Can incidental sighting data be used to elucidate habitat preferences and areas of suitable habitat for a cryptic species?

The involvement of communities in ecological studies has been shown to augment conservation efforts, especially for cryptic species. However, there is a lack of studies addressing the utility of incidental sighting records from community members in gaining knowledge on habitat preferences and distribution of suitable habitat for these organisms. This study compares preferences of the Lumholtz's tree kangaroo (Dendrolagus lumholtzi ; LTK), a cryptic rainforest folivore in northeastern Australia, for various habitat and climatic variables derived from data collected during scientific projects to those derived from incidental sighting records using ArcGIS and Maxent. Incidental sighting records suggest that the species uses a wider range of altitudes, annual rainfalls, annual mean temperatures and vegetation types than predicted by scientific studies. Incidental records also show that the species can persist in areas of lower rainfall during the wettest month and lower minimum temperature during the coldest month. Both data place the species within a comparable range of rainfalls during the driest month, maximum temperatures of the warmest month and soil types. When using identified preferences to assess the extent and distribution of suitable habitat, incidental records predicted more areas of suitable habitat than scientific records with an overlap of up to 91% between them. The present study proves that incidental sighting records can be a valuable part of the study of cryptic species and should be considered complementarily alongside scientific studies to obtain comprehensive ecological information of a species that can assist in its conservation.     

Spatiotemporal dynamics of plant diversity in response to farmers’ evolved settlements in Shanghai

The expansion of the Shanghai metropolitan region has caused a substantial amount of farmland to become urbanized. Most farmers have lost their land and have been relocated from villages to new collective settlements, resulting in dramatic changes in the landscape pattern. This study explores the effects of this transformation on the spatiotemporal dynamics of plant diversity. We randomly sampled 22 plots comprising 294 subplots within two crossed transects that pass through 5 traditional villages and 17 new settlements. The results show that resettlement has exerted significant effects on plant species diversity, both temporally and spatially. Temporally, the Gleason index (GI) of total species over time could be ordered as 1990s > 2000s > 1980s, while Shannon’s diversity index (SHDI) was ordered as 2000s > 1990s > 1980s. Spatially, the GI of total species decreased from the urban center to the exurbs or from the inside to the outside of the built-up areas. SHDI was highest in suburbs or ecotones. Furthermore, the GI of total species had significant correlations with those of indigenous species, exotic species, and planted species (r > 0.90, p < 0.01) as well as with the region and location of settlement (r < −0.48, p < 0.01). Both indigenous and exotic species had significant positive correlations with total species richness at 0.01 levels. Generally, compared with traditional settlements, new settlements displayed greater richness and diversity of plant species, primarily because of the exotic species present in new settlements. The farmers’ socio-economic status was found to be the primary cause of differences in species richness. To protect indigenous and wild species, it is necessary to take into account local knowledge in villages to encourage Chinese farmers to participate actively in community greening. A bridge should be built between traditional villages and modern settlements and between the past and future for farmers.     

农民专业合作社发展困境和出路选择——以安徽省太和县王庄养鸡协会为例

通过对安徽省太和县王庄养鸡协会的个案分析,探讨了农民专业合作社发展的困境,并提出了相应的建议,即：加强合作社外部的制度建设,完善合作社自身的组织建设,建立科学合理的运行机制。     

Tackling fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda) outbreak in Africa: an analysis of farmers’ control actions

Abstract

Since its emergence in Africa in 2016, fall armyworm (FAW) has spread rapidly and poses a severe threat to the food security and livelihood of millions of smallholder farmers in the continent. Using survey data from Ghana and Zambia, we examined FAW prevention and control methods implemented by farm households and their impacts on maize output and household consumption of self-produced maize. The main control methods used included pesticide application and handpicking of larvae, while access to information on FAW was a key driver behind the implementation of the control methods. Results from an endogenous switching regression showed that the implementation of a FAW management strategy significantly enhanced maize yield and households’ own maize consumption. When disentangling the impacts of the main control methods, we found that the combination of pesticide application and handpicking of larvae produced the highest yield gain of 125%. We concluded that the current interventions put in place by farmers to tackle FAW infestations are providing positive outcomes, but successful management of the pest will require more actions, including raising awareness to enhance the adoption of control interventions and exploring other control options.     

永安市美丽乡村建设成效、问题与对策

美丽乡村是"生产发展、生活宽裕、乡风文明、村容整洁、管理民主"的"二十字"方针贯彻落实的成果展现。在生态文明视角下建设美丽乡村是目前我国正在全力规划实施的一个重大工程。该文总结了福建省永安市美丽乡村建设所取得的成效,分析了制约其发展的因素,并提出对策建议。     

Adoption and Impact of Modern Rice Varieties on Poverty in Eastern India

The factors affecting the adoption of modern varieties(MVs) of rice and impact on poverty in Odisha, India were discussed. A total of 363 households from Cuttack and Sambalpur districts of Odisha via multistage sampling technique participated in the survey. The Cragg's Double hurdle model was used to model the determinants of adoption and intensity of adoption of MVs of rice, and the propensity score matching was used to analyze the impact of adoption on poverty. The results showed that age, education, risk aversion, land size, yield, perception of MVs as high yielding, resistant to diseases and availability of MVs positively influenced the decision to adopt. However, variables such as household size, experience of a farmer, off-farm job participation, amount of credit received, cost of seeds, insecticides and fertilizers negatively influenced the adoption of MVs. Intensity of adoption of MVs was negatively influenced by experience of a farmer, cost of fertilizer and marketability of MVs, and positively affected by household size, risk aversion, land size, cost of insecticides, perception of MVs as high yielding and availability of MV seeds. Poverty incidence, gap and severity were high among non-adopters to adopters of MVs. After matching adopters and non-adopters of MV groups using four different algorithms of nearest neighbour matching, stratification matching, radius matching and kernel matching, the impact of MV adoption resulted in higher per capita monthly household expenditure by about US$ 52.82 to US$ 63.17.     

‘新海16’愈伤组织诱导及白霜的优化

为获得高品质、活力旺盛且具有分化能力的愈伤组织,本研究在已建立的海岛棉(Gossypium barbadense)‘新海16’再生体系基础上,以MSB附加0.1 mg/L 2,4-D及0.1 mg/L KT为基本培养基,采用单因素随机试验研究外植体不同部位、光照及培养基成分等对‘新海16’愈伤组织诱导的影响。结果表明:‘新海16’愈伤诱导的外植体选用下胚轴中上部绿色茎段诱导效果较优;除此之外,愈伤诱导效果最佳的处理为2 000 lx光照强度、90%MSB无机盐成分、3 g/L PVP及1.2~1.4 g/L Gelrite或Phytagel,均能够降低愈伤组织出现白霜现象,对愈伤组织疏松生长有促进作用。本研究通过优化愈伤组织的诱导方法,提高胚性愈伤组织发生率,为‘新海16’高频再生体系提供科学依据。     

日本环境保全型耕地农业系统对中国耕地保护的启示

为解决中国农业长期粗放经营问题,研究中国耕地与生态文明协同保护体系,采用文献研究法和归纳演绎法,分析东亚地区代表国家环境保全型农业下的耕地农业协同体系。研究表明,日本的耕地农业环境保护支付制度、生态补偿市场认证体系、耕地农业法律制度保障,是建立在生态补偿原则上,经过实践检验行之有效的,能够提升市场参与度及农民自主性投入的耕地生态协同保护措施。中国在推广耕地合理利用实践方面做出了不懈努力,但是在建立耕地生态协同保护的休耕制度、因地制宜建立生态补偿体系、加快推进耕地生态协同保护专项基金的设立等方面还需进一步坚持和完善。     

‘红国王’葡萄组织培养快速繁殖

为建立‘红国王’葡萄组培快繁体系,本试验研究了生长素、接种材料类型、培养条件对组培苗继代增殖与生根的影响。结果表明,0.5 mg/L IAA适合‘红国王’的继代增殖,繁殖系数为5.49,在培养基中附加0.3 mg/L NAA,愈伤组织少且根系粗壮;适合‘红国王’组培苗生长的蔗糖浓度为25~30 g/L,在该浓度下植株长势健壮,生根条数多;带半叶单芽茎段为‘红国王’适宜接种材料类型;接种后第1天至第10天暗培养,可促进‘红国王’根系发育;放置于LED灯复合光红∶蓝∶白=3∶1∶1下,可获得长势强、根系强壮的组培苗;继代间隔为40 d时,繁殖速度较快。     

农民土地利用偏好与地域性认同的相关性

从农民土地利用偏好以及居民地域性认同出发,将农民土地利用偏好分为农业生产功能偏好和经济生产功能偏好2类;并运用数学方法求取居民地域性认同综合指数,建立Logistic二项回归模型,研究农民土地利用偏好和居民地域性认同的相关性。结果表明,地域性认同程度高的农民更偏好于土地的经济生产功能。地方在开展土地整理或制定土地利用计划时,可根据当地居民地域性认同程度选择增大农地面积或是商铺、工厂的面积,提高人民的满意度。