Ornamental lakes — an overlooked conservation resource?

• 1. Shallow lakes excavated for ornamental purposes during the 18th and 19th centuries are abundant in lowland Europe. However, relative to older man‐made and/or natural lakes, these lakes may have been undervalued from the perspective of nature conservation.
• 2. To evaluate this idea a comparison was made between the aquatic macrophyte communities (submerged and floating‐leaved vegetation) of 66 shallow, English lakes including 34 ornamental lakes and 32 flooded medieval peat workings (the Norfolk and Suffolk Broads system), the latter being widely protected by conservation legislation.
• 3. Some 47%, 38% and 15% of the lakes studied were phytoplankton‐dominated, macrophyte‐dominated or deemed too shallow (<50 cm water depth), respectively, to support a macrophyte vegetation. A higher proportion of the ornamental lakes were macrophyte‐dominated (51%) by comparison with the broads (34%). In addition, many of the ornamental lakes contained diverse plant communities including abundant populations of Characeae, a common feature of lakes in the region before the major onset of eutrophication.
• 4. From the perspectives of macrophyte species richness, charophyte communities and indeed ‘reference condition macrophyte assemblages’, many of the studied ornamental lakes can be considered to be of high conservation value. Yet, in contrast to the broads, the vast majority of ornamental lakes have little conservation protection and are rarely subject to biological monitoring and/or surveying, thus leaving them vulnerable to eutrophication and inappropriate management. This study suggests that ornamental lakes are worthy of much greater attention from conservation organizations.

Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Feeding strategies for striped blenny Meiacanthus grammistes larvae

Rotifers and Artemia salina nauplii are the most widely used live prey for newly hatched larvae, but they do not always promote optimal survival and growth. Alternative food sources such as copepods, which bypass these inadequacies and promote adequate growth, are needed and they are viewed with considerable interest by the scientific community. The aim of the present study was to test two different diets [rotifers and A. salina nauplii (group A) and a mixture (group B) of rotifers/Tisbe spp. copepods and A. salina nauplii/copepods] during the larval rearing of the striped blenny Meiacanthus grammistes. The analysis of the survival rate, size (total length and wet weight) and metamorphosis time during the larval phase of this species showed that Tisbe spp. administration can significantly improve larval survival and growth and also reduce the metamorphosis time. The results obtained are related to the fatty acid content of the live prey used and are essential in order to improve the captive production of M. grammistes through a closed system and, in turn, to preserve natural stocks.     

Towards sustainable exhibits – application of an inorganic fertilization method in coral reef fish larviculture in an aquarium

Coral reef fish are collected from the wild and exhibited in aquaria worldwide. Some of the fish spawn in captivity; however, the eggs are usually neglected. In this study, we collected the eggs spawned naturally in the exhibit tanks, hatched and cultured them indoor in 2000‐L fibreglass tanks (initial density = 18 000 egg tank^?1). We applied an inorganic fertilization method commonly used in freshwater fish culture in raising these coral reef fish larvae. We maintained inorganic phosphorus concentration at 100 μg P L^?1 and inorganic nitrogen at 700 μg N L^?1 daily in the fertilized group (n = 4), while the control tanks (n = 4) were fed with rotifers (10 ind mL^?1). Chlorophyll a at particle sizes of both 0.45–20 μm and >20 μm, as well as NH₃‐N, NO₃‐N, and PO₄‐P concentrations were significantly higher in the fertilized group than the control. Zooplankton in the size groups of 10–50 μm (mainly flagellates) and 50–100 μm (mainly ciliates) were abundant (about 10~60 ind mL^?1) during 3–7 days in fertilized tanks. The average larval fish survival rate at 21 day after hatch in fertilized group was consistently higher than the control in two trials. The experiments demonstrated that the inorganic fertilization approach can be successfully adapted for coral reef fish culture in an aquarium to achieve sustainable exhibits.     

Occurrence of Mycobacterium spp. in ornamental fish in Italy

The occurrence of Mycobacterium spp. in freshwater and marine ornamental fish was studied in Italy from June 2002 to May 2005. Two surveys were carried out, one of aquarium fish sent to the Laboratory for diagnosis, and the other of prevalence of infection by mycobacteria in ornamental fish imported into Italy. Bacterial isolation was carried out from the spleen, kidney and liver, and the isolates were subsequently identified by biochemical tests. In the first survey, 387 fish were examined and Mycobacterium spp. were isolated from 181 (46.8%) fish. In the second survey 127 batches of ornamental fish from different countries were examined. Mycobacterium spp. were isolated from 38 (29.9%) batches. The following species were found: M. fortuitum, M. peregrinum, M. chelonae, M. abscessus, M. marinum, M. gordonae, M. nonchromogenicum and M. interjectum. There was a high prevalence of infection independent of the presence of macroscopic lesions. Mycobacterium fortuitum and M. chelonae were more prevalent than M. marinum in the samples examined.     

广东省凤梨科观赏植物真菌病害鉴定

为给观赏植物病害的防治提供科学依据,根据病害症状和病原菌的形态特征以及有关文献的分类系统,鉴定了1998-2000年在广东调查的12种凤梨科观赏植物真菌病害,即围小丛壳[Glomerrellacinghlata(Stonem.)Spauld.etSchrenk]、辣椒刺盘孢[Colletotrichumcapsici(Syd.)Butl.etBisby]、水塔花星裂盘菌(PhacidiumbillergiaeL.ZengetP.K.Chi)、凤梨顶多毛孢菌(BartaliniaananassaL.Zeng,Z.D.JiangetP.K.Chi)、可可球二孢(BotryodiplodiatheobromaePat.)、钝头粘盘孢菌(ColletogloeumobtusumSutton)、油球拟茎点霉[Phomopsisdiplodinoides(Sacc.)Punith.]、筒凤梨拟茎点霉(PhomopsisspectabilisV.G.Rao&B.R.D.Yadav)引起的叶斑病,灰霉(BotrytiscinereaPers.)引起的花腐及分别由强雄腐霉(PythiumarrhenomanesDrechsler)、簇囊腐霉(PythiumtorulosumCoker&Patterson)和蕨柱帚霉(Cylindrocladiumpteridis Wolf)引起的根茎腐、叶基茎基腐和茎基腐。其中,星裂盘菌叶斑病、顶多毛孢叶斑病为凤梨科观赏植物的新病害;钝头粘盘孢菌、油球拟茎点霉为中国真菌新记录种。在温室生产中,以围小丛壳引起的叶炭疽病、筒凤梨拟茎点霉引起的叶斑病发生普遍而严重;根茎腐、叶基茎基腐和茎基腐在部分生产单位常引起死苗或死株     

方城县野生木本植物资源调查分析

采取实地调查、采集标本、影像资料、专家鉴定和分类统计等方法对方城县野生木本植物资源进行调查。结果表明:方城县共有野生木本植物60科137属236种,其中裸子植物4科6属7种,被子植物56科131属229种;优势科有蔷薇科等13个科,含66属145种,优势属有悬钩子属等13个属,含65种;野生木本植物中有乔木121种、灌木85种、藤本25种、竹类5种;国家重点保护、珍稀濒危和省级重点保护植物共有18种。     

The Potential for the Restoration of Marine Ornamental Fish Populations Through Hatchery Releases

Populations of tropical and subtropical marine fish are being depleted worldwide to supply increasing demands of the aquarium industry and fresh seafood market. Overfishing and destructive harvest techniques have left some marine fish populations virtually extirpated in a number of primarily underdeveloped countries. In situations where only small remnant populations and significantly degraded habitat remain, population recovery even under the complete absence of collection will be slow, with the high potential for population loss due to natural environmental and recruitment variability. Stock enhancement, supplementing natural recruitment with hatchery produced fry, has the potential to significantly increase the rate of population recovery while maintaining population vigor.Stock enhancement research on Pacific threadfin has demonstrated measurable positive impacts on recreational and commercial fisheries for this species in experimental scale releases; similar successes can be expected for enhancement efforts directed toward species of ornamental value. The major technological barrier to ornamental fish enhancement, the development of appropriate culture capabilities, is being addressed in research directed to the commercial production of fish for the aquarium trade.     

观赏植物养护专用缓释肥在3种植物上的应用研究初报

就一种新型观赏植物养护专用缓释肥在醉蝶花、罗汉松、莞香3种观赏植物上的应用效果进行初步探讨。结果表明:缓释肥可促进3种观赏植物的生长,与复合肥相比,该缓释肥具有肥效慢、肥效持续时间长、肥料利用效率高的特点。试验还发现,适量施用缓释肥可促进醉蝶花开花和延长开花期,且该缓释肥覆土施用要明显优于表土施用。     

花卉常规杂交育种的研究进展

本对花卉育种的历史和花卉常规常规杂交育研究进展及各种杂交技术方法进行综述。花卉常规杂交育种的应用领域人：（1）培育花色、花型和香味等观赏性状更加新颖的品种；（2）改变花期；（3）提高花卉适应性和抵抗病虫害能力。并对花卉常规杂交育种未来的研究方向作了展望。