Current Vegetation Pattern along Glacial Landscape in Central （Garhwal） Himalaya, India

Introduction High mountain ecosystems are comparatively thrilling and sensitive at least at the upper elevation levels, and are determined by abiotic climate related ecological factors. Therefore, the ecosystems at the low temperature limits of plant life are generally considered to be particularly sensitive to climate changes (Koerner 1999). As temperature is a key factor for high mountain plants (Koerner and Larcher 1988, Gottfried et al. 1998), an upward migration of species must be conse…     

Temporal and spatial distributions of dominant shrimp stocks and their relationship with the hydrological environment in the East China Sea

To provide a scientific and technological base for fishery administration, holding a moratorium on fishing, and combating habitat degradation, a shrimp stock survey was carried out in May, August, and November 1998 and in February 1999. The study was conducted in the area between 26o00′ N and 33o00′ N and to the west of 127o00′ E in the East China Sea using a multi-sac trawl-net, with 115 stations being sampled. Up to 2001, we had found 121 species, which belong to 63 genera under 22 families, and 41 species are of high economic value and in great abundance. Nine shrimp species were of great economic importance, whose stock accounted for 76.8% of the demersal total. They were Parapenaeus fissuroides, Metapenaeopsis philippi, Palaemon gravieri, Metapenaeopsis barbata, Solenocera koelbeli, Solenocera crassicornis, Trachypenaeus curvirostris, Solenocera melantho and Parapenaeopsis hardwickii (listed in stock order). The nine species belong to the eurythermal and eurysaline community and high thermal and high saline community, had different migration patterns and stocks, and their distribution patterns could be generally classified into three types:(1) dominating in the north or the south;(2) dominating to the north of and in the coast to the south of 30o00′ N;and (3) dominating to the east of 60 m isobath, which were related to six water masses in the ECS near two lines, i.e., the 60 m isobath and 30o00′N latitudinal lines. Densely habited shrimps were found in all four seasons due to temperature and salinity frontiers and upwelling. The general stock density index was relatively higher in spring, summer, and autumn, when it surpassed 10 kg/h, while in winter, it was only 6.8 kg/h which might be caused by overfishing. According to the spawning areas of the nine species and their distribution patterns, to attain sustainable development of the shrimp fishery in the ECS, it is imperative to protect fishing areas and to hold a moratorium on catching to the west of 60 m isobath from April through October, and between 60 m and 100 m isobaths and to the south of 30oN from June through August and to limit fishing in winter.     

SOME NEW SPECIES OF NANNOPLANKTON IN JIAOZHOU BAY, SHANDONG, CHINA

Three new spades and a new variety of nannoplankton, Chrysochromulina papillata, Gaysochromulina chiton var. minuta, Paraphysomonas simplexocorbita and Paraphysomonas bisorbulina are reported in this paper. All were isolated from the preliminary culture samples of seawater collected from Jiaozhou Bay, Shandong, China. The three species occurred at Station 1(120° 14.56′ E, 36°4′N) in November 1984, the new variety at Station 2 (120° 16.35° E,36°4.5′N) in January, 1985. The morphological features, especially the structures of the scales of these new nannoplankton,. are described. The differences between the new species and the related ones are discussed; their movement and nutrition, and the temperature and salinity of their biotopes are also mentioned.     

Optimal salinity for dominant copepods in the East China Sea, determined using a yield density model

From 1997 to 2000, four field surveys were conducted in the East China Sea (ECS) (23°30′–33°00′N, 118°30′–128°00′E). A field data yield density model was used to determine the optimal salinities for 19 dominant copepod species to establish the relationship between surface salinities and abundance of those species. In addition, ecological groups of the copepods were classified based on optimal salinity and geographical distribution. The results indicate that the yield density model is suitable for determining the relationship between salinity and abundance. Cosmocalanus darwini, Euchaeta rimana, Pleuromamma gracilis, Rhincalanus cornutus, Scolecithrix danae and Pareucalanus attenuatus were determined as oceanic species, with optimal salinities of >34.0. They were stenohaline and mainly distributed in waters influenced by the Kuroshio or Taiwan warm current. Temora discaudata, T. stylifera and Canthocalanus pauper were nearshore species with optimal salinities of <33.0 and most abundant in coastal waters. The remaining 10 species, including Undinula vulgaris and Subeucalanus subcrassus, were offshore species, with optimal salinity ranging from 33.0–34.0. They were widely distributed in nearshore, offshore and oceanic waters but mainly in the mixed water of the ECS.     

BASIC FEATURES OF FOREST STEPPE IN THE LOESS PLATEAU OF CHINA

ＢＡＳＩＣＦＥＡＴＵＲＥＳＯＦＦＯＲＥＳＴＳＴＥＰＰＥＩＮＴＨＥＬＯＥＳＳＰＬＡＴＥＡＵＯＦＣＨＩＮＡ￥ＺｈｕＺｈｉｃｈｅｎｇ（朱志诚）（ＤｅｐａｒｔｍｅｎｔｏｆＢｉｏｌｏｇｙ．ＮｏｒｔｈｗｅｓｔＵｎｉｖｅｒｓｉｔｙ，Ｘｉａｎ７１００６９，ＰＲＣ）Ａ...     

中国南沙群岛的双壳纲贝类

报道了中国南沙群岛的双壳纲贝类141种,分隶于5亚纲8目36科77属.从种类的组成中,帘蛤科有18种,蚶科15种,扇贝科11种,鸟蛤科10种,锉蛤科8种,贻贝科、海菊蛤科和樱蛤科各7种,砗磲科6种,其他各科的种类均在5种以内.按种的性质而论,大多数属于和珊瑚礁有密切联系的热带种或亚热带种,区系性质为印度-西太平洋区的印尼-马来亚区.     

Two new species of Ophidiasterid sea-stars from the vicinity of Diaoyudao,East China Sea

Two new species of the asteroid family Ophidiasteridae are described from two specimens collected by commercial fishery vessels of Qingdao from the vicinity of Diaoyudao (25°45′N, 123°15′E), East China Sea.Hacelia tuberculata sp. nov. shows affinities withH. tyloplax (H. L. Clark, 1914) andLinckia gracilis sp. nov. is related toL. laevigata (Linnaeus). Contribution No. 1163 from the Institute of Oceanology, Academia Sinica.     

Study on the dominant species of Pteropoda in East China Sea

1 INTRODUCTION Pteropoda is a group of marine pelagic mol- lusks, which belongs to Opisthobranchia of Gastro- poda. Although Pteropoda is not a major group in pelagic zooplankton in terms of abundance and number of species, their ecological characters are…     

A singular spectrum analysis on Holocene climatic oscillation from lake sedimentary record in Minqin Basin, China

The total organic carbon (TOC) content series from the lake sediment of Minqin Basin (100°57′–104°57′E, 37°48′–39°17′N) in northwestern China, which has a 10 000-year-long paleo-climatic proxy record, was used to analyze the Holocene climate changes in the local region. The proxy record was established in the Sanjiaocheng (SJC), Triangle Town in Chinese, Section (103°20′25″E, 39°00′38″N), which is located at the northwestern boundary of the present Asian summer monsoon in China, and is sensitive to global environmental and climate changes. Applying singular spectrum analysis (SSA) to the TOC series, principal climatic oscillations and periodical changes were studied. The results reveal 3 major patterns of climate change regulated by reconstructed components (RCs). The first pattern is natural long-term trend of climatic change in the local area (Minqin Basin), indicating a relatively wetter stage in early Holocene (starting at 9.5 kaBP), and a relatively dryer stage with a strong lake desiccation and a declined vegetation cover in mid-Holocene (during 7–6 kaBP). From 4.0 kaBP to the present, there has been a gradually decreasing trend in the third reconstructed component (RC3) showing that the local climate changed again into a dryer stage. The second pattern shows millennial-centennial scale oscillations containing cycles of 1 600 and 800 years that have been present throughout almost the entire Holocene period of the last 10 000 years. The third pattern is a millennial-centennial scale variation with a relatively smaller amplitude and unclear cycles showing a nonlinear interaction within the earth’s climate systems.     

Variation of d δ18O/dT in precipitation in the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau

The relations between δ¹⁸O and temperature on the different time scales were analysed, according to the data from Tuotuohe (34°13′N, 96°25′E; 4533 m a. s. l.), Delingha (37°22′N, 97°22′E; 2981 m a. s. l.) and Xining (36°37′N, 101°46′E; 2261 m a. s. l.) in the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau. The results show that the significance of d δ¹⁸O/dT on different time scales are different. The d δ¹⁸O/dT on the synoptic scale reflects the interdependent relation between δ¹⁸O and temperature in the short-term synoptic scale process; the d δ¹⁸O/d T on the seasonal scale reflects the relation between them whithin a year; and the d δ¹⁸O/d T on the climatic scale reflects the relation between them in the long-term climatic change. The calculated d δ¹⁸O/dT on climatic scale is very close to the theoretical values on the condition of advection transport for Tuotuohe Station. However, there are great differences between the calculated and the theoretical values for Delingha and Xining stations.     

Regional hard coral distribution within geomorphic and reef flat ecological zones determined by satellite imagery of the Xisha Islands,South China Sea

Coral reefs in the Xisha Islands(also known as the Paracel Islands in English), South China Sea, have experienced dramatic declines in coral cover. However, the current regional scale hard coral distribution of geomorphic and ecological zones, essential for reefs management in the context of global warming and ocean acidification, is not well documented. We analyzed data from field surveys, Landsat-8 and GF-1 images to map the distribution of hard coral within geomorphic zones and reef flat ecological zones. In situ surveys conducted in June 2014 on nine reefs provided a complete picture of reef status with regard to live coral diversity, evenness of coral cover and reef health(live versus dead cover) for the Xisha Islands. Mean coral cover was 12.5% in 2014 and damaged reefs seemed to show signs of recovery. Coral cover in sheltered habitats such as lagoon patch reefs and biotic dense zones of reef flats was higher, but there were large regional differences and low diversity. In contrast, the more exposed reef slopes had high coral diversity, along with high and more equal distributions of coral cover. Mean hard coral cover of other zones was 10%. The total Xisha reef system was estimated to cover 1 060 km~2, and the emergent reefs covered ~787 km~2. Hard corals of emergent reefs were considered to cover 97 km~2. The biotic dense zone of the reef flat was a very common zone on all simple atolls, especially the broader northern reef flats. The total cover of live and dead coral can reach above 70% in this zone, showing an equilibrium between live and dead coral as opposed to coral and algae. This information regarding the spatial distribution of hard coral can support and inform the management of Xisha reef ecosystems.     

A study on the flora of woody plants of Shanxi and the relationship among the flora of Shanxi and some regions, China

There are 463 species of woody plant, belonging to 166 genera and 70 families in Shanxi, North China. The floristic composition types of genera and species are abundant, in which the compositions distributed in temperate zones (including North Temperate, Old World Temperate and Temperate Asia), having 62 genera, are dominant and account for 38.27% in total genera (except for Cosmopolitan), and they are major constructive or dominant species of vegetation in Shanxi. The floristic compositions of woody plants of Shanxi, Hebei, Beijing, Shandong, Henan, Jiangxi and Inner Mongolia were studied comparatively by using diversity index, principal component analysis (PCA) and group-average clustering, respectively. The floristic composition of Shanxi was considerably similar to that of Hebei, Beijing and Shandong because they shared a lot of genera, specially genera distributed in temperate regions, such as Rosa, Quercus, Populus, Salix, Acer, Ulmus, Pinus etc. and their eco-environment were considerably similar. However, the flora of Shanxi was comparatively different from that of Henan, Jiangxi and Inner Mongolia by reason that there were distinct differences among their eco-geographic conditions, floristic compositions and constructive or dominant species of dominant vegetation types. Supported by Shanxi Returned Oversea Scholar Foundation, China     

Seasonal variation in fatty acid composition of seston and the copepod Calanus sinicus (Brodsky, 1962) in Jiaozhou Bay and its trophic implications

The fatty acid compositions of seston and Calanus sinicus were investigated to study trophic relationships in Jiaozhou Bay. Principal component analysis was carried out to ordinate the fatty acid patterns of seston in stations and months. The results showed that diatoms were most abundant in the phytoplankton at station A5 (located in the northwest of the bay:36°9′N, 120°20′E) and least abundant at station D7 (located outside of the bay: 35°59′N, 120°26′E). By contrast, dinoflagellates were most abundant at station D7 and least abundant at station A5. According to the annual variations of 16:1ω7 and 18:4ω3/ 16:1ω7, diatoms flourished mainly in spring and summer, while dinoflagellates bloomed exclusively in summer. A distinctive feature of the fatty acid composition of C. sinicus was the prevalence of 20:5ω3 and 22:6ω3. The higher content of 16:1ω7 over 18:4ω3 in females indicated that diatoms contributed more than dinoflagellates to the diet of C. sinicus. The feeding intensity of C. sinicus on diatoms was higher in spring and autumn than in other seasons. The herbivorous indicators 20:1 and 22:1 were comparatively low, suggesting that besides phytoplankton, C. sinicus might feed on a wider range of particles including organic detritus, bacteria and small copepods.     

Type and evolution of landscapes of Nansha Islands

Landscapes of the Nansha Islands may be divided into five types: tropical marine organism-breeding landscape of reef knoll like Zengmu Shoal, Wan’an Bank and so on; tropical marine organism-breeding landscape of atoll including all emerged reefs and most submerged reefs; tropical evergreen arbor-bush forest and phosphorous lime soil landscape of limesand Islets like Taiping Islet, Nanwei islet and so on; tropical shallow sea marine organism-breeding landscape of southern continental shelf; tropical oceanic and deep-sea marine organism landscape in middle and north parts of the Nansha Islands area. These five landscape types may be also summed up as two categories, one is tropical sea landscape including those in shallow and deep sea, the other is tropical coral reef landscape including those of reef knoll, atoll and limesand islet. This paper outlines the evolutional model of landscapes of the Nansha Islands. The distribution and evolution of landscape types are related with palaeogeography and modern environmental conditions. The former shallow sea of the Nansha islands was coastal zone in the Late Pleistocene epoch. Deep sea is evolved from shallow sea due to long and slow subsidence of crust. Modern coral reefs develop on old reef top of the Late pleistocene epoch or on baserock of continental shelf in the Holocene due to the rise of sea level in postglacial. Limesand islet is in the peak of developmental stage.     

A study on the flora of woody plants of Shanxi and the relationship among the flora of Shanxi and some regions, China

ＡＳＴＵＤＹＯＮＴＨＥＦＬＯＲＡＯＦＷＯＯＤＹＰＬＡＮＴＳＯＦＳＨＡＮＸＩＡＮＤＴＨＥＲＥＬＡＴＩＯＮＳＨＩＰＡＭＯＮＧＴＨＥＦＬＯＲＡＯＦＳＨＡＮＸＩＡＮＤＳＯＭＥＲＥＧＩＯＮＳ,ＣＨＩＮＡ①ＺｈａｎｇＦｅｎｇ（张峰）ＤｅｐａｒｔｍｅｎｔｏｆＬｉｆ...     

Vegetation analysis of a typical mangrove swamp—Lai Chi Wo coast of Hong Kong

A vegetation analysis reveals that the Lai Chi Wo mangrove swamp in Hong Kong has 10 mangrove species comprising 76.9% of the total number of mangrove species in Hong Kong. This swamp is a mixed community dominated byAegiceras corniculatum, Heritiera littoralis, Excoecaria agallocha, Kandelia candel, Bruguiera gymnorrhiza, with importance values of 37.88, 28.19, 14.33, 11.33 and 8.27 respectively. The community’s mangrove species diversity and evenness, as based on the Shannon-Wiener Function, were 1.44 and 62.01%, which were lower than those of the south su-tropical evergreen broad-leaf forest community but its ecological dominance (0.26) was higher. The correlation information field (CIF) method, a useful analytical method for complex forest community, was adopted in the present mangrove analysis. The species correlation information was:Aegiceras corniculatum (0.268)>Heritiera littoralis (0.250)>Kandelia candel (0.220)>Excoecaria agallocha (0.169)>Bruguiera gymnorrhiza (0.101). The correlation information of the mangrove community was 1.008. This work was financially supported by the Agriculture and Fisheries Department of The Hong Kong Government and The Hong Kong University of Science & Technology.     

ON PHYTOGEOGRAPHICAL AFFINITIES OF THE FOREST FLORAS BETWEEN EAST CHINA AND JAPAN

EastChinaisoneoftherichestregionsinplantlifeinEastAsiaanditsfloraisthemainpartofSino-Japanesefloristicregion,whichhasattractedtheattentionofmanybotanistsbothathomeandabroad,suchasHuXiansu(1936),LiHuilin(1950,1953),StewardA.N.(1958),WangJingkiang(1988),WangWencai(1992),Wusugong(1987),WuZhengyi(1979)andXieGuowen(1991a,1993),etal.AnumberofpapersdealingwithEastAsian-EasternNorthAmericanphytogeographicalrelationshipshavebeenpublished(Bouffordf1983).However,thefloristicrelationsbetweenEas…     

Numerical Simulation of Wintertime Mesoscale Eddies in the East China Sea

INTRODUCTIONAnimportantachievementofoceanographysincethe 1960swasthediscoveryofmesoscaleed dieswithspatialscaleofhundredsofmeters,andtimescaleofhours;andaverageflowvelocityofabout 10cm s.Theenormousenergyofthemesoscaleeddyiscomparabletothatofacycloneoran ticycloneintheatmosphere .Themesoscaleeddyisoneoftheimportantfactorsthatdecidethechangeoftheocean .Intherecentdecades,ChineseandforeignscientistshavedonelotsofworkontheEastChinaSeasmesoscaleeddies,theformationmechanismofwhicharethefocuso…