Individual consistency in exploratory behaviour and mating tactics in male guppies

While behavioural plasticity is considered an adaptation to fluctuating social and environmental conditions, many animals also display a high level of individual consistency in their behaviour over time or across contexts (generally termed ‘personality’). However, studies of animal personalities that include sexual behaviour, or functionally distinct but correlated traits, are relatively scarce. In this study, we tested for individual behavioural consistency in courtship and exploratory behaviour in male guppies (Poecilia reticulata) in two light environments (high vs. low light intensity). Based on previous work on guppies, we predicted that males would modify their behaviour from sneak mating tactics to courtship displays under low light conditions, but also that the rank orders of courtship effort would remain unchanged (i.e. highly sexually active individuals would display relatively high levels of courtship under both light regimes). We also tested for correlations between courtship and exploratory behaviour, predicting that males that had high display rates would also be more likely to approach a novel object. Although males showed significant consistency in their exploratory and mating behaviour over time (1 week), we found no evidence that these traits constituted a behavioural syndrome. Furthermore, in contrast to previous work, we found no overall effect of the light environment on any of the behaviours measured, although males responded to the treatment on an individual-level basis, as reflected by a significant individual-by-environment interaction. The future challenge is to investigate how individual consistency across different environmental contexts relates to male reproductive success.     

中药废水处理工程实例

在中药的生产过程中会排放大量的废水.目前,国内有关中药废水处理的文献较少,因此有必要对中药废水的处理进行研究.在此介绍了某中药废水处理的工程实例.该中药废水具有水量水质变化较大,排放无规律的特点.采用水解酸化-CASS-BAF-组合净水池工艺对其进行处理;平均进水p(CODCr,)=2 500 mg/L,平均出水p(CODCr)=47 mg/L,CODCr平均去除率为98.1％.实践结果表明:该工艺处理效果较好,占地省,便于维护管理,运行稳定,出水水质达到北京市地方标准DB 11/307-2005《水污染物排放标准》表1中二级限值标准.     

Incorporating stakeholder decision support needs into an integrated regional Earth system model

A new modeling effort exploring the opportunities, constraints, and interactions between mitigation and adaptation at regional scale is utilizing stakeholder engagement in an innovative approach to guide model development and demonstration, including uncertainty characterization, to effectively inform regional decision making. This project, the integrated Regional Earth System Model (iRESM), employs structured stakeholder interactions and literature reviews to identify the most relevant adaptation and mitigation alternatives and decision criteria for each regional application of the framework. The information is used to identify important model capabilities and to provide a focus for numerical experiments. This paper presents the stakeholder research results from the first iRESM pilot region. The pilot region includes the Great Lakes Basin in the Midwest portion of the United States as well as other contiguous states. This geographic area (14 states in total) permits cohesive modeling of hydrologic systems while also providing strong gradients in climate, demography, land cover/land use, and energy supply and demand. The results from the stakeholder research indicate that, for this region, iRESM should prioritize addressing adaptation alternatives in the water resources, urban infrastructure, and agriculture sectors, including water conservation, expanded water quality monitoring, altered reservoir releases, lowered water intakes, urban infrastructure upgrades, increased electric power reserves in urban areas, and land use management/crop selection changes. For mitigation in this region, the stakeholder research implies that iRESM should focus on policies affecting the penetration of renewable energy technologies, and the costs and effectiveness of energy efficiency, bioenergy production, wind energy, and carbon capture and sequestration.     

漳州市城市绿地表土磁性特征及其环境意义

为揭示土壤磁性物质的来源和成因,对漳州市城区4个不同绿地功能区土壤进行了环境磁学测定,并探讨其环境意义. 结果表明,土壤样品的磁化率(χ)平均值为302.77×10-8 m3/kg,频率磁化率(χ_fd)平均值为1.45%,不同绿地功能区土壤磁化率变化趋势为居住区绿地＞道路绿地＞单位附属绿地＞公园绿地.分析4种绿地功能区的频率磁化率可以得知,公园绿地存在超顺磁颗粒. 对单个采样点进行分析发现,磁化率与频率磁化率呈负相关,饱和等温剩磁(SIRM)和软剩磁(Soft IRM)呈极显著正相关,饱和等温剩磁和硬剩磁(Hard IRM)的相关性不强,表明土壤磁化率的变化主要受亚铁磁性矿物控制,但也存在不完整反铁磁性物质的贡献,土壤磁化率的增强与工业排放、机动车尾气等人类活动有关.      

城市再生水景观利用水华识别和预警方法探讨

城市再生水景观回用的主要问题是水体富营养化导致水华的暴发。为了抑制藻类的大规模生长,需要提前采取预防措施,以便将有可能爆发水华的藻类及时杀死或除去。目前,人们已经对景观水体中常见藻类的生长规律做了深入的研究,发现水体中藻数量(藻密度)的多少与水体的pH值和DO值的变化有密切而相对稳定的关系。通过在线实时监控pH值和DO值,找到△pH、△DO与藻类生长之间的关系,并结合pH、DO、温度、正磷酸盐和总氮等指标,实现实时识别和预测水华爆发的目的。     

醌介导染料脱色菌株的分离鉴定及特性

实验分离获得1株能够利用醌化合物使磺酸化偶氮染料脱色的菌株JL,通过形态特征、16S rDNA与16S-23S区间序列分析表明,该菌株为蜡状芽孢杆菌(命名为Bacillus cereus JL).菌株JL使酸性大红3R脱色的最佳条件为葡萄糖浓度1g/L, pH值为5~7,温度30℃,接种量0.25g/L.蒽醌-2-磺酸(AQS)、蒽醌-2,6-二磺酸(AQDS)和2-羟基-1,4-萘醌(Lawsone)均能显著提高酸性大红3R的脱色速率,其中AQS的促进作用最为明显.研究发现, 0.1mmol/L AQS能够使菌株JL对2.0mmol/L酸性大红3R保持较高的脱色速率,而且能使多种偶氮染料脱色,表现出较好的底物广谱性.利用高效液相色谱-质谱鉴定了AQS介导的酸性大红3R脱色产物,表明酸性大红3R的偶氮键发生断裂, AQS在这一过程中仅起到电子传递的作用.     

Recognition of foreign oviposition-marking pheromone in a multi-trophic context

Both phytophagous and parasitic insects deposit oviposition-marking pheromones (OMPs) following oviposition that function to inform conspecifics of a previously utilized host of reduced suitability. The blueberry maggot fly, Rhagoletis mendax Curran (Diptera: Tephritidae), deposits eggs individually into blueberries and then marks the fruit surface with an OMP which reduces acceptance of fruit for oviposition by conspecifics. Diachasma alloeum (Muesebeck) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) is a parasitic wasp attacking larval R. mendax which also deposits an OMP, signaling conspecifics of a wasp-occupied host. Behavioral studies were conducted testing the hypothesis that the OMP of the parasitic wasp modifies the oviposition behavior of its host fly. In this study, we show that the OMP of D. alloeum is recognized by R. mendax, and female flies will reject wasp-marked fruit for oviposition. Thus, we present a rare demonstration of pheromonal recognition between animals occupying different taxonomic orders and trophic levels. This chemical eavesdropping may enhance the ability of the fly to avoid fruit unsuitable for larval development.     

Simulated dynamics of carbon stocks driven by changes in land use, management and climate in a tropical moist ecosystem of Ghana

Sub-Saharan Africa is large and diverse with regions of food insecurity and high vulnerability to climate change. This project quantifies carbon stocks and fluxes in the humid forest zone of Ghana, as a part of an assessment in West Africa. The General Ensemble biogeochemical Modeling System (GEMS) was used to simulate the responses of natural and managed systems to projected scenarios of changes in climate, land use and cover, and nitrogen fertilization in the Assin district of Ghana. Model inputs included historical land use and cover data, historical climate records and projected climate changes, and national management inventories. Our results show that deforestation for crop production led to a loss of soil organic carbon (SOC) by 33% from 1900 to 2000. The results also show that the trend of carbon emissions from cropland in the 20th century will continue through the 21st century and will be increased under the projected warming and drying scenarios. Nitrogen (N) fertilization in agricultural systems could offset SOC loss by 6% with 30 kg N ha⁻¹ year⁻¹ and by 11% with 60 kg N ha⁻¹ year⁻¹. To increase N fertilizer input would be one of the vital adaptive measures to ensure food security and maintain agricultural sustainability through the 21st century.