Initiating community participation: the stakeholder communication and environmental education programme

Under the new National Water Act the River Health Programme has Stakeholder Communication and Environmental Education (SCEE) as one of its components. This programme seeks to develop tools to help water resource managers involve previously disadvantaged communities in managing river ecosystems sustainably. This paper discusses the processes, procedures and methods undertaken in the pilot studies for SCEE. It stresses the need for respect for the cultural lifestyles of indigenous peoples, because traditional knowledge can build on the scientific knowledge of our country's aquatic ecosystems.     

跨越生境的资源补贴对生态系统的影响研究进展

跨越不同生态系统之间的物质、能量和营养元素流动,即资源补贴,是生态系统的基本属性,也是生态学研究的基本问题之一.常见的资源补贴包括落入水体的树叶凋落物和陆地昆虫、水生昆虫成虫、从海洋生殖洄游的鲑鱼等,这些外源性的资源补贴对接收生态系统的生物个体、种群、群落、生物多样性和生态系统功能都有影响,包括促进个体生长、增加物种丰度和多样性、改变群落结构、增加生态系统的生产力、改变食物链长度及影响食物网、影响生态系统的稳定性等.随着未来人类活动对环境扰动的增加,尤其在土地利用、气候变化、生物入侵方面,对跨越生态系统资源补贴的时空动态影响将加剧,因而生态系统将面临更加严峻的威胁.鉴于此,未来在该领域的基础研究应着重开展以下几方面研究:单一和多重环境胁迫对资源补贴和生态系统的影响;动态资源补贴在生态系统修复及管理中的应用;关注与污染物相关的资源补贴的负面影响;加强跨越生境资源补贴在热带和亚热带以及在我国的生态学基础研究.     

The sensitivity of Afromontane tarns in the Maloti-Drakensberg region of South Africa and Lesotho to acidic deposition

Despite their remoteness from sources of atmospheric pollutant emissions, the Afromontane tarns in the Maloti-Drakensberg region are perfect candidates to study the negative effects of acidifying atmospheric pollution, because mountain lakes are widely recognised as sentinel ecosystems, unimpacted by direct human disturbance within their catchments. Thirty-four tarns were sampled in the Maloti-Drakensberg region and most were found to be extremely sensitive to acidic deposition, as indicated by their low acid neutralising capacity. There are very few studies of freshwater critical loads for any region within South Africa. The steady-state water chemistry model (SSWC) was adapted and used to determine critical loads, whereas exceedance was estimated relative to modelled regional deposition data, in order to understand the risk of harmful effects to aquatic ecosystems. Seventy-six percent of sampled sites across the Maloti-Drakensberg would exceed critical loads even at the lowest modelled deposition levels, but there are no current measured deposition data for the region. The sensitivity of the Maloti-Drakensberg tarns needs to be considered in future policy formulation regarding acceptable levels of acidifying atmospheric pollution from South Africa’s energy sector and indicates the need for assessing aquatic ecosystem impacts in other regions of South Africa.     

Quantifying a virtual water metabolic network of the Metropolitan District of Quito,Ecuador using ecological network methods

Current human population is mostly located in urban areas making cities the center of attention in terms of achieving sustainability goals. Evidence shows that ecosystems have evolved over time toward a balanced configuration between resource efficiency and functional redundancy. For this reason, they are exemplary models to follow in terms of sustainability. Here, we apply similar ecological network-based methods to study the virtual water metabolic network (VWMN) of the Metropolitan District of Quito. The VWMN was obtained using novel bottom-up, survey-based methods to generate the urban metabolic network. We compare the VWMN results with those previously obtained from ecological food webs, to learn if there are insights about the sustainability of urban metabolic processes. We conclude that VWMN does not exhibit characteristics observed in sustainable ecological networks because this socioeconomic network exhibits higher levels of path redundancy. Urban metabolism studies are gaining in popularity as a research tool aimed at informing resource management and this is one of the first covering a city in the Global South and using a bottom-up survey method.     

Global biomass potentials under sustainability restrictions defined by the European Renewable Energy Directive 2009/28/EC

The political will to reduce global GHG emissions has largely contributed to increased global biofuel production and trade. The expanding cultivation of energy crops may drive changes in the terrestrial ecosystems such as land cover and biodiversity loss. When biomass replaces fossil energy carriers, sustainability criteria are therefore crucial to avoid adverse impacts and ensure a net positive GHG balance. The European Union has set mandatory sustainability criteria for liquid biofuels in its Renewable Energy Directive (RED) 2009/28/EC to ensure net positive impacts of its biofuel policy. The adoption of sustainability criteria in other world regions and their extension to solid and gaseous biomass in the EU is ongoing. This paper examines the effect of the EU RED sustainability criteria on the availability of biomass resources at global and regional scale. It quantifies the relevance of sustainability criteria in biomass resource assessments taking into account the criteria's spatial distribution. This assessment does not include agricultural and forestry residues and aquatic biomass. Previously unknown interrelations between sustainability criteria are examined and described for ten world regions. The analysis concludes that roughly 10% (98.5 EJ) of the total theoretical potential of 977.2 EJ occurs in areas free of sustainability concerns.     

How Far Could the Alien Boatman Trichocorixa verticalis verticalis Spread? Worldwide Estimation of Its Current and Future Potential Distribution

Invasions of alien species are considered among the least reversible human impacts, with diversified effects on aquatic ecosystems. Since prevention is the most cost-effective way to avoid biodiversity loss and ecosystem problems, one challenge in ecological research is to understand the limits of the fundamental niche of the species in order to estimate how far invasive species could spread. Trichocorixa verticalis verticalis (Tvv) is a corixid (Hemiptera) originally distributed in North America, but cited as an alien species in three continents. Its impact on native communities is under study, but it is already the dominant species in several saline wetlands and represents a rare example of an aquatic alien insect. This study aims: i) to estimate areas with suitable environmental conditions for Tvv at a global scale, thus identifying potential new zones of invasion; and ii) to test possible changes in this global potential distribution under a climate change scenario. Potential distributions were estimated by applying a multidimensional envelope procedure based on both climatic data, obtained from observed occurrences, and thermal physiological data. Our results suggest Tvv may expand well beyond its current range and find inhabitable conditions in temperate areas along a wide range of latitudes, with an emphasis on coastal areas of Europe, Northern Africa, Argentina, Uruguay, Australia, New Zealand, Myanmar, India, the western boundary between USA and Canada, and areas of the Arabian Peninsula. When considering a future climatic scenario, the suitability area of Tvv showed only limited changes compared with the current potential distribution. These results allow detection of potential contact zones among currently colonized areas and potential areas of invasion. We also identified zones with a high level of suitability that overlap with areas recognized as global hotspots of biodiversity. Finally, we present hypotheses about possible means of spread, focusing on different geographical scales.     

Aquatic biodiversity in the mediterranean region of South Africa

The Cape mediterranean region, part of South Africa’s Cape Floristic Realm (CFR), is recognised for its rich diversity and high degree of endemism of terrestrial vegetation. We review the biodiversity of the aquatic flora and fauna using literature sources and museum data. Geological, palaeohistorical and climate data are examined in relation to the formation of the winter-rainfall regime. Prehistoric humans had minimal impact on the aquatic biotas. Patterns and processes relating to the present-day climate, ecosystem status, distribution and diversity of plants, invertebrates and vertebrates in the CFR are reviewed. The proportion of endemic CFR species relative to the total number of species known from southern Africa is estimated. Observed distribution patterns are evaluated against temperate Gondwana vicariance, old African migrations, the role of the ancient Cape fold mountains and Pangaea. The lack of Pleistocene glaciations in Africa, the oligotrophic nature of the river systems and the palaeohistorical origin and distribution of taxa are considered when assessing reasons for disjunct distribution patterns. Impacts of anthropogenic interference with aquatic ecosystems are evaluated. Fragmented jurisdiction of nature conservation authorities is seen as a problem for attaining adequate conservation of CFR aquatic ecosystems. Systematic conservation planning is under way for the region.     

Relationships of water temperature and aquatic macroinvertebrate community structure with non-native riparian plant densities in the southern Cape,South Africa

Non-native vegetation in the riparian zone impacts on water temperatures, flow patterns, degree of shading, channel modification, and changes to natural sediment loads. Freshwater ecosystems in the Garden Route Initiative planning domain are of particular conservation value, because of the rich Gondwanaland relict aquatic macroinvertebrate fauna found in the rivers there, which are vulnerable to thermal changes. Data were collected during 2013 and 2014 at 19 sites on seven river systems between George and Knysna in the southern Cape, South Africa. These included 12 months of hourly water temperatures at all sites, and quantitative sampling of aquatic macroinvertebrates at ten sites. Each site was characterised in terms of water quality (pH, conductivity and turbidity) and general characteristics, including impacts such as density of non-native riparian trees. At the family level, aquatic macroinvertebrate communities showed variation between sites and seasons. Differences were more pronounced on the basis of natural land cover type (fynbos versus indigenous forest) than densities of non-native invasive riparian vegetation. Conservation of these river systems will depend on maintaining a mosaic of natural vegetation types.     

New paradigms for supporting the resilience of marine ecosystems

Resource managers and scientists from disparate disciplines are rising to the challenge of understanding and moderating human impacts on marine ecosystems. Traditional barriers to communication between marine ecologists, fisheries biologists, social scientists and economists are beginning to break down, and the distinction between applied and basic research is fading. These ongoing trends arise, in part, from an increasing awareness of the profound influence of people on the functioning of all marine ecosystems, an increased focus on spatial and temporal scale, and a renewed assessment of the role of biodiversity in the sustainability of ecosystem goods and services upon which human societies depend. Here, we highlight the emergence of a complex systems approach for sustaining and repairing marine ecosystems, linking ecological resilience to governance structures, economics and society.     

Assessing the efficiency and effectiveness of rangeland restoration in Namaqualand,South Africa

South Africa’s Succulent Karoo is home to unmatched numbers of dryland plant species. Unfortunately, decades of overstocking these rangelands with small livestock and historical ploughing for fodder have led to extensive degradation. Some areas are severely degraded, negatively affecting both agricultural livestock productivity and ecosystem health. Land degradation reduces land use options and leaves land users, and the ecosystems on which they depend, more vulnerable to environmental and economic stressors. Ecological restoration is promoted as an effective and cost-efficient option for building the resilience of local and regional ecosystems. However, dryland restoration confronts many environmental challenges that have limited its success to date. Here, we present the results of a local-scale participatory restoration trial and an assessment of the costs of regional-scale ecological restoration in the Nama Khoi area in Namaqualand, South Africa. In combination, these analyses are useful for identifying opportunities and barriers for the improved efficiency and effectiveness of dryland restoration. In Namaqualand, we find that ecological restoration is difficult and expensive. The expected impacts of climate change will only exacerbate these challenges. However, we argue that a holistic suite of land management actions that include sound management, the prevention of further degradation, and prudent investments in restoration even where costs are high is likely to be the only real option for sustaining land-based livelihoods in this region over the longer term.     

Restoration ecology of riverine wetlands: A 5-year post-operation survey on the Rhône River, France

Bibliographical study of articles published in scientific journals over the last 10 years, and of books published over the last 20 years, reveals a clear increase in the number of publications dealing with ecological engineering, particularly on aquatic ecosystems, which today are becoming a major topic. The concept of ecological restoration must be clearly defined scientifically and include adequate pre- and post-restoration monitoring of various performance indicators, to allow for restoration, evaluation and increase its success. A restoration experiment was carried out in a former channel of the Rhône River according to a scientifically based decision framework. Long-term monitoring of aquatic vegetation (17 years of data) on two former channels (reference and restored ecosystem) clearly demonstrated human impacts on aquatic ecosystems. A channel exhibiting rapid terrestrialization and eutrophication processes after completion of a hydroelectric scheme construction was restored. In keeping with the hypothesis, the increase in groundwater supply led the restored ecosystem to return to a less advanced and self-sustainable successional stage, whereas vegetation monitoring in the reference channel did not show significant changes over this 17-year of period, supporting long-term studies to determine the effects of restoration on the biota.     

RNA‑seq技术在水生生物生态毒理学中的应用进展

水域是地球环境的重要组成部分,也是最易受污染的生态系统之一。水生态系统中不同营养级别的水生生物可通过摄食、接触等多种途径摄入水体中的污染物。因此,监测水域污染物对水生生物和生态系统的影响,解析污染物对不同水生生物的毒性机制,筛选敏感、有效的生物标志物对生态毒理学研究和环境风险评价具有重要意义。RNA测序（RNA sequencing,RNA?seq）技术因所需样品量少,且不需参考序列,可在整体水平上鉴定基因差异表达,成为水生生物生态毒理学研究的最佳方法之一。基于此,介绍了RNA?seq技术的基本流程与数据分析过程,对该技术在不同生态位的水生生物（如鱼类、两栖类、贝类、甲壳类等）生态毒理学中的应用展开综述,并对RNA?seq技术面临的不足、挑战及发展趋势进行探讨,以期为该技术在水生生物生态毒理学研究中的应用,尤其是水生态环境中污染物胁迫水生生物机制的阐明及污染水域生态环境恢复提供参考。     

Effects of Prescribed Burning and Mechanical Bush Clearing on Ungulate Space Use in an African Savannah

Savannah ecosystems exhibit constant transitions between states dominated by trees and states dominated by a combination of trees and grasses. Transitions between these states are driven by interactions between fire and herbivory. Bush encroachment (i.e. an increase in the density of woody vegetation) is often caused by anthropogenic disturbance such as climate change, invasive plants, fire control, and livestock practices. As bush encroachment alters the dynamics between fire and herbivory, it may have significant impact on savannah ecosystems. Two of the most common measures to mitigate bush encroachment are prescribed burning and bush clearing by mechanical treatments. We studied the effects of these two mitigation measures on ungulate space use in Lapalala Wilderness, a private conservation area within the Waterberg Biosphere Reserve, northern South Africa. Burning and bush clearing affected both the overall abundance and the species composition of ungulates at particular patches, but these effects were influenced by habitat and the type of bush clearing treatment. Contrary to our expectations, most species occurred less frequently in burnt patches, and also less frequently in patches that had been bush cleared. Our results suggest that combined effects of fire and bush clearing may have positive effects on grazers and negative effects on browsers. Although our sampling design did not allow us to fully resolve interactive effects of burning and bush clearing treatments across habitats, our study highlights the fact that there are complex ecological consequences of habitat alterations in savannah ecosystems.     

The impacts of drought on freshwater ecosystems: an Australian perspective

Southeastern Australia is presently experiencing one of the worst droughts observed in the region in the last 200 years. The consequences of drought have been far reaching both for human consumptive uses and for aquatic ecosystems, and serve to highlight several important aspects of the nature of droughts, their ecological impacts, and how humans respond to them. Running water ecosystems are the dominant form of freshwater ecosystem in Australia, yet, despite the high frequency of drought we lack a basic understanding of the consequences of long-term droughts (as distinct from seasonal droughts) as an ecosystem disturbance, and more is known about drought effects on flowing than on standing waters. Drought is well defined and characterised meteorologically, but hydrologically its characterisation is equivocal. While drought severely impacts natural aquatic ecosystems, its effects have been and are exacerbated by direct and indirect anthropogenic modifications to streams and their catchments. In streams the major impacts are the loss of water and habitat availability, and the reduction, if not severing, of connectivity (lateral, longitudinal and vertical). Despite the relative frequency of drought in Australia we have failed to develop long-term management strategies capable of contending with droughts and their impacts, particularly in catchments where human disturbances have reduced the natural resistance and resilience of aquatic ecosystems, and where the demand for consumptive water use is high and rising. Here, we provide a commentary on drought and its implications for the management of freshwater ecosystems. We begin with a general discussion of drought and its impacts on streams and rivers before discussing some of the more specific management issues and response strategies that have arisen in response to the current drought in Australia. Throughout we consider global as well as local examples. We conclude by highlighting important knowledge gaps and by providing some general principles for better incorporating droughts and their impacts into river management strategies. Handling editor: K. Martens     

Effectiveness of DNA barcoding for identifying piscine prey items in stomach contents of piscivorous catfishes

Environmental Biology of Fishes - Introduced predators pose ecological impacts upon prey species and receiving ecosystems. Understanding such ecological interactions creates technical challenges...     

Fish as proxies of ecological and environmental change

Anthropogenic impacts have shifted aquatic ecosystems far from prehistoric baseline states; yet, understanding these impacts is impeded by a lack of available long-term data that realistically reflects the organisms and their habitats prior to human disturbance. Fish are excellent, and largely underused, proxies for elucidating the degree, direction and scale of shifts in aquatic ecosystems. This paper highlights potential sources of qualitative and quantitative data derived from contemporary, archived and ancient fish samples, and then, using key examples, discusses the types of long-term temporal information that can be obtained. This paper identifies future research needs with a focus on the Southern Hemisphere, as baseline shifts are poorly described relative to the Northern Hemisphere. Temporal data sourced from fish can improve our understanding of how aquatic ecosystems have changed, particularly when multiple sources of data are used, enhancing our ability to interpret the current state of aquatic ecosystems and establish effective measures to safeguard against further adverse shifts. The range of biological, ecological and environmental data obtained from fish can be integrated to better define ecosystem baseline states on which to establish policy goals for future conservation and exploitation practices.     

基于能值分析的我国小水电生态影响研究

如何系统定量地评价小水电开发过程所引起的景观变化、河流局部断流等生态影响,是平息争议、进行合理规划与开发小水电前提之一。运用能值分析方法,以贵州省赤水市观音岩水电站为例,将小水电建设、运行的资源投入,以及河道中水流的时空改变所导致生态服务功能的损失纳入核算体系,对其生态影响进行综合定量评估。从2010年的实际结果来看,由于河流断流,导致水坝下游生态系统服务功能的能值损失为2.77×1018sej,占到了系统建设运行总投入的44.84%,其中重点保护鱼种在影响河段的生境破坏是最大的能值损失。若不考虑下游生态系统服务功能损失,系统的环境负载率为1.92,可持续性指标为1.22;而考虑下游生态影响之后,系统环境负载率增大至4.26,可持续性指标减小为0.34。研究表明,小水电的开发必须遵循适度开发、规划优先,保障河流最基本的生态需水底线,是协调小水电开发和河流健康矛盾、追求小水电持续发展的刚性要求。     

Bats and aquatic habitats: a review of habitat use and anthropogenic impacts

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Ecotourism and ecological restoration

The fast pace of tourism development around the world is causing untold damage to some of the most endangered ecological systems. From Dubai to Honolulu and from Cancun to Beijing, the environmental impacts of tourism are alarming. Ecological restoration (ER) of disturbed lands should be an important approach to sensitive tourism planning. This paper addresses the need for restoring biodiversity and how ecotourism has shown to be a strong force in the field of ER. Two examples (one each of private and community based ecotourism) incorporating ER will be highlighted in this paper: Phinda Game Reserve, South Africa and the Baboon Sanctuary in Belize. We call for greater dialogue across disciplines, notably ER, conservation science and ecotourism.     

退化生态系统恢复与恢复生态学

恢复生态学起源于100a前的山地、草原、森林和野生生物等自然资源的管理研究,形成于20世纪80年代。它是研究生态整合性的恢复和管理过程的科学。恢复生态学的研究对象是在自然或人为干扰下形成的偏离自然状态的退化生态系统。生态恢复的目标包括恢复退化生态系统的结构、功能、动态和服务功能,其长期目标是通过恢复与保护相结合,实现生态系统的可持续发展。恢复生态学的理论与方法较多,它们均源于生态学等相关学科,但自我设计和人为设计是唯一源于恢复生态学研究和实践的理论。由于生态系统的复杂性,退化生态系统恢复的方向和时间具有不确定性,其恢复的机理可用临界阈值理论和状态跃迁模型进行解释。中国森林恢复中存在的问题包括：大量营造种类和结构单一的人工林忽视了生物多样性在生态恢复中的作用;大量使用外来种;忽视了生态系统健康所要求的异质性;忽略了物种间的生态交互作用;造林时对珍稀濒危种需要缺乏考虑;城镇绿化忽略了植被的生态功能等问题。此外,还介绍了生态恢复的方法、成功恢复的标准,并提出了恢复生态学的发展趋势：恢复生态学尚未形成理论和方法体系,要成熟还有很长的路要走;恢复生态学正在强调自然恢复与社会、人文的耦合;对森林恢复研究要集中在恢复中的障碍和如何克服这些障碍两个方面;鉴于生态系统复杂性和动态性,应停止期待发现能预测恢复产出的简单定律,相反,应该根据恢复地点及目标多样性而强调适应性恢复。