Surviving background extinction: Inferences from historic and current dynamics in the contrasting population structures of two endemic Mexican cycads

Ecological and microevolutionary perspectives were used to investigate signs of background extinction in two endemic species. We studied relict populations of the cycad Dioon caputoi, contrasting its population structure and neighborhood size with those of Dioon planifolium as a demographically healthier reference population. Population dynamics analysis was performed on two populations of D. caputoi through Integral Projection Models and genetic neighborhoods compared between species through 172 Inter Simple Sequence Repeat loci performed in one population of each of the two study species. The D. caputoi populations mostly comprised adult plants, while D. planifolium presented mainly juvenile individuals. Dioon caputoi showed equilibrium in population growth (i.e., λ ≈ 1), with low recruitment, and its genetic neighborhood revealed highly related individuals in a unique distance class (r_ij = 0.407, 33 m). A contrasting pattern was found in D. planifolium, which showed higher relatedness in the first distance class (r_ij = 0.543, 5 m), gradually decreasing to 20 m. The discrepancies between the two species reflect different strategies of persistence. Dioon caputoi conserves a relict dynamics with signs of a multigenerational, attritional loss of reproductive fitness, while D. planifolium does not. This study furthers our understanding of the background extinction process and the information will thus contribute to the management and conservation of this endangered species.     

以国家公园为主体的自然保护地体系立法思考

实现十九大报告提出的建立以国家公园为主体的自然保护地体系的改革目标需要法治保障。建设自然保护地体系涉及的不同生态系统和多个管理部门、多方利益主体, 是一个巨大的复杂系统, 需要进行整体性、系统性的立法研究。目前, 国家正在推进国家公园体制改革并已将《国家公园法》列入十三届全国人大常委会立法计划。更需要我们从自然保护地立法体系建设的高度, 正确处理《国家公园法》与未来可能制定的《自然保护地法》的关系, 在《国家公园法》制定过程中为今后出台《自然保护地法》预留空间, 并建立相应的衔接机制, 统筹谋划并协同推进国家公园法与自然保护地立法。     

Protection from illegal fishing and shark recovery restructures mesopredatory fish communities on a coral reef

The recovery of communities of predatory fishes within a no‐take marine reserve after the eradication of illegal fishing provides an opportunity to examine the role of sharks and other large‐bodied mesopredatory fishes in structuring reef fish communities. We used baited remote underwater video stations to investigate whether an increase in sharks was associated with a change in structure of the mesopredatory fish community at Ashmore Reef, Western Australia. We found an almost fourfold increase in shark abundance in reef habitat from 0.64 hr^?1 ± 0.15 SE in 2004, when Ashmore Reef was being fished illegally, to 2.45 hr^?1 ± 0.37 in 2016, after eight years of full‐time enforcement of the reserve. Shark recovery in reef habitat was accompanied by a two and a half‐fold decline in the abundance of small mesopredatory fishes (≤50 cm TL) (14.00 hr^?1 ± 3.79 to 5.6 hr^?1 ± 1.20) and a concomitant increase in large mesopredatory fishes (≥100 cm TL) from 1.82 hr^?1 ± 0.48 to 4.27 hr^?1 ± 0.93. In contrast, near‐reef habitats showed an increase in abundance of large mesopredatory fishes between years (2.00 hr^?1 ± 0.65 to 4.56 hr^?1 ± 1.11), although only smaller increases in sharks (0.67 hr^?1 ± 0.25 to 1.22 hr^?1 ± 0.34) and smaller mesopredatory fishes. Although the abundance of most mesopredatory groups increased with recovery from fishing, we suggest that the large decline of small mesopredatory fish in reef habitat was mostly due to higher predation pressure following the increase in sharks and large mesopredatory fishes. At the regional scale, the structure of fished communities at Ashmore Reef in 2004 resembled those of present day Scott Reefs, where fishing still continues today. In 2016, Ashmore fish communities resembled those of the Rowley Shoals, which have been protected from fishing for decades.     

湖北省兰科植物1个新记录属和4个新记录种

报道了湖北兰科植物1个新记录属：菱兰属（Rhomboda Lindley）;4个新记录种：贵州菱兰（Rhomboda fanjingensis Ormerod）,大根兰（Cymbidium macrorhizon Lindley）,西南齿唇兰（Odontochilus elwesii C. B. Clarke ex Hook. f.）和多叶斑叶兰〔Goodyera foliosa （Lindl） Benth. ex Clarke〕。相关的凭证标本保存于吉首大学植物标本馆（Herbarium of Jishou University,JIU）,副份保存于后河国家级自然保护区标本馆（Herbarium of Houhe National Nature Reserve,HHE）。     

The impact of recreational use and access on biotic and abiotic disturbances on areas protected by local communities and a state conservation agency

Local communities often conserve nearby natural areas to support recreational activities and other benefits these areas provide. Areas protected by local communities could contribute to wider efforts to achieve large-scale conservation goals, such as biodiversity protection, provided the ecological conditions on-site are compatible with achieving these goals. To explore the potential contribution of locally established protected areas, we focus on areas protected by local communities in California, USA, using ballot initiatives, a form of direct democracy. We compare the ecological condition of wooded habitat on protected areas funded by local communities through the ballot box to that of similar habitats on protected areas funded by a state conservation agency. As an indicator of ecological condition, we focus on coverage by exotic plant species. We examine whether protected area characteristics or aspects of human-mediated onsite disturbance related to recreational use explain exotic plant cover found on each type of protected area. Exotic plant cover did not differ between areas protected by local communities and those protected by our larger scale conservation actor. Instead, elevation was the best predictor of exotic plant cover. Our results suggest protected areas established by local communities may be in no worse a condition than those established by a state public agency and warrant inclusion when tracking progress towards large-scale conservation goals for protected areas.     

Current capacity,bottlenecks, and future projections for offsetting habitat loss using Mitigation and Conservation banking in the United States

Habitat banking in its many iterations is an established and popular mechanism to deliver environmental offsets. The United States can look back at over 30 years of banking experience with the underlying framework and policies being consistently updated and improved. Given the increased demand in habitat banking, we provide insights into how bank area capacity is distributed across the United States for four different bank targets (wetlands, streams, multiple ecosystems, species) based on information extracted from the Regulatory In-lieu Fee and Bank Information Tracking System, as well as, estimating future capacities and area reserves through a predictive modeling approach based on data from the past 26 years. Future predictions indicate a decrease in available reserves for banks targeting wetlands or multiple ecosystems, with potential bottlenecks relating to large reserves being limited to the southeast and release schedules not catching up to the current and anticipated demand. Banks targeting species or streams are predicted to meet future demand, with species banks (conservation banks) following a different legislative and operational approach based on the listing of endangered species and pro-active approaches with anticipated future demand. Most current reserves for all four bank types are restricted to very few service areas with around one-third of all bank areas still awaiting release, limiting their availability on a broader scale. Strategic planning networks are necessary to meet future demand on a national scale and to identify areas suitable for banking or likely to experience future environmental or developmental stress.     

自然保护地生物多样性保护研究进展

建立自然保护地是保护生物多样性最为重要的措施之一。总体来看, 自然保护地生物多样性保护研究主要围绕关键生态系统以及珍稀濒危物种等保护对象的状态以及变化两个层面进行, 并重点关注自然保护地数量与面积、保护了多少重要生态系统和物种、能否有效保护生物多样性等一系列科学问题。然而, 在自然保护地生物多样性保护研究方面, 还缺少针对上述研究领域的系统性综述。为此, 本文系统梳理了自然保护地空间布局及其与生物多样性分布的关系、自然保护地生物多样性变化及其保护成效等近20年来相关领域的研究进展。自然保护地的空间布局以及与生物多样性分布的关系主要围绕自然保护地与生物多样性在某一阶段的状态开展研究, 致力于探究自然保护地“保护多少” “代表性如何” “在哪儿保护”等一系列关键科学问题。同时, 自然保护地内的生物多样性会随着气候变化、人类活动以及自身演替等发生时空动态变化, 基于自然保护地生物多样性变化分析, 各国学者在全球尺度、国家尺度和单个自然保护地进行了大量的保护成效评估研究, 并逐渐发展出了自然保护地内外配对分析方法以提升保护成效评估的精度, 进而识别出不同自然保护地的主要影响因素。在此基础上, 本文进一步对自然保护地生物多样性保护研究提出了展望, 主要包括: (1)综合考虑自然保护地生物多样性状态和变化; (2)开展多目标协同的自然保护地空间优化布局; (3)强化自然保护地主要保护对象的识别、调查与监测; (4)提升自然保护地的质量和连通性; (5)探究自然保护地管理措施与保护成效的关联机制。本文可为“2020年后全球生物多样性框架”的制定与实施特别是在自然保护地体系建设与优化方面提供参考与借鉴。     

江苏宜兴森林自然保护区种子植物区系特点及植被性质

对江苏宜兴森林自然保护区及周边地区的种子植物区系成分进行统计分析,归为４大类１５个分布类型。属的成分以温带比例最高（６１％）,东部成分亦较明显（２５％）,中西部成分极少,几无本地特有成分,属较典型的华东植物区系地区。对该地区现存植物进行计算分析,结合栽培植物及古植被资料,得出以青冈〔Ｃｙｃｌｏｂａｌａｎｏｐｓｉｓｇｌａｕｃａ（Ｔｈｕｎｂ．）Ｏｅｒｓｔ．〕、石栎〔Ｌｉｔｈｏｃａｒｐａｇｌａｂｅｒ（Ｔｈｕｎｂ．）Ｎａｋａｉ〕等为建群种的中亚热带常绿阔叶林是本地区的地带性植被。自然保护区建立（１９８１）以后植被恢复明显,许多样地已接近自然植被。     

秦岭保护区群存在的主要问题和管理对策

本文作者根据秦岭保护区群内７个自然保护区（保护站）存在的主要问题,提出了解决问题的办法。主要问题：一、牛背梁自然保护区的形状、大小、边界区划不合理;二、各自然保护区由于投资和建立时间不同,发展不平衡。三、周边地区商业采伐严重;四、农业蚕食,非法利用自然资源现象得不到制止;五、交通道路穿越保护区,影响动物基因交流;六、旅游开发缺乏统一管理。采取的对策主要是：一、在主要动物活动地带建立联合管理区和生物走廊带;二、加强对老县城自然保护区的管理和投资;三、加强对穿越保护区公路沿线的管理;四、解决对资源的过度利用,开展社区共管工作;五、对旅游实行规范化管理;六、开展多种经营创收。