Coral Recruitment and Regeneration on a Maldivian Reef Four Years after the Coral Bleaching Event of 1998. Part 2: 2001–2002

Abstract.  This paper is the follow-up study to a quantitative inventory of stony corals on a Maldivian reef after the bleaching event of 1998 [Loch, K., W. Loch, H. Schuhmacher & W. R. See, 2002; P.S.Z.N.: Marine Ecology, 23 (3): 219–236] covering the years 2001 and 2002, thereby extending the observation period from 1999 to 2002. Data collection was performed as previously in transects on the reef flat, Acropora tables at the reef rim, Porites lobata blocks and one Diploastrea heliopora colony. While between 2000 and 2001 the transects showed a noticeable increase of living scleractinian colonies of 6.1 per m² of reef surface per year, this had slowed to 0.7 per m² per year by 2002. Likewise, the colonisation of dead Acropora tables had changed from a yearly increase of 14.4 colonies per m² of table surface between 2000 and 2001 to a decrease of 9.4 between 2001 and 2002. The main constituent of the regeneration in transects as well as on Acropora tables was Pavona (Agariciidae), whereas Pocilloporidae and Acroporidae were almost completely missing. A new immigrant was Tubastraea micranthus . Continuous growth of regenerates on Porites presented a columnar form, and the growth rate of D. heliopora was reduced between 2001 and 2002. The influence on reef ecology in terms of coral substrate, species differentiation, growth rate changes, interaction with other organisms and the overall prospect of the reef development on a longer timescale is outlined.     

红光固体二极管点阵在释光测年中的光照应用

释光测年实验室照明光源的特征(波长与功率)直接影响到释光测年数据的准确性,因此释光测年技术对照明光源的要求很严格。通过对比,选择了典型的红光固体二极管R LED1(661±15)nm作为研究对象。利用R LED1点阵对已知剂量的石英和钾长石样品进行不同时间的光照后,再用单片再生法恢复样品的等效剂量,发现样品的等效剂量与已知剂量差别不大,表明石英和钾长石经过不同时间的R LED1点阵光照后没有发生明显的信号衰减,对测年样品没有影响。因此,利用波长为(661±15)nm的红光固体二极管作为释光测年实验室的照明光源是安全可靠的。     

ESR dating of glacial moraine deposits: Some insights about the resetting of the germanium (Ge) signal measured in quartz

The electron spin resonance (ESR) dating of tills using germanium-doped (Ge) paramagnetic centers in quartz has advantages over other dating techniques, as quartz is common, processing is easy, and the technique has the potential for dating features several hundreds of thousands years old. ESR dating of moraines is based on the supposition that either subglacial comminution or exposure to sunlight resets the signal. However, actual dating suggests that a signal that is initially present cannot be bleached to zero by grinding alone. We found that grinding coarse samples (0.5–1 mm in diameter) to the mean grain size of fine sand (0.125–0.193 mm) reduced the signal intensity to 53–69% of its original value. From the value of the signal difference, one can devise a correction factor for ESR ages of subglacial sediment. Polymineralic grains are commonly present in till. Exposure of them to sunlight for several days can reduce the signal intensity to 7–8% of its original value within 1–2 mm thick of the sediment surface. However, within 5–8 mm of the sediment surface, exposure to sunlight for over one week only reduced the signal intensity to mean plateau values of 42–50% of the initial value. Mixing upper and lower layers of the samples during exposure to sunlight changed the signal intensity. This suggests that the amount of bleaching varies spatially. Sediments initially deposited at the margins of ice caps or ice sheets and subsequently overridden may have been sufficiently exposed to sunlight to allow ESR dating of moraines. The purity of the quartz and the grain size have significant impacts on signal intensity; intensive purification and the use of a uniform fine sand fraction are thus recommended.     

Evaluation of ESR residual dose in quartz modern samples,an investigation on environmental dependence

Luminescence and ESR dating methods of quartz sediment are based on the natural resetting of the signal by light exposure (optical bleaching). When the bleaching is incomplete, a residual dose (D_eR) is added to the post-depositional dose accumulated since the deposit and hence the age is overestimated.Insufficient bleaching is usually linked to the environment and conditions of transport/deposition of the quartz grains affecting the light exposure duration. Indeed, each transportation mode – fluvial, marine or aeolian – is associated to specific conditions of light exposure, depending mainly to the location of grains in the transport agent during the transport phase, the opacity of the transport environment and the velocity of the transport.The present study attempts to discriminate the modes of transport/deposition providing a satisfying reset of the ESR signals of quartz grains. For this purpose, we investigated bleaching rates and ESR residual doses of aluminum centers from “present-day” aeolian, fluvial and marine sediments sampled in various sedimentary environments. The bleaching efficiency evaluation in these different environments may help for a better understanding of the resetting phenomenon for quartz signals which represents presently the main difficulty for ESR dating.The results show that the residual doses are small enough to allow an ESR dating of the main part of the sediment transported in almost all the context examined in this study. The smallest residual doses are obtained from quartz grains within the range of 100–200 μm and transported in clear water. Some limits for the application of optically bleached quartz ESR dating appears nevertheless, mainly when the residual dose and the dose accumulated after the deposit are quite similar, i.e. for Upper Pleistocene samples.     

Single grain optically stimulated luminescence dating of glacial sediments from the Baiyu Valley,southeastern Tibet

The Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau is an important area for the study of Quaternary glaciation. Optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating has the potential to contribute to the chronology of glaciation in this region, but it is important to assess the accuracy of OSL dating of these glacial sediments. In this study, single grain quartz OSL signals are examined for five glacial samples collected from the moraines outside the Baiyu Valley, southeastern Tibet. The quartz grains exhibit poor luminescence characteristics, with a small proportion of grains passing the screening criteria. Grains which pass the screening criteria have relatively low signal intensity, leading to D_e values with large uncertainties. MAM and CAM were used to determine D_e values for these samples. The OSL ages are consistent with the sequence of events derived from the geomorphological relationship of the samples, and also with previous published radiocarbon ages. However, it is more difficult to reconcile the OSL ages and the terrestrial cosmogenic nuclide (TCN) ¹⁰Be ages. Analysis of both single grain quartz OSL data and TCN ¹⁰Be data is complex in this area. Further work is required to increase confidence in the OSL ages generated for the glacial sediments from this region.     

两种造礁石珊瑚共生藻分子系统分类及其对水温升高的响应研究

珊瑚白化是导致全球珊瑚礁生态系统衰退的最重要原因之一,野外观察结果表明不同种属的造礁石珊瑚对于海水温度升高的耐受性有所差异.选取多孔鹿角珊瑚(Acropora millepora)和丛生盔形珊瑚(Galaxea fascicularis)为研究对象,比较其共生藻在温度升高时的光生理差异.对多孔鹿角珊瑚和丛生盔形珊瑚共生藻的分子系统学研究结果表明:多孔鹿角珊瑚和丛生盔形珊瑚的共生藻属于不同系群,丛生盔形珊瑚共生藻属于D系群,而多孔鹿角珊瑚共生藻属于C1亚系群.当温度升高到30℃时并未对两种造礁石珊瑚共生藻光合系统Ⅱ造成损害,而当温度升高到34℃时两种造礁石珊瑚共生藻的F_v/F_m值急剧下降,其光合系统Ⅱ遭受损害.多孔鹿角珊瑚和丛生盔形珊瑚分别与不同系群的共生藻共生可能是导致其对海水温度升高耐受性不同的主要原因,与C1亚系群共生藻共生的多孔鹿角珊瑚对水温升高敏感,容易白化,而与D系群共生藻共生的丛生盔形珊瑚对水温升高的耐受性强,不易白化.     

沙漠黄土边界带湖相沉积糜地湾剖面红外释光测年

通过对糜地湾剖南红外释光测年结果与^14C测年结果（校正年代）比较，认为红外释光测年方法应用于沙漠黄土边界带湖相沉积物的年代测定可取得理想结果。 介绍了适合红外释光测年的粗颗粒钾长石矿物的分离，对粗颗粒钾长石红外释光信号的光晒退、残留信号和回授等性质作了初步研究，对测量等效剂量和附加剂量法和再生法进行了比较，同时还介绍了中国科学院黄土与第四纪地质国家重点实验室释光测年实验室从样品采集开始到年代值计算的整个测年实验流程。     

西沙群岛永兴岛礁坡石珊瑚覆盖率的空间变化

连续影像样方调查方法较常用的截线样条法具有空间分辨率高的特点.采用该方法于2008年7月在西沙群岛永兴岛礁坡开展了5条垂直岸线断面和2条平行岸线断面的石珊瑚覆盖率调查.调查发现,永兴岛珊瑚覆盖率存在显著的空间差异,北、西北和东部断面珊瑚分布相对较多,覆盖率较高;西和西南部断面珊瑚分布稀少,覆盖率低.其中北、西北和东部断面沿礁坡方向珊瑚分布明显减少,礁坡中上部30-50m以上、水深5-6m以浅的区域,珊瑚覆盖率高;而礁坡中下部50m以下、水深约6m以深区域,珊瑚分布少,覆盖率低.此外,北和西北部断面还发现由棘冠海星Acanthaster planci和黑皮海绵Terpios hoshinota分别造成的珊瑚白化和珊瑚黑死现象,一定程度上降低了珊瑚覆盖率.永兴岛珊瑚覆盖率的下降以及空间变化格局的形成主要与30年以来日益增加的人类活动和珊瑚礁区过度开发有关.     

健康与白化状态下珊瑚共生菌的群落组成与功能差异

为探究珊瑚共生菌对白化的响应,采用OTU分析和Biolog技术对比了鹿角杯形珊瑚（Pocillopora damicornis）健康个体与白化个体细菌群落在结构和功能上的差异。结果显示:物种组成（属水平）上两者的优势成分相似,均由聚球菌Synechococcus占主导（大于50%）;其余组分中,红球菌Pelagibacter、谱尼螺杆菌Puniceispirillum、珊瑚微球菌Coraliomargarita和光合细菌Photobacterium在健康个体中居多;而厚壁菌Actinomarina、梨形浮霉菌Blastopirellula以及一些病原菌（如弧菌Vibrio、单胞菌Pseudospirillum、Alteromonas和考克斯氏体Coxiella）在白化个体中占优。生物多样性显示白化组的α-多样性（Chao Ⅰ,Shannon index）显著低于健康组（P<0.05）。Personal分析表明温度和营养盐（硝酸盐、磷酸盐）是影响物种组成最相关的环境因子。功能分析显示:在碳源的利用上,健康组对碳源的利用从大到小的顺序为羧酸类、氨基酸类、双亲化合物、糖类、多聚物、胺类;而白化组对碳源的利用偏向糖类、氨基酸和胺类。羧酸和糖类的利用率导致了白化组与健康组对碳源摄取能力的差异。氮源的利用上两者均以无机氮为主,但白化组显示出部分消耗有机氮（肽）的能力。磷源的代谢上两者均优先利用无机磷,而白化组弱化了对有机磷的代谢能力。本次研究的结果表明白化降低了珊瑚共生菌的生物多样性,并引起了菌群对C、N、P的代谢差异,致使共生微生物呈现结构和功能上的变化。