Ecological-breaking zone originates and its ecosystems reconstruction in arid area

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厦门西港和九龙江口浮游植物生化组成及其环境因子效应

厦门西港和九龙江口浮游植物碳水化合物与光强、盐度和叶绿素ａ均显著正相关，蛋白质与光强有负相关关系，脂类受光强的影响较小，蛋白质与碳水化合物之比与氮磷比显正相关。１０月该海域浮游植物叶绿素ａ与生化组分含量都比４月高，与１０月海水温度和海面辐照度较高有关     

Influence of Water Allocation and Freshwater Inflow on Oyster Production: A Hydrodynamic–Oyster Population Model for Galveston Bay,Texas, USA

A hydrodynamic–oyster population model was developed to assess the effect of changes in freshwater inflow on oyster populations in Galveston Bay, Texas, USA. The population model includes the effects of environmental conditions, predators, and the oyster parasite, Perkinsus marinus, on oyster populations. The hydrodynamic model includes the effects of wind stress, river runoff, tides, and oceanic exchange on the circulation of the bay. Simulations were run for low, mean, and high freshwater inflow conditions under the present (1993) hydrology and predicted hydrologies for 2024 and 2049 that include both changes in total freshwater inflow and diversions of freshwater from one primary drainage basin to another. Freshwater diversion to supply the Houston metropolitan area is predicted to negatively impact oyster production in Galveston Bay. Fecundity and larval survivorship both decline. Mortality from Perkinsus marinus increases, but to a lesser extent. A larger negative impact in 2049 relative to 2024 originates from the larger drop in fecundity under that hydrology. Changes in recruitment and mortality, resulting in lowered oyster abundance, occur because the bay volume available for mixing freshwater input from the San Jacinto and Buffalo Bayou drainage basins that drain metropolitan Houston is small in comparison to the volume of Trinity Bay that presently receives the bulk of the bay's freshwater inflow. A smaller volume for mixing results in salinities that decline more rapidly and to a greater extent under conditions of high freshwater discharge. Thus, the decline in oyster abundance results from a disequilibrium between geography and salinity brought about by freshwater diversion. Although the bay hydrology shifts, available hard substrate does not. The simulations stress the fact that it is not just the well-appreciated reduction in freshwater inflow that can result in decreased oyster production. Changing the location of freshwater inflow can also significantly impact the bay environment, even if the total amount of freshwater inflow does not change.     

ECOSYSTEM DYNAMICS AND POLLUTION EFFECTS IN AN OZARK CAVE STREAM1

ABSTRACT: Subterranean ecosystems harbor globally rare fauna and important water resources, but ecological processes are poorly understood and are threatened by anthropogenic stresses. Ecosystem analyses were conducted from 1997 to 2000 in Cave Springs Cave, Arkansas, situated in a region of intensive land use, to determine the degree of habitat degradation and viability of endangered fauna. Organic matter budgeting quantified energy flux and documented the dominant input as dissolved organic matter and not gray bat guano (Myotis grisescens). Carbon/nitrogen stable isotope analyses described a trophic web of Ozark cavefish (Amblyopsis rosae) that primarily consumed cave isopods (Caecidotea stiladactyla), which in turn appeared to consume benthic matter originating from a complex mixture of soil, leaf litter, and anthropogenic wastes. Septic leachate, sewage sludge, and cow manure were suspected to augment the food web and were implicated in environmental degradation. Water, sediment, and animal tissue analyses detected excess nutrients, fecal bacteria, and toxic concentrations of metals. Community assemblage may have been altered: sensitive species‐grotto salamanders (Typhlotriton spelaeus) and stygobro‐mid amphipods—were not detected, while more resilient isopods flourished. Reduction of septic and agricultural waste inputs may be necessary to restore ecosystem dynamics in this cave ecosystem to its former undisturbed condition.     

Denitrification Distributions in Four Valley and Ridge Riparian Ecosystems

/ Denitrification in riparian ecosystems can reduce the amount ofnitrogen transported from farm fields to streams. In this study, we examinedenitrification in four riparian ecosystems common to the Valley and Ridgephysiographic province in Pennsylvania, USA. The sites exhibit differentvegetation, are underlain by different rock types, and are downgradient offarm fields. Mean site denitrification rates ranging from 0.6 to 1.9 &mgr;gN/kg soil/day were measured using intact core incubation techniques. Thethree riparian sites covered with grass each exhibited greaterdenitrification rates than the wooded site. Denitrification rate wascorrelated with moisture content but not with nitrate-N or organic carboncontents. Denitrification rates were greatest near the soil surface and atpositions nearest the stream. Rates decreased uniformly with distance awayfrom the stream and also with depth in the soil for each site. While patternsof nitrate-N, moisture, and organic carbon content differ among the sites,their combined effects on denitrification support the observed, consistentdenitrification rate pattern.KEY WORDS: Denitrification; Riparian ecosystems     

DEVELOPMENT OF EMPIRICAL,GEOGRAPHICALLY SPECIFIC WATER QUALITY CRITERIA: A CONDITIONAL PROBABILITY ANALYSIS APPROACH1

The need for scientifically defensible water quality standards for nonpoint source pollution control continues to be a pressing environmental issue. The probability of impact at differing levels of nonpoint source pollution was determined using the biological response of instream organisms empirically obtained from a statistical survey. A conditional probability analysis was used to calculate a biological threshold of impact as a function of the likelihood of exceeding a given value of pollution metric for a specified geographic area. Uncertainty and natural variability were inherently incorporated into the analysis through the use of data from a probabilistic survey. Data from wadable streams in the mid‐Atlantic area of the U.S. were used to demonstrate the approach. Benthic macroinvertebrate community index values (EPT taxa richness) were used to identify impacted stream communities. Percent fines in substrate (silt/clay fraction, > 0.06 mm) were used as a surrogate indicator for sedimentation. Thresholds of impact due to sedimentation were identified by three different techniques, and were in the range of 12 to 15 percent fines. These values were consistent with existing literature from laboratory and field studies on the impact of sediments on aquatic life in freshwater streams. All results were different from values determined from current regulatory guidance. Finally, it was illustrated how these thresholds could be used to develop criterion for protection of aquatic life in streams.     

Beyond ‘trees are good’: Disservices,management costs,and tradeoffs in urban forestry

The provision of ecosystem services is a prominent rationale for urban greening, and there is a prevailing mantra that ‘trees are good’. However, understanding how urban trees contribute to sustainability must also consider disservices. In this perspective article, we discuss recent research on ecosystem disservices of urban trees, including infrastructure conflicts, health and safety impacts, aesthetic issues, and environmentally detrimental consequences, as well as management costs related to ecological disturbances and risk management. We also discuss tradeoffs regarding species selection and local conservation concerns, as well as the central role of human perception in the interpretation of ecosystem services and disservices, particularly the uncritical assertion that ‘everybody loves trees’. Urban forestry decision-making that fails to account for disservices can have unintended negative consequences for communities. Further research is needed regarding life cycle assessments, stakeholder decision-making, return-on-investment, and framings of services and disservices in urban forestry.     

长江口海域底栖生态环境质量评价——AMBI和M-AMBI法

AMBI(AZTI’s Marine Biotic Index)和M-AMBI(Multivariate-AMBI)指数可以有效地评价河口和近岸海域软底质海洋大型底栖动物群落对人为和自然扰动的响应.本研究根据2009年4月在长江口采集的大型底栖动物资料,首次在长江口海域同时运用栖息密度和生物量计算AMBI(BAMBI)和M-AMBI(M-BAMBI),对其进行底栖生态质量评价.结果表明,长江口底栖生态环境皆受到不同程度的干扰,其中受干扰最严重的区域集中在杭州湾、舟山及长江口门区附近海域,与该海域的陆源排污、富营养化以及大量的海岸工程建设等有密切的关系.单因素方差分析表明,运用栖息密度和生物量计算出的两个指数值,评价结果无明显的差异.与AMBI相比,M-AMBI与本研究生物群落结构参数以及环境因子的匹配度更高,能够更有效地评价长江口底栖生态环境质量.Pearson相关分析和一元线性回归分析表明,M-AMBI与底层水体的富营养化指数之间存在线性显著负相关关系,而与表层水体的呈非线性显著负相关;AMBI与富营养化指数之间却无显著相关关系,说明M-AMBI更适合指示长江口水域的富营养化压力.     

长江口-浙闽沿岸沉积色素的分布特征及其指示意义

利用高效液相色谱法分析了长江口-浙闽沿岸表层沉积物中的色素组成和含量,探讨了海洋初级生产力、浮游植物功能类群和浮游植物色素保存效率的空间分布特征及其影响因素.结果表明,沉积物中的色素类型主要为沉积绿素(chloropigments,Chlorins)[包括叶绿素a(chlorophyll-a,Chl-a)及其降解产物(pheopigments,Pheo-a),如脱镁叶绿素a(pheophytin-a,PHtin-a)、脱镁叶绿酸a(pheophorbide-a,PHide-a)、焦脱镁叶绿素a(p Pheophytin-a,p PHtin-a)、甾醇绿素酯(sterol chlorin esters,SCEs)和胡萝卜醇绿素酯(carotenol chlorin esters,CCEs)].Chlorins高值区呈南北两大斑块状分布,可能主要是受到长江冲淡水及浙闽沿岸泥质区上升流输运的营养盐的影响.研究区域内类胡萝卜素整体上无明显趋势性变化,在长江口以及浙闽沿岸各呈现一个高值区.基于沉积物中特征类胡萝卜素比例估算得到的浮游植物功能类群中硅藻、甲藻、定鞭藻、青绿藻、隐藻和蓝藻的相对贡献分别为48.8%±17.4%、10.7%±11.5%、8.1%±7.2%、18.6%±8.2%、9.4%±6.4%和4.3%±3.2%.对营养盐水平、水体盐度等外界环境的偏好导致硅藻和甲藻比例离岸降低,青绿藻、隐藻和蓝藻比例离岸增加.Chl-a/Pheo-a比值的分布表明,较高的沉积速率以及季节性的底层水体缺氧事件导致了近岸海域(长江口最大浑浊带外缘、杭州湾湾口以及浙闽沿岸上升流区)具有较高的沉积色素保存效率,这些沉积色素保存效率较高的区域可能是进行海洋生态环境历史重建的理想区域,而杭州湾水体通过舟山群岛与外部海水进行水体交换时造成的较差沉积环境可能是导致杭州湾外海具有较低沉积色素含量和较低保存效率的主要原因.