Effects of elevated CO2 on the reproduction of two calanoid copepods

Some planktonic groups suffer negative effects from ocean acidification (OA), although copepods might be less sensitive. We investigated the effect of predicted CO₂ levels (range 480–750 ppm), on egg production and hatching success of two copepod species, Centropages typicus and Temora longicornis. In these short-term incubations there was no significant effect of high CO₂ on these parameters. Additionally a very high CO₂ treatment, (CO₂ = 9830 ppm), representative of carbon capture and storage scenarios, resulted in a reduction of egg production rate and hatching success of C. typicus, but not T. longicornis. In conclusion, reproduction of C. typicus was more sensitive to acute elevated seawater CO₂ than that of T. longicornis, but neither species was affected by exposure to CO₂ levels predicted for the year 2100. The duration and seasonal timing of exposures to high pCO₂, however, might have a significant effect on the reproduction success of calanoid copepods.     

Effect of the selective feeding ofGalaxias maculatus (Salmoniformes,Galaxiidae) on zooplankton of a South Andes lake

The effect of larval and juvenile predation ofGalaxias maculatus on a natural small-sized zooplankton was studied in a South Andes lake. Field data of zooplankton density and composition were combined with fish gut content analysis during a spring-summer season. Results showed thatGalaxias early stages ingested mostly planktonic preys. A shift was observed in prey electivity: larvae preferred copepod nauplii whereas juveniles preferred cladocerans. Larval predation provokes the failure of the summer cohort of the calanoid copepodBoeckella gracilipes. The effect of juveniles is more undefined, but seems to prevent the reappearance ofCeriodaphnia in the summer plankton.     

Effect of Copper on Activity and Feeding in the Subtidal Prosobranch Babylonia lutosa (Lamarck) (Gastropoda: Buccinidae)

Individuals of the subtidal gastropod Babylonia lutosa were exposed to three sublethal concentrations of copper (0.02, 0.06 and 0.20 ppm) for four weeks. The percentage of normally active individuals (body extended and moving with the foot attached) decreased and the percentage of snails retracted (body extended, foot not attached, unable to move) and in a distressed stage (body retracted within the shell) increased with increase in copper concentration. Exposure to copper also decreased significantly the ability of an individual to move, and to burrow, but the effect was only observed in week 1, individuals were fully recovered in week 2. Feeding, however, was not affected, both in terms of the percentage number of individuals which fed, and the time spent feeding. Results were discussed with respect to the potential of using this animal as a bioassay tool in monitoring the effect of environmental perturbations on the subtidal community in Hong Kong.     

外来种福寿螺(Pomacea canaliculata)对3种沉水植物的牧食偏好及水体理化因子的响应

外来种福寿螺(Pomacea canaliculata)相较我国本土螺类其牧食量更大且繁殖速度更快,对栖息地水生植物的现存量和实施水生植被恢复的生态治理工程的成功性可能构成威胁,目前对福寿螺影响浅水湖泊沉水植物的重建缺乏足够的研究.本文通过设置不同沉水植物种类组合系统,研究福寿螺对3种常用于浅水富营养化湖泊治理的沉水植物密刺苦草(Vallisneria denseserrulata)、轮叶黑藻(Hydrilla verticillata)、穗花狐尾藻(Myriophyllum spicatum)的牧食偏好以及不同植物配置系统理化因子的响应变化,结果表明福寿螺对沉水植物植株附着偏好为密刺苦草轮叶黑藻穗花狐尾藻,而牧食破坏强度为轮叶黑藻穗花狐尾藻密刺苦草,轮叶黑藻最容易受到福寿螺牧食影响而快速消亡,穗花狐尾藻叶片也会被全部牧食仅剩下茎,而苦草存活受到的影响较小.福寿螺会导致轮叶黑藻+密刺苦草组合系统中总氮、氨氮、总磷、正磷酸盐浓度显著升高,而密刺苦草+穗花狐尾藻组合中总磷、正磷酸盐浓度显著升高,但是在轮叶黑藻+穗花狐尾藻组合中仅总氮浓度显著升高.研究表明福寿螺能够影响沉水植物间的竞争关系,但是3种沉水植物均不能阻止福寿螺的牧食;福寿螺牧食会显著降低沉水植物生物量,最终会影响草型清水态系统的稳定性.     

An experimental investigation of water level effects on the dynamic behaviour of a large arch dam

The need for full‐scale dynamic tests, which are recognized as the most reliable method to evaluate a structure's vibration properties, is increasing as new analysis techniques are developed that take into account the complex interaction phenomenons that occur in dam–reservoir–foundation systems. They are extremely useful to obtain reliable data for the calibration of newly developed numerical methods. The Earthquake Engineering and Structural Dynamics Research Center (CRGP) at the University of Sherbrooke has been developing and applying dynamic testing methods for large structures in the past 10 years. This paper presents the experimental evaluation of the effects of the varying water level on the dynamic response of the 180 m Emosson arch dam in Switzerland. Repeated forced‐vibration tests were carried out on the dam during four different periods of the reservoir's filling cycle during a one‐year span. Acceleration and hydrodynamic pressure frequency responses were obtained at several locations while the dam was subjected to horizontal harmonic loading. The variation of the resonant frequencies as a function of the reservoir level is investigated. A summary of the ongoing numerical correlation phase with a three‐dimensional finite element model for the dam–reservoir–foundation system is also presented. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

An experimental evaluation of ice cover effects on the dynamic behaviour of a concrete gravity dam

An extensive forced‐vibration testing programme has been carried out on an 84‐m concrete gravity dam located in northeastern Québec, Canada. The dam was subjected to a harmonic load on the crest in summer and severe winter conditions with temperatures ranging from ?10°C to ?15°C and a 1.0–1.5m ice cover. Acceleration and hydrodynamic frequency responses were obtained in different locations on the dam and in the reservoir. The main objective of the repeated tests was to investigate the effects of the ice cover on the dynamic behaviour of the dam–reservoir–foundation system, by comparing summer and winter results. Modifications in damping and resonance frequencies were observed, as well as an additional resonance that was attributed to an interaction of the dam with the ice cover. These findings provided a reliable and unique database for the investigations of dam–reservoir–foundation interaction and, in particular, the ice‐cover effects for dams located in northern regions. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

气压对徐州地区三套体应变仪不同影响原因的分析

通过对徐州地区现有的3台体应变仪不同程度受到气压影响的资料进行对比分析,发现其中2个台的体应变资料受气压影响大,分析出现这种情况的主要原因可能是仪器探头与钻孔耦合得不好造成的。为了减少气压对观测资料的干扰,就需要在仪器下井时做好仪器耦合的基础工作,否则仪器产出的数据将会影响观测资料的使用,受气压严重干扰的资料甚至会误导我们对地震前兆异常的分析和判定。     

Instantaneous dynamic pressure effects on the behaviour of lithic boulders in pyroclastic flows: the Abrigo Ignimbrite,Tenerife, Canary Islands

A method for estimating the instantaneous dynamic pressure near the base of ancient pyroclastic flows, using large lithic boulders from the late Pleistocene Abrigo Ignimbrite, is proposed here. The minimum instantaneous dynamic pressure is obtained by determining the minimum aerodynamic drag force exerted by a pyroclastic flow onto a stationary boulder that will allow the boulder to overcome static friction with the underlying substrate, and move within the flow. Consideration is given to the properties of the boulder (shape, roughness, size, density and orientation relative to the flow), substrate (type and hill slope angle), boulder-substrate interface (looseness of boulder, coefficient of static friction) and flow (coefficient of aerodynamic drag). Nineteen boulders from massive, lithic-rich ignimbrite deposits at two localities on Tenerife were assessed in this study. Minimum dynamic pressures required for Abrigo pyroclastic flows to move these boulders ranged from 5 to 38 kPa, which are comparable to dynamic pressures previously calculated from observations of the damage caused by recent pyroclastic flows. Considering the maximum possible range in flow density, the derived minimum velocity range for the Abrigo pyroclastic flows is 1.3 to 87 m s⁻¹.     

Late Holocene annual growth in three Alpine stalagmites records the influence of solar activity and the North Atlantic Oscillation on winter climate

Annual growth rates and the ratio of dark to light-colored calcite within single annual laminae in three contemporaneously deposited Holocene speleothems from Grotta di Ernesto, an Alpine cave in northern Italy, respond to changes in surface temperature rather than precipitation. Based on monitoring of present-day calcite growth, and correlation with instrumental data for surface climatic conditions, we interpret a higher ratio of dark to light-colored calcite and the simultaneous thinning of annual laminae as indicative of colder-than-present winters. Such dark and thin laminae occur in those parts of the three stalagmites deposited from AD 1650 to 1713 and from AD 1798 to 1840, as reconstructed through lamina counting. These periods correspond to the well-known Maunder and Dalton Minima of solar activity. An 11-yr cyclicity in growth rate, coupled with reduced calcite deposition during the historic minima of solar activity, is indicative of a solar influence on lamina thickness. Spectral analysis of the lamina thickness data also suggests that the North Atlantic Oscillation variability influenced winter temperatures. Based on the present-day controls on cave calcite formation, we infer that high-frequency changes in solar activity modulated the seasonal duration of soil CO₂ production.     

Quantifying the effects of climate variability and human activities on runoff from the Laohahe basin in northern China using three different methods

Much attention has recently been focused on the effects that climate variability and human activities have had on runoff. In this study, these effects are quantified using three methods, namely, multi‐regression, hydrologic sensitivity analysis, and hydrologic model simulation. A conceptual framework is defined to separate the effects. As an example, the change in annual runoff from the semiarid Laohahe basin (18 112 km²) in northern China was investigated. Non‐parametric Mann‐Kendall test, Pettitt test, and precipitation‐runoff double cumulative curve method were adopted to identify the trends and change‐points in the annual runoff from 1964 to 2008 by first dividing the long‐term runoff series into a natural period (1964–1979) and a human‐induced period (1980–2008). Then the three quantifying methods were calibrated and calculated, and they provided consistent estimates of the percentage change in mean annual runoff for the human‐induced period. In 1980–2008, human activities were the main factors that reduced runoff with contributions of 89–93%, while the reduction percentages due to changes in precipitation and potential evapotranspiration only ranged from 7 to 11%. For the various effects at different durations, human activities were the main reasons runoff decreased during the two drier periods of 1980–1989 and 2000–2008. Increased runoff during the wetter period of 1990–1999 is mainly attributed to climate variability. This study quantitatively separates the effects of climate variability and human activities on runoff, which can serve as a reference for regional water resources assessment and management. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Analysis of the weightiness of site effects on reinforced concrete (RC) building seismic behaviour: The Adra town example (SE Spain)

The damage distribution in Adra town (south‐eastern Spain) during the 1993 and 1994 Adra earthquakes (5.0 magnitude), that reached a maximum intensity degree of VII (European Macroseismic Scale (EMS scale)), was concentrated mainly in the south‐east zone of the town and the most relevant damage occurred in reinforced concrete (RC) buildings with four or five storeys. In order to evaluate the influence of ground condition on RC building behaviour, geological, geomorphological and geophysical surveys were carried out, and a detailed map of ground surface structure was obtained. Short‐period microtremor observations were performed in 160 sites on a 100m × 100m dimension grid and Nakamura's method was applied in order to determine a distribution map of soil predominant periods. Shorter predominant periods (0.1–0.3 s) were found in mountainous and neighbouring zones and larger periods (greater than 0.5 s) in thicker Holocene alluvial fans. A relationship T = (0.049 ± 0.001)N, where T is the natural period of swaying motion and N is the number of storeys, has been empirically obtained by using microtremor measurements at the top of 38 RC buildings (ranging from 2 to 9 storeys). 1‐D simulation of strong motion on different soil conditions and for several typical RC buildings were computed, using the acceleration record in Adra town of the 1993 earthquake. It is noteworthy that all the aforementioned results show the influence of site effects in the degree and distribution of observed building damage. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.