白令海阿留申海盆区狭鳕当年生幼鱼数量分布的调查研究

１９９３年夏季白令海狭鳕资源调查期间，作者等应用声学／拖网评估调查方法，首次发现阿留申海盆区有大量当年生狭鳕幼鱼分布。研究结果表明：（１）当年生幼鱼主要分布在海盆区东北部，密集区位于东白令海陆架斜坡与公海区之间，呈西北东南走向；（２）鱼群主要栖息于中上层８０—１２０米处，有明显的昼夜垂直移动现象；（３）７月份海盆区东北部幼鱼鱼体长度为２９—４７毫米，而南部波哥斯洛夫岛附近的鱼体长度仅为１１—１７毫米，系两个不同产卵期鱼群的子代；（４）幼鱼主要栖息层的水温为３—５℃，盐度为３２．９—３３．１，其分布与陆架斜坡地理环境和饵料生物关系较密切。     

Identifying response groups of soil nitrifiers and denitrifiers to grazing and associated soil environmental drivers in Tibetan alpine meadows

Defining response groups within N-related microbial communities is needed to predict land management effect on soil N dynamics, but information on such response groups and associated environmental drivers is scarce. We investigated the abundance and major populations of ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) and bacteria (AOB), and nirS- and nirK-harboring denitrifiers under different grazing managements in Tibetan alpine meadow soils. Grazing increased AOB and AOA abundances up to 42 fold and 3.7 fold, respectively, and increased the percentage of AOB within total ammonia oxidizers from 3.1% to 10.8%. The abundance of nirK-like denitrifiers increased with grazing intensity, while the abundance of nirS-like denitrifiers tended to decrease. However, sub-groups within each of these broad groups of (de)nitrifiers responded differently to grazing. Soil nitrate was the main driver of the abundance of denitrifier sub-groups (nirK or nirS) positively responding to grazing, while soil moisture and carbon concentration were the main drivers of the abundance of denitrifier sub-groups negatively responding to grazing. AOB and nirK-harboring denitrifiers thus generally responded more positively to grazing than AOA and nirS-harboring denitrifiers, but significant functional diversity existed within each group. Our approach demonstrates the usefulness of the concept of response groups to better characterize and understand (de)nitrifier response to grazing.     

Distribution and abundance of small rodents in Croatian forests

The relative abundance and the population development of small rodents were investigated on 17 sites in Croatian forests from September 1999 through June 2003. Common snap traps were set for two or three nights along transect lines in different forest types. In 27,598 trap–nights, 2,151 specimens were trapped. Small rodents were present in up to 45% of the traps in pedunculate oak forests dominated by Quercus robur L. In common beech forests with a predominance of Fagus sylvatica L., the percentage of occupied traps reached 59%. At most sites the following species were dominant:Clethrionomys glareolus Schr., Apodemus agrarius Pall. and A. flavicollis Melch. Additionally, in a forest community of Carpino betuli-Quercetum roboris typicum R., the absolute number of small rodents was calculated by means of the standard minimum method. The minimum rodent density was observed in April 2003 with 11.63 n/ha (number of specimens per hectare). The maximum was reached in March 2001 with 82.03 n/ha. Near the same site, the absolute number of the small rodent population was estimated using the Y method in spring 2001 as approximately 101.34 n/ha. In general, the abundance of small rodents was dependent on the forest seed crop.     

Green roofs sown with an annual plant mix attain high cover and functional diversity regardless of irrigation frequency

Annual plant species have great potential on green roofs as many are highly attractive, fast and cheap to establish via sowing and can provide rapid cover and growth, which is important for ecosystem service provision. While irrigation is essential for survival and growth of annual plants in seasonally hot or dry climates, it is also important to minimize water use as availability is often limited. Therefore, we evaluated how irrigation frequency affects plant cover, species abundance, richness and diversity, plant traits and functional diversity of a 16 species mixture of Australian annual species (4 g m⁻² ~ 2100 seeds m⁻²) sown onto thirty 0.25 m² green roof modules. The experiment was carried out in Melbourne, Australia, from January (summer) to July (winter) 2020. After a 2-month irrigated establishment phase (to ensure germination and seedling establishment), three irrigation treatments (2, 4 and 6 days between irrigation) were applied to the modules for three months. Plant cover was reduced at lower irrigation frequency (6 days), but ≥ 80% plant cover was achieved in all irrigation treatments. There was no effect of irrigation frequency on species abundance and richness; however, abundance, richness and diversity reduced over time, likely due to competition effects. Plant height and leaf area were also reduced by lower irrigation frequency. At the community level, functional diversity was unaffected by irrigation frequency. Our results indicate that green roofs sown with a mixture of annual plants can achieve good plant coverage, as recommended by green roof guidelines, and maintain high diversity when minimally irrigated in their first growing season.     

Studies on the abundance, biology and harmfulness of leaf beetles (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae) in natural bush vegetation in Isparta, Turkey

Leaf beetle occurrence and abundance on certain shrubs and bushes were surveyed during 2002–2003 in several natural habitats of Isparta. The 34 leaf-beetle species collected are listed and classified according to their relative percentage of the total caught and to their associated host plants. In all habitats sampled, leaf beetles showed a preference for plants from the genera Quercus and Crataegus. Some abundant species causing serious damage to their food plants are discussed.     

Successional change in the insect community of a fragmented landscape

Habitat fragmentation strongly affects insect species diversity and community composition, but few studies have examined landscape effects on long term development of insect communities. As mobile consumers, insects should be sensitive to both local plant community and landscape context. We tested this prediction using sweep-net transects to sample insect communities for 8 years at an experimentally fragmented old-field site in northeastern Kansas, USA. The site included habitat patches undergoing secondary succession, surrounded by a low turf matrix. During the first 5 years, plant richness and cover were measured in patches. Insect species richness, total density, and trophic diversity increased over time on all transects. Cover of woody plants and perennial forbs increased each year, adding structural complexity to successional patches and potentially contributing to increased insect diversity. Within years, insect richness was significantly greater on transects through large successional patches (5000 m²) than on transects through fragmented arrays of 6 medium-sized (total area 1728 m²) or 15 small (480 m²) patches. However, plant cover did not differ among patch types and was uncorrelated with insect richness within years. Insect richness was strongly correlated with insect density, but trophic and α diversities did not differ among patch types, indicating that patch insect communities were subsets of a common species pool. We argue that differences in insect richness resulted from landscape effects on the size of these subsets, not patch succession rates. Greater insect richness on large patches can be explained as a community-level consequence of population responses to resource concentration.     

Scaling Local Species-habitat Relations to the Larger Landscape with a Hierarchical Spatial Count Model

Much of what is known about avian species-habitat relations has been derived from studies of birds at local scales. It is entirely unclear whether the relations observed at these scales translate to the larger landscape in a predictable linear fashion. We derived habitat models and mapped predicted abundances for three forest bird species of eastern North America using bird counts, environmental variables, and hierarchical models applied at three spatial scales. Our purpose was to understand habitat associations at multiple spatial scales and create predictive abundance maps for purposes of conservation planning at a landscape scale given the constraint that the variables used in this exercise were derived from local-level studies. Our models indicated a substantial influence of landscape context for all species, many of which were counter to reported associations at finer spatial extents. We found land cover composition provided the greatest contribution to the relative explained variance in counts for all three species; spatial structure was second in importance. No single spatial scale dominated any model, indicating that these species are responding to factors at multiple spatial scales. For purposes of conservation planning, areas of predicted high abundance should be investigated to evaluate the conservation potential of the landscape in their general vicinity. In addition, the models and spatial patterns of abundance among species suggest locations where conservation actions may benefit more than one species.     

Thirty-year recovery trend in the once depleted Hawaiian green sea turtle stock

The green sea turtle is one of the long-lived species that comprise the charismatic marine megafauna. The green turtle has a long history of human exploitation with some stocks extinct. Here we report on a 30-year study of the nesting abundance of the green turtle stock endemic to the Hawaiian Archipelago. We show that there has been a substantial long-term increase in abundance of this once seriously depleted stock following cessation of harvesting since the 1970s. This population increase has occurred in a far shorter period of time than previously thought possible. There was also a distinct 3-4 year periodicity in annual nesting abundance that might be a function of regional environmental stochasticity that synchronises breeding behaviour throughout the Archipelago. This is one of the few reliable long-term population abundance time series for a large long-lived marine species, which are needed for gaining insights into the recovery process of long-lived marine species and long-term ecological processes.     

黑土农田施加AM菌剂对大豆根际菌群结构的影响

为揭示在黑土农田条件下施加丛枝菌根(AM)菌剂对作物根际微生物群落的影响,试验以大豆为研究对象,田间播种时分别施加根内球囊霉(Glomus intraradices,GI)和摩西球囊霉(Glomus mosseae,GM)两种AM菌剂,以单施化肥处理(F)和不施加AM菌剂及化肥处理(CK)作为对照,采用传统与现代分子生物学手段,研究大豆根际土壤中菌群结构及根系内AM真菌多样性。结果表明:GI、GM处理的大豆菌根侵染率最高达到78.3%和86.6%;GI、GM、F处理的大豆根际土壤中可培养细菌、真菌和放线菌三大菌群的数量与CK处理相比显著提高(p0.05)。分离大豆结荚期根际土壤中AM真菌孢子,共获得Acaulospora属真菌3种,Glomus属真菌7种,孢子密度均较低,G.intraradices和G.mosseae均为各自处理的优势种群。对大豆结荚期根系和根际土壤PCR-DGGE图谱条带的丰度及优势条带测序分析,结果表明根际土壤中的AM真菌菌群数明显高于根系中AM真菌的菌群数量,GI处理的大豆根际土壤中AM真菌丰度值最大,GM处理大豆根系里的AM真菌丰度值最大,F处理的根际土壤中总AM真菌的数量最少;施加AM菌剂处理的大豆根系及根际土壤中的优势菌群分别为外源施加的两种AM真菌。     

Camera trap, line transect census and track surveys: a comparative evaluation

Rapid faunal assessments can use different methods depending on environmental conditions and costs. To compare the efficiency of three methods in detecting species richness and abundance, we tested them in the grasslands of Emas National Park, central Brazil. Track census was the most effective method for detecting richness, followed by camera-trapping and direct faunal counts. Track census reached an asymptote for number of species after only 12 days, but all methods converged on similar estimates of species richness after around 30 days. There was no significant spatial correlation for species richness or total abundance, between camera trap and tracks, across the 29 samples distributed in the park. However, for some species, abundance showed significant spatial correlation between methods. Also, these rates were significantly correlated across species and the spatial correlation between methods was significantly associated with log-transformed body mass across species. We conclude that, despite the high initial costs for camera-trapping, this method is the most appropriate for mammal inventory in all environmental conditions, allowing a rapid assessment of wildlife conservation status.