Taming parent‐reared orange‐winged Amazon parrots by neonatal handling

Tameness in parrots is often achieved by artificial rearing, in which chicks are typically removed from parents, fed a liquified or semi‐liquified diet by oral gavage and maintained in thermally controlled brooders until they are grown. As an alternate means of rearing birds, we tested whether occasional neonatal human handling of parent‐reared chicks might produce tameness while reducing the risk of sexual imprinting on humans. Orange‐winged Amazon chicks (Amazona amazonica) were incubated and hatched by wild‐caught parents, then were temporarily removed from the nest box, and handled at various times during the nestling period. In Trial 1, handled chicks (n = 6) were handled from days 10 to 39 of age for 10–20 min/day and from 40 days to fledging (days 56–/57) for 20–30 min/day. Nonhandled chicks (n = 4) were handled only to record body weight and provide medication, as needed. After fledging, chicks were evaluated for tameness, e.g., by their willingness to approach the handler, perch on a finger, be touched on the head, and by their respiratory rate in the presence of the handler. Handled birds differed significantly in all indices of tameness. In Trial 2, handled chicks were handled for 30 min, four times/week either from days 15 to 36 (n = 3) or 35 to 56 (n = 3); results were similar to Trial 1. Chicks handled later tended to be slightly tamer than those handled earlier. In both trials, the amount of time that handled chicks were in contact with humans was less than 2% of the time they spent with conspecifics. It is therefore unlikely that these chicks imprinted either filially or sexually on humans, although this has not been experimentally tested. While continued handling is likely necessary to maintain tameness, these results support the concept that neonatal handling of parent‐raised parrots provides a low‐labor and low‐technology alternative to artificial rearing as a means of initially taming birds, thereby improving their adaptation to life in captivity. Zoo Biol 18:177–187, 1999. © 1999 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

中华通草蛉复眼光感受性

运用视网膜电位（Electroretinogram,ERG）技术,对中华通草蛉Chrysopa sinica Tjedar成虫复眼在暗适应过程中对单色光和白光刺激的光感受变化进行了测定。结果表明：（1）在340～605 nm光谱范围内该草蛉的光反应表现3个峰,其中最高峰位于562 nm,次峰在524 nm,第3峰在460 nm;（2）一定光强度（LogI=4.5～0）范围内,其复眼ERG值随光强度的增强而增大,呈近线性增长式样;（3）暗适应时间影响其复眼的ERG值大小,在暗适应100 min时其ERG值达到稳定;（4）中华通草蛉复眼ERG的波形由4个部分组成：开光反应、正相电位、持续负电位和闭光反应。     

Recent advances in artificial breeding and larval rearing of silver pomfret Pampus argenteus (Euphrasen 1788) in Kuwait

During last several years, Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research (KISR), Kuwait has been trying to develop a sustainable culture technique for silver pomfret (Pampus argenteus). This paper reports the recent research advances in the breeding and rearing of silver pomfret fry at KISR. The eggs collected from wild silver pomfret during spawning seasons of 2012 to 2015 were artificially fertilized under laboratory condition. The average hatching rates of artificially fertilized eggs collected from wild silver pomfrets were 25.6%, 44.8%, 76.7%, and 53.5.0% and average survival rates of metamorphosed fry produced from these eggs were 3.7%, 5.7%, 4.4% and 3.8% for the spawning seasons 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015, respectively. For captive brood stocks, observation on the spawning time at hourly interval by collecting eggs from the nets set at out-flow of brood tanks showed that the spawning time for captive silver pomfret starts at the time of sunset. In 2012, two groups of captive silver pomfret broods spawned a total of 62x10³ and 66x10³ eggs, but the eggs were unfertilized. No captive spawning occurred during 2013 and 2014 spawning season. In 2015, captive silver pomfret broods in three tanks spawned about 653x10³, 673x10³ and 270x10³ eggs, and in 2016, the broods in four tanks spawned about 669x10³, 22x10³, 3x10³ and 366x10³ eggs. However, from these eggs only 1,400 and 1,000 fertilized eggs were collected which produced 300 and 123 hatched larvae in July 2015 and June 2016, respectively. The larvae produced from the 2015 broods did not survive beyond 56 days of metamorphosed stage while larvae produced from 2016 captive broods survived for 9 days only. The mortality of the larvae from captive brood could be related to the poor egg or milt quality. However, efforts are continued to improve the eggs and sperm quality through proper brood management.     

CO_2增长对杉木中龄林针叶光合生理生态的影响

通过对 1 7a生杉木人工林小枝的活体测定 ,研究了大气 CO2 增长对杉木中龄林净光合、呼吸、气孔导度和水分利用效率等生理生态特性的影响。结果表明 ,在 CO2 浓度为 4 5μmol/ L左右时 ,杉木针叶净光合速率比正常大气 CO2 下提高 1倍以上 ,气孔导度和蒸腾速率有不同程度的降低 ,水分利用效率提高约 1～ 2倍 ;同时使光补偿点降低 ,饱和点和光抑制点提高 ,光量子效率提高 4 0 %～ 2 95%且阳枝大于阴枝 ,针叶暗呼吸降低 2 0 %～ 72 %。随着 CO2 浓度的增加 ,针叶净光合速率和水分利用效率呈线性上升 ,约到 4 5μmol/ L以后 ,增加速率减慢 ,但 CO2 饱和点可达 1 1 6μmol/ L以上。杉木针叶对CO2 增长的这种反应 ,对大气 CO2 不断增长的条件下杉木生长是有利的 ,但对其长期反应还有待进一步研究。     

卧龙亚高山暗针叶林不同林冠环境下华西箭竹分株种群结构特征

详细调查了林下、中林窗、大林窗和林缘旷地等4种亚高山暗针叶林林冠环境下的华西箭竹（Fargesia nitida）分株种群,对其表现结构（株高、基径和生物量）和年龄结构进行了较系统的对比研究.主要研究结果如下：（1）分株水平上,华西箭竹表现结构在4种林冠环境下均有极显著差异（p＜0.01）,且随林冠郁闭度的减小,分株个体的高度、基径和生物量有递增的趋势（林下＜中林窗＜大林窗）;（2）分株各构件在总生物量中所占比例随林冠环境变化而改变：除林缘旷地外,叶的生物量百分比与林冠郁闭度呈正相关.林缘旷地中,地下茎和根系的生物量百分比均高于其余3种环境;（3）不同林冠环境下分株单位叶面积叶重存在显著差异（p＜0.05）,且随林冠郁闭度的减小而增大.单叶生物量和单叶面积均以中林窗最大,林缘旷地次之,二者与大林窗或林下均有显著差异（p＜0.05）.华西箭竹的单株叶片数量以大林窗最大,与其余3种环境有极显著差异（p＜0.01）;（4）分株种群的死亡率以林下最低（P＜0.01）,但各种群平均年龄间无显著差异（p＞0.05）.可见,华西箭竹分株种群对林冠环境变化的反应主要体现在形态和生物量分配上,而非种群的年龄上.     

荔枝蒂蛀虫(Conopomorpha sinensis Bradley)的饲养及其实验种群生命表

荔枝蒂蛀虫(Conopomorpha sinensis Bradley)是影响荔枝生产及出口的重要害虫。由于其具有钻蛀为害的习性,其生态学研究薄弱。以荔枝果核、龙眼果核为饲料,在室内成功饲养了连续3个世代的荔枝蒂蛀虫。并编制了荔枝蒂蛀虫实验种群的特定时间生命表和特定年龄生命表。特定时间生命表参数为：第一世代R0(I)＝2.0503,rm＝0.0230;第二世代R0 (I)＝7.5067,rm＝0.0538;第三世代R0 (I)＝0.3104,rm＝0.0321。特定年龄生命表参数为：第一世代R0 (I)＝2.0594,rm＝0.0217;第二世代R0 (I)＝7.5261,rm＝0.0559;第三世代R0 (I)＝0.3114,rm＝0.0333。研究了两类生命表参数之间的关系,并进行了相应的换算论证。通过R0≈I的关系,在本例中,两种生命表之间的参数是可以进行换算的。生殖力表不同于特定时间生命表,它丢失了幼期累计存活率而使R0失真。     

Priority of light/dark entrainment over temperature in setting the circadian rhythms of the prokaryote Synechococcus RF-1

Light/dark (L/D) and temperature are two major factors in the entrainment of circadian rhythms. The input pathways of these two environmental factors for the entrainment of circadian rhythms in Synechococcus RF-1 are different since the overt rhythms in mutant CR-1, one of the circadian-rhythm mutants of Synechococcus RF-1, could be established by temperature cycles but not by L/D. Therefore, it was of interest to investigate the phases of Synechococcus RF-1 cells entrained simultaneously by L/D and temperature. The circadian rhythms of nitrogenase activity and protein synthesis in RF-1 cells entrained by L/D, and by lowered or raised temperatures differed in their peaks of activity. Comparison of the phases of RF-1 cells entrained by L/D and temperature independently, and by L/D and temperature simultaneously indicated that L/D entrainment has priority over the temperature effect. Received: 8 February 1999 / Accepted: 1 April 1999     

δ 13C of CO2 respired in the dark in relation to δ13C of leaf carbohydrates in Phaseolus vulgaris L. under progressive drought

The variations in δ ¹³C in both leaf carbohydrates (starch and sucrose) and CO₂ respired in the dark from the cotyledonary leaves of Phaseolus vulgaris L. were investigated during a progressive drought. As expected, sucrose and starch became heavier (enriched in ¹³C) with decreasing stomatal conductance and decreasing p _i/ p _a during the first half (15 d) of the dehydration cycle. Thereafter, when stomata remained closed and leaf net photosynthesis was near zero, the tendency was reversed: the carbohydrates became lighter (depleted in ¹³C). This may be explained by increased p _i/ p _a but other possible explanations are also discussed. Interestingly, the variations in δ ¹³C of CO₂ respired in the dark were correlated with those of sucrose for both well-watered and dehydrated plants. A linear relationship was obtained between δ ¹³C of CO₂ respired in the dark and sucrose, respired CO₂ always being enriched in ¹³C compared with sucrose by ≈ 6‰. The whole leaf organic matter was depleted in ¹³C compared with leaf carbohydrates by at least 1‰. These results suggest that: (i) a discrimination by ≈ 6‰ occurs during dark respiration processes releasing ¹³C-enriched CO₂; and that (ii) this leads to ¹³C depletion in the remaining leaf material.     

朱鹮迁地保护研究

朱鹮（Nipponia mppon）是当今世界最濒危的鸟类之一,现存总数不过 40余只。由于生存环境的改变和种群生命力的脆弱,朱鹮数量急剧下降。中国自1986年开始人工繁殖朱鹮,1992年人工孵化并育活3只幼鸟,这是人工繁殖朱鹮成功的首次记录。这篇文章总结了朱鹮的野外生态,实验室研究及人工饲养、繁殖。     

Isolation and characterization of microsatellite markers for the tree-root endophytes Phialocephala subalpina and Phialocephala fortinii s.s

Species of the Phialocephala fortinii s.l.-Acephala applanata complex are the dominant dark septate endophytes (DSE) in roots of species belonging to the Pinaceae. The two species Phialocephala subalpina and P. fortinii s.s. belong to the most widely distributed species within this complex. In the present study, 15 polymorphic microsatellite loci were developed for these two closely related species. Strains of a community which were analysed previously using single-copy restriction fragment length polymorphism were screened with the new markers. Microsatellites were suitable to classify the two species and to recognize individuals within species.