滇南雨林山区林业持续发展问题探索

从滇南雨林山区的自然与社会经济特点出发，确认林业在区域经济发展中占重要地位，进而对林业持续发展中的自然生态系统脆弱、农林争地、人工林土壤退化、生物物种减少、林业经济效益低等问题进行了分析，提出发展高效林业，建设珍贵用材林、特产经济林、雨林特产品、热带水果生产基地，以及大力营建混交林、农用林业的对策与措施。建议立即开展生物资源本底调查，珍稀濒危生物物种保护，乡土树种栽培驯化、雨林特产品研究等工作。     

The impact of clonality on an endangered tree (Elaeocarpus williamsianus) in a fragmented rainforest

The occurrence and distribution of clonality in the endangered rainforest tree Elaeocarpus williamsianus (Elaeocarpaceae) was investigated using SSR and RAPD analyses for 170 apparent individual trees found across seven sites. The results obtained with the two molecular techniques were in complete agreement in showing that single clones are present in most of the E. williamsianus sites with two genets occurring at the largest and most adequately protected site. In addition, seed production, viability and germinability were determined for four of these populations. Fruit were produced in all four populations tested although sterile fruit were very common. Only two E. williamsianus trees representing different genets within the same site produced viable seed. The overall genetic diversity within E. williamsianus is much lower than expected and thus the potential for sexual reproduction has been significantly diminished. It is concluded that habitat fragmentation removed an existing balance between vegetative and sexual reproduction in this species. Such findings have added urgency to the management of this species which could include a reintroduction program incorporating the collation of all clones within selected sites.     

Biomass burning in Brazil's Amazonian “arc of deforestation”: Burning efficiency and charcoal formation in a fire after mechanized clearing at Feliz Natal, Mato Grosso

Estimates of greenhouse-gas emissions from deforestation are highly uncertain because of high variability in key parameters and because of the limited number of studies providing field measurements of these parameters. One such parameter is burning efficiency, which determines how much of the original forest's aboveground carbon stock will be released in the burn, as well as how much will later be released by decay and how much will remain as charcoal. In this paper we examined the fate of biomass from a semideciduous tropical forest in the “arc of deforestation,” where clearing activity is concentrated along the southern edge of the Amazon forest. We estimated carbon content, charcoal formation and burning efficiency by direct measurements (cutting and weighing) and by line-intersect sampling (LIS) done along the axis of each plot before and after burning of felled vegetation. The total aboveground dry biomass found here (219.3 Mg ha⁻¹) is lower than the values found in studies that have been done in other parts of the Amazon region. Values for burning efficiency (65%) and charcoal formation (6.0%, or 5.98 Mg C ha⁻¹) were much higher than those found in past studies in tropical areas. The percentage of trunk biomass lost in burning (49%) was substantially higher than has been found in previous studies. This difference may be explained by the concentration of more stems in the smaller diameter classes and the low humidity of the fuel (the dry season was unusually long in 2007, the year of the burn). This study provides the first measurements of forest burning parameters for a group of forest types that is now undergoing rapid deforestation. The burning parameters estimated here indicate substantially higher burning efficiency than has been found in other Amazonian forest types. Quantification of burning efficiency is critical to estimates of trace-gas emissions from deforestation.     

Corridors and connectivity: when use and function do not equate

Connectivity, or the integration of populations into a single demographic unit, is an often desired, but largely untested aspect of wildlife corridors. Using a corridor system that was established at least 85 years prior, we investigated the extent of connectivity provided. This was undertaken using a combined ecological and genetic approach with connectivity estimated by gene flow. Vegetation within the corridor was found to be comparable in physical structure and species composition to that within the connected patches and the two target species (Melomys cervinipes and Uromys caudimaculatus) were shown to occur along the corridor but not within the surrounding matrix. These factors indicated that the corridor was suitable for use as a model system. The population structure (weights of individuals, sex ratios and the percentage of juveniles) of both species were also similar within the corridor and the connected patches suggesting that the corridor provided the resources necessary to sustain breeding populations along its length. Despite this, populations in patches linked by the corridor were found to show the same significant levels of genetic differentiation as those in isolated habitats. M. cervinipes, but not U. caudimaculatus, also showed population differentiation within the continuous habitat. Although based on only one corridor system, these results clearly demonstrate that connectivity between connected populations will not always be achieved by the construction or retention of a corridor and that connectivity cannot be inferred solely from the presence of individuals, or breeding populations, within the corridor. C. Wilson: deceased     

Geographic information system (GIS) predictions of past, present habitat distribution and areas for re-introduction of the endangered subtropical rainforest shrub Triunia robusta (Proteaceae) from south-east Queensland Australia

The endangered Australian subtropical rainforest understorey shrub Triunia robusta, is restricted to the south-east Queensland region of Australia. The potential pre-clearing and current distribution of the species was modelled by relating species presence at recorded locations to correlated abiotic and biotic factors, which in combination, were then used as a surrogate for predicting distribution of the species habitat over its known range. From a defined study area of 330,000 ha, output of geographic areas likely to contain T. robusta habitat at three levels of probability were generated for pre-clearing vegetation, and vegetation classified as remnant in 1999. Potential pre-clearing distribution was compared with potential current distribution to ascertain the likely impact of clearing of native vegetation on the extent, pattern, and contiguity of T. robusta habitat. For pre-clearing vegetation, a total area of 45,480 ha was identified as potential T. robusta habitat. For vegetation classified as 1999 remnant, 13,440 ha were identified, representing an overall reduction of 70% in potential habitat for T. robusta. The model was partially validated, with T. robusta found at six new locations. Allowing for errors from spatial mismatching, five of the sites were located within habitat patches predicted by the model. A number of local areas containing high densities of predicted habitat patches were identified to guide searches for unrecorded populations. Strategically located areas linking known populations containing suitable or potentially suitable habitat that may be available for introduction of new populations were identified. The results indicate that the species former centre of range was in lowland areas adjacent to the north arm of the Maroochy River. Clearing and fragmentation of T. robusta habitat is the most likely cause of the apparent decline in distribution and abundance of the species.     

How much do site age, habitat structure and spatial isolation influence the restoration of rainforest beetle species assemblages?

Reforestation has been suggested as a way to mitigate the effects of tropical rain forest loss. However, factors influencing the successful colonisation of biota into newly created rainforest are poorly understood. We assessed beetle species assemblages with flight interception traps, in sites undergoing rainforest restoration across the largely cleared landscape of the Atherton Tablelands in north-eastern Queensland, Australia. There were two levels of site age (2-4 years and 6-17 years) and two distances from intact rainforest (adjacent and >0.9 km), with six sites in each treatment, together with six reference sites in each of pasture and small rainforest remnants (n = 36 sites). Multivariate metrics were used to assess the restored sites’ relative similarity to pasture and rainforest, in terms of both physical habitat structure and beetle species composition within ten family groups. Older restoration sites were structurally most similar to rainforest. Older sites and those adjacent to rainforest had a more rainforest-like beetle species composition (without significant interaction). However, even the closer and older sites had a substantially lower abundance and richness of rainforest-associated beetles than did rainforest. Age effects were generally stronger than distance effects, with the latter appearing to be entirely driven by rare rainforest species. Beetle assemblage similarity to rainforest was more strongly correlated with structural similarity to rainforest than with age, except within older sites. The use of revegetation techniques which lead to more rainforest-like structural conditions appears to be of over-riding importance in catalysing the rapid acquisition of volant rainforest beetle assemblages in the initial stages of restoration.     

Local and landscape factors determine functional bird diversity in Indonesian cacao agroforestry

Large-scale intensification of smallholder cacao management is currently affecting the agroforestry landscapes of Sulawesi (Indonesia), the world’s third largest cacao producer. Little is known about how this shift from diverse plantations to full-sun cacao will affect functionally important biodiversity within the agroecosystem, and how this is related to landscape-wide patterns in land-use and natural ecosystems. We recorded birds in 43 cacao plots differing in woody and herbaceous vegetation as well as distance to forest in two valleys around the Lore Lindu National Park in Central Sulawesi. Species richness of frugivores and nectarivores decreased with increasing distance to forest, whereas granivorous birds increased in richness. Forest specialists, but not habitat generalists, responded positively to forest edge proximity. Species richness of all functional groups except seed eaters increased at higher density of tall shade trees. Greater species richness of shade trees was associated with higher species richness of frugivores and nectarivores, while herbaceous vegetation did not have a strong impact on the avifauna. The positive effect of shade trees was independent of distance to forest. In conclusion, our study shows the relative importance of local and landscape effects on bird diversity with shade trees being critical for bird conservation in cacao agroforestry landscapes.     

Alternative stable states in Australia’s Wet Tropics: a theoretical framework for the field data and a field-case for the theory

The vegetation of the Wet Tropics bioregion of Far North Queensland is a complex system whose components (mainly tropical rainforests and fire-prone forests and woodlands) have mostly been studied independently from each other. We suggest that many characteristics of the vegetation are consistent with those of a complex, dynamic, spatially heterogeneous system which exhibits alternative stable states. We propose these states are driven and maintained by the interaction of vegetation-specific positive feedback loops with the regions’ environmental parameters (such as topography, steep humidity gradients and seasonality) and result in the rainforest/fire-prone vegetation mosaic that characterises the area. Given the regions’ magnitude, biodiversity and complexity, we propose the Wet Tropics as an important new example and a good testing ground for alternative stable state and resilience theories in large heterogeneous natural systems. At the same time, thinking in terms of alternative stable states and resilience creates a new context for understanding the regions’ biological dynamics.     

Distribution of nutrient elements within water-stable aggregates of two tropical agro-ecological soils under different land uses

This study evaluated carbon and nutrient distributions within water-stable aggregates (WSA) of soils of two contrasting ecosystems under different land uses. Surface soil samples were collected from uncultivated and cultivated land in rainforest and savannah agro-ecological areas and separated by wet-sieving technique into 4.76–2.0, 2.0–1.0, 1.0–0.50, 0.50–0.25 and <0.25 mm aggregate fractions. The results show that irrespective of the agro-ecological area, cultivation significantly (p < 0.05) reduced the macroaggregate fractions (>0.25 mm) to smaller diameters. Distribution of organic carbon (C), total nitrogen (N) and available phosphorus (P) within the WSA showed preferential enrichment of these elements in the large macroaggregate fraction (4.76–2.0 mm) for the uncultivated soils and microaggregate fraction (<0.25 mm) for the cultivated soils. The overall pattern indicates higher accumulation of C, N and P in the WSA of the uncultivated soils over the cultivated soils. Average distribution of total exchangeable bases (TEB), i.e., sum of Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, K⁺ and Na⁺, within WSA of the uncultivated soils of the rainforest region were 7.35 and 7.39 cmol/kg for 4.76–2.0 and <0.25 mm fractions, respectively. The distributions of TEB for cultivated soils of the rainforest region were 2.76 cmol/kg (4.76–2.0 mm fraction) and 7.73 cmol/kg for <0.25 mm fraction. This showed that cultivation significantly (p < 0.05) led to 62% reduction in these nutrients in the 4.76–2.0 mm fraction and 5% increase in concentrations of these cations in <0.25 mm fraction. For savannah soils, distributions of TEB were 7.44 and 6.77 cmol/kg for 4.76–2.0 and <0.25 mm fractions, respectively, in uncultivated sites, whereas TEB were 2.19 cmol/kg (4.76–2.0 mm) and 6.35 cmol/kg (<0.25 mm) for cultivated savannah. This indicated that cultivation significantly (p < 0.05) led to 71% and 6% reductions in Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, K⁺ and Na⁺ concentrations within the 4.76–2.0 and <0.25 mm aggregate fractions, respectively. However, there were 18% and 50% increase in these elements in the 2.0–1.0 and 1.0–0.50 mm fractions of the cultivated soils of the savannah region, respectively. The general trend showed that in uncultivated soils, the 4.76–2.0 and <0.25 mm fractions were preferentially enriched with Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺, K⁺ and Na ⁺; whereas, cultivation led to redistribution of these elements into the smaller aggregates. Since smaller aggregates are preferentially removed by erosion, this study underscores the need for sustainable soil management practices that would minimize nutrient loss when forest or fallow lands are converted to cropland.     

Harvest of Bombax ceiba for the Aboriginal arts industry, central Arnhem Land, Australia

Aboriginal people in remote Australian communities have limited opportunity to participate in the market economy. The Aboriginal arts and craft industry offers an important option to generate cash income and the sustained supply of native plants used in production is vital. We assessed the current harvest of a rainforest tree species commonly used for sculpture, Bombax ceiba. Information from field surveys, a regional rainforest inventory and sales figures from the Maningrida region were used to estimate the population size and structure of B. ceiba, the harvest intensity of patches and the economic value of the harvest. We estimate the density of B. ceiba to be 105.10±12.32 stems ha⁻¹ and a regional population of 76615±14063 stems. A cumulative harvest over 20 years of 6% suggests approximately 4596 stems harvested, and the harvest was worth about $200,000 over the last three years. The majority (80%) of harvested stems coppiced and were suitable for harvesting. Logistic regression suggests both distance to outstation and township influence harvesting intensity, with some localised over-harvest. Rainforests provide a valuable resource to Aboriginal artists in Maningrida and their maintenance provides important conservation benefits to the Australian community.