species coevolve to reshape invasion performance, or more precisely invasiveness, over trait space. The model clarifies the role of specific traits in enabling non-native species to occupy realised opportunistic niches. It also elucidates the direction and speed of both ecological and evolutionary dynamics of residing species (natives or non-natives) in the recipient network under different levels of propagule pressure. The versatility of the model is demonstrated using four examples that correspond to the invasion of (i) a horizontal competitive community; (ii) a bipartite mutualistic network; (iii) a bipartite antagonistic network; and (iv) a multi-trophic food web. We identified a cohesive trait strategy that enables the success and establishment of non-native species to possess high invasiveness. Specifically, we find that a non-native species can achieve high levels of invasiveness by possessing traits that overlap with those of its facilitators (and mutualists), which enhances the benefits accrued from positive interactions, and by possessing traits outside the range of those of antagonists, which mitigates the costs accrued from negative interactions. This ‘central-to-reap, edge-to-elude’ trait strategy therefore describes the strategic trait positions of non-native species to invade an ecological network. This model provides a theoretical platform for exploring invasion strategies in complex adaptive ecological networks.

     

Algal dynamics and nitrogen and phosphorus cycling in a cypress stand in the seasonally flooded Great Dismal Swamp

Both periphytic and planktonic algae are found in areas of the seasonally flooded Great Dismal Swamp (Virginia, U.S.A.). The dynamics of these algae were studied in a cypress stand and the periphytic algae appeared to be important as nutrient conservers. Clear temporal patterns in phytoplankton dominance were also observed.     

小良植被生态恢复的生态经济价值评估

应用生态经济学的核算方法,对中国科学院小良热带人工林生态系统定位站植被生态恢复系统的服务功能进行了定量评估。结果表明,小良恢复生态系统具有极高的生态经济价值。以20世纪90年代不变价计,小良植被生态恢复系统43a的累积服务功能价值超过621亿元人民币。其中直接使用价值为7．65亿元,占总生态经济价值的1．23％,间接使用价值为613亿元,占总生态经济价值的98．77％,间接使用价值远远大于直接使用价值。间接使用价值中净化环境服务功能的生态经济价值,仅以固C、释放O2、吸收SO2和滞尘计,就已达577亿元。与此同时,小良热带沿海台地的植被恢复通过复合农林经营等渠道促进了当地生态、经济与社会的协同发展。     

马拉河流域植被生态需水特征及估算

生态需水是生态用水控制和区域生态环境恢复建设的基本依据。马拉河流域拥有世界著名的生态系统,植被生态需水占流域总需水量的很大一部分。基于1980—2020年ERA5气象数据、叶面积指数(LAI)与世界土壤数据库数据,采用Penman-Monteith法计算了马拉河流域四个季节(短旱季、长雨季、长旱季、短雨季)植被生态需水量的时空变化特征。在此基础上,使用支持向量机(SVM)、随机森林(RF)和卷积神经网络(CNN)3种机器学习方法与7个环境因子(气温、降水、10 m风速、LAI、太阳辐射、相对湿度、地形)建立了回归模型,分别估算了2011—2020年逐年不同季节的植被生态需水量,并与Penman-Monteith法计算结果进行时间序列拟合度和空间相似性的比较。结果表明：马拉河流域植被生态需水量在过去40年所有季节都呈现为波动变化,植被生态需水量长雨季>长旱季>短雨季>短旱季,长雨季的植被生态需水量约为短旱季的1.5倍。不同季节均呈现出上下游高、中游低的植被生态需水量空间分布格局。LAI为最大的正影响因子,风速为最大的负影响因子。就不同方法估算的植被生态需水量准确性而言,...     

Photosynthetic light acclimation in two rainforest Piper species with different ecological amplitudes

Summary Piper auritum (H.B. & K.), a pioneer tree restricted to open sites and Piper hispidum (Swartz), a shrub common in sites ranging from recent clearings to shaded understory, both adjust photosynthetic characteristics in response to light availability during growth. The sensitivity of photosynthetic capacity to light availability during growth was indistinguishable for the two species growing in their natural habitat. Photosynthetic capacity was strongly correlated with leaf nitrogen in both species, and the relationship was similar between species. Dark respiration and leaf specific mass were more sensitive to light during growth in P. hispidum, the species with the broad habitat ange, than in P. auritum. In general, similarities between the species were more striking than differences between them. The differences in dark respiration could have important implications for carbon balance. The difference in the responsiveness of leaf specific mass to light indicates that the broad-ranging species maintains access to modes of response little utilized by the open-site specialist. We did not and, in the gas exchange characteristics, any evidence that the open site specialist is better suited than the generalist to high-light sites.This CIW DPB publication number 962     

Disturbance and vegetation response in relation to environmental gradients in the Great Smoky Mountains

In constructing models of species and community distributions along environmental gradients in the Great Smoky Mountains, R. H. Whittaker (1956) focused on old-aged, apparently stable, natural communities. More recent studies indicate that disturbance gradients potentially influence and are influenced by the complex environmental gradients of Whittaker's original models. Using primarily fire and exotic species invasion as examples, this paper shows: 1) disturbance parameters vary along the topographic, elevation and moisture gradients in the Great Smoky Mountains in much the same way as temperature, moisture and solar radiation change; 2) species composition at different locations along the major environmental gradients is partially determined by the disturbance parameter; 3) species characteristics such as mode of reproduction are often correlated with specific disturbance parameters; 4) functional aspects of ecosystem response to disturbance vary along environmental gradients; and 5) man-caused disturbance may vary along environmental or biotic gradients. Since disturbance gradients may parallel physical environmental gradients, the two may be difficult to distinguish. Modification of disturbance frequencies along major environmental gradients may result in slow shifts in the distribution of both individual species and whole communities.Botanical nomenclature follows Radford et al. (1968).     

侵蚀地区植被生态动力学模型

研究侵蚀地区的植被在水力侵蚀和各种生态应力以及人类活动影响下的演变规律 ,建立了植被生态动力学模型。将作用于植被的各种生态应力分成长期、短期和瞬时应力 ,给出了它们的定量表达式 ,并且统一在植被生态动力学方程中 ;同时进一步得出了动力学耦合方程组的理论解。该模型应用于金沙江支流小江流域 ,结果较好地描述了流域的植被生态演变过程与侵蚀过程的关系 ,说明了治理强度和控制侵蚀对植被发育的重要性。     

滩地植被景观斑块分布特征与生态潜力评价

斑块大小是研究景观要素特征的一个主要参数。物种动态、潜在生境、潜在林产品(木材)、能量、养分和水流以及很多其它参数都受到景观中斑块大小的影响。将研究区域--富阳市富阳镇段滩地划分为6大类81个基本类型,并将其归为低水平斑块(基本类型对应斑块)和高水平斑块(大类对应斑块),采用极大似然估计法进行了研究,Kotliar和Wiens提出的斑块结构的等级框架是对斑块意义的更完整的理解,研究过程中对斑块的确定符合Kotliar和Wiens的等级思想。充分考虑了两个水平上的斑块,及它们对应于斑块类型的两个水平,研究表明:低水平的斑块内部具有较高的同质性,而高水平的斑块内部具有较低的同质性;在两种斑块水平上都显示出斑块大小分布是明显右偏的;只有少数类型斑块大小的分布服从负指数分布,而绝大多数斑块大小的分布服从对数正态分布,这对斑块内的群落和生态系统的稳定性和保护提供了参考。     

Edaphic limitations to growth and photosynthesis in Sierran and Great Basin vegetation

Summary Soils derived from hydrothermally altered andesite support unique communities of Sierran conifers (Pinus ponderosa Laws. and P. jeffreyi Grev. and Balf.) amongst sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata Nutt.) vegetation in the western Great Basin. Plants grown in soil derived from hydrothermally altered bedrock had lower growth rates, total biomass, and net photosynthetic rates than plants grown in soil derived from unaltered andesite of the same formation. Total dry mass was 10 to 28% lower for conifers grown in altered soil whereas dry mass of Artemisia tridentata and Bromus tectorum L. was reduced by over 90%. Results from a nutrient amendment experiment indicated that low phosphorus was the dominant limitation in altered soil, and phosphorus-deficiency affected growth primarily by limiting leaf area development rather than direct inhibition of photosynthesis. The proportionately greater reduction of biomass for Artemisia and Bromus grown in altered soil supports our hypothesis that Great Basin vegetation is excluded from altered soil by intolerance to nutrient deficiency. The Sierran conifers growing on this rock type are therefore free of competition for water with Great Basin vegetation and are able to persist in an exceptionally dry climate.     

Bryophytes in Mediterranean coastal dunes: ecological strategies and distribution along the vegetation zonation

The bryophytic flora has been widely studied in Atlantic coastal dune environments while bryological literature addressing the Mediterranean bryophytes is still scarce and fragmented, although they are an important component of this area, especially considering their ability to colonize and stabilize sandy soils. The aims of this study were: (i) to analyze the taxonomy, chorology and ecology of coastal dunes bryoflora; (ii) to analyze distribution patterns of bryophytic species along a coastal dune vegetation zonation. We used as coastal dune model system a particularly well-preserved study area of the Sardinian coast (Italy), which includes several habitats listed in European Habitats Directive 92/43/EEC. We conducted a general survey of the area and a random sampling. A total of 20 bryophytic species were detected most of which were acrocarpous mosses and, to a lesser extent, pleurocarpous and liverworts. Most bryophytes are pioneer colonizers, reflecting their adaptation to environments with high levels of stress/disturbance conditions such as those of coastal dunes. Finally, in this study we described for the first time how bryophytic species are distributed along a Mediterranean coastal dune vegetation zonation, focusing also on their chorological and ecological characteristics and on how they seem to follow the sea-land gradient, probably in response to different environmental conditions developing along this gradient.     

区域植被恢复对生态安全的影响预测 ——以岷江上游干旱河谷为例

退化生态系统恢复是保障区域生态安全的重要途径之一。在生态系统结构功能严重受损,威胁到区域生态安全时,通过引入物种进行主动的植被恢复可以有效地加速生态系统恢复进程,维护区域生态安全。但是区域尺度的植被恢复是一项规模浩大的工程,其效果和影响难以立即显现。为了评估区域植被恢复的生态风险,根据岷江上游干旱河谷区域植被恢复格局的设计结果,预测了区域植被恢复对生态安全的影响。通过对比分析现状植被盖度及生物多样性与植被恢复格局预测结果的差异,对区域植被恢复的效果进行评价,认为尽管植被恢复格局设计使部分区域生物多样性下降,但它整体提高了地表植被覆盖度,增强了抵御土壤侵蚀的能力。对保障区域生态安全具有积极的效果。