The polar bear Ursus maritimus feeding in a seabird colony in Frans Josef Land

During the second half of August 1992 polar bears were observed feeding intensively in the little auk Alle alle colony on Rubini Rock, Hooker Island, Frans Josef Land. They dug out nests eating eggs, chicks and adult birds. Their activity results in both worsening the breeding conditions and decreasing the breeding success of the little auks. The polar bear has not earlier been known as a little auk predator.     

Total mercury in hair of polar bears (Ursus maritimus) from Greenland and Svalbard

Concentrations (ppm = ug/g dry weight) of total mercury (Hg) were determined in hair of polar bears ( Ursus maritimus) from northwestern Greenland (N = 22; period of sampling: 1978-1989), eastern Greenland (N = 44: 1984-1989) and Svalbard (N = 31; 1980). For subadults (2-6 years of life), adults (7-10 years). and old bears (>10 years), concentrations of total Hg in hair were not found to be dependent on age or sex. A decreasing trend in Hg concentrations was found from west to east. The mean concentrations of total Hg in hair (cubs of the year and yearlings excluded) were: northwestern Greenland, x = 8.38 ppm (min.-max.: 4.71-14.19 ppm. N = 21); eastern Greenland: x = 4.58 ppm (min.-max.: 2.50-8.83 ppm. N = 41); and Svalbard, x = 1.98 ppm (min.-max.: 1.02-4.55 ppm, N = 29). Concentrations found in northwestern Greenland were similar to those reported by others from the hair of polar bears sampled within management zone F of the eastern Canadian High Arctic. Concentrations of total Hg in polar bear hair from eastern Greenland were similar to concentrations found by others in contemporary (1988) material collected during spring in western Svalbard. However, the mean concentration of total Hg in the 1980 Svalbard material, which was collected during July-September, was significantly lower than concentrations found in samples taken during late winter and spring in eastern Greenland and at Svalbard, respectively. Presumably the relatively low concentrations found in the 1980 Svalbard sample arc attributable to the period of moult and hence a larger proportion of newly grown hair in the individual samples. In a subsample consisting of internal tissues from 19 polar bears from eastern Greenland (1984-1987), concentrations of total Hg in hair correlated positively with concentrations of total Hg (wet weight) in muscle (N = 6), liver (N = 19) and kidney (N = 19) tissue. For liver and kidney tissue these relationships were statistically significant.     

Prevalence of Trichinella sp. in polar bears (Ursus maritimus) from northeastern Greenland

The occurrence of infections with Trichinella sp. in polar bears (Ursus maritimus) from northeastern Greenland has been studied by examination of muscle samples, mainly diaphragm, from 38 animals shot during the period 1983-1987. Trichinella larvae were demonstrated in 12 bears (32%) with an average of 9.2 larvae/g muscle tissue. No bears younger than three years old were infected. The prevalence of Trichinella among bears of the age group 3-4 years was 25% and 53% among older animals.     

Recent marginal changes of the Mittivakkat Glacier,Southeast Greenland and the discovery of remains of reindeer (Rangifer tarandus), polar bear (Ursus maritimus) and peaty material

Geografisk Tidsskrift, Danish Journal of Geography 108(1):137–142, 2008

During field observations in August 2005 antler remains of a reindeer were found at a recently deglaciated site at about 500 m asl., and bones from a polar bear were found at about 300 m asl. along the margin of Mittivakkat Glacier, Southeast Greenland. Radio carbon dating determined the age of the samples to 720 ¹⁴C years and 350 ¹⁴C years, respectively. In August 2006 old surface vegetation covering peaty material became exposed due to ice recession close to the site where the antler was found. The radio carbon age of small roots from the material was determined to 1530 ¹⁴C years, and is in agreement with dating of woody remains of Salix glauca found close by, at the top of a nearby nunatak in 1999. The antler indicates that reindeer lived in the area when the glacier began to advance from a position where it was close to or smaller than today. The vegetation surface and peaty material indicate that the climate was warmer before the onset of the Little Ice Age in Southeast Greenland than today.     

Scale dependence in habitat selection: the case of the endangered brown bear (Ursus arctos) in the Cantabrian Range (NW Spain)

Animals select habitat resources at multiple spatial scales. Thus, explicit attention to scale dependency in species–habitat relationships is critical to understand the habitat suitability patterns as perceived by organisms in complex landscapes. Identification of the scales at which particular environmental variables influence habitat selection may be as important as the selection of variables themselves. In this study, we combined bivariate scaling and Maximum entropy (Maxent) modeling to investigate multiscale habitat selection of endangered brown bear (Ursus arctos) populations in northwest Spain. Bivariate scaling showed that the strength of apparent habitat relationships was highly sensitive to the scale at which predictor variables are evaluated. Maxent models on the optimal scale for each variable suggested that landscape composition together with human disturbances was dominant drivers of bear habitat selection, while habitat configuration and edge effects were substantially less influential. We found that explicitly optimizing the scale of habitat suitability models considerably improved single-scale modeling in terms of model performance and spatial prediction. We found that patterns of brown bear habitat suitability represent the cumulative influence of habitat selection across a broad range of scales, from local resources within habitat patches to the landscape composition at broader spatial scales.     

Soil seed bank and among-years genetic diversity in arid populations of Eruca sativa Miller (Brassicaceae)

Populations of Eruca sativa from arid environments exhibit greater physiological dormancy than those that originated in more favorable ones. We tested the possible relative contribution of the soil seed bank (SSB) to the aboveground cohorts in desert and semiarid populations. Seedlings that emerged from the SSB under controlled irrigation were distinguished from those that emerged after exposure of the remaining ungerminated SSB to gibberellic acid as constituting non-dormant and dormant SSBs, respectively. On average, the total SSB was significantly larger in the semiarid than in the desert population. In both sites, the aboveground and SSB cohorts exhibited closely similar genetic diversity, and in the aboveground cohorts similar year-to-year genetic diversity was found. These results indicate continuous recruitment from the SSB to the aboveground cohorts. Nevertheless, Ne estimates indicated that the SSB can contribute to enlarging the aboveground effective populations in both habitats. Furthermore, Nei's genetic distances suggested that the non-dormant SSB contributed more than the dormant SSB to the aboveground cohorts. These results highlight the potential of the SSB to maintain a genotype reservoir that protects annual populations in arid environments.     

海洋细菌对DMSP的降解及其在极地低温海域的研究进展

DMSP(二甲基巯基丙酸内盐)是地球上最丰富的有机含硫化合物之一,同时也是海洋微生物的重要营养物。浮游植物是其主要的生产者。DMSP还是海洋中DMS(二甲基硫)的重要来源和前体,而DMS的排放与全球气候变化存在密切关联。细菌在DMSP的降解及DMS的生成方面扮演着重要角色。有关DMSP生物合成、代谢及其生态影响的研究已开展了近70年,但涉及高纬度极地低温海域的相关研究却为数甚少。本文在简要介绍DMSP生物合成与代谢,以及DMSP降解途径中的关键酶基因及其产生菌的基础上,结合笔者的工作实践,对近年来在极地低温海域的相关研究进行了介绍并展开了部分讨论。随着国内对微生物驱动水圈地球元素循环的重视,有关极地海域细菌参与DMSP/DMS代谢的研究工作将极大地增进人们对于微生物在极地海洋生态系统中生态地位的认识,也对评估极地海洋微生物群落对全球气候环境变化的响应与反馈具有重要的参考意义。     

极地陆生植物3D形态数据库(3D MPP)

植物3D形态是植物的重要生理特征和存在形式。3D形态由于与植物的光合作用效率息息相关,因而对植物生长具有重要意义。将2014年在南极乔治王岛长城站附近采集的56份苔藓植物标本鉴定为4科6属6种及1变种。从每一种中选取一个代表性群落样品用REVscan 3D扫描仪进行高精度的激光扫描,共获取120 M 3D点云数据,987 429个点和1 700 380个面,重构出7个植物样本的表面3D模型。在此基础上,基于Java Web技术、开源数据库系统My SQL、第三方开源Web GL库Three.js、开源Web应用服务器Tomcat等构建了国内首个极地植物3D形态数据库(3dmpp.gznu.edu.cn),提供了3D渲染功能。通过本数据库用户可以方便地浏览和搜索已有的物种信息数据,并全方位地获取植物的3D表面信息。本数据库的建立为极地植物的3D形态信息提供了储存、展示与共享的平台,为不同植物间3D表面形态的比较研究提供了基础数据和工具,为保护极地植物,特别是濒危植物的全息信息资料提供了重要保障。     

广州市社区出行低碳指数格局及其影响因素的空间异质性

通过构建社区出行低碳指数（CTLCI）模型,对广州市社区出行低碳指数的空间格局及其差异特征进行了分析,并利用全局回归（OLS）模型和地理加权回归（GWR）模型对社区出行低碳指数的影响因素以及其间关系的空间异质性进行了研究。结果表明,广州市社区出行低碳指数由中心城区向外逐渐递增,呈明显的圈层结构。内圈层的社区出行低碳指数内部差异最小,中间过渡圈层的最大。社区人口密度对社区出行低碳指数的影响以正向作用为主,公共交通供给水平和路网密集程度对社区出行低碳指数的影响以负向作用为主,且它们的影响作用具有空间异质性。具体指出了在不同地域空间内社区人口密度、公共交通供给水平和路网密集程度对社区出行低碳指数在影响程度和作用方向上的差异,为减少广州城市交通碳排放、针对不同空间制定有效的低碳政策和构建低碳城市空间结构提供了科学依据。     

利用高支链类异戊二烯(HBIs)重建极地海冰的研究进展

海冰的准确重建对反演气候和环境变化具有重要意义。近期研究表明,有机指标高支链类异戊二烯(HBIs)具有重建极地海冰状况的潜质,海洋沉积物中具有海冰特异性的单烯HBI(IP_(25))和双烯HBI(IPSO_(25))指标已分别成为研究北极和南极海冰变化的有力工具。本文综述了IP_(25)、IPSO_(25)的提出和验证,分析了影响HBIs生成、迁移和埋藏的诸多因素,总结了为实现精细化区分海冰状况和定量化重建海冰密集度而提出的新指标的发展及应用,并就目前存在的问题和未来研究方向进行了探讨和展望。     

Ecological differences of south polar skua populations from Fildes Peninsula of King George Island and eastern Larsemann Hills, Antarctica

A study has been done on the comparison of nesting and feeding behavior, population variances as well as breeding success between two populations of south polar skua (Catharacta maccormicki) from near Great Wall station on Fildes Peninsula and near Zhongshan station in Eastern Larsemann Hills, Antarctica. There are evident differences in their population ecology. The foraging habit is much related to regional ecosystem and food resources near their territorial area. Dependence on human food waste influences skua's diet,which considerably affects their behavior even population variation in both areas. The skuas in Zhongshan Station,could shorten and/or regulate the timing for their egg laying and hatching, and take precedence of one chick brooding, for keeping their breeding success, and subsequent species continuation.     

Distribution and characterization of Chilean populations of the brine shrimp Artemia (Crustacea, Branchiopoda, Anostraca)

Hypersaline habitats in Chile, from marine solar salt pans to saline lagoons and pools in Andean salars, were prospected in search of Artemia populations. These saline ecosystems were characterized through physico-chemical parameters and ionic composition of their brines. Biometrics of cysts and nauplii, as well as morphometrics by using multivariate discriminant analysis for adult specimens evidenced that the Chilean populations of brine shrimp belong to A. franciscana. Cross-breeding results supported the former hypothesis of conspecific Chilean populations, and their differences with A. persimilis, also endemic to the New World, but restricted to Argentinean sites.     

Phase variability of Sq (H) on normal quiet days in the equatorial electrojet region

Summary. From a study of 'abnormal quiet days' (AQDs) at equatorial latitudes it was found earlier (Sastri) that the occurrence of an abnormal Sq ( H ) phase confined to the equatorial electrojet belt is closely associated with the incidence of complete or partial counter-electrojet (CEJ) conditions (marked daytime depressions in the H field in the electrojet region) for about 5 hr around the normal time interval of the diurnal maximum of the H field. In this paper, we investigate the causative mechanism of the Sq ( H ) phase variability on 'normal quiet days' (NQDs), defined as days on which the diurnal maximum of the H field occurs in the time interval 0930-1230 LT, in the equatorial electrojet belt using published geomagnetic data of stations in the Indian equatorial region. It is found that much of the phase variability of Sq ( H ) on NQDs may be caused by the influence of southward (negative) perturbation fields in the H component, similar in nature to those associated with AQDs but of a much smaller amplitude, close to the usual time of the diurnal maximum of the H field. The perturbation fields are noticed to be essentially of the ionospheric dynamo region origin. Possible mechanisms that might give rise to the observed perturbation fields are discussed.     

Bisexual populations of the brine shrimpArtemia in Sète-Villeroy and Villeneuve Saltworks (Languedoc,France)

So far,Artemia populations in solar saltponds of southern France have been considered as belonging to the Old World parthenogenetic strain. However, two populations sampled monthly in abandoned salinas of Sète-Villeroy and Villeneuve appear to be bisexual throughout their life-cycle. Their sex ratio regularly fluctuates near equilibrium, and mating, present throughout life, is very common in early winter. Morphological characteristics, particularly the male frontal knobs structure, are discussed in relation to the diploid bisexual Mediterranean strain,Artemia tunisiana, which is distributed around the Mediterranean basin. The existence of sexual populations is discussed in regard to variation in environmental conditions in abandoned salinas.     

Morphologic variability of exposed mass-transport deposits on the eastern slope of Gela Basin (Sicily channel)

The NE portion of Gela Basin in the Sicily Channel is affected by multiple slope failures originated during the late‐Quaternary. Basin sequences show evidence of stacked acoustically transparent and/or chaotic units, characterized by irregular upper surfaces, interpreted as mass‐transport deposits. The seafloor morphology also shows evidence of both old, partially buried, as well as recent slide products. Two recent slides exposed at seafloor, only 6 km apart (Twin Slides), are similar in geomorphological parameters, age and multistage evolution. Multistage failure of Twin Slides evolved from mud flows, derived from the extensive failure of less consolidated post‐glacial units, to localized slides (second stage of failure) affecting older and more consolidated materials. Although Twin Slides are very close to each other and have similar runout and fall height, they produced very dissimilar organization of the displaced masses, likely reflecting the distinct source units affected by failures. Integrating geophysical, sedimentological, structural and palaeontological data, a detailed investigation was conducted to determine the size and internal geometry of this mass‐transport complex, to explain the differentiated product and to shed light on its predisposing factors, triggers and timing.     

The relationship between polar sea ice and the precipitation and temperature over China revealed by using SVD method

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The ecologo-geographical framework for the protection and recovery of taiga reindeer populations within the Konda river basin (Western Siberia)

The key aspects of reindeer ecology within the Konda river basin are considered. The study revealed the factors governing the characteristics of calving reindeer pastures determined by the structure of forest-bog landscapes of a different generalization level. A deficit of such pastures is regarded as the factor of differentiation of reindeer groups with respect to migrants and residents. It is shown that the individual geocomplexes have a multifunctional role. Of particular significance among them are the aufeis glades with outcrops of salt-saturated groundwater, and the dark-coniferous forests along river valleys rich in epiphytic lichens (beard lichens).