Modeling Prescribed Surface-Fire Regimes for Pinus strobus Conservation

Abstract:  We developed a simple model of   Pinus strobus L. stand dynamics to compare the impacts of different temporal arrangements of surface fires designed to reflect the application of fire as both an essential ecosystem process (natural fire) and as an efficient means of producing specific habitat features or other values (optimal fire). We used a stochastic simulation model of fire processes to estimate the mean fire-return interval that would maximize stand structural diversity. We investigated trade-offs between structural diversity and temporal population stability associated with changes in the fire interval and used a deterministic version of the model to explore the effects of scheduling fires at fixed intervals. In stochastic simulations, maximum structural diversity occurred at intermediate levels of disturbance (40-year mean fire interval). When fires were scheduled at fixed intervals, a longer, 100-year return interval maximized diversity. Mean fire-return interval was a mitigating factor in the diversity-stability relationship, which changed from positive to negative as the fire interval was reduced progressively from 250 to 5 years. As an alternative to scheduling fires at specified mean intervals, we developed a goal-programming model (a form of linear programming model) and used it to identify an optimal fire schedule for achieving habitat and visual-quality objectives. In comparison with the 40-year stochastic mean fire interval, which maximized structural diversity, the optimal schedule produced comparable levels of both diversity and fire frequency. Our results show how simulation and goal-programming models can be used to evaluate prescribed fire-scheduling alternatives and to explore the comparative advantages of natural and optimal fire-management approaches.     

A Comparison of Logging Systems and Bat Diversity in the Neotropics

Abstract:  Evaluating logging systems to determine which are most compatible with the maintenance of biodiversity is of prime importance if tropical forests are to be managed in a sustainable way. Bats are model taxa for this purpose. Two different logging systems are used in the natural forest of the Victoria-Mayaro Forest Reserve in Trinidad: open range and periodic block. Open range is a continuous harvesting system and, in common with most methods used to log tropical forests worldwide, has few harvest controls other than girth limits for selected species. Periodic block is a polycyclic system, with felling based on ecological criteria assumed to be compatible with the maintenance of biodiversity. To compare the effects of periodic block and open-range systems on biodiversity, we determined bat species richness and abundance in each system and in primary forest. We caught bats in mist nets set at ground level and in the canopy and in harp traps. In total 1959 individuals representing 38 species were captured. Species richness was similar among primary forest and logged forest habitats, although bat diversity was lower in logged forest. The distributions of bat species abundance did not differ significantly between logged forest and primary forest. We found, however, that both logging systems lead to a decrease in gleaning animalivores and an increase in frugivores. The increase in frugivores was likely the result of an increase in the abundance of bat-dispersed pioneer fruiting plants in logged forest. Bats of periodic-block-managed forest were more similar to those of primary forest than those of forest logged using the open-range system, indicating that the periodic-block system is more compatible with the maintenance of bat diversity. Our results support the suggestion that the measured use of tropical forests can largely be compatible with biodiversity conservation.     

人为干扰对川西亚高山针叶林土壤物理性质的影响

研究了川西亚高山针叶人工林在几种不同强度人为干扰下林地土壤物理性质。结果表明，随人为干扰强度的增加，土壤中细土（粉粒、粘粒）和大团聚体数量减少，小团聚体和原生土壤颗粒增加；土壤表层孔隙度减小，尤其是大孔隙明显减少；土壤有效水降低，持水供水能力减弱，渗透系数减小。川西亚高山人工针叶林土壤生态功能随人为干扰强度的增加而减弱，建议在最易受人为干扰的造林地区，最好是在造林初期封山育林。图1表5参13     

Disturbance-Mediated Mammal Persistence and Abundance-Area Relationships in Amazonian Forest Fragments

Abstract:  Few researchers have investigated the synergistic effects of tropical forest fragmentation and disturbance on species persistence and abundance. We examined effects of both forest-patch metrics and forest disturbance in determining richness and abundance of midsized to large-bodied mammal species in a highly fragmented Amazonian forest landscape. Twenty-one forest fragments, ranging from 2 to 14,480 ha, and two continuous forest sites were sampled based on sightings, tracks, line-transect censuses, armadillo burrow censuses, and camera trapping. Patch occupancy of 37 species recorded ranged from 4% to all forest sites surveyed. Forest fragment size was the strongest predictor of species persistence, explaining 90% of the variation in species richness. Information-theoretic analysis confirmed that fragment area was the most important explanatory variable for the overall species richness and abundance of mammal species, followed by surface fires, which affected the abundance of seven species. Large mammal species were typically absent from fragments <100 ha, whereas some ubiquitous species were favored by fragmentation, exhibiting hyperabundance in small patches. Our findings highlight the importance of large (>10,000 ha), relatively undisturbed forest patches to maximize persistence and maintain baseline abundances of Neotropical forest mammal species.     

Influences of Microhabitat Constraints and Rock-Climbing Disturbance on Cliff-Face Vegetation Communities

Abstract:  Many researchers report that rock climbing has significant negative effects on cliff biota. Most work on climbing disturbance, however, has not controlled for variation in microsite characteristics when comparing areas with and without climbing presence. Additionally, some researchers do not identify the style or difficulty level of climbing routes sampled or select climbing routes that do not represent current trends in the sport. We solved these problems by sampling climbing areas used by advanced "sport" climbers and quantifying differences in microtopography between climbed and control cliffs. We determined whether differences in vegetation existed between pristine and sport-climbed cliff faces when microsite factors were not controlled. We then determined the relative influence of the presence of climbing, cliff-face microtopography, local physical factors, and regional geography on the richness, abundance, and community composition of cliff-face vascular plants, bryophytes, and lichens. When we did not control for microsite differences among cliffs, our results were consistent with the majority of prior work on impacts of climbing (i.e., sport-climbed cliff faces supported a lower mean richness of vascular plants and bryophytes and significantly different frequencies of individual species when compared with pristine cliff faces). When we investigated the relative influences of microtopography and climbing disturbance, however, the differences in vegetation were not related to climbing disturbance but rather to the selection by sport climbers of cliff faces with microsite characteristics that support less vegetation. Climbed sites had not diverged toward a separate vegetation community; instead, they supported a subset of the species found on pristine cliff faces. Prior management recommendations to restrict development of new climbing routes should be reevaluated based on our results.     

Spatial analysis of plant detritus processing in a Mediterranean river type: the case of the River Tirso Basin,Sardinia, Italy

The river continuum concept represents the most general framework addressing the spatial variation of both structure and function in river ecosystems.In the Mediterranean ecoregion,summer drought events and dams constitute the main sources of local disturbance to the structure and functioning of river ecosystems occurring in the river basin.In this study,we analysed patterns of spatial variation of detritus processing in a 7th order river of the Mediterranean ecoregion(River Tirso,Sardinia0Italy)and in three 4th order sub-basins which were exposed to different summer drought pressures.The study was carried out on phragmites australis and Alnus glutionsa leaf detritus at 31 field sites in seasonal field experiment Detritus processing rates were higher for Alnus glutionsa than for Phragmites australis plant detritus.Processing rates of Alnus glutionsa leaves varied among seasons and study sites from 0.006d^-1 to 0.189d^-1 and those of Phragmites australis leaves ranged from 0.0008d^-1 to 0.102d^-1,with the lowest values occurring at sites exposed to summer drought.Seasons and sites accounted for a significant proportion of such variability.Alder detritus decay rates generally decreased with increasing stream order,while reed detritus decay rates generallyincreased on the same spatial gradient.Summer drought events affected these spatial patterns of variation by influencing significantly the decay rates of both plant detritus.The comparisons among and within sub-basins showed strong negative influence of summer drought on detritus processing rates.Similarly,in the entire River Tirso basin decay rates were always lower at disturbed than at undisturbed sites for each stream order;decay rates of reed detritus remained lower at those sites even after the end of the disturbance events,while alder decay rates recovered rapidly from the summer drought perturbations.The different recovery of the processing rates of the two leaves could also explain the different patterns of spatial variation observed between the two leaves.     

京杭大运河(苏州段)内源磷形态分布及其对扰动的响应

以京杭大运河(苏州段)不同外源汇入断面的沉积物和上覆水为实验材料,研究了扰动条件下上覆水、沉积物中不同形态磷数量分布及形态转化过程.结果表明,污水厂尾水排放口处的沉积物内源磷更容易释放,且扰动期间上覆水中不同形态磷(TP、PP、DTP、DIP)均处于较高水平,明显高于风景区和居民区,此外,也归因于水丝蚓的生物扰动.但随着扰动次数的增加,上覆水中各形态磷含量呈降低趋势.扰动显著改变了上覆水中形态磷分布规律,DIP/DTP、DIP/TP及DIP/DTP比值呈降低趋势,并在第11 d以后趋于稳定,但在有水丝蚓扰动下,改变幅度变小.扰动导致沉积物中不同形态磷含量发生变化,NH_4Cl-P含量明显降低,Fe/Al-P明显增加,其中,污水厂尾水排放口沉积物中NH4Cl-P和Fe/Al-P的变化幅度最大.     

天然气管道施工对脆弱黄土区土壤养分及细菌多样性影响

为探索天然气管道施工后土壤植被恢复的影响因素,研究了榆林脆弱黄土区管道施工扰动和周边天然植被区的植被特点、土壤理化性质、细菌群落结构.结果表明:管道施工扰动后,与天然植被区比较,扰动区植被盖度从60%下降到30%,土壤养分除全钾和全磷含量分别増加了29.97%和18.24%外,土壤含水率、有机质、全氮、速效钾、速效磷、速效氮、过氧化氢酶、脲酶、蔗糖酶均显著降低,土壤p H变化明显;扰动区土壤细菌丰度和多样性显著低于天然植被区.变形菌门(Proteobacteria)、酸杆菌门(Acidobacteria)和放线菌门(Actinobacteria)为共同优势细菌,但扰动区变形菌门的丰度显著增加,从30.83%增加到49.26%.在属水平上,假单胞菌属(Pseudomonas)、鞘氨醇单胞菌属(Sphingosine)为共同优势菌属,扰动区两者丰度分别从6.31%和5.28%增加到19.95%和9.69%(p0.01),表明扰动后逆境适应性强的细菌丰度增加.细菌优势菌属与土壤理化因子相关性分析表明,假单胞菌属分布与土壤理化因子无显著相关性,芽单胞菌属(Gemmatimonas)和鞘氨醇单胞菌属与全钾呈显著负相关(p0.01),GP6与速效氮呈显著负相关,与速效磷呈显著负相关(p0.01),与全磷呈显著正相关(p0.05),表明土壤养分会影响细菌群落结构和多样性.     

大型水利水电工程扰动区植被的生态恢复

大型水利水电工程具有防洪、发电、航运等综合效益,是开发治理江河的骨干工程.水利水电工程建设常对项目区自然生态环境带来影响,施工中所产生的岩质边坡、土质边坡、弃土和弃渣等扰动可能导致项目区的生态系统退化、生物多样性丧失、水土流失和地质灾害加剧.扰动区植被生态恢复关系到工程安全运行和其所在区域的可持续发展.以向家坝水电工程为例,研究了大型水利水电工程扰动区植被生态恢复的目标、原则及方法.按生产、生态和社会功能,向家坝水电工程扰动区可划分为工程核心区、服务区和过渡区等3个功能区来系统规划其生态恢复.结合各自的功能需求和干扰特征,各功能区可采取相应的生态恢复技术和配置适宜物种来构建植物群落,形成结构稳定、多样性丰富、具有复合功能的植被景观.还简要评价了向家坝水电工程植被恢复现状,提出一些完善其生态恢复的建议.     

A Contemporary Assessment of Change in Humid Tropical Forests

Abstract: In recent decades the rate and geographic extent of land‐use and land‐cover change has increased throughout the world's humid tropical forests. The pan‐tropical geography of forest change is a challenge to assess, and improved estimates of the human footprint in the tropics are critical to understanding potential changes in biodiversity. We combined recently published and new satellite observations, along with images from Google Earth and a literature review, to estimate the contemporary global extent of deforestation, selective logging, and secondary regrowth in humid tropical forests. Roughly 1.4% of the biome was deforested between 2000 and 2005. As of 2005, about half of the humid tropical forest biome contained 50% or less tree cover. Although not directly comparable to deforestation, geographic estimates of selective logging indicate that at least 20% of the humid tropical forest biome was undergoing some level of timber harvesting between 2000 and 2005. Forest recovery estimates are even less certain, but a compilation of available reports suggests that at least 1.2% of the humid tropical forest biome was in some stage of long‐term secondary regrowth in 2000. Nearly 70% of the regrowth reports indicate forest regeneration in hilly, upland, and mountainous environments considered marginal for large‐scale agriculture and ranching. Our estimates of the human footprint are conservative because they do not resolve very small‐scale deforestation, low‐intensity logging, and unreported secondary regrowth, nor do they incorporate other impacts on tropical forest ecosystems, such as fire and hunting. Our results highlight the enormous geographic extent of forest change throughout the humid tropics and the considerable limitations of the science and technology available for such a synthesis.