Growth patterns of reed (Phragmites australis): the development of reed stands in carp ponds

Reed stands exhibit apparent differences of stem diameter, shoot length, density, and invasiveness. In carp ponds, five characteristic growth patterns can be distinguished. These growth patterns are ontogenetic states of a time-dependent stand development. Invasive reeds with short shoots are found in newly occupied habitats. With continuing establishment of the stand, the shoots in the inner regions become taller and fewer, a growth pattern described as central reed. Later, only a few shoots with thick stems remain. Two alternative pathways of stand development exist: steep shore reed and reed tussocks. By mowing, the directional development of reed stands can be turned into a circulation of growth patterns. The growth patterns have implications for the selection of reed stand areas for conservation purposes.     

Diagnosis and management of small-scale fisheries in developing countries

Small‐scale fisheries (SSF) make important but undervalued contributions to the economies of some of the world’s poorest countries. They also provide much of the animal protein needed by societies in which food security remains a pressing issue. Assessment and management of these fisheries is usually inadequate or absent and they continue to fall short of their potential as engines for development and social change. In this study, we bring together existing theory and methods to suggest a general scheme for diagnosing and managing SSF. This approach can be adapted to accommodate the diversity of these fisheries in the developing world. Many threats and solutions to the problems that beset SSF come from outside the domain of the fishery. Significant improvements in prospects for fisheries will require major changes in societal priorities and values, with consequent improvements in policy and governance. Changes in development policy and science reflect these imperatives but there remains a need for intra‐sectoral management that builds resilience and reduces vulnerability to those forces beyond the influence of small‐scale fishers.     

“Summer syndrome” in Litopenaeus stylirostris grow out ponds in New Caledonia: Zootechnical and environmental factors

The “Summer Syndrome”, a septicemic vibriosis caused by Vibrio nigripulchritudo, is responsible for one of the two main seasonal mortalities which affect shrimp aquaculture in New Caledonia. It was identified for the first time in December 1997 in an intensive shrimp farm (called farm DF) and has been enzootic ever since. The “Summer syndrome” affects shrimp during warm-season growout. Although the geographic area concerned is limited, it is a potential threat for the industry in that the disease could spread. Analysis of grow out data from 1991 to 2002 in this farm was carried out in order to characterize the disease and the environmental conditions in relation to mortality. Results of farm DF were compared to data from farms not affected by the disease (called farms HC). The “Summer syndrome” occurs during the warm season which is characterized by an increase in water temperature and sunny duration. This disease is characterized by simultaneously highest densities and weakest drying duration between crops in the farms studied. Between 1991 and 2002, the increase of feed input and nitrogen rate in feed has led to a significant increase of the growth rate over the years in farm DF. At the same time, water management has not changed and has induced an increase in environmental waste production. In consequence, an early eutrophication of water is observed, which is concomitant with the beginning of the mortality outbreaks. This could play a role by inducing directly or indirectly a stress for shrimp and/or a growth and/or virulence factors of the pathogen.     

A size-structured model for a stock-recovery program for an exploited endemic fisheries resource

The size of harvests temporarily decreases following stock-recovery programs for overexploited resources. The process of stock recovery is quite uncertain, because of unknown life-history parameters, changes in environmental conditions, and human impact. To project future stock recovery, we considered a size-structured matrix model of a stock-recovery program, in which the minimum body size in the first harvest is increased. We applied some common concepts, including yield per recruitment, spawning per recruitment, and reproductive value, to a size-structured matrix model that incorporated economic discounting. The size-structured model predicted the following characteristics in stock-recovery processes: several years must pass for the harvest to increase, and the time-lag between the inception of the management program and the increase in the catch is caused by intergenerational momentum in demography. We also investigated the effects on the recovery process of temporal environmental fluctuations. We applied our model to a stock-recovery program of the corbiculid Seta clam (Corbicula sandai) in Lake Biwa, Japan.     

Incentive for shifts in water management systems by shrimp culturists in southern Thailand

ABSTRACT:   Water management systems and other business situations of shrimp culturists were surveyed in two districts in southern Thailand. There were three types of water management systems in southern Thailand, namely closed, semiclosed and open systems, categorized by the frequency of exchange of pond water. Shrimp culturists in those districts tended to shift their system from the open system to the closed system of their own accord, and the average net income ratio decreased due to the change of water management system in a district from more than 2 to less than 1. The reason for this shift, in spite of the decrease in the profit rate, was prevention of infectious disease caused by water exchange. In conclusion, it was proven that independent shrimp culturists, such as medium and small scale shrimp pond owners in southern Thailand, would accept short-term decreases in profit rate in order to stabilize production.     

Management of Meloidogyne incognita in yam-based cropping systems with cover crops

The effect of intercropping cover crops was with yam was assessed for nematode management both in pot and field conditions in Nigeria. The cover crops were sown with yams in pots containing sterile soil and inoculated with 5000 eggs of Meloidogyne incognita. In the field, each cover crop was separately intercropped with yams inoculated with 10,000 nematodes. From both pot and field experiments, no nematode damage was observed on yam tubers that were intercropped with Aeschynomene histrix, Crotolaria juncea, and Tagetes erecta. Damage in intercropped tubers was reduced by 72.7% with Mucuna pruriens, Centrosema pubescens, and Pueraria phaseoloides and by 58.3% with Stylosanthes guianensis compared to yams planted without cover crops; they also had lower (p ≤ 0.05) nematode populations. Cajanus cajan, Lablab purpureus and Vigna unguiculata however, supported high nematode populations and led to nematode damage in intercropped yams. Tubers from M. incognita-inoculated plants were more damaged and lost 42% more weight (p ≤ 0.05) following three months of storage than tubers from uninoculated plants. Intercropping yams with selected cover crops can be useful in managing M. incognita without reducing yam yields.     

Effects of mechanical and chemical methods on weed control,weed seed rain and crop yield in maize,sunflower and soyabean

Eight field experiments with maize (Zea mays L.), sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) and soyabean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) were carried out in central Italy in order to evaluate the effects of mechanical and chemical methods (spring-tine harrowing, hoeing, hoeing-ridging, split-hoeing, finger-weeding, herbicides in the row + inter-row hoeing, herbicides broadcast) on weed control, weed seed rain and crop yield. The choice of chemical and mechanical treatments in maize and soyabean compared to sunflower, required to be managed more carefully in order to maximize the weed control reducing yield losses. A global rating of weed control methods, based on their weed control efficacy, was obtained as useful means to assist farmers and technicians to choose the more appropriate weed control method. The combination of herbicides intra-row and hoeing inter-row gave best efficacy (on average 99% of weed control), with a 50% reduction in the chemical load in the environment. Hoeing-ridging gave good results, both inter- and intra-row (on average 93% of weed control); this method was also effective in reducing competitive ability and seed production of uncontrolled weeds. Split-hoeing or finger-weeding showed some limitations giving satisfactory results only when combined. Harrowing gave lowest weed control, although when combined to other mechanical methods, can help achieve a better efficacy.     

新形势下农业科研单位干部人事档案管理现状与对策

分析新形势下农业科研单位干部人事档案管理的现状,提出应对措施,强化干部人事档案管理,为单位人力资源开发提供完整的人才信息保障。     

Reduced tillage with residue retention improves soil labile carbon pools and carbon lability and management indices in a seven-year trial with wheat-mung bean-rice rotation

Soil total organic carbon (TOC) is a composite indicator of soil quality with implications for crop production and the regulation of soil ecosystem services. Research reports on the dynamics of TOC as a consequence of soil management practices in subtropical climatic conditions, where microbial carbon (C) loss is high, are very limited. The objective of our study was to evaluate the impact of seven years of continuous tillage and residue management on soil TOC dynamics (quantitative and qualitative) with respect to lability and stratification under an annual wheat-mung bean-rice cropping sequence. Composite soil samples were collected at 0-15 and 15-30 cm depths from a three-replicate split-plot experiment with tillage treatment as the main plots and crop residue levels as the sub-plots. The tillage treatments included conventional tillage (CT) and strip tillage (ST). Residue levels were high residue level (HR), 30% of the plant height, and low residue level (LR), 15%. In addition to TOC, soil samples were analyzed for particulate organic C (POC), permanganate oxidizable C (POXC), basal respiration (BR), specific maintenance respiration rate (qCO₂), microbial biomass C (MBC), potentially mineralizable C (PMC), and TOC lability and management indices. The ST treatment significantly increased the TOC and labile C pools at both depths compared with the CT treatment, with the effect being more pronounced in the surface layer. The HR treatment increased TOC and labile C pools compared with the LR treatment. The ST + HR treatment showed significant increases in MBC, metabolic quotient (qR), C pool index (CPI), C lability index (CL_I), and C management index (CMI), indicating improved and efficient soil biological activities in such systems compared with the CT treatment. Similarly, the stratification values, a measure of soil quality improvement, for POC and MBC were > 2, indicating improved soil quality in the ST + HR treatment compared with the CT treatment. The ST + HR treatment not only significantly increased the contents of TOC pools, but also their stocks. The CMI was correlated with qCO₂, BR, and MBC, suggesting that these are sensitive indicators of early changes in TOC. The qCO₂ was significantly higher in the CT + LR treatment and negatively correlated with MBC and CMI, indicating a biologically stressed soil condition in this treatment. Our findings highlight that medium-term reduced tillage with HR management has profound consequences on soil TOC quality and dynamics as mediated by alterations in labile C pools.