Effect of Habitat Fragmentation and Isolation on the Population of Alpine Musk Deer

The alpine musk deer (Moschus chrysogaster) is a key species of some terrestrial ecosystems, it has an important economic and conservative significance as a kind of medical animal in China. Due to the interaction between natural forces and human disturbance, the habitats of alpine musk deer are fragmented and isolated in different mountains and the populations are confronted with many problems of survival. In this paper, we discuss the impact of habitat fragmentation and isolation on alpine musk deer populations based on the investigation on the population densities and sizes and environmental factors in different reserves, as well as on the analysis of its ecological adaptability. We found that the alpine musk deer has strong ecological adaptability; the population development of alpine musk deer may benefit from the reduction of the forest area and even from the fragmentation and isolation of the habitat to a certain extent. However, deforestion should not be encouraged only for the alpine musk deer population, but should also be based on the overall consideration of biodiversity conservation.     

扬子地块西南缘低温成矿域Au、Sb、Hg、As矿床区域分布上的共生分异及控制因素

扬子地块西南缘大面积低温成矿域的Au、Sb、Hg、As矿床,常出现共生分异的现象,在空间上形成Au、Sb、Hg、As矿床、矿带相伴出现而又相对独立的规律性分布。在详细研究Au、Sb、Hg、As矿床、矿带区域分布及其产出地质背景的基础上,从不同的角度,对制约Au、Sb、Hg、As矿床、矿带共生分异的因素进行了探讨。     

密切值法与污染损失率法在大气环境质量评价中的综合应用

阐述了密切值法和污染损失率法的基本原理和分析评价步骤。通过实例分析，得出这两种方法的结论具有一致性；利用密切值法对各个决策目标进行质量排序，再利用污染损失率法计标出各污染物对环境的损害程度，并对决策目标进行等级划分。两种方法结合起来应用，能全面地进行环境评价。     

密切值法与污染损失率法在大气环境质量评价中的综合应用

阐述了密切值法和污染损失率法的基本原理和分析评价步骤。通过实例分析,得出这两种方法的结论具有一致性;利用密切值法对各个决策目标进行质量排序,再利用污染损失率法计标出各污染物对环境的损害程度,并对决策目标进行等级划分。两种方法结合起来应用,能全面地进行环境评价。     

Carbon isotope ratios in logged and unlogged boreal forests: Examination of the potential for determining wildlife habitat use

Due to assimilation of recycled CO₂ from litter decomposition and photosynthetic changes in carbon fractionation at low light levels, the foliage at the base of a forest is often more depleted in¹³C compared to that exposed to the atmosphere in either the canopy or in open clearings. This is referred to as the canopy effect. African research has indicated that these habitat differences in foliar ¹³C can be substantial enough to affect the carbon isotope ratios of resident fauna. Previous work documenting a 30-year chronology on moose teeth from Isle Royale National Park indicated a progressive depletion in¹³C and suggested that this could be due to forest regrowth following extensive burning. The present study examined the assumption implicit in this hypothesis that foliar ¹³C varies between open and closed boreal forest sites. I found a marginal canopy effect of 2 ¹³C difference between upper canopy and ground flora for a forest in northwestern Ontario and an average difference of 1.2 in under- and mid-story vegetation between closed forests and open clear-cuts. Because of these small differences, the utility of carbon isotope analysis in quantifying temporally integrated exploitation of deforested habitats will be low for northern boreal locations. In denser forests, such as those in the tropics or western North American where the canopy effect can be expected to be much greater, ¹³C analysis may still offer some promise for determining selection by wildlife of disturbed habitats.     

Assessment of semi-natural habitats and landscape features on Irish farmland: New insights to inform EU Common Agricultural Policy implementation

Concerns over the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services in farmland have prompted the development of agri-environment policy measures aimed at reducing farming pressure and maintaining semi-natural habitats in farmed landscapes. However, further knowledge is needed to guarantee successful agri-environment measures implementation. The current study assessed the quantity and the quality of semi-natural habitats in farms across a gradient of farming intensities in two contrasting regions in Ireland. Policy protection seemed fundamental for semi-natural habitats preservation. Habitats not protected by agricultural policy relied on extensive farming and are in danger of disappearing if they are intensified or abandoned. Due to the lack of policy incentives for habitat quality, no correlations were found between farming intensity and share of semi-natural habitats with habitat quality. Therefore, extensive farming and retention of habitats alone may not reverse the decline of farmland quality and biodiverisity and, thus, measures incentivising the environmental quality may be more successful.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1007/s13280-020-01344-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

规划环境影响评价中生境评价的应用

本文即围绕规划环境影响评价工作当中,有关生境评价的几点问题展开详细分析与探讨,望能够促进生境评价在实际工作的应用质量与水平。     

Settlement decisions in blue tits: difference in the use of social information according to age and individual success

Dispersers are expected to assess breeding habitat quality before settlement. Although cues reflecting habitat quality are well studied, social cues have not been as well evaluated. In this paper, we studied breeding habitat selection during 3 years in a natural population of blue tits, Cyanistes caeruleus, breeding in nest-boxes. Our aim was to investigate if this species used conspecific density and/or reproductive success of con- and heterospecifics (i.e., social cues) in settlement decisions. The patterns observed were consistent with the idea that juveniles, when dispersing from their natal patches, did not react to any of the cues that we tested. In contrast, breeders that dispersed seemed to respond to both conspecific mean patch reproductive success (PRS) and breeding density of the settlement patch in the year of dispersal, their response differing according to their own reproductive success. Indeed, failed breeders moved to areas with high PRS and low density relative to source patches, while successful breeders behaved the opposite. The comparison between juveniles and adults might be modulated by the limited time available to juveniles to gather information on PRS and density at the end of the dispersing year. Adults lacking these time constraints, however, seemed to rely on these conspecific cues although limited by their own quality. Additionally, breeders were more likely to be immigrants in patches with relatively low breeding success and density the previous year, suggesting that settlement is influenced by multiple cues, which may reveal information on different aspects of habitat and be available at different moments. Collectively, our results support the importance of social cues for blue tits’ settlement.     

中国区域可持续发展综合优势能力空间关联分析

采用空间统计方法研究了中国31个省、市、自治区的可持续发展综合优势能力的空间关联关系,结果显示中国可持续发展的总资产能力、总负债能力和综合优势能力均存在较强的空间依赖性。综合优势能力Z值与总资产Z值存在显著正相关（R=0.944）,而与总负债Z值存在显著的负相关（R=-0.952）。利用综合优势能力空间关联Z值对中国可持续发展能力进行初步的分区,并采用古典聚类（K means）方法对中国可持续发展能力进行同质性研究,利用K聚类结果对空间聚类（G统计）结果进行修正,将中国可持续发展能力划分为3种区域类型：中国东部沿海强发展区域、中国中部中等发展区域和中国西部弱发展区域。分区结果与中国传统的东部、中部、西部区域划分基本对应,东部沿海省市除海南和广西处于中等发展类型外,其他省市均处在强发展类型之列,中国中部全部省市均处于中等发展类型而中国西部全部省市均处于弱发展类型。