Appropriateness of needles of different conifer species for the feeding and growth of larvae from two populations of the Siberian moth

A comparison of two Siberian moth populations from the Altai Republic (feeding on Siberian fir) and the Tyva Republic (feeding on Siberian larch) has revealed no differences between them with respect to ecophysiological parameters of larval growth and feeding on needles of the same conifer species under laboratory conditions. The index of appropriateness of food plants for the larvae from both populations decreases in the series larch > fir > spruce > pine. The age-related dynamics of parameters characterizing the feeding and growth of larvae are independent of the population to which the insects belong.     

Effect of heat stress on morphophysiological characteristics and biochemical parameters of stress response in gypsy moth (Lymantria dispar L.) larvae

Experiments on daily exposure of gypsy moth larvae to heat stress have shown that it leads to an increase in the survival rate of larvae with reduced adaptation to artificial diet (AD) and a decrease in the survival rate of larvae well adapted to AD. It has been found that acetylcholine esterase and tyrosinase activities and the concentration of tyrosine derivatives are reduced significantly in stress-exposed larvae. The conclusion is drawn about a possible relationship between change in the level of larval adaptation to food and a switch in metabolism of tyrosine derivatives from hormone synthesis to melanin synthesis pathway.     

Influence of experimental conditions on manifestation of the group effect in the gypsy moth, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Lymantria dispar</Emphasis> L.

The effect of rearing conditions for gypsy moth larvae on parameters of their development (its duration and mortality) was studied in experiments with early instar larvae reared singly or in groups. The manifestation of the group effect was analyzed depending on the choice of experimental unit (the larva or the rearing container) and the amount of volume per larva. The observed effects were evaluated quantitatively.     

Remote effect of nuclear polyhedrosis virus on the gypsy moth (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Lymantria dispar</Emphasis> L.) in its natural environment

The remote effect of the nuclear polyhedrosis virus on the gypsy moth was studied for the first time under natural conditions. In the generation that developed from infected eggs, the weight of pupae was reduced, sex ratio was altered, and female fecundity and egg fertility were lower than in control individuals. The F₁ progeny of these moths were characterized by an increased rate of latent virus carriage and high mortality caused by the combined effect of polyhedrosis and insect parasites.     

Factors influencing the duration of gypsy moth (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Lymantria dispar</Emphasis> L.) population outbreaks

For the first time, an attempt has been made to reveal possible causes of the relative “brevity” of gypsy moth outbreaks in the Russian Far East. The results show that major factors limiting these outbreaks include the weakly manifested seasonal drift of gypsy moth foci, oviposition habits, as well as specific weather conditions during the period of larval development and death that facilitating the dispersal of insect pathogens in components of the forest ecosystem.     

The response of gypsy moth (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Lymantria dispar</Emphasis> L.) larvae infected with nuclear polyhedrosis virus to induced resistance in birch (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Betula pendula</Emphasis> Roth.)

The effects of birch resistance induced by its artificial defoliation on the development of gypsy moth larvae and their sensitivity to viral infection and on the state of the antioxidant and detoxification systems of the insect midgut were studied. The dynamics of larval body weight; larval mortality and its etiology; glutathione-S-transferase (GT), nonspecific esterase (NE), and catalase (CAT) activities; and the ratio between the concentrations of oxidized and reduced thiol-containing compounds (RSSR/RSH) were estimated. In larvae feeding on the leaves of a previously defoliated plant, body weight was decreased, NE was inhibited, and the RSSR/RSH ratio was increased.     

Difference among the Growth of GDP and Urbanization of the Provinces and the Cities in West China since the Reform and Opening-up

Since the reform and opening-up, the difference between the development of the west region and the other regions in China is increasing. In addition, the condition of the development of cities in west China needs amelioration. Developing conditions of the west provinces and its cities using economic barometers (e.g. gross domestic product (GDP) and per capita GDP) and urban population datum (e.g. urbanization level and city primary degree) have been analyzed in this article. Five indexes have been chosen to work on the development of the provinces, for example, the contribution degree of the increment in GDP, the contribution degree of the increment of per capita GDP, urbanization level, city primary degree, city primacy ratio. Conclusions are as follows. (1) The growth of the GDP and per capita GDP of the western provinces is in a poor way; moreover, it is not steady going. (2) The comparability among the characteristics of the urbanization level growth of the provinces is at a low level. (3) The urbanization levels of Inner Mongolia province and Sinkiang province are more-sensitive responders to the growth of per capita GDP, whereas those of Guangxi province and Tibet province are less-sensitive responders. (4) The urban population in most of the provinces are highly concentrated, which can be shown by city primary degrees and city primacy ratios. While working on these cities in west China, some earlier zone-organic cities are chosen as sample cities, and these cities are also analyzed using economic barometers and population datum. By analyzing the difference among the cities and comparing the research findings of Professor Zhou and the author, the following conclusions are made: (1) the growth of the GDP and per capita GDP of the cities are mostly not steady going; (2) the middle and big cities are more-sensitive responders to the growth of economy, whereas the small and mega cities are less-sensitive responders; (3) the sizes of southwest cities have a higher speed than those of northwest ones, and furthermore, the differences between them are still increasing.     

Radionuclide tracing of water masses and processes in the water column and sediment in the Algerian Basin

Caesium-137 and (239,240)PU were analysed in the water column along the Algerian coast. The (137)Cs activity concentration in surface water increased from the west to the east from 1.6 to 3.3 mBq L(-1), documenting a presence of Modified Atlantic Water (MAW) in the region. Higher concentrations observed in deep waters may be due to an intrusion of Levantine Intermediate Water (LIW), which has been carrying higher levels of (137)Cs from Chernobyl accident. The (239,240)Pu sub-surface concentration peaked at about 250 m water depth as a result of biogeochemical processes in the water column. The observed (239,240)Pu/(137)Cs activity ratio at the surface (0.003) was significantly lower than that in global fallout (0.04). This decrease exceeds that expected from radioactive decay of (137)Cs, and confirms that Pu due to its adsorption on sinking particles is more effectively removed from surface layers than is (137)Cs. An increase of the (239,240)Pu/(137)Cs activity ratio with depth suggests that (239,240)Pu, similarly as (137)Cs, should be also transported by advection to maintain the observed ratios in deep waters. An intrusion of LIW may enhance therefore both the (137)Cs and (239,240)Pu concentrations in deep waters. The average (238)Pu/(239+240)Pu activity ratio in seawater was 0.03+/-0.02, confirming a global fallout origin of Pu in the Algerian Basin. Caesium-137 and (239,240)Pu inventories in the water column were estimated to be from 2.7+/-0.5 kBq m(-2) to 3.8+/-0.7 kBq m(-2), and from 13.8+/-2.6 Bq m(-2) to 41+/-7B qm(-2), respectively. The (137)Cs massic activities in surface sediment were almost constant, the average activity was 9.0+/-0.8 Bq kg(-1). Sedimentation rates obtained using the (210)Pb method were from 0.1 to 0.7 cm y(-1), and resulting penetration depths of (137)Cs in the sediment cores were from 15 to over 40 cm. The (137)Cs peaks found in the sediment cores were associated with the Chernobyl accident (1986) and global fallout (1964). The (137)Cs inventories in the sediment were increasing from the west (180 Bq m(-2)) to the east (350 Bq m(-2)).     

Trade-offs in linking adaptation and mitigation in the forests of the Congo Basin

Regional Environmental Change - Recent discussions on forests and climate change have highlighted the potential for conservation of tropical forests to contribute synergistically to both mitigation...     

Siberian musk deer in the diets of tiger and bears in the Sikhote-Alin

The role of the Siberian musk deer in the diets of the Amur tiger, brown bear, and Asian black bear has been studied in the Sikhote-Alin State Biosphere Reserve in 1992 to 2016. Information has been collected from 763 tiger feeding sites, and the contents of tiger feces have been analyzed. Radiotelemetry has been used to evaluate tiger–musk deer relationships. The musk deer accounted for 0.26% of all animal species found to be eaten by the tiger. Musk deer remains in feces of the tiger, brown bear, and Asian black bear occurred with frequencies of 1.3, 0.2, and 0.3%, respectively. A case of musk deer avoiding the presence of brown bear is described.     

Altitudinal and horizontal shifts of the upper boundaries of open and closed forests in the Polar Urals in the 20th century

In the Polar Urals (the Rai-Iz massif and Mounts Tchernaya and Malaya Tchernaya), altitudinal and horizontal shifts of the upper boundary of open and closed larch forests in the 20th century have been studied. Spatiotemporal parameters of these shifts have been assessed with the aid of the ARC/INFO geographic information system (ESRI Inc., United States), using our original large-scale geobotanical maps showing the distribution of different types of forest-tundra communities in the early 1910s and 2000s. The results show that tree vegetation has been actively expanding to higher elevations over the past 90 years. On average, the upper boundaries of open and closed forests have ascended 26 and 35 m and shifted horizontally 290 and 520 m, respectively. These shifts have been conditioned by climate warming and increasing humidity observed since the 1920s.     

Information in the Animate and Inanimate Worlds

Closed systems are governed by the second law of thermodynamics and cannot spontaneously become more ordered. In open physical systems exposed to external energy flows, additional macroscopic degrees of freedom (memory cells) emerge, their number increasing with an increase in the flow and orderliness of the external energy. Biological systems are characterized by molecular degrees of freedom, the density of which is more than twenty orders of magnitude higher than that of macroscopic degrees of freedom in any open physical system exposed to the same external energy flow. This indicates that the self-organization of physical systems in external energy flows and the self-organization and evolution of living systems are fundamentally different. Thus, although life is an open system, the energy (food) flows that it consumes and all other external factors affecting life are so poorly ordered, compared to life itself, that they cannot increase the degree of order in the latter. Therefore, living systems obey an analogue of the second law of thermodynamics: within periods of time considerably shorter than the duration of evolutionary changes, living systems can only lose the accumulated information (i.e., the entropy can only increase), even if the systems consume external energy–food flows.     

我国减缓碳排放的近期形势与远期趋势分析

近3年来我国面临GDP能源强度呈上升趋势，能源消费及相应CO2排放增长对世界减缓碳排放的形势产生了更大影响的新的形势，从长远发展趋势看，我国当前由于工业特别是重化工业在国民经济结构中急剧增加引起的GDP能源强度阶跃性增长将随产业结构的稳定两平缓，并且随产业结构的优化和产业技术升级及高附加值产品比例提高而再度呈持续稳定下降的趋势。我国在现代化道路中与发达国家的历程相比，可以走更为节约能源和减少CO2排放的道路。但由于中国人口众多，和平发展的规模大、速度快，而且时间比发达国家滞后半个世纪以上，我国为实现现代化所必需的能源消费和CO2排放的增长会对全球的碳排放增长产生重大影响。这将使我国未来经济发展面临极为不利的外部环境。     

首都圈内城市职能的分工与整合研究

城市群是一国经济的重心区和增长极，其发展成熟的重要标志是形成合理的城市职能分工体系。首都圈曾经具有全国最优越的发展条件，处于中国经济的核心地带。但是其发展相对滞缓。主要原因是首都圈没有形成合理的城市职能分工体系。运用因子分析法对首都圈内各城市职能的现状进行量化分析，认为首都圈内各个城市的职能并没有发挥出自身的基础和优势。城市各个部门发展都相对平庸．城市之间竞争大于合作。因此，只有实现首都圈内各城市职能的整合，才能提高首都圈整体的竞争力。首都圈内各城市实现职能整合面临的主要问题有：①京津两市在首都圈中的龙头作用不明显；②首都圈内部行政区划分割导致的矛盾日益尖锐；③首都圈内各城市产业结构趋同严重。城市间分工不明确；④首都圈的空间结构急需调整。据此提出促进首都圈内各城市职能整合的几点对策。     

大连城市化进程与土地利用的关系

随着我国城市化进程的加快,其引起的城市数量的增加和城市规模的扩大将导致部分农业用地变为城镇用地.土地利用的变化既是城市化结果的具体体现,又是城市化引起的社会、经济、环境等诸多方面动态变化过程的反映.大连是中国北方港口、工业、贸易和旅游综合发展的开放城市,也是我国城市化水平较高、城市化进程较快的城市.本文根据大连市1994-2005年城市化及土地利用变化的特点,将通过函数关系确立的代表城市化进程的综合参数与土地利用进行相关分析.结果显示:相关关系基本在0.80水平上,即大连城市化进程与土地利用变化密切相关;利用主成分分析法进一步研究,确定了大连城市化进程中影响土地利用变化的主导因子为:社会经济发展水平、人口数量、各产业协调发展水平和环境的投入.     

Model projected heat extremes and air pollution in the eastern Mediterranean and Middle East in the twenty-first century

The eastern Mediterranean and Middle East, a region with diverse socioeconomic and cultural identities, is exposed to strong climatic gradients between its temperate north and arid south. Model projections of the twenty-first century indicate increasing hot weather extremes and decreasing rainfall. We present model results, which suggest that across the Balkan Peninsula and Turkey climate change is particularly rapid, and especially summer temperatures are expected to increase strongly. Temperature rise can be amplified by the depletion of soil moisture, which limits evaporative cooling, prompted by the waning of large-scale weather systems that generate rain. Very hot summers that occurred only rarely in the recent past are projected to become common by the middle and the end of the century. Throughout the region, the annual number of heat wave days may increase drastically. Furthermore, conditions in the region are conducive for photochemical air pollution. Our model projections suggest strongly increasing ozone formation, a confounding health risk factor particularly in urban areas. This adds to the high concentrations of aerosol particles from natural (desert dust) and anthropogenic sources. The heat extremes may have strong impacts, especially in the Middle East where environmental stresses are plentiful.     

On the Distribution of Reindeer in the Middle and Northern Urals

Russian Journal of Ecology -     

长江流域资源与环境（学报）2006年第15卷总目录

资源环境与社会经济可持续发展21世纪初华中地区发展的资源环境基础………………………………谢辉,张雷,姜巍,程晓凌(1:1)南水北调西线一期工程对金沙江上游梯级开发的发电影响…………梁武湖,马光文,王黎,刘建明(1:6)长江流域的节水形势及发展方向…………………………………………………………桑连海,陈进(1:10)BP神经网络在城市建成区面积预测中的应用———以江苏省为例……………赵姚阳,濮励杰,胡晓添(1:14)基于PCA变换和神经元网络分类方法的中国森林制图研究………………刘爱霞,刘正军,王静(1:19)公共资源与最优产权选择………………     

近58年来长江中游雾和霾的演变特征及其影响因素

以1961～2018年湖北72个国家站的气象观测资料和NCEP再分析资料为基础,采用代表站分类、时序演变、相关性分析等方法,研究雾和霾的时空分布特征及其影响因素,结果表明:(1)湖北地区的雾和霾空间分布不均,霾多发生在大城市和工业城市,雾多发生在鄂西南山区;1980年前,雾和霾的年代际变化趋势比较一致,之后呈反相,总体上呈现负相关,2005年后霾日较雾日明显增加.(2)城市站与生态站雾日的年变化趋势均是先增加后减少再增加,由增至减的拐点分别出现在1980和1987年,表明城市化进程对雾的生成有影响;霾日变化趋势基本一致,空气污染的年际变化无明显的城乡差异.(3)对于所有站点来说,"区域尺度气候变化、城市化和空气污染(气溶胶污染)"等3个因素对雾的定量影响相当;对于城市站,城市化的影响明显占主导(55％);对于生态站,气溶胶污染的贡献率最高(43％).     

武汉市一次污染过程的局地流场和边界层结构的数值模拟

利用2013年11月武汉市逐日空气质量资料、地面气象观测资料、NCEP/NCAR再分析资料和L波段雷达探空资料,通过WRF模式模拟空气污染生消过程中的局地气象条件变化,探讨特殊地形条件下边界层结构变化和局地环流在污染物生消过程中的作用和影响。结果表明：（1）武汉地区当背景环流场强的时候,由地形引起的局地流场对污染物扩散的影响就弱,反之当背景环流场弱的时候, 地形对流场影响明显:夜间为山风,白天为谷风。夜间山风与偏西北气流及偏东气流在武汉及周边地区辐合,形成气流汇聚带,在武汉地区形成一个反复污染带,即由地形引起的局地流场对污染物扩散的贡献就大;（2）武汉地区发生空气污染时,地面湿度较高,边界层呈上干下湿状态,其特征为暖而干且有偏东小风,这导致污染物不断堆积和重污染过程的形成。