Disease hotspots or hot species? Infection dynamics in multi‐host metacommunities controlled by species identity,not source location

Pathogen persistence in host communities is influenced by processes operating at the individual host to landscape‐level scale, but isolating the relative contributions of these processes is challenging. We developed theory to partition the influence of host species, habitat patches and landscape connectivity on pathogen persistence within metacommunities of hosts and pathogens. We used this framework to quantify the contributions of host species composition and habitat patch identity on the persistence of an amphibian pathogen across the landscape. By sampling over 11 000 hosts of six amphibian species, we found that a single host species could maintain the pathogen in 91% of observed metacommunities. Moreover, this dominant maintenance species contributed, on average, twice as much to landscape‐level pathogen persistence compared to the most influential source patch in a metacommunity. Our analysis demonstrates substantial inequality in how species and patches contribute to pathogen persistence, with important implications for targeted disease management.     

Movement and habitat shift responses of juvenile Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar) to annually permanent stream flooding

Reservoir formation in a river system changes a lotic environment to more lacustrine conditions, with impacts throughout the ecosystem. In this study, a river reach containing typical salmonid riffle/run habitat was flooded to create a large, deep pool from June to September in each of 3 years. We test the hypothesis that juvenile Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) with their preference for run/riffle habitats will respond to the transformation to a lentic environment by moving into adjacent lotic environments. Movements of juvenile Atlantic salmon were monitored using a combination of biotelemetry (radio- and passive integrated transponder-tagging) and electrofishing. Results showed that no tracked fish moved away from the created pool habitat. Mass-specific growth rates showed the created pool habitat resulted in net growth of juveniles. The results confirm that fish may not immediately (i.e., at least for an approximate 2 months) respond to rapid, large-scale habitat alterations by moving to find similar habitat conditions outside the altered habitat. This is most probably related to plasticity of behavior and habitat use, and no change in biological conditions to a point that would negatively impact fish growth and survival, for example food availability, competition, or predation. The results also support the hypothesis that the relative importance of physical habitat variables is not universal among streams and populations, therefore limiting the value of applying standard habitat suitability criteria and use.     

Diet and mobility in a late neolithic population of coastal oman inferred from radiocarbon dating and stable isotope analysis

In Oman, the presence of highly productive marine environments, coupled with relatively limited land resources, have led to intense exploitation of coastal resources, but the question of the seasonality of occupation of coastal sites remains open. Our aim is to evaluate the contribution of marine resources to the diet of the Neolithic population of Ra's al‐Hamra 5 (RH‐5) to shed new light on its mobility, using stable isotopes and radiocarbon (¹⁴C) dating as dietary tracers. Charcoal, shell, human bone and enamel apatite from eight contemporary graves were sampled. Graves are thought to provide the best chance to obtain marine and terrestrial remains that were contemporary with the human remains in order to calculate the marine reservoir effect (MRE) for this period. Inter‐individual variation in human bone apatite δ¹³C value is small, suggesting a homogenous diet. Bone apatite ¹⁴C ages are very close to the shell ages while enamel is significantly younger and plots near the charcoal ages. Older enamel ages were obtained when a stronger acetic treatment was used, demonstrating that the young ages are due to diagenetic alteration rather than a diachronic change in diet and that only bone apatite retained in vivo dietary signals. Bone ages indicate a heavy reliance on marine resources and it is therefore unlikely that the individuals analyzed here were leaving the coast seasonally, although mobility along the coast cannot be excluded. Am J Phys Anthropol 153:353–364, 2014. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

黄土旱塬区土壤水分状况与作物生长、降水的关系

土壤水分研究是统筹农业生产和生态环境建设的关键环节.本研究结合4年田间定位试验,通过对黄土高原南部长武旱塬冬小麦和春玉米2012—2015年土壤水分状况的研究,分析农田土壤干层形成情况、土壤水分对作物生长的影响、降水对土壤水库的影响以及作物对土壤水分状况的影响.结果表明: 降水年型是冬小麦地土壤干层形成的主导因素,年内降水分布不均是春玉米地土壤干层形成的主导因素.长武旱塬区冬小麦和春玉米一年一季的种植制度不会导致永久性干层的产生;相较于春玉米,冬小麦根系生长习性更符合黄土旱塬区土壤水分循环特征,黄土旱塬区土壤水分有效性可保证作物产量稳定;降水作用下,冬小麦土壤水库充、放水过程呈现收获期、休闲期和苗期连续充水、缓慢消耗期和大量消耗期连续失水相互交替的特点.0～300和300～600 cm土层土壤水库不一致性现象明显,以最大根深作为野外监测试验中土壤含水量的取样深度时,由于深层土壤水库负反馈作用,不同降水年型下,休闲期和苗期的蒸散均会被高估,缓慢消耗期和大量消耗期的蒸散均会被低估.冬小麦田间过渡层存在的范围为140～360 cm;作物生长的时间跨度影响土壤水库效应的发挥,土壤水库对冬小麦供水表现为年际间的调节作用,土壤水库对春玉米供水表现为季节间的调节作用.     

Prevalence and diversity of gastrointestinal parasites in free-ranging rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) in different land gradients of Bangladesh

Rhesus macaques are considered an important reservoir of different gastrointestinal (GI) zoonotic parasites affecting livestock and humans. Loads of GI parasites in the free-ranging rhesus macaques living in close proximity to communities in Bangladesh are still unknown. To estimate the prevalence and diversity of zoonotic GI parasites in rhesus macaques of Bangladesh, a total of 182 freshly voided fecal samples were collected from macaques living in rural (N = 67), peri-urban (N = 57), urban (N = 28), and Safari park (N = 30) between October 2015 and December 2016. All samples were tested by direct smear, sedimentation, flotation, and the McMaster techniques. A total of fourteen different taxa of GI parasites were detected, revealing an overall prevalence of 54.4% (n = 99; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 46.9–61.8). The prevalence of GI parasites was found to be significantly correlated with the mean parasitic taxa per individual in a group (r = 0.90; p = 0.002). The multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that the overall prevalence of GI parasites in macaques was significantly higher in those inhabiting rural areas (62.69%; odds ratio [OR]: 7.22; p = 0.001) and in macaques with interactions with other animals (60.98%; OR: 5.49; p = 0.005). Our results also indicated that the prevalence of Strongyloides spp. and Balantidium coli infections varied significantly between land gradients. Our results also indicate that macaques frequently visit human settlements for food and are found interacting with domestic animals. In conclusion, the high prevalence of zoonotic GI parasite infection in rhesus macaques found in our study may pose a significant public health risk to communities, particularly in rural areas of Bangladesh. Health promotion to at-risk communities focusing on limiting contact with rhesus macaques is necessary to mitigate potential zoonotic transmission.     

丹江口水库淅川库区大气氮湿沉降特征

大气氮沉降是除河流输入外水库水体重要的外源氮输入途径。以丹江口水库淅川库区为研究区,于2018年11月至2019年10月在库区周边设置了6个采样点,采集并分析了库区大气氮湿沉降样品,探讨氮湿沉降的时空分布特征以及对水库水体外源氮输入的贡献。研究结果表明,研究区大气氮湿沉降量为24.21 kg hm^-2 a^-1,其中氨氮占比（47.45％）为最大,有机氮占比（36.34％）次之,硝氮占比（16.21％）最小。硝氮湿沉降量在空间上表现出显著差异性。氨氮、有机氮湿沉降量的季节差异显著,氨氮是以夏季最高,秋季次之,冬季最低,而有机氮是以秋季最高,夏季次之,冬季最低。氨氮、硝氮、有机氮湿沉降量之间存在显著相关性,氨氮、有机氮湿沉降量与降水量之间存在显著相关性。总氮、氨氮湿沉降量分别为1321.98 t/a和627.34 t/a,分别占河流总氮、氨氮入库量的10.82％、34.85％。研究结果可为探索有针对性的库区水体氮污染控制途径提供重要理论基础。     

放养鲢鱼(Hypophthalmichys molitrix C et V)对水库围隔浮游生物群落的影响

本文研究在水库围隔实验生态系统中鲢鱼对浮游生物群落的影响。结果表明,放养鲢鱼后,浮游动物生物量、浮游植物生物量、叶绿素a和浮游植物毛产量分别下降了58.7％、63.6％、52.5％和65.0％;透明度、浮游植物群落多样性指数分别提高了18.2％、32.5％;铜绿微囊藻数量减少了90.6％“水华”得到明显抑制。但小型绿藻(<20μm)数量未出现显著变化,因而其在藻类生物量中所占比例反而提高了82.3％。围隔内可被鲢鱼滤食的大型藻类(硅藻、甲藻、隐藻和绿藻(>20μm))占藻类生物量的85.8％,因此鲢鱼的存在能明显限制浮游植物的生物量。此外,放养鲢鱼还显著降低了水体中的COD,TP,DO和pH值,这表明鲢鱼对水质有净化作用。     

洈水水库鳡鱼(Elopichthys bambusa)生长规律的研究

本文对洈水水库鳡鱼的生长及其利用进行了分析研究,结果表明:1.该种鱼生长快,高速生长时间长,可连续5年每年生长6kg以上;2.雌、雄鱼体长与体重生长分别适合Von.Bertalanffy的生长公式:L=L_∞(1-e-k(t-t·))和W=W_∞(1-e-k(t-t·))~3;3.雌鱼体重生长速度快于雄鱼,体长生长无明显差别;4.建议大中型水体中的鳡鱼与其它鱼类群落体重之比控制在3—5％为宜。     

Spatial and seasonal variation in nutrient excretion by benthic invertebrates in a eutrophic reservoir

1. Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) fluxes via excretion by benthic invertebrates were quantified in a eutrophic reservoir (Acton Lake, Ohio, U.S.A.). We quantified variation in nutrient fluxes seasonally (June until November 1997), spatially (three sites) and among taxa (chironomids, tubificid oligochaetes and Chaoborus). 2. The three taxa differed in spatial distribution and contribution to nutrient fluxes. Tubificids were the most abundant taxon at two oxic sites (1.5 and 4 m depth), and were exceedingly rare at an anoxic, hypolimnetic site (8 m). Chironomids were abundant only at the shallowest oxic site. Chaoborus was the only abundant taxon at the anoxic site. Total benthic invertebrate biomass was greatest at the shallowest site and lowest at the anoxic, hypolimnetic site. 3. Mass‐specific excretion rate [μmol NH₄–N or soluble reactive P (SRP) excreted mg dry mass^–1 h^–1] varied among experiments and was influenced by temperature. Differences among taxa were not significant. Thus, nutrient flux through benthic invertebrates was affected more by total invertebrate biomass and temperature than by species composition. 4. Fluxes of N and P via benthic invertebrate excretion (μmol NH₄–N or SRP m^–2 day^–1) were greatest at the oxic sites, where fluxes were dominated by the excretion of tubificids and chironomids. The N and P fluxes at the anoxic site were much lower, and were dominated by excretion by Chaoborus. The ratio of N and P excreted by the benthic invertebrate assemblage varied seasonally and was lowest at the anoxic site. 5. Comparison with other measured inputs shows that excretion by benthic invertebrates could be an important source of nutrients, especially of P. However, the relative importance of nutrient excretion by the benthos varies greatly spatially and temporally.     

不同护坡草本植物的根系特征及对土壤渗透性的影响

为明确三峡库区植被边坡植物物种根系特征与土壤渗透性之间的关系,以裸地为对照,应用WinRHIZO(Pro.2004c)根系分析系统对香根草(Vetiveria zizanioides(Lin.) Nash)、百喜草(Paspalum notatum Flugge)、狗牙根(Cynodon dactylon (L) Pers.)和紫花苜蓿(Medicago sativa L.)等4种护坡草本的根系特征进行定量分析.结果表明:(1)紫花苜蓿和香根草的根长密度和根表面积密度显著大于狗牙根和百喜草;(2)不同草本类型和同一草本不同土层之间土壤渗透性存在较大差异,且各草本土壤渗透性随土层深度的增加而降低;相对于裸地而言,4种草本均能显著增强土壤渗透性,其土壤渗透性优劣表现为:香根草＞紫花苜蓿＞百喜草＞狗牙根;(3)土壤的初始入渗率、稳渗率、平均渗透率和渗透总量等各参数均随根长密度和根表面积密度增大而增强,且与直径介于0.5-5 mm不同径级的根系特征之间存在明显的相关性,故根系对土壤渗透性的增强作用主要归功于0.5-5 mm径级的根长密度和根表面积密度;(4)根长密度、根表面积密度对考斯加科夫入渗模型参数K和a有较大影响,随着根长密度和根表面积密度的增加,表征土壤初始入渗率的K值逐渐增大,而表征入渗能力衰减的参数a逐渐减小.