The first baleen whale marine protected area proposed for Bryde's whales in the Beibu Gulf,China

The establishment of marine protected areas (MPAs) for cetaceans is an important strategy to mitigate human disturbance and protect biodiversity. Despite abundant cetacean species, there are only a few MPAs dedicated to cetacean conservation in China, all of which are for inshore dolphins. Bryde's whales, the only nearshore baleen whale population in mainland China, are conflicting with intensive human activities, yet an effective conservation strategy is lacking. This study used species distribution models to analyze distribution patterns and suitable habitats of Bryde's whales in the Beibu Gulf and proposes the first baleen whale MPA in China. Our results showed Bryde's whales have a seasonal distribution pattern in the Beibu Gulf, and that the waters around Weizhou Island and the southeastern coast of Vietnam were their core habitats. The seasonal nighttime light data indicated a negative relationship between the number of ship lights and Bryde's whale sightings and suggest that Bryde's whales might be threatened by fisheries. We proposed an MPA based on the results, suggesting that the waters within 20 km around Weizhou Island should be declared a protected area. Furthermore, we recommend that anthropogenic activities in the waters around Weizhou Island are better managed to reduce negative impacts on marine life.     

Anthropogenic modifications to fire regimes in the wider Serengeti‐Mara ecosystem

Fire is a key driver in savannah systems and widely used as a land management tool. Intensifying human land uses are leading to rapid changes in the fire regimes, with consequences for ecosystem functioning and composition. We undertake a novel analysis describing spatial patterns in the fire regime of the Serengeti‐Mara ecosystem, document multidecadal temporal changes and investigate the factors underlying these patterns. We used MODIS active fire and burned area products from 2001 to 2014 to identify individual fires; summarizing four characteristics for each detected fire: size, ignition date, time since last fire and radiative power. Using satellite imagery, we estimated the rate of change in the density of livestock bomas as a proxy for livestock density. We used these metrics to model drivers of variation in the four fire characteristics, as well as total number of fires and total area burned. Fires in the Serengeti‐Mara show high spatial variability—with number of fires and ignition date mirroring mean annual precipitation. The short‐term effect of rainfall decreases fire size and intensity but cumulative rainfall over several years leads to increased standing grass biomass and fuel loads, and, therefore, in larger and hotter fires. Our study reveals dramatic changes over time, with a reduction in total number of fires and total area burned, to the point where some areas now experience virtually no fire. We suggest that increasing livestock numbers are driving this decline, presumably by inhibiting fire spread. These temporal patterns are part of a global decline in total area burned, especially in savannahs, and we caution that ecosystem functioning may have been compromised. Land managers and policy formulators need to factor in rapid fire regime modifications to achieve management objectives and maintain the ecological function of savannah ecosystems.     

西南山区人口空间重组及其对植被的影响——以河流沿线为例

随着城市化的快速推进,山区人口迁出及空间重组成为影响中国山区人地关系的重要因素,这可能对山区植被恢复和生态改善产生巨大影响。基于人口空间数据、河流分布数据和MODIS数据,本文分析了河流沿线人口空间重组情况,以生长季EVI值为表征植被绿度的指标,采用基于像元的趋势分析方法和基于样本的相关分析模型,对2000—2010年间中国西南山区不同级别河流沿线的人口空间变化和植被变化作了系统性分析,并定量研究了人口空间重组与植被变化之间的关系。结果表明:(1)三级及以上河流出现人口往河流沿线聚集的趋势,人口在河流的影响区聚集程度大于对比区。其中,一级和二级河流沿线影响区人口密度增加量比对比区分别高75.9%和42.1%。(2)三级及以上各河流沿线影响区和对比区EVI均呈现出增加的趋势,且影响区增加趋势低于对比区。(3)植被EVI变化趋势与人口密度变化呈负相关关系,河流沿线人口密度增加不利于植被的恢复;河流级别越高,植被EVI变化趋势与人口密度变化的相关性越强。     

极端暴雨下山地丘陵区小流域洪水淹没强度对景观特征的响应——以河南“7·20”暴雨为例

通过分析郑州7·20暴雨事件中贾峪河山地丘陵区小流域的洪水过程,探究景观特征对洪水淹没强度影响的时空分布规律,并提出增强流域洪水韧性的规划建议,以缓解河南省山区所面临的社会经济发展、生态环境改善等问题。基于高分6号遥感数据、先进陆地观测卫星(ALOS,Advance Land Observing Satellite)相控阵L频段合成孔径雷达(PALSAR)的地表高程数据和小时降雨量数据,利用MIKE 21水动力模型构建贾峪河流域二维水文模型,分析其2021年7月20日0-24时期上、中、下游的洪水淹没深度和面积,并结合双变量空间自相关模型方法,探究洪水淹没强度与各景观组成和地形因素在时间和空间上的相关性的差异以及其空间聚类类型。研究表明:(1)贾峪河流域淹没面积在0-6时快速增长,于18时达到最大9.59km²,此时各区域淹没面积占比从大到小依次为下游18.88%、上游8.25%、中游12.03%,淹没深度在3m以上的面积占36.11%。(2)地形因素(平均Moran''s I=0.159)对洪水强度的影响大于土地类型(平均Moran''s I=0.096),主要影响因子相对高程、地形湿度指数、矿坑面积百分比、水体面积百分比、建设用地面积百分比、耕地面积百分比以及林地和草地面积百分比与洪水淹没强度之间的相关性随时间变化呈增大趋势,均在暴雨中后期18-24时达到最强。(3)交互探测结果表明,多因子叠加会增强各景观特征对洪水淹没强度的影响。上游影响洪水淹没强度的主要驱动力为矿坑和相对高程,中游和下游的主要影响为水体和地形湿度指数。(4)洪水淹没强度24时的平均值与景观特征指数之间的"高-高"和"高-低"地区的面积占比约0.47%-9.85%,主要分布在上游的中部山区和北部河道周围、中游的河道两侧和下游的河道以及常庄水库周边地区。研究结论建议在上游露天矿坑就地改造为蓄水池并恢复植被,中游和下游应提升河岸带绿地质量,增加下游城区绿色基础设施,减轻城市洪水风险。     

Developing a scuba trail vulnerability index (STVI): a case study from a Mediterranean MPA

Scuba diving is now one of the major form of commercial use of marine protected areas (MPAs) around the world and the control of its potential impacts on the marine environment represents a fundamental key to manage this recreational activity in highly dived areas. A potential tool to tackle such issues has been thought to be the definition of a value of recreational carrying capacity of an area, but this approach has been rarely considered management-effective. Therefore, the first step for effectively managing scuba-diving should be ‘bottom-up’: characterizing the benthic communities potentially affected by diving and evaluating their vulnerability. Aim of this paper is to propose a tool to define an index of vulnerability for dive trails (STVI: scuba trail vulnerability index). This has taken into consideration both physical and biological features of each trail. All the considered features are represented by non-quantitative variables, because either they are purely qualitative or their quantitative measurement is impractical. The management of such qualitative information and its translation into a formal methodology was performed by means of fuzzy logic, which has been repeatedly proposed as a powerful technique to develop indices of environmental quality. The approach adopted in this study provided a useful tool for the preliminary assessment of the potential vulnerability of benthic assemblages to scuba-diving and may represent an alternative method to the assessment of carrying capacity. The application of this index will enable management strategies for potentially reducing the degradation of benthic organisms/assemblages, and allowing a sustainable use of MPAs.     

小鼠胰腺大部分切除后再生集中区来源的初步探索

目的:探讨胰腺在某些损伤或病理条件下,由于细胞活跃增殖产生再生集中区域的细胞来源。方法:将27只成年ICR系小鼠分为9组,每组3只,其中1组进行假手术,其余8组进行小鼠胰腺大部分切除,分别在切除后12h,24h、36h、48h、3d、5d、7d、10d取材及冰冻切片,采用H-E染色、免疫荧光染色方法检测损伤后各时间段胰腺组织的形态变化和细胞增殖率。结果:H-E染色发现,胰腺手术72h后,剩余胰腺中就出现由细胞角蛋白阳性导管样结构组成的再生集中区,此区域细胞随后分化为功能性细胞类型,10d后消失检测不到。对胰腺再生集中区的定位研究表明,它们仅出现于切除后的伤口边缘。BrdU标记表明,胰腺再生集中区为细胞快速增殖区域,其出现与总导管增殖率提高同时发生,主/大导管和小导管增殖率上升都晚于再生集中区的出现。结论:小鼠胰腺大部分切除后再生集中区可能来源于腺泡细胞的快速增殖,而不是经由总-主/大-小导管-快速增殖区这一途径引起的来源于导管上皮细胞。     

Using legumes as indicators in the seasonally dry vegetation types in South America

The South American corridor of seasonally dry vegetation (SACSV) includes different types of physiognomies forming a continuous corridor with high biodiversity and endemism; however, little attention has been paid to the conservation of the SACSV. As this is an area with great diversity, cataloguing all the species is challenging. Thus, we suggest the use of Leguminosae species (trees and shrubs) as bioindicators of the different types of vegetation present in the area and to identify priority areas for conservation of the SACSV, since the family is highly represented in this vegetation. The study area was divided into 358 grid cells with recorded specimens. For each grid cell, species richness, taxonomic diversity, number of species restricted to one type of vegetation, and threatened and indicator species of phytogeographic domain were calculated. To determine the phytogeographic domains and indicator species, analysis of similarity, cluster and indicator species (ISA) were performed. The results show that 43% of the grid cells (154) have high biological importance for conservation (high taxonomic diversity, species richness and number of restricted species), all of which lie outside of protected areas. We identified 72 indicator species for seven floristic units, which, in general, include areas of the same phytogeographic domain, supporting the existing classification systems. We suggest that for effective conservation of biodiversity present in the SACSV, it is necessary to establish protected areas throughout the SACSV.     

自然保护区管理效果影响因素

自然保护区的管理效果是保护区管理工作能力的重要考核指标。由于管理基础、管理机制和管理行为的不同,对保护区的管理效果产生影响的因素也有差异。为了剖析保护区管理过程中各项管理要素对管理效果产生影响情况及其重要程度,从林业系统中选取154个国家级自然保护区进行问卷调查,从26项管理要素中得到14项能体现管理有效性的关键评价指标,在此基础上。利用X^2检验的方法,分析这些关键评价指标与保护区的管理效果之间的关系,为今后的管理工作提供参考依据。经过研究,自然保护区管理效果的3个指标（保护状况E1、保护区控制E2、对当地社区经济效益的影响E3）中,目前E1在各个保护区中的管理效果得分中最高,这说明维护保护区的保护状况仍是各个保护区最为重视的工作目标;而保护区管理有效性评价指标中各个因子对于管理效果有不同的影响结果。在这些管理评价指标中,宣传项目是唯一对保护区管理效果中的3个指标都有影响的因素,并对E1这一管理效果因素影响最大,而管理监督评价和旅游管理与收费则是分别对E2、E3的影响最大。通过分析,将会更加明确保护区的管理因素中各个指标的重要性,通过对采取合理的方式,最终可以提高保护区的管理效果。     

不同生态保护地植物特征和土壤性质的对比研究——以黑河中游湿地为例

选择黑河中游张掖国家湿地公园和张掖黑河湿地国家级自然保护区为研究对象,对比分析了植物组成、物种多样性、植物生长状态、土壤养分、土壤理化性质及植物土壤间关系。结果显示:湿地公园的植物高度和土壤养分含量(有机碳、全氮、速效氮、全磷、速效钾)显著高于自然保护区,土壤理化性质含量(容重、pH)显著低于自然保护区,表明湿地公园有利于植物生长发育、土壤养分固存、改善土壤质地;自然保护区的植物科属种、多度、物种多样性(多样性指数、丰富度指数、均匀度指数)显著高于湿地公园,表明自然保护区有利于维持植物多样性;两种保护地中影响植物多样性的土壤因子不同,湿地公园物种多样性与土壤全磷和速效磷显著正相关,而自然保护区物种多样性与土壤盐分显著负相关。