RECENT RESEARCH IN JAPANESE GEOMORPHOLOGY

This is the second in a series of reports on Japanese geographic research prepared in cooperation with the Association of Japanese Geographers (AJG). Like the report on historical geography, which appeared in the August issue, this report on geomorphology has been modified for the English-speaking readership of THE PROFESSIONAL GEOGRAPHER. As an indication of the relative importance of geomorphology in Japanese geography, at the April 1979 annual meeting of the AJG in Tokyo 30 percent of the 138 papers presented were devoted to geomorphology.—H. Jesse Walker, Member, U.S. National Committee, IGU     

Dietary analysis of harbour seals (Phoca vitulina) from faecal samples and overlap with fisheries in Erimo,Japan

The number of harbour seals in Japan has been rebounding since protection began in the mid‐1980s. With the increase in seal numbers, increased conflict with fisheries has occurred through depredation and the belief that seals compete with fisheries for prey. However, competition can only be determined if the prey species and quantities seals consume over time are known. We studied the diet of harbour seals in Erimo, site of the largest population of harbour seals in Japan, from 2011 to 2012 and assessed the degree of prey overlap with local fisheries. We used both hard parts and DNA techniques to identify prey items in seal scats, and compared these results to local fisheries data. A total of 46 prey occurrences was detected by both methods, of which 17 matched between techniques at least to the family level. Hard parts methods identified five incidences of prey undetected by DNA methods in five scats (one incidence per scat). DNA methods identified 24 additional prey occurrences in 13 scats, for which no hard part evidence for that prey had been found. This more than doubled the total number of prey occurrences across the 15 scats compared. Overall, the most frequently occurring harbour seal prey were walleye pollock (Theragra chalcogramma), sculpins and snailfishes. In contrast, the top three groups targeted by fisheries were codfishes, salmon and invertebrates. Many species common in the harbour seal's diet such as snailfishes and blennies were not targeted by fisheries. Fishes such as greenlings, sculpins, rockfishes and Japanese anchovy (Engraulis japonicus) were common in the diet of harbour seals, but made up a very small proportion of fisheries catches in Erimo. The importance of other prey species varied between seasons. Sculpins, greenlings and forage fishes were the top three prey groups for harbour seals in spring by percent modified frequency of occurrence, whereas the most important target groups by percentage mass caught by fisheries were codfishes, cephalopods and other invertebrates. Sculpins and rockfishes remained as important prey items for harbour seals in summer and autumn, in addition to codfishes, snailfishes and blennies. In contrast, the main groups caught by fisheries in summer were other fishes, particularly Japanese amberjack (Seriola quinqueradiata) and various species of sharks and eels, and invertebrates. By autumn, Erimo fisheries had focussed on catching salmon. Salmon were taken by harbour seals as well during this period, but at a relatively lower frequency compared to other prey groups. The results of our study show that although harbour seals consumed several of the prey species targeted by fisheries, the relative importance of these species to seals and fisheries and the seasons in which they were targeted were different.     

Individual exposure to particulate matter in urban and rural Chinese households: estimation of exposure concentrations in indoor and outdoor environments

Natural Hazards - According to the World Health Report, an estimated 540,000 people in China died prematurely due to indoor air pollution in 2009. The major source of indoor air pollution is the...     

Further characterization of carbonaceous materials in Hayabusa‐returned samples to understand their origin

Carbonaceous materials in the sample catcher of the Hayabusa spacecraft were assigned as category 3 particles. We investigated the category 3 particles with a suite of in situ microanalytical methods. Possible contaminants collected from the cleanrooms of the spacecraft assembly and extraterrestrial sample curation center (ESCuC) were also analyzed in the same manner as category 3 particles for comparison. Our data were integrated with those of the preliminary examination team for category 3 particles. Possible origins for the category 3 particles include contamination before and after the operation of the Hayabusa spacecraft.     

Flocculation and particle size analysis of expansive clay sediments affected by biological, chemical, and hydrodynamic factors

Expansive clay sediments are abundant in riverine and estuarine waters and bottom beds, and their particle size distributions (PSD) are important for the analysis of sediment transport. This paper presents an experimental study to evaluate, using a laser particle size analyzer under varying flow conditions, the intrinsic PSD of two expansive clays, a Ca- and a Na-montmorillonite and the influence of biological, chemical, and hydrodynamic factors on their flocculation and PSD. The considered biological factor consists of three extracellular polymeric substances of varying polarity, including xanthan gum, guar gum, and chitosan; the chemical factor is the salinity; and the hydrodynamic factor is the types of flow indicated by the Reynolds number and shear rate. The intrinsic PSD of both clays show a multimodal lognormal distribution with sizes ranging from 0.2 to 50 μm. All three biopolymers, xanthan gum, guar gum, and chitosan, can facilitate flocculation through long-range polymer bridging and short-range ion-dipole interaction, hydrogen bonding, and Coulomb force. The influence of salinity is different for the two clays: the particle size of the Na-montmorillonite increases with salinity, which is caused by flocculation resulting from the suppressed electrical double layer, while that of the Ca-montmorillonite is slightly reduced owing to the decreased basal spacing and cation exchange. For different hydrodynamic conditions, higher shear rate promotes the flocculation of Ca-montmorillonite, but breaks the Na-montmorillonite flocs. The significance of understanding the flocculation and PSD of expansive clays is also discussed in terms of sediment transport under different aquatic environments.     

Importance of instantaneous radiative forcing for rapid tropospheric adjustment

To better understand CFMIP/CMIP inter-model differences in rapid low cloud responses to CO₂ increases and their associated effective radiative forcings, we examined the tropospheric adjustment of the lower tropospheric stability (LTS) in three general circulation models (GCMs): HadGEM2-A, MIROC3.2 medres, and MIROC5. MIROC3.2 medres showed a reduction in LTS over the sub-tropical ocean, in contrast to the other two models. This reduction was consistent with a temperature decrease in the mid-troposphere. The temperature decrease was mainly driven by instantaneous radiative forcing (RF) caused by an increase in CO₂. Reductions in radiative and latent heating, due to clouds, and in adiabatic and advective heating, also contribute to the temperature decrease. The instantaneous RF in the mid-troposphere in MIROC3.2 medres is inconsistent with the results of line-by-line (LBL) calculations, and thus it is considered questionable. These results illustrate the importance of evaluating the vertical profile of instantaneous RF with LBL calculations; improved future model performance in this regard should help to increase our confidence in the tropospheric adjustment in GCMs.     

Newly found Tunglo Active Fault System in the fold and thrust belt in northwestern Taiwan deduced from deformed terraces and its tectonic significance

We found active faults in the fold and thrust belt between Tunglo town and the Tachia River in northwestern Taiwan. The surface rupture occurred in 1999 and 1935 nearby the study area, but no historical surface rupture is recorded in this area, suggesting that the seismic energy has been accumulated during the recent time. Deformed fluvial terraces aid in understanding late Quaternary tectonics in this tectonically active area. This area contains newly identified faults that we group as the Tunglo Fault System, which formed after the area's oldest fluvial terrace and appears at least 16 km long in roughly N–S orientation. Its progressive deformations are all recorded in associated terraces developed during the middle to late Quaternary. In the north, the system consists of two subparallel active faults, the Tunglo Fault and Tunglo East Fault, striking N–S and facing each other from opposite sides of the northward flowing Hsihu River, whose course may be controlled by interactions of above-mentioned two active faults. The northern part of the Tunglo Fault, to the west of the river, is a reverse fault with upthrown side on the west; conversely the Tunglo East Fault, to the east, is also a reverse fault, but with upthrown side on the east. Both faults are marked by a flexural scarp or eastward tilting of fluvial terraces. Considering a Quaternary syncline lies subparallel to the east of this fault system, the Tunglo Fault might be originated as a bending moment fault and the Tunglo East Fault as a flexural slip fault. However, they have developed as obvious reverse faults, which have progressive deformation under E–W compressive stress field of Taiwan. Farther south, a west-facing high scarp, the Tunglo South Fault, strikes NNE–SSW, oblique to the region's E–W direction of compression. Probably due to the strain partitioning, the Tunglo South Fault generates en echelon, elongated ridges and swales to accommodate right-lateral strike–slip displacement. Other structures in the area include eastward-striking portion of the Sanyi Fault, which has no evidence for late Quaternary surface rupture on this fault; perhaps slip on this part of Sanyi Fault ceased when the Tunglo Fault System became active.     

Alteration of ferrihydrite reductive dissolution and transformation by adsorbed As and structural Al: Implications for As retention

Reduction of As(V) and reductive dissolution and transformation of Fe (hydr)oxides are two dominant processes controlling As retention in soils and sediments. When developed within soils and sediments, Fe (hydr)oxides typically contain various impurities—Al being one of the most prominent—but little is known about how structural Al within Fe (hydr)oxides alters its biotransformation and subsequent As retention. Using a combination of batch and advective flow column studies with Fe(II) and Shewanella sp. ANA-3, we examined (1) the extent to which structural Al influences reductive dissolution and transformations of ferrihydrite, a highly reactive Fe hydroxide, and (2) the impact of adsorbed As on dissolution and transformation of (Al-substituted) ferrihydrite and subsequent As retention. Structural Al diminishes the extent of ferrihydrite reductive transformation; nearly three-orders of magnitude greater concentration of Fe(II) is required to induce Al-ferrihydrite transformation compared to pure two-line ferrihydrite. Structural Al decreases Fe(II) retention/incorporation on/into ferrihydrite and impedes Fe(II)-catalyzed transformation of ferrihydrite. Moreover, owing to cessation of Fe(II)-induced transformation to secondary products, Al-ferrihydrite dissolves (incongruently) to a greater extent compared to pure ferrihydrite during reaction with Shewanella sp. ANA-3. Additionally, adsorption of As(V) to Al-ferrihydrite completely arrests Fe(II)-catalyzed transformation of ferrihydrite, and it diminishes the difference in the rate and extent of ferrihydrite and Al-ferrihydrite reduction by Shewanella sp. ANA-3. Our study further shows that reductive dissolution of Al-ferrihydrite results in enrichment of Al sites, and As(V) reduction accelerates As release due to the low affinity of As(III) on these non-ferric sites.