Comparison of artificial neural networks,geographically weighted regression and Cokriging methods for predicting the spatial distribution of soil macronutrients (N,P, and K)

Soil macronutrients(i.e. nitrogen(N), phosphorus(P), and potassium(K)) are important soils components and knowing the spatial distribution of these parameters are necessary at precision agriculture. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of different methods such as artificial neural networks(ANN) and two geostatistical methods(geographically weighted regression(GWR) and cokriging(CK)) to estimate N, P and K contents. For this purpose, soil samples were taken from topsoil(0–30 cm) at 106 points and analyzed for their chemical and physical parameters. These data were divided into calibration(n = 84) and validation(n = 22). Chemical and physical variables including clay, p H and organic carbon(OC) were used as auxiliary soil variables to estimate the N, P and K contents. Results showed that the ANN model(with coefficient of determination R~2 = 0.922 and root mean square error RMSE = 0.0079%) was more accurate compared to the CK model(with R~2 = 0.612 and RMSE = 0.0094%), and the GWR model(with R~2 = 0.872 and RMSE = 0.0089%) to estimate the N variable. The ANN model estimated the P with the RMSE of 3.630 ppm, which was respectively 28.93% and 20.00% less than the RMSE of 4.680 ppm and 4.357 ppm from the CK and GWR models. The estimated K by CK, GWR and ANN models have the RMSE of 76.794 ppm, 75.790 ppm and 52.484 ppm. Results indicated that the performance of the CK model for estimation of macro nutrients(N, P and K) was slightly lower than the GWR model. Also, the accuracy of the ANN model was higher than CK and GWR models, which proved to be more effective and reliable methods for estimating macro nutrients.     

Diel variation in metabolism and ammonia excretion of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Marphysa sanguinea</Emphasis> (Polychaeta: Eunicidae)

Polychaetes provide an excellent food resource for fish and represent the dominant zoobenthos in marine ecosystems. Diel variation in the rates of metabolism and ammonia-N excretion of Marphysa sanguinea were studied. The worms were grouped according to their wet body weight into small (S; 1.24±0.06 g), medium (M; 4.00±0.30 g), and large (L; 8.54±1.08 g) categories. Their weight-specific metabolic rates, based on aerobic respiration (R), were measured at 16°C (±0.2°C) and classed as either routine (R _R) or standard (R _S) rates. Both respiration types decreased with increasing body weight. Respiration was described by R = a W ^b, where b was -0.400 9 and -0.532 0 for R _R and R _S, respectively. Diurnal changes in R _S for each group was relatively flat, with a slightly increasing trend with time, but was relatively stable as a whole. R _R of the diurnal variation of worms was higher than R S, but both had similar overall trends. The peak values of specific dynamic action (SDA) (R _SDA) in the S, M, and L groups were 2.704, 1.149, and 0.682 mg/(g?h), respectively. The durations of SDA were 13, 6, and 6 h, respectively and the energy expenditures of SDA were 377.98, 117.34, and 74.94 J/g, respectively. These data indicate that the metabolic rates were higher in smaller individuals, which is advantageous for their rapid growth.     

Equality testing for soil grid unit resolutions to polygon unit scales with DNDC modeling of regional SOC pools

Matching soil grid unit resolutions with polygon unit map scales is important to minimize the uncertainty of regional soil organic carbon(SOC) pool simulation due to their strong influences on the modeling.A series of soil grid units at varying cell sizes was derived from soil polygon units at six map scales,namely,1:50 000(C5),1:200 000(D2),1:500 000(P5),1:1 000 000(N1),1:4 000 000(N4) and 1:14 000 000(N14),in the Taihu Region of China.Both soil unit formats were used for regional SOC pool simulation with a De Nitrification-DeC omposition(DNDC) process-based model,which spans the time period from 1982 to 2000 at the six map scales.Four indices,namely,soil type number(STN),area(AREA),average SOC density(ASOCD) and total SOC stocks(SOCS) of surface paddy soils that were simulated by the DNDC,were distinguished from all these soil polygon and grid units.Subjecting to the four index values(IV) from the parent polygon units,the variations in an index value(VIV,%) from the grid units were used to assess its dataset accuracy and redundancy,which reflects the uncertainty in the simulation of SOC pools.Optimal soil grid unit resolutions were generated and suggested for the DNDC simulation of regional SOC pools,matching their respective soil polygon unit map scales.With these optimal raster resolutions,the soil grid units datasets can have the same accuracy as their parent polygon units datasets without any redundancy,when VIV 1% was assumed to be a criterion for all four indices.A quadratic curve regression model,namely,y = – 0.80 × 10~(–6)x~2 + 0.0228 x + 0.0211(R~2 = 0.9994,P 0.05),and a power function model R? = 10.394?~(0.2153)(R~2 = 0.9759,P 0.05) were revealed,which describe the relationship between the optimal soil grid unit resolution(y,km) and soil polygon unit map scale(1:10 000x),the ratio(R?,%) of the optimal soil grid size to average polygon patch size(?,km~2) and the ?,with the highest R~2 among different mathematical regressions,respectively.This knowledge may facilitate the grid partitioning of regions during the investigation and simulation of SOC pool dynamics at a certain map scale,and be referenced to other landscape polygon patches' mesh partition.     

Variable hydrological effects of herbs and shrubs in the arid northeastern Qinghai-Tibet Plateau,China

This study aims to assess the hydrological effects of four herbs and four shrubs planted in a selfestablished test area in Xining Basin of northeastern Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, China. The RainfallIntercepting Capability(RIC) of the herbs and shrubs was evaluated in rainfall interception experiment at the end of the third, fourth and fifth month of the growth period in 2007. The leaf transpiration rate and the effects of roots on promoting soil moisture evaporation in these plants were also assessed in transpiration experiment and root-soil composite system evaporation experiment in the five month's growth period. It is found that the RIC of the fourstudied herbs follows the order of E. repens, E. dahuricus, A. trachycaulum and L. secalinus; the RIC of the four shrubs follows the order of A. canescens, Z. xanthoxylon, C. korshinskii and N. tangutorum. The RIC of all the herbs is related linearly to their mean height and canopy area(R~2 ≥ 0.9160). The RIC of all the shrubs bears a logarithmic relationship with their mean height(R~2 ≥ 0.9164), but a linear one with their canopy area(R~2 ≥ 0.9356). Moreover, different species show different transpiration rates. Of the four herbs, E. repens has the highest transpiration rate of 1.07 mg/(m~2·s), and of the four shrubs, A. canescens has the highest transpiration rate(0.74 mg/(m~2·s)). The roots of all the herbs and shrubs can promote soil moisture evaporation. Of the four herbs, the evaporation rate of E. repens root-soil composite system is the highest(2.14%), and of the four shrubs,the root-soil composite system of A. canescens has the highest evaporation rate(1.41%). The evaporation rate of the root-soil composite system of E. dahuricus and Z. xanthoxylon bears a second-power linear relationship with evaporation time(R~2 ≥ 0.9924). The moisture content of all the eight root-soil composite systems decreases exponentially with evaporation time(R~2 ≥ 0.8434). The evaporation rate and moisture content of all the plants' root-soil composite systems increases logarithmically(R~2 ≥ 0.9606) and linearly(R~2 ≥ 0.9777) with root volume density. The findings of this study indicate that among the four herbs and four shrubs, E. repens and A. canescens possess the most effective hydrological effects in reducing the soil erosion and shallow landslide in this region.     

Temporal and spatial variations of abundance of phycocyanin- and phycoerythrin-rich <Emphasis Type="Italic">Synechococcus</Emphasis> in Pearl River Estuary and adjacent coastal area

Three surveys were carried out in Pearl River Estuary and adjacent coastal area in May, August, and November, 2013, to investigate the temporal and spatial variations of abundance of phycoerythrin-rich Synechococcus (PE-rich SYN) and phycocyanin-rich Synechococcus (PC-rich SYN). The effects of environmental factors on the alternation of the different Synechococcus groups were also elucidated. PE-rich SYN was detected in three surveys, whereas PC-rich SYN was detected in May and August, but not in November. The highest abundances of PE-rich SYN and PC-rich SYN were recorded in August and May, with mean values of 74.17×10³ and 189.92×10³ cells mL^?1, respectively. From May to November, the relative abundance of PE-rich SYN increased, whereas that of PC-rich SYN declined. PE-rich and PC-rich SYN presented similar horizontal distributions with high abundance in the southern estuary in May, and in the western estuary in August. The abundances of PE-rich and PC-rich SYN were high at 27–32°C and salinity of 10–20. PC-rich SYN was not detected at < 24°C, and PC:PE-rich SYN decreased in abundance with salinity increase. When less than 20 mg L^?1, suspended particulate matter (SPM) was helpful for Synechococcus growth. PE-rich SYN decreased in abundance when the concentration of dissolved inorganic nitrogen increased in May and November, and the concentration of phosphate increased in November. However, PC-rich SYN abundance and nutrients showed no correlation. Principal component analysis and regression analysis indicated that PE-rich SYN significantly correlated with the principal components that were affected by environmental factors.     

Molecular weight controllable degradation of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Laminaria japonica</Emphasis> polysaccharides and its antioxidant properties

In this study, molecular weight controllable degradation of algal Laminaria japonica polysaccharides（LPS） was investigated by ultrasound combined with hydrogen peroxide. Three main factors, i.e., ultrasonic power（A）, ultrasonic time（B）, and H₂O₂ concentration（C） were chosen for optimizing parameters by employing three-factors, three-levels BBD. The influence of degradation on structure change and antioxidant activities was also investigated. A second-order polynomial equation including molecular weight（Y） of Laminaria japonica polysaccharides and each variable parameter, i.e., ultrasonic power（A）, ultrasonic time（B）, and H₂O₂ concentration（C）, was established: Y=20718.67-4273.13A-4000.38B-1438.75C+2333.25AB+1511.00AC+873.00BC+2838.29A² + 2490.79B²+873.04C². The equation regression coefficient value（R² = 0.969） indicated that this equation was valid. The value of the adjusted determination coefficient（adjusted R² = 0.914） also confirmed that the model was highly significant. The results of selected experimental degradation conditions matched with the predicted value. FT-IR spectra revealed that the structures of LPS before and after degradation were not significantly changed. Antioxidant activities of LPS revealed that low Mws possessed stronger inhibitory than the original polysaccharides. The scavenging effects on superoxide radicals was the highest when IC50 of crude LPS was 4.92 mg mL^-1 and IC50 of Mw 18.576 KDa was 1.02 mg mL^-1, which was fourfold higher than initial polysaccharide.     

Taxonomy,Morphology and Phylogeny of a New Oligotrich Ciliate–<Emphasis Type="Italic">Omegastrombidium hongkongense</Emphasis> n. sp. (Protozoa: Ciliophora) from Clear Water Bay,Hong Kong

One new marine oligotrich ciliate, Omegastrombidium hongkongense n. sp., was isolated from a bloom of Noctiluca scuntillans near Port Shelter, Hong Kong. The morphology and infraciliature of this new species were studied on both living and protargol-stained specimens. Its phylogenetic position was discussed based on the sequence of the small subunit rRNA gene. O. hongkongense is different from its congeners with special characters. The cells are usually heart-shaped, and the cell size usually is (20–35) × (20–30) μm in vivo. Its deep buccal cavity extends obliquely to about 1/2 of cell length. It shows prominent apical protrusion. The adoral zone of membranelles is divided into 17–19 collar membranelles and four buccal membranelles. It has one ball-like macronucleus. The girdle kinety forms a closed loop which obliquely surrounds the body. The ventral kinety and thigmotactic membranelles are not observed. The SSU rRNA sequence of O. hongkongense was close to those of Strombidium paracalkinsi and Varistrombidium kelum with approximately 99% similarity. In the phylogenetic trees, O. hongkongense can be grouped with O. elegans and V. kielum species with very low support (16% ML).     

Global water vapor content decreases from 2003 to 2012: An analysis based on MODIS data

Water vapor in the earth′s upper atmosphere plays a crucial role in the radiative balance, hydrological process, and climate change. Based on the latest moderate-resolution imaging spectroradiometer(MODIS) data, this study probes the spatio-temporal variations of global water vapor content in the past decade. It is found that overall the global water vapor content declined from 2003 to 2012(slope b = –0.0149, R = 0.893, P = 0.0005). The decreasing trend over the ocean surface(b = –0.0170, R = 0.908, P = 0.0003) is more explicit than that over terrestrial surface(b = –0.0100, R = 0.782, P = 0.0070), more significant over the Northern Hemisphere(b = –0.0175, R = 0.923, P = 0.0001) than that over the Southern Hemisphere(b = –0.0123, R = 0.826, P = 0.0030). In addition, the analytical results indicate that water vapor content are decreasing obviously between latitude of 36°N and 36°S(b = 0.0224, R = 0.892, P = 0.0005), especially between latitude of 0°N and 36°N(b = 0.0263, R = 0.931, P = 0.0001), while the water vapor concentrations are increasing slightly in the Arctic regions(b = 0.0028, R = 0.612, P = 0.0590). The decreasing and spatial variation of water vapor content regulates the effects of carbon dioxide which is the main reason of the trend in global surface temperatures becoming nearly flat since the late 1990 s. The spatio-temporal variations of water vapor content also affect the growth and spatial distribution of global vegetation which also regulates the global surface temperature change, and the climate change is mainly caused by the earth's orbit position in the solar and galaxy system. A big data model based on gravitational-magmatic change with the solar or the galactic system is proposed to be built for analyzing how the earth's orbit position in the solar and galaxy system affects spatio-temporal variations of global water vapor content, vegetation and temperature at large spatio-temporal scale. This comprehensive examination of water vapor changes promises a holistic understanding of the global climate change and potential underlying mechanisms.     

Functional characterization of a novel microbial esterase identified from the Indian Ocean and its use in the stereoselective preparation of (<Emphasis Type="Italic">R</Emphasis>)-methyl mandelate

Genomic mining has identified a novel microbial alkaline esterase from the Indian Ocean. This esterase was overexpressed in E. coli BL21 (DE3) and further functionally characterized. Under optimal conditions (10 mmol/L substrate, pH 6.0, 2 h at 40 °C), this esterase can hydrolyze racemic methyl mandelate to (R)-methyl mandelate with very high optical purity (e.e. >99%) and yield (nearly 90%). Interestingly, the stereoselectivity of this esterase is opposite to that of two previously reported lipases that can generate (S)-methyl mandelate through the hydrolysis of racemic methyl mandelate. No organic solvents or other additives were required to optimize the optical purity and production of the final chiral product (R)-methyl mandelate, which can potentially simplify the production procedure of (R)-methyl mandelate catalyzed by esterase.     

Comparison of stem taper models for the four tropical tree species in Mount Makiling,Philippines

This study was conducted to evaluate the performance of six stem taper models on four tropical tree species, namely Celtis luzonica (Magabuyo), Diplodiscus paniculatus (Balobo), Parashorea malaanonan (Bagtikan), and Swietenia macrophylla (Mahogany) in Mount Makiling Forest Reserve (MMFR), Philippines using fit statistics and lack-of-fit statistics. Four statistical criteria were used in this study, including the standard error of estimate (SEE), coefficient of determination (R ²), mean bias \(( \bar E )\), and absolute mean difference (AMD). For the lack-offit statistics, SEE, \(\bar E\) and AMD were determined in different relative height classes. The results indicated that the Kozako2 stem taper model offered the best fit for the four tropical species in most statistics. The Kozako2 model also consistently provided the best performance in the lack-of-fit statistics with the best SEE, \(\bar E\) and AMD in most of the relative height classes. These stem taper equations could help forest managers and researchers better estimate the diameter of the outside bark with any given height, merchantable stem volumes and total stem volumes of standing trees belonging to the four species of the tropical forest in MMFR.     

Carbon budget of bastard halibut<Emphasis Type="Italic">Paralichthys olivaceus</Emphasis> in relation to body weight and temperature

The effects of body weight and temperature on the carbon budget of the juvenile bastard halibut ,Paralichthys olivaceus ,were studied at temperature 13.5,18,21.5 and 24℃,respectively.The carbon intake,faecal and growth carbon were measured ,and the carbon respiration was calculated using the carbon budget equation (Cc=Gc Fc Rc),The combined relationship between different components of the carbon budgent,body weight and temperature could be described by regression equations:Cc=1.0206 W^0.8126E^0.1483T;Gc=0.0042w^1.4096(-5.11 T^3 285.90T^2-5173.72T 30314.03);Fc=0.0485W^0.7711e^0.1624T;Uc=1.4333W^0.6715e^0.1487t,Body weight had no significant effect on the carbon absorption efficiency and the conversion efficiency.     

Assessment and comparison of <Emphasis Type="Italic">in vitro</Emphasis> immunoregulatory activity of three astaxanthin stereoisomers

In recent years, the immune-modulatory role of all-trans astaxanthin from different pigment sources has been studied. It was reported that all-trans astaxanthin might exist as three stereoisomers, and the composition of all-trans stereoisomers in natural materials differs from that of synthetic products. However, the different biological effects of various all-trans stereoisomers still remain unclear. In the present study, we evaluated the bioactivity of three astaxanthin stereoisomers, (3S,3’S)-trans-, (3R,3’R)-trans-and meso-trans-astaxanthin, in regulating cell-mediated immune response using mice lymphocytes and peritoneal exudates cells (PECs) systems. After the treatment with three astaxanthin stereoisomers (20 μmol L^?1), the lymphocyte proliferation capacity, neutral red phagocytosis of PECs and natural killer (NK) cell cytotoxic activity were comparatively assessed. The results showed that all three astaxanthin stereoisomers significantly promoted lymphocyte proliferation, phagocytic capacity of PECs, and cytotoxic activity of NK cells. Moreover, the (3S,3’S)-trans-astaxanthin exhibited a much higher response than others.     

Inbreeding depression on growth and survival of full-sib family of Manila clam (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Ruditapes philippinarum</Emphasis>)

In present study, the inbreeding depression (ID) of growth and survival of Manila clam (Ruditapes philippinarum) was investigated at larval and juvenile stages. Nine inbred families (A ₂, B ₂, C ₂, D ₂, E ₂, F ₂, G ₂, H ₂ and I ₂) were established by mating within nine full-sib families with expected inbreeding coefficient of 0.25. Inbred families showed significant differences in shell length and hatching rate of D-larvae (straight-hinged larvae). The larvae of the nine inbred families grew slower than those of control group (CG), and their ID value ranged from 0.81% ± 6.09% to 16.10% ± 1.49%. The ID value of larval survival rate varied between 27.47% ± 9.36% and 70.50% ± 13.66%. The ID was also detected for juvenile growth in A ₂, B ₂, C ₂, and D ₂, which ranged from 4.60 ± 2.21 to 17.71 ± 7.73. The A ₂ family maintained the highest juvenile survival rate, whereas the other inbred families exhibited ID values varying between 62.79% ± 4.54% and 96.14% ± 0.87%. The linear relationship of estimated ID between growth and survival was negatively correlated (R = ?0.434, P < 0.05). The results of this study suggested that the ID of growth was common at the larval stage but was less prevalent at juvenile stage. In contrast, the ID of survival increased from larval to juvenile stage. A better understanding of the effect of inbreeding may aid to selective breeding of Manila clam.     

Effects of salinity fluctuation amplitudes on growth, osmolarity, Na＋-K＋-ATPase activity and Hsp70 of juvenile Chinese shrimp Fenneropenaeus chinensis Osbeck

The effects of various salinity fluctuation amplitudes (2, 4, 6 and 8) on the growth, osmolarity, Na⁺-K⁺-ATPase activity and Hsp70 of juvenile Fenneropenaeus chinensis cultured in seawater with a salinity of 20 were studied. The results show that weight gain in the salinity fluctuation treatments was better than that in control; in particular, the weight gain of treatments S4 and S0, at 231.8% and 196.3%, respectively, was significantly different (P<0.05). The hemolymph osmolarity of treatments S0, S2, S4, S6 and S8 was 635.4, 630.8, 623.6, 614.4 and 600.3 mOsm/kg, respectively, and decreased with increasing salinity fluctuation amplitude. The level of Na⁺-K⁺-ATPase activity in gills of F. chinensis was higher than that in hepatopancreas, but there were no significant differences among all treatments, either in gills or hepatopancreas (P>0.05). The relative level of Hsp70 in treatment S4 was 48.4% and 40.4% higher than control in muscle and eyestalks, respectively, with the highest values being recorded under a salinity fluctuation amplitude of 4.     

Impact of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Vibrio parahaemolyticus</Emphasis> and white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) co-infection on survival of penaeid shrimp <Emphasis Type="Italic">Litopenaeus vannamei</Emphasis>

White spot syndrome virus (WSSV) is an important viral pathogen that infects farmed penaeid shrimp, and the threat of Vibrio parahaemolyticus infection to shrimp farming has become increasingly severe. Viral and bacterial cross or superimposed infections may induce higher shrimp mortality. We used a feeding method to infect Litopenaeus vannamei with WSSV and then injected a low dose of V. parahaemolyticus (WSSV+Vp), or we first infected L. vannamei with a low-dose injection of V. parahaemolyticus and then fed the shrimp WSSV to achieve viral infection (Vp+WSSV). The eff ect of V. parahaemolyticus and WSSV co-infection on survival of L. vannamei was evaluated by comparing cumulative mortality rates between experimental and control groups. We also spread L. vannamei hemolymph on thiosulfate citrate bile salt sucrose agar plates to determine the number of Vibrio, and the WSSV copy number in L. vannamei gills was determined using an absolute quantitative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method. LvMyD88 and Lvakt gene expression levels were detected in gills of L. vannamei by real-time PCR to determine the cause of the diff erent mortality rates. Our results show that (1) the cumulative mortality rate of L. vannamei in the WSSV+Vp group reached 100% on day 10 after WSSV infection, whereas the cumulative mortality rate of L. vannamei in the Vp+WSSV group and the WSSV-alone control group approached 100% on days 11 and 13 of infection; (2) the number of Vibrio in the L. vannamei group infected with V. parahaemolyticus alone declined gradually, whereas the other groups showed significant increases in the numbers of Vibrio (P<0.05); (3) the WSSV copy numbers in the gills of the WSSV+Vp, Vp+WSSV, and the WSSV-alone groups increased from 10⁵ to 10⁷ /mg tissue 72, 96, and 144 h after infection, respectively. These results suggest that V. parahaemolyticus infection accelerated proliferation of WSSV in L. vannamei and vice versa. The combined accelerated proliferation of both V. parahaemolyticus and WSSV led to massive death of L. vannamei.     

DFT and 3D-QSAR Studies of Anti-Cancer Agents m-(4-Morpholinoquinazolin-2-yl) Benzamide Derivatives for Novel Compounds Design

As a group of diversified frameworks, quinazolin derivatives displayed a broad field of biological functions, especially as anticancer. To investigate the quantitative structure-activity relationship, 3D-QSAR models were generated with 24 quinazolin scaffold molecules. The experimental and predicted pIC50 values for both training and test set compounds showed good correlation, which proved the robustness and reliability of the generated QSAR models. The most effective CoMFA and CoMSIA were obtained with correlation coefficient r² _ncv of 1.00 (both) and leave-one-out coefficient q² of 0.61 and 0.59, respectively. The predictive abilities of CoMFA and CoMSIA were quite good with the predictive correlation coefficients (r² _pred ) of 0.97 and 0.91. In addition, the statistic results of CoMFA and CoMSIA were used to design new quinazolin molecules.     

Effects of nitrogen and phosphorus on the growth of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Levanderina fissa</Emphasis>: How it blooms in Pearl River Estuary

Effects of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) from different sources and at different concentrations on the growth of Levanderina fissa (= Gyrodinium instriatum) were studied in laboratory conditions. The findings might explain the recurrent blooms of this species in Pearl River Estuary, China. Results showed that nutrient limitation significantly inhibited the growth of L. fissa. The values of specific growth rate (μ _max) and half-saturation nutrient concentration (K _S) were 0.37 divisions/d and 8.49 μmol L^?1 for N, and 0.39 divisions/d and 1.99 μmol L^?1 for P, respectively. Based on K _S values, dissolved inorganic N level in PRE was sufficient to support the high proliferation of L. fissa, while dissolved inorganic P concentration was far lower than the minimum requirement for its effective growth. L. fissa was not able to utilize dissolved organic N (DON) compounds such as urea, amino acids, and uric acid. However, it grew well by using a wide variety of dissolved organic P (DOP) sources like nucleotides, glycerophosphate, and 4-nitrophenylphosphate. The results from this study suggested that the ability in DOP utilization of L. fissa offers this species a competitive advantage in phytoplankton communities. The high level and continuous supply of DIN, enrichment of DOP, together with warm climate and low salinity in the Pearl River Estuary provided a suitable nutrient niche for the growth of L. fissa, and resulted in the recurrent blooms in the estuary.     

Identifying the driving factors of sediment delivery ratio on individual flood events in a long-term monitoring headwater basin

The Sediment Delivery Ratio (SDR) has multi-fold environmental implications both in evaluating the soil and water losses and the effectiveness of conservation measures in watersheds. Various factors, including hydrological regime and watershed properties, may influence the SDR at interannual timescales. However, the effect of certain important dynamic factors, such as rainfall peak distribution, runoff erosion power and sediment bulk density, on the sediment delivery ratio of single flood events (SDRe) has received little attention. The Qiaogou headwater basin is in the hilly-gully region of the Chinese Loess Plateau, and it encompasses a 0.45 km2 catchment. Three large-scale field runoff plots at different geomorphological positions were chosen to obtain the observation data, and the 20-year period between 1986 and 2005 is presented. The results showed that the SDRe of the Qiaogou headwaters varied from 0.49 to 2.77. Among the numerous influential factors, rainfall and runoff were the driving factors causing slope erosion and sediment transport. The rainfall erosivity had a significant positive relationship with the sediment transport modulus (R²=0.85, P<0.01) but had no significant relationship with SDRe. The rainfall peak coefficient was significantly positively correlated with the SDRe (R²=0.64, P<0.05), indicating the influence of rainfall energy distribution on the SDRe. The runoff erosion power index was not only significantly related to the sediment transport modulus (R²=0.84, P<0.01) but also significantly related to the SDRe (R²=0.57, P<0.01). In addition, the relative bulk density was significantly related to the SDRe, indicating that hyper-concentrated flow characteristics contributed to more transported sediment in the catchment. Thus, the rainfall peak coefficient, runoff erosion power and sediment relative bulk density could be used as dynamic indexes to predict the SDRe in the hilly areas of the Chinese Loess Plateau.     

A review of interaction between neon flying squid (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Ommastrephes bartramii</Emphasis>) and oceanographic variability in the North Pacific Ocean

The neon flying squid (Ommastrephes bartramii) is a short-lived opportunistic species widely distributed in subtropical and temperate waters in the North Pacific Ocean. The life cycle of O. bartramii from planktonic eggs to nektonic adults is closely linked to oceanographic conditions. The fluctuations in O. bartramii abundance and distribution tend to increase and widen continuously due to the heavy influences of ocean-climate events on various spatio-temporal scales. In this study, we reviewed the interaction between O. bartramii and oceanography variability in the North Pacific with respect to large-scale climatic-oceanic phenomena including El Niño, La Niña, Kuroshio, Oyashio and Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO), as well as regional environmental variables such as sea surface temperature (SST), sea surface height (SSH), sea surface salinity (SSS), chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) concentration, and plankton density. The population dynamics of O. bartramii is mediated mainly by meso- and large-scale climatic-oceanic events (e.g., Kuroshio and Oyashio Currents) rather than other local environmental conditions (e.g., SST and Chl-a concentration), because all of the oceanographic influences are imposed on the context of large-scale climate changes (e.g., PDO). An unstructured-grid finite-volume coastal ocean model coupled with an individual-based model is proposed to simulate relevant physical-biological oceanographic processes for identifying ocean-climate influence and predicting O. bartramii distribution and abundance in the North Pacific. Future research needs to be focused on improving the knowledge about early life history of O. bartramii and evaluating the relationship between marine physical environment and two separate passive drifting life stages of O. bartramii including free-floating eggs and planktonic paralarvae.     

Effects of Anthropogenic Disturbance on Sediment Organic Carbon Mineralization Under Different Water Conditions in Coastal Wetland of a Subtropical Estuary

The changes in soil organic carbon(C) mineralization as affected by anthropogenic disturbance directly determine the role of soils as C source or sink in the global C budget. The objectives of this study were to investigate the effects of anthropogenic disturbance(aquaculture pond, pollutant discharge and agricultural activity) on soil organic C mineralization under different water conditions in the Minjiang River estuary wetland, Southeast China. The results showed that the organic C mineralization in the wetland soils was significantly affected by human disturbance and water conditions(P 0.001), and the interaction between human disturbance activities and water conditions was also significant(P 0.01). The C mineralization rate and the cumulative mineralized carbon dioxide-carbon(CO_2-C)(at the 49th day) ranked from highest to lowest as follows: Phragmites australis wetland soil aquaculture pond sediment soil near the discharge outlet rice paddy soil. This indicated that human disturbance inhibited the mineralization of C in soils of the Minjiang River estuary wetland, and the inhibition increased with the intensity of human disturbance. The data for cumulative mineralized CO_2-C showed a good fit(R~2 0.91) to the first-order kinetic model C_t = C_0(1 – exp(–kt)). The kinetic parameters C_0, k and C_0 k were significantly affected by human disturbance and water conditions. In addition, the total amount of mineralized C(in 49 d) was positively related to C_0, C_0 k and electrical conductivity of soils. These findings indicated that anthropogenic disturbance suppressed the organic C mineralization potential in subtropical coastal wetland soils, and changes of water pattern as affected by human activities in the future would have a strong influence on C cycling in the subtropical estuarine wetlands.