Behaviour and growth of juvenile brown trout exposed to fluctuating flow

Abstract –  Parr of brown trout ( Salmo trutta L.) were exposed to constant or fluctuating water level and flow in artificial outdoor stream channels during 21 days in three consecutive runs, and their individual behaviour and social interactions were monitored. Despite the large variation in flow, no clear differences in growth, which was generally poor, and behaviour were found between treatments. The signs of a social structure in the stream channels were very subtle and there were no clear relation between growth rate and aggressive/dominant behaviour in any of the treatments in accordance with findings in studies of growth and dominance in the wild. Thus, in regulated rivers, daily fluctuations in flow and water level (hydropeaking) are not likely to alter the behaviour of juvenile brown trout or affect their energy turnover negatively. Several studies now indicate that if stranding can be avoided, hydropeaking has relatively small direct effects on stream salmonids. Therefore, future research should focus on cascading ecological effects that may influence the productivity of the ecosystems in regulated rivers.     

It is the ambience,not the menu. Prey availability does not drive habitat selection by the endangered Pyrenean desman

1. The Pyrenean desman (Galemys pyrenaicus) is an endangered stream-dwelling insectivore endemic to the Iberian Peninsula and the north of the Pyrenees. It favours riffles over slow habitats such as runs or pools, yet it is still unclear whether habitat preference is based on prey availability or on other factors, such as mechanical constraints on its hunting habits.
2. Desman diet and prey selection were analysed along the pristine Elama Stream and the slightly modified Leitzaran Stream in the Basque Country, Spain.
3. In each stream the prey consumed were identified by metabarcoding 94 desman faeces, and prey availability characterized from 10 Surber samples taken in each habitat type (riffles, runs and pools). Invertebrates were sorted and identified, the biomass of each taxon was calculated, and their DNA was also extracted, amplified using PCR, and sequenced to build a reference database.
4. Prey availability and diet varied between streams. Desmans positively selected shredders and invertebrates that live on the substrate, and selected against taxa that live in fine sediment, taxa with hard shells or those that are highly mobile. The diet of desmans was more selective in the Elama, the stream with better ecological status. Food availability did not differ among habitats, and therefore does not explain the preference of desmans for riffles; rather, mechanical constraints to deal with buoyancy and physical habitat heterogeneity were hypothesized to be the reason behind the habitat preference.
5. The results suggest that promoting the formation of riffles in streams can improve the situation of some desman populations living in degraded habitats.

     

A political tsunami hits Amazon conservation

1. The history of conservation of the Amazon can be viewed as a war involving many battles with interests in agribusiness on one side and in biodiversity conservation and sustainability on the other side. Trends in large-scale deforestation in the 1970s spurred a series of policies, stakeholder alliances and international and grass-roots movements, which decades later led to the establishment of protected areas and interventions in soy and beef supply chains of agribusiness. Together, these advances epitomized a conservation framework for the Amazon, which at one point nearly curbed deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon, although it included very few protections for freshwater ecosystems.
2. While those conservation advances were taking place, however, a series of policy changes started to undermine them through expansions in deforestation, river regulation and mining activities. The election of Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro in 2019 then hit the Amazon conservation framework much like a tsunami of policy setbacks and the re-establishment of the economic policies that sparked the Amazon war in the past.
3. The current trajectory is one of large-scale degradation of Amazonian ecosystems and biodiversity with consequent impacts on local people. Because freshwater ecosystems are highly sensitive to human activities on water and on land, these growing impacts are particularly large.
4. It is too early to know, but four decades of institutional and policy developments to conserve the Brazilian Amazon may soon be pushed past the point from which they will be able to recover. Four conditions will be pivotal to allowing the Amazon conservation framework to recoup: (a) the end of Bolsonaro’s mandate in 2022 or earlier; (b) remobilization of stakeholders; (c) investments in environmental research, policy and multiple collaborations; and (d) moving conservation beyond terrestrial landscapes to also encompass freshwater ecosystems and their people.

     

天津市3座水库大型底栖动物群落结构及其与环境因子的关系(英文)

[目的]研究天津市3座水库大型底栖动物群落结构及其与环境因子的关系。[方法]2011年5月、7月、9月分别对天津市于桥水库、北大港水库、尔王庄水库的14个采样点的大型底栖动物进行调查,分析各水库大型底栖动物物种多样性状况,并评价各水库的水质情况。[结果]所有采样点共采集到大型底栖动物22种,其中水生昆虫6种,软体动物7种,甲壳类2种,寡毛类7种。于桥水库5月、7月、9月大型底栖动物的种类分别为11种、8种、10种,大型底栖动物的平均密度和平均生物量分别为132.43 ind./m2、50.09 g/m2;采用Margalef物种丰富度指数d值、Shannon多样性指数(H)和Pielou均匀度指数综合评价,于桥水库为轻-中度污染。北大港水库5月、7月、9月种类分别为5种、5种、5种。大型底栖动物的平均密度和平均生物量分别为218ind./m2、2.70 g/m2;采用物种丰富度指数d值、Shannon多样性指数H值和均匀度指数综合评价,北大港水库为重度污染。尔王庄水库5月、7月、9月大型底栖动物的种类分别为3种、5种、5种。大型底栖动物的平均密度和平均生物量分别为104 ind./m2、0.20 g/m2;采用物种丰富度指数d值、Shannon多样性指数H值和均匀度指数综合评价,结果表明尔王庄水库为中度污染。[结论]三座水库均受到了富营养化污染,污染程度为:北大港水库尔王庄水库于桥水库。     

Amazon floodplain hydrology and implications for aquatic conservation

1. The amplitude, duration, frequency, and predictability of runoff and inundation of aquatic habitats are key hydrological characteristics linked to aquatic ecosystem functioning and biodiversity, but they are seldom integrated into analyses of Amazon floodplain ecology. Remote sensing approaches, measurements and modelling of floodplain hydrology provide a basis for this integration.
2. Effective legislation to protect floodplains and other wetlands depends on operational definitions that require application of hydrological data.
3. Extent and changes of flooded areas are linked to fish diversity and to presence and growth of flooded forests and floating plants.
4. Dam construction reduces river system connectivity and modifies the flood pulse, with major negative implications for floodplain ecosystems adapted to and dependent on a natural flood regime.
5. Trends and variability in climate plus deforestation are altering the Amazon's hydrological cycle, causing changes in discharge and flooded area with concomitant ecological impacts.

     

三峡库区30 a间土地利用景观特征的粒度效应

该研究是为了测度景观指数在时空上随粒度变化的特征;总结相同景观在不同粒度下的景观特征差异。利用不同的粒度大小,将景观类型图进行了栅格化,并选取景观指数,在类型与整体景观的水平上,进行了景观指数的粒度效应测度。并采用相关性分析的方法,分析了各景观指数与粒度相关性的差异。研究表明：粒度效应能有力地论证三峡库区近30 a景观格局变化的特征;不同的景观指数随粒度也表现出不同的敏感程度,较敏感的是斑块密度、有效网格大小、正归化形状指数、聚合指数。同一类型景观在不同的景观指数测度上表现不同的变化规律,随粒度变化较为敏感的是耕地（坡度＜25°）、林地、草地和城镇建设用地;多数指数呈现出随粒度变化的拐点,尤其在尺度400 m;整体水平上,斑块密度和景观形状指数受粒度变化的影响较大;同一指标与粒度的相关性在类型水平和时间跨度上大多呈现出较高的一致性。此次研究很好反映了景观格局指数在不同空间分辨率（粒度）上的变化规律。     

35kV小型化模式变电所优化组合的研究与应用

通过两种“小型化模式变电所”接线的优化组合，对主开关部件加以研究改造，使其能适合于既有供电用户又有小水电上网负荷区域运行的３５ｋＶ小型化全户外式变电所，在浙江省余姚市梨洲获得成功。在减少投资、节约土地、缩短周期、降低运行费用等方面效益显著。     

工程造价对小型水电站方案选择的影响

为了克服工程造价对小型水电站方案选择的不良影响，通过对永安市溪南水电站方案比较选择的分析，说明工程造价对非国有资金投资的小型水电站在方案选择时的不良影响，并提出相应措施，希望能够更好地实现充分利用水能资源，鼓励投资建设有调节性能的小水电站。     

基于径向基神经网络的水轮机组故障诊断研究

针对传统意义的BP(B ack-P ropagated)神经网络在水轮机故障诊断中的不足,提出了一种基于径向基RBF(R ad ia l bas is function)神经网络的水轮机组故障诊断方法。实例应用表明,该方法克服了BP神经网络的不足,具有精度高、收敛快、可以避免局部极小值的优点;RBF神经网络收敛速度约是BP神经网络的40倍,并能准确地诊断出水轮机组的故障。     

小型水电站的发展与开发研究进展

水能资源由于其突出的优越性已得到世界各国普遍应用。我国水力资源丰富 ,尤其是小水电资源遍布各省区 ,这些可再生的水电资源的开发利用对农村能源起着非常重要的作用。从理论方法上对小水电的开发作了论述 ,对目前存在的不足进行了探讨