Light-dependent magnetoreception in birds: the effect of intensity of 565-nm green light

 In a previous study, Australian silvereyes tested in autumn under monochromatic 565-nm green light at intensities of 2.1 and 7.5 mW m^–2 preferred their normal northerly migratory direction, whereas they showed a significantly different tendency towards northwest at 15.0 mW m^–2. Repeating these experiments in spring with silvereyes migrating southward, we again observed well-oriented tendencies in the migratory direction at 2.1 and 7.5 mW m^–2. At 15.0 mW m^–2, however, the birds once more preferred northwesterly directions, i.e. their response under this condition proved to be independent of the migratory direction. This contradicts the interpretation that monochromatic green light of this high intensity leads to a rotation of compass information; instead, it appears to produce sensory input that causes birds to give up their migratory direction in favor of a fixed direction of as yet unknown origin. Received: 3 April 2000 / Accepted in revised form: 19 June 2000     

Magnetoreception in birds: no intensity window in “fixed direction” responses

Under 502 nm turquoise light combined with 590 nm yellow light and in total darkness, European robins, Erithacus rubecula, no longer prefer their migratory direction, but exhibit so-called fixed direction responses that do not show the seasonal change between spring and autumn. We tested robins under these light conditions in the local geomagnetic field of 46 μT, a field of twice this intensity, 92 μT, and a field of three times this intensity, 138 μT. Under all three magnetic conditions, the birds preferred the same easterly direction under turquoise-and-yellow light and the same northwesterly direction under dark, while they were oriented in their seasonally appropriate direction under control conditions. “Fixed direction” responses are thus not limited to a narrow intensity window as has been found for normal compass orientation. This can be attributed to their origin in the magnetite-based receptor in the upper beak, which operates according to fundamentally different principles than the radical pair mechanism in the retina mediating compass orientation. “Fixed direction” responses are possibly a relict of a receptor mechanism that changed its function, now mainly providing information on magnetic intensity.     

Light-dependent magnetoreception in birds: interaction of at least two different receptors

Passerine migrants require light from the blue-green part of the spectrum for magnetic compass orientation; under yellow light, they are disoriented. European robins tested under a combination of yellow light and blue or green light showed a change in behavior, no longer preferring their seasonally appropriate migratory direction: in spring as well as in autumn, they preferred southerly headings under blue-and-yellow and northerly headings under green-and-yellow light. This clearly shows that yellow light is not neutral and suggests the involvement of at least two types of receptors in obtaining magnetic compass information, with the specific interaction of these receptors being rather complex.     

Avian magnetic compass: fast adjustment to intensities outside the normal functional window

To determine how fast birds can adapt to magnetic intensities outside the normal functional window of their magnetic compass, we tested migratory birds in a magnetic field of 92,000 nT, twice the intensity of the local geomagnetic field at the test site in Frankfurt a.M., Germany. In the local field, robins showed a significant preference of their southerly migratory direction, whereas in the 92,000-nT field, they were initially disoriented. However, when the birds were preexposed to 92,000 nT for 1 h before being tested, they were able to orient under this intensity, and their behavior did not differ from that in the geomagnetic field. These data show that birds require only a short time to adjust to magnetic intensities, which they cannot spontaneously use for orientation. Interpreting these findings in view of the radical pair model (Ritz et al. 2000), this means that they can learn rather quickly to interpret novel activation patterns on their retina.     

Light-Dependent Magnetoreception in Birds: Does Directional Information Change with Light Intensity?

 Magnetic compass orientation in birds is based on light-dependent processes, with magnetoreception being possible only under light containing blue and green wavelengths. To look for possible intensity-dependent effects we tested Australian silvereyes during autumn migration under monochromatic green light (565 nm) produced by light-emitting diodes at various light levels. At intensities of 0.0021 and 0.0075 W/m², the birds showed normal activity and were oriented in their seasonally appropriate migratory direction. Under low light of 0.0002 W/m² the birds were less active; scatter increased, but they still oriented in their migratory direction. Under a high light level of 0.0150 W/m², however, the test birds showed a counterclockwise shift in direction, preferring west-northwest instead of north. This change in behavior may reflect a change in the output of the magnetoreception system, resulting from a disruption of the natural balance between the wavelengths of light. Received: 18 June 1999 / Accepted in revised form: 20 September 1999     

Magnetic compass orientation of migratory birds in the presence of a 1.315 MHz oscillating field

The radical pair model of magnetoreception predicts that magnetic compass orientation can be disrupted by high frequency magnetic fields in the Megahertz range. European robins, Erithacus rubecula, were tested under monochromatic 565 nm green light in 1.315 MHz fields of 0.48 T during spring and autumn migration, with 1.315 MHz being the frequency that matches the energetic splitting induced by the local geomagnetic field. The birds responses depended on the alignment of the oscillating field with respect to the static geomagnetic field: when the 1.315 MHz field was aligned parallel with the field lines, birds significantly preferred northerly directions in spring and southerly directions in autumn. These preferences reflect normal migratory orientation, with the variance slightly increased compared to control tests in the geomagnetic field alone or to tests in a 7.0 MHz field. However, in the 1.315 MHz field aligned at a 24° angle to the field lines, the birds were disoriented in both seasons, indicating that the high frequency field interfered with magnetoreception. These finding are in agreement with theoretical predictions and support the assumption of a radical-pair mechanism underlying the processes mediating magnetic compass information in birds.     

Retinal cryptochrome in a migratory passerine bird: a possible transducer for the avian magnetic compass

The currently discussed model of magnetoreception in birds proposes that the direction of the magnetic field is perceived by radical-pair processes in specialized photoreceptors, with cryptochromes suggested as potential candidate molecules mediating magnetic compass information. Behavioral studies have shown that magnetic compass orientation takes place in the eye and requires light from the blue-green part of the spectrum. Cryptochromes are known to absorb in the same spectral range. Because of this we searched for cryptochrome (CRY) in the retina of European robins, Erithacus rubecula, passerine birds that migrate at night. Here, we report three individually expressed cryptochromes, eCRY1a, eCRY1b, and eCRY2. While eCRY1a and eCRY2 are similar to the cryptochromes found in the retina of the domestic chicken, eCRY1b has a unique carboxy (C)-terminal. In light of the radical-pair model, our findings support a potential role of cryptochromes as transducers for the perception of magnetic compass information in birds.     

功夫在大豆及土壤中的残留动态研究

为了制订功夫在大豆上安全使用标准,采用田间试验了研究了功夫在大豆茎叶和土壤中的残留动态,应用ＧＬＣ法测定了功夫在青事,成熟大豆和土壤中的残留量。２年的试验结果表明,功夫在大豆茎叶和土壤中消失较快,其半衰期分别为６．６－７．１ｄ和６．７－１１．６ｄ。施药量为１５ｇ／ｈｍ＾２,施药２次,收获时土壤中的残留量为０．００８ｍｇ／ｋｇ;在青豆和成熟大豆中残留量均低于最低检测浓度。     

柳州地区酸沉降临界负荷的确定

为了对目标沉降量的制定提供定量依据,根据现场调查和实验测量获得柳州红壤的物理化学特性,地表水化学行性及降水化学背景和现状的数据,应用改进的ＭＡＧＩＣ模型计算不同酸沉降量下土壤的酸化过程。结果表明：柳州土壤已处于酸化状态并呈现继续酸化趋势,表层土壤敏感性较强,而底层土壤和地表水缓冲能力较强。     

苹果树长期接触低浓度SO2对生长的影响

本文报道用四套开顶式熏气装置对四棵十一年生国光苹果树进行一个生长季低浓度SO_2熏气的试验结果,各罩内SO_2浓度分别为O(CK)、0.10、0.18和0.28 mg/m~3,结果表明,0.10 mg/m的SO_2对试验树的光合作用速率、叶面积、单位叶片重量和当年生枝条生长量无明显影响;0.18 mg/m有轻度影响;0.28mg/m影响显著。     

利用光合细菌柱式生物膜法处理淀粉废水

利用连续化处理工艺,在适宜条件下当稀释率Ｄ＝０．３３ｈ＾－１时,最大ＣＯＤ容积负荷Ｐ＝１５．８４ｋｇ／（ｍ＾３·ｄ）;当回流比α＝０．２,稀释率Ｄ＝０．３５＾ｈ－１时,最大ＣＯＤ容积负荷Ｐ＝２１．８ｋｇ／（ｍ＾３·ｄ）。该法所得到的菌体污泥可作为饲料添加剂,具有较大的经济效益。     

脉冲磁场水处理技术在杀菌、灭藻方面的研究

研究利用直流脉冲发生器与线圈绕组相连产生的脉冲磁场杀菌灭藻的水处理技术 .实验表明 ,脉冲电磁场具有明显的杀菌作用 ;增加磁场强度、处理时间和脉冲频率可以提高杀菌效果 .此外 ,通过监测处理后水样中溶解氧的变化 ,证实脉冲磁场具有灭藻功能 ,并表现出对强度和频率的选择 .当停留时间为 30min ,磁场强度 5 0 0mT ,脉冲频率 4 0kHz实验条件下 ,循环处理后水中细菌总数的存活率为 0 0 1% ,藻类基本死亡 ,电耗大约 0 2kW·h·m-3 .     

放牧阉牦牛提前出栏甲烷排放强度减排潜力探讨

以阉牦牛提前出栏项目活动为例,按照2006年IPCC国家温室气体清单优良做法指南的计量方法,在同等牧草利用量的前提下,分别对4岁和7岁阉牦牛一生CH4排放总量和单位体重CH4排放量(即排放强度)进行了初步比较分析.发现在同等牧草利用量的基础上,由于饲养一头7岁阉牦牛一生所消耗的牧草量相当于可饲养2.1头4岁的阉牦牛所消耗的牧草量,所以从CH4排放总量而言,前者一生排放CH4总量比后者少86.3 kg.然而,由于后者总体重比前者重192 kg,所以,后者的单位体重CH4排放强度(以CH4/体重计)只有0.973 kg·kg-1,而前者为1.374 kg·kg-1.根据排放强度的概念,在同等牧草消耗量的基础上,如果将一头7岁阉牦牛替代成饲养2.1头4岁的阉牦牛,可以多生产192 kg的活体重,在同样生产192 kg活重的基础上,利用替代法估算后者饲养方式比前者饲养方式可以实现77 kg CH4减排量,即相当于总减排1.6 t CO2当量.因此,基于排放强度减排而不是总量减排的概念,提前出栏有较大的CH4减排潜力.     

Light-dependent magnetic compass in Iberian green frog tadpoles

Here, we provide evidence for a wavelength-dependent effect of light on magnetic compass orientation in Pelophylax perezi (order Anura), similar to that observed in Rana catesbeiana (order Anura) and Notophthalmus viridescens (order Urodela), and confirm for the first time in an anuran amphibian that a 90° shift in the direction of magnetic compass orientation under long-wavelength light (≥500 nm) is due to a direct effect of light on the underlying magnetoreception mechanism. Although magnetic compass orientation in other animals (e.g., birds and some insects) has been shown to be influenced by the wavelength and/or intensity of light, these two amphibian orders are the only taxa for which there is direct evidence that the magnetic compass is light-dependent. The remarkable similarities in the light-dependent magnetic compasses of anurans and urodeles, which have evolved as separate clades for at least 250 million years, suggest that the light-dependent magnetoreception mechanism is likely to have evolved in the common ancestor of the Lissamphibia (Early Permian, ~294 million years) and, possibly, much earlier. Also, we discuss a number of similarities between the functional properties of the light-dependent magnetic compass in amphibians and blue light-dependent responses to magnetic stimuli in Drosophila melanogaster, which suggest that the wavelength-dependent 90° shift in amphibians may be due to light activation of different redox forms of a cryptochrome photopigment. Finally, we relate these findings to earlier studies showing that the pineal organ of newts is the site of the light-dependent magnetic compass and recent neurophysiological evidence showing magnetic field sensitivity in the frog frontal organ (an outgrowth of the pineal).     

Aerosols: unexpected disequilibrium phenomena between airborne radio activities of lead-210 and its progenies bismuth-210 and polonium-210

For the first time, concentrations of the long lived radon progenies ²¹⁰Pb, ²¹⁰Bi and ²¹⁰Po were measured in the mine atmosphere of the so called "healing gallery" in Badgastein, Austria, a region famous for its radioactive springs. These investigations were performed in order to study the radioactive equilibrium between the ²¹⁰Pb-²¹⁰Bi and the ²¹⁰Pb-²¹⁰Po pairs so as to gain more information about the aerosol-forming processes in the mine. The particle size distribution of the aerosols was determined under different ventilation conditions. Six-stage and eight-stage cascade impactors with working ranges from 0.15 to5 µm and from 0.063 to 8 µm, respectively, were used to collect the mine aerosols. These samples were analysed in the laboratory and measured by liquid scintillation spectrometry. The most surprising results were found under full ventilation, when the total activity concentrations of ²¹⁰Pb, ²¹⁰Bi and ²¹⁰Po were 4.6, 2.0 and 16.5 mBq/m³, respectively. In this case ²¹⁰Po/²¹⁰Pb activity ratios ranged between 1.8ǂ.3 and 4.3ǂ.3. These unexpected results were confirmed by the eight-stage impactor samples. For the smallest particles, between 0.062 and 0.125 µm, an even higher value of 7.5 was observed. As outside sources could be excluded, such ²¹⁰Po enrichments must occur during the aerosol-forming process itself inside the mine.     

Magnetic compass orientation in birds and its physiological basis

A current model suggests that magnetoreception of compass information starts with light-dependent primary processes. Light-dependency of magnetoreception is supported by behavioral experiments with homing pigeons and caged migratory birds. Three passerine species showed normal orientation under dim monochromatic light from the blue-green range of the spectrum, while they were disoriented under yellow and red light. A sevenfold increase in intensity and pre-exposure to specific wavelengths caused changes in behavior. The behavioral data indicate a complex relationship between the wavelength of light and magnetoreception, suggesting the involvement of more than one type of receptors. Extracellular recordings from the nucleus of the basal optic root and the tectum opticum identified units that responded to changes in magnetic North. Each unit showed a peak in a distinct spatial direction, so that the input of these units, processed collectively and integrated, would indicate compass directions.     

海河流域河流生态基流量整合计算

以海河流域为对象 ,对河流生态基流量整合计算模型进行了实例研究 ,提出了海河流域生态基流量的整合计算的基本原则 ,即 :分阶段恢复原则、恢复模式原则、等级制原则和时空优化配置原则 .海河流域生态环境恢复对象包括 2 4条河段和 12块湿地 .根据河流生态基流量整合计算模型 ,计算得到海河流域的河流生态基流量 :高方案为 2 12 5 2× 10 8m3·a- 1 ,中方案为 13 1 79× 10 8m3·a- 1 ,低方案为 69 3 2× 10 8m3·a- 1 .并计算 3年内不同月份的生态基流量 .在高中低方案中 ,生态基流量的最大值均在 8月份 ,最小值均在 2月份 ,按照从大至小的顺序依次为 :8月份、7月份、9月份、6月份、10月份、5月份、11月份、4月份、3月份、12月份、1月份、2月份 .建议管理部门首先保证低方案的生态基流量 ,充分关注枯水年份和枯水季节的生态基流量 ,加强监测和管理生态敏感性强的河段、湿地和河口     

砷酸钙化合物的溶解度及其稳定性随pH值的变化

通过混合沉淀和溶解实验详细研究了pH值和Ca/As摩尔比对石灰沉淀法处理高浓度含砷废水的影响.沉淀后溶液中的As浓度随pH值的变化趋势与混合液的Ca/As摩尔比有关,在Ca/As=1·50和1·67时,沉淀后溶液中的As浓度在pH=7附近达到最低,然后随pH值的升高而呈现出增大的趋势;在Ca/As=2·00和4·00时,沉淀后溶液中的As浓度随pH值的升高而降低,且2种Ca/As摩尔比条件下的实验结果基本一致.混合沉淀过程中生成的砷酸钙化合物的组成与结构取决于溶液的Ca/As摩尔比和pH值.在低pH值和低Ca/As摩尔比条件下形成的沉淀物要比在高pH值和高Ca/As摩尔比条件下形成的沉淀物的颗粒要大,而且结晶程度要好.在Ca/As摩尔比为1·0~4·0和不同pH值条件下,主要生成Ca_3(AsO_4)_2·3H_2O、Ca_3(AsO_4)_2·2·25H_2O、Ca_5(AsO-4)_3OH和Ca_4(OH)-2(AsO_4)2·4H_2O,溶度积分别等于10~(-21·14)、10~(-21·40)、10~(-40·12)和10~(-27·49).     

重庆缙云山4种典型植被覆盖下汞的释放通量及影响因素

为了揭示不同植被覆盖下土壤/大气界面释汞通量及其交换特征,在缙云山国家级自然保护区内选择4种典型植被覆盖类型(常绿阔叶林、楠竹林、灌木林以及草地)为研究对象,连续同步监测不同植被覆盖下土/气界面汞释放通量,同时考察各环境因子对土壤释汞的影响.结果表明,缙云山在4种不同植被覆盖下土壤汞释放通量具有明显的差异,总体表现为楠竹林[17.77 ng·(m~2·h)~(-1)]草地[17.58 ng·(m~2·h)~(-1)]灌木林[16.87 ng·(m~2·h)~(-1)]常绿阔叶林[14.32 ng·(m~2·h)~(-1)];不同植被覆盖下土壤释汞通量在季节变化上呈现相似的规律性,但不同植被覆盖类型之间也存在明显差异,主要体现在暖季汞释放通量高于冷季;缙云山地区不同林植被覆盖下土壤释汞通量存在明显的日变化;气象因素光照强度、气温、土温和相对湿度,对土/气界面汞释放通量影响也不相同,气温为常绿阔叶林,灌木林与楠竹林的主要影响因子,光照强度为草地的主要影响因子.     

二氧化钛光催化氧化阿散酸

阿散酸(p-arsanilic acid,ASA)是一种重要的有机砷化合物,较无机砷更加难以去除,目前关于去除水中ASA研究少有报道.本研究主要评价了TiO_2光催化剂(P25)对ASA的去除效果,考察了P25投量、pH和光照强度对其光催化氧化ASA的影响,探究了ASA光降解产物和主要机制.结果表明,在P25催化作用下,模拟自然光可氧化降解ASA为As(V),最终通过P25对As(V)的吸附作用将水中砷有效去除.当ASA初始浓度为2 mg·L~(-1),P25投量为1 g·L~(-1)时,光催化氧化-吸附0.5 h后,水中剩余砷的浓度约为0.34 mg·L~(-1).酸性条件下ASA的去除率远远高于碱性条件,最佳光照强度为68.5 mW·cm~(-2).P25光催化氧化ASA过程中羟基自由基起到了主要作用.