Use of Abundance of One Species as a Surrogate for Abundance of Others

Abstract: Indicator species concepts have a long history in conservation biology. Arguments in favor of these approaches generally stress expediency and assume efficacy. We tested the premise that the abundance patterns of one species can be used to infer those of other species. Our data consisted of 72,495 bird observations on 55 species across 1046 plots distributed across 30 sub basins. We analyzed abundance patterns at two spatial scales (plot and sub basin) and for empirical and a priori grouping. There were few significant indicator relationships at either scale or under either grouping rule, and those few we found did not explain a substantial portion of the abundance of other species. Coupled with the lack of proven efficacy for species surrogacy in the literature, our results indicate the utility of indicators and similar types of surrogate approaches must be demonstrated rather than assumed.     

基于中低分辨率遥感影像的分类方法对比研究——以鄱阳湖水鸟栖息地遥感分类为例

选取中国鄱阳湖南矶山湿地为研究范围,通过分析候鸟在越冬期的栖息特征,构建适宜于提取候鸟栖息地的湿地分类系统。以Landsat8卫星OLI遥感影像为数据源,采用面向对象分类方法,通过多尺度分割、特征提取和决策树建立等关键步骤,实现湿地信息的快速提取;通过与传统像元法的分类结果对比,系统分析了面向对象方法在基于中低分辨率遥感影像的湿地信息提取中的有效性。研究表明:在面向对象湿地信息提取中,构建不同等级的分割尺度,在多个尺度上提取同一地物,可以更好识别复杂的湿地景观类型;相比仅依据像元光谱特征进行分类的传统像元方法,面向对象方法综合利用光谱、空间、形状和纹理等多种特征,因此可以获得更高的精度(总体分类精度达到87.64%,Kappa系数为 0.855 2);基于中低分辨率遥感影像,采用面向对象分类方法,能够获得较高精度的湿地景观分布,是一种成本较低且行之有效的技术手段。     

米埔湿地冬季鸟类对气象及生态质量响应研究

为探讨气象及生态气象质量与湿地生态系统内鸟类变化的关系,文章以香港米埔湿地为例,利用米铺湿地1979—2009年留鸟人工观测数据、香港天文台公布气象数据和以2000—2009年4期等时间间距研究区的景观变化数据,分析湿地内留鸟数量对研究区气象及生态气象质量变化的响应。结果表明：（1）湿地留鸟数量与温度和最低能见度时数相关性显著,与降水量和月均日照时数变化相关性较小;（2）5种生态气象评价指数（EMI）与同期鸟类数量的相关性分析表明,留鸟与综合生态评价指数（ECAI）呈正相关。其中与水体指数（WDI）正相关系数最大,与土地利用退化指数（LDI）负相关系数最大,相关系数分别为0.88和-0.85;而与湿润指数（HI）和植被指数（VDI）相关性较小。研究表明,保护生态环境,调节气候变化幅度,对保护留鸟的生存空间,延续生物的生态平衡具有重要意义。     

宜宾夜鹭卵中有机氯农药及其代谢物的赋存特征

于2017年在四川省宜宾市采集黑冠夜鹭(Nycticorax nycticorax)卵样30枚(包括9枚无胚卵和21枚胚胎卵),分析了样品中有机氯农药(OCPs)的残留状况.结果表明,宜宾夜鹭卵中检出了8种OCPs残留物,总含量为4.76～97.9 ng·g~(-1)(以湿重计).其中,p,p′-滴滴伊(p,p′-DDE)含量最高((20±18) ng·g~(-1)),其次为六氯苯(HCB,(5.3±3.4) ng·g~(-1))和β-六六六(β-HCH,(1.1±0.8) ng·g~(-1));滴滴涕类(∑DDTs)中的稳定代谢物p,p′-DDE和六六六类(∑HCHs)中的稳定同分异构体β-HCH占比均在99%以上.p,p′-滴滴涕(p,p′-DDT)和p,p′-DDE在无胚卵蛋液中的残留水平比在胚胎卵蛋液中更高一些,而反式九氯则相反,其余OCPs无差别,这说明鹭卵在孵化过程中p,p′-DDT可能易于代谢,而稳定的p,p′-DDE更容易向胚胎传递.宜宾夜鹭卵中p,p′-DDE的最高含量为84 ng·g~(-1),远低于鹭科繁殖效应阈值(1000 ng·g~(-1)).总体上,夜鹭卵中OCPs的赋存状况较好地反映出长江上游地区OCPs污染水平较低,对夜鹭繁殖的影响较小.     

Effects of development of wind energy and associated changes in land use on bird densities in upland areas

Wind energy development is the most recent of many pressures on upland bird communities and their habitats. Studies of birds in relation to wind energy development have focused on effects of direct mortality, but the importance of indirect effects (e.g., displacement, habitat loss) on avian community diversity and stability is increasingly being recognized. We used a control-impact study in combination with a gradient design to assess the effects of wind farms on upland bird densities and on bird species grouped by habitat association (forest and open-habitat species). We conducted 506 point count surveys at 12 wind-farm and 12 control sites in Ireland during 2 breeding seasons (2012 and 2013). Total bird densities were lower at wind farms than at control sites, and the greatest differences occurred close to turbines. Densities of forest species were significantly lower within 100 m of turbines than at greater distances, and this difference was mediated by habitat modifications associated with wind-farm development. In particular, reductions in forest cover adjacent to turbines was linked to the observed decrease in densities of forest species. Open-habitat species’ densities were lower at wind farms but were not related to distance from turbines and were negatively related to size of the wind farm. This suggests that, for these species, wind-farm effects may occur at a landscape scale. Our findings indicate that the scale and intensity of the displacement effects of wind farms on upland birds depends on bird species’ habitat associations and that the observed effects are mediated by changes in land use associated with wind-farm construction. This highlights the importance of construction effects and siting of turbines, tracks, and other infrastructure in understanding the impacts of wind farms on biodiversity.     

Species- and tissue-specific accumulation of Dechlorane Plus in three terrestrial passerine bird species from the Pearl River Delta, South China

Little data is available on the bioaccumulation of Dechlorane Plus (DP) in terrestrial organisms. Three terrestrial passerine bird species, light-vented bulbul, long-tailed shrike, and oriental magpie-robin, were collected from rural and urban sites in the Pearl River Delta to analyze for the presence of DP and its dechlorinated products in muscle and liver tissues. The relationships between trophic level and concentration and isomeric composition of DP in birds were also investigated based on stable nitrogen isotope analysis. DP levels had a wide range from 3.9 to 930 ng g⁻¹ lipid weight (lw) in muscle and from 7.0 to 1300 ng g⁻¹ lw in liver. Anti-Cl₁₁-DP and syn-Cl₁₁-DP, two dechlorinated products of DP, were also detected in bird samples with concentrations ranged between not detected (nd)-41 and nd-7.6 ng g⁻¹ lw, respectively. DP preferentially accumulated in liver rather than in muscle for all three bird species. Birds had significantly higher concentrations of DP in urban sites than in rural sites (mean, 300 vs 73 ng g⁻¹ lw). The fractions of anti-DP (f_anti) were higher in birds collected in rural sites than in urban sites. Significant positive correlation between DP levels and δ¹⁵N values but significant negative correlation between f_anti and δ¹⁵N values were found for birds in both urban and rural sites, indicating that trophic level of birds play an important role in determining DP level and isomeric profile.     

电子垃圾拆解地翠鸟对多氯联苯的累积及风险评估

粗犷的电子垃圾拆解活动已造成当地野生生物多氯联苯(PCBs)严重污染,但PCBs在野生鸟类中的生物累积特征及潜在的毒害作用研究较少。本研究采集了广东省某电子垃圾拆解地翠鸟(Alcedo atthis)及其食物(各种小型鱼类)样品,研究翠鸟对PCBs的累积特征、生物放大效应及毒性风险。翠鸟肌肉中PCBs中值含量为220μg·g~(-1)脂重,比其他报道值高1~3个数量级。计算的生物放大因子(BMF)显示,大部分PCB单体的BMF值都大于1,表明翠鸟对PCBs具有生物放大效应。计算的共面PCBs毒性当量(TEQs)范围为39~23 600 pg·g~(-1)湿重,已经达到或超过了影响某些鸟类生殖或发育障碍的报道值。上述结果表明,电子垃圾拆卸活动已经造成了当地翠鸟PCBs严重污染,PCBs污染物对电子垃圾拆解地翠鸟及其他野生生物的毒性效应尚需进一步研究。     

Peregrine falcon egg pollutants

The role of the peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus) as a bioindicator for the accumulation of organohalogen compounds and other persistent organic pollutants has been established in field studies. Biometric indices for damage caused by pollutants such as the shell thickness and the shell index were determined and the egg contents were analyzed for various pollutants by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. A wide range of chemically activated luciferase expression (CALUX®) bioassays were performed on subsamples of the eggs.

The following organohalogen compounds were found in the eggs of 2009: dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) and dichlorodiphenyldichloroethane, heptachlor epoxide, hexachlorobenzene, dieldrin, hexachlorocyclohexane, polychlorobiphenyls and polychlorodibenzodioxins and polychlorodibenzofurans, polybromodiphenyl ethers, hexabromocyclododecane, tetrabromobisphenyl A, perfluoro compounds, and mercury. The DDT metabolite, dichlorodiphenyldichloroethene (DDE) (11,800 ng/g dry matter), was found to be the most highly concentrated egg contaminant followed by 2,2′,4,4′,5,5′-hexachlorobiphenyl (3800 ng/g). After a past general drop in pollution level, most egg contaminants presently plateau at levels that may still exceed limit values in foods of animal origin (DDE) or even toxicological thresholds (polychlorobiphenyls + polychlorodibenzodioxins, polybromodiphenyl ethers, perfluorooctanesulfonate, methylmercury).

Accumulation of DDE could be shown in peregrine falcon eggs from the uplands of Southwest Germany with elevations up to 1500 m, presumably due to its global distribution and its cold condensation in higher altitudes. In contrast, the concentration of polychlorobiphenyls in falcon eggs decreases with elevation, indicating that these pollutants originate mainly from conurbations and local industrial sites.

Significant negative correlations were found between both shell index and thickness and the concentration of Hg. A deleterious effect is also evident from a no-observed-adverse-effect level of 120 ng MeHg per gram egg determined by other authors in chronic feeding studies with ibises, which resulted in decreased egg productivity and male homosexual nesting and courtship behavior. The average Hg concentration in the peregrine falcon eggs from 2009 is almost four times higher than this level. MeHg accounted for 82.5% of the Hg present in the eggs of 2009 and 2010.

The cell test DR CALUX® for screening of dioxin-like activities can be used to detect not only the 29 regulated dioxin-like substances but also many other persistent organic pollutants with dioxin-like potencies, such as mixed halogenated dioxins/biphenyls. In our case, the results of bioanalytical screening methods showed no additional effect of other compounds with dioxin-like activity.

Ninety-three out of 177 analytes sought could be detected in the eggs. Chlorinated paraffins, organotin compounds, some pesticides that are still in use, and phthalic esters with the exception of traces of diethylhexyl phthalate could be excluded. All pollutants found in the eggs belong to substance classes banned by the Stockholm and Minamata Conventions.     

Near-term ecological forecasting for dynamic aeroconservation of migratory birds

Near-term ecological forecasting has the potential to mitigate negative impacts of human modifications on wildlife by directing efficient action through relevant and timely predictions. We used the U.S. avian migration system to highlight ecological forecasting applications for aeroconservation. We used millions of observations from 143 weather surveillance radars to construct and evaluate a migration forecasting system for nocturnal bird migration over the contiguous United States. We identified the number of nights of mitigation required to reduce the risk of aerial hazards to 50% of avian migrants passing a given area in spring and autumn based on dynamic forecasts of migration activity. We also investigated an alternative approach, that is, employing a fixed conservation strategy based on time windows that historically capture 50% of migratory passage. In practice, during both spring and autumn, dynamic forecasts required fewer action nights compared with fixed window selection at all locations (spring: mean of 7.3 more alert days; fall: mean of 12.8 more alert days). This pattern resulted in part from the pulsed nature of bird migration captured in the radar data, where the majority (54.3%) of birds move on 10% of a migration season's nights. Our results highlight the benefits of near-term ecological forecasting and the potential advantages of dynamic mitigation strategies over static ones, especially in the face of increasing risks to migrating birds from light pollution, wind energy infrastructure, and collisions with structures.     

风力发电场对鸟类迁徙的影响分析与对策

风能资源的地域分布与鸟类迁徙通道重叠,表现为沿海及岛屿、内陆湖泊、水库、沼泽及其它湿地,既是风能资源丰富地区,也是鸟类迁徙的主要通道和停歇地;风能资源的季节分布与鸟类迁徙季节重合。导致风力发电场的兴建对鸟类迁徙带来直接影响。所以,在发展风力发电的同时,必须注意对鸟类的保护。