Moderate sheep grazing in semiarid shrubland alters small-scale soil surface structure and patch properties

We investigated whether long-term moderate livestock grazing by sheep (ca. 10 animal unit days/ha) in a semiarid shrubland with a long-term average annual rainfall of 200 mm causes changes in soil surface structure and dimensions of shrub and intershrub patches. We examined grazing-induced changes in landscape patchiness, patch structure, and soil moisture in three grazed and three ungrazed plots of 4 m × 4 m on a south-facing slope and the opposite, more productive north-facing slope. The measurements were done in early spring 2001 and 2002 before grazing started, in two surveys, one using two parallel transects and one using sample quadrats of 20 cm × 30 cm under three shrubs per plot and on an adjacent part of the intershrub matrix. On the north-facing slope, the sheep reduced shrub patch size as they trampled the soil mounds under the shrubs and browsed the shrub canopy. Reduced shrub patch size decreases the area and resources available for plant production. On the south-facing slope, the sheep mainly disrupted the soil crust in the intershrub area. This may increase soil erosion, but also seedling establishment. The contrast in impacts on the two slopes is due to the interaction between environment (productivity, exposure and vegetation) and sheep behavior (herbivory and trampling). On both slopes, the changes due to grazing are significant, though small. Changes in patch size and properties induced by moderate grazing can have positive and negative effects on productivity and diversity, but may also be viewed as early signs of landscape degradation as is often caused by heavy grazing.     

Little effect of forest age on oribatid mites on the bark of trees

This study investigates the effect of forest age (20-, 50-, 160-year-old, and primeval forest) on oribatid mite communities on the bark of oak trees in the National Park Pusza Białowieża in eastern Poland. We hypothesized that oribatid mite diversity on bark peaks at forests of intermediate age and that the number of parthenogenetic species of oribatid mites is highest in young stands. In contrast to these hypotheses, the diversity, density, number of juveniles, community structure and the mode of reproduction of oribatid mite species were not significantly affected by forest age. None of the oribatid mite species occurred exclusively on trees of a specific age. The results suggest that oribatid mite communities on the bark of trees are minimally affected by tree harvesting regimes. In contrast to oribatid mites in soil, communities on bark appear to be less sensitive to disturbances.     

基于离散元法的免耕深施肥分段式玉米播种开沟器研制

针对东北垄作深施肥免耕播种机上开沟器播种深度均匀性差、工作阻力大、土壤扰动大的问题,该研究利用离散元软件(EDEM 2.7)仿真分析不同类型破茬刀-施肥铲装置对土壤的作用机理,设计了一种分段式玉米播种开沟器.首先建立土壤-玉米根系-玉米秸秆离散元仿真模型,然后进行不同类型破茬刀-施肥铲装置离散元仿真试验,以回落土壤最大...     

不同人为干扰尺度对米槠群落外貌特征影响研究

从群落外貌探讨不同人为干扰尺度对福建武平米槠林的影响。结果表明:随着人为干扰尺度(CK对照、A级择伐更新、B级天然更新、C级人工促进天然更新和D级杉木林)的加大藤本植物、地面芽植物、地上芽植物、中型叶、草质叶、复叶和落叶的种类逐渐上升或呈“S”型上升,而高芽位植物、小型叶、革质叶、全缘叶、单叶和常绿的种类逐渐下降或呈“S”下降;CK、A级、B级和C级的外貌是由革质、单叶、小型叶为主的常绿高位芽植物所决定的,而D级由草质、单叶、中型叶为主的常绿高位芽植物所决定的。     

果园巡检机器人长臂抖动抑制方法

针对果园巡检机器人长臂因抖动而严重制约图像采集效率的问题,该研究提出基于臂体上3个部位的仰角构建单一反馈量进行抖动抑制的方法。首先基于臂体外伸段的有限元模态分析结果,通过固有频率和静变形的等效,建立三杆两扭簧等效机构的动力学模型。并基于微分平坦理论将3个倾角传感器读数合成为一个系统输出量,以平坦输出量作为被控量,采用PID控制器进行抑振试验,再利用自抗扰控制(Active Disturbance Rejection Control, ADRC)思想中对广义扰动的处理方法,将被控模型等效为二阶系统形式,并将模型信息代入到扩张状态观测器中进行对比试验。试验结果表明,基于本文构建的方法均能起到快速抑制长臂抖动的作用。在冲击作用致使末端产生10°幅值的抖动情况下,PID控制器实现了7 s内抑制大幅抖动,自抗扰控制器实现了8 s内快速抑制大幅抖动的效果。PID控制器的输出出现3次饱和现象且小幅较高频率抖动不易消除,而自抗扰控制器仅出现一次饱和,具有抖动抑制过程平滑的优点。本文的控制算法简洁适于在单片机等微型计算机系统中应用,系统结构简单成本低,可为现代农业装备研发与应用中解决长臂类结构抖动的主动抑制问题提供理论参考。     

Effects of human activity on the foraging behavior of sanderlings Calidris alba

Urbanization and coastal development has dramatically reduced the beach habitat available for foraging shorebirds worldwide. This study tested the general hypothesis that recreational use of shorebird foraging areas adversely affects the foraging behavior of sanderlings Calidris alba. Observations conducted on two central California beaches from January through May and September through December of 1999 showed that number and activity of people significantly reduced the amount of time sanderlings spent foraging. Although the sample size was low, the most significant negative factor was the presence of free running dogs on the beach. The experimentally determined minimal approach distance did not vary significantly with the type of human activities tested. Based on these results, policy recommendations for minimizing the impact of human beach activities on foraging shorebirds include: (1) people maintain a minimum distance of 30 m from areas where shorebirds concentrate and (2) strict enforcement of leash laws.     

提升小波在暂态电能质量扰动检测与定位中的应用

针对电力系统暂态扰动信号具有非平稳、突发性的特点,分析了提升小波适合检测暂态扰动信号突变点的特性,提出了应用提升db4小波变换对暂态电能质量扰动信号进行检测与定位的方法。在Matlab仿真环境下运用该方法对电压骤升、电压骤降、电压中断、频率偏差、瞬态振荡、瞬时脉冲等多种暂态电能质量扰动信号进行检测与定位,仿真结果表明,该方法误差可达到毫秒级,可以实现对扰动信号起止时刻更为精确的定位。     

Selecting terrestrial arthropods as indicators of small-scale disturbance: A first approach in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest

The growing pressure placed by human development on natural resources creates a need for quick and precise answers about the state of conservation of different areas. Thus, identifying and making use of ecological indicators becomes an essential task in the conservation of tropical systems. Here we assess the effects of small-scale disturbance on terrestrial arthropods and select groups that could be used as ecological indicators in the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. Arthropods were sampled within a continuous forest in the Serra do Mar State Park, southeastern Brazil, both in disturbed and undisturbed areas of the reserve. The abundance of exotic species was higher in the disturbed site, and this pattern seems to be an adequate indicator of anthropogenic disturbance. Species richness of Araneae, Carabidae, Scarabaeidae, Staphylinidae, and epigaeic Coleoptera (pooled) was higher in the undisturbed site, while that of fruit-feeding butterflies was higher in the disturbed site. Species richness was not significantly correlated between any pair of taxa. In contrast, species composition was significantly correlated among most groups, and clearly discriminates the disturbed from the undisturbed site. Moreover, fruit-feeding butterflies and epigaeic Coleoptera composition discriminated disturbed and undisturbed sites even when species were grouped into higher taxonomic levels, which may be a way of overcoming the difficulty of identifying arthropod species from poorly studied, species-rich ecosystems. Potential applications for these indicators include the choice and evaluation of sites for the establishment of natural reserves, elaboration of management plans, and the assessment of ecological impacts due to human activities, either for the purposes of licensing or legal compensation.     

Conversion of a tropical forest into agroforest alters the fine root-related carbon flux to the soil

Large areas of remaining tropical forests are affected by anthropogenic disturbances of various intensities. These disturbances alter the structure of the forest ecosystem and consequently its carbon budget. We analysed the role of fine root dynamics in the soil carbon budget of tropical moist forests in South-east Asia along a gradient of increasing disturbance intensity. Fine root production, fine root turnover, and the associated carbon fluxes from the fine root system to the soil were estimated with three different approaches in five stands ranging from an old growth forest with negligible anthropogenic disturbance to a cacao agroforestry system with planted shade trees. Annual fine root production and mortality in three natural forest sites with increasing canopy openness decreased continuously with increasing forest disturbance, with a reduction of more than 45% between the undisturbed forest and the forest with large timber extraction. Cacao agroforestry stands had higher fine root production and mortality rates than forest with large timber extraction but less than undisturbed forest. The amount of carbon annually transferred to the soil carbon pool through fine root mortality was highest in the undisturbed forest and generally decreased with increasing forest use intensity. However, root-related C flux was also relatively high in the plantation with planted shading trees. In contrast, the relative importance of C transfer from root death in the total above- and below-ground C input to the soil increased with increasing forest use intensity and was even similar to the C input via leaf litter fall in the more intensively managed agroforest. We conclude that moderate to heavy disturbance in South-east Asian tropical moist forests has a profound impact on fine root turnover and the related carbon transfer to the soil.     

Effects of ground fires on understorey bird assemblages in Amazonian forests

Avifaunal responses to understorey fire disturbance and subsequent changes in habitat structure were examined within 20 burnt and unburnt forest plots of 0.25 ha (10×250 m), 10-15 months after an unprecedented understorey fire swept through the Tapajós-Arapiuns Extractive Reserve of central Brazilian Amazonia following the severe 1997-1998 El-Niño dry season. Although these surface fires in the previously undisturbed primary forest were relatively mild, they resulted in dramatic changes in forest structure consistent with those found elsewhere in Amazonia. Bird species negatively affected by these changes tended to be the least common, the most disturbance-sensitive, and habitat specialists. Considering different guilds, ant followers, dead-leaf gleaners, terrestrial gleaners, and arboreal sallying insectivores were the most negatively affected, whereas nectivores and arboreal granivores became more abundant in the burnt forest. The results highlight the severe consequences of even relatively mild surface fires in neotropical forests, and the importance of controlling haphazard frontier expansion for the conservation of susceptible species that are endemic to fire-prone regions.