Soil pore characteristics of evergreen and deciduous forests of the tropical monsoon region in Cambodia

Both evergreen and deciduous forests (Efs and Dfs) are widely distributed under similar climatic conditions in tropical monsoon regions. To clarify the hydraulic properties of the soil matrix in different forest types and their effects on soil water storage capacity, the soil pore characteristics (SPC) were investigated in Ef and Df stands in three provinces in Cambodia. Soils in the Ef group were characterized in common by large amounts of coarse pores with moderate pore size distribution and the absence of an extremely low K_s at shallow depths, compared to Df group soils. The mean available water capacity of the soil matrix (AWC_sm) for all horizons of the Ef and Df group soils was 0·107 and 0·146 m³ m^?3, respectively. The mean coarse pore volume of the soil matrix (CPV_sm) in the Ef and Df groups was 0·231 and 0·115 m³ m^?3, respectively. A water flow simulation using a lognormal distribution model for rain events in the early dry season indicated that variation in SPC resulted in a larger increase in available soil water in Ef soils than in Df soils. Further study on deeper soil layers in Ef and each soil type in Df is necessary for the deeper understanding of the environmental conditions and the hydrological modelling of each forest ecosystem. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Migration dynamics of Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii) and response to spring environmental variability in the southeastern Bering Sea

In the southeastern Bering Sea, Pacific herring (Clupea pallasii) migrate from the Pribilof Islands region where they overwinter, to the Alaska coast where they spawn in spring. The migration sustains a nearshore commercial fishery that targets roe-bearing females just prior to spawning. Herring also are taken as bycatch in groundfish trawl fisheries, where time and area closures in these fisheries are triggered by herring bycatch caps. Using herring bycatch data collected since the 1970s by National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) observers aboard groundfish fishing vessels, a retrospective analysis was conducted to describe the seasonal migration pattern of Pacific herring in the southeastern Bering Sea and to study its spatial and temporal variability. Observed changes in herring catch per unit of effort were compared with variability in climate and oceanographic conditions. The seasonal migration is complex, but annual shifts in migration routes and a possible northward shift of the overwintering grounds was identified. Pre-spawning herring aggregated in different areas depending on whether spawning occurred early or late in spring. The thermal structure of the ocean around the ice edge appears to influence herring migration timing and route as well as spawning date. Thus, on the basis of recent changes in sea-ice extent and duration, we suggest that the herring bycatch savings area that was developed from data collected in the 1980s should be revised to reflect prevailing conditions.     

Towards improved snow water equivalent retrieval algorithms for satellite passive microwave data over the mountainous basins of western USA

Space‐borne passive microwave snow water equivalent (SWE) retrieval algorithms are attractive for continuous SWE monitoring over large mountainous areas. The performance of three SWE retrieval algorithms, which were considered relevant for operational purposes, was examined for each month over the Colorado River Basin. In addition, statistical post‐processing was tested as a means of improving the SWE estimates from each algorithm. The evaluation started with the so‐called Chang equation, which was a pioneer algorithm and is still used in practice. Successive attempts were then made to improve the algorithm's performance through the calibration of the equation's coefficient and through the inclusion of brightness temperature data from various frequency channels. The Chang equation consistently underestimated SWE with average bias between 30 mm in November and more than 300 mm in April and root mean square error (RMSE) exceeding 500 mm at many locations in April. The statistical post‐processing effectively removed the bias and reduced the RMSE by half for all the months. When the Chang equation's coefficients were calibrated at each site, biases were reduced by approximately 85%, and RMSE was reduced by 40%–50%. Finally, the multiple channel equations produced unbiased SWE estimates with RMSEs 50%–60% of those from the Chang equation. However, the statistical post‐processing did not reduce RMSE for both calibrated algorithms. The last algorithm produced the most reliable estimates for at‐site analysis, but its skill deteriorated when analyses were performed over larger areal extents; therefore, it is only recommended for SWE monitoring over smaller areas. For larger areas, the calibrated Chang equation is desirable because it only requires interpolations of a calibrated coefficient, which was spatially coherent. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Land subsidence of Jakarta (Indonesia) and its relation with urban development

Jakarta is the capital city of Indonesia with a population of about 9.6 million people, inhabiting an area of about 660 square-km. In the last three decades, urban development of Jakarta has grown very rapidly in the sectors of industry, trade, transportation, real estate, and many others. This exponentially increased urban development introduces several environmental problems. Land subsidence is one of them. The resulted land subsidence will also then affect the urban development plan and process. It has been reported for many years that several places in Jakarta are subsiding at different rates. The leveling surveys, GPS survey methods, and InSAR measurements have been used to study land subsidence in Jakarta, over the period of 1982–2010. In general, it was found that the land subsidence exhibits spatial and temporal variations, with the rates of about 1–15 cm/year. A few locations can have the subsidence rates up to about 20–28 cm/year. There are four different types of land subsidence that can be expected to occur in the Jakarta basin, namely: subsidence due to groundwater extraction, subsidence induced by the load of constructions (i.e., settlement of high compressibility soil), subsidence caused by natural consolidation of alluvial soil, and tectonic subsidence. It was found that the spatial and temporal variations of land subsidence depend on the corresponding variations of groundwater extraction, coupled with the characteristics of sedimentary layers and building loads above it. In general, there is strong relation between land subsidence and urban development activities in Jakarta.     

Aerodynamic Parameters of Urban Building Arrays with Random Geometries

It is difficult to describe the flow characteristics within and above urban canopies using only geometrical parameters such as plan area index (λ _p ) and frontal area index (λ _f ) because urban surfaces comprise buildings with random layouts, shapes, and heights. Furthermore, two types of ‘randomness’ are associated with the geometry of building arrays: the randomness of element heights (vertical) and that of the rotation angles of each block (horizontal). In this study, wind-tunnel experiments were conducted on seven types of urban building arrays with various roughness packing densities to measure the bulk drag coefficient (C _d ) and mean wind profile; aerodynamic parameters such as roughness length (z _o ) and displacement height (d) were also estimated. The results are compared with previous results from regular arrays having neither ‘vertical’ nor ‘horizontal’ randomness. In vertical random arrays, the plot of C _d and z _o versus λ _f exhibited a monotonic increase, and z _o increased by a factor of almost two for λ _f = 48–70%. C _d was strongly influenced by the standard deviation of the height of blocks (σ) when λ _p ≥ 17%, whereas C _d was independent of σ when λ _p = 7%. In the case of horizontal random arrays, the plot of the estimated C _d against λ _f showed a peak. The effect of both vertical and horizontal randomness of the layout on aerodynamic parameters can be explained by the structure of the vortices around the blocks; the aspect ratio of the block is an appropriate index for the estimation of such features.     

Meteorological influences of eddy-resolving ocean assimilation around the cold tongue to the north of the Japanese islands during winter 2004/2005

Use of ocean data assimilation in meteorological applications is expected to reveal the influence of cloud-covered oceanic mesoscale processes on wintertime weather and climate in coastal areas. In particular, eddy-resolving Ocean Circulation Model (OCM) data assimilation that reproduces seasonally persistent oceanic mesoscale eddies is useful when simulating coastal precipitation. In the present study, the OCM-assimilation sea surface temperature (SST) is applied to a long-term atmospheric simulation over the Japan/East Sea area in the 2004/2005 winter season (December–February, DJF), to investigate seasonal and daily influences of oceanic mesoscale eddies on precipitation. The simulated winter precipitation is improved by the OCM assimilation via the DJF evaporation around a cold tongue. The strong intrusion of the southeast-directed cold tongue reduces the degree of overestimation by coastal precipitation simulations in December and January. In contrast, the ocean assimilation barely improves the simulation results in February because of weak intrusion of the cold tongue. In December and January, an abruptly large anomaly of northwesterly surface wind (> 1 m s^?1) resulting from the OCM assimilation often influences 3-hour precipitation in the downstream area of the cold tongue. In contrast, the slowly-varying anomaly of evaporation does not necessarily lead to daily precipitation anomalies, although the DJF evaporation anomaly is important in the DJF precipitation.     

Uptake and biological effects of synthetic glucocorticoids in common carp (Cyprinus carpio)

Uptake and biological effects of synthetic glucocorticoids (GCs) were analyzed using common carp (Cyprinus carpio). Fish were exposed to clobetasol propionate (CP) or clobetasone butyrate (CB) individually or in mixture at 1 μg L⁻¹ for 21 days. Bioconcentration factor (BCF) of CB was calculated as 100, and BCF of CP was less than 16. No effects were found in fish erythrocyte and leukocyte numbers and serum glucose levels after exposure to the selected GCs. On the other hand, serum concentrations of free amino acids significantly increased in GC-exposed groups. Thus, exposures to synthetic GCs at relatively low concentrations seemed to cause enhancement of protein degradation and subsequent increase of serum free amino acids without a corresponding increase in serum glucose levels, an effect which might be related to partial induction of gluconeogenesis by GC.