Small-Mammal Data on Early and Middle Holocene Climates and Biotic Communities in the Bonneville Basin, USA

Archaeological investigations in Camels Back Cave, western Utah, recovered a series of small-mammal bone assemblages from stratified deposits dating between ca. 12,000 and 500 ¹⁴C yr B.P. The cave's early Holocene fauna includes a number of species adapted to montane or mesic habitats containing grasses and/or sagebrush (e.g., Lepus townsendii, Marmota flaviventris, Reithrodontomys megalotis, and Brachylagus idahoensis) which suggest that the region was relatively cool and moist until after 8800 ¹⁴C yr B.P. Between ca. 8600 and 8100 ¹⁴C yr B.P. these mammals became locally extinct, taxonomic diversity declined, and there was an increase in species well-adapted to xeric, low-elevation habitats, including ground squirrels, Lepus californicus and Neotoma lepida. The early small-mammal record from Camels Back Cave is similar to the 11,300–6000 ¹⁴C yr B.P. mammalian sequence from Homestead Cave, northwestern Utah, and provides corroborative data on Bonneville Basin paleoenvironments and mammalian responses to middle Holocene desertification.     

Paleoecology of a Middle Wisconsin Deposit from Southern California

Analysis of a buried deposit in the Diamond Valley of southern California has revealed well-preserved pollen, wood, and diatom remains. Accelerator mass spectrometry dates of 41,200±2100 and 41,490±1380 ¹⁴C yr B.P. place this deposit in marine isotope stage 3. Diatoms suggest a shallow lacustrine environment. Pollen data suggest that several plant communities were present near the site, with grassland, scrub, chaparral, forest, and riparian communities represented. Comparison with modern pollen suggests similarities with montane forests in the nearby San Bernardino and San Jacinto ranges, indicating vegetation lowering by at least 900 m elevation and temperatures 4°–5°C cooler than today. An increase in high-elevation conifer pollen documents climatic cooling near the profile top. Early-profile diatoms are typical of warm water with high alkalinity and conductivity, whereas later diatoms suggest a higher flow regime and input of cooler water into the system. We suggest that the sequence is part of the cooling phase of an interstadial Dansgaard–Oeschger cycle. Records of the middle Wisconsin period are rare in southern California, but the Diamond Valley site is similar to records from Tulare Lake in the San Joaquin Valley and the ODP Site 893A record from Santa Barbara Basin. It is probable that the Diamond Valley assemblage is a local expression of a vegetation type widespread in the ranges and basins of southwestern California during the middle Wisconsin.     

To afforest the desert with the technology of peat composed of rotten mosses and the sustainable development of the oases

Only by providing the good conditions for the growth of plants can a favorable ecologicalenvironment on which human beings rely for existence be created. The upside-down-T dou-ble-layer water-conserving afforestation way is developed according to the situation of the short-age of water resources, low soil fertility and vast land in the arid areas. The characteristics of theafforestation way are to change the microenvironment in the root area of the plants, provide thefavorable conditions for the growth of plants, and reduce the necessary conditions for the growth ofplants in large areas in the arid regions. Meanwhile, the size of its water-conserving layer can bechanged according to the size of the planted trees. The different ways of the bottom wa-ter-conserving layer can be used according to the requirements. The afforestation way is suitablefor planting trees on a small scale and also for afforesting on a large scale under the adverse cir-cumstances in the arid areas, and has been effectively used in the afforestation in the hinterland ofTaklamakan Desert and the southern marginal zone of Gurbantonggut Desert. The prospects ofthe afforestation way are broad in afforestation and desertification control in the desert regions.     

Water availability for the greening of Kuwait

Water resources for agricultural development and landscape enhancement in Kuwait are very scarce; the quality is saline (brackish), and the soil texture is sandy, incapable of holding nutrients and moisture. Most of the rainfall in Kuwait either evaporates due to the high temperatures or percolates through the soil. The rainfall is not sufficient to recharge the underground water supply. A variety of alternative water sources have been studied, including seawater desalination and wastewater treatment. Wastewater treatment proved to be convenient due to the relatively low salinity detected in the treated water. Furthermore, the amount of wastewater is expected to increase as more residential areas are connected to the sewage system as the population increases.

The development of a greenery plan for Kuwait requires intensive water management. This goal can be achieved through manpower training in landscape development, selection of plants tolerant to arid environments, usage of appropriate irrigation and drainage systems, promotion of greenery programs within public and the governmental agencies for their direct participation in urban area beautification, and extension of wastewater treatment techniques.     

新疆塔里木河下游植物群落逆向演替分析

通过对塔里木河中下游沿河植物群落的调查分析及地下水位下降对地表植被生态过程影响的研究，探讨塔里木河下游近几十年来植被的逆向演替过程，并划分出不同的演替阶段。根据草、灌、乔植被对地下水位具有不同的适应能力，塔里木河下游植物群落退化顺序也不相同，首先是草本退化，其次是灌木退化，再者是乔木退化。经调查分析表明，塔里木河下游植物群落的逆向演替顺序为：矫灌草群落阶段→乔灌群落阶段→乔木或灌木少阶段，在逆向演替过程中，各阶段有规律地进行，群落结构特征、种类组成也都发生了明显的变化。     

泥石流多发干旱河谷区植被恢复研究

云南东北部东川小江流域的干旱河谷土地退化十分严重，土地表层的砾石含量已超过60％，有机质含量、全氮、有效氮、有效磷、有效钾的含量相对于残存燥红土明显下降。草坡是当地的主要植被类型，并未起到防治土地退化的应有作用。以合欢（Leucaena glauca)、马桑（Coriaria sinica)种植为主的恢复方式对土地的恢复有明显的改善作用。高密度的乔木树种合欢的种植使林下的草本物种的数量和组成发生了极大变化，较耐荫的植物占据了林分下层，且物种数量较草坡减少，群落多样性指数降低。三种马桑种植方式下，不但原有的草坡群落的物种仍有大量的生存空间，而且为一些新物种创造了生存环境，从而使物种的种类较原有草坡地增加，提高了群落的多样性指数。合欢种植的生物量最高，对解决当地薪柴严重短缺意义重大，马桑种植在增加灌木层生物量的同时，并未改变草坡的物种组成，还可兼顾解决当地的饲草和放牧，应大力推广。     

湿地旅游可持续发展研究

湿地以其独具特色的自然和文化景观为湿地旅游提供了有利条件。本文在可持续发展思想的基础上提出了湿地旅游这一概念，分析了湿地旅游发展与湿地环境保护之间的关系；针对湿地生物多样性、景观多样性、文化多样性等特点对湿地的旅游价值作了进一步的探讨，提出了湿地旅游可持续发展的几点对策。     

Rethinking Precolonial Plant Cultivation on the Northwest Coast of North America

The indigenous peoples of the Northwest Coast of North America are widely believed to have been true “hunter‐fisher‐gatherers,” lacking plant cultivation of any kind. This depiction of the region's indigenous inhabitants emerged within early colonial accounts and was perpetuated within the literatures of geography, anthropology, and archaeology. Still, there is ample evidence of plant cultivation available from archival, archaeological, and ethnographic sources. In particular, the peoples of coastal British Columbia created large gardens of edible estuarine plants, using sophisticated indigenous technologies. The oversight of these practices in written representations of the region reveals consistent patterns of bias, emanating from the agendas of colonial agents and early academics alike. In turn, this bias has undermined aboriginal traditions of cultivation and indigenous land claims.     

滇西北亚高山针叶林、硬叶栎类林的树种多样性

在滇西北香格里拉地区,以长苞冷杉(Abiesgeorgei)林、丽江云杉(Picealikiangensis)林作为亚高山针叶林的代表,以川滇高山栎(Quercusaquifolioides)林作为硬叶栎类林的代表,分别选择了6块样地,采用Shannon-Wiener多样性指数(H)、Simpson多样性指数的倒数(D')、Pielou均匀度指数(JH、JD)分别测定其树种多样性,并进行了比较研究。结果表明,三个森林类型的Shannon Wiener指数、Simpson指数的倒数、物种丰富度的顺序均为:长苞冷杉林>川滇高山栎林>丽江云杉林;而前两类森林的Pielou均匀度指数差异不大,但都高于丽江云杉林的均匀度指数值。滇西北的川滇高山栎具有很强的萌生能力。人工种植的亚高山针叶林的树种多样性较原始林低,需要较长时间的恢复过程。亚高山针叶林的存在极大地丰富了云南省的树种多样性,使云南植被的垂直地带性得到了充分体现。     

Quantitative classification and analysis on plant communities in the middle reaches of the Tarim River

Plant communities were sampled in the lower reaches of the Tarim River, Xinjiang. The results showed that there are 23 species belonging to 21 genera in 11 families, most of which have low occurrence frequency in quadrats. The most common species is Tamarix ramosissima, which occurred in 17 sites accounting for 89.47% of the total 19 sites. Quantitative classification (TWINSPAN) and ordination (CCA) methods were used to study the distribution patterns of 23 plant species in 19 sites in this valley. TWINSPAN results showed that the plant communities in the middle reaches of the Tarim River could be divided into 3 groups and the sampling sites could be divided into 7 types in 3 groups. CCA results were consistent with TWINSPAN results, and showed species distribution patterns correlated with major environmental variables of groundwater level and soil moisture.