Track way distance and cover as risk factors for lameness in Danish dairy cows

This study investigates the effect of length and cover of track ways between barn and pasture on lameness in Danish dairy cows. We hypothesised that short track distances would be associated with a lower lameness probability of dairy cows compared to longer distances and that track ways with prepared cover (asphalt, gravel, slag, concrete, rubber) compared to no prepared cover (sand, soil and/or grass) would be associated with a lower lameness probability of dairy cows in grazing herds.     

Chironomid larvae destroy cultivated microbial mat in protected Adriatic salterns

1. The Sečovlje salterns on the Northern Adriatic coastline encompass both active and abandoned salt pans on the estuary of the Dragonja River. They are protected as a nature park by a governmental decree and by the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance.
2. In the Sečovlje salterns, salt is still gathered according to a traditional process originating from the 14^th century. The high quality of the traditionally produced salt is attributed to a cultivated microbial mat (called ‘petola’) that covers the floor of the crystallization basins and provides a barrier from the anoxic mud. Every spring, in a process called ‘fertilization’, the microbial mat is covered by a layer of mud, a practice that is supposedly crucial for the maintenance of the petola, but its exact role and underlying mechanisms are not yet fully understood.
3. In early spring 2018 the microbial mat, primarily composed of the filamentous cyanobacterium Coleofasciculus chthonoplastes, was infested by dipteran larvae, which occurred at densities of up to 20,000 m⁻². Based on the morphological features of the larvae and imagos, and on DNA analysis of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene, the newly identified pest was determined to be a chironomid. Under laboratory conditions, larvae fed upon the cyanobacterial mat and destroyed its structure.
4. In the laboratory, the application of a thin layer of saltern mud in a manner typical for the salt production process prevented the development of chironomid larvae and maintained the structure of the microbial mat. In the salterns, omitting the fertilization step resulted in a considerable weakening of the petola layer.
5. The results reveal the possible biological background for the fertilization process and thus provides important knowledge for the conservation of the traditional man-made aquatic ecosystem of the Sečovlje salterns.

     

Responses of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops spp.) to small drones

1. Recent advances in aerial drones offer new insights into the biology, ecology and behaviour of marine wildlife found on or near the ocean’s surface. While opening up new opportunities for enhanced wildlife monitoring, the impacts of drone sampling and how it might influence interpretations of animal behaviour are only just beginning to be understood.
2. The capacity of drones to record bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops spp.) behaviour was investigated, along with how the presence of a small drone at varying altitudes influences dolphin behaviour. Over 3 years and eight locations, 361 drone flights were completed between altitudes of 5 and 60 m above the ocean.
3. Analyses showed that dolphins were increasingly likely to change behaviour with decreasing drone altitude. A positive correlation was also found between time spent hovering above a group of dolphins and the probability of recording a behavioural response. Dolphin group size also influenced the frequency of an observed behavioural change, displaying a positive correlation between behaviour change and group size.
4. Overall, although drones have the potential to impact coastal dolphins when flown at low altitudes, they represent a useful tool for collecting ecological information on coastal dolphins owing to their convenience, low cost and capacity to observe behaviours underwater. To maximize benefits and minimize impacts, this study suggests that drones should be flown 30 m above coastal bottlenose dolphins.

     

Development of an accurate model to predict the phenology of Atlantic salmon smolt spring migration

1. Changes in migration timing, resulting from the alteration in river continuity or the effect of climate change, can have major consequences on the population dynamics of diadromous fish. Forecasting the phenology of fish migration is thus critically important to implement management actions aimed at protecting fish during their migration.
2. In this study, an 11‐year monitoring survey of Atlantic salmon smolts (Salmo salar) from the Ourthe River, Belgium, was analysed within a European Special Area of Conservation to improve the understanding of environment‐induced spring migration. A logistic model was fitted to forecast smolt migration and to calculate phenological indicators for management, i.e. the onset, end, and duration of migration, while accounting for the influence of photoperiod, water temperature, and hydrological conditions.
3. The results indicated that the photo‐thermal units accumulated by smolts above a 7°C temperature threshold was a relevant proxy to reflect the synergistic effect between temperature and photoperiod on smolt migration. After integrating the effect of river flow pulses, the model accurately explained the inter‐annual changes in migration timing (R² = 0.95). The model predictions provide decisive management information to identify sensitive periods during which mitigation measures (e.g. hydropower turbine shutdown, river discharge management) should be conducted to promote smolt survival.
4. The model was used to predict phenological characteristics under future scenarios of climate change. The results suggest a joint effect of hydrological alterations and water warming. Temperature increases of 1–4°C were associated with earlier initiation of migration, 6–51 days earlier, and spring flood events greatly influenced the duration of the migration period. Accordingly, the combined effects of human‐induced modifications of the hydrological regimes and increasing temperatures could result in a mismatch between the smolt and favourable survival conditions in the marine environment.

     

Effects of gaps on regeneration of woody plants: a meta-analysis

Forest gaps, openings in the canopy caused by death of one or more trees, have a profound effect on forest regeneration and drive the forest growth cycle. It is therefore necessary to understand the effects of forest gaps on regeneration for modern forest management. In order to provide a quantitative assessment of the effects of forest gaps on regen-eration of woody plants, we conducted this review of gap effects on woody plant regeneration on the basis of 527 observations from 42 indi-vidual papers, and reported the results of these data in a meta-analysis. Overall, densities of regenerated woody plants were significantly greater （359%） in forest gaps than on the closed-canopy forest floor. The regen-eration density in gaps of plantation forests was significantly greater （P＆lt;0.05） than that of natural forest because the regeneration in gaps of plan-tation forests was improved by both gap effects and experimental meas-ures. Similarly, in comparison to natural gaps, regeneration was better enhanced in artificial gaps. Regeneration density exhibited a significantly positive correlation with gap size, but a negative correlation with gap age because the gap size decreased with increasing gap age. Shade tolerance of woody plants affected regeneration density in gaps and understory. Average regeneration density of shade-tolerant species exhibited a sig-nificantly positive response to gaps but densities remained lower in total than those of intermediate and shade-intolerant species. Gap effects on regeneration decreased in response to increasing temperature and pre-cipitation because of the limiting effects of lower temperature and moisture on woody plant regeneration. In summary, forest gaps enhance woody plant regeneration, and the effects of gaps varied by forest type, gap characteristics, environmental factors and plant traits. The results of this meta-analysis are useful for better understanding the effects and roles of gaps on forest regeneration and forest management.     

人为干扰对北京野鸭湖市级自然保护区植物多样性的影响

利用物种丰富度(S)、Shannon-Wiener指数(H)、Simpson指数(D)和Pielou均匀度指数(E)、Jaccard指数(Cj)和Srenson指数(Cs)对北京野鸭湖市级自然保护区内低干扰、中干扰和强干扰3种不同干扰强度的区域进行了植物多样性的研究。在低干扰、中干扰和强干扰调查区,S依次为83、93和30,中干扰的最大,符合中度干扰假说;H、D和E的变化趋势基本一致,但S与之不是简单的一致关系;植物群落的相似性与共有物种数成正比。最后,通过湿地恢复前后植物多样性的对比,表明短期的物种恢复工作效果不明显,湿地保护与恢复工程任重而道远。     

择伐干扰对长白山阔叶林中水曲柳及其伴生树种分布格局及种间相关性的影响

[目的]研究择伐干扰对水曲柳自身的生长及其伴生树种的影响,为水曲柳的保护提供理论依据.[方法]运用空间点格局分析方法,分析择伐干扰对树种空间分布格局及空间关联性的影响.[结果]（1）轻度择伐对椴树、红松、水曲柳分布格局影响不大,对色木槭和榆树分布格局改变明显;重度择伐对水曲柳、椴树、红松分布格局影响较大.（2）轻度择伐对水曲柳与椴树、红松、榆树种间关系影响不大,但对水曲柳与色木槭种间关系影响较大.[结论]轻度择伐主林层中的水曲柳有助于改善种群结构,对于水曲柳与椴树、红松种间关系改变不明显,但是重度择伐有助于阔叶树种椴树的的生长,但不利于处于更新层中针叶树种红松的生长.     

放牧胁迫下冰草叶片内氨基酸含量的变化(英文)

通过比较分析放牧胁迫下冰草体内氨基酸含量的变化,该研究发现放牧胁迫下冰草体内总氨基酸和各组成成分氨基酸变化不大,游离氨基酸中甘氨酸和脯氨酸对放牧的反应较强烈。开花期放牧冰草种群甘氨酸含量高于无放牧冰草种群;在分蘖期、抽穗期和开花期无放牧样地冰草种群游离脯氨酸含量高于放牧样地冰草种群,开花期尤为明显,种子成熟期放牧样地冰草种群游离脯氨酸含量高于无放牧样地冰草种群。     

Fish assemblage recovery and persistence

Abstract –  Fish assemblages from a historical (1968) pre-impoundment survey of the Bear Creek system (Tennessee River drainage) were compared with fish assemblages from recent collections to examine spatial recovery in stream fish assemblages. A positive relationship was present for species richness and distance from impoundment for recent collections but was not significant for historic collections from the same sites with distance superimposed from the impoundments. A positive relationship was also present for similarity and distance using Jaccard's Index and the Morisita Similarity Index. Recent fish assemblages were dissimilar to historical collections immediately below impoundments, but were increasingly similar at 10–20 km. The results suggest that recovery patterns for stream fish assemblages are present downstream for some types of impoundments and that remnants of the stream community persist downstream from existing impoundments.     

A pseudo time‐series reveals the rapid recovery and high variability of benthic macroinvertebrate populations following catchment wildfire

1. The increasing risk of wildfire has focused attention on the timescale of the impact and recovery of river ecosystems and methods for their bioassessment.
2. An 18‐year pseudo time‐series was exploited to document patterns in benthic macroinvertebrate impact and recovery and evaluate the efficacy of alternative metrics to assess fire damage. Macroinvertebrates were surveyed by kick‐sampling and data were collected on river habitats. Details of river catchments and wildfire were collated as a GIS database.
3. Macroinvertebrate richness and abundance recovered rapidly, marked by a phase of dynamic increase, followed by relative stability (0–2 years and 3–18 years, respectively). Across sites, richness and abundance were best explained by time since fire.
4. A biotic index of general river quality was ineffective as an indicator of fire damage. While a metric of K‐selected taxa (Odonata richness) was generally indicative of fire‐affected assemblages, a contrasting metric of r‐selected taxa (percentage of chironomids, baetids, and simuliids) was not.
5. Ordination analysis revealed time as a significant determinant of community structure across sites; however, its overall statistical importance was eclipsed by habitat characteristics (water quality, shade, altitude, and latitude) that were associated with ecological variation across both recently affected sites and the putatively recovered communities.
6. These results highlight the stochastic processes – environmental and ecological – that frame the macroinvertebrate response to wildfire. This probabilistic context emphasizes the difficulties of developing indicator taxa for wildfire bioassessment and reinforces the importance of standardized survey protocols and the use of contrasting metrics in the assessment of wildfire impact on the ecological quality of rivers.