Using empirical models of species colonization under multiple threatening processes to identify complementary threat‐mitigation strategies

Approaches to prioritize conservation actions are gaining popularity. However, limited empirical evidence exists on which species might benefit most from threat mitigation and on what combination of threats, if mitigated simultaneously, would result in the best outcomes for biodiversity. We devised a way to prioritize threat mitigation at a regional scale with empirical evidence based on predicted changes to population dynamics—information that is lacking in most threat‐management prioritization frameworks that rely on expert elicitation. We used dynamic occupancy models to investigate the effects of multiple threats (tree cover, grazing, and presence of an hyperaggressive competitor, the Noisy Miner (Manorina melanocephala) on bird‐population dynamics in an endangered woodland community in southeastern Australia. The 3 threatening processes had different effects on different species. We used predicted patch‐colonization probabilities to estimate the benefit to each species of removing one or more threats. We then determined the complementary set of threat‐mitigation strategies that maximized colonization of all species while ensuring that redundant actions with little benefit were avoided. The single action that resulted in the highest colonization was increasing tree cover, which increased patch colonization by 5% and 11% on average across all species and for declining species, respectively. Combining Noisy Miner control with increasing tree cover increased species colonization by 10% and 19% on average for all species and for declining species respectively, and was a higher priority than changing grazing regimes. Guidance for prioritizing threat mitigation is critical in the face of cumulative threatening processes. By incorporating population dynamics in prioritization of threat management, our approach helps ensure funding is not wasted on ineffective management programs that target the wrong threats or species.     

Direct Effects of Cattle on Grassland Birds in Canada

Effects of grazing on grassland birds are generally thought to be indirect, through alteration of vegetation structure; however, livestock can also affect nest survival directly through trampling and other disturbances (e.g., livestock‐induced abandonment). We extracted data on nest fates from 18 grazing studies conducted in Canada. We used these data to assess rates of nest destruction by cattle among 9 ecoregions and between seasonal and rotational grazing systems. Overall, few nests were destroyed by cattle (average 1.5% of 9132 nests). Nest destruction was positively correlated with grazing pressure (i.e., stocking rate or grazing intensity), but nest survival was higher in more heavily grazed areas for some species. Because rates of destruction of grassland bird nests by cattle are low in Canada, management efforts to reduce such destruction may not be of ecological or economic value in Canada. Efectos Directos del Ganado sobre las Aves de Pastizales en Canadá     

喀斯特地区长期草地利用制度对群落稳定性的影响

草地利用方式和混播组合对群落特性的长期影响不同。利用方式对白三叶(Trifolium repens)盖度没有显著影响,而混播组合与利用方式的交互作用影响显著。白三叶在宿营处理和刈割为主利用下的与鸭茅(Dactylis glomerata)混播中的比例最低,而在刈割利用和宿营处理的多年生黑麦草(Lolium perenne)组合中的盖度最高。混播组合对禾本科组分盖度影响不显著,但利用方式和交互作用有显著的作用,长期放牧绵羊的混播草地多年生黑麦草很少。混播组合对杂草密度、盖度和多样性指数的影响不明显,而利用方式和交互作用显著地影响杂草盖度和多样性指数。放牧草地中的杂草密度高于刈割草地的,其中放牧利用的白三叶/多年生黑麦草草地最高。放牧牛的草地杂草密度较少,而放牧绵羊的草地杂草较多。白三叶、禾本科牧草以及杂草的密度都显著地受混播组合、利用方式及其交互作用的影响,说明密度是一个敏感的指标。     

Factors Influencing Prymnesium parvum Population Dynamics During Bloom Initiation: Results from In-lake Mesocosm Experiments1

Roelke, Daniel L., Leslie Schwierzke, Bryan W. Brooks, James P. Grover, Reagan M. Errera, Theodore W. Valenti, Jr., and James L. Pinckney, 2010. Factors Influencing Prymnesium parvum Population Dynamics During Bloom Initiation: Results from In-Lake Mesocosm Experiments. Journal of the American Water Resources Association (JAWRA) 46(1):76-91. DOI: 10.1111/j.1752-1688.2009.00392.x Abstract: The alga Prymnesium parvum forms large fish-killing blooms in many Texas lakes. In some of these lakes, however, P. parvum occurs but does not develop blooms. In this study, we investigated factors that may influence bloom initiation by conducting a series of in-lake experiments involving mixing of waters from Lake Whitney, which has a history of P. parvum blooms, with waters from Lake Waco where no blooms have occurred. In all experiments, the addition of Lake Waco waters resulted in a poorer performance of P. parvum. Various experimental treatments and field data show that differences in grazing, pathogens, nutrients, and salts between the two lakes were not likely factors that contributed to this observation. Industrial and agricultural contaminants, allelochemicals and algicidal chemicals were not measured as a part of this research. However, anthropogenic contaminants other than nutrients were not observed at levels exceeding water quality standards in Lake Waco in recent years. On the other hand, nuisance cyanobacteria are common in Lake Waco, where Microcystis sp. and Anabaena sp. were abundant during the initiation of our experiments, both taxa are known to produce chemicals with allelopathic properties. In addition, the emergent field of algal-heterotrophic bacteria interactions suggests that chemicals produced by heterotrophic bacteria should not be overlooked. Further research focusing on the chemical interactions between cyanobacteria and P. parvum, as well as the potential role of algicidal bacteria, in the initiation of P. parvum blooms is necessary, as it may be important to the management of these blooms.     

放牧与围栏羊草草原土壤呼吸作用及其影响因子

基于静态箱式法连续2a的测定资料,比较分析了内蒙古典型羊草草原放牧与围栏样地土壤呼吸作用及其与各影响因子的关系.结果表明:①围栏内外土壤呼吸作用日、季动态差异不大,但围栏样地土壤呼吸速率明显高于放牧样地,其平均值分别是219.18 mg·(m²·h)^-1和111.27 mg·(m²·h)^-1,围栏样地土壤呼吸作用的升高可能与地下生物量增加和土壤水分改善有关;②对影响土壤呼吸作用的因子分析表明,放牧使土壤水分和相对湿度的影响明显降低,而对气温、大气CO₂浓度和光合有效辐射的影响并不大,且放牧使羊草净光合速率的影响明显增加,而对气孔导度和胞间CO₂浓度影响不大;③围栏样地土壤呼吸作用与各影响因子的相关性从大到小依次为土壤水分、净光合速率、气温、相对湿度、大气CO₂浓度、胞间CO₂浓度、气孔导度和光合有效辐射,其中土壤水分和气温是影响土壤呼吸作用的主要环境因子,净光合速率是主要的生物因子.尽管放牧改变了土壤呼吸速率,但土壤呼吸作用各影响因子的排列顺序基本上没有改变,只是发生了量的变化.     

持续放牧和围封对科尔沁退化沙地草地碳截存的影响

研究了科尔沁退化沙地草地持续放牧和围封恢复下土壤-植物系统的碳(C)贮存,以揭示草地管理对C动态的影响.结果表明,0～15cm土壤OC和植物系统贮存的C(包括初级生产固定的C,立枯和地表凋落物C和根系C)贮量大小为:围封10年草地(584g·m^-2和309 g·m^-2)＞围封5年草地(524g·m^-2和146g·m^-2)＞持续放牧草地(493g·m^-2和95 g·m^-2).在围封10年,围封5年和持续放牧草地中,0～15cm土壤贮存C分别占各自土壤-植物系统C的65.3%,78.2%和83.9%.在风蚀严重的科尔沁沙地,持续放牧对植被,土壤及其周围环境有极严重的恶化作用.采取围封恢复措施后,植被恢复和凋落物积累使土壤免遭风蚀,也显著增加了土壤有机质的输入,因而显著作用于大气C的截存.但排除家畜放牧的长期围封使植物C向土壤C的再循环受到限制,截存的大部分C以凋落物的形式积存在土壤表面,需进一步深入研究围封的时间尺度.研究结果表明,退化沙地草地在采取有效的保护措施后,可以由C源变为C汇.     

农垦与放牧对内蒙古草原N2O、CO2排放和CH4吸收的影响

利用优选静态箱/气相色谱法(GC),首次对我国内蒙古草原典型地区进行了人类活动对N₂O、CO₂和CH₄交换通量影响的实验观测结果表明,农垦麦田N₂O平均排放通量比原始草原高出3倍,并改变了草甸草原为CO₂汇的性质,使其季节排放净通量以C计增加14.3 mg·(m²·h).随放牧强度的增加CO₂排放通量呈线性增长,轻牧会引起草原对CH₄吸收的大幅增加,而随着放牧压力的增大,增加值迅速回落.农垦麦田与草甸草原相比地-气间CH₄交换无显著变化,放牧强度对N₂O排放影响无显著规律.土壤湿度和温度是影响草原排放N₂O和CO₂、吸收CH4季节变化形式的关键因子,而人类活动仅影响排放强度.排放和吸收量年际间差异很大,但主要受降水的影响.N₂O和CO₂排放与CH₄吸收峰值相反现象普遍存在.     

长期开垦与放牧对内蒙古典型草原地下碳截存的影响

以围封26 a草地(E26)为对照,研究了内蒙古典型草原区长期开垦与放牧对土壤-植物根系系统碳截存的影响.结果表明,0～40 cm土壤和根系中的C贮量, E26(7 307.59和950.32 g·m-2)≈连续放牧草地(LG)(7834.01和843.43 g·m-2)>开垦35 a耕地(LC)(4537.04和277.35 g·m-2). E26、LG和LC中,0～40 cm土壤贮存的C分别占各自土壤-根系系统C总贮量的88.49%、90.28%和94.24%.长期开垦完全破坏了草地原生的植被-土壤系统,造成严重的土壤风蚀:相对于E26,比中O～10 cm和10～20 cm砂粒含量分别增加了81%和39%,0～40 cm土层中根系生物量减少了71%;长期开垦导致草地土壤及根系碳截存分别降低了37.9%和70.8%.因此,在草原地区,若将长期开垦的耕地恢复为天然草地,土壤和植物根系将会有较大的固碳潜力.放牧对该区土壤有机碳含量及根系生长的影响较小;但长期放牧样地土壤表层容重显著增加,预示目前放牧压力已达到或接近草地的承载阈值,应及时减小放牧压力以避免草地的进一步退化.     

Streambank Soil and Phosphorus Losses Under Different Riparian Land‐Uses in Iowa1

Abstract: Phosphorus and sediment are major nonpoint source pollutants that degrade water quality. Streambank erosion can contribute a significant percentage of the phosphorus and sediment load in streams. Riparian land‐uses can heavily influence streambank erosion. The objective of this study was to compare streambank erosion along reaches of row‐cropped fields, continuous, rotational and intensive rotational grazed pastures, pastures where cattle were fenced out of the stream, grass filters and riparian forest buffers, in three physiographic regions of Iowa. Streambank erosion was measured by surveying the extent of severely eroding banks within each riparian land‐use reach and randomly establishing pin plots on subsets of those eroding banks. Based on these measurements, streambank erosion rate, erosion activity, maximum pin plot erosion rate, percentage of streambank length with severely eroding banks, and soil and phosphorus losses per unit length of stream reach were compared among the riparian land‐uses. Riparian forest buffers had the lowest streambank erosion rate (15‐46 mm/year) and contributed the least soil (5‐18 tonne/km/year) and phosphorus (2‐6 kg/km/year) to stream channels. Riparian forest buffers were followed by grass filters (erosion rates 41‐106 mm/year, soil losses 22‐47 tonne/km/year, phosphorus losses 9‐14 kg/km/year) and pastures where cattle were fenced out of the stream (erosion rates 22‐58 mm/year, soil losses 6‐61 tonne/km/year, phosphorus losses 3‐34 kg/km/year). The streambank erosion rates for the continuous, rotational, and intensive rotational pastures were 101‐171, 104‐122, and 94‐170 mm/year, respectively. The soil losses for the continuous, rotational, and intensive rotational pastures were 197‐264, 94‐266, and 124‐153 tonne/km/year, respectively, while the phosphorus losses were 71‐123, 37‐122, and 66 kg/km/year, respectively. The only significant differences for these pasture practices were found among the percentage of severely eroding bank lengths with intensive rotational grazed pastures having the least compared to the continuous and rotational grazed pastures. Row‐cropped fields had the highest streambank erosion rates (239 mm/year) and soil losses (304 tonne/km/year) and very high phosphorus losses (108 kg/km/year).     

Forest Stand Dynamics and Livestock Grazing in Historical Context

Abstract:  Livestock grazing has been implicated as a cause of the unhealthy condition of ponderosa pine forest stands in the western United States. An evaluation of livestock grazing impacts on natural resources requires an understanding of the context in which grazing occurred. Context should include timing of grazing, duration of grazing, intensity of grazing, and species of grazing animal. Historical context, when and under what circumstances grazing occurred, is also an important consideration. Many of the dense ponderosa pine forests and less-than-desirable forest health conditions of today originated in the early 1900s. Contributing to that condition was a convergence of fire, climate, and grazing factors that were unique to that time. During that time period, substantially fewer low-intensity ground fires (those that thinned dense stands of younger trees) were the result of reduced fine fuels (grazing), a substantial reduction in fires initiated by Native Americans, and effective fire-suppression programs. Especially favorable climate years for tree reproduction occurred during the early 1900s. Exceptionally heavy, unregulated, unmanaged grazing by very large numbers of horses, cattle, and sheep during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries occurred in most of the U.S. West and beginning earlier in portions of the Southwest. Today, livestock numbers on public lands are substantially lower than they were during this time and grazing is generally managed. Grazing then and grazing now are not the same.