The cost of success: reproductive effort in male southern elephant seals (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Mirounga leonina</Emphasis>)

Reproductive effort is a key parameter of life history because it measures the resources allocated to reproduction at the expense of growth and maintenance. Male reproductive effort always had a minor role with respect to female effort both in the development of theories and in field research. Elephant seals are an ideal subject for reproductive effort studies because they fast during the breeding season, splitting the phase of energy acquisition from the phase of energy use for breeding. In this paper, we present results on male reproductive effort (weight loss estimated by photogrammetry) in southern elephant seals (Mirounga leonina), the most dimorphic and polygynous of all mammal species. We show that total reproductive effort increases with age, with no sign of late decrease or senescence. Male reproductive effort in this species depends mostly on behavioral factors, i.e., the success in competition with other males, and the intensity of interaction with females. A large effort results in large gains in both mating success and fertilizations. The large reproductive success that a few males are able to achieve come at a big cost in terms of energy expenditure, but this cost does not seem to affect the likelihood of survival to the following breeding season.     

Reproductive strategy and singing activity: blue tit and great tit compared

The costs and benefits of bird song are likely to vary among species, and different singing patterns may reflect differences in reproductive strategies. We compared temporal patterns of singing activity in two songbird species, the blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus) and the great tit (Parus major). The two species live side by side year round, and they have similar breeding ecology and similar rates of extra-pair paternity. However, they differ in two aspects of reproductive strategy that may have an influence on song output: blue tits are facultatively polygynous and have a fairly short breeding season with almost no second broods, whereas great tits are socially monogamous but more commonly raise second broods. We found that great tit males continued singing at high levels during the egg-laying and incubation periods, while monogamously paired blue tit males strongly reduced singing activity after the first days of egg-laying by their female. Since males of both species sang much more intensely shortly before sunrise than after sunrise, at midday or in the evening, this difference was most conspicuous at dawn. No differences in singing activity were found within species when testing for male age. We suggest that in contrast to blue tits, great tit males continued singing after egg-laying to defend the territory and to encourage the female for a possible second brood.     

Multi-dimension apportionment of clean air “parade blue”phenomenon in Beijing

The mass concentration and major chemical components of fine particulate matter were measured before, during and after Beijing''s massive parade commemorating 70th anniversary of the Chinese Victory in World War II on September 3, 2015. Regional emission inventory, positive matrix factorization (PMF), observations from space and backward air mass trajectories were jointly applied to identify the major pollution sources and their temporal and spatial variations. The contributions of emissions, their variations and the meteorological conditions related to the “parade blue” phenomenon in Beijing and its surrounding areas were investigated in detail. The main cause of the decreased PM_2.5 mass concentration was attributed to the absolute reduction in emissions of primary air pollutants. The chemical composition of PM_2.5 varied significantly before, during and after the parade. Fugitive dust particles were well controlled, the secondary formation of PM_2.5 was reduced along with the controlled gaseous precursors'' emissions from vehicles and industrial sources during the temporary intensified control period. During the parade period, the SO₂ and NO₂ column concentrations in Beijing and the surrounding areas decreased sharply, indicating that the coordinated reduction in primary emissions from the surrounding areas of Beijing played an important role in lowering the ambient concentration of SO₂ and NO₂ and accordingly lowered PM_2.5 and improved the regional air quality. A comparison of the temperature, humidity, and wind speed and direction during the same periods in 2014 and 2015 showed that the meteorological conditions positively influenced the achievement of “parade blue”.     

Occurrence and congeners specific of polychlorinated biphenyls in agricultural soils from Southern Jiangsu, China

A total of 198 agricultural soil samples were collected from Zhangjiagang and Changshu in Southern Jiangsu for analysis of 13 polychlorinated biphenyls （PCBs） in order to assess the levels of pollution, sources, area distribution, and potential risk for the environment. All methods were rigorously tested and an adequate quality control was ensured. Only one site had no PCBs residues, and the highest total PCBs concentration in the surface soils was 32.83 ng/g. The average concentration in all the soil samples was 4.13 ng/g, signaling low-level pollution. Tetra-, penta-, and hexa-chlorinated biphenyls were dominant species in soil samples, accounting for more than 75% of ∑PCBs in the soil samples. PCB118 was the most abundant congener in all the samples. The PCB118 was about 20% of ∑PCBs. The soil organic matter content showed only a weak correlation with the levels of all PCB congeners, in which a better correlation was noted for the more volatile lighter PCB congeners than for the heavier homologues. To a certain extent, the sources and land use seemed to influence the levels of PCBs.     

玄武湖蓝藻水华应急治理成效分析

2005年9-10月间，以粘土法为主，对玄武湖蓝藻水华进行了应急治理。经监测表明，应急治理有效抑制了蓝藻水华，湖区景观明显改善。形成蓝藻水华的微囊藻，各湖区下降幅度大于95％。综合污染指数、富营养化程度均有不同程度的降低，水体透明度提高0．14m，水质化学耗氧量、高锰酸盐指数、总磷浓度大幅降低，但生态补水主要流经区域pH无明显改善，各湖区总氮超标率有所上升。浮游植物数量下降93％，浮游动物种群数量上升47％，底栖动物种类数量无显著变化。相对静止水域细菌总数持平，生态补水流经区域细菌总数下降幅度较大。治理期间未发现大型水生植物、鱼虾批量死亡。沉积物中，铜、铅、砷含量无明显差异，汞含量升高，但低于往年监测水平，有机质略有升高，总磷含量有较大幅度上升。     

Estimates of (239+240)Pu inventories in Gdańsk Bay and Gdańsk basin

This paper presents and discusses the results of (239+240)Pu determinations in different components of Gdańsk bay and Gdańsk basin ecosystem, as well as estimated sources and inventories of plutonium in these basins. The total plutonium (239+240)Pu activities deposited in Gdańsk bay and Gdańsk basin sediments are 1.18 TBq and 3.77 TBq, respectively. Two rivers, the Vistula and Neman rivers, and atmospheric fallout were distinguished as the main sources of plutonium in these basins. In seawater (with suspended matter included) there is about 2.33 GBq (239+240)Pu (0.2% of total activity) in Gdańsk bay and 9.92 GBq (239+240)Pu (0.3% of total activity) in Gdańsk basin. In both cases, 56% of (239+240)Pu is associated with suspended matter. Organisms contain 3.81 MBq in Gdańsk bay and 7.45 MBq (239+240)Pu in Gdańsk basin. From this value in Gdańsk bay 82.1% of plutonium is associated with zoobenthos, 13.6% with phytobenthos, 1.6% with phytoplankton, 1.5% with zooplankton and 1.2% with fish. In Gdańsk basin, 83.2% is associated with zoobenthos, 7.5% with phytobenthos, 3.6% with phytoplankton, 3.2% with zooplankton and 2.5% with fish.     

黑曲霉(ASPERGILLUS NIGER)SG株三磷酸甘油醛脱氢酶基因的分离与初步鉴定

黑曲霉（Ａｓｐｅｒｇｉｌｕｓｎｉｇｅｒ）在工业生产和科学研究中占有重要地位,因为许多黑曲霉菌株能产生有机酸和酶制剂,并能分泌大量蛋白质到细胞外［１,６］．三磷酸甘油醛脱氢酶（Ｇｌｙｃｅｒａｌｄｅｈｙｄｅ３ｐｈｏｓｐｈａｔｅｄｅｈｙｄｒｏｇｅｎａ...     

Mapping probability of fire occurrence in San Jacinto Mountains,California, USA

An ecological data base for the San Jacinto Mountains, California, USA, was used to construct a probability model of wildland fire occurrence. The model incorporates both environmental and human factors, including vegetation, temperature, precipitation, human structures, and transportation. Spatial autocorrelation was examined for both fire activity and vegetation to determine the specification of neighborhood effects in the model. Parameters were estimated using stepwise logistic regressions. Among the explanatory variables, the variable that represents the neighborhood effects of spatial processes is shown to be of great importance in the distribution of wildland fires. An important implication of this result is that the management of wildland fires must take into consideration neighborhood effects in addition to environmental and human factors. The distribution of fire occurrence probability is more accurately mapped when the model incorporates the spatial term of neighborhood effects. The map of fire occurrence probability is useful for designing large-scale management strategies of wildfire prevention.     

EFFECTS OF CLIMATE VARIABILITY ON RIVERS: CONSEQUENCES FOR LONG TERM WATER QUALITY ANALYSIS1

ABSTRACT: Associations between the El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) climate pattern and temporal variability in flow and 12 water quality variables were assessed at 77 river sites throughout New Zealand over a 13‐year period (1989 through 2001). Trends in water quality were determined for the same period. All 13 variables showed statistically significant linear regression relationships with values of the Southern Oscillation Index (SOI). The strongest relationships were for water temperature (mean R²= 0.20), dissolved reactive phosphorus (0.18), and oxidized nitrogen (0.17). The association with SOI varied by climate region. The observed patterns were generally consistent with known ENSO effects on New Zealand rainfall and air temperature. Trends in water quality variables for the periods 1989 through 1993, 1994 through 1998, and 1989 through 1998 were reasonably consistent with trends in SOI, even when the influence of river flow was removed from the data. This suggests that SOI effects on water quality are not necessarily a direct consequence of changes in flow associated with rainfall variation. In addition, both Baseline (32 upstream) and Impact (45 downstream) sites showed similar trends, indicating that changes in management were not directly responsible. We conclude that interpretation of long term water quality datasets in rivers requires that climate variability be fully acknowledged and dealt with explicitly in trend analyses.     

Landscape evaluation in environmental assessment and land use planning

Landscape is equated with the term scenery and is considered as an environmental resource. The need for an evaluation of scenery in environmental assessment statements is outlined. Three established methods of landscape evaluation are tested in a section of the Niagara Peninsula of southern Ontario. The methods are compared in terms of the nature of results produced and the time/manpower requirements for field data collection. The amenability of the methods to analysis from a cartographic data base is also considered. The simpler Newkirk and Linton methods produce readily useable data quickly, whereas the Leopold method not only yields data on scenic resources but can also be used to relate such results to other environmental attributes and processes.