A Scaling Rule for Landscape Patches and How It Applies to Conserving Soil Resources in Savannas

Scaling issues are complex, yet understanding issues such as scale dependencies in ecological patterns and processes is usually critical if we are to make sense of ecological data and if we want to predict how land management options, for example, are constrained by scale. In this article, we develop the beginnings of a way to approach the complexity of scaling issues. Our approach is rooted in scaling functions, which integrate the scale dependency of patterns and processes in landscapes with the ways that organisms scale their responses to these patterns and processes. We propose that such functions may have sufficient generality that we can develop scaling rules—statements that link scale with consequences for certain phenomena in certain systems. As an example, we propose that in savanna ecosystems, there is a consistent relationship between the size of vegetation patches in the landscape and the degree to which critical resources, such as soil nutrients or water, become concentrated in these patches. In this case, the features of the scaling functions that underlie this rule have to do with physical processes, such as surface water flow and material redistribution, and the ways that patches of plants physically “capture” such runoff and convert it into plant biomass, thereby concentrating resources and increasing patch size. To be operationally useful, such scaling rules must be expressed in ways that can generate predictions. We developed a scaling equation that can be used to evaluate the potential impacts of different disturbances on vegetation patches and on how soils and their nutrients are conserved within Australian savanna landscapes. We illustrate that for a 10-km² paddock, given an equivalent area of impact, the thinning of large tree islands potentially can cause a far greater loss of soil nitrogen (21 metric tons) than grazing out small grass clumps (2 metric tons). Although our example is hypothetical, we believe that addressing scaling problems by first conceptualizing scaling functions, then proposing scaling rules, and then deriving scaling equations is a useful approach. Scaling equations can be used in simulation models, or (as we have done) in simple hypothetical scenarios, to collapse the complexity of scaling issues into a manageable framework. Received 8 December 1998; accepted 17 August 1999.     

城市建成区土地利用的环境影响评价——以南昌市主城区为例

基于土地利用环境影响的相关研究和城市土地利用特点,构建了城市建成区土地利用环境影响评价的概念模型,将建成区土地利用环境影响评价总结为细化、抽象、对应和评价4个基本过程,并以南昌市主城区为研究对象,分析了该区噪声、气味、粉尘和危险4个因素对环境的影响.结果表明：研究区噪声的影响范围占研究区总面积的59%;气味和粉尘的影响主要集中在主城区的东部和南部地区;危险的影响范围主要集中在主城区的东南方向,是南昌市工业较集中的区域,影响面积达19.6 km².该模型将城市建成区环境影响评价分为4个基本过程是可行的,可为研究区土地管理、城市规划等相关政策的制定提供依据.     

Recent trends in stream macroinvertebrates: warm-adapted and pesticide-tolerant taxa increase in richness

Recently, a plethora of studies reporting insect declines has been published. Even though the common theme is decreasing insect richness, positive trends have also been documented. Here, we analysed nationwide, systematic monitoring data on aquatic insect richness collected at 438 sites in Switzerland from 2010 to 2019. In addition to taxonomic richness, we grouped taxa in accordance with their ecological preferences and functional traits to gain a better understanding of trends and possible underlying mechanisms. We found that in general, richness of aquatic insects remained stable or increased with time. Warm-adapted taxa, common feeding guilds and pesticide-tolerant taxa showed increasing patterns while cold-adapted, rarer feeding guilds and pesticide-sensitive taxa displayed stable trends. Both climate and land-use-related factors were the most important explanatory variables for the patterns of aquatic insect richness. Although our data cover the last decade only, our results suggest that recent developments in insect richness are context-dependent and affect functional groups differently. However, longer investigations and a good understanding of the baseline are important to reveal if the increase in temperature- and pesticide-tolerant species will lead to a decrease in specialized species and a homogenization of biotic communities in the long term.     

基于土地利用变化的祁连山地区生态系统服务价值演化分析

祁连山生态环境保护是建设我国西部生态安全屏障的关键环节,而核算祁连山生态系统服务价值是制定合理有效的生态环境保护措施的有力依据。然而受气候变化和人类活动的共同影响,祁连山地区生态环境问题依旧突出,亟需对该地区生态系统服务价值开展研究以服务后期生态环境建设。基于此目的,使用1990-2020年祁连山地区土地利用数据,运用土地利用动态度、土地利用转移矩阵揭示该地区土地利用变化规律。并使用生态系统服务价值评估模型测算了祁连山地区生态系统服务价值,探究了其动态变化过程,并明确了各土地利用类型与生态系统服务价值变化之间的内在联系。结果表明:(1)1990-2020年,草地和荒漠是祁连山地区最主要的土地利用类型,单一土地利用动态度分别为水域 > 湿地 > 耕地 > 荒漠 > 草地 > 林地。草地和耕地以及草地和荒漠相互转化成为该地区最主要的土地利用变化特征;(2)祁连山地区生态系统服务价值呈持续增加趋势,由1990年的7231.36亿元增加至2020年的7836.07亿元,在空间上呈现出东高西低的变化趋势。生态系统服务价值构成主体主要为水域、草地和林地,单项生态系统服务价值以水文调节和气候调节为主,反映了调节服务是祁连山地区生态系统的主要功能;(3)水域、草地和湿地这3种土地利用类型是近30年祁连山地区生态系统服务价值变化的主要贡献因子。1990-2020年,祁连山地区生态系统服务价值对土地利用的敏感性总体呈增加态势(1.48%-7.91%),土地利用变化对该地区生态系统服务价值的影响逐步增强。系统揭示了过去30年祁连山地区生态系统服务价值的演变及其与土地利用变化的内在联系,重点阐释了水域、草地、林地和湿地对该地区生态系统服务价值和生态环境保护的重要性,可为祁连山地区生态产品价值实现及生态保护管理等提供基础科技支撑。     

Projected changes in mineral soil carbon of European croplands and grasslands, 1990–2080

We present the most comprehensive pan‐European assessment of future changes in cropland and grassland soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks to date, using a dedicated process‐based SOC model and state‐of‐the‐art databases of soil, climate change, land‐use change and technology change. Soil carbon change was calculated using the Rothamsted carbon model on a European 10 × 10′ grid using climate data from four global climate models implementing four Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) emissions scenarios (SRES). Changes in net primary production (NPP) were calculated by the Lund–Potsdam–Jena model. Land‐use change scenarios, interpreted from the narratives of the IPCC SRES story lines, were used to project changes in cropland and grassland areas. Projections for 1990–2080 are presented for mineral soil only. Climate effects (soil temperature and moisture) will tend to speed decomposition and cause soil carbon stocks to decrease, whereas increases in carbon input because of increasing NPP will slow the loss. Technological improvement may further increase carbon inputs to the soil. Changes in cropland and grassland areas will further affect the total soil carbon stock of European croplands and grasslands. While climate change will be a key driver of change in soil carbon over the 21st Century, changes in technology and land‐use change are estimated to have very significant effects. When incorporating all factors, cropland and grassland soils show a small increase in soil carbon on a per area basis under future climate (1–7 t C ha^?1 for cropland and 3–6 t C ha^?1 for grassland), but when the greatly decreasing area of cropland and grassland are accounted for, total European cropland stocks decline in all scenarios, and grassland stocks decline in all but one scenario. Different trends are seen in different regions. For Europe (the EU25 plus Norway and Switzerland), the cropland SOC stock decreases from 11 Pg in 1990 by 4–6 Pg (39–54%) by 2080, and the grassland SOC stock increases from 6 Pg in 1990 to 1.5 Pg (25%) under the B1 scenario, but decreases to 1–3 Pg (20–44%) under the other scenarios. Uncertainty associated with the land‐use and technology scenarios remains unquantified, but worst‐case quantified uncertainties are 22.5% for croplands and 16% for grasslands, equivalent to potential errors of 2.5 and 1 Pg SOC, respectively. This is equivalent to 42–63% of the predicted SOC stock change for croplands and 33–100% of the predicted SOC stock change for grasslands. Implications for accounting for SOC changes under the Kyoto Protocol are discussed.     

Projected Changes in Terrestrial Carbon Storage in Europe under Climate and Land-use Change, 1990–2100

Changes in climate and land use, caused by socio-economic changes, greenhouse gas emissions, agricultural policies and other factors, are known to affect both natural and managed ecosystems, and will likely impact on the European terrestrial carbon balance during the coming decades. This study presents a comprehensive European Union wide (EU15 plus Norway and Switzerland, EU*) assessment of potential future changes in terrestrial carbon storage considering these effects based on four illustrative IPCC-SRES storylines (A1FI, A2, B1, B2). A process-based land vegetation model (LPJ-DGVM), adapted to include a generic representation of managed ecosystems, is forced with changing fields of land-use patterns from 1901 to 2100 to assess the effect of land-use and cover changes on the terrestrial carbon balance of Europe. The uncertainty in the future carbon balance associated with the choice of a climate change scenario is assessed by forcing LPJ-DGVM with output from four different climate models (GCMs: CGCM2, CSIRO2, HadCM3, PCM2) for the same SRES storyline. Decrease in agricultural areas and afforestation leads to simulated carbon sequestration for all land-use change scenarios with an average net uptake of 17–38 Tg C/year between 1990 and 2100, corresponding to 1.9–2.9% of the EU*s CO₂ emissions over the same period. Soil carbon losses resulting from climate warming reduce or even offset carbon sequestration resulting from growth enhancement induced by climate change and increasing atmospheric CO₂ concentrations in the second half of the twenty-first century. Differences in future climate change projections among GCMs are the main cause for uncertainty in the cumulative European terrestrial carbon uptake of 4.4–10.1 Pg C between 1990 and 2100.     

北京市生态安全格局及城市增长预景

在快速城市化和城市生态安全面临巨大挑战的时代背景下,构建生态安全格局是实现区域和城市生态安全的基本保障和重要途径.在梳理国内外生态安全格局研究进展的基础上,提出基于景观安全格局理论的北京市生态安全格局网络和城市发展空间格局.通过对北京市水文、地质灾害、生物多样性保护、文化遗产和游憩过程的系统分析,运用GIS和空间分析技术,判别出维护上述各种过程安全的     

Changes in Soil Carbon and Nitrogen after Contrasting Land-use Transitions in Northeastern Costa Rica

Northeastern Costa Rica is a mosaic of primary and secondary forests, tree plantations, pastures, and cash crops. Many studies have quantified the effects of one type of land-use transition (for example, deforestation or reforestation) on soil properties such as organic carbon (C) storage, but few have compared different land-use transitions simultaneously. We can best understand the effects of land-use change on regional and global ecosystem processes by considering all of the land-use transitions that occur in a landscape. In this study, I examined the changes in total soil C and nitrogen (N) pools (to 0.3 m) that have accompanied different land-use transitions in a 140,000-ha region in northeastern Costa Rica. I paired sites that had similar topography and soils but differed in recent land-use history. The following land-use transitions were represented: 12 conversions of primary forests to banana plantations, 15 conversions of pastures to cash crops, and four conversions of pastures to Vochysia guatemalensis tree plantations. The conversion of forests to bananas decreased soil C concentrations and inventories (Mg C ha^–1) in the surface soil by 37% and 16.5%, respectively. The conversion of pastures to cash crops reduced soil C concentrations and inventories to the same extent that forest-to-banana cropping did. Furthermore, young Vochysia plantations do not appear to increase soil C storage, at least over the 1st decade. When data from all land-use transitions were pooled, the difference in root biomass and leaf litter pools between land-use pairs explained 50% of the differences in soil C concentrations and 36% of the differences in soil C inventories. Thus, reduced productivity or C inputs to the soil is one mechanism that could explain the losses in soil C pools with land-use change. In this landscape, losses of soil C due to cultivation are rapid, whereas re- accumulation rates are slow. Total soil N pools (0–10 cm) were also reduced after the conversion of forests to banana plantations or the conversion of pastures to crops, despite fertilization of the cropped soils. This suggests that the added N fertilizer is not retained but instead is exported via produce, N gas emissions, and hydrologic processes.