Grassy field margins as potential corridors for butterflies in agricultural landscapes: A simulation study

Over the last decades, agricultural intensification has caused a dramatic reduction of grassy habitats. This habitat loss has had a strong negative effect on many meadow-living insect populations, including butterflies. As a part of the cross-compliance measures of the Common Agricultural Policy of the European Union, subsidies for creation and maintenance of grassy field margins (GFM) have been launched. Among other environmental issues, they may serve as corridors for movement of various meadow-living species between individual meadows. Their role as corridors has, however, not yet been demonstrated at the landscape scale and their characteristics that most significantly increase landscape connectivity are unknown. Empirical data for such studies are missing, as the GFM subsidies were launched only 3 years ago. One possibility to get some predictions of their outcomes is provided by simulation models. Here we present our simulation results, using an extension of the model developed by Kindlmann et al. (2004) for the Meadow Brown butterfly, Maniola jurtina. The extension includes the probability to cross a boundary (Conradt and Roper, 2006) that negatively influences dispersal rates but increases sensitivity to the corridor effect. Our simulations show that GFMs increase the dispersal rates between habitat patches and we predict the optimal combinations of width and number of GFMs in the landscape. This way we provide a decision-making tool for increasing landscape connectivity for M. jurtina and similar species. Although our simulations are based on a particular species, they may be generalized because this species shows dispersal rates that are typical of butterfly metapopulations (Conradt et al., 2000), and a potentially widespread dispersal kernel (i.e. “foray search”) that has been reported in a wide variety of species (see Conradt et al., 2003 for a review).     

Seasonal variation of microbial populations and biomass in Tatachia grassland soils of Taiwan

To investigate the seasonal variations of microbial ecology in grassland of Tatachia forest, soil properties, microbial populations, microbial biomass, and 16S rDNA clone library analysis were determined. The soil had temperatures 6.6–18.4°C, pH 3.6–5.1, total organic carbon 1.11–10.68%, total nitrogen 0.18–0.78%, and C/N ratios 3.46–20.55. Each gram of dry soil contained bacteria, actinomycetes, fungi, cellulolytic, phosphate-solubilizing microbes, and nitrogen-fixing microbes 4.54 × 10⁴ to 3.79 × 10⁷, 3.43 × 10² to 2.17 × 10⁵, 5.74 × 10³ to 3.76 × 10⁶, 1.97 × 10³ to 1.34 × 10⁶, 8.49 × 10² to 5.59 × 10⁵, and 3.86 × 10² to 3.75 × 10⁵ CFU, respectively. Each gram of soil contained 117–2,482 μg of microbial biomass carbon, 23–216 μg of microbial biomass nitrogen and 9–29 μg of DNA. The microbial populations, microbial biomass, and DNA decreased stepwise with the depth of soil, and they had low values in winter seasons. The microbial populations, microbial biomass carbon, microbial biomass nitrogen, and DNA at the BW2 horizon were 8.42–17.84, 19.26–64.40, 16.84–61.11, and 31.03–46.26% of those at the O horizon, respectively. When analyzing 16S rDNA library, members of Proteobacteria, Acidobacteria, Actinobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Chloroflexi, Firmicutes, candidate division TM1, candidate division TM7, Gammatimonadetes, and Verrucomicrobia were identified. Members of Proteobacteria (44.4%) and Acidobacteria (33.3%) dominated the clone libraries. Within the phylum Proteobacteria, α-, β-, and γ-Proteobacteria were most numerous, followed by δ-Proteobacteria.     

呼伦贝尔草原植被覆盖时空动态变化监测定量方法研究

开展植被动态监测与评价,是评估生态保护措施、环境管理政策和全球变化研究的重要基础。论文以呼伦贝尔草原为例,基于1998—2008年间SPOT_VGT NDVI旬数据,通过分析生长期间的植被年均NDVI值、年NDVI最大值、年NDVI最小值、季节性动态性与物候的变化状况及其趋势,反映研究区植被覆盖空间特征,监测植被覆盖动态变化情况。结果表明:研究区植被覆盖区域特征为:以林地为主的区域草地-耕地-林地过渡区以耕地为主的区域以草地为主的区域;11 a来,研究区植被覆盖呈减弱趋势,植被覆盖最佳期提前,以林地为主的区域、草地-耕地-林地过渡区和以耕地为主的区域植被覆盖季节性动态变化较小,植被覆盖稳定性较强,而以草地为主的地区植被覆盖最小值日期推后,其季节性动态变化较大,生态环境稳定性较差。     

InVEST模型对锡林郭勒草原碳储量研究的适用性分析

锡林郭勒草原是我国四大草原之一,也是内蒙古主要的天然草场。近年来,在各种因素影响下,锡林郭勒草原区生态系统发生重大变化,导致草原区碳储量也发生改变。本文尝试应用In VEST模型中的碳储量模块对2013年锡林郭勒草原碳储量进行研究,从而探究In VEST模型在碳储量研究中的适用性。结果表明:(1)锡林郭勒草原各草地类型的地下碳储量明显多于地上碳储量;(2)草甸草原碳储量典型草原碳储量荒漠草原碳储量;(3)应用In VEST模型计算不同草地类型地上和地下碳储量,草甸草原分别为196.7 g?m~(-2)和1385.2 g?m~(~(-2));典型草原的分别为133.4 g?m~(-2)和688.9 g?m~(-2);荒漠草原的分别为56.6 g?m~(-2)和301 g?m~(-2)。应用In VEST模型计算出来的碳储量值与前人采用实地采样得出的结果基本一致,所以In VEST模型对于草原区碳储量的研究具有一定的适用性。     

基于遥感的呼伦湖水体动态监测研究

湖泊是地球重要的淡水资源,其时空动态监测对于水资源的合理利用和保护具有重要意义。呼伦湖是内蒙古第一大湖,在草原生态环境保护中举足轻重。该研究选用1975-2011年间的14景Landsat遥感影像和Aster GDEM高程数据,应用水体指数,在精确提取湖泊边界的基础上,尝试估算了呼伦湖的平均水深和蓄水量,探讨了呼伦湖面积、平均水深、水量的动态变化规律及其相关关系;并结合降水、蒸发等气候数据,揭示了呼伦湖水体变化的原因。结果表明:呼伦湖水体发生了明显的萎缩,尤其进入21世纪,萎缩速度明显加快;其水域面积、平均水深和蓄水量都表现出明显的涨落周期;蓄水量与水域面积、平均水深之间均存在较显著的正相关关系,为呼伦湖遥感动态监测和预测提供了一个简单有效的方法。     

冰封期呼伦湖浮游藻类群落结构及其与水环境因子的关系

为探讨冰封状态下呼伦湖的水生态系统演变过程,2015年12月—2016年3月环湖设置6个采样点进行浮游藻类及湖水水质的监测。浮游藻类以绿藻门Chlorophyta种类最多(52.5%),其次为硅藻门Bacillariophyta(29.8%),蓝藻门Cyanophyta(10.5%)。物种丰富度和3种生物多样性指数(Shannon-Wiener多样性指数、Margalef丰富度指数、Pielou均匀度指数)从12月至次年3月呈下降趋势。浮游藻类丰度自12月至次年3月呈现上升趋势。典范对应分析(CCA)排序结果表明:NH₃-N、TN、TP、电导率、DO、BOD₅、CODMn和pH是影响呼伦湖浮游藻类群落结构特征的主要环境因子,其中,NH₃-N、TN和TP分别对硅藻门、绿藻门和蓝藻门的影响较大。     

呼伦湖2005年-2014年水质状况及防治对策研究

呼伦贝尔市环境监测站对呼伦湖多年水质监测的数据,通过进行统计分析后显示:近10年,呼伦湖水质为劣V类,重度污染,水体富营养化较严重,富营养化程度呈逐年加重趋势.主要污染物总磷、氨氮、氟化物、高锰酸盐指数、化学需氧量以及水体营养状态指数与周围地区同期降水量相关性分析结果显示:该湖主要污染物、水体营养状态指数与周围地区同期降水量无相关,湖水水质优劣与富营养化程度不完全由其周围地区降水量决定.根据呼伦湖具体情况分析其重度污染、中度富营养化的原因,并针对污染来源提出防治对策建议.     

Spatial heterogeneity of vegetation under different grazing intensities in the Northwest Heilongjiang Steppe of China

In northern China, recent degradation of semi-arid grasslands caused by overgrazing is serious. At Green Grassland Village, west of Daqing City in Heilongjiang Province, three grasslands with different degrees of degradation were surveyed. In the survey, a new method of vegetation analysis based on the beta-binomial distribution, was adopted to describe the frequency of occurrence and spatial heterogeneity for each plant species.Chenopodium centrorubrum, Cleistogenes squarrosa and a Carex species were commonly found in the three grasslands. Non-degraded grassland with light grazing was dominated by Arundinella hirta, Filifolium sibiricium, Lespedeza hedysaroides, Potentilla verticillaris, Stipa baicalensis and Thymus serpyllum. These species belong to the erect-type or do not develop large clones under light grazing. These species can be used as indicators of a well-managed grassland in this area. On the other hand, the degraded grassland with heavy grazing was dominated by Artemisia spp. and Euphorbia humifusa var. pilosa. Artemisia spp., E. humifusa var. pilosa, Eragrostis pilosa and Setaria viridis belong to the creeping-type or develop rather large stocks or stolons under heavy utilization. These species increased the spatial heterogeneity in the degraded grassland with heavy grazing.Under degraded conditions, species diversity decreased and spatial heterogeneity of the communities tended to increase.     

Effectiveness of Voluntary Habitat Stewardship in Conserving Grassland: Case of Operation Burrowing Owl in Saskatchewan

There have been no published performance evaluations of nongovernmental, voluntary habitat stewardship programs. The Operation Burrowing Owl (OBO) stewardship program, initiated in 1987, was evaluated for its effectiveness in conservation of grassland habitat during 1986–1993. The 108 OBO sites from 1987 to 88 and 98 randomly selected non-OBO sites that were grassland in 1986 in the Regina-Weyburn, Saskatchewan study area were classified by size and agricultural soil suitability. By 1993, 41 (38%) of the 108 OBO sites had been withdrawn from the program. The 1986 area of grassland was compared with grassland area calculated from digitized 1993 LANDSAT imagery. A correction for satellite inaccuracies was determined. Grassland retention in 1993 was significantly higher at OBO sites (66%) than at random sites (49%), demonstrating that the OBO voluntary program effectively conserved habitat. Also, grassland retention was significantly lower on sites with better agricultural soils, and for sites <12 ha in size. Site type (OBO or random), size and their interaction, followed by agricultural soil suitability, had the greatest effects on grassland retention. During an era of accelerated grassland loss, OBO strongly and positively (statistically significant) affected conservation of grassland sites most at risk: sites <12 ha in size and with good to excellent agricultural soils. This suggests that grassland conservation efforts focus on vulnerable sites (small size and/or good agricultural soils) to provide nesting habitat for burrowing owls. Our study demonstrates that a voluntary stewardship program can significantly increase conservation of habitat.     

内蒙古草原四种主要禾本科牧草若干生理特性的研究

禾本科牧草是内蒙古草原植物群落中最重要的优势植物。其中，无芒雀麦（Ｂｒｏｍｕｓｉｎｅｒｍｉｓ）、冰草（Ａｇｒｏｐｙｒｏｎｃｒｉｓｔａｔａｕｍ）、老芒麦（Ｅｌｙｍｕｓｓｉｂｉｒｉｃｕｓ）和麦草（Ｅｌｙｍｕｓｔａｎｇｕｔｏｔｕｍ）是大部分草原的建群种。本文运用室外试验田材料采集和室内实验测定相结合的手段分别为这４种禾木科牧草的蒸腾强度、光合作用、叶绿素含量等生理特性进行研究，结果表明，禾本科牧草一日内蒸腾强度最高值出现于１２：００－１４：３０，到下午４：００有一小回升；光合强度以开始繁殖期为最强。四种牧草中生产潜力最高的是老芒麦。在内蒙古草原上，水分是非常重要的要素，测定表明，空气相对湿度与老芒麦的叶子含水量呈正相关，相关系数达０．９９３。