Interactions of local habitat type,landscape composition and flower availability moderate wild bee communities

Context

Landscape and local habitat traits moderate wild bee communities. However, whether landscape effects differ between local habitat types is largely unknown.

Objectives

We explored the way that wild bee communities in three distinct habitats are shaped by landscape composition and the availability of flowering plants by evaluating divergences in response patterns between habitats.

Methods

In a large-scale monitoring project across 20 research areas, wild bee data were collected on three habitats: near-natural grassland, established flower plantings and residual habitats (e.g. field margins). Additionally, landscape composition was mapped around the research areas.

Results

Our monitoring produced a dataset of 27,650 bees belonging to 324 species. Bee communities on all three habitats reacted similarly to local flower availability. Intensively managed grassland in the surrounding landscape had an overall negative effect on the studied habitats. Other landscape variables produced diverging response patterns that were particularly pronounced during early and late season. Bee communities in near-natural grassland showed a strong positive response to ruderal areas. Flower plantings and residual habitats such as field margins showed a pronounced positive response to extensively managed grassland and woodland edges. Response patterns regarding bee abundance were consistent with those found for species richness.

Conclusion

We advise the consideration of local habitat type and seasonality when assessing the effect of landscape context on bee communities. A reduction in the intensity of grassland management enhances bee diversity in a broad range of habitats. Moreover, wild bee communities are promoted by habitat types such as ruderal areas or woodland edges.

     

Differences in metabolism of triploid and diploid Salmo trutta f. lacustris under acclimation conditions and after exposure to stress situations

Differences in metabolism (enzyme activities, metabolites) between diploid and triploid Salmo trutta f. lacustris were investigated under acclimation and stress conditions. Under acclimation conditions enzyme activities differed for 35% of the 27 investigated key regulatory enzymes and temperature optima for 23%. Muscle and liver metabolites related to energy metabolism and diagnostic indices of blood serum were similar, with exception of acetyl‐CoA being increased in triploids. Metabolic rate was lower and gill ventilation rate higher in triploids in comparison with diploids. During the tested stress situations (24 hr endurance swimming, 3 hr exposure to hypoxia in water with 32% oxygen saturation) muscle and liver glycogen decreased and serum and muscle lactate increased in both ploidy levels. Specifically, for triploids muscle adenylate energy charge and phosphocreatine levels decreased after endurance swimming and muscle and liver adenylate energy charge after exposure to hypoxia. Acetyl‐CoA increased in triploids during both stress situations. In summary, there existed differences in metabolism between the two ploidy levels and the energy metabolism of triploids was less balanced under stress.     

Simultaneous flowering of umbrella bamboo （Fargesia murieliae） at its native home in Central China

Introduction The life history of many bamboo species is characterized by an unusual flowering habit. They often flower and die simultaneously over wide areas at long intervals (3–120 years), and then regenerate from seed or rhizome (Janzen 1976; Liese 19…     

华中神农架箭竹(Fargesia spathacea)群落之海拔多样性(英文)

通过对华中神农架海拔1500米至2600米之间11个箭竹样方的研究,阐述了箭竹群落物种丰富度,物种多样性,物种均匀性,生活型谱及群落类型的海拔变化。从最低样方(1680米)到最高样地(2570米),微管束植物从30种降为7种,服从线性模型:Y=55.991.83X(R2=0.84,P<0.001);物种多样性从3.18降为1.78,服从线性模型:Y=4.670.10X (R2=0.72,P=0.001;物种均匀度在0.83至0.99之间变化,但与海拔并不相关。在生活型谱中,一年生植物,地下芽植物和大高位芽树木的百分比随海拔升高而升高;灌木和中高位芽树木随海拔升高而降低;多年生草本和半灌木与海拔关系不大。箭竹群落可分为5种类型:常绿阔叶林下,落叶阔叶林下,温性针叶林下,寒温性针叶林与混交林下,纯箭竹林。图4表2参19。     

Stomatal conductance, transpiration and sap flow of tropical montane rain forest trees in the southern Ecuadorian Andes

We investigated tree water relations in a lower tropical montane rain forest at 1950-1975 m a.s.l. in southern Ecuador. During two field campaigns, sap flow measurements (Granier-type) were carried out on 16 trees (14 species) differing in size and position within the forest stand. Stomatal conductance (g(s)) and leaf transpiration (E(l)) were measured on five canopy trees and 10 understory plants. Atmospheric coupling of stomatal transpiration was good (decoupling coefficient Omega = 0.25-0.43), but the response of g(s) and E(l) to the atmospheric environment appeared to be weak as a result of the offsetting effects of vapor pressure deficit (VPD) and photosynthetic photon flux (PPF) on g(s). In contrast, sap flow (F) followed these atmospheric parameters more precisely. Daily F depended chiefly on PPF sums, whereas on short time scales, VPD impeded transpiration when it exceeded a value of 1-1.2 kPa. This indicates an upper limit to transpiration in the investigated trees, even when soil water supply was not limiting. Mean g(s) was 165 mmol m(-2) s(-1) for the canopy trees and about 90 mmol m(-2) s(-1) for the understory species, but leaf-to-leaf as well as tree-to-tree variation was large. Considering whole-plant water use, variation in the daily course of F was more pronounced among trees differing in size and crown status than among species. Daily F increased sharply with stem diameter and tree height, and ranged between 80 and 120 kg day(-1) for dominant canopy trees, but was typically well below 10 kg day(-1) for intermediate and suppressed trees of the forest interior.     

Effects of bamboo Fargesia murielae on plant diversity in fir forest on mountain Shennongjia

Simultaneous flowering caused a gregarious dieback of umbrella bamboo (Fargesia murielae) all over the world in 1993–2000. Mountain Shennongjia in Central China’s Hubei Province is the only native home of umbrella bamboo, where it dominates the understorey of the farges fir (Abies fargesii) forest between 2 400 and 3 100 m, covering the ground for more than one century before a periodically flowering death. Data from 20 quadrats along a vegetation sequence revealed that the density, coverage, and height of umbrella bamboo negatively affected the species richness, diversity, and evenness of vascular plants in the forest. Local climax community of fir-bamboo was the poorest in species diversity, while the bamboo-free communities (i.e. shrubs and meadows) were bearing a higher species diversity. The simultaneous dieback of umbrella bamboo is an ecological release, which can periodically promote the plant diversity in the fir forest.     

德国及蒙古沙棘品种无性系生物学和观赏性价值评估

沙棘由于其有丰富的内含物和多方面的用途正被作为＂新兴水果＂而赢得了人们越来越多的重视和喜爱.通过在柏林Baumschulenweg的育种工作,到目前为止,已经育成不同成熟期的5个雌性和4个雄性沙棘品种.更多的由欧洲和蒙古原生种产生的杂交选育工作仍在进行中.将这些无性系按照其生物学和果实性状进行评估.就单个性状来讲,各品种之间的差异非常大（比如维生素的含量在17～340mg/100g之间变动,胡萝卜素的变动范围为6.5～23.8mg/100g）.这表明,进一步的育种改良完全有可能.所有用于比较的沙棘品种由在德累斯顿Pillnitz进行的育种工作获得,这些品种将被进一步研究.为了保险起见,以及为了解决后来有可能产生的育种及植物病理学方面的问题,必须尽可能保存现有的所有的某一品种的基因多样性.为此目的,由国家资助扶持的基因库的建立是很有必要的.     

High-resolution nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and multivariate analysis for the characterization of beer

Beer contains a very complex mixture of nutrients, which in this work are identified to some extent by high-field high-resolution nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) one- and two-dimensional methods. The (1)H NMR spectrum of beer shows a predominance of strongly overlapped peaks arising from several carbohydrates. Minor components are clearly observed both in the aliphatic and in the aromatic regions of the spectrum. With the aid of two-dimensional methods, spectral assignment was carried out, enabling the identification of approximately 30 compounds and identifying about the same number of spin systems for further assignment. The variability of the spectral profile of beers differing in type and label was studied by principal component analysis (PCA), and it was found that, although some distinction is achieved on the basis of the aliphatic and sugar compositions, clearer separation between ales and lagers is obtained by PCA of the aromatic profiles alone. The potential of this technique as a rapid and informative quality control tool is discussed.     

UN ECE ICP Materials: Dose-Response Functions on Dry and Wet Acid Deposition Effects After 8 Years of Exposure

The main results of the International Co-operative Programme on Effects on Materials, including Historic and Cultural Monuments (ICP Materials) within the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UN ECE) are summarised. The 8-year field exposure programme involves 39 test sites in 12 European countries and in the United States and Canada. Dose-response functions (DRF) expressing the effect of dry and wet deposition as individual terms have been obtained for a wide range of materials including bronze, copper, weathering steel, zinc, aluminium, nickel, tin, stone materials, paint coatings and glass materials. The DRF's includes parameters that are easily available on different geographical scales and can be used for mapping areas of increased corrosion rates and for calculation of costs.