三峡库区磷化工厂点源污染对陆生植物群落组成和物种多样性的影响

2006年4月中旬至6月下旬, 采用典型取样法, 在三峡库区某磷化工厂周围污染源区与对照区设置样方, 进行常规群落学调查, 分析点源污染对陆生植物群落种类组成以及物种多样性的影响。结果表明: (1) 所有样方中共计出现284种植物, 其中乔木35种, 灌木139种, 草本110种。仅在污染区中出现的物种数量远低于仅在对照区中出现的物种数量; (2) 可分出4种基本的群落类型: 马尾松(Pinus massoniana)林、柏木(Cupressus funepris)林、栓皮栎(Quercus variabilis)林和马尾松+栓皮栎林, 各群落特定层次的物种丰富度指数以及Pielou均匀度指数在污染区与对照区之间存在显著差异; (3)污染胁迫下, 物种在群落中的生态优势度发生了变化, 反映了群落中不同物种相互替代的过程, 这种物种的替代可为今后受损生态系统人为恢复过程中物种的筛选提供一定的理论参考; (4)对群落中主要物种更新的调查发现: 栓皮栎林对污染不敏感; 柏木林污染区与对照区幼苗数量及分布格局均有明显差异, 污染条件下群落未来演替受到严重干扰。综上所述, 我们可以看出, 在点源污染影响下, 群落的组成和结构发生了显著变化, 但这种变化对群落的长期影响仍需要进一步的深入研究。     

Classification and description of phytobenthic communities in the waters of the West-Estonian Archipelago Sea

Three separate coastal sea areas were investigated in terms of phytobenthic community structure in the waters of the West-Estonian Archipelago in the Baltic Sea. The phytobenthos species composition was similar in the three regions while the structure of the communities referred to different environmental conditions. The classification of the phytobenthic communities in the area was made using cluster analyses. The defined and described 19 classification units were compared with classification systems that have been published before. Most of the classification units defined in the present study were similar to the units defined by other authors. Depth and substrate had considerable influence on the phytobenthic communities in three areas: in the westernmost, exposed sea area phytobenthic communities changed continuously along the depth gradient without forming distinct belts while in the more sheltered central areas wide, depth-related phytobenthos belts were described.     

Using species traits to assess human impacts on near shore benthic ecosystems in the Canadian Arctic

Human activities have the potential to alter the diversity and composition of biological communities in natural environments, which can cause changes in ecosystem functioning. This has led to the development of environmental assessment techniques that take into account species identity, as species can contribute differently to various ecosystem processes. Biological Traits Analysis (BTA) is used to compare the abundances of specific biological traits in samples to produce information about how ecosystem functioning may change across a specific terrestrial or aquatic system. In the present study, BTA was used to assess the influence of municipal wastewater effluent on benthic marine communities in near shore soft sediments in four locations across the Canadian Arctic Territory of Nunavut, Canada. Shifts in trait composition were assessed relative to indicators of sediment enrichment (sediment chlorophyll, organic content, degree of anoxia), and natural variation in habitat characteristics (water depth, porosity, average grain size) at a site receiving wastewater and a reference site in each sampling location. The results indicated a mild enrichment effect of wastewater, as evidenced by changes in trait composition at three of the four sites that received wastewater inputs. However, the amount of variance in trait composition explained by metrics of wastewater enrichment in these locations were generally equal to or lower than the amount of variance explained by sediment characteristics related to natural processes. These results provide greater insight into the underlying causes and consequences of human activities than more traditional methods for environmental impact assessment, and can be directly applied in a management context.     

Microbial community composition and trophic role along a marked salinity gradient in Laguna Puilar,Salar de Atacama,Chile

The geological, hydrological and microbiological features of the Salar de Atacama, the most extensive evaporitic sedimentary basin in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile, have been extensively studied. In contrast, relatively little attention has been paid to the composition and roles of microbial communities in hypersaline lakes which are a unique feature in the Salar. In the present study biochemical, chemical and molecular biological tools were used to determine the composition and roles of microbial communities in water, microbial mats and sediments along a marked salinity gradient in Laguna Puilar which is located in the “Los Flamencos” National Reserve. The bacterial communities at the sampling sites were dominated by members of the phyla Bacteroidetes, Chloroflexi, Cyanobacteria and Proteobacteria. Stable isotope and fatty acid analyses revealed marked variability in the composition of microbial mats at different sampling sites both horizontally (at different sites) and vertically (in the different layers). The Laguna Puilar was shown to be a microbially dominated ecosystem in which more than 60% of the fatty acids at particular sites are of bacterial origin. Our pioneering studies also suggest that the energy budgets of avian consumers (three flamingo species) and dominant invertebrates (amphipods and gastropods) use minerals as a source of energy and nutrients. Overall, the results of this study support the view that the Salar de Atacama is a heterogeneous and fragile ecosystem where small changes in environmental conditions may alter the balance of microbial communities with possible consequences at different trophic levels.     

Rewiring of peatland plant–microbe networks outpaces species turnover

Enviro–climatic changes are thought to be causing alterations in ecosystem processes through shifts in plant and microbial communities; however, how links between plant and microbial communities change with enviro–climatic change is likely to be less straightforward but may be fundamental for many ecological processes. To address this, we assessed the composition of the plant community and the prokaryotic community – using amplicon-based sequencing – of three European peatlands that were distinct in enviro–climatic conditions. Bipartite networks were used to construct site-specific plant–prokaryote co-occurrence networks. Our data show that between sites, plant and prokaryotic communities differ and that turnover in interactions between the communities was complex. Essentially, turnover in plant–microbial interactions is much faster than turnover in the respective communities. Our findings suggest that network rewiring does largely result from novel or different interactions between species common to all realised networks. Hence, turnover in network composition is largely driven by the establishment of new interactions between a core community of plants and microorganisms that are shared among all sites. Taken together our results indicate that plant–microbe associations are context dependent, and that changes in enviro–climatic conditions will likely lead to network rewiring. Integrating turnover in plant–microbe interactions into studies that assess the impact of enviro–climatic change on peatland ecosystems is essential to understand ecosystem dynamics and must be combined with studies on the impact of these changes on ecosystem processes.     

Warming leads to higher species turnover in a coastal ecosystem

The responses of ecological communities and ecosystems to increased rates of environmental change will be strongly influenced by variation in the diversity of community composition. Yet, our understanding of how diversity is affected by rising temperatures is inconclusive and mainly based on indirect evidence or short‐term experiments. In our study, we analyse the diversity and species turnover of benthic epilithic communities within the thermal flume of a nuclear power plant at the Swedish coast. This flume covers the range of predicted future temperature rises. Species composition was significantly different between control sites and sites with higher temperatures. We found that temperature had little effect on the number of species in three functional groups (macroinvertebrates, benthic diatoms, and macrophytes, which here comprise multicellular algae and macroscopic colonies of unicellular algae and cyanobacteria), neither at single sampling dates nor summed for the entire observation year. However, species turnover significantly increased with increasing temperature for diatoms, macrophytes and invertebrates. Different temperature regimes resulted in significantly different species composition and indicator species. Thus, increasing temperatures in the thermal flume increased temporal beta‐diversity and decreased compositional stability of communities, although observed richness did not change at any point in time. We highlight the need to investigate the consequences of such declines in compositional stability for functional stability of ecosystem processes.     

Using dung beetles to evaluate the conversion effects from native to introduced pasture in the Brazilian Pantanal

The Pantanal is the largest Neotropical seasonal freshwater wetland on Earth. Extensive livestock production has been the dominant economic land use activity of the Pantanal, where approximately 80 % of the land is occupied by native and introduced pastures. However, the impact of native pasture conversion into introduced pasture on the biodiversity of this biome is little understood. Here we evaluate the effect of native pasture to introduced pasture conversion on dung beetle communities. We sampled dung beetles in July 2011 (dry season) and January 2012 (rainy season), at four native pasture sites and four introduced pasture sites in Aquidauana, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. The sampling was carried out using pitfall traps baited with three different bait types: carrion, cattle dung, and human feces. We sampled 7086 individuals, belonging to 32 species of 16 genera and six tribes of dung beetles. The abundance was similar among the pasture types. However, a higher species richness was found on the native pasture. Species composition also differed between the two pasture types in each sampling season. Additionally, the dominant functional guilds were different in the two landscapes. The result shows that the conversion of native grasslands into introduced pasture results in a decrease of species number and changes in species composition. These findings highlight the importance on native pasture to the conservation of dung beetle biodiversity in this ecosystem.     

Context dependence of marine ecosystem engineer invasion impacts on benthic ecosystem functioning

Introduced ecosystem engineers can severely modify the functioning on invaded systems. Species-level effects on ecosystem functioning (EF) are context dependent, but the effects of introduced ecosystem engineers are frequently assessed through single-location studies. The present work aimed to identify sources of context-dependence that can regulate the impacts of invasive ecosystem engineers on ecosystem functioning. As model systems, four locations where the bivalve Ruditapes philippinarum (Adams and Reeve) has been introduced were investigated, providing variability in habitat characteristics and community composition. As a measure of ecosystem engineering, the relative contribution of this species to community bioturbation potential was quantified at each site. The relevance of bioturbation to the local establishment of the mixing depth of marine sediments (used as a proxy for EF) was quantified in order to determine the potential for impact of the introduced species at each site. We found that R. philippinarum is one of the most important bioturbators within analysed communities, but the relative importance of this contribution at the community level depended on local species composition. The net contribution of bioturbation to the establishment of sediment mixing depths varied across sites depending on the presence of structuring vegetation, sediment granulometry and compaction. The effects of vegetation on sediment mixing were previously unreported. These findings indicate that the species composition of invaded communities, and the habitat characteristics of invaded systems, are important modulators of the impacts of introduced species on ecosystem functioning. A framework that encompasses these aspects for the prediction of the functional impacts of invasive ecosystem engineers is suggested, supporting a multi-site approach to invasive ecology studies concerned with ecosystem functioning.     

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。       

Butterfly community ecology: the influences of habitat type,weather patterns,and dominant species in a temperate ecosystem

We compared variation in butterfly communities across 3 years at six different habitats in a temperate ecosystem near Boulder, Colorado, USA. These habitats were classified by the local Open Space consortium as Grasslands, Tallgrass, Foothills Grasslands, Foothills Riparian, Plains Riparian, and Montane Woodland. Rainfall and temperature varied considerably during these years. We surveyed butterflies using the Pollard‐Yates method of invertebrate sampling and compared abundance, species richness, and diversity across habitats and years. Communities were most influenced by habitat, with all three quantitative measures varying significantly across habitats but only two measures showing variation across years. Among habitats, butterfly abundance was higher in Plains Riparian sites than in Montane Woodland or Grassland sites, though diversity was lowest in Plains Riparian areas. Butterfly species richness was higher in Foothills Riparian sites than it was in all but one other habitat (Tallgrass). Among years, butterfly abundance and species richness were lower during the year of least rainfall and highest temperatures, suggesting a substantial impact of the hot, dry conditions. Across habitats and years, butterfly abundance was consistently high at Plains Riparian and Foothills Riparian sites, and richness and diversity were consistently high in Foothills Riparian areas. These two habitats may be highly suitable for butterflies in this ecosystem, regardless of weather conditions. Generally low abundance and species richness in Montane Woodlands sites, particularly in 2002, suggested low suitability of the habitat to butterflies in this ecosystem, and this may be especially important during drought‐like conditions. Finally, to examine the effect that the presence of the very abundant non‐native species Pieris rapae L. (Lepidoptera: Pieridae) has on these communities, we re‐analyzed the data in the absence of this species. Excluding P. rapae dramatically reduced variation of both butterfly abundance and diversity across habitats, highlighting the importance of considering community membership in analyses like ours.     

Uncertain biotic and abiotic interactions in benthic communities

We analyze marine benthic communities at different sites in Skagerrak with the purpose of understanding the role of exogenous and endogenous factors in explaining the species' temporal dynamics. The previous finding that the dynamics of these species communities are mainly driven and synchronized by environmental (temperature) forcing was only weakly supported when analyzing single-species dynamics at five sites where four of the species were present every year. There was no consistent pattern in how the temperature affected the realized per capita growth rate, either across species at a given site, or among sites for a given species. Furthermore, there was no net-interaction from the community on a given species strong enough to give rise to second-order dynamics. However, when implementing a Multi Dimensional Scaling (MDS) analysis and incorporating all sampling sites and species -we found that the different communities clustered in relation to depth, hence, communities at the same depth were more "similar" than communities at different depth. Revealing the underlying interactions shaping these marine benthic communities is a challenge that calls for an array of various and complementary approaches.     

Temporal Variations in Fine Sand Assemblages in the North Aegean Sea (Eastern Mediterranean)

Two sites were selected in the North Aegean Sea for the study of shallow fine sand assemblages, which are poorly known in the Eastern Mediterranean. The biomonitoring of these sites can provide useful information on the impact of human activities on the macrofaunal and meiofaunal composition of these assemblages. In order to examine this impact, sampling took place in five different periods between 2000 and 2001. The qualitative and quantitative compositions of the communities at the two sites showed certain differences, mostly between the sites and the year of sampling rather than between sampling periods, which would be the expected outcome. The communities seem to be affected by a combination of the human activities with the particular hydrodynamics of the studied sites.     

Species loss and gain in communities under future climate change: consequences for functional diversity

It is anticipated that anthropogenic climate change will lead to substantial reassembly within communities in coming decades as individual species shift their ranges to track optimal conditions for growth and survival. As species are lost and gained in communities, what are the consequences for functional trait diversity? Functional traits are the characteristics of species that affect individual performance and provide the vital link between biodiversity at the species level and ecosystem function. We investigated how projected changes in species richness in plant communities under climate change scenarios for the decade 2050 will affect the distribution and diversity of five functional traits. We aggregated range change projections made in Maxent for the decade 2050 across all species in the regional pool of littoral rainforest vines in eastern Australia (n = 163 species). The effect of richness changes on trait diversity was assessed in nine rainforest reserves along the east coast of Australia. Although richness was predicted to significantly decline across all communities, functional diversity remained stable, indicating a decoupling in response to climate change at these two different levels of biological organization. A high degree of redundancy in trait composition in communities may buffer against the loss of function in these plant communities. Scaling‐up our understanding of the impact of climate change from the species level to communities is a critical step towards developing conservation strategies aimed at preserving ecosystem function.     

三峡水库初次蓄水后干流库区桡足类的纵向分布与季节变化

作为大型水利工程, 三峡水库于2003年6月开始蓄水, 蓄水后库区水环境发生了变化。为了了解三峡水库水生态系统的演替规律, 同时为环境保护、渔业资源开发利用以及水环境管理提供理论基础, 我们对三峡水库第一阶段蓄水后桡足类的季节变化和空间分布进行了周年季节性研究。在三峡库区江津至茅坪的10个断面共采集到8种桡足类, 其中哲水蚤目2种、猛水蚤目1种、剑水蚤目5种, 北碚中剑水蚤(Mesocyclops pehpeiensis)、广布中剑水蚤(M. leuckarti)和汤匙华哲水蚤(Sinocalanus dorrii)分布较广。各样点种类数差异不大, 但组成上却有不同。桡足类种类组成、空间分布和密度具有明显的季节变化特征, 此外密度在水库的纵轴上也表现出明显的梯度分布, 越近大坝密度越高。     

Chironomid assemblage structure and morphological response to pollution in an effluent-impacted river,Eastern Cape,South Africa

Achieving sustainable freshwater resource management and conserving biodiversity require accurate and reliable pollution impact assessment. Biomonitoring is an integrative and holistic approach to assessing impact of pollution using biological indicators. In this study, we use the assemblage structure of the freshwater macroinvertebrate family Chironomidae to assess the impact of pollution in a South African river: the Swartkops River. Based on morphological deformities in the mentum of selected genera, we developed a new index, the extended toxic score index (ETSI), to assess the extent of deviation of ecological conditions at the impacted sites from that at the control site. Four sites i.e. Sites 1–4 characterised by different degrees of pollution were selected for chironomids and physico-chemical sampling over a period of three years (August 2009–September 2012). The ETSI was developed by taking into account the severity of deformities, and genera tolerances to pollution. The index was based on the deformities in the mentum of the five most dominant genera: Chironomus, Polypedilum, Tanytarsus, Dicrotendipes and Cricotopus. The values of nutrients, electrical conductivity and turbidity were elevated, and dissolved oxygen depleted at Sites 2, 3 and 4 compared with Site 1. Metal concentrations in the water column were relatively low (<0.3 mg/l). Site 1, i.e. the control site, supported more chironomid species (30 species). Site 2, situated upstream of the Kelvin Jones wastewater effluent discharge point, but influenced by diffuse pollution sources, had more species (22 species) than Sites 3 (10 species) and 4 (18 species). The species assemblage structure clustered largely by sites than by seasons, with the assemblage at Site 1 distinct to those at Sites 2, 3 and 4. The newly developed ETSI was sensitive to pollution, distinguishing between the ecological conditions at the sampling sites. The index placed Site 2 in Category D, indicative of poor ecological condition and Sites 3 and 4 in Category E, indicative of very poor conditions. We found the ETSI to be an appropriate and useful deformity-based tool for biomonitoring, and it can easily be modified and used in other river systems, both locally and internationally.     

Home and away: biogeographical comparison of species diversity in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Thymus vulgaris</Emphasis> communities

We examined the effects of Thymus vulgaris (common thyme) on associated vegetation in both its native and introduced range. We compared local (within-community) and landscape (among-community) species richness and community composition between thyme-dominated communities in France (native range) and New Zealand (introduced range). From 7 native sites (France) and 10 introduced sites (New Zealand), all plant species present in 20 (New Zealand, 25 in France) randomly placed 100 cm × 50 cm quadrats were recorded. Local species richness was determined by calculating mean species richness/quadrat inside and outside thyme-dominated plant communities and tested for significance with the factors of range and across sites. Landscape scale differences were determined by comparing total species richness inside and outside thyme communities across all sites from both ranges. Species differences between native and introduced thyme communities were analysed using similarity percentages. We found native range microenvironments with thyme harbour more species than microenvironments without thyme and this pattern was reversed in the introduced range with thyme decreasing local species richness. A higher percentage of shared species occurred both with and without thyme in the native range compared to the introduced range. In both ranges and across all sites (except for one) species composition of thyme-associated plant communities differed from communities without thyme. Native plant communities with thyme were more similar in species composition than plant communities without thyme, but in the introduced range species composition was most similar in plant communities without thyme. These results suggest thyme’s ecosystem engineering consequences are context-dependent. Thyme may filter out competitive species that could negatively impact local species richness in its native range, but when introduced to a disturbed landscape in a novel biogeographic region, thyme reduces local species richness.     

Phylogenetic analysis of the composition of bacterial communities in human-exploited coastal environments from Mallorca Island (Spain)

The phylogenetic analysis of bacterial communities in environments receiving anthropogenic impact could help us to understand its effects and might be useful in the development of monitoring or management strategies. A study of the composition of 16S rDNA clone libraries prepared from bacterial communities in water samples from a marina and a beach on the coast of Mallorca (W. Mediterranean) was undertaken at two time points, corresponding to periods of maximum and minimum anthropogenic use of this area for nautical and recreational activities. Libraries generated from the marina were significantly different from those from the beach and a non-impacted, bay sample. In the marina, a predominance of sequence types was observed related to bacterioplankton from nutrient-enriched environments or typically associated with phytoplankton, such as certain phylotypes of the Roseobacter clade, OM60 clade and Bacteroidetes. Similar results were found in the summer beach library but not in the winter one, in which there was an increase in the number of clones from oligotrophic groups, in agreement with lower chlorophyll content and bacterial counts. Therefore, nutrient enrichment seemed to be an important driver of the composition of bacterial communities in sites receiving direct human impact. Interesting sequence types from the Cryomorphaceae and group agg58 (Bacteroidetes) were exclusively found in beach libraries, and the reasons for this distribution deserve further study. Clones related to putative hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria of the genus Acinetobacter were observed in the marina, in agreement with a certain degree of pollution at this site. Non-marine sequences belonging to the Actinobacteria predominated over marine groups in the summer library from the marina and, therefore, unusual communities might be transiently present in this enclosed environment. Overall, the composition of the bacterial communities in these environments agreed well with the defining characteristics of the environments sampled.     

Understanding the Spatio-Temporal Response of Coral Reef Fish Communities to Natural Disturbances: Insights from Beta-Diversity Decomposition

Understanding how communities respond to natural disturbances is fundamental to assess the mechanisms of ecosystem resistance and resilience. However, ecosystem responses to natural disturbances are rarely monitored both through space and time, while the factors promoting ecosystem stability act at various temporal and spatial scales. Hence, assessing both the spatial and temporal variations in species composition is important to comprehensively explore the effects of natural disturbances. Here, we suggest a framework to better scrutinize the mechanisms underlying community responses to disturbances through both time and space. Our analytical approach is based on beta diversity decomposition into two components, replacement and biomass difference. We illustrate this approach using a 9-year monitoring of coral reef fish communities off Moorea Island (French Polynesia), which encompassed two severe natural disturbances: a crown-of-thorns starfish outbreak and a hurricane. These disturbances triggered a fast logistic decline in coral cover, which suffered a 90% decrease on all reefs. However, we found that the coral reef fish composition remained largely stable through time and space whereas compensatory changes in biomass among species were responsible for most of the temporal fluctuations, as outlined by the overall high contribution of the replacement component to total beta diversity. This suggests that, despite the severity of the two disturbances, fish communities exhibited high resistance and the ability to reorganize their compositions to maintain the same level of total community biomass as before the disturbances. We further investigated the spatial congruence of this pattern and showed that temporal dynamics involved different species across sites; yet, herbivores controlling the proliferation of algae that compete with coral communities were consistently favored. These results suggest that compensatory changes in biomass among species and spatial heterogeneity in species responses can provide further insurance against natural disturbances in coral reef ecosystems by promoting high levels of key species (herbivores). They can also allow the ecosystem to recover more quickly.     

镉胁迫对2种油菜土壤真菌群落的影响

[背景] 人类活动引起的农田重金属污染已成为严重的环境问题。镉（Cd）是最具毒性的重金属之一,能对人体和生态系统构成威胁。[目的] 研究不同浓度镉处理对2种油菜（甘蓝型油菜和芥菜型油菜）的土壤（根际和非根际）真菌群落的影响,为镉的生物修复和健康风险评估提供理论基础。[方法] 对2种油菜土壤（根际和非根际）真菌转录间隔区（Internal Transcribed Spacer,ITS）进行高通量测序,分析镉对根际和非根际土壤真菌群落的影响。[结果] 镉胁迫改变了土壤真菌群落的组成和结构,但对2种油菜土壤真菌群落的α多样性几乎无显著影响。土壤镉浓度和生物量与2种油菜根际土壤真菌群落显著相关,芥菜型油菜非根际土壤真菌群落也与镉污染浓度显著相关。土壤真菌分子生态网络也受到镉污染的影响,甘蓝型油菜根际土壤网络稳定性降低,共生关系减少。甘蓝型油菜非根际土壤网络稳定性升高,但共生关系减少。芥菜型油菜的根际和非根际土壤的网络稳定性升高,而且共生关系增多。[结论] 镉污染会影响土壤系统中的本土真菌群落,从而可能进一步改变土壤的生态系统功能。     

Persistence of an invasive fish (Neogobius melanostomus) in a contaminated ecosystem

Post-establishment dynamics of invasive species have been under-studied. However, understanding these dynamics is particularly important for the management of invasive species known to impact native communities. Following the invasion of a highly invasive species, the round goby (Neogobius melanostomus), we document long-term population changes after establishment and address how population dynamics of a successful invader change through persistence and integration. Round goby present a threat to the areas they invade by out-competing native species for resources. Furthermore, as a pollution tolerant species, round goby present a second threat by acting as a possible vector for contaminant transfer to higher trophic levels in invaded ecosystems with areas of contamination. We sampled round goby for 11 years (2002–2012) at four low contamination sites and two high contamination sites within Hamilton Harbour ON, Canada, an International Joint Commission Area of Concern. Across sampling years, we show that round goby abundance has declined at low contamination sites, while remaining stable at high contamination sites. Moreover, we show that average body size decreased and reproductive investment increased both across sampling years and between sites of low and high contamination. Our results document population demographic shifts in a persisting invasive species, and underscore the importance of management practices for this species in contaminated environments.