Trait space of rare plants in a fire‐dependent ecosystem

The causes of species rarity are of critical concern because of the high extinction risk associated with rarity. Studies examining individual rare species have limited generality, whereas trait‐based approaches offer a means to identify functional causes of rarity that can be applied to communities with disparate species pools. Differences in functional traits between rare and common species may be indicative of the functional causes of species rarity and may therefore be useful in crafting species conservation strategies. However, there is a conspicuous lack of studies comparing the functional traits of rare species and co‐occurring common species. We measured 18 important functional traits for 19 rare and 134 common understory plant species from North Carolina's Sandhills region and compared their trait distributions to determine whether there are significant functional differences that may explain species rarity. Flowering, fire, and tissue‐chemistry traits differed significantly between rare and common, co‐occurring species. Differences in specific traits suggest that fire suppression has driven rarity in this system and that changes to the timing and severity of prescribed fire may improve conservation success. Our method provides a useful tool to prioritize conservation efforts in other systems based on the likelihood that rare species are functionally capable of persisting.     

三种强度准则的盐穴应力弹塑性解及参数敏感性分析

为了更安全地建造地下盐穴储气库，采用Hoek-Brown(H-B)，Mohr-Coulomb(M-C)及Drucker-Prager(D-P)3种强度准则，推导了在内压作用下盐穴的塑性区应力解及塑性半径，讨论了各准则对塑性区半径的影响规律及各准则参数的估计方法。分别运用单因素分析法及多因素分析法，分析了塑性半径对H-B准则参数的敏感性。研究结果表明:同等条件下，H-B准则受岩性、造腔等因素影响时，微小内压的波动使得塑性半径的变化更剧烈，岩体质量较差时更显著。盐穴塑性应力与M-C，D-P相比偏小，更接近实际工程状况。围岩塑性半径受H-B准则参数影响程度的大小依次为:GSI，mi，σci，D。各参数的互相关性对结果影响不大。其中，H-B准则参数GSI，mi，σci的增大会使塑性半径减小，参数D的增大使得塑性区半径增大。研究成果可为合理选择盐穴储库硐室的力学模型及优化参数提供参考价值。     

Using environmental heterogeneity to plan for sea‐level rise

Environmental heterogeneity is increasingly being used to select conservation areas that will provide for future biodiversity under a variety of climate scenarios. This approach, termed conserving nature's stage (CNS), assumes environmental features respond to climate change more slowly than biological communities, but will CNS be effective if the stage were to change as rapidly as the climate? We tested the effectiveness of using CNS to select sites in salt marshes for conservation in coastal Georgia (U.S.A.), where environmental features will change rapidly as sea level rises. We calculated species diversity based on distributions of 7 bird species with a variety of niches in Georgia salt marshes. Environmental heterogeneity was assessed across six landscape gradients (e.g., elevation, salinity, and patch area). We used 2 approaches to select sites with high environmental heterogeneity: site complementarity (environmental diversity [ED]) and local environmental heterogeneity (environmental richness [ER]). Sites selected based on ER predicted present‐day species diversity better than randomly selected sites (up to an 8.1% improvement), were resilient to areal loss from SLR (1.0% average areal loss by 2050 compared with 0.9% loss of randomly selected sites), and provided habitat to a threatened species (0.63 average occupancy compared with 0.6 average occupancy of randomly selected sites). Sites selected based on ED predicted species diversity no better or worse than random and were not resilient to SLR (2.9% average areal loss by 2050). Despite the discrepancy between the 2 approaches, CNS is a viable strategy for conservation site selection in salt marshes because the ER approach was successful. It has potential for application in other coastal areas where SLR will affect environmental features, but its performance may depend on the magnitude of geological changes caused by SLR. Our results indicate that conservation planners that had heretofore excluded low‐lying coasts from CNS planning could include coastal ecosystems in regional conservation strategies.     

Tracking a half century of media reporting on gray wolves

Natural resource and wildlife managers must balance the disparate priorities of a diversity of stakeholders. To manage these priorities, a firm understanding of topics salient to the public is needed. The media often report on issues of importance to the public; therefore, these reports may be a useful measure of public interest. However, efficient methods for distinguishing diverse topics related to a wildlife management issue reported in the media and changes in the salience of those topics have been lacking. We used latent Dirichlet allocation, a Bayesian mixture model, to quantitatively assess the salience of topics surrounding the gray wolf (Canis lupus), which was reintroduced to Idaho (U.S.A.) in 1995. We analyzed articles published from 1960 to 2015 in an Idaho newspaper. We identified 6 distinct topics associated with gray wolves: policy, hunting, biological status, implementation of management, recovery, and human-wolf conflict. The salience of topics pre- and postreintroduction of wolves (1995) and pre- and postdelisting of wolves from the U.S. Endangered Species Act (2009) differed significantly, underscoring that these events were turning points in how issues were being publicly discussed and framed. Articles written by the local reporters were more likely to report on topics regarding conflict between humans and wolves, whereas articles sourced from a national outlet reported more on topics pertaining to wolf policy and biological status. In the context of managing a contentious, far-ranging, and long-lived wildlife species, our methods can help guide the location and timing of a suite of management strategies (e.g., media relation plans and stakeholder engagement) that promote human-wildlife coexistence across different landscapes.     

Credibility and advocacy in conservation science

Conservation policy sits at the nexus of natural science and politics. On the one hand, conservation scientists strive to maintain scientific credibility by emphasizing that their research findings are the result of disinterested observations of reality. On the other hand, conservation scientists are committed to conservation even if they do not advocate a particular policy. The professional conservation literature offers guidance on negotiating the relationship between scientific objectivity and political advocacy without damaging conservation science's credibility. The value of this guidance, however, may be restricted by limited recognition of credibility's multidimensionality and emergent nature: it emerges through perceptions of expertise, goodwill, and trustworthiness. We used content analysis of the literature to determine how credibility is framed in conservation science as it relates to apparent contradictions between science and advocacy. Credibility typically was framed as a static entity lacking dimensionality. Authors identified expertise or trustworthiness as important, but rarely mentioned goodwill. They usually did not identify expertise, goodwill, or trustworthiness as dimensions of credibility or recognize interactions among these 3 dimensions of credibility. This oversimplification may limit the ability of conservation scientists to contribute to biodiversity conservation. Accounting for the emergent quality and multidimensionality of credibility should enable conservation scientists to advance biodiversity conservation more effectively.     

西大海湖沉积物营养盐垂直分布特征变化分析

通过对西大海湖心柱状沉积岩芯有机质(OM)、总氮(TN)、总磷(TP)、磷形态和粒度指标的测试和分析,探讨其垂向分布特征及影响因素.结果表明,营养盐中OM、TN和TP的含量分别为0.633%~2.756%、0.150%~0.429%和648.00~1 480.67 mg·kg-1.Ca-P是TP的主要部分,占TP含量66.04%.1843~1970年间,Ca-P、IP、OM含量变化较小,Fe/Al-P、OP、TP、TN含量波动较大;1970~1996年间,Ca-P、IP、TP含量变化均呈减小趋势,Fe/Al-P、OP、OM含量不同程度上先减少后增加,TN波动较大;1996~2009年营养元素含量相对波动较大,Fe/Al-P、OP和OM的平均含量是3个阶段中最高的.西大海湖沉积岩芯营养元素污染来源以工业废水、生活污水和化肥农药的流失为主.沉积物中C/N比值显示有机质主要来源于水生生物.沉积物粒度组成以黏土和细粉砂为主.相关性研究表明,Ca-P、IP与TP均呈显著的正相关关系,表明Ca-P对IP、TP的增长贡献大.     

外源钙盐对盐胁迫下沙拐枣渗透调节和膜脂过氧化的影响

为了解外源钙对缓解沙拐枣（Calligonum mongolicum）盐胁迫的主要生理机制,采用盆栽法探究在0、100、200 mmol/L的NaCl胁迫下,分别添加5、10、15和20 mmol/L的Ca（NO₃）₂对沙拐枣同化枝中w（脯氨酸）、丙二醛含量、w（可溶性蛋白）、w（可溶性糖）的影响.结果表明,单独添加Ca（NO₃）₂使沙拐枣同化枝内w（脯氨酸）、丙二醛含量、w（可溶性蛋白）以及w（可溶性糖）增加,即Ca（NO₃）₂对沙拐枣的生长造成了胁迫.对w（脯氨酸）、丙二醛含量、w（可溶性蛋白）、w（可溶性糖）来说,NaCl和Ca（NO₃）₂之间均存在极显著的交互作用,与对照相比,在c（NaCl）分别为100、200 mmol/L,添加c[Ca（NO₃）₂]为10、20 mmol/L时,w（脯氨酸）显著增加,分别达到最大值（736.7、1 086.3 μg/g）;丙二醛含量分别降低了37.8%和40.5%,w（可溶性蛋白）以及w（可溶性糖）均增加.总之,适宜浓度的钙盐通过增加渗透物质w（脯氨酸）、w（可溶性蛋白）及w（可溶性糖）,降低丙二醛的含量来有效缓解盐胁迫对沙拐枣幼苗产生的伤害,当c（NaCl）/c[Ca（NO₃）₂]为10:1时,缓解作用最佳,并且钙盐对沙拐枣盐胁迫的缓解属于抗性诱导的调节作用.      

厌氧发酵处理庆大霉素菌渣的可行性及条件优化

采用厌氧发酵处理庆大霉素菌渣,考察了含固率、接种比、接种污泥、发酵底物等因素对庆大霉素菌渣厌氧发酵的影响,并用累积净甲烷产量衡量庆大霉素菌渣进行厌氧发酵的可行性及发酵程度。试验结果证实了庆大霉素菌渣进行厌氧发酵的可行性,其中含固率和接种比对发酵的影响较大,最佳条件为含固率5%,接种比1/3;对比试验所用3种接种污泥,发现接种某造纸厂污水处理IC反应器的厌氧颗粒污泥效果最优,在最优含固率和接种比的条件下,累积净产甲烷量为28.21 m3/t;此外,试验还证实,采用不同菌渣的联合发酵表现出了明显的协同作用,在最优条件下,庆大霉素菌渣与林可霉素菌渣按1∶2的比例联合发酵的产甲烷量可达到37.5 m3/t。     

博斯腾湖西岸表流人工湿地水体脱盐效果研究

针对博斯腾湖日益严重的盐污染问题,以博斯腾湖西岸表面流人工湿地为研究对象,引当地排渠水进入人工湿地,对人工湿地的进水和出水进行连续7个月的水质监测,对比分析进水和出水中8种离子(Ca~(2+)、Na~+、K~+、Mg~(2+)、Cl~-、SO_4~(2-)、CO_3~(2-)、HCO_3~-)和矿化度的变化,结果表明:人工湿地进水含盐量较高,8种离子的浓度和矿化度波动较大,4月和10月进水为微咸水,5—9月进水为咸水,而出水含盐量相对较低,8种离子的浓度和矿化度波动较小,各月出水均为微咸水。经计算分析可知,人工湿地对水体总盐的平均去除率为51%,水体盐分的去除率与温度呈正相关,且随季节性温度变化而发生变化。     

中国村镇生活垃圾的养分与重金属含量特征及其农用潜力分析

对全国12个省份72个典型村镇进行了生活垃圾采样调查,系统分析了我国农村生活垃圾的基本理化特性、养分含量与重金属特征及其农用潜力。研究表明:我国典型村镇生活垃圾含水率为(53.68±8.84)%,p H为7.11±0.56,有机质含量为(49.04±10.49)%,C/N约为43∶1,C/P约为144∶1。除C/N略高外,其余特性均适合进行堆肥化处置。我国典型村镇生活垃圾中重金属As、Hg、Pb、Cd、Cr,Cu和Zn含量分别为(7.645±8.729),(0.737±0.480),(21.798±17.606),(3.356±11.012),(108.632±84.011),(36.834±10.905),(80.093±42.237)mg/kg。与国内相关标准相比,只有Hg、Cd超标,最大超标率分别为29.17%、43.75%;与欧美相关标准相比,仅有Cd、Cr超标,最大超标率分别为25.69%、37.50%。