The Silent Mass Extinction of Insect Herbivores in Biodiversity Hotspots

Abstract: Habitat loss is silently leading numerous insects to extinction. Conservation efforts, however, have not been designed specifically to protect these organisms, despite their ecological and evolutionary significance. On the basis of species–host area equations, parameterized with data from the literature and interviews with botanical experts, I estimated the number of specialized plant‐feeding insects (i.e., monophages) that live in 34 biodiversity hotspots and the number committed to extinction because of habitat loss. I estimated that 795,971–1,602,423 monophagous insect species live in biodiversity hotspots on 150,371 endemic plant species, which is 5.3–10.6 monophages per plant species. I calculated that 213,830–547,500 monophagous species are committed to extinction in biodiversity hotspots because of reduction of the geographic range size of their endemic hosts. I provided rankings of biodiversity hotspots on the basis of estimated richness of monophagous insects and on estimated number of extinctions of monophagous species. Extinction rates were predicted to be higher in biodiversity hotspots located along strong environmental gradients and on archipelagos, where high spatial turnover of monophagous species along the geographic distribution of their endemic plants is likely. The results strongly support the overall strategy of selecting priority conservation areas worldwide primarily on the basis of richness of endemic plants. To face the global decline of insect herbivores, one must expand the coverage of the network of protected areas and improve the richness of native plants on private lands.     

A distributional analysis of the socio-ecological and economic determinants of forest carbon stocks

Forest carbon (C) sequestration is being actively considered by several states as a way to cost-effectively comply with the forthcoming United States (US) Environmental Protection Agency’s rule that will reduce power plant C emissions by 32% of 2005 levels by 2030. However, little is known about the socio-ecological and distributional effects of such a policy. Given that C is heterogeneous across the landscape, understanding how social, economic, and ecological changes affect forest C stocks and sequestration is key for developing forest management policies that offset C emissions. Using Florida US as a case study, we use US National Forest Inventory Analysis and Census Bureau data in both linear regression and quantile regression analyses to examine the socio-ecological and economic determinants of forest C stocks and its relationship with differing communities. Quantile regression findings demonstrate nonlinearity in the effects of key determinants, which highlight the limitations of regularly used mean-based regression analyses. We also found that forest basal area, site quality, stand size, and stand age are significant ecological predictors of carbon stocks, with a positive and increasing effect on upper quantiles where C stocks are greater. The effect of education was generally positive and mostly significant at upper quantiles, while the effects of income and locations with predominantly minority residents (as compared to whites) were negative. Upper quantiles were also affected by population age. Our findings underscore the importance of considering the broader socio-ecological and economic implications of compliance strategies that target the management of forests for carbon sequestration and other ecosystem services.     

不同耕作方式对稻田净增温潜势和温室气体强度的影响

免耕技术近年来在南方稻区被广泛推广应用,但该项技术是否有利于减缓稻田综合温室效应目前并不清楚.因此,本文以双季稻-紫云英为研究对象,利用静态箱-气相色谱法分别研究不同耕作方式对稻田CH4和N2O排放、双季稻产量、土壤固碳、稻田净综合增温潜势(GWP)和温室气体强度(GHGI)的影响.试验处理包括常规翻耕(CT)、旋耕(RT)和免耕(NT).结果表明,稻田周年CH4累积排放量为233.5~404.0kg·hm-2·a-1,NT和RT处理分别比CT增加73.1%和35.1%.晚稻生长季CH4排放量占周年CH4排放量的53.7%~66.5%,其中,晚稻移栽至烤田期间CH4累积排放通量占晚稻季排放总量的77.0%~81.3%.稻田N2O累积排放量为4.00~4.82 kg·hm-2·a-1(以N计),但各处理之间没有显著差异.稻田年固碳量为0.36~1.31 t·hm-2·a-1(以C计),其中,NT处理比CT和RT处理分别增加148.4%和261.0%.双季稻周年产量为15.2~17.1 t·hm-2,耕作方式对产量没有显著影响.稻田净GWP为5095.4~7788 kg·hm-2(以CO2当量计),其中,RT和NT处理分别比CT增加52.8%和32.2%.稻田GHGI为0.30~0.46 kg·kg-1(以每kg粮食产量产生的CO2当量计),其中,RT和NT处理分别显著高于CT处理50.1%和45.3%.综上所述,免耕在短期内会增加稻田温室效应,但可以促进土壤固碳量的显著增加,因此,其固碳减排的长期效应还有待观测.     

植被重建下煤矿排土场土壤熟化过程中碳储量变化

植被重建是治理因露天煤矿的开采而形成的大面积排土场行之有效的措施,了解植被重建模式对排土场土壤有机碳(SOC)储量的影响是筛选植被治理措施的重要因子.在内蒙古准格尔旗黑岱沟露天煤矿,选取15 a治理排土场中5种植被重建模式(自然恢复地、草地、灌木林、乔灌混交林、乔木林),16种植被配置类型,采集土壤剖面(0~100 cm)样品408个,研究不同重建模式下SOC储量的变化.结果表明:1治理排土场植被重建模式显著影响剖面SOC含量与分布(P<0.05),表层0~10 cm SOC呈草地>灌木>乔木>乔灌混交林>自然恢复地;全氮(TN)也呈相似的变化特征.2植被配置类型中,苜蓿地0~10 cm的SOC含量(5.71 g·kg-1)和TN含量(0.49 g·kg-1)均最高,比自然恢复地分别高166.7%和171.3%,且是沙棘、紫穗槐+油松、香花槐的两倍左右.3植被重建对SOC影响深度主要集中在0~20 cm,而对TN的影响可达40 cm.4与新建排土场相比,植被重建后,草地、灌木地和乔木地0~100 cm碳储量分别增加了15.47、6.93和6.95 t·hm-2,但仅相当于原地貌水平的2/3、1/2和1/2.植被重建表现出碳汇效应和巨大的固碳能力.从土壤固碳的角度考虑,建议植被重建模式以草地为主,植被类型优先考虑苜蓿.     

Evaluation of the economic and environmental impact of converting cropland to forest: a case study in Dunhua county, China

The Sloping Land Conversion Program (also known as "Grain for Green" or the Upland Conversion Program) for converting cropland to forest is one of China's most ambitious environmental initiatives, and is one of the world's largest land-conservation programs with a budget of RMB 337 billion (over US$ 40 billion). Although environmental impacts have played a vital role in the general reasoning and argumentation for forest plantations, environmental impact analyses have often received less attention than economic analyses in the planning of plantation forestry projects. The overall goal of this paper is to evaluate the program's environmental impact considering the farmer's interests and the potential social benefits due to carbon sequestration in different scenarios based on household and field survey data in Dunhua County. Our findings are that: (1) in many cases, the program did not give adequate consideration to land productivity and environmental heterogeneity when selecting plots; (2) more than half of the reforestation plots were on flat cropland (slopes of less than 5 degrees ); (3) in five of the eight townships, net incomes on reforested land were substantially above or below previous crop incomes, raising questions about the efficiency of the allocation of compensation to farmers participating in the program; (4) the potential carbon co-benefit increased the NPV of the program by 5954-7009 RMB/ha. In conclusion, we recommend that more attention should be paid to the quality of reforestation programs rather than just their scale and note that consideration of potential carbon sequestration co-benefits enhances the benefits of cropland conversion programs.     

Social and economic impacts of carbon sequestration and land use change on peasant households in rural China: a case study of Liping, Guizhou Province

Numerous innovative approaches to mitigate effects of excessive emission of greenhouse gases (GHGs) on global climate change are being proposed and formulated. Sequestering carbon to terrestrial ecosystems represents one of the important clean development mechanisms. Reforestation through converting various non-forest lands to forests is undoubtedly an important dimension of carbon sequestration. Using Liping County in Guizhou Province as a case region, this study examines the perceived change in social and economic livelihoods of peasants and the factors responsible for the variations in the changes. The results of the study reveal that socio-economic changes associated with the government-financed project are multifaceted and profound. Because of the financial subsidies provided by the central government, this environmental action in many aspects can be regarded as a poverty reduction measure in the underdeveloped area where rural poverty is widespread. A majority of peasant households have benefited from project participation. The land conversion project with continued financial support also contributes to the social transformations of traditional rural society in remote areas to a more mobile, less subsistence agriculture-based, and open society.     

Evaluating Terrestrial Carbon Sequestration Options for Virginia

Changes in forest and agricultural land management practices have the potential to increase carbon (C) storage by terrestrial systems, thus offsetting C emissions to the atmosphere from energy production. This study assesses that potential for three terrestrial management practices within the state of Virginia, USA: afforestation of marginal agricultural lands; afforestation of riparian agricultural lands; and changing tillage practices for row crops; each was evaluated on a statewide basis and for seven regions within the state. Lands eligible for each practice were identified, and the C storage potential of each practice on those lands was estimated through a modeling procedure that utilized land-resource characteristics represented in Geographic Information System databases. Marginal agricultural lands’ afforestation was found to have the greatest potential (1.4 Tg C yr⁻¹, on average, over the first 20 years) if applied on all eligible lands, followed by riparian afforestation (0.2 Tg C yr⁻¹ over 20 years) and tillage conversion (0.1 Tg C yr⁻¹ over 14 years). The regions with the largest potentials are the Ridge and Valley of western Virginia (due to extensive areas of steep, shallow soils) and in the Mid-Atlantic Coastal Plain in eastern Virginia (wet soils). Although widespread and rapid implementation of the three modeled practices could be expected to offset only about 3.4% of Virginia’s energy-related CO₂ emissions over the following 20 years (equivalent to about 8.5% of a Kyoto Treaty–based target), they could contribute to achievement of C-management goals if implemented along with other mitigation measures.     

Chemical Partitioning to Foliage: The Contribution and Legacy of Davide Calamari

- DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1065/espr2006.01.002 Background Davide Calamari and his colleagues were among the first to appreciate that vegetation could play a key role in determining the fate and effects of organic contaminants. They conducted pioneering experiments to investigate the uptake of contaminants by plants from the atmosphere and they sought to model the observed phenomena. In the nearly two decades since there has been a marked increase in understanding of these phenomena as a result of both experimental and modelling studies. - Goal. In this study we briefly review our current understanding of chemical partitioning between foliage and air. A model in both fugacity and concentration format is described, based on that of Tolls and McLachlan (1994), in which the leaf is treated as consisting of two layers, a waxy cuticle with an underlying 'reservoir' layer, the cuticle being surrounded by an air boundary layer and containing stomata that provide direct access from the air to the 'reservoir'. The model quantifies the dynamic penetration of a defined chemical into a defined leaf as a function of time. Main Features The model is applied for illustrative purposes to a hypothetical but typical leaf for a set of illustrative chemicals to demonstrate the effect of changes in physical-chemical properties and leaf characteristics. Discussion The results are compared qualitatively with a variety of field and laboratory studies of foliage uptake and clearance of chemicals. Conclusion It is concluded that the model yields results that are generally consistent with observations. It is suggested that with appropriate parameterisation and validation, the model can contribute to an improved understanding of the process of foliage uptake from the atmosphere and to the development of an improved predictive capability.     

Determining Optimal Population Monitoring for Rare Butterflies

Abstract: Determining population viability of rare insects depends on precise, unbiased estimates of population size and other demographic parameters. We used data on the endangered St. Francis' satyr butterfly (Neonympha mitchellii francisci) to evaluate 2 approaches (mark–recapture and transect counts) for population analysis of rare butterflies. Mark–recapture analysis provided by far the greatest amount of demographic information, including estimates (and standard errors) of population size, detection, survival, and recruitment probabilities. Mark–recapture analysis can also be used to estimate dispersal and temporal variation in rates, although we did not do this here. Models of seasonal flight phenologies derived from transect counts (Insect Count Analyzer) provided an index of population size and estimates of survival and statistical uncertainty. Pollard–Yates population indices derived from transect counts did not provide estimates of demographic parameters. This index may be highly biased if detection and survival probabilities vary spatially and temporally. In terms of statistical performance, mark–recapture and Pollard–Yates indices were least variable. Mark–recapture estimates were less likely to fail than Insect Count Analyzer, but mark–recapture estimates became less precise as sampling intensity decreased. In general, count‐based approaches are less costly and less likely to cause harm to rare insects than mark–recapture. The optimal monitoring approach must reconcile these trade‐offs. Thus, mark–recapture should be favored when demographic estimates are needed, when financial resources enable frequent sampling, and when marking does not harm the insect populations. The optimal sampling strategy may use 2 sampling methods together in 1 overall sampling plan: limited mark–recapture sampling to estimate survival and detection probabilities and frequent but less expensive transect counts.     

Evolution of extreme polyandry in the honeybee Apis mellifera L.

A number of hypotheses have been proposed to explain the evolution of multiple mating in the honeybee queen. In particular, the consequences of reduced intracolonial relatedness provide plausible explanations for multiple mating with up to ten drones, but fail to account for the much higher mating frequencies observed in nature. In this paper, we propose an alternative mechanism which builds on non-linear relationships between intracolonial frequencies in genotypic worker specialization and colony fitness. If genes for any worker specialization confer an advantage on colony fitness only when they are rare, this would require a stable mix of sperm from a few drones which contribute that trait, and many which do not. To ensure both specific, low within-colony proportions of “rare specialist” genes, and to reduce random variation of these proportions would require mating with high numbers of drones. The quantitative implementation shows that moderate to very high numbers of matings are required to exploit colony advantages from genotypic allocation of workers to rare tasks. Extreme polyandry thus could result from colony selection dependent on the intracolonial frequency of rare genetic specialists. Received: 30 January 1998 / Accepted after revision: 7 October 1998