Life in the suburbs: Behavior and survival of a freshwater turtle in response to drought and urbanization

Urbanization fundamentally alters the abiotic and biotic components of landscapes, presenting wildlife with serious challenges to which they must respond in order to avoid excess mortality from urban dangers. In this study, we used radio-telemetry to examine the behavior and survivorship of an Australian freshwater turtle, Chelodina longicollis, in a suburban environment compared to a control group on an adjacent nature reserve. We expected turtles in the suburbs to be less mobile, but the suburban environment did not inhibit the ability of turtles to traverse large areas and make frequent movements among several different wetlands. In fact, suburban turtles were more vagile, moving distances twice as far as those on the nature reserves. Turtles on the nature reserve responded to dropping water levels during drought by estivating for several months in sheltered woodland micro-habitats. Suburban turtles did not estivate terrestrially, in part because their water bodies experienced dampened water level fluctuations and retained water during drought, though the relative unavailability of suitable estivation sites and perceived threats could also account for their avoidance of extended forays into the terrestrial environment. Annual survival rate was 95.3% in the reserves compared to 87.6% in the suburbs, but this 7.7% decrease in survival from road mortality was not significant in our survivorship models. The continued ability of suburban turtles to remain vagile without suffering from high mortality rates is likely a product of the availability of vegetated drainage lines and under-road “box” culverts that allow turtles to travel safely throughout the suburban landscape.     

“高抗1号”新品系刺参(Apostichopus japonicus)耐高温特性与高温期生理变化

2013-2015年对刺参(Apostichopus japonicus)养殖池塘进行水质监测,结合生态学、组织学观察和消化酶测定,研究了高温期“高抗1号”新品系刺参的抗逆特性与生理变化.结果显示,“高抗1号”新品系刺参进入夏眠的温度分别为29.13℃、30.47℃、29.68℃,结束夏眠温度分别为24.55℃、24.94℃、24.16℃.非选育刺参进入夏眠的温度分别为27.08℃、28.61℃、27.93℃,结束夏眠温度分别为21.33℃、21.83℃、22.06℃.“高抗1号”新品系刺参比非选育刺参的进入夏眠临界温度平均提高了1.89℃,结束夏眠的临界温度提高了2.81℃,每年夏眠期平均缩短了26.7 d.夏眠期间,刺参的消化道萎缩、变短、变细,颜色变深,肠道内无食物,其肠长、肠重和肠壁比均变小,肠道绒毛膜丰度降低,肠脊高度减小至140μm左右;呼吸树萎缩、体积变小.夏眠过后,刺参消化道恢复正常,肠长、肠重和肠壁比变大,肠道绒毛膜丰度升高,肠脊高度增至640-660 μm.另外,随着水温升高,“高抗1号”新品系刺参和非选育刺参的淀粉酶活力、胰蛋白酶活力整体上均呈下降趋势;而夏眠过后,2种酶活力又显著上升.在同等温度条件下,新品系刺参的淀粉酶活力和胰蛋白酶活力均高于非选育刺参.研究表明,“高抗1号”新品系刺参与非选育刺参相比,对高温的耐受力表现出较大的提升,每年刺参生长期增加近30 d.这种优良性状为刺参抵御高温、提高养殖成活率、增产增收奠定了基础,亦对开展刺参健康养殖、良种推广提供了技术参考.