Specific features of bird community formation depending on the degree of anthropogenic impact

The population density and relative abundance of some bird species reach the highest values in the communities of habitats with a high degree of anthropogenic transformation. The species diversity of birds shows an inverse correlation with the index of anthropogenic impact (in grades) calculated with regard to a number of parameters. Relevant correlations change periodically, with the correlation coefficient reaching the highest values in the nesting period and decreasing to a minimum during the flight period.     

江西大鄣山夏季鸟类群落多样性研究

2009年6月至2010年8月采用样线法对江西大鄣山夏季鸟类资源及其生境分布状况进行调查,并计算其物种多样性、均匀性、优势度及不同生境群落间的相似性。共记录江西大鄣山夏季鸟类13目31科78种,其中留鸟45种,夏候鸟21种,冬候鸟7种,旅鸟5种;其中国家二级保护鸟类6种,省级保护鸟类22种;结果表明：东洋种鸟类占有明显优势（500%）,古北种次之（282%）,广布种占218%。白头鹎（〖WTBX〗Pycnonotus sinensis）和白腰文鸟（Lonchura striata〖WTBZ〗）为当季优势种。6种群落类型中,Shannon Weiner指数与Simpson指数排序均为：阔叶林>农田居民区>针阔混交林>溪流水域>灌木草丛>针叶林。Pielou指数排序为:针阔混交林>溪流水域>阔叶林>农田居民区>灌木草丛>针叶林。Sorenson指数中阔叶林 针阔混交林（〖WTBX〗S〖WTBZ〗=048）为最高。研究结果可为当地森林管理和鸟类保护提供依据     

西洞庭湖湿地鸟类群落组成、多样性及保护对策

采用固定样带法和样点法对湖南西洞庭湖自然保护区的鸟类群落进行了研究,共纪录到217种,隶属16目46科117属,其中冬候鸟113种、旅鸟1种、留鸟60种、夏候鸟43种,分别占5207%、046%、2765%、1982%;古北界种类102种 (占4700 %),东洋界种类 67种 (占3088%),广布型种类 48种 (占2212 %);国家Ⅰ级保护种类4种,国家Ⅱ级保护种类29种。鸟类群落多样性指数和均匀性指数分别为4886 5和0594 9。并分析其湿地鸟类的重要性和稀缺性,提出了相应的保护措施。     

Effect of forest fires on the avifauna of the Northern Amur Region

To reveal the effect of forest fires on the avifauna of the Northern Amur Region, bird assemblages of primary dark conifer-deciduous forests, wild rosemary larch forests, and secondary larch-birch forests have been studied in the Komsomol’skii and Norskii nature reserves. It has been shown that the replacement of primary dark conifer-deciduous forests by secondary forests is accompanied by a significant decrease in bird population density, with some species being lost and the composition of the dominant species group being changed. On the other hand, fires lead to increasing patchiness of the environment, which can sometimes provide for an increase in biological diversity.     

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。     

Ethnosciences––A step towards the integration of scientific and indigenous forms of knowledge in the management of natural resources for the future

Integration of indigenous knowledge and ethnoscientific approaches into contemporary frameworks for conservation and sustainable management of natural resources will become increasingly important in policies on an international and national level, both in countries that are industrialised and those that have a developing status. We set the scene on how this can be done by exploring the key conditions and dimensions of a dialogue between ȁ8ontologiesȁ9 and the roles, which ethnosciences could play in this process. First, the roles of ethnosciences in the context of sustainable development were analysed, placing emphasis on the implications arising when western sciences aspire to relate to indigenous forms of␣knowledge. Secondly, the contributions of ethnosciences to such an ȁ8inter- ontological dialogueȁ9 were explored, based on an ethnoecological study of the encounter of sciences and indigenous knowledge in the Andes of Bolivia, and reviewed experiences from mangrove systems in Kenya, India and Sri Lanka, and from case-studies in other ecosystems world-wide, incl. Australia, Burkina Faso, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Indonesia, Nepal, Niger, Philippines, Senegal, South-Africa and Tanzania.     

Paradoxical ozone associations could be due to methyl nitrite from combustion of methyl ethers or esters in engine fuels

We review studies of the effects of low ambient ozone concentrations on morbidity that found a negative coefficient for ozone concentration. We call this a Paradoxical Ozone Association (POA). All studies were in regions with methyl ether in gasoline. All but one study carefully controlled for the effects of other criterion pollutants, so the phenomenon cannot be attributed to them. One was in southern California in mid-summer when ozone levels are highest. Because ozone is created by sunlight, the most plausible explanation for a POA would be an ambient pollutant that is rapidly destroyed by sunlight, such as methyl nitrite (MN). A previously published model of engine exhaust chemistry suggested methyl ether in the fuel will create MN in the exhaust. MN is known to be highly toxic, and closely related alkyl nitrites are known to induce respiratory sensitivity in humans. Support for the interpretation comes from many studies, including three linking asthma symptoms to methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) and the observation that a POA has not been seen in regions without ether in gasoline. We also note that studies in southern California show a historical trend from more significant to less significant ozone-health associations. The timing of those changes is consistent with the known timing of the introduction of gasoline oxygenated with MTBE in that region.     

湘鄂赣农业资源与专业化区域化方向

湘鄂赣地理位置优越,农业资源丰富,稻谷、茶叶、麻类、棉花、油料、柑桔和淡水产品、禽蛋、肉类等在我国居有重要的地位,因此,大力发展三省农业生产,对我国人民实现小康生活具有战略意义。今后,要加速专业化区域化进程。我们找出生产潜力所在:改造低产田、低产园、低产水面;开发“三高”技术;开垦荒地、荒山、荒水;适当提高复种指数。通过建设,三省主要农产品将自给有余,还可满足国内外市场的需要。努力方向:高效农业开发——综合农业开发,吨粮田开发,玉米带开发,饲料稻开发,山区开发;合理布局农业生产;深化农业商品基地建设,发展综合利用,搞活商品流通;全面提高农业现代化水平,加强农业社会服务体系。     

Prognosis of the spatiotemporal dynamics of ecosystems by means of universal kriging

The use of quantitative data for constructing prognostic maps of the dynamics of ecosystem degradation and restoration by nonlinear simulation methods is a topical field of landscape ecology. This method of dynamic cartography is based on fiberwise comparison of data on the state of Chernye Zemli (the Kalmyk Republic, Russia) in different years and the detailed analysis of the period on which the prognosis was based. For this purpose, materials of repeated aerial and satellite photography obtained during a long period (1954–1993) were used. Comparison of maps characterizing the dynamics of Chernye Zemli between 1958 and 1993 allows prognostic electronic maps for the next 10–15 years (with a five-year interval) to be drawn and land prognosis for the next 20–30 years (1998–2023) to be obtained. Deceased     

Distributions of personal VOC exposures: a population-based analysis

Information regarding the distribution of volatile organic compound (VOC) concentrations and exposures is scarce, and there have been few, if any, studies using population-based samples from which representative estimates can be derived. This study characterizes distributions of personal exposures to ten different VOCs in the U.S. measured in the 1999-2000 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Personal VOC exposures were collected for 669 individuals over 2-3 days, and measurements were weighted to derive national-level statistics. Four common exposure sources were identified using factor analyses: gasoline vapor and vehicle exhaust, methyl tert-butyl ether (MBTE) as a gasoline additive, tap water disinfection products, and household cleaning products. Benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene, xylenes chloroform, and tetrachloroethene were fit to log-normal distributions with reasonably good agreement to observations. 1,4-Dichlorobenzene and trichloroethene were fit to Pareto distributions, and MTBE to Weibull distribution, but agreement was poor. However, distributions that attempt to match all of the VOC exposure data can lead to incorrect conclusions regarding the level and frequency of the higher exposures. Maximum Gumbel distributions gave generally good fits to extrema, however, they could not fully represent the highest exposures of the NHANES measurements. The analysis suggests that complete models for the distribution of VOC exposures require an approach that combines standard and extreme value distributions, and that carefully identifies outliers. This is the first study to provide national-level and representative statistics regarding the VOC exposures, and its results have important implications for risk assessment and probabilistic analyses.     

Geographic Variation in the Seasonal Reproductive Strategy of the Mite Varroa jacobsoni in the Honeybee Nest

Variation in the reproduction of Varroa jacobsoni mite was studied in relation to the expansion of the range of its parasitism on the honeybee. Geographic differences in the seasonal dynamics of mite reproduction in the nests of bee families were revealed. Variation in the sex ratio of mites and the factors inhibiting their reproduction at the northern boundary of the honeybee range are considered. The forms of parthenogenetic reproduction in V. jacobsoni are discussed.     

Long-term increase in climatic dryness in the East-Mediterranean as evidenced for the island of Samos

The Eastern Mediterranean region is among the regions which were predicted to become drier under IPCC climate scenarios. Here, we document a gradual reduction of rainfall and tree growth and the loss of rural springs during the last decades of the twentieth century. Years with severe drought are associated with very low tree growth (dendrochronology) and dry falling of springs as evidenced by interviews with local stakeholders. The paper discusses the consequences of accelerating drought on natural vegetation and agriculture and points at the interaction with fire dynamics and economy, both likely to enhance the drought effect.     

Comparative analysis of the effect of predator odor on morphological and physiological parameters of adult male Campbell hamsters (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Phodopus campbelli</Emphasis>) and dwarf hamsters (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Phodopus sungorus</Emphasis>)

The effect of long-term exposure to natural excretions of the European polecat on the morphological parameters and hormonal status of adult male Campbell hamsters (Phodopus campbelli) and dwarf hamsters (Ph. sungorus) was studied. Exposure to volatile components of natural excreta of a potential predator did not have any significant effect on hamsters. The combined influence of volatile and nonvolatile components of the polecat’s excretions caused physiological stress in Ph. campbelli, while in Ph. sungorus, on the contrary, an increase in thymus weight and the plasma testosterone level was recorded.     

How Do Groups Solve Local Commons Dilemmas? Lessons from Experimental Economics in the Field

The use of experimental settings to observe human behaviour in a controlled environment of incentives, rules and institutions, has been widely used by the behavioural sciences for sometime now, particularly by psychology and economics. In most cases the subjects are college students recruited for one to two hour decision making exercises in which, depending on their choices, they earn cash averaging US$ 20. In such exercises players face a set of feasible actions, rules and incentives (payoffs) involving different forms of social exchange with other people, and that in most cases involve some kind of externalities with incomplete contracts, such as in the case of common-pool resources situations. Depending on the ecological and institutional settings, the resource users face a set of feasible levels of extraction, a set of rules regarding the control or monitoring of individual use, and sometimes ways of imposing material or non-material costs or rewards to those breaking or following the rules. We brought the experimental lab to the field and invited about two hundred users of natural resources in three Colombian rural villages to participate in such decision making exercises and through these and other research instruments we learned about the ways they solve - or fail to - tragedies of the commons with different social institutions. Further, bringing the lab to the field allowed us to explore some of the limitations of existing models about human behaviour and its consequences for designing policies for conserving ecosystems and improving social welfare.     

Latitudinal variation in size of freshwater pulmonate mollusks (Mollusca: Gastropoda: Pulmonata) in Western Siberia

The size of shells in some freshwater pulmonate mollusk species abundant in Western Siberia (Lymnaea fragilis, L. terebra, Planorbis planorbis, and Anisus leucostoma) is relatively large in the south and decreases in the north. It is supposed that this phenomenon is explained by the fact that the season with conditions allowing the growth of mollusks is shorter in the north than in the south of Western Siberia.     

Quantifying the transfer of radionuclides to food products from domestic farm animals

Databases have been compiled to derive parameter values relevant to the transfer of radionuclides from feedstuffs to domestic animal products to provide a revision to the IAEA Handbook on transfer parameters TRS 364. Significant new data inputs have been incorporated into the databases from an extensive review of Russian language information and inclusion of data published since the early 1990s. Fractional gastrointestinal absorption in adult ruminants presented in the revised handbook are generally similar to those recommended for adult humans by the ICRP. Transfer coefficient values are presented in the handbook for a range of radionuclides to farm animal products. For most animal products, transfer coefficient values for elements additional to those in TRS 364 are provided although many data gaps remain. Transfer coefficients generally vary between species with larger species having lower values than smaller species. It has been suggested that the difference is partly due to the inclusion of dietary dry matter intake in the estimation of transfer coefficient and that whilst dietary intake increases with size nutrient concentrations do not. An alternative approach to quantifying transfer by using concentration ratios (CR), which do not consider dietary intake, has been evaluated. CR values compiled for the handbook vary considerably less between species than transfer coefficient values. The advantage of the CR approach is that values derived for one species could be applied to species for which there are no data. However, transfer coefficients will continue to be used as few studies currently report CR values or give data from which they can be estimated.     

A Dynamic model of Cs accumulation by fish of different age classes

A dynamic model of radionuclide accumulation in fish is developed. In the model, the fish population is represented by a set of discrete age classes. Each age class is characterized by a specific growth rate, diet and activity of metabolic processes. The model describes all known types of size effect in the contamination of fish with radiocaesium. The detailed dynamics of ¹³⁷Cs accumulation by fish are demonstrated using the results of the model's application to ichtiofauna in a water body which has a high level of contamination with radiocaesium — namely, the cooling pond of the Chernobyl NPP.     

Introduction: Natural Capital, Poverty and Development

Can development occur without running down natural resources in an unsustainable way? The concept of natural capital offers a way for those with divergent views (ecologists and economists for example) to discuss this difficult question. Four aspects are examined in detail. First, the role of institutions in facilitating sustainable development is discussed, with examples from forestry. Then examples from (eco)tourism illustrate the potential – and limits – of applicability of the concept. Measurement issues for natural capital are then considered in detail. Finally, the concept is applied to agricultural strategy in fragile lands, where the tradeoff between the environment and development is likely to be most severe. Some implications for future research and policy are developed.     

Greenwashed sports and environmental activism: Formula 1 and FIFA†

ABSTRACT

Formula 1 motor sport and the Men's World Cup of association football, two major sporting events on our calendars, are indirectly and directly responsible for environmental despoliation. They serve as advertisements for heavy industry, are designed for elite as much as mass consumption, and provide sponsors with dubious social licenses to operate. This occurs through the very mechanisms of the events themselves (engines in Formula 1, tourism in the World Cup) as well as their promotional externalities. I look at greenwashing claims made about these two sporting events and examine counter-discourses, then investigate economic and ecological citizenship. I suggest that a progressive agenda can be forwarded if Greenpeace, which runs campaigns related to these sports, works with its fellow elites, in the case of Formula 1, and with fans in the case of football. Doing so may be more effective than business-as-usual direct action.