Effects of artificial vegetation arrangement and structure on the colonization and development of biological soil crusts

The colonization and development of biological soil crusts (BSCs) are rarely discussed when investigating vegetation restoration with difference arrangement and structure of anthropogenically damaged areas in semi-arid regions. The present study analyzes the relationships among coverage, height and density of woody vegetation and coverage and thickness of BSCs on the surface mine dumpsite in Heidaigou, China. Results showed that PR (Prunus sibirica L.), PT (Pinus tabulaeformis Carr.) and PPr (P. tabulaeformis Carr., P. sibirica L.) types had the highest coverage of total BSCs, which were 76.8%, 75.9% and 78.9%, respectively and PR showed the thickest BSCs of 4.41 mm. There was a significant correlation between coverage and thickness of BSCs and coverage and height of woody vegetation as a unimodal curve. Our findings suggest that a single woody plant species and low level coverage and height (no more than 30% and 300 cm, respectively) of woody plants may be able to create suitable conditions for facilitating BSCs restoration on the surface of mine dumpsites. The effects of vegetation arrangement and structure on BSCs colonization and development should be considered in reconstructing and managing woody vegetation in disturbed environments, such as surface mine dumpsites in semi-arid areas.     

Temporal dynamics and productivity of biogenic soil crusts in the central Karakum desert, Turkmenistan

Biogenic soil crusts (BSCs), consisting of different combinations of mosses, lichens, liverworts, fungi and cyanobacteria, are a widespread phenomenon in arid and semi-arid environments. BSCs are found throughout those areas unaffected by grazing and other anthropogenic activities. Current economic conditions in the newly Independent Central Asian States favor the development of BSCs, which may significantly influence plant communities. The data from 40-years of field observations in a protected area in the Karakum Desert, Turkmenistan, together with a sequence of aerial photographs of the same area may contribute to the study of the establishment of BSCs and understanding their role in vegetation communities. The fenced-off Karrykul area can serve as a model for the current processes in the vast desert areas in Central Asia, which are underused due to the financial constraints. It is hypothesized that after some 15 years, the role of BSCs changes from a positive (rehabilitating) effect on the first stages of protection, to a negative effect on the structure and biomass of vegetation communities. Therefore, undergrazing, as well as overgrazing, should be considered as a desertification factor.     

Ecological and functional roles of mycorrhizas in semi-arid ecosystems of Southeast Spain

Mycorrhizas are worldwide symbiotic associations established between certain soil fungi and most vascular plants and are fundamental in optimizing plant fitness and soil quality. Mycorrhizal symbioses improve the resilience of plant communities against environment stresses, including nutrient deficiency, drought and soil disturbance. Since these stresses are paramount in the degradation of semi-arid ecosystems in the SE Spain, a series of basic, strategic and applied studies have been made to ascertain how the activity and diversity of mycorrhizal fungi affect plant community composition, structure and dynamics in this region. These investigations are reviewed here in terms of: (i) analysing the diversity of mycorrhizal fungi; (ii) assessing the ecological and functional interactions among plant communities and their associated mycorrhizal fungal populations; and (iii) using mycorrhizal inoculation technology for the restoration of degraded semi-arid areas in Southeast Spain. Disturbance of the target semi-arid ecosystems decreases the density and diversity of mycorrhizal fungust populations. Nevertheless, the mycorrhizal propagules do not disappear completely suggesting a certain degree of stress adaptation, and these remaining, resilient ecotypes are being used as plant inoculants. Numerous field experiments, using plant species from the natural succession inoculated with a community of indigenous mycorrhizal fungi, have been carried out in revegetation projects in the semi-arid Iberian Southeast. This management strategy improved both plant development and soil quality, and is a successful biotechnological tool to aid the restoration of self-sustaining ecosystems. However, despite a 20-year history of this work, we lack a comprehensive view of the mycorrhizal potential to improve the composition, diversity, structure and functionality of drought-adapted plant communities in the Region.     

皇甫川流域降水和人类活动对径流量变化的贡献率分析——累积量斜率变化率比较方法的提出及应用

随着全球或区域气候的变化,加上渐强的人类活动的影响,世界上一些河流的径流量发生了明显减小的变化趋势,这在干旱及半干旱地区的河流中尤其明显。在我国,北方干旱及半干旱地区河流的径流量的减小已经引起了严峻的生活及生态方面的问题。因此查明流域径流量的变化特征、趋势及分析其原因,是流域管理中面临的重要科学问题。该研究以黄河中游一级支流皇甫川流域为例,利用1960-2008 年的数据资料,采用累积距平方法、年际累积量方法,分析了该流域径流量和降水量的变化趋势,识别出径流量变化过程中1979 和1998 为其两个突变年份,而降水量变化过程中仅存在唯一的突变年份1979。利用统计分析法分别分析了1960-1979、1980-1997 和1998-2008 三个时期的累积径流量与年份之间的线性关系,以及1960-1979、1980-2008 两个时期累积降水量与年份之间的线性关系。采用本文提出的新的计算方法——累积量斜率变化率比较方法,以1960-1979 为基准期,在不考虑蒸散总量的影响时,计算得出皇甫川流域径流量减小的降水量和人类活动的相对贡献率在1980-1997 年间分别为36.43%和63.57%,在1998-2008 年间分别为16.81%和83.19%。该研究结果揭示了皇甫川流域近半个世纪以来径流量的变化趋势及其主要影响因素的贡献率,对于该流域未来水资源的开发利用具有重要指导作用。同时,所提出的定量研究方法可以应用在干旱—半干旱地区河流径流量变化及其影响因素的定量评估中。     

沙质草原灌丛沙堆研究综述

灌丛沙堆是干旱、半干旱及半湿润荒漠地区风沙流遇到灌丛阻拦而堆积形成的一种地貌形态。普遍的研究表明灌丛沙堆是伴随人类不合理的土地利用和环境的变化而出现,是土壤风蚀和土地退化的标志,也是沙漠化的一种表现形式。灌丛沙堆在我国分布范围很广,但目前研究还不够深入。笔者主要阐述了国内外对灌丛沙堆形态、沉积物、演变及其环境意义等几个方面研究所取得的进展及其存在的争议,并提出了灌丛沙堆研究的发展趋势,以期引起国内对灌丛沙堆研究的关注。     

Biological soil crusts affect small-scale spatial patterns of inorganic N in a semiarid Mediterranean grassland

The influence of biological soil crusts (BSCs) on the small-scale spatial distribution of inorganic nitrogen (N) in drylands is largely unknown, despite their known impact and importance on the N cycle in these environments. We evaluated how perennial plants and BSCs affected small-scale spatial patterns of soil inorganic N (ammonium and nitrate) availability in a semiarid grassland from Spain. The data were analyzed by using geostatistical methods. The range of semivariograms for ammonium and nitrate, and the coefficient of variation of nitrate, were lower in BSC-dominated microsites than in plant-dominated microsites. Our results suggest that BSCs modulate the small-scale spatial pattern of inorganic N, producing more homogeneous conditions for spatial distribution of inorganic N forms than microsites provided by plants. These results may have important repercussions for the foraging strategies and ability of plant roots to uptake N.     

中国生态学研究的回顾与展望(英文)

生态学作为一门研究生物有机体与其生活环境之间相互关系的学科,自Haeckel提出以来已有一个半世纪的时间。当代的生态学,在积极参与解决全球发展面临的迫切问题中逐渐摆脱了其初期发展阶段的某些纯自然主义倾向的局限性,扩展了研究的范围和领域,在研究方法和手段也实现了现代化,成为自然科学和社会科学之间的桥梁。尽管中国在悠久的发展历史中积累了丰富的具有深刻生态学思想的宝贵经验,但直到20世纪50年代新中国成立以后生态学才作为一门学科在我国得到发展。其发展历程可以归纳为以下4个阶段:原始萌芽阶段、基础生态学研究阶段、生态系统研究阶段以及当代生态学研究阶段。本文在简要回顾中国生态学发展的基础上,选择了几个研究领域进行了重点介绍,包括:生物多样性保育、全球变化生态学、退化生态系统的恢复与沙漠化控制、青藏高原生态系统研究、可持续发展研究以及生态系统服务评估与生态补偿等。最后,基于中国生态学研究的现状和需求,提出了今后生态学发展的6个优先领域。     

皇甫川流域降水量和人类活动对径流量变化影响的定量评估(英文)

The runoff of some rivers in the world especially in the arid and semi-arid areas has decreased remarkably with global or regional climate change and enhanced human activities.The runoff decrease in the arid and semi-arid areas of northern China has brought severe problems in livelihoods and ecology.To reveal the variation characteristics,trends of runoff and their influencing factors have been important scientific issues for drainage basin management.The objective of this study was to analyze the variation trends of the runoff and quantitatively assess the contributions of precipitation and human activities to the runoff change in the Huangfuchuan River Basin based on the measured data in 1960-2008.Two inflection points(turning years) of 1979 and 1998 for the accumulative runoff change,and one inflection point of 1979 for the accumulative precipitation change were identified using the methods of accumulative anomaly analysis.The linear relationships between year and accumulative runoff in 1960-1979,1980-1997 and 1998-2008 and between year and accumulative precipitation in 1960-1979 and 1980-2008 were fitted.A new method of slope change ratio of accumulative quantity(SCRAQ) was put forward and used in this study to calculate the contributions of different factors to the runoff change.Taking 1960-1979 as the base period,the contribution rate of the precipitation and human activities to the decreased runoff was 36.43% and 63.57% in 1980-1997,and 16.81% and 83.19% in 1998-2008,respectively.The results will play an important role in the drainage basin management.Moreover,the new method of SCRAQ can be applied in the quantitative evaluation of runoff change and impacts by different factors in the river basin of arid and semi-arid areas.     

生物土壤结皮对荒漠区土壤微生物数量和活性的影响

生物土壤结皮对荒漠生态系统的维持与改良发挥着重要作用。土壤微生物可敏感地指示土壤质量,是衡量荒漠区生态健康程度的重要生物学特征,而对荒漠区生物土壤结皮与土壤微生物关系知之甚少。本研究设计了两组对比试验。一组以腾格里沙漠东南缘的1956、1964、1981、1991年的植被固沙区结皮下的沙丘土壤为对象,以流沙区和天然植被区为对照。另一组以植被固沙区人为干扰生物土壤结皮下的沙丘土壤为研究对象,以未干扰结皮下的沙丘土壤为对照。结果表明：腾格里沙漠东南缘植被固沙区的藻-地衣和藓类结皮均可显著提高土壤可培养微生物的数量和基础呼吸（P<0.05）;适度人为干扰生物土壤结皮不会显著影响土壤可培养微生物的数量和基础呼吸,而严重人为干扰结皮可显著降低土壤可培养微生物的数量和基础呼吸,指示严重人为干扰结皮可导致荒漠区土壤质量下降;土壤可培养微生物的数量和基础呼吸也因结皮演替阶段的不同而有所不同,演替晚期的藓类结皮下土壤微生物数量和基础呼吸显著高于演替早期的藻-地衣结皮（P<0.05）;土壤可培养微生物的数量和土壤基础呼吸与固沙年限均存在显著的正相关关系,随着沙丘固沙年限的增加,结皮层增厚,结皮下土壤微生物数量及基础呼吸显著增加（P<0.05）;生物土壤结皮下土壤可培养微生物数量和基础呼吸呈现显著的季节变化,表现为夏季>秋季和春季>冬季。因此,腾格里沙漠东南缘植被固沙区的生物土壤结皮提高了土壤微生物数量和活性,表明生物土壤结皮有利于荒漠区土壤及荒漠生态系统的恢复。     

Positive plant interactions in the Iberian Southeast: Mechanisms, environmental gradients, and ecosystem function

Semi-arid ecosystems are privileged sites to address the effects of plant interactions on community structure and dynamics because environmental conditions are demanding and may change quickly, altering in significant ways the balance between positive and negative effects among neighboring plants. Plant interaction processes have been well documented in the semi-arid region of Southeast Spain over the last 15 years. In this article we review the growing body of research on plant–plant interactions available from this area, highlighting its importance in increasing our knowledge on this field of study. This review has been organized in five sections, i) facilitation mechanisms; ii) the nurse effect; iii) the balance of interactions and environmental, ontogenic, temporal, and spatial gradients; iv) the effects of facilitation on biodiversity; and, v) facilitation and ecosystem functioning. Mechanisms of facilitation in these systems are relatively well known, but not completely explored. In these environments competition, mainly for water, is intense between neighbors and switches in intensity from belowground to aboveground as productivity increases. By contrast, facilitation may decrease quickly with increasing productivity, although the balance between facilitation and competition is not fully understood, and is further complicated because shifts can also be driven by factors such as life history or physiology of interacting species. Positive interactions are critical for maintaining biodiversity in some ecosystems in SE Spain, but their role as a driver of ecosystem functioning is less clear. Research on plant–plant interactions in this region has been highly influential and has contributed to our overall understanding of plant community dynamics. Despite the important progress achieved during the last 15 years, there is still substantial scope for exploring the effects of plant interactions at the ecosystem level, and their role as modulators of disturbances such as the current global environmental change.     

科尔沁沙质草甸土壤微生物数量的垂直分布及季节动态

通过对中国农牧交错带科尔沁沙质草甸土壤微生物数量的垂直分布及其季节动态的研究分析表明:(1)微生物总数、细菌和放线菌数量均表现出与降雨量同步的季节动态,即6月份较5月份有所减少,7月份增至最多,7月份以后微生物数量逐渐下降,真菌则表现出从5月份到8月份一直增加,9月份开始回落;(2)土壤微生物具有明显的垂直分布差异.细菌和放线菌的垂直分布表现出随土壤深度增加逐渐减少的趋势,真菌数量表层最高,20 cm以下变化不够规律;(3)土壤微生物的层化比率均大于2(5月份放线菌除外);(4)不同土壤生态因子对微生物的影响不同,相同因子对不同微生物类群的影响也不相同.细菌受水分影响较大,真菌与地温的变化趋势相近,放线菌与水热条件的共同作用有关.土壤养分(有机碳和全氮)与微生物数量呈显著的正相关.     

Climatic change and rainfall patterns: Effects on semi-arid plant communities of the Iberian Southeast

The structure and functioning of semi-arid ecosystems are strongly influenced by precipitation patterns. Water availability in such environments is highly pulsed, and discrete rainfall events interspersed with drought periods are important components of the annual water supply. Plant communities do not only respond to rainfall quantity, but also to variations in time, so that relatively small changes in rainfall frequency (i.e., pulsed inputs) may have strong effects on communities. Within the Mediterranean basin, climate change models forecast a decrease in mean annual precipitation and more extreme events (i.e., less rainy days and longer drought periods between events), along with seasonal changes. However, little is known on the consequences of these future precipitation changes on plant communities, especially in semi-arid environments. Here, we summarize the few experiments that have manipulated rainfall patterns in arid and semi-arid areas worldwide, and introduce the first results of a pioneer, long-term rainfall exclusion in the semi-arid southeast region of the Iberian Peninsula. The experiment is not only manipulating the amount of rainfall, but also its frequency and seasonal distribution in a grassland-shrubland in the Tabernas desert (Almería, Spain). This work monitored the effect of precipitation changes on different ecosystem processes for five years, at the species and community level, concluding that this plant community (as other communities studied in the same area) exhibited great resilience to changes in rainfall availability, likely caused by plant adaptation to large intra- and inter-annual precipitation variability.     

干旱半干旱区农田土壤风蚀特征及参数化研究进展

干旱半干旱地区是中国的农业后备战略基地,然而近年来该地区农田土壤风蚀现象严重,沙/尘释放量显著增大,威胁农业的可持续发展和生态系统平衡。目前绝大部分的天气和气候模式仅考虑了沙漠地表起沙,忽视退化农田的土壤风蚀起沙,导致起沙通量模拟存在很大的不确定性。对20世纪50年代以来干旱半干旱区农田土壤风蚀起沙特征及参数化做了详细的分析总结,回顾并梳理了干旱半干旱区农田土壤风蚀观测和数值模拟的研究脉络以及存在的问题,为提高农田起沙的模拟精度提供了有效参考,对中国干旱半干旱区农田土壤风蚀防治、土地荒漠化治理以及理解未来土地利用改变对大气污染的影响具有重要意义。     

Monitoring degradation in arid and semi-arid forests and woodlands: The case of the argan woodlands (Morocco)

Arid and semi-arid forests and woodlands (hereafter called «dryland forests»), in spite of their ecological and social importance, have received little attention in land change studies. Growing evidence shows that these forests have been receding at very high rates in many places, suggesting a need for a better understanding of the processes and causes of dryland forest degradation. Changes in the extent of dryland forests are debated in part because estimates of forest and woodland areas in drylands are uncertain. Causal explanations of the degradation tend to draw on the literature on desertification and tropical deforestation, and to emphasize either local or remote, and either social or biophysical drivers. This study contributes to a better understanding of dryland forest degradation as a basis for conservation policies. Firstly, we argue that monitoring arid and semi-arid forests and woodlands using area estimates may lead to an underestimation of the severity of change because tree density change often exceeds area change. Secondly, we argue that the analysis of degradation processes in these multifunctional landscapes should integrate both local and remote, and both social and biophysical factors. We use a case study of degradation in the argania woodlands in semi-arid to arid Southwest Morocco to test these two claims. We used gridded tree counts on aerial photographs and satellite images to estimate forest change between 1970 and 2007, and we tested several possible causes of change on the basis of original socio-economic field surveys and climatic and topographic data. We found that forest density declined by 44.5% during this period, a figure that is significantly underestimated if forest area change is used as a measure of degradation. Increasing aridity and, to a lesser extent, fuelwood extraction were related to forest decline. No effect of grazing by local livestock was found.     

生物土壤结皮：荒漠昆虫食物链的重要构建者

干旱荒漠地区由于水分因子的限制,其植被分布以不连续的高等植物斑块与隐花植物及其结皮的斑块镶嵌为其主要特征,构成了独特的荒漠植被景观格局。作为荒漠生态系统的主要组成者,荒漠昆虫与生境的关系,特别是与高等植物之间的食物链关系已得到大量的文献报道。本文基于野外调查和实验室模拟观测,发现了尖尾东鳖甲(Anatolica mucronata)对藓类结皮有取食现象,哈蛃(Haslundichilis sp.)对地衣结皮有取食现象。证实了生物土壤结皮直接参与了荒漠昆虫食物链和食物网的构成,为深入了解生物土壤结皮在荒漠生态系统中的功能和地位提供了实验证据。     

Soil salinity: A neglected factor in plant ecology and biogeography

This paper argues that soil salinity needs to be more broadly acknowledged as a driving factor in plant ecology—not only in the ecology of halophytes—in order to understand and make more accurate predictions for the impact of environmental change on biodiversity and vegetation patterns throughout the semi-arid world. It summarizes recent research on soil salinity and plant distributions in semi-arid environments throughout the world: there is empirical as well as experimental evidence that soil salinity, even at low levels, is an abiotic stress factor that influences vegetation patterns and diversification. Lines of evidence demonstrating salinity's potential influence as a selective agent in East Africa and North America are presented. The paper then synthesizes recent results from spatial ecology, plant and insect systematics and behavioral ecology, focusing on Australia, that support a role for salinity in evolutionary ecology of Acacia. On a shorter time scale, soil salinity may play a role in weed invasion and woody vegetation encroachment in Australia.     

我国半干旱地区现代沙漠化驱动因素的定量辩识

现代沙漠化的成因是目前沙漠化研究中争论较大的问题之一,其根源在于对现代沙漠化驱动因素的辨识不清,难以确定现代沙漠化过程中的主要驱动因素。本文对位于我国半干旱地区的主要沙漠化地区科尔沁、浑善达克、乌盟后山、共和盆地、藏北高原和藏南河谷地区内各选择一个典型区,分别是白音他拉、那日图、西井子、共和盆地、那曲地区和扎囊县,利用主成分分析和相关分析等定量方法,分析了6个典型区现代沙漠化过程中多种影响因素的作用,找出了现代沙漠化过程中的主要驱动因素。研究结果,6个典型研究区现代沙漠化的驱动因素具有综合性、地域性和主导因素的差异性,说明在我国半干旱地区的现代沙漠化是一个自然与人为因素共同作用的综合过程,其驱动因素有着较大的地域性和差异性。推广之,对我国沙漠化驱动力或成因的认识也不能一概而论,现代沙漠化的成因应具有一定的地域性。     

Ecology of stone-encrusting organisms in the Greenland Sea—a review

The Arctic is one of the most rapidly warming regions on Earth. This area is therefore very suitable for conducting studies focused on the influence of climate change on the biota. Marine communities of coastal waters are particularly sensitive to the current environmental changes (e.g., ice-scour intensity); understanding how community structure changes in response to local perturbations is thus important for providing an insight into how future communities may respond to climate change. This review focuses on the fauna colonizing stones of the Greenland Sea. It summarizes the current state of knowledge about the ecology of organisms inhabiting these substrata across a range of depths, from the intertidal to deeper parts of the continental shelf. In the intertidal zone, no stable or developed assemblage on the rocks is visible. The intertidal zone seems to be fully controlled by physical forces. In contrast, below the intertidal zone a rich and abundant fauna starts to appear on these substrata. Both biotic (e.g., competitive interactions) and abiotic (e.g., ice scour, size of the rock) processes seem to shape stone assemblages in the subtidal zone, yet their influence varies with depth. For example, the abundance of encrusting organisms decreases with depth, as does the intensity of competitive interactions. However, species richness on rocks seems to be in general higher in the deeper parts of the shelf. Possible scenarios of climate change influence on the encrusting biota, gaps in our knowledge about the ecology of stone-dwelling faunal assemblages, as well as possible directions of future research, are discussed.     

城市景观生态研究的现状与发展趋势

从城市景观格局、景观动态变化及其驱动机制、土地利用与土地覆盖变化、生态恢复与生态合理性建设和城市景观生物多样性等5个方面总结了城市景观生态研究的发展现状。从分析结果看,城市景观动态变化的驱动机制、结构与功能的生态合理性评估、格局的优化设计模式和城市发展过程中的决策支持与管理等研究领域还存在着明显的不足,难以满足城市景观生态理论和应用发展的需求,应当成为今后研究工作的重点。此外,城市景观生态研究是一个多学科的综合性研究范畴,景观生态学研究人员必须与相关学科的专家密切协作,才能够推动上述理论和应用问题的解决。     

Changes in morphology and soil nutrient patterns of nebkhas in arid regions along a precipitation gradient

Nebkhas, discrete mounds of sand and vegetation, are a common landscape feature critical to the stability of desert ecosystems and supported by limited precipitation. Nebkha morphology and spatial pattern vary in landscapes, but it is unclear how they change along precipitation gradients in arid and semi-arid regions. In this study we determined morphology and soil nutrient patterns of nebkha from different regions of northwestern China. The objective of this study was to understand zonal differences among nebkhas and how morphological characteristics and soil nutrient patterns of nebkha change along a precipitation gradient in northwestern China. Our results shows that mean annual precipitation(MAP) had significant effects on morphological characteristics of nebkhas such as height, area, and volume which significantly decreased with an increase in MAP. MAP had significant positive effects on shrub cover and species richness of nebkha. Soil nutrients such as soil organic matter(SOM), total carbon(TC), total nitrogen(TN), and total phosphorus(TP) in the 0-10 cm layer increased with an increase of MAP, and soil nutrient content within nebkhas was higher than in inter-nebkha areas.We concluded that nebkhas are "fertile islands" with an important role in ecosystem dynamics in study regions. Further,MAP is a key factor which determined zonal differences, morphological, and soil nutrients patterns of nebkhas. However,disturbance, such as animal grazing, and planted sand-stabilizing vegetation accelerated the degeneration of nebkha landscapes. We recommend implementation of protective measures for nebkhas in arid and semi-arid areas of China.