Effects of inter- and intraspecific competition on growth and development of Bufo viridis and Bufo bufo tadpoles

Competition between the common toad Bufo bufo (L.) and the green toad Bufo viridisLaurenti was studied in an experimental design. Mixed and single-species groups of 40 larvae were reared in plastic tanks (water volume 411). Growth parameters such as body length, total length, body mass and developmental stage according to Gosner (1960) were measured weekly until metamorphic climax and analyzed by regression analysis. Body condition index was calculated. Tadpoles of B. bufo reached metamorphosis at the same time in mixed and single-species treatments. Larvae and toadlets were insignificantly larger in single-species groups, weighed more and had a higher body condition index than in mixed species designs. In B. viridis the larval period was six days shorter in mixed groups; tadpoles and toadlets were smaller but had a higher body condition index than in the single-species treatment. These results indicate high intraspecific competition in B. viridis and competitive inferiority of B. bufo to B. viridis under the experimental conditions.     

基于透射电镜的香肠构造流变计研究

采用透射电镜(TEM)对采自奥地利东阿尔卑斯和北京西山的香肠构造中的香肠体和相应基质的样品进行了超微构造分析。结果表明细粒基质中的位错密度较粗颗粒香肠体中的位错密度明显低很多。故认为香肠体的变形机制以位错蠕变为主,而基质的变形机制则以扩散蠕变为主。这从一个侧面为香肠构造流变计的这一假设提供了超微观研究的依据。     

Ar/Ar mineral ages from basement rocks in the Eastern Kunlun Mountains, NW China, and their tectonic implications

⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar dating and estimates of regional metamorphic P–T conditions were carried out on the basement rocks of the Eastern Kunlun Mountains, Western China. Samples from the Jinshuikou, Xiaomiao, Kuhai, Wanbaogou, and Nachitai groups revealed distinct metamorphic events and four age groups. The age group in the range from 363 to 439 Ma is interpreted to represent cooling after Middle Silurian–Late Devonian granulite(?) and amphibolite facies metamorphism, which is dominated by low–middle pressure/high temperature conditions. This tectono-thermal event is related to the closure of an oceanic basin or marginal sea. An age group of 212–242 Ma represents cooling after Triassic metamorphic overprint, which is probably associated with magmatic intrusions. This thermal event, together with the Permo-Triassic ophiolite zone along the South Kunlun Fault, relates to the closure of a major ocean (between India and Eurasia) and the eventual N-ward accretion of the Qiangtang block in Permo-Triassic times. The significance of the age group of 104–172 Ma may be related to the ductile deformation along the Xidatan fault due to the northward-directed accretion of the Lhasa block. Biotites from Nachitai record a partial isotopic resetting at ca. 32 Ma that is interpreted to represent a late-stage exhumation caused by further crustal shortening.     

Vertical mixing in Überlinger See,western part of Lake Constance

Depth variable vertical eddy diffusion coefficients for heat (K _z) were calculated from continuously measured temperature profiles in Überlinger See (western part of Lake Constance). The temperatures were averaged over vertical intervals of 10 m yielding 14 discrete values (maximum depth of Überlinger See: 147 m). A linear fit from 10 June to 29 September 1987 was used to smooth the significant temperature fluctuations caused by internal seiches of Lake Constance.Assuming horizontal homogeneity for the smoothed data the Gradient-Flux-Method was applied to compute vertical diffusion coefficientsK _z at different depths using the depth variable volumes and surfaces of the 14 layers. The resulting mean diffusion coefficients for the period from June to September are 0.04 cm²/s near the thermocline and up to 0.8 cm²/s in deeper strata (accuracy: ± 50%). It is shown that horizontal mixing between Überlinger See and Obersee (main lake) alters the computation ofK _z by less than 50%.A relationship betweenK _z and stability (Brunt-Väisälä) frequencyN is found which corresponds well to the theory of internal wave induced turbulence.Combining the diffusion coefficients with measured phosphorus profiles, a phosphorus flux from the hypolimnion to the epilimnion of (0.7 ± 0.4) mg P m^–2 d^–1 was calculated, corresponding to about 20% of the average external loading per area of Lake Constance in 1986.     

Vertical mixing in Überlingersee (Lake Constance) traced by SF6 and heat

Vertical mixing in Überlingersee is studied by releasing sulfur hexafluoride (SF₆) as a tracer at a central hypolimnic depth of 60 m and measuring its subsequent vertical dispersion over a period of three months. The experiment started with a streaky tracer injection of 1 liter gaseous SF₆ (STP) in August 1990. At that time the lake showed a typical strong summer stratification which in a weakened form lasts until November. From the SF₆ profiles of fifteen surveys at three sampling sites vertical diffusivitiesK _z are calculated compensating internal seiche displacement and horizontal tracer loss. Except of the bottom region no sampling site or time period is marked by significant differences in the hypolimnicK _z profile. So vertical mixing in the whole Überlingersee is described by mean diffusivities decreasing from 1.7 cm²/s at 120 m depth to 0.4 cm²/s in 30 m. The minimal value of 0.3 cm²/s in the thermocline region at 20 m depth is only based on observations in autumn. For a strong summer stratification it is certainly lower. The gradient-flux-method for heat was applied to compute a meanK _z (T) profile from continuously measured temperature profiles. Significant differences resulting from the two tracers showed, that theK _z (T) values are underestimated by up to a factor of 5 if cooling by lateral exchange is neglected. Particularly, internal seiche pumping of colder water from the adjacent Lake Obersee over the separating sill of Mainau into the deep Überlingersee basin is observed in 1990 from August onward, obviously controlling the heat budget below the sill level.     

Field characteristics of laterally emplaced dikes: Anatomy of an exhumed Miocene dike swarm in Reydarfjördur, eastern Iceland

Many dikes of the Tertiary Breiddalur dike swarm in Reydarfjördur have a great lateral extent but are vertically (upward and/or downward) discontinuous. Field relationships indicate that they are not the feeders of the lava pile they intrude. Their characteristics can be best interpreted as them constituting the fossil expression of lateral magma emplacement analogous to that occurring in the actively spreading Krafla volcanic center of the neovolcanic zone. Average dike thickness increases clearly with depth and the thickness versus depth relationship is different from that described for other Tertiary dike swarms in eastern Iceland. It is suggested that dikes represent the extent of finite spreading which at higher levels in the crust is expressed by fissures and other extensional structures.     

Sedimentology,mineralogy, and geochemistry of the Late Quaternary Meyghan Playa sediments,NE Arak,Iran: palaeoclimate implications

Playas are shallow ephemeral lakes that form in arid and semi-arid regions. Iran has a large number of playas such as Meyghan Playa, which is located in the northeast of Arak city that borders the central Iran and Sanandaj-Sirjan zones. This study aims to investigate the mineralogical, sedimentological, and geochemical characteristics of the playa sediments. In order to determine the palaeoenvironment, we carried out X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) studies. Meyghan Playa sediments consist of very fine-grained sediments and contain both evaporite and clastic minerals. The evaporite minerals include calcite, gypsum, halite, glauberite, and thenardite, whereas clastic minerals are quartz and clay. The calcite abundance decreases from the margin to the central portion of the playa but gypsum and halite abundances show an increasing trend from the margin to the center. This observation is consistent with the general zonation of other playas. Variations of calcite and gypsum concentration profiles present increasing and decreasing trends with depth, which could be ascribed to the changes in climatic factors. These factors include brine chemical modifications owing to changes in evaporation and precipitation rates and variations in relative abundance of anions-cations or in the rate of clastic and evaporite minerals due to variations in the freshwater influx (climatic changes) with time. A decrease in calcite and increase in sulfate minerals (especially gypsum) with depth is probably due to the higher water level and rainfall, a more humid climate, and salinity variations.     

Pacific variability under present-day and Middle Miocene boundary conditions

We use the coupled climate model MPI-ESM to show that for higher CO₂ levels the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) merge into a single mode of Pacific variability, regardless of present-day or Middle Miocene (~15 Ma) topographic boundary conditions. Hence, topographic differences—determining the landscape of past climates—play a smaller role for Pacific variability than previously thought. We attribute the single variability mode to resonance between these two oscillation patterns. In order to estimate the strength of the resonance we compute the spectral power of the ENSO and PDO time series and their coherence. We find that for both Middle Miocene and present-day topographic conditions, higher CO₂ forcing leads to stronger resonance between ENSO and PDO. Our results show that (1) stronger CO₂ forcing enhances Pacific variability resulting in stronger “atmospheric bridge” and that (2) past climates are likely to exhibit Pacific variability corresponding either to ENSO, PDO, or our proposed single mode.     

Shaking table tests of a full-scale flat-bottom manufactured steel silo filled with wheat: Main results on the fixed-base configuration

This paper reports on a series of shaking table tests on a full-scale flat-bottom steel silo filled with soft wheat, characterized by aspect ratio of around 0.9. The specimen was a 3.64-m diameter and 5.50-m high corrugated-wall cylindrical silo. Multiple sensors were used to monitor the static and dynamic response of the filled silo system, including accelerometers and pressure cells. Numerous unidirectional dynamic tests were performed consisting of random signals, sinusoidal inputs, and both artificial and real earthquake records. The objectives of this paper are (i) to provide a general overview of the whole experimental campaign and (ii) to present selected results obtained for the fixed-base configuration. The measured data were processed to assess the static pressures, the dynamic overpressures (related to the effective mass) and the accelerations of monitored points on the silo wall, and to identify the basic dynamic properties (fundamental frequency of vibration, damping ratio, dynamic amplification factors) of the filled silo. The main findings are discussed and compared with the predictions given by available theoretical models and code provisions. It is found that the fundamental frequency slightly decreases with increasing acceleration, while it slightly increases with increasing compaction of the granular material. For close-to-resonance input, the dynamic amplification (in terms of peak values of accelerations) increases along the height of the silo wall up to values of around 1.4 at the top surface of the solid content. The dynamic overpressures appear to increase with depth (differently from the EN1998-4 expectations), and to be proportional to the acceleration.