Oxygen and hydrogen isotopic characterization of rainfall and throughfall in four South Korean cool temperate forests

Understanding the isotopic composition of precipitation in a forested catchment is critical for ecohydrological studies. Changes in the water isotopes of rainfall were assessed during its passage through the canopy in throughfall, and the effect of different forest stands on the isotope composition of throughfall. In a cool temperate forest in Korea, rainfall and throughfall samples collected under Pinus densiflora (red pine), Castanea crenata (chestnut), Robinia pseudoacacia (black locust) and mixed stands (mix of these three species) were analysed for oxygen and hydrogen isotopes. Throughfall δ¹⁸O and δD were enriched compared to rainfall. A difference of δ¹⁸O and δD among throughfall may be related to the difference in interception–storage capacity of different species due to dissimilar canopy characteristics. Since isotopic composition of throughfall and rainfall are different due to canopy isotopic effects, use of rainfall isotopic signatures for ecohydrological studies in forested ecosystem can lead to biases.     

Sediment and nutrient storage in a beaver engineered wetland

Beavers, primarily through the building of dams, can deliver significant geomorphic modifications and result in changes to nutrient and sediment fluxes. Research is required to understand the implications and possible benefits of widespread beaver reintroduction across Europe. This study surveyed sediment depth, extent and carbon/nitrogen content in a sequence of beaver pond and dam structures in South West England, where a pair of Eurasian beavers (Castor fiber) were introduced to a controlled 1.8 ha site in 2011. Results showed that the 13 beaver ponds subsequently created hold a total of 101.53 ± 16.24 t of sediment, equating to a normalised average of 71.40 ± 39.65 kg m². The ponds also hold 15.90 ± 2.50 t of carbon and 0.91 ± 0.15 t of nitrogen within the accumulated pond sediment. The size of beaver pond appeared to be the main control over sediment storage, with larger ponds holding a greater mass of sediment per unit area. Furthermore, position within the site appeared to play a role with the upper‐middle ponds, nearest to the intensively‐farmed headwaters of the catchment, holding a greater amount of sediment. Carbon and nitrogen concentrations in ponds showed no clear trends, but were significantly higher than in stream bed sediment upstream of the site. We estimate that >70% of sediment in the ponds is sourced from the intensively managed grassland catchment upstream, with the remainder from in situ redistribution by beaver activity. While further research is required into the long‐term storage and nutrient cycling within beaver ponds, results indicate that beaver ponds may help to mitigate the negative off‐site impacts of accelerated soil erosion and diffuse pollution from agriculturally dominated landscapes such as the intensively managed grassland in this study. © 2018 The Authors. Earth Surface Processes and Landforms published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.     

黑龙江省兴凯湖自然保护区生态系统固碳服务功能评价

湿地是自然界中重要的“碳汇”,其碳储量变化对全球气候变化和温室效应有重要的影响.选择地理位置独特的黑龙江兴凯湖自然保护区作为研究区,根据保护区内不同土壤类型采集表层（0～20 cm）土壤样品,利用遥感解译的保护区土地利用图、土壤储碳量和植物固碳量计算公式,核算兴凯湖自然保护区生态系统固碳服务总量,同时借鉴瑞典碳税法和中国造林成本法,估算兴凯湖保护区固碳服务功能价值为4.9亿元.结果显示,兴凯湖自然保护区湿地固碳服务功能高于全国平均水平,且高于同纬度同属东北平原的莫莫格湿地,为保护区今后的保护管理策略提供了有效的参考依据.     

南海北部陆坡西部海域“海马”冷泉甲烷渗漏及其海底表征

2015年3月"海马"号遥控无人潜水器(ROV)在南海北部陆坡西部海域首次发现活动冷泉,并命名为"海马"冷泉,此后中国地质调查局广州海洋地质调查局先后组织了3个航次,对"海马"冷泉开展进一步勘查和研究。本次研究在综合分析4个航次调查数据的基础上,初步阐述"海马"冷泉的分布范围、地形地貌、生物群落、自生碳酸盐岩和流体活动等特征。总体而言,"海马"冷泉区地势平缓,气体渗漏现象非常发育,是以CH4为主要气体渗漏形成的活动冷泉区,且气体渗漏活动具有时空迁移性。气体碳同位素组成表明,海马冷泉区的CH4为混合成因气,且以微生物成因为主;"海马"冷泉区发育有多种类型的化能自养冷泉生物群落,冷泉区种类丰富,目前已报道了多个冷泉生物新种。这些发现为研究南海北部陆坡西部海域天然气水合物分解及其环境效应、冷泉生物生命起源与演化和南海与印度洋及太平洋物种迁移贯通等科学问题提供重要依据。     

Ecosystem engineering by hummock-building earthworms in seasonal wetlands of eastern South Africa: Insights into the mechanics of biomorphodynamic feedbacks in wetland ecosystems

This paper resolves the origin of clay hummock micro-topography in seasonal wetlands of the Drakensberg Foothills, providing a review and appraisal of previously-suggested mechanisms of hummock formation in the context of new field and laboratory data. Field surveys revealed neo-formation of clay hummocks in a river channel that had been abandoned in c.1984. Fresh earthworm castings were located atop hummocks protruding from inundated abandoned channel margins. Earthworm castings, and sediment cores taken in hummocks and adjacent hollows, were analysed for soil-adsorbed carbon and nitrogen using an HCN analyser, and for ²¹⁰Pb activity using alpha-geochronology. ²¹⁰Pb activity profiles suggest relative enrichment of the isotope in hummocks, and relative depletion in adjacent hollows. Earthworm castings are characterised by very high ²¹⁰Pb activity, as well as high C and N contents. Hummocks have significantly higher C and N contents than adjacent hollows. Results suggest that it is the foraging activity of earthworms in litter-rich seasonal wetland hollows, and repeated excretion of castings atop adjacent hummocks, that is responsible for the elemental enrichment observed. The paper presents a conceptual model of hummock formation in wetlands through interactions between hydrogeomorphology and earthworm activity, and illustrates a mechanism of biogeomorphic inheritance through which ordered patterns of preferential flow can emerge in ecosystems. Further implications of hummock formation and nodal accumulation of nutrients are considered in relation to wetland resilience and regulatory ecosystem service provision.© 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

[专稿] 生态文明的自然本原

何为生态文明的自然本原?它就是良性的生态循环.生态文明的自然基础是一系列生态系统的良性循环——森林生态系统、草地生态系统、农业生态系统、湖泊生态系统、河流生态系统、海洋生态系统……等等,而良性循环的标志有二:1)为人类提供清洁的水源、新鲜的空气、优质的农-牧-渔产品、舒心的休闲景观等,这些是我们身心健康的前提,没有它们的支撑,人类文明的大厦将难以为继;2)为珍稀濒危以及土著物种提供良好的栖息之地,维持良好的生态平衡关系,增加生态系统对外界干扰的可塑性.     

基于流域的我国生态功能区划方法研究

生态功能区划是我国正在开展的一项关于资源与环境管理的重大基础性工作.生态功能区划的理论和方法是当前生态学、环境科学、地理学等学科面临的一项新的热点课题.本文首先讨论了生态功能区划的概念,从认识区划看,生态功能区划属于生态系统区域划分的范畴,从实践的角度,则强调人文活动对生态系统可持续能力产生的影响,指出自然生态区不是生态功能区,生态功能区须反映人类的利用和价值判断.生态功能区划,不单是以自然要素或自然系统的"地带性分异"为基础,更是以生态系统的等级结构和尺度原则为基础,用生态系统完整性的评价测量人类活动对生态系统的影响,将生态功能区划的科学基础落在"基于生态系统的管理"平台上.文章提出了基于流域的我国生态功能区划的初步思想,讨论了区划的原则和方法,建立了生态系统完整性评价和功能区划分的指标体系.其基本内容是,认识并按照生态系统的自然边界划分生态系统单元;进行生态系统完整性评价;在此基础上划分不同的生态功能区,确定主导生态功能.     

秋季太湖水下光场结构及其对水生态系统的影响

水生态系统中光能的分配很大程度上决定了水生态系统的结构和功能,利用2007年11-12月太湖水体光学特性和组分浓度数据,对秋季太湖水下光场结构特征和水体组分光竞争能力的表征光学量(漫衰减系数、平均余弦)和影响因素(吸收系数比重)进行了分析研究.结果表明,秋季太湖水下辐照度呈现单峰分布,最高值为583nm左右:根据Kd可将黄质和非色素物质主导程度的强弱分为弱、较强、强三个等级;Kd(PAR)平均值为4.61±1.54m-1,水体真光层厚度平均值为1.11±0.35m;太湖水下光场的光能主要分布在青光和黄绿光波长范围内,约占总能量的60%,蓝光和红光波长范围内的能量约占30%,这样的光谱结构有利于铜绿微囊藻和斜生栅藻的生长.     

Dynamic simulation of tropical coral reef ecosystem being disturbed by multiple situations

In consideration of the rapid degradation of coral reef ecosystems, the establishment of models is helpful to comprehend the degradation mechanism of coral reef ecosystems and predict the development process of coral reef communities. According to the characteristics of complex ecosystem of tropical coral reefs in China, the coral reef functional group is the core level variable; combined with the multiple feedback effects of coral reef functional groups and environmental changes, the study presents a coral reef ecosystem dynamics model with hermatypic corals as the core. Based on the simulation of the assumed initial value and the internal feedback of the system, the results show that in the basic simulation(relative health conditions), the coverage area of live corals and coral reefs generally decreased first and then increased, and increased by 4.67% and 6.38% between2010 and 2050, respectively. Based on the calibration model and the current situation of the studied area, the multi-factor disturbance effects of coral reef communities were simulated and explored by setting up three scenarios involving fishing policy, terrestrial deposition, and inorganic nitrogen emissions. Among them, in the single factor disturbance, the fishing policy exerts the most direct impact on the community decline; and the succession phenomenon is obvious; the terrestrial sedimentation has a faster and more integrated effect on the community decline; the effect of inorganic nitrogen emission on the community decline is relatively slow. In the double/multi-factor disturbance, the superimposed disturbance will aggravate the multi-source feedback effect of the coral reef communities development, accelerate the community decay rate, and make its development trajectory more complicated and diverse. This method provides a scientific and feasible method for simulating the damage of long-term coral reef community and exploring the development law and adaptive management of coral reef ecosystems. In the future, it can be further studied in the ecological restoration process and decisionmaking direction of coral reefs.     

对海洋科学的认识与实践

"热带西太平洋海洋系统物质能量交换及其影响"是中国科学院海洋领域投入最大、参加人员最多的一个海洋科学先导项目,该项目使我们第一次有机会从海洋系统角度研究中国近海到西太平洋的一些海洋前沿问题。来自物理、化学、生物、地质和大气等不同学科的科学家们围绕共同的问题,在同一个区域、从不同方向开展协同研究。目前,海洋先导专项已在深海探索与研究、海洋能力建设、科考平台建设、技术队伍建设、科研与技术有机融合的体系建设和海洋前沿探索方面取得一系列突破,为全面、综合地开展深海资源的探测与近海生态安全研究奠定了重要基础。海洋先导专项更多系统性、有影响力的成果将在未来不断涌现出来。