Enigmatic occurrence of Permian plant roots in Lower Silurian rocks,Guizhou Province,China

Pinnatiramosus qianensis Geng, 1986, is a plant with a complex, extensive pinnate branching system and pitted tracheids, collected from marine Lower Silurian (Llandovery; c. 430 Ma) rocks in Guizhou Province, China. It challenges long‐held theories on the origin and early evolution of vascular plants in the Silurian and Devonian. However, there is a hypothesis that the fossils were not syngenetic with the entombing rock, but were the rooting systems of much younger plants, probably of Permian age. New sections and collections of P. qianensis have been subjected to detailed analyses, which indicate that P. qianensis belongs to an early Permian (c. 285 Ma) rooting system growing down into lower Silurian rocks.     

Home range and habitat selection of northern bobwhite coveys in an agricultural landscape

Northern bobwhites thrive in fine-grained landscapes with a diversity of early succession woodland, grassland, and agriculture-associated habitat types. Bobwhite conservation has proved challenging in the increasingly coarse-grained Midwestern landscape as simplified agricultural cropping systems are implemented at larger spatial scales. Regardless, managing agricultural landscapes on private lands is the primary opportunity to restore bobwhite populations in the Midwestern United States. Although bobwhite habitat requirements are well understood, habitat selection in contemporary Midwestern landscapes is not well understood, especially on private lands where populations are declining. We used compositional analysis to investigate second- (study area) and third- (home range) order habitat selection by radiomarked bobwhite coveys on 4 private land study areas in southwestern Ohio. Mean covey home range size was 26.1 ± 2.2 ha (n = 48). Although home ranges were established in areas with more grassland cover, bobwhites most strongly selected early succession woody habitat (e.g., fencerows and ditches) at all scales, and selection for grassland diminished between the study area and home range scales. Grassland selection varied among sites and was strongest on sites with more row crop area. Woodlots were avoided at the study area scale, but were selected within home ranges. Grassland cover, like that provided by contemporary conservation programs, is an essential component of bobwhite habitat in the Midwest, but our results suggest more emphasis should be placed on early succession woody cover. Woody cover associated with fencerows, ditches, and woodlots adjacent to food sources and breeding habitat will likely improve non-breeding season survival, which is an influential vital rate in northern populations. © 2012 The Wildlife Society.     

The denied land rights of the indigenous peoples and their endangered livelihood and survival: the case of the Nuba of the Sudan

The current situation of indigenous peoples in the Sudan is the result of the independent state's adoption of land and other policies identical to those introduced by colonialists more than a century ago. The Sudanese state has not only unwittingly maintained some colonial coercive institutions and policies but it has introduced more aggressive ones and brutally deployed them against its indigenous peoples, particularly the Nuba. In the light of this, this paper attempts to demonstrate analytically how some historical and contemporary socio-political dynamics have continued systematically to deprive these indigenous Nuba peoples of their customary land, and to assess to what extent the recently concluded Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) has been successful in addressing the land question as one of the root causes of the recurring civil wars in the Sudan in general and in the Nuba Mountains in particular.     

Variables of Microbial Response in Natural Soil Aggregates for Soil Characterization in Different Fluvial Land Shapes

The main objective of this study was to determine changes in microbial response in natural soil aggregates for soil characterization in different fluvial land shapes. This study was carried out in fluvial lands formed on accumulated sediment depositions carried by K?z?l?rmak River. The majority soils of the study area were classified as Typic Ustifluvent and Typic Haplustept in Soil Taxonomy. It was found that macroaggregates (especially >6300 μm and 2000–4750 μm diameters) of all soil samples were higher than microaggregate of soils. In addition, it was determined that the C_org content varies between 0.41–0.91% in soil samples. C_mic content was also found higher level in aggregates involved <250 and 250–425 μm diameters as compared to other aggregate size classes. Moreover, we detected that C_org:C_mic ratio was much higher in macroaggregates than in microaggregate fractions. BR levels were also greater in macroaggregates of >6,300, 4,750–6,300 and 2,000–4,750 μm than in the other macroaggregates sizes and microaggregates. Consequently, macroaggregates have relatively more C_org level than the C_org level in microaggregates, even if the absolute values of C_mic were the lower. This study thus evidenced contrasting microbial habitats and their response in different soil aggregate size formed in various developed soils.     

铜尾矿复垦地土壤动物群落的恢复

土壤动物在退化生态系统的恢复与重建中发挥着重要作用.为了解铜尾矿复垦地区土壤动物群落特征的变化规律,采用样带法和陷阱法对安徽铜陵市林冲铜尾矿复垦地及其外围林灌地土壤动物群落进行调查.样带法共获得土壤动物3 154只,隶属5门10纲,共计27个类群,优势类群为线虫纲、弹尾目和蜱螨目,常见类群为猛水蚤目和鞘翅目幼虫;陷阱法共获得土壤动物2 160只,主要有弹尾目、膜翅目、双尾目、蜘蛛目、倍足纲和寡毛纲等12类群.自铜尾矿复垦地中心到外围林灌地,土壤动物密度和丰度呈递增趋势;与外围林灌地相比,铜尾矿复垦地土壤动物群落多样性DG指数较低而Shannon-Wiener指数较高;与外围林灌地距离越大,与外围林灌地群落相似性系数越小;表聚性越明显.地表土壤动物从外围林灌地迁入铜尾矿复垦地的多度和丰富度随间隔距离的增加而不断减少,随调查时间的延长而增加,随外围林灌类型的变化而变化.上述结果表明,铜尾矿复垦地及其外围林灌地土壤动物群落之间具有明显的时空差异性和渐变性,这为外围林灌地土壤动物迁入铜尾矿复垦地定居提供了证据.     

Deforestation and Reforestation of Latin America and the Caribbean (2001–2010)

Forest cover change directly affects biodiversity, the global carbon budget, and ecosystem function. Within Latin American and the Caribbean region (LAC), many studies have documented extensive deforestation, but there are also many local studies reporting forest recovery. These contrasting dynamics have been largely attributed to demographic and socio‐economic change. For example, local population change due to migration can stimulate forest recovery, while the increasing global demand for food can drive agriculture expansion. However, as no analysis has simultaneously evaluated deforestation and reforestation from the municipal to continental scale, we lack a comprehensive assessment of the spatial distribution of these processes. We overcame this limitation by producing wall‐to‐wall, annual maps of change in woody vegetation and other land‐cover classes between 2001 and 2010 for each of the 16,050 municipalities in LAC, and we used nonparametric Random Forest regression analyses to determine which environmental or population variables best explained the variation in woody vegetation change. Woody vegetation change was dominated by deforestation (?541,835 km²), particularly in the moist forest, dry forest, and savannas/shrublands biomes in South America. Extensive areas also recovered woody vegetation (+362,430 km²), particularly in regions too dry or too steep for modern agriculture. Deforestation in moist forests tended to occur in lowland areas with low population density, but woody cover change was not related to municipality‐scale population change. These results emphasize the importance of quantitating deforestation and reforestation at multiple spatial scales and linking these changes with global drivers such as the global demand for food.     

The catalytic domain CysPc of the DEK1 calpain is functionally conserved in land plants

DEK1, the single calpain of land plants, is a member of the ancient membrane bound TML–CysPc–C2L calpain family that dates back 1.5 billion years. Here we show that the CysPc–C2L domains of land plant calpains form a separate sub‐clade in the DEK1 clade of the phylogenetic tree of plants. The charophycean alga Mesostigma viride DEK1‐like gene is clearly divergent from those in land plants, suggesting that a major evolutionary shift in DEK1 occurred during the transition to land plants. Based on genetic complementation of the Arabidopsis thaliana dek1‐3 mutant using CysPc–C2L domains of various origins, we show that these two domains have been functionally conserved within land plants for at least 450 million years. This conclusion is based on the observation that the CysPc–C2L domains of DEK1 from the moss Physcomitrella patens complements the A. thaliana dek1‐3 mutant phenotype. In contrast, neither the CysPc–C2L domains from M. viride nor chimeric animal–plant calpains complement this mutant. Co‐evolution analysis identified differences in the interactions between the CysPc–C2L residues of DEK1 and classical calpains, supporting the view that the two enzymes are regulated by fundamentally different mechanisms. Using the A. thaliana dek1‐3 complementation assay, we show that four conserved amino acid residues of two Ca²⁺‐binding sites in the CysPc domain of classical calpains are conserved in land plants and functionally essential in A. thaliana DEK1.     

小叶锦鸡儿灌丛下土壤水分对降雨的响应

以科尔沁沙地主要固沙灌木小叶锦鸡儿为研究对象,在其生长季次降雨21.5 mm后180 h内,利用TDR和微渗仪测量小叶锦鸡儿灌丛下不同部位的土壤含水量和土壤蒸发,并计算该灌丛下不同部位储水量和水量平衡.结果表明:降雨结束后初期,灌丛枝干的茎流作用使其根部的土壤含水量明显高于其他部位;灌丛根部水分的入渗速率大于灌丛中部和灌丛外缘.因冠幅的庇荫作用,灌丛下蒸发量小于灌丛外裸露沙地.水量平衡表明:小叶锦鸡儿灌丛下降雨后前期蒸散量明显高于灌丛外裸露沙地,与灌丛下根系的分布有直接关系.     

喀斯特峰丛坡地不同土地利用方式下土壤N、P空间变异特征

基于网格点(5 mx5 m)采样法采集土壤样品,利用经典统计学和地统计学方法,研究了喀斯特峰丛坡地不同土地利用方式(火烧迹地、刈割地、草地、封育地)下表层(0～20cm)土壤氮、磷的空间变异特性.结果表明:研究区4种不同土地利用方式土壤全氮(TN)、全磷(TP)、速效氮(AN)、速效磷(AP)均为中等程度变异,含量分别为5.40 ～6.26 g·kg-1、1.24 ～1.44 g·kg-1、365.87～507.32 mg·kg-1、3.91 ～8.04 mg·kg-1,封育地、火烧迹地土壤质量优于草地和刈割地;4种土地利用方式中火烧AN、火烧AP、刈割AN、封育TN的半方差函数最佳拟合模型为球状模型,火烧TN、刈割TN、刈割AP最佳拟合模型为指数模型,其他指标的最佳拟合模型均为高斯模型.刈割TP、火烧TP、草地TP、刈割TN、火烧AP、草地AP、封育TP表现为强烈的空间自相关性,其他土壤养分表现为中等的空间自相关.4种土地利用类型土壤TN与AN、TP与AP具有相似的空间分布格局.火烧、刈割处理TN和AN呈凹形分布,TP和AP呈单峰分布特征,中下坡含量最高,往两端含量逐渐降低;草地TN、AN、TP、AP 4种养分含量均随着坡位的升高而降低;封育样地中4种养分呈类似凹形分布,中间含量低,两端略微升高.土地利用方式的变化改变了喀斯特峰丛坡地土壤养分质量,造成了土壤养分空间格局的变化,因此,在地形破碎、土层浅薄的喀斯特地区进行生态恢复与重建时,应采取合理土地利用方式,进行保护和适度开发,提高喀斯特退化生态系统土壤质量.     

Inferences of evolutionary history of a widely distributed mangrove species,Bruguiera gymnorrhiza,in the Indo‐West Pacific region

Inference of genetic structure and demographic history is fundamental issue in evolutionary biology. We examined the levels and patterns of genetic variation of a widespread mangrove species in the Indo‐West Pacific region, Bruguiera gymnorrhiza, using ten nuclear gene regions. Genetic variation of individual populations covering its distribution range was low, but as the entire species it was comparable to other plant species. Genetic differentiation among the investigated populations was high. They could be divided into two genetic clusters: the West and East clusters of the Malay Peninsula. Our results indicated that these two genetic clusters derived from their ancestral population whose effective size of which was much larger compared to the two extant clusters. The point estimate of speciation time between B. gymnorrhiza and Bruguiera sexangula was two times older than that of divergence time between the two clusters. Migration from the West cluster to the East cluster was much higher than the opposite direction but both estimated migration rates were low. The past Sundaland and/or the present Malay Peninsula are likely to prevent gene flow between the West and East clusters and function as a geographical or land barrier.