Experimental Test of Postfire Management in Pine Forests: Impact of Salvage Logging versus Partial Cutting and Nonintervention on Bird–Species Assemblages

Abstract: There is an intense debate about the effects of postfire salvage logging versus nonintervention policies on regeneration of forest communities, but scant information from experimental studies is available. We manipulated a burned forest area on a Mediterranean mountain to experimentally analyze the effect of salvage logging on bird–species abundance, diversity, and assemblage composition. We used a randomized block design with three plots of approximately 25 ha each, established along an elevational gradient in a recently burned area in Sierra Nevada Natural and National Park (southeastern Spain). Three replicates of three treatments differing in postfire burned wood management were established per plot: salvage logging, nonintervention, and an intermediate degree of intervention (felling and lopping most of the trees but leaving all the biomass). Starting 1 year after the fire, we used point sampling to monitor bird abundance in each treatment for 2 consecutive years during the breeding and winter seasons (720 censuses total). Postfire burned‐wood management altered species assemblages. Salvage logged areas had species typical of open‐ and early‐successional habitats. Bird species that inhabit forests were still present in the unsalvaged treatments even though trees were burned, but were almost absent in salvage‐logged areas. Indeed, the main dispersers of mid‐ and late‐successional shrubs and trees, such as thrushes (Turdus spp.) and the European Jay (Garrulus glandarius) were almost restricted to unsalvaged treatments. Salvage logging might thus hamper the natural regeneration of the forest through its impact on assemblages of bird species. Moreover, salvage logging reduced species abundance by 50% and richness by 40%, approximately. The highest diversity at the landscape level (gamma diversity) resulted from a combination of all treatments. Salvage logging may be positive for bird conservation if combined in a mosaic with other, less‐aggressive postfire management, but stand‐wide management with harvest operations has undesirable conservation effects.     

Hunter Reporting of Catch per Unit Effort as a Monitoring Tool in a Bushmeat‐Harvesting System

Abstract: Growing threats to biodiversity in the tropics mean there is an increasing need for effective monitoring that balances scientific rigor with practical feasibility. Alternatives to professional techniques are emerging that are based on the involvement of local people. Such locally based monitoring methods may be more sustainable over time, allow greater spatial coverage and quicker management decisions, lead to increased compliance, and help encourage attitude shifts toward more environmentally sustainable practices. Nevertheless, few studies have yet compared the findings or cost‐effectiveness of locally based methods with professional techniques or investigated the power of locally based methods to detect trends. We gathered data on bushmeat‐hunting catch and effort using a professional technique (accompanying hunters on hunting trips) and two locally based methods in which data were collected by hunters (hunting camp diaries and weekly hunter interviews) in a 15‐month study in Equatorial Guinea. Catch and effort results from locally based methods were strongly correlated with those of the professional technique and the spatial locations of hunting trips reported in the locally based methods accurately reflected those recorded with the professional technique. We used power simulations of catch and effort data to show that locally based methods can reliably detect meaningful levels of change (20% change with 80% power at significance level [α]= 0.05) in multispecies catch per unit effort. Locally based methods were the most cost‐effective for monitoring. Hunter interviews collected catch and effort data on 240% more hunts per person hour and 94% more hunts per unit cost, spent on monitoring, than the professional technique. Our results suggest that locally based monitoring can offer an accurate, cost‐effective, and sufficiently powerful method to monitor the status of natural resources. To establish such a system in Equatorial Guinea, the current lack of national and local capacity for monitoring and management must be addressed.     

辽宁省气候-植被指标时空变化特征及森林适宜性分析

基于辽宁省56个气象站的气象资料,利用Kira的温暖指数（WI）、寒冷指数（CI）和徐文铎的湿度指数（HI）分析辽宁省近40年（1967-2006年）气候-植被指标的时空变异。结果表明,就辽宁省区域平均值而言,WI指数呈升高趋势,每10年增加幅度为2.47℃·月,CI指数呈下降趋势,每10年下降幅度为2.31℃·月,HI总体呈下降趋势,波动较WI和CI明显,从气候—植被指数变化趋势看,对红松Pinus koraiensis Sieboldet Zuccarini、长白落叶松Larixolgensis等不利,而对油松Pinu stabulaeformis Carr、栓皮栎Quercus vari abilis Blume等树种有利。空间变化特征表现为,温暖指数界限呈向西北移动的趋势,表明暖温带落叶阔叶疏林带的适宜面积增加,而温带针阔叶混交林带的适宜面积减小;HI指数减小并且向东移,表明随着指数带的北移和东移缩小限制了原有针叶树种的生长,而对栎树Phytophthora ramorum等阔叶树种有利。     

武汉市城市绿化树种结构与分布特征分析

针对武汉市城市森林的抽样调查分析表明,城市树木树种构成集聚性明显而多样性相对较差、长势一般;城市扰动因素明显影响了树木的自然生长过程。在所调查的93种植物中,其总体多样性指数为0.727 8;行道绿地为0.187;公园绿地为4.296。结果表明武汉市城市森林的基本格局、树种结构,以及树种分布上均有待于改善。     

Habitat Split as a Cause of Local Population Declines of Amphibians with Aquatic Larvae

Abstract:  Most amphibian species have biphasic life histories and undergo an ontogenetic shift from aquatic to terrestrial habitats. In deforested landscapes, streams and forest fragments are frequently disjunct, jeopardizing the life cycle of forest-associated amphibians with aquatic larvae. We tested the impact of habitat split—defined as human-induced disconnection between habitats used by different life-history stages of a species—on four forest-associated amphibian species in a severely fragmented landscape of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. We surveyed amphibians in forest fragments with and without streams (referred to as wet and dry fragments, respectively), including the adjacent grass-field matrix. Our comparison of capture rates in dry fragments and nearby streams in the matrix allowed us to evaluate the number of individuals that engaged in high-risk migrations through nonforested habitats. Adult amphibians moved from dry fragments to matrix streams at the beginning of the rainy season, reproduced, and returned at the end of the breeding period. Juveniles of the year moved to dry fragments along with adults. These risky reproductive migrations through nonforested habitats that expose individuals to dehydration, predation, and other hazards may cause population declines in dry fragments. Indeed, capture rates were significantly lower in dry fragments compared with wet fragments. Declining amphibians would strongly benefit from investments in the conservation and restoration of riparian vegetation and corridors linking breeding and nonbreeding areas.     

Designing Climate-Smart Conservation: Guidance and Case Studies

Abstract:  To be successful, conservation practitioners and resource managers must fully integrate the effects of climate change into all planning projects. Some conservation practitioners are beginning to develop, test, and implement new approaches that are designed to deal with climate change. We devised four basic tenets that are essential in climate-change adaptation for conservation: protect adequate and appropriate space, reduce nonclimate stresses, use adaptive management to implement and test climate-change adaptation strategies, and work to reduce the rate and extent of climate change to reduce overall risk. To illustrate how this approach applies in the real world, we explored case studies of coral reefs in the Florida Keys; mangrove forests in Fiji, Tanzania, and Cameroon; sea-level rise and sea turtles in the Caribbean; tigers in the Sundarbans of India; and national planning in Madagascar. Through implementation of these tenets conservation efforts in each of these regions can be made more robust in the face of climate change. Although these approaches require reconsidering some traditional approaches to conservation, this new paradigm is technologically, economically, and intellectually feasible.     

Biodiversity Differences between Managed and Unmanaged Forests: Meta-Analysis of Species Richness in Europe

Abstract: Past and present pressures on forest resources have led to a drastic decrease in the surface area of unmanaged forests in Europe. Changes in forest structure, composition, and dynamics inevitably lead to changes in the biodiversity of forest‐dwelling species. The possible biodiversity gains and losses due to forest management (i.e., anthropogenic pressures related to direct forest resource use), however, have never been assessed at a pan‐European scale. We used meta‐analysis to review 49 published papers containing 120 individual comparisons of species richness between unmanaged and managed forests throughout Europe. We explored the response of different taxonomic groups and the variability of their response with respect to time since abandonment and intensity of forest management. Species richness was slightly higher in unmanaged than in managed forests. Species dependent on forest cover continuity, deadwood, and large trees (bryophytes, lichens, fungi, saproxylic beetles) and carabids were negatively affected by forest management. In contrast, vascular plant species were favored. The response for birds was heterogeneous and probably depended more on factors such as landscape patterns. The global difference in species richness between unmanaged and managed forests increased with time since abandonment and indicated a gradual recovery of biodiversity. Clearcut forests in which the composition of tree species changed had the strongest effect on species richness, but the effects of different types of management on taxa could not be assessed in a robust way because of low numbers of replications in the management‐intensity classes. Our results show that some taxa are more affected by forestry than others, but there is a need for research into poorly studied species groups in Europe and in particular locations. Our meta‐analysis supports the need for a coordinated European research network to study and monitor the biodiversity of different taxa in managed and unmanaged forests.     

桂西北喀斯特区原生林与次生林凋落物及养分归还特征比较

森林凋落物是森林生态系统的重要组成成分,其养分归还量在一定程度上决定着土壤养分有效性的高低。在土层浅薄且土被很不连续的我国喀斯特区域进行凋落物生物量及养分归还研究对我们更深刻地了解该区养分循环具有至关重要的意义。本文比较分析了桂西北喀斯特区3种原生林与3种次生林的全年凋落物量、组成、月凋落物量动态及养分归还量与动态。结果表明,圆果化香(Platycarya longipes Wu)、大叶蚊母树(Distylium Sieb.et Zucc.)与青檀(Pteroceltis tatarinowii Maxim.)3种原生林的年凋落物总量分别为2342.16,4057.99和1834.36kg·hm-2,而圆叶乌桕(Sapium rotundifolium Hemsl.)、八角枫(Alangium chinense(Lour.) Harms)和黄荆(Vitex negundo L.)3种次生林的年凋落物总量分别为3192.82,3284.26,2469.90kg·hm-2,除大叶蚊母树外,次生林年凋落物总量大于原生林。凋落物的组成中,叶凋落生物量均占总凋落物量的80%左右,甚至更高,而圆叶乌桕、八角枫和黄荆3种次生林群落的叶凋落物量占总凋落物量的百分比大于圆果化香、大叶蚊母树以及青檀3种原生林。凋落物的养分归还量的月动态与凋落物量的月动态一致,原生林呈"U"形曲线,而次生林则呈"W"形曲线。原生林和次生林凋落物的年养分归还量均为C﹥N﹥K﹥P,且次生林的C、N、P养分的归还量大于原生林。     

间伐对生态公益林冠层结构及土壤养分的影响

为定量分析上海城郊生态公益林间伐后林分冠层结构变化及对林下环境的影响,2009年7月采用TRAC植物冠层分析仪研究了香樟（Cinnamomum camphora）、杜英（Elaeocarpus sylvestris）和栾树（Koelreuteria paniculata）3种生态公益林间伐2年后林分冠层结构参数,设置临时样方调查各林分林下植物分布及生物量,测定了土壤N、P、K和有机质的变化。结果表明：间伐后3种林分的LAI、丛生指数和平均接触次数均降低,而间隙分数增大。间伐增加了林分间隙和LAI的空间异质性,间伐后3个树种LAI变异系数增加了19%～45%。轻度间伐后香樟、杜英和栾树林下PPFD（Photosynthetic Photon Flux Density）分别是未间伐林分的1.6、7和2.1倍,重度间伐香樟林内PPFD增大了8.9倍。间伐后林下植物种类、总盖度和干生物量随林下PPFD增加呈增大趋势。除全P和全K含量没有变化外,林地土壤全N、速效K、速效P和有机质含量均比未间伐林地有不同程度降低,但轻度间伐杜英林地速效养分消耗显著高于香樟和栾树林分。因此,研究区生态公益林结构调控需根据树种特性和林下环境变化,确定适宜的发展模式,提高公益林的综合效益。     

上海市沿海防护林下土壤养分、微生物及酶的典型相关关系

以上海市沿海防护林为研究对象,选择6种不同树种的防护林带,采集0～10、10～20、20～40、40～60cm四层土样为研究材料,运用典型相关分析法,对防护林地土壤养分因子、微生物因子和酶活性因子中每两组变量间的相关性进行了分析。结果表明：三组变量土壤养分、微生物、酶活性中,每两者之间均有显著的典型相关变量存在,而且基本能够代表变量总体相关信息;土壤养分和土壤微生物间的相关主要由全氮、速效磷含量与微生物生物量氮、微生物生物量碳和微生物生物量磷引起;土壤养分与土壤酶活性间的相关性主要由全氮、有效磷、水解氮含量与脲酶、蛋白酶活性的相关性引起;土壤微生物与土壤酶活性间的相关性主要是由微生物生物量氮、微生物生物量磷与脲酶、蛋白酶、碱性磷酸酶活性的相关性引起;不同林地不同土壤层次的养分、微生物及酶活性在各对典型变量上的聚集趋势可为防护林建设过程中的树种选择与土壤健康诊提供一定的依据。