刈割后两种不同体型植物的补偿式样对比研究

对比了两种不同体型植物燕麦(Avena sativa)和油菜(Brassica campestris)在不同施肥水平下的刈割反应特点。结果表明:对于燕麦而言,在不施肥条件下,3个时期的轻度刈割处理与对照相比,其生物量、总生物量、果重、果数等都有增加,但只有某些指标出现超补偿;在施肥条件下,各种刈割处理后均没有发生超补偿。并且无论施肥与否,分蘖期与拔节期的补偿指数均高于抽穗期的补偿指数。可以认为,不施肥条件下营养期轻度刈割处理较有利于燕麦的补偿生长。对于油菜而言,花蕾期轻度刈割处理后植物补偿指数最大,且施肥条件下的补偿指数高于不施肥条件下的补偿指数。比较两种植物在不同资源下补偿反应的特点,可认为因休眠芽位置及其活动方式不同而所造成的体型差异对植物的补偿反应式样有很大影响。     

除虫链霉菌10个聚酮类抗生素生物合成基因簇的敲除对阿维菌素产量的影响

【目的】考察除虫链霉菌基因组中其它聚酮合成酶类(Polyketide synthase,PKS)抗生素生物合成基因簇的敲除突变对于阿维菌素产量的影响。【方法】构建了11个PKS基因簇的打靶Cosmid和质粒载体,导入除虫链霉菌中筛选突变株。【结果】在工业菌株MMR630中成功敲除了10个PKS基因簇。发酵结果显示7个PKS基因簇敲除突变株中阿维菌素的产量均有不同程度的提高,而2个突变株不能产生阿维菌素。然而,在3个连续敲除2个PKS基因簇的突变株中阿维菌素产量没有能够超过单个PKS敲除突变株的提升幅度。【结论】除虫链霉菌基因组的一些PKS基因簇的敲除可以提高阿维菌素的产量,同时暗示同一类次生代谢产物的代谢流之间存在复杂的相互作用关系。     

Individual variation in parental tradeoffs between the number and size of offspring at the pre- and post-natal stages

Life-history theory predicts that parents refer to the resources they hold to determine their breeding strategy. In multi-brooded species, it is hypothesized that single-brooded parents produce larger clutches and raise offspring with a brood survival strategy, whereas multi-brooded parents only do this under good breeding conditions. Under poor conditions, they produce smaller clutches and raise offspring with a brood reduction strategy. We tested this hypothesis in the Brown-cheeked Laughing Thrush Trochalopteron henrici, which can breed twice a year on the Tibetan Plateau, by investigating the life-history traits and provisioning behaviours of single- and double-brooded parents. Single-brooded parents laid larger clutches of smaller eggs and produced more and larger fledglings than double-brooded parents in their first brood. Double-brooded parents produced smaller clutches of larger eggs but fledged larger nestlings in their first brood than in their second brood. As single-brooded parents only need to raise one brood a year, then producing and raising as many offspring as possible (i.e. the brood survival strategy in a large brood) can maximize their reproductive success. For double-brooded parents, producing and raising fewer offspring in the first brood (i.e. the brood survival strategy in a small brood) can ensure their nesting success during a short breeding cycle. Additionally, producing more offspring but raising larger nestlings in the second brood (i.e. the brood reduction strategy in a large brood) can select for offspring of higher quality within the brood. Our findings indicate that different tradeoffs between single- and double-brooded parents in egg-laying and nestling-raising may be an adaptation to the seasonal variation in environmental conditions.     

Effects of extra-pair paternity and maternity on the provisioning strategies of the Azure-winged Magpie Cyanopica cyanus

Altricial birds show enormous intraspecific diversity in their provisioning strategies, in terms of both the provisioning rate and the amount of food delivered per feeding bout. Extra-pair copulations (EPCs), which result in either extra-pair paternity (EPP) or maternity (EPM), provide an opportunity to demonstrate why provisioning strategies vary among individuals. Because EPP-cuckolded males and EPM-cuckolded females must raise unrelated young, whereas EPM-cuckolded males and EPP-cuckolded females need not, we hypothesized that the first two categories of breeders would reduce parental effort, whereas the latter two categories of breeders would increase parental effort. We tested this hypothesis in the Azure-winged Magpie Cyanopica cyanus by comparing the number and body mass of fledglings, provisioning rates and food amount delivered per feeding bout between EPP- and EPM-cuckolded breeders and faithful breeders. We found that (1) the number of fledglings did not differ significantly between cuckolded and faithful breeders, and (2) fledglings raised by EPM-cuckolded males and EPP-cuckolded females did not differ from faithful breeders, whereas fledglings raised by EPP-cuckolded males and EPM-cuckolded females were significantly smaller than those raised by faithful breeders. Compared with faithful breeders, cuckolded breeders increased parental efforts in nests that contained no unrelated young; hence, their loss in parentage may be compensated for by the enhanced quality of fledglings. In nests that contained unrelated young, cuckolded breeders did not reduce parental efforts; hence, their own offspring would not starve and could survive in competition with mixed brood-mates. Our findings suggest that the differences in parentage created by EPP and EPM scenarios and the potential fitness return of raising a brood for the cuckolded breeders can explain the intraspecific variation in provisioning strategies of altricial birds.     

Field study of the relationship between personality and reproductive strategy in the White-collared Blackbird Turdus albocinctus

The discovery of personality traits in animal populations may help to explain individual variation in breeding strategies. In the White-collared Blackbird Turdus albocinctus, females, but not males, exhibited different nest defence behaviours that can be used to classify them into bold and shy personalities. Bold females had higher nest success, lower fecundity and higher parental investment than shy females, and the social mates of bold females had lower parental investment than that of shy females. Our findings suggest that the reproductive strategy of birds may be closely related to their personality traits.     

Changes of plant N:P stoichiometry across a 3000-km aridity transect in grasslands of northern China

Plant and Soil - Rice cultivars bred for fertile soils may not be the best suited to nutrient limited environments. Therefore, rice cultivars suited to sustain productivity in low-fertile soils and...     

Seasonality of insect succession on exposed rabbit carrion in Guangzhou, China

Abstract  Succession patterns for insect fauna, spanning four seasons, on rabbit carcasses were studied in Guangzhou China from 2006 to 2008. A total of 49 taxa belonging to three orders and 15 families were collected and identified. Four decomposition stages were recognized: fresh, bloated, decay and dry stage. Taxa diversity was higher in bloated and decay stages than fresh and dry stages. Internal and ambient temperatures were measured. Maximum internal temperature arrived earlier in warmer seasons. The sequence of insect succession in this study follows the same general patterns: the Diptera peaked initially, and the Coleoptera peaked later. Chrysomya megacephala was the dominant species in four seasons. Its time point of different development stages on carrion could be the most important indicators for PMI (postmortem interval) estimation in Guangzhou. Yearly and seasonal differences in activities of insects were compared. Alpha diversity indices were calculated. There were no significant differences in Shannon-Wiener index, evenness ( J ) and dominance ( C ) between seasons and years. From the Jaccard similarity index, the highest similarity was between winter and spring, while the lowest was between summer and winter. Some species occurring exclusively in one season may be important to characterize different seasons. A list of the insect taxa associated with above-ground rabbit carrion during the four seasons was compiled, which can be used for estimating time since death in similar bio-climate areas.     

Tree species influences soil microbial community diversity but not biomass in a karst forest in southwestern China

中国西南喀斯特森林树种对土壤微生物群落多样性和生物量的影响 陆地生态系统中植物种对土壤微生物群落结构的影响不一，而喀斯特生态系统中植物种对土壤微生物群落结构影响的研究尚未见报道。本研究利用磷酸脂肪酸(PLFA)法，分析了黔中高原型喀斯特常绿落叶阔叶混交林5个优势树种—窄叶石栎(Lithocarpus confinis Huang)、圆果化香(Platycarya longipes Wu)、滇鼠刺(Itea yunnanensis Franch.)、安顺润楠(Machilus cavaleriei H. Lév.)、云贵鹅耳枥(Carpinus pubescens Burkill)—与土壤理化性质对土壤微生物群落组成和生物量的影响。在测试的212个土壤样品 中共检测出132种PLFA，每个样品土壤微生物平均PLFA数量和生物量分别为65.97和11.22 µg g^–1。土壤表层(0–10 cm)的土壤微生物PLFA数量与下层(10–20 cm)土壤接近，但前者土壤微生物生物量显著高于后者(P < 0.05)。树种影响土壤微生物PLFA数量，但对土壤微生物生物量没有影响。云贵鹅耳枥附近的土壤微生物PLFA数量显著高于其他树种(P < 0.05)，而其他树种土壤微生物PLFA数量接近。土壤微生物 生物量与表层土壤的理化性质无显著相关，但与下层土壤的有机碳、全氮和全磷含量呈显著正相关 (P < 0.05)。总之，黔中高原型喀斯特森林真菌/细菌生物量比率低，微生物总生物量低，但微生物群落多样性高。树种对土壤微生物群落多样性产生影响。