Effects of urban greenspace configuration and native vegetation on bee and wasp reproduction

Pollinator welfare is a recognized research and policy target, and urban greenspaces have been identified as important habitats. Yet, landscape-scale habitat fragmentation and greenspace management practices may limit a city's conservation potential. We examined how landscape configuration, composition, and local patch quality influenced insect nesting success across inner-city Cleveland, Ohio (U.S.A.), a postindustrial legacy city containing a high abundance of vacant land (over 1600 ha). Here, 40 vacant lots were assigned 1 of 5 habitat treatments (T1, vacant lot; T2, grass lawn; T3, flowering lawn; T4, grass prairie; and T5, flowering prairie), and we evaluated how seeded vegetation, greenspace size, and landscape connectivity influenced cavity-nesting bee and wasp reproduction. Native bee and wasp larvae were more abundant in landscapes that contained a large patch (i.e., >6 ha) of contiguous greenspace, in habitats with low plant biomass, and in vacant lots seeded with a native wildflower seed mix or with fine-fescue grass, suggesting that fitness was influenced by urban landscape features and habitat management. Our results can guide urban planning by demonstrating that actions that maintain large contiguous greenspace in the landscape and establish native plants would support the conservation of bees and wasps. Moreover, our study highlights that the world's estimated 350 legacy cities are promising urban conservation targets due to their high abundance of vacant greenspace that could accommodate taxa's habitat needs in urban areas.     

Bridging the financial gap in climate adaptation: Dutch planning and land development through a new institutional lens

Based on a case study of the Stadshaven port redevelopment in Rotterdam, this paper explores whether existing spatial planning mechanisms and processes can be used to facilitate local-level investment in climate-resilient public infrastructure and/or whether new processes and mechanisms are required to encourage investment in climate adaptation. The study reveals several key findings. First, a lack of conventional funding sources or formalised regulatory framework allowed room for experimentation with existing mechanisms and flexible strategies. Second, project planners are currently ambivalent towards introducing new mechanisms as a means to overcome implementation challenges. The case provides evidence about the role of the governance process, not simply as a means of system coordination that exists in isolation from institutional norms and values, but rather as a space for innovation, which can contribute towards reducing the financial gap associated with climate adaptation.     

可拓优度评价法在城市区域消防安全评价中的应用

为了解决城市区域消防安全评价的复杂性和不确定性,本文运用可拓优度评价法,根据相关文件并结合城市区域消防的实际情况,从火灾危险程度、城市区域特征、消防实力水平和社会管理状态4个方面选取17个指标,建立了城市区域消防安全评价指标体系并划分了消防安全等级,以洛阳市西工区为例对城市区域消防安全评价的可拓优度方法进行了验证。结果表明,可拓优度方法可以准确反映出该区域消防安全水平。     

Incorporating putatively neutral and adaptive genomic data into marine conservation planning

The availability of genomic data for an increasing number of species makes it possible to incorporate evolutionary processes into conservation plans. Recent studies show how genetic data can inform spatial conservation prioritization (SCP), but they focus on metrics of diversity and distinctness derived primarily from neutral genetic data sets. Identifying adaptive genetic markers can provide important information regarding the capacity for populations to adapt to environmental change. Yet, the effect of including metrics based on adaptive genomic data into SCP in comparison to more widely used neutral genetic metrics has not been explored. We used existing genomic data on a commercially exploited species, the giant California sea cucumber (Parastichopus californicus), to perform SCP for the coastal region of British Columbia (BC), Canada. Using a RAD-seq data set for 717 P. californicus individuals across 24 sampling locations, we identified putatively adaptive (i.e., candidate) single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) based on genotype–environment associations with seafloor temperature. We calculated various metrics for both neutral and candidate SNPs and compared SCP outcomes with independent metrics and combinations of metrics. Priority areas varied depending on whether neutral or candidate SNPs were used and on the specific metric used. For example, targeting sites with a high frequency of warm-temperature-associated alleles to support persistence under future warming prioritized areas in the southern coastal region. In contrast, targeting sites with high expected heterozygosity at candidate loci to support persistence under future environmental uncertainty prioritized areas in the north. When combining metrics, all scenarios generated intermediate solutions, protecting sites that span latitudinal and thermal gradients. Our results demonstrate that distinguishing between neutral and adaptive markers can affect conservation solutions and emphasize the importance of defining objectives when choosing among various genomic metrics for SCP.     

南岳衡山风景名胜区景观资源的调查与评价

景观资源是旅游资源的重要组成因素,本文以自然综合体的南岳衡山为考察对象,对其景观资源进行较详尽的调查,并进行定性和定量的评价,为确定南岳衡山风景名胜区性质、规划提供基础资料.     

论生物多样性的保护问题

当前，任何地区的生物多样性都是自然和社会因素长期综合作用所造成。生物多样性最丰富的地区不一定全部由顶极植被所覆盖，而常常是一些包括所有演替类型的地方。本文通过讨论自然环境的变化和人类生产活动对不同区域景观的影响，探讨有关生物多样性的保护问题。     

Power-law behaviour and parametric models for the size-distribution of forest fires

This paper examines the distribution of areas burned in forest fires. Empirical size distributions, derived from extensive fire records, for six regions in North America are presented. While they show some commonalities, it appears that a simple power-law distribution of sizes, as has been suggested by some authors, is too simple to describe the distributions over their full range. A stochastic model for the spread and extinguishment of fires is used to examine conditions for power-law behaviour and deviations from it. The concept of the extinguishment growth rate ratio (EGRR) is developed. A null model with constant EGRR leads to a power-law distribution, but this does not appear to hold empirically for the data sets examined. Some alternative parametric forms for the size distribution are presented, with a four-parameter ‘competing hazards’ model providing the overall best fit.     

世界保护区事业发展的展望

当前,世界130个国家已建立了6500多个保护区,约占地球土地面积4.89％。但是,如何管理好它们,还存在许多问题。本文重点介绍这些问题,并提出一些解决措施,以促进保护区事业的发展。     

广州城市生态环境变化

对广州城市生态环境因子的大气，水，固体废弃物和噪声污染状况近十年数据结合广州城市发展，分析其环境污染变化特征，结果表明，广州市大气环境污染已由煤烟型向石油型转变;环境中有机污染严重，主要表现为氨氮，BOD5，砷化物和汞化物污染，固体垃圾产出量逐年增加，声环境在逐步好转。     

海岸带生态恢复技术研究现状及存在问题

气候及其潜在的全球性变化所带来的影响，使海岸带受到严重威胁，人口的增加以及人类活动强度的增大给海岸带环境带来的负面影响越来越严重，对目前国内外海岸带生态恢复技术的现状作了较系统地介绍，并阐述了当前海岸带生态恢复中存在的主要问题。