Integrated measures for preservation, restoration and improvement of the environmental conditions of the Lagoon Olho d'Água basin

The Lagoon Olho d'Água in Pernambuco State, Northeast Brazil has received increasing environmental concern due to significant stress from pollution in the catchment. The existing environmental problems are the result of great pressure from a broad range of human activities, especially in the last 10 years. Serious pollution exists mainly from some industrial and urban activities, which increased intensively after the eighties. There is a strong social and economical pressure for housing and construction near the lagoon, due to the available land nearby beaches and estuarine zone, and recently by growing tourism activities. Uncontrolled land use by low-income communities and the pressure for construction by developers have led to landfilling and to deterioration of water quality in the lagoon catchment. Improvement of the environmental conditions in the catchment needs integrated measures. Guidelines and some specific actions involving several institutions have been established and refer to sanitation and urban infrastructure as the main priorities. A main target is the construction of low-cost sewage system with smaller and decentralised treatment plants.     

迈向21世纪的锅炉、压力容器、压力管道和特种设备安全科学技术

保护环境、发展经济关系到人类的前途和命运 ,是当今国际社会十分关注的重大问题。在我国 ,人们生产、生活中的安全问题是实现保护环境与发展经济的过程中需要研究解决的热点、难点问题。锅炉、压力容器、压力管道和特种设备涉及到社会生产和人民生活的各个方面 ,其安全及可靠性问题受到国家和各级政府的高度重视 ,因此 ,在市场经济发展的新形势下 ,如何有效地治理危险或危害设施、场所 ,最大限度地扼制并减少伤亡事故 ,是锅炉、压力容器、压力管道和特种设备安全科学技术需要认真解决的重要课题。     

Intraguild predation by <Emphasis Type="Italic">Harmonia axyridis</Emphasis> on coccinellids revealed by exogenous alkaloid sequestration

Summary.  Under laboratory conditions, the multicolored Asian lady beetle, Harmonia axyridis is well known as an intraguild predator of other ladybirds. However the real impact of this exotic species on native species was poorly investigated in the field. Because many ladybird species produce alkaloids as defensive compounds, we propose here a new method of intraguild predation monitoring in coccinellids based on alkaloid quantification by GC-MS. In laboratory experiments, adaline was unambiguously detected in fourth instar larvae of H. axyridis having ingested one egg or one first instar larva of Adalia bipunctata. Although prey alkaloids in the predator decreased with time, traces were still detected in pupae, exuviae and imagines of H. axyridis having ingested one prey when they were fourth instar larvae. Analysis of H. axyridis larvae collected in two potato fields shows for the first time in Europe the presence of exogenous alkaloids in 9 out of 28 individuals tested. This new method of intraguild predation detection could be used more widely to follow the interactions between predators and potential chemically defended insect preys.     

凋落物覆盖及掩埋对不同质量的藜蒴种子萌发和幼苗生长的影响

以南亚热带常见的先锋乡土树种藜蒴(Castanopsis fissa)为研究对象.通过室内萌发试验,分析了种子质量、凋落物覆盖和掩埋对种子萌发及幼苗早期生长的影响.结果表明,藜蒴种子能否成功萌发并形成幼苗的决定性因素是种子的掩埋深度.掩埋显著抑制了藜蒴种子萌发及形成幼苗的过程,随掩埋深度的增大,这种抑制作用越明显.掩埋对幼苗的存活和生物量没有显著影响,但可提高幼苗根部生物量的分配.深度掩埋时,质量大的种子在幼苗形成过程中具明显优势;而置于土壤表层或浅埋的种子成苗率与种子质量的相关性较低.大质量种子形成的幼苗更易于存活,在生物量的积累方面也表现H{一定的优势.凋落物覆盖未抑制幼苗的出土,且对幼苗的存活和生长具有明显的促进作用,表现在可提高幼苗的相对生长率以及生物量的积累.另外,凋落物的覆盖明显提高了幼苗生物量在其冠部的分配.因而,若利用直接播撒藜蒴种子的方式改造南亚热带退化草坡.理论上应尽可能选用大质量的种子直接播种于地表,并覆以原有的地表凋落物,以促进藜蒴幼苗成功建立.     

具有短水力滞留的小型富营养化水库浮游植物群落结构与动态

竹仙洞水库是珠海市对澳门直接供水的水库,也是拱北水厂的重要的水源地.于2006年4月到12月,每2月一次调查了竹仙洞水库水文、水质和浮游植物分布,分析了浮游植物群落季节动态特征.浮游植种类不多,5次采样共检到61种.在丰度上,浮游植物主要以衣藻(Chlamydomonas sp.)、小环藻(Cyclotella meneghiniana)、游丝藻(Planktonema sp.)和隐藻(Cryptomonas sp.)等优势种为主,在生物量上以绿藻和硅藻为优势类群.蓝藻在竹仙洞水库的相对优势并不明显.应用典范对应分析(CCA)对竹仙洞水库浮游植物与环境因子关系分析,环境因子中的pH值、水位、正磷和水力滞留时间对浮游植物的分布影响最大;而透明度和降雨量对其也有一定的影响.从种类分布状况看,衣藻、游丝藻、隐藻对水体中环境因子的敏感性明显高于其它种类,这些种类的相对丰度在低温、低水位和较长水力滞留时间的4月份较高;硅藻门的直链藻(Melosira spp.)、菱形藻(Nitzchia sp.)和裸藻门的梭裸藻(Euglena acus)3种细胞体积较大的种类分布主要受降雨量和透明度的影响,在6月、8月和12月具有较高的相对丰度.与其它热带-亚热带富营养型水库相比,竹仙洞水库的浮游植物群落具有种类相对较少、以绿藻丰度较大的特点;直径在20 μm以上的鞭毛绿藻和丝状绿藻以及细胞较小的硅藻门的小环藻是生物量的主要贡献者,短水力滞留时间是浮游植物群落结构与动态变化的关键控制因子.     

A model of Cellular Automata for the spatial and temporal analysis of Citrus Sudden Death with the fuzzy parameter

Citrus Sudden Death (CSD) is a disease that has affected sweet orange trees grafted on Rangpur lime in the south of Minas Gerais state and in the north of São Paulo state (Brazil). This is a worrying characteristic because the Rangpur lime responds to 85% of the Brazilian citrus rootstocks. This disease is believed to be caused by a virus transmitted by aphids (vector) of the citrus. In this work, we have adopted the Cellular Automata model (CA) to study the temporal evolution of the disease. We take into account the effect of the wind in the space covered by the aphid. To establish the relationship between the space covered by the aphid and the intensity of the wind, we have adopted the rule-based fuzzy system. Simulations were performed and compared to real data. Through the use of the mean absolute error (MAE) method, it was possible to verify a 70% of similarity between our model of data and the real one.     

北江表层沉积物中铊污染的生态风险

为了解珠江水系北江流域表层沉积物中铊的含量,并在此基础上评价珠江流域北江铊污染现状及其生态风险,该研究于2006年采集了广东省北江韶关至清远段的沉积物样品,采用混酸消解后,使用ICP-MS测定了沉积物中铊的含量,应用潜在生态危害指数对北江的铊污染和生态危害进行评价.结果表明,珠江水系北江河段沉积物已达到了较高的铊污染水平,对周围环境存在着较高的铊生态风险.北江干流沉积物中的铊质量浓度范围为0.92 ~ 2.32 mg·kg-1,平均值为1.70 mg·kg-1;各支流沉积物中铊质量浓度范围为1.02 ~ 3.22 mg·kg-1.个别采样点,特别是接近韶关冶炼厂排放口附近沉积物中铊的含量达到7.78 mg·kg-1,具有极高的铊生态风险.对于北江各支流,铊的污染程度与潜在生态风险程度由高到低的排序为马坝河>武江>浈江>滨江>龙塘河,其中马坝河沉积物铊存在高度的生态风险.     

Resource limitation of bacterial production distorts the temperature dependence of oceanic carbon cycling

Our view of the effects of temperature on bacterial carbon fluxes in the ocean has been confounded by the interplay of resource availability. Using an extensive compilation of cell-specific bacterial respiration (BRi) and production (BPi), we show that both physiological rates respond to changing temperature in a similar manner and follow the predictions of the metabolic theory of ecology. Their apparently different temperature dependence under warm, oligotrophic conditions is due to strong resource limitation of BP, but not of BRi. Thus, and despite previous preconception, bacterial growth efficiency (BGE = BPi/[BPi + BRi]) is not directly regulated by temperature, but by the availability of substrates for growth. We develop simple equations that can be used for the estimation of bacterial community metabolism from temperature, chlorophyll concentration, and bacterial abundance. Since bacteria are the greatest living planktonic biomass, our results challenge current understanding of how warming and shifts in ecosystem trophic state will modify oceanic carbon cycle feedbacks to climate change.     

Sex,food and conflicts: nutrition dependent nuptial feeding and pre-mating struggles in scorpionflies

Female and male reproductive interests often differ. In species in which matings are accompanied by a transfer of resources valuable for both participants, such as nuptial prey gifts, conflicts may readily occur. Scorpionflies may use alternative mating tactics. One is to offer a prey item (dead arthropod) to females in exchange for mating. This prey gift tactic includes a conflict because a male must decide on whether to offer the gift rather than to fight the female and consume the gift. The outcome may depend on the nutritional status of both males and females. Males may be more willing to give if they themselves are satiated and the condition of the females may influence the payoff from the males’ investment. Similarly, females may be more willing to accept food gifts if they are in poor nutritional condition. In this study of the scorpionfly Panorpa cognata, I experimentally manipulated the feeding history of both males and females. I observed the outcome of the direct interactions that followed when males that were holding prey were approached by females. I found that well-fed males offered the food gift sooner than males in poor nutritional condition that fed extensively on the food item before offering. Female condition had no significant influence on whether prey items were offered by males or accepted by females. I also found that well-fed males rarely searched for prey to pursue the prey gift tactic in courtship. Thus, the prey tactic does not seem to be the males’ first option.