What determines selection and abandonment of a foraging patch by wild giant pandas (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) in winter?

Background, aim, and scope  Foraging patches can be described as a nested hierarchy of aggregated resources, implying that study of foraging by wild animals should be directed across different spatial scales. However, almost all previous research on habitat selection by the giant panda has concentrated upon one scale. In this research, we carried out a field study to understand foraging patch selection by giant pandas in winter at both microhabitat and feeding site scales and, for the first time, attempted to understand how long it would stay at the feeding sites before moving on. Materials and methods  The field survey was conducted from November 2002 to March 2003 at Fengtongzhai Nature Reserve (102°48′–103°00′ E, 30°19′–30°47′ N), Baoxing County of Sichuan Province, China, to collect data in both microhabitat and control plots. The microhabitat plots were located by fresh feces or foraging traces left by giant pandas, and the control plots were established to reflect the environment. Within each microhabitat plot, one 1 × 1 m² plot was centralized at the center of each feeding site, in which numbers of old bamboos and old shoots, including eaten and uneaten, were counted, respectively. Results  The results showed that winter microhabitats selected by this species were characteristic of gentle slopes and high old-shoot proportions and that the latter was even higher at feeding sites. Two selection processes, namely, from the environment to microhabitats and from the latter to feeding sites, were found during this species’ foraging patch utilization. Giant pandas preferred to eat old shoots to old bamboo at feeding sites in winter and did not leave unless old-shoot density fell to lower than the average in the environment. Discussion  Both microhabitats and feeding sites selected by giant pandas were characteristic of high old-shoot density, indicating that the preferred food item had a significant influence upon its foraging patch selection. The preference for gentle slopes by giant pandas was presumed to save energy in movement or reflect the need to sit and free its fore-limbs to grasp bamboo culms when feeding but also seemed to be correlated with an easier access to old shoots. The utilization of old shoots at feeding sites was assumed to help maximize energy or nutrient intake during their foraging. Conclusions  The difference between microhabitat plots and control plots and between microhabitats and feeding sites uncovered a continuous selection process from the environment via microhabitats to feeding sites. The utilization of old shoots at feeding sites was parallel to the marginal value theorem. The selection and abandonment of foraging patches by giant pandas was an optimal behavioral strategy adapted to their peculiar food with high cellulose and low protein. Recommendations and perspectives  Our results uncovered the importance of multiple scales in habitat selection research. To further understand the process of habitat selection, future research should pay more attention to resolve the question of how to locate foraging patches under dense bamboo forests by the giant panda, which was traditionally considered to have poor eyesight, although our research has answered what type of habitats the giant panda prefers and when to leave.     

Associations of fat mass and lean mass with bone mineral density differ by levels of persistent organic pollutants: National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1999-2004

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs), xenobiotics that accumulate in fat tissue, may impair bone metabolism. We studied (1) the association of bone mineral density (BMD) with POPs and (2) whether associations of fat mass (FM) or lean mass (LM), two components of body composition, with BMD differed depending on levels of POPs. Participants aged ?20 in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1999-2004 were included (n = 2769). Eight POPs with detection rate ?80% and three skeletal subregions (left arm, pelvis, and right leg) were selected. All analyses were stratified by gender and age (cutpoint 50 years or more). POPs at background concentrations were mostly unassociated with BMD. However, the associations of FM and LM with BMD depended on POPs concentrations, in particular with BMD of the left arm (usually not weight-bearing) in postmenopausal women. When POPs concentrations were low, FM showed inverse associations with BMD while LM showed positive associations. However, when POPs levels were high, FM showed positive associations with BMD while the positive associations between LM and BMD weakened. POPs may biologically modify the associations of FM and LM with BMD, especially among postmenopausal women, possibly explaining inconsistent associations between FM and BMD in previous epidemiological studies.     

基于Copula相依函数的安徽省气温与降雨量相关性研究

当前全球气候变暖大背景下,气温和降雨量的交互作用引致农业气象灾害频发,给农业生产造成破坏性风险损失,因此探讨气温与降雨量之间的动态相依关系尤为重要。搜集安徽省24个气象观测站1980~2014年的气温与降雨量日数据,对原始数据进行矩平均处理,使两组数据列满足独立同分布的要求。采用非参数核估计的方法确定气温与降雨量的边缘分布。根据降雨量和气温的均匀分布散点图和频数分布直方图可知,安徽省气温和降雨量之间呈现一定程度的负相依关系,即图形中表现出气温与降雨量的上下尾之间的对称性。综上分析,选择可以刻画两个变量具有上下尾对称关系的Copula函数对气温与降雨量的相依关系进行拟合,最终在平方欧式距离最小的原则下选定二元t-Copula函数做出气温与降雨量之间的联合概率密度函数图。研究结果发现:1据安徽省气温与降雨量联合概率分布可知,当降雨量上升时,气温下降;或气温上升时,降雨量会下降,气温与降雨量之间呈现为中等负相关关系(–0.280)。2极值相关性方面,从t-Copula密度函数图和上下尾相关系数看,安徽省气温与降雨量在极值方面具有较为明显的相依关系,表现为当气温和降雨量超过正常范畴时,二者相依关系从负相关转变为正相关,此现象多出现在极端气候条件下,例如极端高温和大暴雨时气温与降雨量的正相依性。     

近30 a长三角地区港口规模分布演化分析

以港口货物吞吐量和港口集装箱吞吐量为指标,运用首位度、位序-规模法则和Kernel密度估计对长三角地区港口规模分布进行研究。结果表明:(1)长三角地区港口等级规模分布由首位分布向位序-规模分布演变;港口货物运输与集装箱运输的首位分布特征演变具有内在一致性,但演变态势、具体时点等方面存在差异;港口体系结构由单核枢纽演变为双核枢纽,并有望形成三足鼎立新格局;(2)长三角地区港口规模分布逐步优化,等级结构不断趋于合理,港口体系基本满足位序-规模法则,但还没有达到理想状态;港口体系呈现分散化发展态势,集装箱技术的应用减缓了港口体系的分散化发展;(3)港口货物吞吐量与港口集装箱吞吐量的核密度曲线由多峰结构分别变为双峰结构和单峰结构,货物运输和集装箱运输均向协调态势发展。     

Evaluating the BANCS Streambank Erosion Framework on the Northern Gulf of Mexico Coastal Plain

The Bank Assessment of Nonpoint source Consequences of Sediment (BANCS) framework allows river scientists to predict annual sediment yield from eroding streambanks within a hydrophysiographic region. BANCS involves field data collection and the calibration of an empirical model incorporating a bank erodibility hazard index (BEHI) and near‐bank shear stress (NBS) estimate. Here we evaluate the applicability of BANCS to the northern Gulf of Mexico coastal plain, a region that has not been previously studied in this context. Erosion rates averaged over two years expressed the highest variability of any existing BANCS study. As a result, four standard BANCS models did not yield statistically significant correlations to measured erosion rates. Modifications to two widely used NBS estimates improved their correlations (r² = 0.31 and r² = 0.33), but further grouping of the data by BEHI weakened these correlations. The high variability in measured erosion rates is partly due to the regional hydrologic and climatic characteristics of the Gulf coastal plains, which include large, infrequent precipitation events. Other sources of variability include variations in bank vegetation and the complex hydro‐ and morphodynamics of meandering, sand bed channels. We discuss directions for future research in developing a streambank erosion model for this and similar regions.     

Brassinosteroid alleviates phenanthrene and pyrene phytotoxicity by increasing detoxification activity and photosynthesis in tomato

The present study was carried out to investigate the effects of exogenously applied 24-epibrassinolide (BR) on growth, gas exchange, chlorophyll fluorescence characteristics, lipid peroxidation and antioxidant systems of tomato seedlings grown under different levels (0, 10, 30, 100 and 300 μM) of phenanthrene (PHE) and pyrene (PYR) in hydroponics. A concentration-dependent decrease in growth, photosynthetic pigment contents, net photosynthetic rate (Pn), stomatal conductance (Gs), maximal quantum yield of PSII (Fv/Fm), effective quantum yield of PSII (Φ_PSII), photochemical quenching coefficient (qP) has been observed following PHE and PYR exposure. By contrast, non-photochemical quenching coefficient (NPQ) was increased. PHE was found to induce higher stress than PYR. However, foliar or root application of BR (50 nM and 5 nM, respectively) alleviated all those depressions with a sharp improvement in the activity of photosynthetic machinery. The activities of guaicol peroxidase (GPOD), catalase (CAT), ascorbate peroxidase (APX) and glutathione reductase (GR) as well as content of malondialdehyde (MDA) were increased in a dose-dependent manner under PHE or PYR treatments. Compared with control the highest increments of GPOD, CAT, APX, GR and MDA by PHE/PYR alone treatments were observed following 300 μM concentration, which were 67%, 87%, 53%, 95% and 74% by PHE and 42%, 53%, 30%, 86% and 62% by PYR, respectively. In addition, both reduced glutathione (GSH) and oxidized glutathione (GSSG) were induced by PHE or PYR. Interestingly, BR application in either form further increased enzymatic and non enzymatic antioxidants in tomato roots treated with PHE or PYR. Our results suggest that BR has an anti-stress effect on tomato seedlings contaminated with PHE or PYR and this effect is mainly attributed by increased detoxification activity.     

基于谱修正方法的非高斯风场模拟

为克服基于H erm ite谱修正方法的缺点,减少该方法中计算H erm ite多项式系数所需耗费的大量机时,提出了一种模拟非高斯风压场的新方法,采用非高斯累积分布函数(CDF)映射技术来代替基于H erm ite的概率密度函数(PDF)修正。选择任意边缘PDF模型作为概率目标模型,采用目标功率谱密度(PSD)作为样本函数,通过迭代修正该样本函数,使其收敛于目标概率密度函数和目标功率谱密度。将该方法应用于实际结构的非高斯风场模拟,模拟结果与目标谱符合良好,表明本文方法模拟非高斯风场具有较高的精确度和计算效率。     

纳米SiO2改性聚偏氟乙烯离子交换膜对单组分电解质溶液的脱盐性能研究

对纳米SiO2改性聚偏氟乙烯(SiO2/PVDF)离子交换膜电渗析处理单组分电解质溶液进行了试验研究。结果表明,在不同操作条件下,SiO2/PVDF离子交换膜的极限电流密度和脱盐率均大于未改性聚偏氟乙烯(PVDF)离子交换膜。SiO2/PVDF离子交换膜的极限电流密度随着淡水流量和电解质浓度的增加而增加;随着电流强度的增加,SiO2/PVDF离子交换膜的脱盐率也相应增加;随着淡水流量增加,脱盐率会逐渐降低。为使SiO2/PVDF离子交换膜用于电渗析过程获得良好的脱盐效果和节约能量,NaCl质量浓度为500mg/L时电流密度应控制在1.17mA/cm2。     

不同阳极微生物燃料电池产电性能的比较

微生物燃料电池在处理废水的同时可以产生电能,有希望同时解决废水再利用和能量再产生的问题。采用单室无膜空气阴极微生物燃料电池,处理模拟生活污水,探讨MFC处理模拟废水的效果。研究了以碳布(MFC1)、碳布负载碳纳米管(MFC2)、碳纳米管(MFC3)和泡沫镍(MFC4)作为4种不同的阳极材料,对MFC系统的启动、内阻和产电特性进行比较。结果表明,4种不同阳极MFC在水力停留时间24 h的条件下,对COD有很好的去除作用,其中MFC2的COD去除效率最大,为91.4%。在不影响MFC系统处理废水效果的前提下,实验得到4种阳极MFC系统中MFC2具有最小的内阻,为173.7Ω;并且其功率密度也大于其他3种MFC,达到401.2 mW/m2。     

生物氧化磁黄铁矿产生铁离子

从广东云浮矿山酸性废水中富集获得氧化亚铁硫杆菌(Thiobacillus ferrooxidans),利用该氧化亚铁硫杆菌研究了反应时间、pH、温度、矿浆浓度和矿物粒度对磁黄铁矿生物氧化获得铁离子的影响。结果表明,在29℃,摇床转速200 r/min,10%接种量条件下,氧化亚铁硫杆菌可以明显促进磁黄铁矿的氧化,但反应后期有黄钾铁矾沉淀生成,不利于获得铁离子;控制溶液pH值为2.00,温度在29～36℃范围,可促进生物氧化磁黄铁矿获得铁离子;铁离子量随着矿浆浓度的增大和矿物粒度的减小而增加,优化的矿浆浓度和矿物粒径分别为6%和58μm左右。