Vegetation succession prevents dry lake beds from becoming dust sources in the semi‐arid steppe region of China

East Asian dust storms have become increasingly intense over the last two decades, and the arid inland regions of northern China have been recognized as the main dust source areas. Numerous lakes in this region have recently become desiccated, leaving large areas of bare ground prone to becoming potential dust sources. Vegetation cover characteristics and vegetation succession following lake desiccation remain unclear. Here we chose eight inland dry lakes, one outflow lake and one river on the southeast edge of the Inner Mongolian Plateau to investigate vegetation patterns along transects from lake bed to lake shore, and determine the relationships between vegetation patterns and environmental factors. The results show that dry lake bed soils do indeed have high contents of fine particles. Also, soil salt content is the most critical control on vegetation succession on desiccated lake beds, and vegetation is unlikely to colonize areas with soil salt content ≥5%. Soil texture additionally influenced vegetation patterns by affecting soil salt content. The likely vegetation succession on dry like beds is Nitraria tangutorum community > Suaeda corniculata and Suaeda glauca communities > Achnatherum splendens and Elymus sibiricus communities, and finally Carex duriuscula community as the probable climax. When vegetation is at the later stages of succession, for example with Achnatherum splendens communities, Elymus sibiricus communities and Carex duriuscula communities, soil may be protected from wind erosion because of their high vegetation cover and high proportion of perennials. We suggest grazing should be avoided around lake shores, especially in Achnatherum splendens communities, because high vegetation cover and biomass not only protect soil from erosion, but also promote the deposition of fine particles blown from upwind regions. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effect of vegetation cover and sediment type on 3D subsurface structure and shear strength in saltmarshes

The vulnerability of saltmarshes to lateral erosion at their margin depends on the local biogeomorphological properties of the substrate. In particular, the 3D architecture of pore and root systems is expected to influence shear strength, with repercussions for the wider-scale stability of saltmarshes. We apply X-ray computed microtomography (μCT) to visualize and quantify subsurface structures in two UK saltmarshes at Tillingham Farm, Essex (silt/clay rich substrate) and Warton Sands (sand-rich substrate), with four types of ground cover: bare ground, Spartina spp, Salicornia spp and Puccinellia spp. We extracted μCT structural parameters that characterize pore and root morphologies at each station, and compared them with field measurements of shear strength using a principal component analysis and correlation tests. The 3D volumes show that species-dependent variations in root structures, plant colonization events and bioturbation activity control the morphology of macropores, while sediment cohesivity determines the structural stability and persistence of these pore structures over time, even after the vegetation has died. Areas of high porosity and high mean pore thickness were correlated to lower values of shear strength, especially at Tillingham Farm, where well-connected vertical systems of macropores were associated with current or previous colonization by Spartina spp. However, while well-connected systems of macropores may lower the local deformation threshold of the sediment, they also encourage drainage, promote vegetation growth and reduce the marsh vulnerability to hydrodynamic forces. The highest values of shear strength at both sites were found under Puccinellia spp, and were associated with a high density of mesh-like root structures that bind the sediment and resist deformation. Future studies of marsh stability should ideally consider time series of vegetation cover, especially in silt/clay-dominated saltmarshes, in order to consider the potential effect of preserved buried networks of macropores on water circulation, marsh functioning and cliff-face erosion.     

洞庭湖湿地3种典型植物群落土壤酶活性特征

调查了洞庭湖湿地典型植物群落(短尖苔草(Carex brevicuspis)、南荻(Triarrhena sacchariflora)、辣蓼(Polygonumhy dropiper))洪水期前后(5、10月)两次表层土壤酶活性及土壤养分性状.结果表明:3种典型群落之间具有明显的土壤养分性状及土壤酶活差异.辣蓼群落具有相对较高的土壤有机质、全氮、全磷、速效磷含量,短尖苔草群落次之,而南荻群落的土壤养分含量最低.3种典型植物群落的土壤有机质、全氮、全磷含量均表现为5月高于10月,土壤速效磷、速效钾洪水期前后无显著差异.辣蓼群落的蔗糖酶活性明显高于其他2个群落;3个群落脲酶活性均表现为10月高于5月,南荻、辣蓼群落有显著差异.磷酸酶以南荻群落最高,短尖苔草群落5月显著高于10月,南荻群落则10月显著高于5月;短尖苔草、南荻群落过氧化氢酶活性显著高于辣蓼群落,短尖苔草群落5月与10月间有显著差异,其余2个群落无显著差异.相关分析表明:脲酶活性与土壤养分含量关系不密切;蔗糖酶活性与土壤有机质、全磷、全氮及速效磷素含量均呈显著正相关.总体上,洞庭湖典型湿地植物群落显示了较为明显的土壤理化状况以及土壤酶活差异;同时也显示了季节性差异.相对而言,辣蓼群落土壤具有较快的物质循环与转化代谢速率,对于氮、磷等污染物具有较高的转化作用,而短尖苔草、南荻群落低于辣蓼群落,这可能与二者较低的土壤有机质以及氮磷养分积累有关.     

鄱阳湖典型洲滩湿地土壤含水量和地下水位年内变化特征

湿地植被空间分布受多个水分因子共同影响,为了探求鄱阳湖典型洲滩湿地不同植被类型下地下水、土壤水的变化特征,本文选择鄱阳湖吴城湿地保护区内一个长约1.2 km的典型洲滩湿地为实验区,建立了气象-土壤-水文联合观测系统.对观测的气象、水文要素进行分析发现:(1)洲滩湿地地下水位年内呈单峰变化,季节性差异显著,最大埋深可达10 m,出现在1月份,丰水期8月份地下水位最高时可出露地表,且地下水位与湖泊水位变化具有高度一致性;(2)由远湖区高地至近湖区低地,不同植被带中地下水平均埋深变化为藜蒿带(4.76 m)芦苇带(2.87 m)灰化薹草带(1.61 m).地下水埋深小于50 cm的持续时间分别为:藜蒿带27 d、芦苇带112 d、灰化薹草带170 d;(3)土壤平均含水量沿不同植被带梯度变化为:藜蒿带最小(15.9%),芦苇样带(40.7%)和灰化薹草样带(43.7%)较大.土壤含水量年内变幅为:藜蒿带最大(2.5%~55.2%),芦苇带和灰化薹草带相对较小,分别为22.1%~48.1%和28.4%~54.1%;(4)不同植被带土壤含水量季节变化规律不同,藜蒿带土壤含水量年内呈单峰型,仅夏季土壤含水量较高,其余季节均在10%左右,而芦苇带和灰化薹草样带春、夏、秋季均维持较高含水量(42%以上),仅冬季水分含量较低.     

Resistance to shallow landslide failure through root-derived cohesion in east coast hill country soils,North Island,New Zealand

Measured shear strength (cohesion and friction) of airfall-derived east coast hill country regolith is insufficient for the maintenance of existing regolith depth/slope angle relationships in the catchment of Lake Waikopiro in northern Hawke's Bay, New Zealand. If these regoliths are attributed with an additional increment of cohesion derived mechanically from a turf mat membrane, existing depth/slope angle distributions are explicable. Sites where failure has occurred have been measured, and back-analysis used to derive a range of values for additional mechanical cohesion. Values are in the range 0·2–7·6 kPa, consistent with earlier findings. This range is narrowed further, to 0·7–6·9 kPa, with assumptions regarding soil moisture status at failure. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Seismic displacements on shear surfaces in cohesive soils

The paper is concerned with the earthquake-induced displacements on pre-existing shear surfaces in cohesive soils. Results from ring shear tests have shown that during fast shearing the strength of such surfaces depends on displacement and rate of shearing. The test results have been used in a numerical analysis to assess the displacement of a rigid block sliding on a plane surface. The results from the analysis show that the earthquake-induced displacements on pre-existing shear surfaces are influenced significantly by the soil behaviour under earthquake loading conditions. The results are consistent with the field performance of pre-existing slides in cohesive soils during earthquakes.     

Biocrust landscape-scale spatial distribution is strongly controlled by terrain attributes: Topographic thresholds for colonization in a semiarid badland system

Biological soil crust, or biocrust communities, are the dominating life form in many extreme habitats, such as arid and semiarid badlands, where water scarcity and highly erodible substrates limit vegetation cover. While climate, soil and biotic factors have been described as environmental filters influencing biocrust distribution in such biomes, little is known about the effect of terrain attributes on creating specific microhabitats that promote or restrict biocrust colonization. This study aimed to identify the main terrain attributes controlling biocrust distribution in the driest badland system in Europe, the Tabernas Badlands (SE Spain). To do this, we analysed the influence of different terrain attributes related to landscape stability and microclimate formation on the spatial distribution of lichen and cyanobacteria, using field measurements and topographical information from a LiDAR survey. Our results showed that the spatial distribution of cyanobacteria-dominated biocrusts, which are physiologically and morphologically adapted to extreme drought and high UVA radiation, was mostly associated with areas of high potential incoming solar radiation. The exception was bare south-aspect hillslopes with very high sediment transport potential, where bare physically crusted soils were the dominant ground cover. Lichen-dominated biocrusts, in contrast, colonized near the top of north-aspect hillslopes, characterized by low potential incoming solar radiation and potential evapotranspiration, and their cover decreased downstream, as conditions became good enough for vascular plants. © 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. © 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Where fast weathering creates thin regolith and slow weathering creates thick regolith

Weathering disaggregates rock into regolith – the fractured or granular earth material that sustains life on the continental land surface. Here, we investigate what controls the depth of regolith formed on ridges of two rock compositions with similar initial porosities in Virginia (USA). A priori, we predicted that the regolith on diabase would be thicker than on granite because the dominant mineral (feldspar) in the diabase weathers faster than its granitic counterpart. However, weathering advanced 20× deeper into the granite than the diabase. The 20 × ‐thicker regolith is attributed mainly to connected micron‐sized pores, microfractures formed around oxidizing biotite at 20 m depth, and the lower iron (Fe) content in the felsic rock. Such porosity allows pervasive advection and deep oxidation in the granite. These observations may explain why regolith worldwide is thicker on felsic compared to mafic rock under similar conditions. To understand regolith formation will require better understanding of such deep oxidation reactions and how they impact fluid flow during weathering. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effects of microbiotic crusts under cropland in temperate environments on soil erodibility during concentrated flow

Several studies illustrate the wind and water erosion‐reducing potential of semi‐permanent microbiotic soil crusts in arid and semi‐arid desert environments. In contrast, little is hitherto known on these biological crusts on cropland soils in temperate environments where they are annually destroyed by tillage and quickly regenerate thereafter. This study attempts to fill the research gap through (a) a field survey assessing the occurrence of biological soil crusts on loess‐derived soils in central Belgium in space and time and (b) laboratory flume (2 m long) experiments simulating concentrated runoff on undisturbed topsoil samples (0.4 × 0.1 m²) quantifying the microbiotic crust effect on soil erosion rates. Three stages of microbiotic crust development on cropland soils are distinguished: (1) development of a non‐biological surface seal by raindrop impact, (2) colonization of the soil by algae and gradual development of a continuous algal mat and (3) establishment of a well‐developed microbiotic crust with moss plants as the dominant life‐form. As the silt loam soils in the study area seal quickly after tillage, microbiotic soil crusts are more or less present during a large part of the year under maize, sugar beet and wheat, representing the main cropland area. On average, the early‐successional algae‐dominated crusts of stage 2 reduce soil detachment rates by 37%, whereas the well‐developed moss mat of stage 3 causes an average reduction of 79%. Relative soil detachment rates of soil surfaces with microbiotic crusts compared with bare sealed soil surfaces are shown to decrease exponentially with increasing microbiotic cover (b = 0·024 for moss‐dominated and b = 0·006 for algae‐dominated crusts). In addition to ground surface cover by vegetation and crop residues, microbiotic crust occurrence can therefore not be neglected when modelling small‐scale spatial and temporal variations in soil loss by concentrated flow erosion on cropland soils in temperate environments. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Rock fragment distributions and regolith evolution in the Ouachita Mountains,Arkansas, USA

Rock fragments in the regolith are a persistent property that reflects the combined influences of geologic controls, erosion, deposition, bioturbation, and weathering. The distribution of rock fragments in regoliths of the Ouachita Mountains, Arkansas, shows that sandstone fragments are common in all layers, even if sandstone is absent in parent material. Shale and sandstone fragments are produced at the bedrock weathering front, but the shale weathers rapidly and intact fragments are rare in the solum. Sandstone is weathered from ridgetop outcrops and transported downslope. Some of these fragments are moved downward, by faunalturbation and by transport into pits associated with rotting tree stumps. Upward movement by treethrow is common, resulting in a net concentration of rocks near the surface. However, the highest fragment concentrations are in the lower regolith, indicating active production at the weathering front. The regolith is a dynamic feature, reflecting the influences of vertical and horizontal processes, of active weathering at the bedrock interface, and of surficial sediment movements. The role of trees in redistributing rock fragments suggests that significant regolith mixing occurs over time scales associated with forest vegetation communities, and that forest soils have likely been extensively mixed within Holocene and historic time. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Root properties of vegetation communities and their impact on the erosion resistance of river dikes

Predicted climate change and the associated sea level rise poses an increased threat of flooding due to wave overtopping events at sea and river dikes. To safeguard the land from flooding it is important to keep the soil erosion resistance at the dikes high. As plant roots can be very effective in reducing soil erosion rates by concentrated flow, the main goal of this study is to explore the variability in root system characteristics of five dike vegetation communities along the Scheldt River (Belgium) and to assess their effectiveness in controlling soil erosion rates during concentrated flow. This study is the first one to investigate systematically the erosion‐reducing potential of the root properties of representative dike vegetation communities in a temperate humid climate. Results show that the presence of Urtica dioica resulted in large differences in root length density (RLD) among dike vegetation communities. Observed RLD values in the topsoil ranged from 129 to 235 km m^‐3 for dike vegetation communities without U. dioica, while smaller values ranging from 22 to 58 km m^?3 were found for vegetation communities with U. dioica. The erosion‐reducing effect of the dike vegetation communities was estimated based on a global Hill curve model, linking the RLD to the soil detachment ratio (SDR; i.e. the ratio of the soil detachment rate for root‐permeated topsoils to the soil detachment rate for root‐free topsoils). Concentrated flow erosion rates are likely to be reduced to 13–16% of the erosion rates for root‐free topsoils if U. dioica is absent compared to 22–30% for vegetation communities with U. dioica. Hence, to maintain a high resistance of the soil against concentrated flow erosion it is important to avoid the overgrowth of grassland by U. dioica through an effective vegetation management. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Strong slope-aspect control of regolith thickness by bedrock foliation

The porous near-surface layer of the Earth's crust – the critical zone – constitutes a vital reservoir of water for ecosystems, provides baseflow to streams, guides recharge to deep aquifers, filters contaminants from groundwater, and regulates the long-term evolution of landscapes. Recent work suggests that the controls on regolith thickness include climate, tectonics, lithology, and vegetation. However, the relative paucity of observations of regolith structure and properties at landscape scales means that theoretical models of critical zone structure are incompletely tested. Here we present seismic refraction and electrical resistivity surveys that thoroughly characterize subsurface structure in a small catchment in the Santa Catalina Mountains, Arizona, USA, where slope-aspect effects on regolith structure are expected based on differences in vegetation. Our results show a stark contrast in physical properties and inferred regolith thickness on opposing slopes, but in the opposite sense of that expected from environmental models and observed vegetation patterns. Although vegetation (as expressed by normalized difference vegetation index [NDVI]) is denser on the north-facing slope, regolith on the south-facing slope is four times thicker (as indicated by lower seismic velocities and resistivities). This contrast cannot be explained by variations in topographic stress or conventional hillslope morphology models. Instead, regolith thickness appears to be controlled by metamorphic foliation: regolith is thicker where foliation dips into the topography, and thinner where foliation is nearly parallel to the surface. We hypothesize that, in this catchment, hydraulic conductivity and infiltration capacity control weathering: infiltration is hindered and regolith is thin where foliation is parallel to the surface topography, whereas water infiltrates deeper and regolith is thicker where foliation intersects topography at a substantial angle. These results suggest that bedrock foliation, and perhaps by extension sedimentary layering, can control regolith thickness and must be accounted for in models of critical zone development. © 2020 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

鄱阳湖湿地中低滩典型植物群落的生物多样性及影响因子

周期性水文节律是影响洪泛湖泊洲滩湿地植物群落物种组成与生物多样性的重要驱动力。本研究以鄱阳湖中低滩典型植物群落为研究对象,通过实地样方调查与统计方法分析植物群落的生物多样性格局及其关键环境因子。结果表明：鄱阳湖中低滩代表性群落分别是灰化薹草群落和虉草群落;植物群落的Shannon-Wiener多样性指数均值为1.5,Pielou均匀度指数均值为0.55,生物多样性与物种均匀度偏低。虉草群落的均匀度、多样性指数高于灰化薹草群落,但二者物种丰富度差异不明显。土壤铵态氮、总磷及土壤含水量和高程是影响植物群落结构与生物多样性的关键因子,其中灰化薹草的物种多样性与土壤铵态氮高度相关,而虉草的均匀度则与土壤总磷关系更密切。此外,鄱阳湖中低滩环境下,灰化薹草群落的均匀度随土壤总磷含量的升高呈现U型响应曲线,虉草则是倒U型,这表明,鄱阳湖中低滩环境下,灰化薹草群落和虉草群落生物多样性对单个、同一的环境因子存在不同的适应机制。     

Controls on Holocene denudation rates in mountainous environments under Mediterranean climate

The Mediterranean domain is characterized by a specific climate resulting from the close interplay between atmospheric and marine processes and strongly differentiated regional topographies. Corsica Island, a mountainous area located in the western part of the Mediterranean Sea is particularly suitable to quantify regional denudation rates in the framework of a source‐to‐sink approach. Indeed, fluvial sedimentation in East‐Corsica margin is almost exclusively limited to its alluvial plain and offshore domain and its basement is mainly constituted of quartz‐rich crystalline rocks allowing cosmogenic nuclide ¹⁰Be measurements. In this paper, Holocene denudation rates of catchments from the eastern part of the island of Corsica are quantified relying on in situ produced ¹⁰Be concentrations in stream sediments and interpreted in an approach including quantitative geomorphology, rock strength measurement (with a Schmidt Hammer) and vegetation cover distribution. Calculated denudation rates range from 15 to 95 mm ka^‐1. When compared with rates from similar geomorphic domains experiencing a different climate setting, such as the foreland of the northern European Alps, they appear quite low and temporally stable. At the first order, they better correlate with rock strength and vegetation cover than with morphometric indexes. Spatial distribution of the vegetation is controlled by morpho‐climatic parameters including sun exposure and the direction of the main wet wind, so‐called ‘Libecciu’. This distribution, as well as the basement rock strength seems to play a significant role in the denudation distribution. We thus suggest that the landscape reached a geomorphic steady‐state due to the specific Mediterranean climate and that Holocene denudation rates are mainly sustained by weathering processes, through the amount of regolith formation, rather than being transport‐limited. Al/K measurements used as a proxy to infer present‐day catchment‐wide chemical weathering patterns might support this assumption. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Vegetation characteristics and the prediction of runoff: Analysis of an experiment in the New Forest,Hampshire

Vegetation characteristics have not been sufficiently utilized in catchment runoff models. An analysis of storm hydrograph data from nested subareas of the Highland Water catchment, New Forest, U.K., indicates that depth of runoff and peak discharge from areas under heathland cover is substantially greater than from areas under woodland cover at several spatial scales. The significance of heath vegetation composition in the identification of runoff contributing areas is illustrated by an analysis of vegetation composition, water table depth, baseflow discharge and storm runoff from areas predominantly covered by heathland. Methods are proposed to employ the hydrological characteristics of heathland to refine and develop the Flood Studies Approach to discharge estimation in ungauged heathland catchments. Such an approach is greatly facilitated by the use of remotely-sensed data.     

In quest of lunar regolith breccias of exotic provenance: a uniquely anorthositic sample from the Fra Mauro (Apollo 14) highlands

Polymict samples can be used to establish mass-balance constraints regarding the bulk composition of the lunar crust, and to gauge the degree of regional heterogeneity in the composition of the lunar crust. The most ideally polymict type of sample is finely-mixed regolith (lunar soil), or its lithified equivalent, regolith breccia. Fortunately, lunar regolith breccias can occasionally be found at great distances from their points of origin — most of the known lunar meteorites are regolith breccias. We are searching for examples of exotic regolith samples among the Apollo regolith breccia collection. Most of the 21 Apollo regolith breccias analyzed for this study strongly resemble the local soils over which they were collected. Nine regolith breccias from Apollo 16 are surprisingly mature compared to previously-analyzed Apollo 16 regolith breccias, and six of the seven from Apollo 16 Station 5 have lower, more local-soil-like,mg ratios than previously analyzed regolith breccias from this station. Several of the Apollo 14 regolith breccias investigated show significantly highermg, and lower Al, than the local soils.The most interesting sample we have investigated is 14076,1, from a lithology that constitutes roughly half of a 2.0-g pebble. The presence of spherules indicates a regolith derivation for 14076,1, yet its highly aluminous (30 wt.% Al₂O₃) composition is clearly exotic to the 1.6-km traverse surface over which the Apollo 14 samples were collected. This sample resembles soils from the Descartes (Apollo 16) highlands far more than it does any other polymict sample from the Fra Mauro (Apollo 14) region. The I/_sFeO maturity index is extremely low, but this may be a result of thermal annealing. A variety of siderophile elements occur in 14076,1 at typical regolith concentrations. The chemistry of the second most aluminous regolith sample from Apollo 14, 14315, can only be roughly approximated as a mixture of local regolith and 14076,1-like material. However, the low a priori statistical probability for long-distance horizontal transport by impact cratering, along with the relatively high contents of incompatible elements in 14076,1 (despite its high Al content), suggest that this regolith breccia probably originated within a few hundred kilometers of the Appollo 14 site. If so, its compositional resemblance to ferroan anorthosite tends to suggest that the regional crust is, or originally was, far richer in ferroan anorthosite than implied by the meager statistics for pristine rocks from this site. Thus, 14076,1 tends to strengthen the hypothesis that ferroan anorthosite originated as the flotation crust of a global magmasphere.     

Effects of slope angle and aspect on plant cover and species richness in a humid Mediterranean badland

Soil erosion is one of the most severe land degradation processes in the Mediterranean region. Although badlands occupy a relatively small fraction of the Mediterranean area, their erosion rates are very high. Many studies have investigated to what extent vegetation controls soil erosion rates. This study, however, deals with the impact of erosion on vegetation establishment. In semi‐arid badlands of the Mediterranean, soil water availability constitutes the main limiting factor for vegetation development. As a consequence, south‐facing slopes are typically less vegetated due to a very large water stress. However, these findings do not necessarily apply to humid badlands. The main objective of this paper is to determine the topographic thresholds for plant colonization in relation to slope aspect and to assess the spatial patterns of vegetation cover and species richness. We surveyed 179 plots on highly eroded badland slopes in the Central Pyrenees. We defined four aspect classes subdivided into slope angle classes. Colonization success was expressed in terms of vegetation cover and species richness. Slope angle thresholds for plant colonization were identified for each slope aspect class by means of binary logistic regressions. The results show that a critical slope angle exists below which plants colonize the badland slopes. Below this critical slope angle, plant cover and species richness increase with a decreasing slope angle. The largest critical slope angles in humid badlands are observed on south‐facing slopes, which contrasts with the results obtained in semi‐arid badlands. North‐facing slopes however are characterized by a reduced overall vegetation cover and species richness, and lower topographic threshold values. The possible underlying processes responsible for this slope‐aspect discrepancy in vegetation characteristics are discussed in terms of environmental variables that control regolith development, weathering and erosion processes. Moreover, possible restoration strategies through the use of vegetation in highly degraded environments are highlighted. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Bashikaogong-Shimierbulake granitic complex, north Altun, NW China:Geochemistry and zircon SHRIMP ages

The Bashikaogong-Shimierbulake granitoid complex is about 30 km long and 2―6 km wide, with an area of 140 km2, located at the north margin of the Bashikaogong Basin in the north Altun terrain. It intruded into schist, metapelite and metatuff of Precambrian ages. This granitoid complex consists of darkish quartz diorite, grey granite, pink granite and pegmatite. Geochemically, the quartz diorite has I-type granite affinity and belongs to Calc-alkaline sereies, and the other gran- ites have S-type affinity and to high-K calc-alkaline series. Zircon SHRIMP U-Pb dating shows that the quartz diorite has a bigger age than those of other granites, which is 481.6±5.6 Ma for quartz diorite, 437.0±3.0 Ma―433.1±3.4 Ma for grey granite and 443±11 Ma―434.6±1.6 Ma for pink granite, re- spectively. Combined with regional geology, we think that the quartz diorite formed in tectonic envi- ronment related to oceanic crust subduction and the granites in post-collision.     

洞庭湖湿地植被长期格局变化(1987-2016年)及其对水文过程的响应

基于长序列遥感影像数据、水位日观测数据以及高精度湖盆地形数据,通过提取洞庭湖1987—2016年湿地植被信息,并构建表征水位波动的多周期水情变量,采用逐步回归分析法识别影响洞庭湖湿地植被分布格局的关键水情变量并建立其与植被面积的响应关系.结果表明：1）1987—2016年,洞庭湖湿地典型植被面积在全湖尺度上呈增加趋势,尤其是林地面积,占比由1.77%上升为7.24%.湿地植被格局演变上,东洞庭湖呈现芦苇群落挤占苔草群落空间,并推动湿地植被整体向湖心扩张的趋势.2）影响东洞庭湖苔草和芦苇分布最关键的水情变量是丰水期水位.苔草对丰水期水情存在非线性阈值响应,丰水期平均水位维持在29 m左右,最适宜苔草生长;对于芦苇,丰水期偏枯的水情条件对其生长发育起到促进作用.涨水期和退水期水文过程是影响东洞庭湖湿地植被分布的次为重要的水情因子.涨水期、退水期水位偏低的水情条件对芦苇分布面积的扩张起促进作用.     

Synergistic effect of vegetation and air temperature changes on soil water content in alpine frost meadow soil in the permafrost region of Qinghai‐Tibet

Seasonal changes over 2 years (2004–2006) in soil moisture content (θ_v) of frozen alpine frost meadow soils of the Qinghai‐Tibet plateau permafrost region under three different levels of vegetation cover were investigated. Vegetation cover and air temperature changes had significant effects (synergistic effect) on θ_v and its distribution in the soil profile. During periods of soil freezing or thawing, the less the vegetation cover, the quicker the temperature drop or rise of soil water, and the shorter the duration of the soil water freeze–thaw response in the active soil layer. Under 30% and 65% vegetation cover the amplitude of variation in θ_v during the freezing period was 20–26% greater than that under 93% cover, while during the thawing period, it was 1·5‐ to 40·5‐fold greater. The freezing temperature of the surface soil layer, ^fT_s, was 1·6 °C lower under 30% vegetation cover than under 93% vegetation cover. Changes in vegetation cover of the alpine frost meadow affected θ_v and its distribution, as well as the relationship between θ_v and soil temperature (T_s). As vegetation cover decreased, soil water circulation in the active layer increased, and the response to temperature of the water distribution across the soil profile was heightened. The quantity of transitional soil phase water at different depths significantly increased as vegetation cover decreased. The influence of vegetation cover and soil temperature distribution led to a relatively dry soil layer in the middle of the profile (0·70–0·80 m) under high vegetation cover. Alpine meadow θ_v and its pattern of distribution in the permafrost region were the result of the synergistic effect of air temperature and vegetation cover. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.