Forest disturbance enhanced the activity of epedaphic collembola in windthrown stands of the High Tatra mountains

The study aimed to assess the response of ep- and hemiedaphic Collembola communities （activity, richness, community structure） to a disturbance, the subsequent management regime and to the season （summer, winter） in a High Tatra Mountainsspruce forest destroyed by a windstorm. Fire and clear-cut resulted in an initial increase in the activity of Collembola inhabiting open areas, opportunistic or generalist species, while forest specialists diminished in numbers or disappeared. Our results indicated that treatment with non-extracted fallen trees （NEX） provided a better chance for forest species to survive compared with their survival in open habitats of extracted （EXT） and wildfire （FIR） treatments. Great species’ potential of NEX treatment was indicated by Chao2 estimator and activity/species rarefaction curves. Communities of NEX treatment were more similar to the reference （REF） treatment, documented by ordination and cluster analyses. Thus, leaving fallen timber after a windthrow to natural process of succession is suitable for survival of forest species and maintenance of diversity in forests restoration than timber extraction. Community structure in wildfire （FIR） stands was the most dissimilar to the other treatments. Most of the species trapped in this treatment belonged to hemiedaphic life forms, while the activity of larger epedaphic species diminished. In contrast, the highest number of trapped Collembola in EXT treatment was connected with the larger-bodied epigeic species with fast dispersal ability. The trapping period affected both the number of individuals and species richness; Collembola activity and species diversity in the individual treatments were lower in winter compared with the summer period. Several species increased activity during the winter period, namelyFolsomia penicula, Friesea mirabilis, F. truncata,Hypogastrura socialisand Protaphorura aurantiaca.     

InterPreting effects of TOCinert organic content on source rock Potential using S2 vs. TOC graPh in Maamba Coalfield,southern Zambia

The authors Present the effects of the total organic carbon( TOCinert )during Pyrolysis and how it overall affects the estimates of the hydrocarbon index( HI)using the cross Plot S2 vs. TOC graPh. A to...     

Influence of livestock soil eutrophication on floral composition in the Pyrenees mountains

Livestock behaviour in the Pyrenees includes free grazing and a long resting period that provokes the accumulation of dung and urine in some places,so-called camping areas. The aims of this study were （i） to analyze any change in floral composition,and in nutritional and chemical contents of plants in a livestock camping area; and （ii） to relate the floral composition with soil chemical properties. In a linear transect,five sampling zones were established,from the centre of the camping area to the surrounding Nardus stricta-dominant pasture. The above ground plant biomass and the topsoil were sampled in each zone with 6 replicates per zone. Plant species were classified and weighed to calculate above ground biomass,nutritional and chemical contents,and Shannon diversity and evenness indices. Additionally,soils were sampled in two periods,at the beginning and at the end of grazing period. Soil available nutrients （nitrate,ammonium,phosphorus,potassium,calcium and magnesium）,total nitrogen,organic carbon and pH were measured.
Plant chemical contents （protein,lignin and others） were significantly related to the proportions of grasses,legumes and other plants; so,the protein content is positively correlated with legumes plant biomass while lignin content is negatively correlated with grasses. Both plant and soil nutrients increased linearly towards the centre of the camping area. However,the relationship among plant species richness,diversity and evenness relative to its position along the studied transect was bell-shaped. From the outskirts to the centre of the camping area,plants with low nutrient demand were progressively replaced by those with medium and high nutrients demand and by pioneers.
Nardus stricta-dominant pasture has low plant diversity and plant nutrient content as well as a poor soil nutrient availability. The presence of the camping area introduced patches with more soil nutrients and new species in the large spatial scale. However at a small spatial scale,the strong soil nutrien