Conditions of establishment for the Salix community at lower-than-normal water levels along a dam reservoir shoreline

In limited-water-level reservoirs, areas along the reservoir shoreline are often exposed within the drawdown zone when water levels are reduced from normal to limited levels during the flood season. To prevent erosion and conserve the landscape, test plantings and landscaping along the shoreline have been implemented at some dam reservoirs. The establishment of vegetation within the drawdown zone contributes to both landscape and wildlife habitat conservation. Distribution, habitat, and seed-dispersal period of willows such as Salix subfragilis were investigated at Miharu Dam reservoir in northeastern Japan. Eight willow species were found around the dam, but S. subfragilis dominated within the drawdown zone. Field survey results beginning in 1995 indicate that the size of the S. subfragilis community increased after initial impoundment. Although many other Salix species disperse seeds prior to the drawdown period, S. subfragilis disperses during and after drawdown in the spring; thus, when water levels are lower than normal, its seeds are supplied to the newly exposed zones that provide suitable habitat for Salix seedling establishment. Our results suggest that S. subfragilis dominated because of water-resistant properties and timing of the seed dispersal period.     

三峡水库运行期间原生动物群落的时空异质性

于2010年10月—2011年6月三峡水库正常运行周期内对库区干流原生动物进行调查,研究其空间分布及水库周期排蓄期间的变化。共检测到原生动物99种,蓄水后纤毛虫有增多的趋势。水库运行的不同阶段优势种不同,大致演变为:砂壳纤毛虫(蓄水期)—非砂壳类纤毛虫(高位运行期间)—有壳肉足虫(低位运行期间)。不同水域优势种也存在差异,从上游到下游特征指示种变化为:有壳肉足虫(变动回水区)—纤毛虫(湖泊区)。结果表明,三峡水库原生动物的分布具有明显的时空异质性(P0.05),影响原生动物时空分布的主要因素有透明度、温度、电导率和叶绿素a。原生动物平均密度为952.19个/L,平均生物量为8.14μg/L。蓄水期上游现存量高于下游,低位运行期间则低于下游。原生动物Marglef和Shannonn-Weiver多样性指数平均值分别为3.78和2.18,1月份最低,6月份最高。蓄水175 m后上游变动回水区原生动物具有较高的丰度。水库冬蓄夏排的运行模式模糊了河流本身的季节变化,使原生动物的种类和现存量更多的受水库水动力学的影响,使水体理化因子和水文特征呈现明显的时空差异,最终形成原生动物种群的时空异质性分布。     

三峡库区不同水文类型支流大型底栖动物对蓄水的响应

为探究三峡水库修建对库区不同水文类型支流大型底栖动物的影响,于2015年7月和2016年1月对三峡水库四条支流的大型底栖动物进行调研,分别对周期性受蓄水影响支流的非回水区与回水区和长期受蓄水影响支流的非回水区与回水区大型底栖动物群落结构进行比较研究,结果表明:⑴7月份三峡水库145米低水位时期共采集到底栖动物655头计59种(属),在受蓄水影响河段采集到底栖动物4种共40头,优势种为日本沼虾(占受蓄水影响区域的57.5%); 1月份三峡水库175米蓄水时期共采集到底栖动物1123头计69种(属),在受蓄水影响河段采集到16种238头,优势种为锯齿新米虾(占受蓄水影响区域的14.2%)。⑵周期性受蓄水影响支流的非回水区与回水区底栖动物密度、生物量和多样性指数无显著差异(P0.05);长期受蓄水影响支流的非回水区与回水区之间底栖动物密度和Pielou均匀度指数无显著差异(P0.05),但非回水区底栖动物生物量显著高于回水区(P0.05),底栖动物多样性和丰富度极显著高于回水区(P0.01)。⑶7月份影响底栖动物分布的主要环境因子共6个,分别是水深、流速、硝态氮、溶解氧、水温和电导率; 1月份影响底栖动物分布的主要环境因子共7个,分别是水温、溶解氧、总磷、流速、深度、电导率和透明度。     

Fish species composition before and after construction of a main stem reservoir on the White River,Colorado

Synopsis The completion in the fall of 1984 of Taylor Draw Dam on the White River, Colorado, formed Kenney Reservoir — thus impounding the last significant free-flowing tributary in the Upper Colorado River Basin. Fishes were sampled above and below the dam axis prior to closure of the dam and in the reservoir and river downstream following impoundment. While immediate effects of the dam to the ichthyofauna included blockage of upstream migration to 80 km of documented range for endangered Colorado squawfish, the reservoir also proved to have profound delayed effects on the river's species composition. Pre-impoundment investigations in 1983–1984 showed strong domination by native species above, within, and below the reservoir basin. By 1989–1990, non-native species comprised roughly 90% of the fishes collected in the reservoir and 80% of the fishes collected in the river below the dam. Initially, fathead minnow, whose numbers quickly increased in the new reservoir, dominated all post-impoundment collections, but red shiner became the most abundant fish collected in the river below the dam by 1989–1990. While agency stocking programs for the reservoir sought to emphasize a sport fishery for salmonids, primarily rainbow trout, local enthusiasm for warmwater sport fishes resulted in illicit transfers of these species from nearby impoundments. Several species, formerly rare or unreported in the White River in Colorado, including white sucker, northern pike, green sunfish, bluegill, largemouth bass and black crappie, were present in the river following impoundment. Our investigation indicates smaller-scale, main-stem impoundments that do not radically alter hydrologic or thermal regimes can still have a profound influence on native ichthyofauna by facilitating establishment and proliferation of nonnative species.Cooperators are the U.S. Fish and Wildlife, the Colorado Division of Wildlife, and Colorado State University     

Distribution and Interannual Changes of the Zooplankton of the Durgun Water Basin and Adjoining Water Objects (the Western Mongolia)

The article describes quantitative and structural characteristics of zooplankton of polytypic sites of a water system including a lake, canal, and a water reservoir. It is shown that in the littoral zone of lakes and water reservoirs, the number of species and communities is higher, and biomass, lower. However, in the littoral zone of shallow lake zooplankton in number, took priority due to Rotifera, in the deep part of the water body – Rotifera and Cladocera; in the center of the lake zooplankton dominated by biomass due to Cladocera and Copepoda, in the water reservoir—due to the Copepoda. The dam area of the water reservoir had the highest species richness of zooplankton among all studied sites. The greatest number and biomass of zooplankton within a waterbody are noted in upper part, where a sedimentation zone had formed, and as a whole for the system of the investigated waterbodies, the maximum quantity indices are typical of lake communities. It is revealed that the starkest interannual changes in zooplankton were observed in the shallow lake: the number of species decreased—in the littoral zone at the expense of Rotifera, and in the center, the biomass increased at the expense of Cladocera; in deep-water area of the dam area of the reservoir, conversely, the number of species, as well as the number and biomass of the community, increased due to Copepoda.     

Plant community establishment following drawdown of a reservoir in southern Arkansas, USA

Wetland area, function and wildlife habitat value are extensively altered by the construction of freshwater reservoirs. We studied the effects of a temporary drawdown on shoreline vegetation communities of Felsenthal Navigation Pool (“the pool”), an impoundment at Felsenthal National Wildlife Refuge in southern Arkansas that is managed as a greentree reservoir. The pool was permanently flooded from 1985 until the summer of 1995 when the water level was dropped 0.3 m for about 16 weeks, exposing about 1,591 ha of soil. To document plant succession on the sediments exposed, we recorded plant species composition and cover at 14 transects along the pool margin prior to the drawdown, during the drawdown, and in the following summer. A soil disturbance treatment was applied near five transects following the drawdown, and soil was collected at each transect for seed bank and soil analyses. Plants colonized the drawdown zone quickly and high vegetation cover was present at some transects 4 weeks after the drawdown was initiated. Plants included species that are high quality food sources for waterfowl, including Cyperus erythrorhizos and Leptochloa fascicularis var. fascicularis. Vegetation response, measured by species richness, total cover, and cover of Cyperus species, was often greater at low compared to high elevations in the drawdown zone; this effect was probably intensified by low summer rainfall. Response on the disturbed transects was lower than that on the undisturbed transects. This effect was attributed to two factors: (1) removal of the existing seed bank by the disturbance applied and (2) reduced incorporation of seeds recruited during the drawdown because of unusually low rainfall. Seed bank studies demonstrated that several species persisted despite 10 years of continual flooding, and that seed bank species richness increased during the drawdown. Although conclusions are limited by the 1-year time frame of the study, it is unlikely that permanent change to plant community structure in the drawdown zone resulted from the lowered water level.     

Colonization and succession of benthic macroinvertebrates in Arcadia Lake,a South-Central USA reservoir

Colonization and succession of benthic macroinvertebrates in Arcadia Lake, an urban reservoir, were studied for four years. Physicochemical conditions including water temperature, dissolved oxygen concentrations, pH, specific conductance, and Secchi disc depth were also recorded. Colonization of the reservoir occured fairly rapidly through a sequence of three invasions. The first, and most significant, colonists were primarily facultative species already present in streams and ponds that were inundated by the impoundment. Later arrivals tended to be limnophilic species that probably came from other bodies of water. Of 30 species encountered in a pre-impoundment collection, only six were still present three years following impoundment. Thirty-three additional benthic macroinvertebrates species invaded the area following impoundment. Dominant taxa in the reservoir included Dero nivea, Limnodrilus sp., Chaoborus punctipennis, Chironomus sp., and Procladius sp. Pollutants accumulating in this urban reservoir, including metals and pesticides, and siltation probably have kept benthic populations relatively low and possibly reduced potential species diversity.     

水位节律差异对三峡水库消落区不同物候类型1年生植物物种构成的影响

三峡水库蓄水后改变了原有长江自然的水位波动节律,并在三峡库区内形成了两种类型的消落区:蓄水前未经历过水淹的完全水库消落区,其水位节律夏低冬高;以及蓄水前属于自然消落区目前受蓄水和洪汛双重影响的消落区,其水位在冬季和夏季都存在高水位。这与自然消落区冬低夏高的水位节律均存在差别。1年生植物根据萌发结实特性可分为春萌秋实、冬萌夏实型植物和广适性植物3类。在不同消落区选取5个样地划分样带设置固定样方,涨水前和退水后调查发现:各消落区均存在3种1年生植物,但3种类型物种的比例和和优势度存在显著差异。只受夏季洪汛影响的自然消落区共发现1年生植物73种,冬萌夏实型植物以45种占优;而水位节律与之相反的完全水库消落区,1年生植物物种数为85种,其中春萌秋实型植物以45种以及较大的优势度成为该区域的优势1年生物种;双重影响消落区,1年生植物物种总数未明显下降,但是在蓄水和洪汛的双重影响下其种群大小相对较低。水位节律的巨大变化会引起1年生植物优势类型的显著改变,适合生长的1年生植物主要是因为其生长周期与淹没期不完全重叠而成为优势物种类型。     

Diversity and Above-Ground Biomass Patterns of Vascular Flora Induced by Flooding in the Drawdown Area of China's Three Gorges Reservoir

Hydrological alternation can dramatically influence riparian environments and shape riparian vegetation zonation. However, it was difficult to predict the status in the drawdown area of the Three Gorges Reservoir (TGR), because the hydrological regime created by the dam involves both short periods of summer flooding and long-term winter impoundment for half a year. In order to examine the effects of hydrological alternation on plant diversity and biomass in the drawdown area of TGR, twelve sites distributed along the length of the drawdown area of TGR were chosen to explore the lateral pattern of plant diversity and above-ground biomass at the ends of growing seasons in 2009 and 2010. We recorded 175 vascular plant species in 2009 and 127 in 2010, indicating that a significant loss of vascular flora in the drawdown area of TGR resulted from the new hydrological regimes. Cynodon dactylon and Cyperus rotundus had high tolerance to short periods of summer flooding and long-term winter flooding. Almost half of the remnant species were annuals. Species richness, Shannon-Wiener Index and above-ground biomass of vegetation exhibited an increasing pattern along the elevation gradient, being greater at higher elevations subjected to lower submergence stress. Plant diversity, above-ground biomass and species distribution were significantly influenced by the duration of submergence relative to elevation in both summer and previous winter. Several million tonnes of vegetation would be accumulated on the drawdown area of TGR in every summer and some adverse environmental problems may be introduced when it was submerged in winter. We conclude that vascular flora biodiversity in the drawdown area of TGR has dramatically declined after the impoundment to full capacity. The new hydrological condition, characterized by long-term winter flooding and short periods of summer flooding, determined vegetation biodiversity and above-ground biomass patterns along the elevation gradient in the drawdown area.     

三峡水库蓄水对消涨带植被的初步影响

三峡库区消涨带植被一直受到广泛关注。为了研究水库蓄水对175 m以下消涨带原有植被的潜在影响,2008年8月在三峡大坝上游长江干流从巴南到秭归12个监测点,设立68个5 m×5 m永久监测样方,比较被水淹过的156 m以下与当时尚未水淹的156～175 m地段植被物种组分、物种多样性和草本层生物量的差异。结果表明：被水淹过与尚未水淹的植被物种组分存在显著差异,DCA可以将二者明显分开,156 m以上尚未水淹的植被以灌丛为主;156 m以下被水淹过的植被以草丛为主,优势种包括多年生草本：狗牙根（Cynodon dactylon）、牛鞭草（Hemarthria altissima）和硬秆子草（Capillipedium assimile）;一年生草本：狗尾草（Setaria viridis）、毛马唐（Digitaria ciliaris）和千金子（Leptochloa chinensis）。木本植物基本死亡,只有枫杨（Pterocarya stenoptera）、牡荆（Vitex negundo）和地瓜（Ficus tikoua）存活。此外,被水淹过的植被中灌木物种数比例显著降低,而一年生草本物种数比例显著增加。被水淹过和尚未水淹植被的物种多样性也存在显著差异,被水淹过植被物种总数、灌木和多年生草本物种数显著低于尚未被水淹过的植被,但一年生草本物种数没有显著差异。被水淹过的植被草本层生物量与尚未水淹的植被没有显著差异。可见,水淹显著改变了消涨带原有植被物种组分和物种多样性,但一年生草本物种数和草本层生物量没有显著差异。未来175 m以下的植被中,草本尤其是一年生草本将占据优势。在消涨带植被恢复选择适应水淹生境物种过程中,应分别从植物的生活史、生理学和形态学等角度进行筛选,尤其应重视生活史适应策略植物的应用。被水淹过的156 m以下现有优势草本和存活的灌木可以作为三峡库区未来消涨带植被恢复的备选物种。     

三峡水库坝前段蓄水前后枝角类的周年变化

三峡水库蓄水前后,作者从2002年6月至2004年7月按月在坝前段(茅坪—归州)采集枝角类,研究蓄水前后枝角类的变化,结果显示蓄水前该江段水流急不适合枝角类栖息,仅在水流相对较缓的岸边采集到2种;蓄水后水环境较适宜枝角类生活,周年内共采集到20种,并存在着明显的季节变化和水平分布上的差异,文中对其原因进行了分析讨论。       

Effects of impoundment on populations of bullhead Cottus gobio L. and minnow, Phoxinus phoxinus (L.), in the basin of Cow Green Reservoir

The distribution, growth and reproduction of bullhead, Cottus gobio , L., and minnow, Phoxinus phoxinus (L.), were studied at Cow Green Reservoir, Upper Teesdale, for 10 years following impoundment in 1970. Comparisons were made with pre-impoundment results. The length-for-age of bullheads increased after impoundment. The length-for-age of minnows decreased. In winter both species were confined mainly to deep water or to the stone facing of the earth dam. In summer they were found throughout the reservoir though bullheads were scarce in the littoral zone. Female bullheads became sexually mature at an earlier age (84% at age-group I) than before impoundment (33% at age-group I) but no change was apparent amongst males (67–62% in age-group I). The post-impoundment sex ratio did not differ from 1:1 and individual fecundity did not change after impoundment. There was a significant reduction in individual fecundity of the minnow. The mean instantaneous rate of mortality ( Z ) for bullhead of age-groups II to IV was 0.96 ± 0.34 year⁻¹, compared with 0.85 ± 0.29 year in the Tees before impoundment.     

Australian lungfish, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Neoceratodus forsteri</Emphasis>, threatened by a new dam

The Australian lungfish, Neoceratodus forsteri, exists as remnant natural populations in two rivers of south-east Queensland, Australia, and several translocated populations. Lungfish habitats have been impacted by agriculture and forestry, alien plants and fish and by river impoundment and regulation of flows. The species has been listed as vulnerable under Australian Commonwealth legislation. A proposal to construct Traveston Crossing Dam on the free-flowing main channel of the upper Mary River could seriously threaten the lungfish. The dam can be stopped by Commonwealth legislation if important populations of lungfish in the Mary River are likely to be significantly impacted by the new dam. This paper assembles evidence that impoundment of the Mary River and regulation of river flows are likely to decrease and fragment important lungfish populations, disrupt the breeding cycle, reduce juvenile recruitment, and isolate and decrease habitat availability/quality to such an extent that the species is likely to decline. Proposed mitigation strategies include fish transfer facilities, provision of flow releases from the dam (environmental flows) to sustain lungfish habitat and breeding downstream, and translocation of hatchery-reared juvenile lungfish into suitable natural habitats. These mitigation efforts may not be sufficient to secure the genetic diversity and long-term viability of lungfish populations in the Mary River.     

三峡成库后香溪河库湾底栖动物群落演变及库湾纵向分区格局动态

水库生态系统演替是水库生态学研究及水库管理过程中都比较关注的问题。三峡水库自2003年6月成库以来,有关水库生态系统演替的研究却鲜见报道。以三峡水库香溪河库湾底栖动物为研究对象,分析了自2003年8月—2010年7月3个不同蓄水阶段底栖动物群落的演变状况,并对库湾纵向分区格局的动态变化进行了探讨。结果表明,水库蓄水后,摇蚊科和颤蚓科成为第一批定殖者,并以摇蚊科为主;随后,颤蚓科中的霍甫水丝蚓逐渐成为优势类群;直到2004年4月仙女虫科的肥满仙女虫与霍甫水丝蚓共同主导群落。一期蓄水后约1a,底栖动物密度和物种数呈现出明显的增长趋势,空间上呈现出"中间高、两头低"的格局。库湾总体密度于2006年4月达到最高值,高达24146个/m2。二期蓄水导致底栖动物总密度显著降低,而三期蓄水后则变化相对较小。随着时间的增长,库湾底栖动物偶见种出现的频率逐渐降低,群落逐渐趋于稳定。基于TWINSPAN(two-way indicator species analysis)的分析,一期蓄水后期,香溪河库湾纵向上底栖动物群落结构呈现出稳定的分区格局,库湾中部区域呈现出相同的群落类型,无季节变化;而自二期蓄水开始,库湾纵向上大部分样点的群落类型发生改变,表明二期蓄水的干扰较强;之后呈现出季节性波动,此种格局与水位的季节波动相关联,表明三峡水库底栖动物逐渐适应水库周期性的调度,群落结构呈现稳定的季节性周期波动。     

Euhydrophyte communities of the River Nile and its impoundments in Egyptian Nubia

The River Nile and its two impoundments, the Aswan Reservoir and Lake Nasser, are important habitats for submerged and floating-leaved freshwater macrophytes (euhydrophytes) in the desert region of Egyptian Nubia. Ordination and classification analysis of survey data collected during the period 1980–1986 suggested that the Aswan High Dam forms a man-made vegetational boundary, delineating two basic macrophyte community types. In Lake Nasser a community dominated by Najas spp. is present. In the Aswan Reservoir and the R. Nile downstream of the old Aswan Dam the euhydrophyte community is dominated by a Potamogeton crispus — Ceratophyllum demersum association. Differences between the two community types appear to be related to differences in physical factors (e.g. water level fluctuation and flow regime), and water chemistry, to phenological factors, and to the differing successional ages of the macrophyte communities of the Nile system upstream and downstream of the Aswan High Dam. There is some evidence for depth zonation of the submerged macrophyte community in both lake and river habitats. Strategy analysis of the euhydrophyte communities present upstream and downstream of the High Dam, over the period 1963–89, indicated that successful established-phase strategy types were similar on both sides of the dam. In the long term there seems little to prevent euhydrophyte species at present confined to below the High Dam from crossing this boundary to colonise Lake Nasser.     

Effect of reservoir drawdown on biomass of three species of aquatic macrophytes in a large sub-tropical reservoir (Itaipu, Brazil)

The biomass and maximum depth of colonization (Z _max) of Egeria najas Planchon (submerged), and the biomass and area covered by a stand of Eichhornia crassipes (Mart.) Solms and Salvinia herzogii Raddi (floating species) were assessed to measure the effects of a 5 m drawdown in water level of the Itaipu Reservoir (Brazil–Paraguay), which lasted about 3 months. The frequency of occurrence of the two first species, and of Salvinia spp was also assessed in the main arms of the reservoir. A conspicuous decrease of E. najas biomass was observed and this attribute did not reach the previous values even 10 months after the water level had returned to normal. Rapid growth of free-floating species (surface t _doub = 2.9 and 3.2 days for total biomass of S. herzogii and E. crassipes, respectively, and 2.3 days for surface area covered by both species) was recorded immediately after the water level returned to normal. This fast growth was related to phosphorus increases in water. A clear succession was observed over a period of 103 days, during which S. herzogii was slowly substituted by E. crassipes. The effects of water level drawdown were also observed on E. najas frequency, given that this species occurred in 38% of the stands investigated before the water drawdown, but in only 9 and 6% of stands following 1 and 10 months of water level recovery, respectively. Water drawdown did not affect the frequency of occurrence of the floating species, which remained approximately constant, and lower than 15% in several of the reservoir arms investigated.     

Effects of sampling seasons and locations on fish environmental DNA metabarcoding in dam reservoirs

Environmental DNA (eDNA) analysis has seen rapid development in the last decade, as a novel biodiversity monitoring method. Previous studies have evaluated optimal strategies, at several experimental steps of eDNA metabarcoding, for the simultaneous detection of fish species. However, optimal sampling strategies, especially the season and the location of water sampling, have not been evaluated thoroughly. To identify optimal sampling seasons and locations, we performed sampling monthly or at two‐monthly intervals throughout the year in three dam reservoirs. Water samples were collected from 15 and nine locations in the Miharu and Okawa dam reservoirs in Fukushima Prefecture, respectively, and five locations in the Sugo dam reservoir in Hyogo Prefecture, Japan. One liter of water was filtered with glass‐fiber filters, and eDNA was extracted. By performing MiFish metabarcoding, we successfully detected a total of 21, 24, and 22 fish species in Miharu, Okawa, and Sugo reservoirs, respectively. From these results, the eDNA metabarcoding method had a similar level of performance compared to conventional long‐term data. Furthermore, it was found to be effective in evaluating entire fish communities. The number of species detected by eDNA survey peaked in May in Miharu and Okawa reservoirs, and in March and June in Sugo reservoir, which corresponds with the breeding seasons of many of fish species inhabiting the reservoirs. In addition, the number of detected species was significantly higher in shore, compared to offshore samples in the Miharu reservoir, and a similar tendency was found in the other two reservoirs. Based on these results, we can conclude that the efficiency of species detection by eDNA metabarcoding could be maximized by collecting water from shore locations during the breeding seasons of the inhabiting fish. These results will contribute in the determination of sampling seasons and locations for fish fauna survey via eDNA metabarcoding, in the future.     

Design of the dike-pond system in the littoral zone of a tributary in the Three Gorges Reservoir, China

The Three Gorges Dam is the greatest water control project in the world with the largest fresh water littoral zone. Emergence of the littoral zone during the growing season provides some plants with the opportunity to complete their growth cycle, but the fluctuating water level also brings about some environmental problems, such as soil erosion, water pollution, and biodiversity reduction. A series of cascading terraced ponds located in the littoral zone of a secondary branch of the Yangtze River at Laotudi Bay was designed to be a dike-pond system for resolving the environmental problems of this special littoral zone while also making use of resources in an eco-friendly manner. The design of the dike-pond system is described in detail in this article, and some monitoring protocols are recommended for evaluating the environmental benefits of the system. The economic value of the dike-ponds was estimated to be about ¥125,986. Due to the ecological management mode adopted, 14 species of wild aquatic plants and 6 species of wading birds were found in the dike-pond system, in contrast to 9 species of wild aquatic plants and 3 species of wading birds in a comparable conventional farming area. It is hoped that dike-pond ecological engineering will be instrumental in reducing water pollution and increasing biodiversity in the littoral zone of the Three Gorges Reservoir.     

三峡库区澎溪河消落带植物群落分布格局及生境影响

三峡消落带是一条特殊的水—陆交错带,其生境的特殊性及对整个三峡库区的影响逐渐成为地学、环境科学、生态学等学科的研究热点。植被是消落带各项生态功能的载体。然而,三峡水库的运行使消落带原有植被遭到破坏。通过对澎溪河消落带植物群落及其生境的实地调查,采用双向指示种法(TWINSPAN)划分植物群落类型,并结合方差分解和CCA排序法研究4类生境影响因素组14个生境影响因子与植物群落空间分布的关系,探讨生境对消落带植物群落组成、结构及多样性的影响。结果表明:(1)消落带植物群落包括5种类型:狗牙根+雀稗群落、狗尾草+狗牙根群落、黄荆群落、白茅+鬼针草群落、苔草群落;(2)CCA排序中,第1排序轴对消落带植被空间变化的累计解释量为6.83%,占生境条件总解释量的44.73%,能很好地解释消落带植物群落与生境的相互关系,植物群落类型沿排序轴呈梯度分布;(3)土壤是影响消落带植被空间分布格局的主要影响因素组,各影响因素组间交互作用明显。淹水时间、海拔、土壤含水量是植物群落空间分布的主要影响因子,解释量分别为5.3%、3.0%、2.9%;(4)4类影响因素组共解释消落带植物群落空间格局变化的14.6%,未解释部分所占比例较大,可能是由于消落带内生境条件复杂,影响其群落组成及空间分布的潜在因素较多,如各种土地利用政策、人类活动干扰及景观组成等因素也可能对消落带植物群落构成有影响。研究消落带植物空间分布及其与生境的关系,以期为科学认识消落带、保护水库环境提供依据。     

Population characteristics of yellow catfish (Peltobagrus fluvidraco) along the longitudinal profile of Three Gorges Reservoir,China

The length–frequency and age distributions, condition factor (K), gonadosomatic index (GSI) and gastrosomatic index (GaSI) of yellow catfish (Peltobagrus fluvidraco) were studied at three sites along the 500‐km longitudinal profile of Three Gorges Reservoir. Across all three sites (dam, mid‐reservoir and upper reservoir), GSI increased from April through June, with peak values observed in May and June. Mean K and GSI for fish captured near the dam were significantly higher compared to mid‐reservoir or upper‐reservoir areas. The GaSI index showed no significant variations across sites. However, the length‐frequency histogram of yellow catfish in the more riverine upper reservoir was log‐normal and skewed towards larger (total length) fish, a pattern that was significantly different from mid‐reservoir or near‐dam habitats, where fish length data were normally distributed but at a smaller length mode. Age estimations using otolith sagittae revealed that the spawning population was dominated by fish from only two age‐classes (1 and 2). This study provides novel insight into population characteristics of fish along the substantial spatial scale of Three Gorges Reservoir. Given the irregular population size‐ and age‐structure and the fact that the species is currently commercially exploited, this population is believed to be susceptible to overfishing. Restricted harvesting during peak reproductive months is recommended and suggested that additional research is needed on recruitment and harvest dynamics of this species throughout Three Gorges Reservoir. Additional research is also required to determine whether the spike in K and GSI at lentic sites is a transient product of recent impoundment or an indicator of optimal hydrologic habitat for the species.