Phytoremediation of levonorgestrel in aquatic environment by hydrophytes

Adsorption and degradation of levonorgestrel （LNG） by two hydrophytes, Cyperus alternfolius （CA） and Eichhornia crassipes （EC）, were investigated under light-shielding conditions in the water column. Variations of LNG concentrations in water, plant root epidermis, root, stem and leaf of the plants were analyzed. The results indicated that the removal efficiency of LNG by hydrophytes over the period of 50 days was significantly greater than the blank control （p 〈 0.05）, with the removal rates of 79.80%± 3.10% and 78.86% ± 2.55% for CA and EC, respectively. Compared with bio-adsorption, bio-conversion of LNG was found to be the dominant elimination pathway, evidenced by relatively high conversion rates （77.31% ±2.68% for CA and 77.82% ± 2.95% for EC）, while the adsorption rates were lower （1.77% ± 0.90% for CA and 1.05% ± 0.40% for EC）. The bio-adsorption and conversion of LNG showed no significant differences between the two hydrophytes. Additionally, the mineralization on root epidermis played an important role in the reduction of LNG in water.     

汞污染农田土壤低温热解处理性能研究

选取贵州清镇地区汞污染农田土壤作为低温热解修复试验对象,研究处理温度、处理时间以及土壤含水率对低温热解法去除土壤汞效率的影响。同时采用连续浸提法对土样中7种形态的汞进行提取,分析热解升温过程中各形态汞的变化状况。结果表明:(1)处理温度越高,汞去除效率越大。当温度为350℃时,去除率达到90%以上。(2)处理时间越长,汞的去除率越高。处理持续时间为90min时,去除率达到90%。(3)土壤含水率越高,汞去除率越低。当风干时间10 d,土壤含水率13.8%时为处理土壤最佳条件。(4)7种形态的汞随温度升高均下降显著,当温度达到350℃时,处理后土样中水溶态和交换态已完全去除,其他形态的去除率也均达到90%以上,土样中最终以残渣态汞为主,环境风险小。     

粉煤灰负载Fe2O3脱除气态单质汞的试验研究

在固定床反应器中研究了利用燃煤电厂固废粉煤灰(FA)负载Fe2O3所制备的Fe2O3/FA催化剂对气态Hg0的脱除情况,发现Fe2O3/FA具有较高的脱除Hg0的能力.同时,考察了Fe2O3负载量、温度、空速、Hg0浓度、烟气成分等对Fe2O3/FA脱除Hg0的影响.结果表明,Fe2O3/FA对Hg0的脱除能力随Fe2O3负载量(1%~10%)的增加和温度(120~200℃)的升高而增强;Fe2O3/FA在较低的空速和Hg0浓度条件下表现出了更高的脱除Hg0的活性;HCl和O2促进了Fe2O3/FA对Hg0的脱除,而SO2和H2O抑制了Fe2O3/FA对Hg0的脱除.逐级化学提取实验结果证实,Fe2O3将Hg0氧化为Hg2+的化合物并吸附在FA上,这是Fe2O3/FA具有较高的脱除Hg0能力的原因.     

EM菌处理垃圾渗滤液的微生物生态学及机理分析研究

通过DNA提取,PCR扩增和DGGE分离,用BLAST程序进行相似性比较分析体系中微生物群落多样性。所有序列与数据库中16S rDNA序列的相似性在94%~100%之间。从整个挂膜过程考虑,挂膜时间应在8天左右。渗滤液中污染物的去除与投加EM有很大的关系,但是渗滤液中原始菌种的贡献同样不可忽视。投加EM菌剂促进了渗滤液中群落结构演替和功能优化,并最终通过EM菌剂和渗滤液中原始菌群的共同作用实现渗滤液处理系统效能提高和完善。     

小分子有机酸对紫色土及其溶液中Pb的赋存影响

以紫色土中铅(Pb)为研究对象,采用以0.01 mol·L~(-1)硝酸钠(NaNO_3)为背景电解质的一步提取法,研究了不同浓度下乙酸,酒石酸和柠檬酸对土壤中Pb的释放作用,并通过土壤重金属形态的分步提取法和地球化学平衡软件Visual MINTEQ v3.0,进一步分析和预测了小分子有机酸作用下土壤中Pb以及土壤溶液中Pb的形态变化.在此基础上,分析了小分子有机酸对Pb作用的环境意义与环境风险.结果表明,3种小分子有机酸均显著增加了紫色土中Pb的释放量,活化效果表现为柠檬酸酒石酸乙酸.在有机酸作用下,土壤中交换态Pb总量增加,碳酸盐结合态Pb和铁锰氧化物结合态Pb总量降低;土壤溶液中Pb以有机结合态为主,占总Pb质量的45.16%~75.05%,游离态次之,占22.71%~50.25%,且随着浓度增加,柠檬酸和酒石酸作用下的土壤溶液中的游离态Pb和无机结合态Pb增加,而有机结合态Pb减少,乙酸则呈相反趋势.总体上看,小分子有机酸提高了紫色土中Pb的生物有效性,且存在地下水的淋溶风险,其中柠檬酸的淋溶风险远大于酒石酸和乙酸.     

An estimated 400–800 million tons of prey are annually killed by the global spider community

Spiders have been suspected to be one of the most important groups of natural enemies of insects worldwide. To document the impact of the global spider community as insect predators, we present estimates of the biomass of annually killed insect prey. Our estimates assessed with two different methods suggest that the annual prey kill of the global spider community is in the range of 400–800 million metric tons (fresh weight), with insects and collembolans composing >90% of the captured prey. This equals approximately 1‰ of the global terrestrial net primary production. Spiders associated with forests and grasslands account for >95% of the annual prey kill of the global spider community, whereas spiders in other habitats are rather insignificant contributors over a full year. The spider communities associated with annual crops contribute less than 2% to the global annual prey kill. This, however, can be partly explained by the fact that annual crop fields are “disturbed habitats” with a low buildup of spider biomass and that agrobiont spiders often only kill prey over short time periods in a year. Our estimates are supported by the published results of exclusion experiments, showing that the number of herbivorous/detritivorous insects and collembolans increased significantly after spider removal from experimental plots. The presented estimates of the global annual prey kill and the relative contribution of spider predation in different biomes improve the general understanding of spider ecology and provide a first assessment of the global impact of this very important predator group.     

Insights into the role of age and social interactions on the sexual attractiveness of queens in an eusocial bee, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Melipona flavolineata</Emphasis> (Apidae,Meliponini)

The attraction of sexual partners is a vital necessity among insects, and it involves conflict of interests and complex communication systems among male and female. In this study, we investigated the developing of sexual attractiveness in virgin queens (i.e., gynes) of Melipona flavolineata, an eusocial stingless bee. We followed the development of sexual attractiveness in 64 gynes, belonging to seven age classes (0, 3, 6, 9, 15, 18 days post-emergence), and we also evaluated the effect of different social interactions (such as competition between queens and interactions with workers) on the development of attractiveness in other 60 gynes. We used the number of males that tried to mate with a focal gyne as a representative variable of its sexual attractiveness. During the essays, each gyne was individually presented to 10 sexually mature males, and during 3 min, we counted the number of males that everted their genitalia in response to the presence of a gyne. Here, we show that M. flavolineata gynes are capable to (i) maintain their sexual attractiveness for long periods through adult life, (ii) they need a minimum social interaction to trigger the development of sexual attractiveness, and (iii) that gynes express this trait only within a social context. We conclude that the effective occurrence of matings is conditional on potential social interactions that gynes experienced before taking the nuptial flight, when they are still in the nest. These findings bring insights into the factors determining reproductive success in social insects.     

The first direct evidence of a Late Devonian coelacanth fish feeding on conodont animals

We describe the first known occurrence of a Devonian coelacanth specimen from the lower Famennian of the Holy Cross Mountains, Poland, with a conodont element preserved in its digestive tract. A small spiral and phosphatic coprolite (fossil excrement) containing numerous conodont elements and other unrecognized remains was also found in the same deposits. The coprolite is tentatively attributed to the coelacanth. Although it is unclear whether the Late Devonian coelacanth from Poland was an active predator or a scavenger, these finds provide the first direct evidence of feeding on conodont animals by early coelacanth fish, and one of the few evidences of feeding on these animals known to date. It also expands our knowledge about the diet and trophic relations between the Paleozoic marine animals in general.     

Sexual differences in food preferences in the white stork: an experimental study

Sex differences in the foraging ecology of monomorphic species are poorly understood, due to problems with gender identification in field studies. In the current study, we used experimental conditions to investigate the food preferences of the white stork Ciconia ciconia, an opportunistic species in terms of food, but characterised by a low level of sexual dimorphism. During a 10-day experiment, 29 individuals (20 females and 9 males) were studied by means of a ‘cafeteria test’ in which the storks’ diet consisted of mammals, birds, fish, amphibians, insects and earthworms. The storks preferred food characterised by high calorific and protein values such as mammals, birds and fish. Sexes differed strongly in their preferences; males preferred mammals, whereas females preferred birds. Moreover, females consumed insects and earthworms less often than males. Interestingly, males spent significantly less time foraging than females. We have demonstrated that the white stork exhibits clear sexual differences in food preferences which are mostly attributable to differences in parental duties, physiology and anatomy.