Human–environment interactions: learning from the past

The analysis of palaeoenvironmental archives—sediments, archaeological remains, tree-rings, documents and instrumental records—is presented as a key element in the global scientific endeavour aimed at understanding human–environment interactions at the present day and in the future. The paper explains the need for the focus on palaeoenvironmental studies as a means of ‘learning from the past’, and presents the rationale and structure of the IGBP-PAGES Focus 5 programme ‘Past Ecosystem Processes and Human–Environment Interactions’. The past, as described through palaeoenvironmental studies, can yield information about pre-impact states, trajectories of recent change, causation, complex system behaviour, and provide the basis for developing and testing simulation models. Learning from the past in each of these epistemological categories is exemplified with published case-studies.     

Spatial,annual and seasonal patterns in the condition and muscle size of snow crab

The extent of spatial (depth and locality) and temporal (season and year) variabilities in condition and relative muscle size (a direct proxy of growth) were examined in male and female adult and non-adult snow crabs Chionoecetes opilio. Condition, determined from the relative size of the digestive gland and moisture content of the muscle and digestive gland, and muscle size, determined as the ratio of merus muscle mass over merus volume, separated as different processes in a principal component analysis. Snow crabs showed a wide range of condition and muscle size values. Overall, the condition was better in non-adult than in adult crabs, with adult females being in worst condition, and muscle size was larger in males than in females. Condition variability was greater for seasonal compared to annual samples, probably reflecting annual molt cycles. In contrast, the muscle size variability was greater for annual compared to seasonal samples, possibly as a result of changing crab abundance and competition intensity during recruitment pulses. Condition and muscle size increased through summer in males and immature females, although to different extents depending on instar, but did not change in adult females. Both condition and muscle size were highly variable at the investigated spatial scales. Condition and muscle size had a significant effect on gonad size, once the effect of crab size was removed, suggesting a direct link between these two parameters and reproductive capability.     

Gonopod tegumental glands: a new accessory sex gland in the Brachyura

It is not yet known whether gonopod tegumental glands (GTG) previously described in one species of brachyuran crab (Chionoecetes opilio) are a general feature in this large taxon. In order to determine the prevalence and role of GTG in the Brachyura, the first gonopods of six species of boreo-temperate and tropical brachyurans belonging to four families were examined morphologically and histologically, using the PAS–Alcian-blue staining protocol: Carcinus maenas, Portunus sebae, and Ovalipes ocellatus (Portunidae), Cancer irroratus (Cancridae), Grapsus grapsus (Grapsidae), and Petrolisthes armatus (Porcellanidae). Discrete rosette-type GTG were found in all species examined, although the longitudinal extent and location differed somewhat between taxa. The GTG were invariably grouped about the ejaculatory canal, and communicated with the lumen of the ejaculatory canal via ducts which traversed pores in the cuticle; staining properties of secretions at the duct openings to the ejaculatory canal matched those of the GTG. Neither GTG, ducts, nor pores were observed in regions distal to the ejaculatory canal. These data indicate that the prime, if not exclusive, role of the GTG is in reproduction, and that GTG may therefore be considered accessory sex glands. Together with previous and current investigations such GTG have been observed in all eight brachyuran species examined from five families, and are thus probably ubiquitous within the Brachyura. The organization and nature of the gland secretions differed between taxa: alternating acid (AMPS) and neutral mucopolysaccharide (NMPS) layers in the three Portunidae, AMPS only in Cancer irroratus, and NMPS only in Grapsus grapsus and Petrolisthes armatus. When combined with data on gonopod morphology and occurrence of spermatophore-less sealant in the ejaculate of various brachyurans, two plausible functions of the AMPS GTG secretions emerge: protection of the male's genetic investment (stored spermatophores) from opportunistic microbes following copulation, and the reciprocal processes of sperm competition and paternity assurance. The NMPS secretions may function as a lubricant to reduce mechanical wear of the ejaculatory canal by the second gonopod during copulation, and to reduce the viscosity of the ejaculate from the vas deferens as it enters the narrow ejaculatory canal. Received: 26 January 1998 / Accepted: 11 June 1998     

Freedom Space for Rivers: A Sustainable Management Approach to Enhance River Resilience

River systems are increasingly under stress and pressure from agriculture and urbanization in riparian zones, resulting in frequent engineering interventions such as bank stabilization or flood protection. This study provides guidelines for a more sustainable approach to river management based on hydrogeomorphology concepts applied to three contrasted rivers in Quebec (Canada). Mobility and flooding spaces are determined for the three rivers, and three levels of “freedom space” are subsequently defined based on the combination of the two spaces. The first level of freedom space includes very frequently flooded and highly mobile zones over the next 50 years, as well as riparian wetlands. It provides the minimum space for both fluvial and ecological functionality of the river system. On average for the three studied sites, this minimum space was approximately 1.7 times the channel width, but this minimum space corresponds to a highly variable width which must be determined from a thorough hydrogeomorphic assessment and cannot be predicted using a representative average. The second level includes space for floods of larger magnitude and provides for meanders to migrate freely over a longer time period. The last level of freedom space represents exceptional flood zones. We propose the freedom space concept to be implemented in current river management legislation because it promotes a sustainable way to manage river systems, and it increases their resilience to climate and land use changes in comparison with traditional river management approaches which are based on frequent and spatially restricted interventions.     

Modeling water and soil quality environmental impacts associated with bioenergy crop production and biomass removal in the Midwest USA

The removal of corn stover or production of herbaceous crops such as switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) or big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii) as feedstocks for bioenergy purposes has been shown to have significant benefits from an energy and climate change perspective. There is potential, however, to adversely impact water and soil quality, especially in the United States Corn Belt where stover removal predominantly occurs and possibly in other areas with herbaceous energy crops depending upon a number of geo-climatic and economic factors. The overall goal of this research was to provide a thorough and mechanistic understanding of the relationship between stover and herbaceous crop production management practices and resulting range of impacts on soil and water quality, with a focus on eastern Iowa, USA. Comparisons of the production of herbaceous bioenergy crops to continuous corn (Zea mays L.) and corn-soybean (Glycine max L.) rotations on five different soils representative of the region were performed. Indices for total nutrient (nitrogen and phosphorus) loss to surface water and groundwater, total soil loss due to water and wind erosion, and cumulative soil carbon loss were derived to assess long-term sustainability. The Agricultural Policy/Environmental eXtender (APEX) agroecosystem model was used to quantify the sustainability indices and to generate sufficient data to provide a greater understanding of variables that affect water and soil quality than previously possible. The results clearly show the superiority of herbaceous crop production from a soil and water quality perspective. They also show, however, that compared to traditional cropping systems (e.g., corn-soybean rotations with conventional tillage), soil and water quality degradation can be reduced under certain conditions at the same time stover is removed.     

Progress in global ecological modelling

The development of ecological modelling on global level since the middle of the 19th century is first reviewed, including application of statistical analysis, introduction of logistic curve, earth surface modeling, systems ecology, computer-oriented mathematical models and spatially explicit models. Finally, we discuss problems existing in ecological modelling on global level.     

Human–environment interactions: towards synthesis and simulation

Leaders of the PAGES Focus 5 programme ‘Past Ecosystem Processes and Human–Environment Interactions’ identify key issues for research on human–environment interactions for wider discussion. These include the need for long-term perspectives, the opportunities for maximising palaeoenvironmental research, the need for integration and regionalisation and the challenge of developing dynamic simulation models. A new organisational matrix for regional studies is outlined, based on a series of zonal/azonal regions and on the degree of human impact. Future priorities for palaeoenvironmental research include new studies in degraded human-dominated landscapes, highly-valued ecosystems and sites relevant to other IGBP Core Projects. Simulation of future human–environment interactions using modelling approaches that have been tested against long records lags behind global climate modelling, but cellular approaches for biogeophysical and multi-agent systems show promise.