Risk taking during parental care: a test of three hypotheses applied to the pied flycatcher

According to life-history theory, there will often be a conflict between investment in current versus future reproduction. If a predator appears during breeding, parents must make a compromise between ensuring the growth and survival of offspring (nest defence, feeding and brooding of young), and reducing the risk of predation to ensure their own survival. We model three hypotheses for the outcome of this conflict which are particularly relevant for altricial birds. They are not mutually exclusive, but focus on different costs and benefits. (1) Parental investment is determined by the parents’ own risk of predation. This hypothesis predicts that a lone parent should take smaller risks than a parent that has a mate. (2) Parental investment is related to the reproductive value of the offspring: Parents are predicted to take greater risks for larger broods, larger-sized or older offspring. (3) Finally, we present the new hypothesis that parental investment is related to the harm that offspring would suffer during a period of no parental care (incubation, brooding, feeding). This hypothesis predicts that parents should take greater risks for younger offspring, or for offspring in poorer condition, because the marginal benefit of parental care is largest in such cases. Hence, one may also expect that lone parents should take greater risks than two parents because their offspring are more in need of care. We tested these hypotheses on the pied flycatcher (Ficedula hypoleuca) by presenting a stuffed predator of the parents (a sparrowhawk, Accipiter nisus) close to the nest when parents were feeding the young. Risk taking was measured as the time that elapsed until the first visit to the nest. Most support was found for the ‘‘harm to offspring’’ hypothesis. Previous studies have usually measured the intensity of nest defence against typical nest predators, and have found evidence for the ‘‘reproductive value of offspring’’ hypothesis. However, our model predicts that the importance of the reproductive value of the offspring should decrease relative to the harm that offspring would suffer if they were not cared for when the predator type changes from a nest predator to a predator of adults, and when conditions for breeding turn from good to bad. Received: 13 April 1995/Accepted after revision: 11 March 1996     

铜、砷在水稻－土壤体系中的迁移及其对水稻影响的研究

通过盆栽试验和现场布点试验，研究了铜、砷在水稻－土壤体系中迁移的规律。结果表明，该体系对铜、砷污染具有相当大的缓解作用；土壤中水溶性可交换态铜、砷含量很低；铜、砷主要累积在水稻根部；土壤中铜、砷相互有拮抗作用，确定土壤铜、砷临界值应考虑多因素综合作用。     

屋顶绿化生态系统箱的研制

调查发现广州市屋顶自然生长的维管植物有49科109属128种,植物种类较多的科为菊科、禾本科、桑科、景天科、茜草科和鸭跖草科;屋顶自然生长的植物种类数量与环境受污染程度成反比,而与周围植物的多少成正比;屋顶自然生长的植物由于长期适应屋顶的极端环境,形成了的一些独特的生态生物学特征。基于上述结果配置相应的植物组合,设计适于屋顶绿化的生态系统箱、配制相应土壤并进行技术集成,观测其生长和隔热效应。同时进行空白对照、黑网荫蓬对照、生态隔热层对照、普通土壤种植区对比试验,发现生态隔热层和生态系统箱具有成本低、易维持、隔热好、景观美的效果。     

生态经济学的价值观

农业产品因投入劳动和消耗自然界的资源形成价值。农业产品在生产和流通过程中，伴随其本身的价值，还会产生其经济效益。利用生态循环中可以再生的资源，可产生生态经济效益，运用先进的农业技术可产生技术经济效益，流通领域中的供求优势可产生社会经济效益。     

城市生态系统的预测与综合评价的思想体系

本方针对国内外城市生态系统的研究,提出了一套预测一评价一对策的思想体系,并对其预测、评价方法作了初步理论探讨.     

基于放射源理论的区域生态系统评价方法

研究区域生态系统定量评价方法对区域生态系统的建设与保护具有十分重要的意义。从放射源理论出发,首次将生态影响距离、生态源及生态影响效应的概念引入分析评价中,提出了区域生态系统的定量评价方法,并建立了基于景观空间格局的区域生态系统生态影响的定量计算公式。甘垛镇新庄片和横泾镇沿荡片的应用实例表明,该方法原理简明、结果直观,为区域生态系统的科学评价提供了定量评价方法。     

An Environmental Domain Classification of New Zealand and Its Use as a Tool for Biodiversity Management

Abstract:   Successful biodiversity management, including the selection and subsequent management of protected areas, depends in large measure on classifications showing land areas with similar ecosystem character. In contrast to widely used, qualitative land-classification techniques, we used a numerical classification of explicit spatial layers describing aspects of New Zealand's climate and landforms. We chose input variables for their strong functional links with major physiological processes of trees and high statistical correlations with geographic distributions of individual tree species as determined from previous studies. Higher-level divisions of the resulting classification were dominated by macroclimatic variation associated with change in both latitude and orographic protection provided by New Zealand's main mountain ranges, but variation in landform became more important at finer scales of classification. Classification units showed marked variation in the proportional extent of both indigenous vegetation cover and land set aside for conservation purposes. Indigenous ecosystem remnants of the highest priority for increased protection occurred in warm, lowland domains, particularly in drier environments, where both indigenous cover and protected areas are of minimal geographic extent. Such results underline the considerable potential of an environmental classification to provide a landscape context for systematic conservation management, particularly in environments where the natural ecosystem pattern has been severely modified by human activity.     

封育次生马尾松(Pinus massoniana)林优势种群竞争密度效应

以退化红壤区封山育林植被恢复过程中优势种群马尾松为研究对象,研究不同恢复阶段马尾松种群竞争密度效应,并提出一个适用性更强的竞争密度效应模型.研究表明,退化红壤区植被恢复过程中优势种群马尾松竞争密度效应明显,优势种群平均胸径(D)、平均胸高断面积(S)、平均单株材积(V)、林分蓄积量 (M)与种群密度 (ρ)的竞争密度关系密切,达到极显著水平(α<0. 01);新竞争密度效应模型较前人模型描述C-D效应效果更理想,可在森林竞争密度效应研究中应用. 表 4参 19     

WTO框架下重构农村公共服务体系的探讨

目前,我国已经加入WTO,由于在谈判过程中我国在农业方面的让步比较大,如果不利用“绿箱政策”加强农村公共服务体系建设,农业和农村经济的竞争力必然大大下降．“绿箱”政策是一种间接式的保护政策,不在《农业协议》限制之列,而且“绿箱”政策中许多条款都涉及到保护本国农业的可持续发展能力,得到了各国的一致赞同．因此,我国有必要对农村公共服务体系的改革与发展历程进行一次系统清理,在此基础上认真总结正反两方面的经验和教训,重新构筑农村公共服务体系．