Measuring trail users’ perception of crowding in a peri-urban nature park: A best-worst scaling experiment

This paper evaluates the perception of crowding, its determinants and relationship with trail users’ experience in a peri-urban nature park. Existing crowding surveys rely heavily on a single-item 9-point crowding scale which was originally developed for backcountry areas. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was used to test the validity and reliability of this measure in detecting crowding issues and formulating visitor capacity limits. Low validity and reliability raised concerns about the applicability of this scale in similar frontcountry areas. Inability of this simple crowding measure to detect a visitor threshold brings to the fore its another important limitation – ignorance of the complexity of crowding phenomenon. The perception of crowding varies with various social, psychological and situational factors, and a best-worst scaling (BWS) experiment was designed to simultaneously evaluate different aspects of crowding in the Medvednica Nature Park, a peri-urban nature park near Zagreb, Croatia. The findings of BWS experiment revealed that occupancy of mountain huts, number of other hikers on the trail and amount of litter along the trail on average contributed most to the trail users’ sense of crowding. A latent class analysis identified a large heterogeneity in the perception of crowding; while one group of trail users (63%) was more disturbed by the direct social impacts, the others (37%) were more disturbed by the secondary impacts of other visitors, especially by the negative externalities from road traffic in the park. Older visitors had a greater tendency to primarily associate crowding with the environmental conditions. A higher impact of trail use level in the perception of crowding, younger age and more frequent use were associated with a more negative evaluation of crowding. The park management should closely monitor road traffic in the park and visitor activity on highly used trails, especially on those popular among younger trail users.     

Influence of soil phosphorus status,texture, pH and metal content on the efficacy of amendments to pig slurry in reducing phosphorus losses

Cost‐effective strategies for using chemically amended organic fertilizers need to be developed to minimize nutrient losses in surface and groundwater. Coupling specific soil physical and chemical characteristics with amendment type could increase their effectiveness. This study investigated how water‐extractable phosphorus (P) was affected by chemical amendments added to pig slurry and how this effect varied with soil properties. A 3‐month incubation study was conducted on 18 different mineral soils, stored at 10 °C and 75% humidity and treated with unamended and amended slurry which was incorporated at a rate equivalent to 19 kg total P (TP )/ha. The amendments examined were commercial‐grade liquid alum, applied at a rate of 0.88:1 [Al:TP ], and commercial‐grade liquid poly‐aluminium chloride (PAC ), applied at a rate of 0.72:1 [Al:TP ]. These amendments were previously identified by the authors as being effective in reducing incidental losses of P. The efficacy of the amendments varied with the soil test P, the degree of P saturation (DPS ) and the Mehlich aluminium, iron and calcium, but not soil texture. Chemical amendments were most effective in soils with DPS over approximately 20%. Due to their high cost, the incorporation of amendments into existing management practices can only be justified as part of a holistic management plan where soils have high DPS .     

Spatiotemporal patterns of mountain whitefish (Prosopium williamsoni) in response to a restoration of longitudinal connectivity

To examine the role of longitudinal connectivity on the spatial and temporal dynamics of mountain whitefish (Prosopium williamsoni), we quantified movement and population dynamics following installation of the Landsburg Dam fishway, Cedar River, WA, USA. Mountain whitefish is widely distributed, poorly studied and not the focus of restoration. Before the fishway, mountain whitefish were not observed above the dam. Here, we focus on snorkel counts collected at reach and mesohabitat (e.g. pools) scales over 11 summers on the 20‐km above‐dam segment following restoration. A camera within the ladder provided number, size and movement timing, thereby informing on behaviour and recolonisation. Segment‐scale abundance increased following fish passage reaching an asymptote in 7 years, and mountain whitefish were detected throughout the main stem in 10 years. Annual movement through the ladder increased over time and was positively correlated with instream abundance and discharge, but negatively correlated with water temperature. About 60% of fish movements occurred in spring and early summer, potentially for foraging opportunities. Reach‐scale abundance peaked between 7 and 10 km from the dam; deep, cool (~10.6 to 11.6°C) conditions characterised these reaches. At the mesohabitat scale, mountain whitefish detection increased with depth and velocity after accounting for distance from the dam. Our results show how restoring longitudinal connectivity allowed this nontarget species to colonise newly available habitat. Their response supports the critical roles of longitudinal connectivity and environmental conditions, that manifest at different spatial scales, in dictating how freshwater fish respond to habitat disturbance.     

Soil protection for a sustainable future: options for a soil monitoring network for Ireland

The increased recognition of the importance of soil is reflected in the UN Post‐2015 Development Agenda with sustainable development goals that directly and indirectly relate to soil quality and protection. Despite a lack of legally binding legislation for soil protection, the European Commission remains committed to the objective of soil protection. However, the achievement of a legally binding framework for soil protection relies on the implementation of a soil monitoring network (SMN) that can detect changes to soil quality over time. As beneficiaries do not pay for the provision of soil information, the options for soil monitoring are limited. The use of existing data sets should be considered first. Using Ireland as an example, this research explored the opportunities for a SMN for Ireland considering three existing national data sets. The options for a SMN are considered in terms of their spatial and stratified distribution, the parameters to be measured and an economic analysis of the options proposed. This research finds that for Ireland, either a 10 or a 16 km² grid interval stratified by land use and drainage class offers the best potential in relation to the spatial distribution of existing data sets to reflect local data at a national level. With existing data, the stratified SIS data using the 16 km² grid offers the best value for money, with baseline costs for analysis, excluding field costs, of between €706 481 and €2.8 million. Acknowledging the impossibility of measuring all parameters with ideal frequency, this study proposes a two‐tier system for optimized monitoring frequency. Parameters must anticipate future policy requirements. Finally, the implementation of a SMN must be accompanied by standardized methods, defined thresholds and action mandates to maintain soil quality within allowable limits.     

异硫氰酸丙烯酯毒杀松材线虫作用机制初步研究

对异硫氰酸丙烯酯毒杀松材线虫作用机制进行了初步研究。测定了其对线虫虫体形态、运动行为、体内总糖和蛋白质含量的影响,以及处理前后线虫体内过氧化氢酶(CAT)、乙酰胆碱酯酶(AChE)和谷胱甘肽-S-转移酶(GST)活性变化。结果表明:经异硫氰酸丙烯酯处理后的松材线虫虫体形态严重扭曲,运动形态出现由正常的S形变化为多节弯曲和螺旋状卷曲等异常状况,线虫行动随时间的推移变得迟缓,最终呈C形、新月形或直接死亡。随着异硫氰酸丙烯酯处理质量浓度的增大,线虫体内总糖和蛋白质含量显著上升,糖和蛋白质的代谢发生紊乱;线虫体内CAT、AChE和GST活性显著降低,且均低于对照组,表明线虫体内氧化和抗氧化作用失衡;细胞受到极大的影响,神经系统遭到破坏,解毒能力明显降低。研究结果可为研究利用异硫氰酸丙烯酯作为植物源杀线虫剂提供依据。     

秀珍菇原基形成相关基因PpFBD1的克隆与表达研究

前期研究中通过对秀珍菇经低温诱导后不同发育阶段样本进行转录组测序及差异表达基因分析发现,ID为Cluster-6377.64510的基因(命名为PpFBD1)在原基形成前期的样本中高表达。为进一步了解分析其表达特性及功能,根据转录组测序结果设计特异性引物,利用RT-PCR技术从秀珍菇中克隆获得了该基因的cDNA全长。该基因由342个核苷酸组成,编码一个由113个氨基酸组成的蛋白,蛋白相对分子质量约11 ku。进化树分析显示,PpFBD1编码蛋白与糙皮侧耳hydrophobin1编码的疏水蛋白亲缘关系最近。Gene Ontology功能分析表明,PpFBD1主要参与真菌类细胞壁的合成。荧光定量RT-PCR检测显示,该基因在菌丝体经低温诱导后恢复至室温阶段(原基形成前期)表达量最高,这表明其可能参与调控秀珍菇原基形成过程。本研究结果为阐明秀珍菇原基形成机制提供参考。     

6株牛传染性鼻气管炎病毒BICP4基因序列的同源性分析

牛传染性鼻气管炎病毒的立即早期启动基因IER4.2编码感染细胞蛋白BICP4基因。各种疱疹病毒的BICP4基因的Ⅰ，Ⅲ，Ⅴ区变异性较大，并为其特征区。为了比较分离自不同牛种，不同部位的5种病毒株BICP4蛋白I区基因的差异性，本文根据已发表的IBBV K22毒株重复序列IRs中BICP4的基因序列设计了一特异性引物，对各毒株进行PCR扩增，均得到约540bp的片段，将其克隆，测序并连同K22株进行同源性比较。结果表明，6株病毒的核苷酸序列及氨基酸序列同源性均在98%以上，说明这些毒株重复序列中的早期基因高度保守，在一定程度上也显示出IBRV的高度保守性。     

羊支原体性肺炎两标准株对抗菌药物敏感性的研究

本实验测定了环丙沙星、氧氟沙星、单诺沙星、红霉素、罗红霉素、泰勒菌素、泰妙菌素、四环素等8种药物对羊肺炎支原体两个标准株Y98和Y-goat的体外抑菌浓度以及红霉素与氧氟沙星、泰勒菌素对Y-goat和四环素与氧氟沙星、泰勒菌素对Y98的联合药敏作用。对羊肺炎支原体两个标准株对抗菌药物的敏感性进行了分析。     

海南岛昌江县昌化镇草地及其利用途径

海南岛昌江县昌化镇草地,用点样法取得数据,应用spss软件聚类分析,可划分为五类。以和它草——三芒草群落面积最大,最有代表性;金须茅——蔓荆子——绢毛飘拂草则局限于滨海沙地上。文章末尾就利用问题作了讨论。