An Ecological Integrity Index for Littoral Wetlands in Agricultural Catchments of Semiarid Mediterranean Regions

The main goal of the present study was to develop an ecological integrity index for littoral wetland management and conservation in semiarid Mediterranean areas that have been highly impacted by agriculture, including the selection of pressure and state indicators at landscape and wetlands scales that reflect the status, condition, and trends of wetlands ecosystems. We used a causality framework based on the relationship between pressure of anthropogenic activities and the ecological state of wetlands and their catchments, integrating environmental, biologic, economic, and social issues. From the application of 51 indicators in 7 littoral wetlands in the southeastern Iberian Peninsula, we selected 12 indicators (5 at catchment scale and 7 at wetland scale) to constitute the ecological integrity index proposed. The potential nitrogen export per area at catchment scale and the potential relative nitrogen export from the area surrounding the wetlands were the best pressure single predictors of state indicators with a causal relationship with environmental meaning. Wetlands in catchments with more agriculture had less ecological integrity than those in less impacted areas. A wide riparian zone in some wetlands acts as a buffer area, diminishing the effects of intensive agriculture. The index of ecological integrity developed here has a number of essential characteristics that make it a useful tool for ecosystem managers and decision-makers. The index can be used to (1) assess and control ecological integrity, (2) diagnose probable causes of ecological impairment, (3) establish criteria for protecting and restoring wetland ecosystems, and (4) integrate catchment management. Published online     

水电站工程项目区生态环境现状评价方法初探——以开都河柳树沟水电站工程为例

在野外实地调查和遥感影像解译的基础上,采用传统生态学样方调查法和景观生态学生态完整性评价法相结合的方法,对开都河柳树沟水电站工程项目区生态环境现状进行评价.评价结果显示,这种评价方法能更全面有效的对项目区的生态环境现状进行评价.     

Human impact on beach and foredune vegetation of North Padre Island,Texas

Vehicular and pedestrian traffic decreased top and root production, percent cover, and diversity of vegetation, and modified species composition on beach and foredune areas of Padre Island National Seashore and Nueces County Park. Degradation of vegetal cover was directly related to the type and intensity of traffic; species in heavily trafficked areas represented earlier successional stages than those in comparable undisturbed areas.     

Urban waterfowl population: Ecological evaluation of management and planning

An urban population of ducks in Puyallup, Washington, USA was studied for 14 consecutive months beginning in November 1978. Observations were made weekly from four study sites where ducks would congregate at early morning hours. Factors contributing to the presence of waterfowl in Puyallyup included abundant food supplies and a creek corridor that connected fragmented habitats in the urban area to the larger rural populations of waterfowl. Mallards (Anas platyrhynchos) were the most abundant of the 13 species observed and were the only ducks remaining during the nesting season. Habitat size and complexity were important factors influencing the species diversity of a particular site. Nesting success of mallards was poor due to limited distribution of nesting habitat, intraspecific aggression, and human disturbance. Both site-specific and more broad-based strategies are suggested for managing and planning for duck populations in urban areas.     

遥感在生态与环境监测中的主要应用领域

遥感是一种以物理手段、数学方法和地学分析为基础的综合应用技术 ,具有宏观、综合、动态和快速的特点。在解决宏观尺度的环境问题时 ,卫星遥感可重复获取多种空间、不同时相和不同波谱分辨率的地球信息 ,是适宜于调查和研究这些主题的唯一的、最有效的工具。本文通过对遥感在环境与生态监测的主要应用领域进行概要阐述 ,旨在抛砖引玉 ,推动遥感在环境与生态监测中的广泛应用。     

杉木地理种源遗传变异的RAPD分析

应用随机扩增多态性DNA技术对我国12个有代表性的杉木地理种源遗传多样性进行分析，从80个随要引物中筛选出20个进行扩增，共扩增出149个DNA片段，其中具多态性的片段有115个，占77．18％％，表明极木地理种源间具有丰富的DNA序列多态性、平均每个引物提供7．45个RAPD标记的信息量，扩增出的DNA片段大小一般为150到2000bp范围之间，12个杉木地理种源间遗传距离变幅为0．193－0．4467，聚类结果表明，在0．2664处，广东信宜，广西梧州，湖南会同，湖南江华，贵州锦屏，江西全南聚为一类，福建沙县，浙江开化，湖北咸宁，安徽休宁聚为一类，四川雅安，陕西南郑各为一类，图2表2参15     

A New Approach to Plant Diversity Assessment Combining HPLC Data, Simplex Mixture Design and Discriminant Analysis

The quantitative assessment of plant diversity and its monitoring with time represent a key environmental issue for management and conservation of natural resources. Assessment of plant diversity could be based on chemical analyses of secondary metabolites (e.g. flavonoids, terpenoids), because of the substantial quantitative and qualitative between-individual variability in such compounds. At a geographical scale, the plant populations become widely dispersed, and their monitoring from numerous routine individual analyses could become restricting. To overcome such constraint, this study develops a multivariate calibration model giving the relative frequency of a particular taxon from a simple high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis of a plant mixture. The model was built from a complete set of mixtures combining different taxons, according to an experimental design (Scheffé’s matrix). For each mixture, a reference HPLC pattern was simulated by averaging the individual HPLC profiles of the constitutive taxons. The calibration models, based on Bayesian discriminant analysis (BDA), gave statistical relationships between the contributions of each taxon in mixtures and reference HPLC patterns of these mixtures. Finally, these models were validated on new mixtures by using outside plants. This new biodiversity survey approach is illustrated on four chemical taxons (four chemotypes) of Astragalus caprinus (Fabaceae). The more differentiated the taxon, the better predicted its contributions (in mixtures) were by BDA calibration model. This new approach could be very useful for a global routine survey of plant diversity.     

Human Impacts on Drainages of the Mesa Central, Mexico, and Its Genetic Effects on an Endangered Fish, Zoogoneticus quitzeoensis

Abstract:  The Mesa Central of Mexico is of special conservation interest due to its high richness of freshwater fish species, of which the goodeines are one of the most representative groups. Through an integrated approach, we determined conservation priorities for goodeine populations. We based our recommendations on the genetic diversity (variation in five microsatellite DNA loci) in 10 populations of Zoogoneticus quitzeoensis and on an analysis of ecological (e.g., presence of exotic species), social (e.g., political situation), and environmental (e.g., pollution) information for 52 historical occurrence points for species in the genus Zoogoneticus . Patterns of genetic erosion and genetic diversity indices were closely associated with human impact. Recent bottleneck events were most evident in the populations from remnants of the lakes drained at the beginning of the twentieth century. We identified seven operational conservation units (OCUs), all of which should be conserved because they contain unique portions of the total variation of the species. Special attention needs to be given to increase genetic variability, recover population sizes, and reestablish contact among populations within OCUs. It is imperative to create an integrative and effective approach for the recovery and conservation of the freshwater fish diversity of Central Mexico that is based on social and natural sciences.     

赣江一级支流浮游植物群落动态特征分析——以袁河为例

2009年6、11月和2010年4月共3个水情期（即丰、枯和平水期）对赣江下游一级支流袁河的浮游植物群落结构特征开展河流生态学调查分析。调查共发现浮游植物109种，隶属于6门61属。其中绿藻门物种种类数最多，共27属54种，其次为硅藻门，共15属30种，第三是蓝藻门11属12种。此外，裸藻门3属6种，甲藻门3属4种，隐藻门2属3种。调查样点的浮游植物丰度均处于1.12×105～129.20×105 ind./L，丰水期和枯水期浮游植物以蓝藻为优势类群，平水期则硅藻占绝对优势。丰水期浮游植物优势属为脆杆藻属和席藻属，枯水期为栅藻属，针杆属，蓝隐藻属和小环藻属，到了平水期小环藻属占绝对优势。3个水情期中优势种钝脆杆藻和小席藻（丰水期）；尖尾蓝隐藻和双头针杆藻（枯水期）；梅尼小环藻（平水期）等均为污水指示种。通过生物多样性指数分析发现藻类Shannon-Wiener指数、Simpson指数、Pielou均匀度指数和Margalef丰富度指数的变化范围分别为：1.14～2.92、0.45～0.93、0.36～0.92和0.42～2.78。通过指示生物群落法和生物多样性指数法对袁河进行水质评价发现两种评价结果基本一致，袁河处于α-β-中污染状态，不同采样点间污染程度差异性较大。     

The relationship between diversity profiles,evenness and species richness based on partial ordering

Problems with the notion of evenness, such as ambiguity, proliferation of indices, choice of indices, etc. can be overcome by a more fundamental, mathematical approach. We show that the Lorenz curve is an adequate representation of evenness. The corresponding Lorenz order induces a partial order in the set of equivalent abundance vectors. Also diversity can adequately be studied through a partial order and represented by a curve derived from the classical Lorenz curve. This curve is known as the intrinsic diversity profile (or k-dominance curve) and was introduced by Patil and Taillie (1979) and Lambshead et al. (1981).