Anthropogenic disturbance on nursery function of estuarine areas for marine species

Estuaries serve as nursery grounds for many marine fish species. However increasing human activities within estuaries and surrounding areas lead to significant habitat loss for the juveniles and decrease the quality of the remaining habitats. This study is based on the data of 470 beam trawls from surveys that were conducted in 13 French estuaries for the purpose of the European Water Framework Directive. It aimed at testing the effects of anthropogenic disturbances on the nursery function of estuaries. With a multispecific approach based on ecological guilds, two fish metrics, abundance and species richness of Marine Juvenile migrant fishes, were used as proxies for the estuarine nursery function. Indices of heavy metal and organic contaminations were used to estimate anthropogenic disturbances impacting these estuaries. Fish metrics were described with statistical models that took into account: (a) sampling protocol, (b) estuarine features and (c) contamination. The results of these models showed that the fish metrics highly depend on the sampling protocol, and especially type of gear, depth and salinity, which highlights the necessity of considering such metrics at the sampling (trawl haul) scale. Densities and species richness of Marine Juvenile fishes appeared to be strongly and negatively correlated to contamination indices. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that human disturbances impact the nursery function of estuaries. Finally, the densities of Marine Juvenile migrant species appeared as a potential robust and useful fish indicator for the assessment of the ecological status of estuaries within the Water Framework Directive.     

内潮对吕宋海峡地转流动力计算的影响

利用2008年8~9月份吕宋海峡121°E断面上19.5°N~21°N之间4个连续站的CTD资料,讨论了内潮引起的温、盐剖面扰动对地转流诊断计算的影响,指出:在吕宋海峡,内潮引起的温、盐剖面扰动对地转流诊断计算的干扰不可忽略。因此,地转流诊断计算必须剔除温、盐剖面中的"内潮噪声"。另外,本文根据4个连续站时间平均后的温、盐剖面,通过动力计算法得到了吕宋海峡121°E断面上的地转流场,得出结论如下:吕宋海峡地转流速度较大部分多位于350 m以浅,流速最大值出现在表层;黑潮入侵南海主要发生于19.8°N~21°N的上层;在19.5°N~21°N之间,50~1 700 m深度范围内,海水体积通量呈现"上进下出"的垂向结构,350 m以浅为入流,流量约为2.6 Sv(1 Sv=1×106m3.s-1),350 m以深为出流,流量约为3.1 Sv。同期观测所得121°E断面上的盐度分布验证了本文所得地转流场的合理性。     

Borehole temperatures, climate change and the pre-observational surface air temperature mean: allowance for hydraulic conditions

Joint analysis of surface air temperature series recorded at weather stations together with the inversion of the temperature-depth profiles logged in the near-by boreholes enables an estimate of the conditions existing prior to the beginning of the meteorological observation, the so-called pre-observational mean (POM) temperature.Such analysis is based on the presumption of pure diffusive conditions in the underground. However, in real cases a certain subsurface fluid movement cannot be excluded and the measured temperature logs may contain an advective component. The paper addresses the correction for the hydraulic conditions, which may have perturbed the climate signal penetrating from the surface into the underground. The method accounts for vertical conductive and vertical advective heat transport in a 1-D horizontally layered stratum and provides a simultaneous evaluation of the POM-temperature together with the estimate of the Darcy fluid velocity. The correction strategy is illustrated on a synthetic example and its use is demonstrated on temperature logs measured in four closely spaced boreholes drilled near Tachlovice (located about 15 km SW of Prague, Czech Republic). The results revealed that in a case of moderately advectively affected subsurface conditions (fluid velocities about 10⁻⁹ m/s), the difference between POM-values assessed for a pure conductive approach and for combined vertical conductive/advective approach may amount up to 0.3–0.5 K, the value comparable with the amount usually ascribed to the 20th century climate warming.     

Electric field at the seafloor due to a two-dimensional ionospheric current

The relation between the seafloor electric field and the surface magnetic field is studied. It is assumed that the fields are created by a 2-D ionospheric current distribution resulting in the E-polarization. The layered earth below the sea water is characterized by a surface impedance. The electric field at the seafloor can be expressed either as an inverse Fourier transform integral over the wavenumber or as a spatial convolution integral. In both integrals the surface magnetic field is multiplied by a function that depends on the depth and conductivity of the sea water and on the properties of the basement. The fact that surface magnetic data are usually available on land, not at the sea surface, is also considered. Test computations demonstrate that the numerical inaccuracies involved in the convolution method are negligible. The theoretical equations are applied to calculate the seafloor electric fields due to an ionospheric line current or associated with real magnetic data collected by the IMAGE magnetometer array in northern Europe. Two different sea depths are considered: 100 m (the continental shelf) and 5 km (the deep ocean). It is seen that the dependence of the electric field on the oscillation period is weaker in the 5 km case than for 100 m.     

人类干扰对洪泽湖湿地植被分布格局的影响

洪泽湖具有防洪、调蓄、灌溉、水产、航运、发电等多个功能,人类干扰对洪泽湖湿地植被的影响对湿地管理具有重要意义。分析了人工水位调控、渔业生产及水质恶化等人类干扰对湿地植被分布格局的影响。结果表明:在长期且密集的人类干扰下,洪泽湖水位表现出春低、夏高、秋冬平稳的格局,使得洪泽湖湿地植被表现出明显的年际和年内波动;洪泽湖的水位每年5-6月达全年最低,这使得一些耐涝性较强的湿生植物在挺水植被分布区广泛分布;受渔业生产和水质恶化的影响,洪泽湖湿地植被分布总体呈下降的趋势,随着南水北调东线工程的竣工,还将面临新的挑战。     

Modelling the biological half-life and seasonality of ¹⁴C in Fucus vesiculosus from the east coast of Ireland: implications for the estimation of future trends

Radiocarbon levels were recorded in Fucus vesiculosus samples collected on a monthly basis over a three-year period at a site on the east coast of Ireland. The resulting data was analysed using a numerical model which estimates the transit times from the Sellafield plant to the sampling location, and the mean availability time of ¹⁴C in seaweed. With the inclusion of a model parameter allowing for seasonal variability in uptake by the Fucus, good correlation was observed between the predicted and measured concentrations. Future temporal trends of ¹⁴C Fucus concentrations along the eastern Irish coastline were modelled with the application of three possible prospective discharge scenarios, predicting ¹⁴C Fucus concentrations to reduce to ambient background levels within 2.5-years of discharges being set to zero. Such projections may prove helpful in assessing the consequences of discharge management and policy making in the context of the OSPAR convention.     

Evolving coronal holes and interplanetary erupting stream disturbances

Coronal holes and interplanetary disturbances are important aspects of the physics of the Sun and heliosphere. Interplanetary disturbances are identified as an increase in the density turbulence compared with the ambient solar wind. Erupting stream disturbances are transient large-scale structures of enhanced density turbulence in the interplanetary medium driven by the high-speed flows of low-density plasma trailing behind for several days. Here, an attempt has been made to investigate the solar cause of erupting stream disturbances, mapped by Hewish & Bravo (1986) from interplanetary scintillation (IPS) measurements made between August 1978 and August 1979 at 81.5 MHz. The position of the sources of 68 erupting stream disturbances on the solar disk has been compared with the locations of newborn coronal holes and/or the areas that have been coronal holes previously. It is found that the occurrence of erupting stream disturbances is linked to the emergence of new coronal holes at the eruption site on the solar disk. A coronal hole is indicative of a radial magnetic field of a predominant magnetic polarity. The newborn coronal hole emerges on the Sun, owing to the changes in magnetic field configuration leading to the opening of closed magnetic structure into the corona. The fundamental activity for the onset of an erupting stream seems to be a transient opening of pre-existing closed magnetic structures into a new coronal hole, which can support highspeed flow trailing behind the compression zone of the erupting stream for several days.     

地磁感应电流研究综述

因太阳活动而引起的地磁扰动,会在地球表面感生出地电场,从而在地表附近的导体系统中产生地磁感应电流(GICs).太阳表面的异常活动而引起的磁暴会导致强烈的GICs,严重威胁电信设备、电网、油气管道和铁路运输网络等基础设施系统的安全运行,已经成为最严重的空间天气灾害之一.因此,对GICs进行深入研究以建立对其做出迅速预测的能力,在科学和应用方面都有重要意义.本文综述了GICs的研究进展,从引入空间天气的概念开始,将GICs作为从太阳活动到太阳风再到地球扰动的空间天气链的最终环节;重点阐述了GICs的计算中所涉及的三个步骤:地球表面地磁场重建、感应地电场的计算,以及地面导体系统中GICs计算;对每一步骤中主要方法的相关原理和应用做了简要介绍与评估;最后总结了当前GICs的研究现状,并对未来GICs的研究方向与挑战进行了展望.     

广东降水延伸期预报的探索

利用1961-2005年广东省站逐日降水资料,采用奇异谱分析结合自回归模型对广东候平均降水进行未来1～5候的延伸期预报试验.结果表明,广东省降水侯平均存在一个准40 ～60 d的振荡周期,对1961-2000年候降水重构相关系数在0.96以上.对2001-2005年候降水进行未来1～5候的预报试验,预报效果除2003年后延第5候较差外,其它4 a的预报结果都较好.后延第1候预报相关系数最高达到0.86,后延预报到第5候时相关系数也在0.3以上.从预报平均相对均方根误差来看,5 a均在30％以内,预报的稳定性和效果较理想.总体说明奇异谱分析结合自回归模型是一种较为有效的预报方法,在未来10～30 d延伸期天气预报业务中有一定的参考价值.     

The effects of grazing on the endangered Sinai Thyme (Thymus decussatus) in a hyper-arid environment

Herbivores play a key role in determining plant community composition. Historically grazing has been deemed detrimental for plants, but recent theoretical and empirical studies suggest that grazing may in fact be beneficial. Grazing is more likely to improve primary productivity in areas with a grazing history, where the plants are adapted to tolerate grazing, and also in arid environments because water stress and grazing select for comparable plant traits. Sinai Thyme (Thymus decussatus) in the arid St Katherine Protectorate of South Sinai has high apparent mortality rates and poor condition, both of which have detrimental consequences for its associated herbivores, particularly the Critically Endangered Sinai Baton Blue (Pseudophilotes sinaicus) whose larval stage feeds exclusively upon this plant. One recent conservation action banned grazing but there has been no obvious improvement in the thyme with continued high mortality, and local Bedu claim that grazing is in fact advantageous for plant health. We carried out a factorial experiment that manipulated simulated grazing, fertilizing and watering of thyme. This showed no evidence of any negative response to grazing or that watering or fertilizing had any effect either, presumably their impact is smaller than the current inter-annual variability caused by climatic fluctuations.