白令海峡及其附近海域气溶胶中金属元素含量特征

北极考察沿线气溶胶中金属元素质量浓度随纬度变化,其分别受到来自中国大陆粉尘及中国、日本、韩国、俄罗斯以及北美地区工业排放气溶胶的不同程度的影响.富集因子的计算结果表明,楚科奇海、日本海和白令海等海域元素的富集因子很接近. Fe,Co,Ni,As,Sb,W,Mo ,Mn和Ca与地表的风化关系密切,为地壳源元素;Ca,Mg总体为海洋源元素,主要来自海洋;Pb,Zn,Cd,V 和Cr相对地壳和海洋均为富集元素,主要可能来自矿产冶炼、工业排放、燃煤和燃油等人为污染源.北极楚科奇海、白令海、日本海、西太平洋、东印度洋、南大洋及我国中山站邻近海域海洋气溶胶中的微量重金属质量浓度均值对比表明,西太平洋气溶胶中的各种金属元素的平均质量浓度均远远高于其他地区.总体上看,北半球气溶胶受陆源性物质和人为污染源影响比南半球严重,其中楚科奇海较日本海和白令海严重,南半球气溶胶质量浓度则依纬度的升高而逐渐降低.气溶胶月总沉降通量具有明显的区域性,其大小排序为:西太平洋>楚科奇海>白令海和日本海>东印度洋>南大洋>中山站邻近海域.      

天津地区冬季总悬浮颗粒物中PAHs污染特征

采集并分析了天津不同区县13个样点冬季总悬浮颗粒物(TSP)中16种优控多环芳烃(PAHs)含量.结果表明不同样品间PAHs含量差异明显,东部开发区和中北部区县含量明显高于其它地区,大港油田的颗粒物中PAHs含量很低,市区、南部区县和北部山区居中.根据毒性等效因子计算了等效浓度,不同样品PAHs总等效浓度差异不大,占总浓度50%的高环PAHs毒性贡献达90%.     

夏季珠江口叶绿素a和营养盐分布特征及其与环境因子的关系

本研究基于2019年夏季珠江口附近海域的现场调查数据,分析了珠江口叶绿素a（chlorophyll a,Chl a）和营养盐的分布特征,并结合环境因子进行了探讨。结果表明:夏季珠江口海域表层Chl a和溶解氧（dissolved oxygen,DO）浓度分别为4.192～88.209 μg/L和4.610～10.586 mg/L;溶解无机氮（dissolved inorganic nitrogen,DIN）、活性磷酸盐（PO₄-P）和活性硅酸盐（SiO₃-Si）浓度分别为0.168～1.247 mg/L、0.011～0.044 mg/L和0.694～6.916 mg/L。夏季珠江口浮游植物生长旺盛,依据美国河口营养状况评价（NEEA-ASSETS）标准,44.4%的站位处于高度富营养化（20 μg/L60 μg/L）。珠江径流量是夏季珠江口浮游植物空间分布的主要驱动因素,珠江口口门内浮游植物生长受光限制和径流稀释影响并未出现高值,珠江口口门外浮游植物旺发消耗了大量磷酸盐,磷成为浮游植物生长的限制因子。Chl a与盐度、PO₄-P呈显著负相关性,与DIN、DIN/P呈显著正相关性,表明河口冲淡水对浮游植物生长影响显著。     

Understanding multiple ecological responses to anthropogenic disturbance: rivers and potential flow regime change

Human-induced alteration of the natural flow regime is a major threat to freshwater ecosystems and biodiversity. The effects of hydrological alteration on the structural and functional attributes of riverine communities are expected to be multiple and complex, and they may not be described easily by a single model. Based on existing knowledge of key hydrological and ecological attributes, we explored potential effects of a flow-regulation scenario on macroinvertebrate assemblage composition and diversity in two river systems in Australia's relatively undeveloped wet-dry tropics. We used a single Bayesian belief network (BBN) to model potential changes in multiple assemblage attributes within each river type during dry and wet seasons given two flow scenarios: the current, near-natural flow condition, and flow regulation. We then used multidimensional scaling (MDS) ordination to visually summarize and compare the most probable attributes of assemblages and their environment under the different scenarios. The flow-regulation scenario provided less certainty in the ecological responses of one river type during the dry season, which reduced the ability to make predictions from the BBN outputs directly. However, visualizing the BBN results in an ordination highlighted similarities and differences between the scenarios that may have been otherwise difficult to ascertain. In particular, the MDS showed that flow regulation would reduce the seasonal differentiation in hydrology and assemblage characteristics that is expected under the current low level of development. Our approach may have wider application in understanding ecosystem responses to different river management practices and should be transferred easily to other ecosystems or biotic assemblages to provide researchers, managers, and decision makers an enhanced understanding of ecological responses to potential anthropogenic disturbance.     

Evaluation of the antimutagenic and antiradical potentials of extracts from the tubers of (Tunisian) Cyperus rotundus

The mutagenic potential of aqueous, total oligomers flavonoids (TOF), ethyl acetate and methanol extracts from tubers of Cyperus rotundus L. was assessed using Ames Salmonella tester strains TA98 and TA100, and SOS chromotest strain Escherichia coli PQ37 with and without metabolic activation (S9). None of the different extracts produced a mutagenic effect. Likewise, the antimutagenicity of the same extracts was tested using the “Ames test” and the “SOS chromotest”. Our results showed that C. rotundus extracts possess antimutagenic effects against S. typhimurium TA98 and TA100 strains towards the mutagen aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), similar to E. coli PQ37 strain against AFB1 and Nifuroxazide mutagens using the SOS chromotest assay. A free radical scavenging test was used in order to explore the antioxidant capacity of the extracts obtained from the tubers of C. rotundus. TOF, ethyl acetate and methanol extracts showed an important free radical scavenging activity towards the 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazine (DPPH) free radical. These extracts showed an IC50 value of respectively 5, 20 and 65?µg?mL^?1. The beneficial effects of TOF, ethyl acetate and methanol extracts of C. rotundus were assessed by antioxidant and antimutagenic activities.     

Morphological diversity of Struvite crystals produced by Myxococcus Coralloides and Myxococcus Xanthus

We studied the morphological diversity of struvite crystals produced by Myxococcus coralloides and Myxococcus xanthus in different culture conditions. We discussed the similarities of these crystals with the struvite morphology studied previously following the theory of the periodic bond chains.     

Energy transition and its implications for environmentally sustainable development in Africa

SUMMARY

Energy transition is the process whereby there is an increase in the volume and proportion of commercial energy, to the extent that it replaces traditional fuels as the main source of energy and having enormous implications for the physical and biotic environment. This energy-environment process has rarely been the focus of research investigation in Africa. Using cross-national data drawn from the African continent, this paper examines and accounts for intercountry variations in the nature and extent of the energy transition process. The empirical analysis reveals that, for the continent as a whole, the extent to which commercial energy replaces traditional fuels is quite low. It varies between 33% and 39%. However, inter-country variations were found to be as high as 90% in countries such as Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco and South Africa; and less than 15% for such countries as Benin, Burkina Faso, The Central African Republic, Ethiopia, Lesotho and Uganda. The key factors explaining intercounty variations in the energy transition process are the level of urbanization and the extent of forest and woodland resources. Other factors of secondary importance include economic growth, incidence of poverty, affordability of electrical appliances, energy trade status of the country in question and the price of commercial fuel. Finally, the paper shows that the identification of these key energy transition-inducing variables is a necessary prerequisite to an effective energy and environmentally sustainable development policy formulation in Africa.     

Agricultural production and bird conservation in complex landscapes of the dry Chaco

The South American dry Chaco is a mosaic of woody vegetation and grasslands with high deforestation rates in recent decades. Considering forests and grasslands as the main natural habitats, we assessed the trade-offs between bird populations and agricultural production to compare the potential consequences of different land use strategies (‘sharing’, ‘sparing’, and intermediate) for populations of bird species sensitive to agriculture, while attaining a regional production target. We evaluated how populations responded to scenarios with different proportions of forest and grasslands, considering three reference states (100% forest, 80:20% and 50:50% forest and grasslands, respectively); and scenarios capable of meeting three after-farming scenarios, with land destined to reach a regional production target with three variations of forest:grasslands within spared land. We fitted curves to relate bird abundance to agricultural yield along a gradient of meat production intensity; and we classified bird species as ‘losers’ (if their populations were lower than the baseline population in the reference state, at any level of production) and ‘winners’ (if their current populations were higher than the baseline population). At the ‘current’ (c. 2010) level of regional agricultural production, we found a similar number of loser species maximized by land-sparing and land-sharing strategies; while intermediate strategies were the least favourable to balance production and bird populations. Under the most probable scenarios of increases in regional meat production, most loser bird species populations were maximized by a land-sparing strategy, suggesting that if meat production targets are going to increase in the region, this can be more efficiently achieved by combining well-protected forests and grasslands, and high-yielding mechanized agriculture (e.g. soybean). Our results highlight the importance of assessing all the important natural habitats (e.g. forests and grasslands) of a region to explore conservation strategies at a regional scale.     

Flow regime affects building behaviour and nest structure in sticklebacks

Animals usually build nests to provide protection, for themselves or their offspring, from adverse environmental conditions. However, different nest structures may be better at providing protection in different environments. The ability to adjust building behaviour and design of nests in response to variation in environmental conditions is therefore likely to be important in determining individual fitness. Here, we look at how the nests of three-spined stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) males differ between still and flowing water conditions. Within flowing water treatments, we find that males select nesting sites with lower than average flow. We also find that nests built in flowing water are smaller and more streamlined than those built in still water. Nests built in flowing water contain more spiggin—an endogenous glycoprotein secreted by nesting males—per gramme of nest material than still water nests, though the absolute spiggin content of nests did not vary with flow regime. These results suggest that male sticklebacks may adjust nest-site selection and nest structure to suit environmental conditions in which they are building. Because flow regime is a factor that is often altered by anthropogenic activities, such as impoundment, channelization and abstraction, this study may also have implications for the conservation of freshwater fish populations.