Transition zone in otoliths of orange roughy (Hoplostethus atlanticus) and its relationship to the onset of maturity

A transition zone in the otoliths of orange roughy (Hoplostethus atlanticus) is described where annulus width decreases markedly. For fish sampled at spawning time, the relationship between gonad stage and the presence or absence of a transition zone is consistent with the hypothesis that this zone marks the onset of maturity, if allowance is made for some error in gonad staging and identification of the zone. Another data set from a non-spawning area after the spawning season is not consistent with the hypothesis. However, these latter data are considered less reliable because of the small size of the fish in the sample and difficulties in determining, outside the spawning season, whether a fish has been reproductively active. This hypothesis was used to provide estimates of the median age (30 yr) and length (31 cm) at the onset of maturity for the Chatham Rise, New Zealand population. These estimates are unaffected by the biases associated with the usual ogive method of estimation. Received: 27 June 1997 / Accepted: 1 July 1997     

The Spatiotemporal Pattern of Fires in Northern Taiga Larch Forests of Central Siberia

The periodicity of fires in larch forests of Evenkia and their relationship with landscape elements have been studied. Cross-sections with “burns” in them caused by past fires have been analyzed in 72 test plots; the fire chronology encompassed the period from the 15th to the 20th century. The between-fire intervals (BFIs) have been calculated by two methods: (I) on the basis of burns alone and (II) on the basis of burns and the start of growth of the new generation of larch after the earliest fire. The BFI depends on local orographic features; it is 86 ± 11 (105 ± 12), 61 ± 8 (73 ± 8), 139 ± 17 (138 ± 18), and 68 ± 14 (70 ± 13) years for northeastern slopes, southwestern slopes, bogs, and flatlands, respectively. The mean BFIs calculated by methods I and II are 82 ± 7 and 95 ± 7 years, respectively. The permafrost horizon rises at a mean rate of 0.3 cm per year after a forest fire. It has been shown that the number of fires regularly peaks at periods of 36 and 82 years. There is also a temporal trend in fire frequency: the mean BFI was approximately 100 years in the 19th century and 65 years in the 20th century.     

Enhanced sludge solubilization by microbubble ozonation

A microbubble ozonation process for enhancing sludge solubilization was proposed and its performance was evaluated in comparison to a conventional ozone bubble contactor. Microbubbles are defined as bubbles with diameters less than several tens of micrometers. Previous studies have demonstrated that microbubbles could accelerate the formation of hydroxyl radicals and hence improve the ozonation of dyestuff wastewater. The results of this study showed that microbubble ozonation was effective in increasing ozone utilization and improving sludge solubilization. For a contact time of 80 min, an ozone utilization efficiency of more than 99% was obtained using the microbubble system, while it gradually decreased from 94% to 72% for the bubble contactor. The rate of microbial inactivation was obviously faster in the microbubble system. At an ozone dose of 0.02 g O₃ g⁻¹ TSS, about 80% of microorganisms were inactivated in the microbubble system, compared with about 50% inactivation for the bubble contactor. Compared to the bubble contactor, more than two times of COD and total nitrogen, and eight times of total phosphorus content were released from the sludge into the supernatant by using the microbubble system at the same ozone dosage. The application of microbubble technology in ozonation processes may provide an effective and low cost approach for sludge reduction.     

由粉煤灰合成单一的沸石及其对Cr(Ⅵ)的吸附研究

以粉煤厌为原料采用两步法合成了2种单一沸石矿物种的NaA和NaX型沸石,并对产物的结构和性能进行了详细表征.2种沸石产物的吸附性能比较结果表明,NaA型沸石优于NaX型沸石.在静态吸附条件下,研究了NaA型沸石吸附水溶液中Cr(Ⅵ)的相关参数(溶液pH值、吸附温度和吸附时间),并用Langmuir和Freundlich等温吸附线对吸附结果进行拟和.结果表明:Cr(Ⅵ)的吸附行为符合Langmuir方程;饱和吸附量为47.78 mg/g.NaA型沸石对Cr(Ⅵ)的吸附是物理和化学吸附两种行为共同作用的结果.     

Combined influence of food level and inoculation density on competition between <Emphasis Type="Italic">Anuraeopsis fissa</Emphasis> and <Emphasis Type="Italic">Brachionus patulus</Emphasis> or <Emphasis Type="Italic">Brachionus macracanthus</Emphasis> (Rotifera: Brachionidae)

We tested separately the effect of two taxonomically related rotifers (B. patulus and B. macracanthus) on the population dynamics of another species (A. fissa) at low (0.5 ×10 ⁶) and high food levels (1.5 × 10⁶ cells/ml of Chlorella vulgaris) using different inoculation densities (0–100%). We also quantified the impact of A. fissa on the two brachionid species. Regardless of the presence of the competing species, an increase in the availability of food led to increase in the abundances of the three rotifers. The population growth of B. patulus, B. macracanthus, or A. fissa was affected negatively when cultured together with another species. An increase in the initial density of any one of the competing species became advantageous to maintain a certain population size. At a low algal food level, B. patulus was able to suppress A. fissa more strongly than B. macracanthus. On the other hand, at a high food level, B. macracanthus suppressed the population of A. fissa more strongly than B. patulus. Peak population densities for A. fissa varied from about 150 to 1000 ind./ml, depending on food density and the presence of competitors. The rate of population increase (r) of A. fissa, B. patulus, and B. macracanthus increased with an increase in food availability but decreased with increasing initial density of the competitor. Both Brachionus spp. experienced negative growth rates in the presence of A. fissa, especially at a high initial density of the latter. Published in Russian in Ekologiya, 2007, Vol. 38, No. 5, pp. 381–390. The article was submitted by the authors in English.     

Assessment of the natural-cultural resources in Çanakkale for nature-based tourism

While the world is going into different tourism expectations, the tourism understanding in Turkey is defined as tourism in the sea-sand-sun triangle. However, it is possible to contribute to the income and local development of the indigenous people by developing nature-based tourism. Besides, with the sustainable use and preservation of the natural-cultural assets, the damage of the traditional tourism industry on the natural and cultural environment could be reduced. In this study, it is aimed to bring up the nature-based tourism concept in Çanakkale by evaluating the nature-based tourism industry in the general of Turkey and assessing the natural-cultural resources that Çanakkale comprehends. The most important areas that have a nature-based tourism potential in Çanakkale and the tourism activities that are most suitable for these areas have been determined.     

Coat color polymorphism in populations of the northern mole vole in the Ural Region

Collections made in the course of long-term field studies on ecology of the northern mole vole Ellobius talpinus Pall. in the Ural Region and neighboring areas (more than 2000 individuals from 24 points of the species range) were used to analyze geographic variation in its coat color (color morphs). On the basis of long-term observations (1985–1999) on marked animals from a polymorphic population (Kurtamyshskii raion, Kurgan oblast), the life spans of males and females and the dependence of life span on population density and structure were estimated in animals of different color morphs. Each color morph of E. talpinus was shown to have specific features of the seasonal dynamics of age structure and migrations.     

错流式生物滴滤床净化甲苯废气

采用焦化厂污泥为菌源驯化甲苯降解菌，接种错流式生物滴滤床，净化含甲苯废气。研究了生物滴滤床的挂膜启动和长期运行情况，填料和营养液对滴滤床去除能力的影响，并对长期运行的压降进行了观察分析。反应器挂膜启动需要6 d时间，稳定运行的平均去除效率为95％，单位体积最大去除负荷为251 g/(m³·h)。结果表明，采用错流式生物滴滤床可以有效去除甲苯废气；以比表面积大的生物陶粒作为填料以及定期适量更换营养液，均有助于提高生物滴滤床的去除能力；错流式生物滴滤床具有压降小、气液分布均匀的特点。