Production of food-associated calls in wild male chimpanzees is dependent on the composition of the audience

Chimpanzees produce acoustically distinct calls when encountering food. Previous research on a number of species has indicated that food-associated calls are relatively widespread in animal communication, and the production of these calls can be influenced by both ecological and social factors. Here, we investigate the factors influencing the production of food-associated calls in wild chimpanzees and examine whether male chimpanzees produce food-associated calls selectively in the presence of important social partners. Male chimpanzees form stable long-term social relationships with each other, and these social bonds are vital in enabling a range of cooperative activities, such as group hunting and territory defence. Our data show that males were significantly more likely to produce food-associated calls if an important social partner was nearby, regardless of the size of the audience or the presence of oestrus females. Call production was also mediated by the size of the food patch and by whether or not the food could be monopolised. The presence of important social partners explained most of the variation in male calling behaviour, indicating that food-associated calls are socially directed and serve a bonding function.     

The application of ICP-SMS, GF-AAS and HG-AFS to the analysis of water and sediment samples from a temperate stratified estuary

Three atomic spectrometry techniques, namely sector field inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy, graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry and hydride generation atomic fluorescence spectroscopy (ICP-SMS, GF-AAS and HG-AFS, respectively), housed at separate independent laboratories, were used to analyse water and sediment samples collected from the Huon River Estuary, SE Tasmania (Australia) in the Austral spring 1998. A dithiocarbamate-chelation/back-extraction technique was used to separate and preconcentrate Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Cd and Pb from eight collected water samples prior to analysis by ICP-SMS and GF-AAS. A number of other elements in the waters were analysed directly (Mn, Fe and Zn by GF-AAS; As by HG-AFS), or following sample dilution (1 + 19: V, Mn, Fe, As, Mo, Ba and U by ICP-SMS). Where possible, previously corroborated GF-AAS and HG-AFS techniques were used to verify obtained ICP-SMS results. From the analysis of four reference waters (SLEW-1 and -2, SLRS-3 and NASS-5), good agreement, to within +/- 10-20%, was typically found between certified (or information only values) and measured results (irrespective of analytical technique). Exceptions included Zn (and sometimes Fe) that could not be quantified by ICP-SMS due to elevated blank signals, and As which was found to lie below ICP-SMS detection limits. For Huon Estuary water samples, inter-method agreement was within +/- 10-20% (for those elements amenable to analysis by more than one technique). Nitric acid extracts of two certified reference materials (Buffalo River Sediment and BCSS-1) and six Huon Estuary sediments were analysed by ICP-SMS (for Al, Sc, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Cd and Pb) and HG-AFS (for As). Results from the certified reference materials indicated extraction efficiencies of 60 70% (for most elements). A close correlation between ICP-SMS and HG-AFS was obtained for leachable As in the sediments. In terms of potential inorganic contaminants, the Huon Estuary was found to be a relatively 'clean' water system. The elemental concentrations measured in water and sediment samples from this region were found to lie within current Australian guidelines for estuaries. In general, no one analytical technique was able to accurately determine all elements in all samples from this relatively pristine estuarine environment. A combination of all three analytical techniques was necessary for the successful analysis of the elements considered in this study.     

煤中微量元素的环境效应

以华北某电厂燃煤为例,探讨了煤中微量元素的环境效应评价方法。通过电感耦合等离子体原子发射光谱(ICP-AES)等方法测定了电厂循环流化床炉原煤、飞灰、底灰中F,Pb,Hg,等11种微量元素的含量,通过淋滤实验测得了原煤及底灰中Pb、Hg、Cr等7种微量元素的淋出率,并测定了煤堆附近土壤中Cd、Hg、Cr等6种微量元素的含量,计算出了煤中微量元素对大气、水和土壤环境的污染因子。结果表明,燃煤中元素F、Hg、Se、Cl挥发性较强,燃煤中微量元素对大气环境的综合污染因子达3.5,属重污染。元素Hg、As的淋出率较高,原煤和底灰中微量元素对水环境的综合污染因子分别为0.71和0.88,污染程度属微污染。土壤对Cd、Hg、Pb等元素的富集程度很高,煤中微量元素对土壤环境的综合污染因子为0.98,属微污染。     

船运液态二氧化碳储罐爆炸事故的原因分析

在分析船运液态二氧化碳储罐爆炸事故的基础上,近似计算了其物理爆炸的能量,并采用TNT当量计算方法,分别估算了事故的人员死亡区域、重伤区域、轻伤区域的半径和建筑物毁灭性破坏区域的半径;同时根据事故容器设计参数的验算,指出由于对事故容器归属"低温压力容器"和"低温低应力压力容器"的错误划分造成制造材料选用的错误,以及违规使用,从而导致了事故的发生;并针对事故的原因,提出了应引起的反思。     

CO中毒的环境气象因子分析及预测方法研究

利用2006年9月~2007年3月全国CO中毒病例资料,选取日发病人数为8人以上的CO中毒事件发生日作为样本,对CO中毒的气象条件进行了分析研究.结果表明,微风或者静风、大气层结稳定的气象条件不利于CO气体的扩散,同时,气温变幅较小、气压下降、云量多和气体湿度大也可能间接导致CO中毒事件的发生.用风速、大气稳定度、24h变温、24h变压、总云量和相对湿度作为预报因子,利用阈值加权平均的方法,初步建立了区域性CO中毒气象潜势预报模型.     

Modeling population effects of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on a long-lived species

The 2010 Deepwater Horizon (DWH) oil spill exposed common bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) in Barataria Bay, Louisiana to heavy oiling that caused increased mortality and chronic disease and impaired reproduction in surviving dolphins. We conducted photographic surveys and veterinary assessments in the decade following the spill. We assigned a prognostic score (good, fair, guarded, poor, or grave) for each dolphin to provide a single integrated indicator of overall health, and we examined temporal trends in prognostic scores. We used expert elicitation to quantify the implications of trends for the proportion of the dolphins that would recover within their lifetime. We integrated expert elicitation, along with other new information, in a population dynamics model to predict the effects of observed health trends on demography. We compared the resulting population trajectory with that predicted under baseline (no spill) conditions. Disease conditions persisted and have recently worsened in dolphins that were presumably exposed to DWH oil: 78% of those assessed in 2018 had a guarded, poor, or grave prognosis. Dolphins born after the spill were in better health. We estimated that the population declined by 45% (95% CI 14–74) relative to baseline and will take 35 years (95% CI 18–67) to recover to 95% of baseline numbers. The sum of annual differences between baseline and injured population sizes (i.e., the lost cetacean years) was 30,993 (95% CI 6607–94,148). The population is currently at a minimum point in its recovery trajectory and is vulnerable to emerging threats, including planned ecosystem restoration efforts that are likely to be detrimental to the dolphins’ survival. Our modeling framework demonstrates an approach for integrating different sources and types of data, highlights the utility of expert elicitation for indeterminable input parameters, and emphasizes the importance of considering and monitoring long-term health of long-lived species subject to environmental disasters. Article impact statement: Oil spills can have long-term consequences for the health of long-lived species; thus, effective restoration and monitoring are needed.     

垃圾渗滤液变组分浓度污染物运移耦合模型

基于非饱和溶质运移理论,建立了水分运移和溶质对流-扩散的动力学耦合模型,通过室内土柱试验拟合了垃圾有机污染物衰减曲线,在充分考虑垃圾污染物浓度衰减,土壤水环境吸附解吸、生物降解作用基础上,进行了污染物运移的数值模拟,模拟结果较真实地反映了污染物的运移规律,该模型可为定量预测垃圾场土壤中有机污染物的时空分布提供一定的理论依据。     

太原市冬季PM2.5水溶性组分污染特征分析

为了探讨太原市大气阴霾天气的主要污染物PM2.5中水溶性组分的污染特征,于2011年12月~2012年1月,采用美国Thermal Anderson公司的大流量PM2.5颗粒物采样器进行了PM2.5样品采集,共获得样品56个.通过采样前后滤膜的重量变化计算PM2.5的质量浓度.并采用微波提取技术,用TOC/TN分析仪研究了水溶性TOC和水溶性TN等的污染特征.研究结果表明,太原市冬季采暖期PM2.5污染严重,并且比北京、天津、广州、南京、西安的污染水平都高.对PM2.5主要影响因素风速、相对湿度、温度和昼夜变化等的分析表明,风速大小与PM2.5的浓度大小呈负相关(r=-0.4693,α=0.05),相对湿度与PM2.5浓度呈正相关(r=0.4092,α=0.05),而温度与其浓度变化关系不明显;采样期间PM2.5浓度的昼夜变化规律不明显.水溶性TOC对PM2.5贡献较高,占PM2.5总量的13.2%~57.7%;NO3-、SO42-也与水溶性TOC有重要的相关关系.