鄱阳湖湖口段沉积物重金属污染特征及潜在生态风险评价

为了解鄱阳湖与长江交汇区沉积物中重金属含量以及各污染物的潜在生态危害程度,通过采样分析As、Cd、Cr、Cu、Hg、Pb、Zn等7种重金属含量及污染特征分布的基础上,采用地积累指数法和潜在生态风险指数法对鄱阳湖底泥中的重金属污染进行综合性的评价分析.结果表明,鄱阳湖湖口段沉积物已经受到了不同程度的重金属污染;沉积物中Cd、Cu和Hg受人为影响比较严重,Cr、Cu、Hg、Pb和Zn均存在一定程度的积累;区域重金属元素潜在生态风险主要受制于Hg和Cu,潜在生态风险贡献率大小排序为:Hg(38.4%)Cu(27.8%)Pb(10.9%)Cd(9.1%)As(8.0%)Cr(4.0%)Zn(1.8%).     

开封市城乡交错区农田土壤重金属污染及潜在生态风险评价

用200 m×200 m网格布点法采集开封市城乡交错区表层土壤样品259个.采用ICP-MS测定了土壤重金属(Cd、Pb、Cu、Ni、Zn和Cr)含量,原子荧光法测定了土壤中Hg和As含量.分别采用污染负荷指数(PLI)和潜在生态风险指数(RI)评价土壤重金属污染程度和潜在生态风险水平,应用IDW空间插值法分析土壤重金属污染和潜在生态风险空间分布,并对重金属的来源进行讨论.结果表明:(1)开封市城乡交错区表层土壤8种重金属元素Cd、Hg、Pb、As、Cu、Ni、Zn和Cr的平均含量分别为1.43、0.37、40.77、7.13、33.92、25.28、180.23、49.00 mg·kg~(-1).(2)各样点8种元素平均PLI为1.93,总体上属于轻度污染.其中Cd和Hg为重度污染,Zn、Pb和Cu为轻度污染,Ni、Cr和As处于无污染状态.各样点8种元素平均RI为765.50,属于很强生态风险.其中Cd和Hg处于极强和很强风险,其余元素为轻微风险.(3)PLI的分布与RI的分布有些相似,高值区位于炼锌厂、化肥厂和化肥河(HF河)临近区域,低值区位于研究区东北部包括开封火电厂周边,总体呈由东北向西南递增的趋势.(4)Cd和Hg既是主要的污染因子又是主要的生态风险因子,其来源主要与炼锌厂和化肥厂的废水排放与污水灌溉、烟尘沉降、交通污染以及农业等人类活动有关.     

新疆东天山某铜矿区土壤重金属污染与生态风险评价

选取戈壁荒漠景观生态环境脆弱区典型铜矿区为研究区,采集308个表层土壤样品,对Cu、Ni、Cd、Cr、Pb、Zn、Hg、As等8种重金属元素进行测试分析,综合运用相关性分析、主成分分析和系统聚类等多元统计和地统计学方法分析了矿区土壤重金属的空间分布特征,运用地累积指数法和潜在生态风险评价法评价了重金属累积程度和潜在生态风险危害程度,并对重金属的可能来源进行了解析.结果表明,研究区表层土壤重金属中Cu、Ni累积程度相对较高,超背景值比例分别为17.53%、14.94%.重金属地质累积程度由强至弱依次为:CuZnCrNiHgPbAsCd;0.65%的土壤样品中Pb属重度污染水平,2.92%土壤样品中Cu属重度污染水平.98.38%的土壤样品重金属污染潜在生态风险危害较轻,重金属迁移影响范围有限.重金属Cu、Ni为主要特征污染物,来源于成土母岩风化和矿业活动共同作用;As、Hg、Cd元素污染程度较低,受人为因素影响较小;Pb元素污染呈点状分布,来源主要为矿区交通运输.     

密云水库上游金矿区土壤重金属空间分布、来源及污染评价

对北京市密云水库上游金矿区周边土壤重金属(Hg、Pb、Cu、Cd、Ni、Zn和Co)的空间分布、来源及污染现状进行研究与评价.结果表明,土壤中除了Zn和Co外,重金属(Hg、Pb、Cu、Cd、Ni)的平均含量均超过北京市土壤背景值,其中Hg和Cd超标倍数较大.空间分布图显示,重金属含量整个分布趋势为从东北向西南递减,主要富集在金矿区尾矿库.多元统计分析(相关性分析、主成分)表明,Hg和Pb为人为源,可能来源于选矿方法及矿石运输过程;Cu、Cd和Zn来自混合源,来源于矿山开采和岩石矿物的自然风化;Co和Ni为自然源,主要来源于地球化学活动或土壤母质.单因子指数和内梅罗综合指数法及潜在生态危害指数法评价结果表明,Hg和Cd的污染比较严重,特别是Hg;Pb的污染程度也应当引起充分关注,Cu、Ni、Zn处于相对安全水平.     

福建省菜园土壤重金属的含量及其污染评价

采集了福建省26个县市158份菜园表层土壤样品,测定了土壤样品中重金属含量,采用单项及综合污染指数法对土壤重金属污染进行评价分析,并通过元素相关性分析和聚类分析,研究了菜园土壤重金属元素的赋存特征与区域分布.结果表明,福建省菜园土壤存在着不同程度的重金属污染,主要污染元素为Pb,Hg和Cd;元素相关性分析与聚类分析的结果表明:Cu,Zn,Ni和As具有伴随污染的特点,其污染源主要来自土壤母质和大量施用的农药和化肥;Cd,Pb和Hg在土壤中各聚成一类,说明它们在菜园土壤具有较独特的污染源,特别是Cd和Hg,其污染特征明显.而Pb和Cd虽有各自的污染源,但其污染具有一定的相关性.     

包头市南海湿地土壤重金属污染评价及来源解析

包头市南海湿地位于中国西北地区的高纬度寒旱区,具有独特的河流湿地生态系统。以南海湿地土壤为研究对象,对湿地28个点位表层土壤(0~20 cm)中As、Cd、Cr、Cu、Ni、Mn、Pb、Zn 8种重金属进行检测分析,采用环境质量指数与Hakanson环境生态潜在风险指数相结合的方法,探讨土壤中8种重金属的累积污染现状及潜在生态风险,利用相关性分析、主成分分析和聚类分析区分了南海湿地重金属的来源,以期为南海湿地土壤环境保护提供理论依据。结果表明,As、Cd、Cr、Cu、Ni、Mn、Pb和Zn重金属平均值分别为75.18、1.27、56.98、111.18、87.67、622.71、54.10和209.33 mg·kg~(-1)。以包头市南海公园树木林土壤重金属含量为评价基准,南海湿地土壤重金属普遍超标,研究区域所有样方中As、Cd、Cu、Mn和Pb均超标,Cr有64.29%的样点超标,Ni有96.43%的样点超标,Zn有89.29%的样点超标。单因子污染指数表明,Cd处于中度污染;As、Cu、Pb和Zn处于轻度污染;Cr、Ni和Mn处于轻微污染。农田区和景观大道两侧处于重污染水平,鱼塘区和湿地植物区处于中污染水平。潜在生态风险指数表明,Cd处于强风险等级;As、Cr、Cu、Ni、Mn、Pb、Zn处于低风险等级。;研究区整体上都属于中等风险等级。来源解析表明:As、Cd、Cu、Ni、Mn的来源受到周边工业活动和农业活动的影响;Pb和Zn的来源与道路交通有关,Pb还受到工业活动的影响;Cr来源与土壤母质和农业活动有关。     

天津近郊农田土壤重金属风险评价及空间主成分分析

以天津市近郊西青区主要农产品生产基地表层土壤(0—20 cm)作为研究对象,分析了V、Cr、Ni、Cu、Zn、As、Se、Cd、Pb共9种重金属含量及空间分布特征.分别采用地累积指数法及Hakanson潜在生态危害指数法,对农田土壤重金属污染程度及生态风险进行评价;同时利用多元统计分析方法,揭示了研究区农田土壤重金属各元素之间的相关性及污染来源.结果表明,研究区农田土壤各重金属含量偏低,呈轻度污染;但在靠近居住区、高速公路、铁路或小型畜牧厂(已关停)的部分点位中Zn或Cr存在明显富集,污染等级为中度或严重;各元素的生态危害指数大小依次为E_R(As)E_R(Cu)E_R(Pb)E_R(Zn)E_R(Ni)E_R(Cr)E_R(V),生态危害程度均为轻微;多元统计分析结果显示,灌溉水对As和Pb的影响较显著,农作物对As的影响较显著;Cr和Ni来源相似,主要受成土母质的影响;Pb、Zn、Cu等3种元素来源相似,主要来自于附近公路交通所排放的污染物;V和As的来源主要与历史工业污染的积累相关.     

贵阳中心区土壤重金属污染及其环境影响

利用1∶25万贵州省多目标区域地球化学调查(贵阳中心区)成果,采用单因子和尼梅罗综合指数法对贵阳中心区表层土壤(0—20 cm)重金属污染及其环境影响进行评价和研究.结果表明,重金属污染程度依次为CdAsHgZnNiCuCrPb.As、Cd、Hg、Zn等元素出现污染,其中Cd最重,污染区占总面积的6.15%,且72%的土壤为警戒区,其次是As,污染区占5.31%,Hg、Zn主要为轻微点状污染,Cr、Cu、Ni、Pb等元素土壤环境质量以清洁和安全区为主,未对土壤造成污染.尼梅罗综合污染指数为0.58—26.72,平均值2.27,表明研究区土壤整体污染已达警戒级别,且区域内污染程度变化范围较大;贵阳中心区表层土壤重金属污染比较严重,清洁区仅占总面积的3.5%,安全区占48.6%,警戒区占32.9%,污染区占15%,近50%土壤不适宜种植农作物.生态环境影响调查结果表明,土壤重金属元素异常区农作物已遭到一定程度的重金属污染,地下水也存在Pb2+超标现象.     

克拉玛依市地表灰尘重金属污染及潜在生态风险评估

城市地表灰尘作为城市环境污染物载体,影响城市生态环境和人体健康.为探究绿洲城市地表灰尘重金属污染风险,从新疆克拉玛依市克拉玛依区采集52个地表灰尘样品,分析其中Hg、Cd、Cu、Pb、Cr和As等6种重金属元素含量,采用内梅罗综合污染指数(NPI)、潜在生态风险指数(RI)和生态风险预警指数(IER),对地表灰尘重金属污染及生态风险进行评价.结果表明,研究区地表灰尘中As、Cd、Cu、Pb和Hg等元素平均含量分别为新疆土壤背景值的1.61倍、1.75倍、1.50倍、1.23倍和2.94倍,富集较明显;Cr元素平均值没有超出新疆土壤背景值.地表灰尘中Hg处于中度污染水平,Cd、Pb、As和Cu等元素处于轻度污染水平,Cr处于轻微污染水平,NPI平均值为3.07,处于重度污染水平.潜在生态风险评价结果表明,地表灰尘中Hg处于较强生态风险水平,As、Pb、Cr和Cu处于轻微风险水平,Cd处于中等生态风险水平,RI平均值为201.17,处于中等生态风险.生态风险预警结果表明,Hg处于轻警态势,Cr处于无警态势,Cd、Pb、Cu和As等4种元素处于预警态势,IER平均值为4.02,属于中警态势.研究区地表灰尘重金属污染水平与生态风险较高的区域主要分布于研究区西北部.     

浙江省典型农田土壤重金属污染及生态风险评价

浙江是中国经济社会发展最快的省份之一,人类活动对土壤环境扰动强烈。为系统了解浙江省典型农田土壤重金属的污染水平、空间分布特征及生态风险,采集并分析了67个代表性农田土壤表层样品中的8种重金属元素(As、Cd、Cr、Cu、Mn、Ni、Pb和Zn),采用主成分分析法进行来源解析,采用污染负荷指数(PLI)、潜在生态风险指数(RI)和生态风险预警指数(IER)对农田土壤重金属污染与环境风险进行评价。结果表明,浙江省典型农田土壤环境重金属为轻度污染状态,研究区域农田土壤中的Cr、Ni和As处于轻微污染水平;Pb、Hg、Cu和Zn处于轻度污染水平;Cd处于重度污染水平,应作为优先控制元素。研究区域农田土壤Cr、Cu、Zn和Ni的来源主要受自然因素控制,Cd和Hg主要来源于工农业生产等人为活动,Pb主要来源于交通源。浙江省的金华市义乌、绍兴市诸暨、绍兴市嵊州、丽水市缙云县岩沿村应作为浙江省典型农田土壤的优先控制区域。浙江省典型农田土壤重金属环境存在轻微生态风险。     

Achieving Open Access to Conservation Science

Conservation science is a crisis discipline in which the results of scientific enquiry must be made available quickly to those implementing management. We assessed the extent to which scientific research published since the year 2000 in 20 conservation science journals is publicly available. Of the 19,207 papers published, 1,667 (8.68%) are freely downloadable from an official repository. Moreover, only 938 papers (4.88%) meet the standard definition of open access in which material can be freely reused providing attribution to the authors is given. This compares poorly with a comparable set of 20 evolutionary biology journals, where 31.93% of papers are freely downloadable and 7.49% are open access. Seventeen of the 20 conservation journals offer an open access option, but fewer than 5% of the papers are available through open access. The cost of accessing the full body of conservation science runs into tens of thousands of dollars per year for institutional subscribers, and many conservation practitioners cannot access pay‐per‐view science through their workplace. However, important initiatives such as Research4Life are making science available to organizations in developing countries. We urge authors of conservation science to pay for open access on a per‐article basis or to choose publication in open access journals, taking care to ensure the license allows reuse for any purpose providing attribution is given. Currently, it would cost $51 million to make all conservation science published since 2000 freely available by paying the open access fees currently levied to authors. Publishers of conservation journals might consider more cost effective models for open access and conservation‐oriented organizations running journals could consider a broader range of options for open access to nonmembers such as sponsorship of open access via membership fees. Obtención de Acceso Abierto a la Ciencia de la Conservación     

Representation of the world's biophysical conditions by the global protected area network

Protected areas (PAs) are often implemented without consideration of already existing PAs, which is likely to cause an overrepresentation of certain biophysical conditions. We assessed the representativeness of the current PA network with regard to the world's biophysical conditions to highlight which conditions are underprotected and where these conditions are located. We overlaid terrestrial and marine PAs with information on biophysical conditions (e.g., temperature, precipitation, and elevation) and then quantified the percentage of area covered by the PA network. For 1 variable at a time in the terrestrial realm, high temperature, low precipitation, and medium and very high elevation were underrepresented. For the marine realm, low and medium sea surface temperature (SST), medium and high sea surface salinity (SSS), and the deep sea were underrepresented. Overall, protection was evenly distributed for elevation across the terrestrial realm and SST across the marine realm. For 2 variables at a time, cold and very dry terrestrial environments had mostly low protection, which was also the case for low SST and low and medium SSS across most depths for marine environments. Low protection occurred mostly in the Sahara and the Arabian Peninsula for the terrestrial realm and along the Tropic of Capricorn and toward the poles for the marine realm. Although biodiversity measures are of prime importance for the design of PA networks, highlighting biophysical gaps in current PAs adds a frequently overlooked perspective. These gaps may weaken the potential of PAs to conserve biodiversity. Thus, our results may provide useful insights for researchers, practitioners, and policy makers to establish a more comprehensive global PA network.     

Quantitative composition of the defensive secretion ofBledius species (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Oxytelinae) is adapted to naturally occurring predators

Summary The adaptation of defensive secretions to their target organisms was examined for the abdominal gland secretions ofBledius furcatus, B. spectabilis andB. arenarius. Therefore the target organisms of the secretion of theseBledius species (i.e. their predators) had to be identified. At the collection sites examined these were the earwigLabidura riparia, the antCataglyphis bicolor, the flyLispe candicans, different carabids of the generaPogonus, Dichirotrichus, Dyschirius, Bembidion andCalathus and the wading birdsHaematopus ostralegus andCalidris alba. The secretion of the abdominal glands contains the toxin ptoluquinone dissolved in either-dodecalactone and 1-undecene (B. furcatus andB. spectabilis) or in octanoic acid and octyloctanoate (B. arenarius). The ratio of these solvents is species-specific. Application experiments using some of the natural insect predators (L. riparia, C. bicolor, Pogonus, Di. gustavii, Dyschirius) revealed that these solvent ratios provided a more effective deterrent than other possible ratios. Thus by combining the solvents in certain ratios, the capability of cuticular penetration and therefore the effectiveness of the defensive secretions are adapted to their natural targets.     

Democracy versus development: New urban debates

The politics of development includes subtexts of choice, as underpinned by community consensus (or lack of it), against the larger backdrop of a liberal democracy, with its intricate power structures that influence the choice of concepts and often lead to complicity rather than consent. A dilemma exists between the understanding of field-level practitioners and that of academics, whose understandings of progress differ. Progress can (and often does) imply long-term change across generations whereas development is often more a matter of crisis management and delivering tangible results to end-users. This makes it a bone of contention across political systems, irrespective of local or global dynamics. Development can emerge as a tool to be wielded for power and further political mileage at the expense of progress. Progress cannot be studied as a counterpoint to development as the sense of history is often missing in development interventions. Development tends to be piecemeal as its very logic often stems from the rationale of power. This is not to suggest, however, that development is only about politics; it is definitely more than the politics of everyday life and involves all of civil society that requires its critical and immediate attention. In this sense, it has become a priority for politicians with an underlying agenda designed to out-manouevre dissent and all statements of protest.     

A framework to measure the wildness of managed large vertebrate populations

As landscapes continue to fall under human influence through habitat loss and fragmentation, fencing is increasingly being used to mitigate anthropogenic threats and enhance the commercial value of wildlife. Subsequent intensification of management potentially erodes wildness by disembodying populations from landscape-level processes, thereby disconnecting species from natural selection. Tools are needed to measure the degree to which populations of large vertebrate species in formally protected and privately owned wildlife areas are self-sustaining and free to adapt. We devised a framework to measure such wildness based on 6 attributes relating to the evolutionary and ecological dynamics of vertebrates (space, disease and parasite resistance, exposure to predation, exposure to limitations and fluctuations of food and water supply, and reproduction). For each attribute, we set empirical, species-specific thresholds between 5 wildness states based on quantifiable management interventions. We analysed data from 205 private wildlife properties with management objectives spanning ecotourism to consumptive utilization to test the framework on 6 herbivore species representing a range of conservation statuses and commercial values. Wildness scores among species differed significantly, and the proportion of populations identified as wild ranged from 12% to 84%, which indicates the tool detected site-scale differences both among populations of different species and populations of the same species under different management regimes. By quantifying wildness, this framework provides practitioners with standardized measurement units that link biodiversity with the sustainable use of wildlife. Applications include informing species management plans at local scales; standardizing the inclusion of managed populations in red-list assessments; and providing a platform for certification and regulation of wildlife-based economies. Applying this framework may help embed wildness as a normative value in policy and mitigate the shifting baseline of what it means to truly conserve a species.     

Some polyphagous Homoptera gain protection from their natural enemies by feeding on the toxic plantsSpartium junceum andErythrina corallodendrum (Leguminosae)

Summary Interactions were studied among alkaloid-containing legumes (Erythrina corallodendrum andSpartium junceum) and non-toxic plants (Citrus sinensis, Cucurbita moschata andEuphorbia tirucalli), several polyphagous homopterans,Aphis craccivora (Aphididae),Icerya purchasi, I. aegyptiaca (Margarodidae),Lepidosaphes ulmi (Diaspididae) andPlanococcus citri (Pseudococcidae), and some major natural enemies of these homopterans. Significant reductions in survival due to negative effects of alkaloid containing as compared with non-alkaloidal plants were recorded for the predatorsRodolia cardinalis andChilocorus bipustulatus, but not forCryptolaemus montrouzieri (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae),Chrysoperla carnea (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae) andSympherobius sanctus (Neuroptera: Sympherobiidae). The development time of the larvae or pupae ofR. cardinalis, C. carnea andS. sanctus was longer on the toxic plants than on the non-toxic ones. The percentage of parasitism ofA. craccivora collected from the non-alkaloidal plantsVicia palaestina andMelilotus albus was much higher than that onS. junceum. The parasitoid complexes ofA. craccivora differed between both plant groups. The nutritive value of honeydew ofI. purchasi andA. craccivora, as expressed by the life span ofEncyrtus infelix (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae) adults, was also investigated. Life spans were significantly longer when the wasps fed on honeydew produced on non-alkaloidal plants (C. sinensis andPittosporum tobira) than on alkaloid containing plants whenI. purchasi — but notA. craccivora — was the producer. It is suggested that the chemical defense ofE. corallodendrum andS. junceum is exploited by polyphagous phytophages to reduce predation. In nature, population growth and density of four of the investigated homopterans are conspicuously high when they developed on the alkaloid containing plant species, and very low on non-alkaloid plants. The efficiency of their natural enemies may be reduced by sequestration of alkaloids (or other toxic plant compounds) or their transfer into excreted honeydew. Therefore it is assumed that a generalist phytophagous homopteran may be protected from its natural enemies, although at different rates of efficiency, if it can safely sequester the host allelochemical when it develops on toxic species within its host range.     

Sexual Predators,Energy Development,and Conservation in Greater Yellowstone

Abstract: In the United States, as elsewhere, a growing debate pits national energy policy and homeland security against biological conservation. In rural communities the extraction of fossil fuels is often encouraged because of the employment opportunities it offers, although the concomitant itinerant workforce is often associated with increased wildlife poaching. We explored possible positive and negative factors associated with energy extraction in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE), an area known for its national parks, intact biological diversity, and some of the New World's longest terrestrial migrations. Specifically, we asked whether counties with different economies—recreation (ski), agrarian (ranching or farming), and energy extractive (petroleum)—differed in healthcare (gauged by the abundance of hospital beds) and in the frequency of sexual predators. The absolute and relative frequency of registered sex offenders grew approximately two to three times faster in areas reliant on energy extraction. Healthcare among counties did not differ. The strong conflation of community dishevel, as reflected by in‐migrant sexual predators, and ecological decay in Greater Yellowstone is consistent with patterns seen in similar systems from Ecuador to northern Canada, where social and environmental disarray exist around energy boomtowns. In our case, that groups (albeit with different aims) mobilized campaigns to help maintain the quality of rural livelihoods by protecting open space is a positive sign that conservation can matter, especially in the face of rampant and poorly executed energy extraction projects. Our findings further suggest that the public and industry need stronger regulatory action to instill greater vigilance when and where social factors and land conversion impact biological systems.     

Comparison of the insecticidal effects of water extracted and intact aromatic plants onAcanthoscelides obtectus,a bruchid beetle pest of kidney beans

Summary Acanthoscelides obtectus (Say) is one of the most damaging pests of kidney beans,Phaseolus vulgaris L. worldwide. However, aromatic plants from the families Lamiaceae, Lauraceae, Myrtaceae and Poaceae can protect kidney beans by direct or delayed insecticidal effect, through increased adult mortality and inhibition of beetle reproduction (both oviposition and adult emergence). The efficiency of hydrodistillated and intact plants fromThymus vulgaris andT. serpyllum, Mentha piperata, Rosmarinus officinalis, Satureia hortensis, Eucalyptus globulus, Laurus nobilis, Origanum vulgare, andCymbopogon nardus was compared. For both extracts,Origanum vulgare had the best effect. The insecticidal effect was induced by more than the essential oils because no significant difference was noticed between distilled and intact plants extract. Inhibition of reproduction was particularly important. These results suggest that lipidic as well as non lipidic, allelochemicals, such as phenolics, or non-protein amino-acids, or flavonoids may be involved in the toxicity of aromatic plants to this beetle.     

Rapid,recurring, structured survey versus bioblitz for generating biodiversity data and analysis with a multispecies abundance model

A bioblitz inexpensively and quickly generates biodiversity data, but bioblitzes are often conducted with haphazard, unreplicated sampling. Results tend to be taxonomically, geographically, or temporally biased, lack metadata, and consist of lists of observed taxa that do not enable further analyses or correction for imperfect detection. A rapid, recurring, structured survey (RRSS) uses a structured sampling design and temporal and spatial replication to survey randomly selected sites on a conservation property. We participated in a loosely structured bioblitz and a subsequent RRSS at Big Canoe Creek Nature Preserve in Springville (St. Clair County), Alabama (USA) to compare observed richness derived from the 2 survey approaches. The RRSS data structure enabled us to fit models that accounted for imperfect detection to estimate abundances, occupancy probabilities, and habitat associations. The loosely structured bioblitz data could not be used in such models. We present a new integrated multispecies abundance model that we applied to avian RRSS data. Our model extension enables estimation for the community, employs data augmentation to estimate the number of undetected species, and incorporates covariates. The RRSS generated a more comprehensive and less biased list of observed taxonomic richness than the loosely structured bioblitz (e.g., 73 vs. 45 bird species and 104 vs. 63 insect families from the RRSS vs. loosely structured bioblitz, respectively). Models fit to the RRSS data identified seasonal patterns in avian community composition and allowed for estimation of habitat–occupancy relationships for insect taxa. The RRSS protocol has potential for broad transferability as a standardized, quick, and inexpensive way to inventory biodiversity and estimate ecological parameters while providing an outreach opportunity.     

Compliance with and ecosystem function of biodiversity offsets in North American and European freshwaters

Land-use change via human development is a major driver of biodiversity loss. To reduce these impacts, billions of dollars are spent on biodiversity offsets. However, studies evaluating offset project effectiveness that examine components such as the overall compliance and function of projects remain rare. We reviewed 577 offsetting projects in freshwater ecosystems that included the metrics project size, type of aquatic system (e.g., wetland and creek), offsetting measure (e.g., enhancement, restoration, and creation), and an assessment of the projects’ compliance and functional success. Project information was obtained from scientific and government databases and gray literature. Despite considerable investment in offsetting projects, crucial problems persisted. Although compliance and function were related to each other, a high level of compliance did not guarantee a high degree of function. However, large projects relative to area had better function than small projects. Function improved when projects targeted productivity or specific ecosystem features and when multiple complementary management targets were in place. Restorative measures were more likely to achieve targets than creating entirely new ecosystems. Altogether the relationships we found highlight specific ecological processes that may help improve offsetting outcomes.