The influence of fine‐scale topography on the impacts of Holocene fire in a Tasmanian montane landscape

Tasmania's montane temperate rainforests contain some of Australia's most ancient and endemic flora. Recent landscape‐scale fires have impacted a significant portion of these rainforest ecosystems. The complex and rugged topography of Tasmania results in a highly variable influence of fire across the landscape, rendering predictions of ecosystem response to fire difficult. We assess the role of topographic variation in buffering the influence of fire in these endemic rainforest communities. We developed a new 14 000‐year (14‐ka) palaeoecological dataset from Lake Perry, southern Tasmania, and compared it to neighbouring Lake Osborne (<250 m distant) to examine how topographic variations influence fire and vegetation dynamics through time. Repeated fire events during the Holocene cause a decline in montane rainforest taxa at both sites; however, in the absence of fire, rainforest taxa are able to recover. Montane temperate rainforest taxa persisted at Lake Perry until European settlement, whilst these taxa were driven locally extinct and replaced by Eucalyptus species at Lake Osborne after 2.5 ka. Contiguous topographic fire refugia within the Lake Perry catchment probably provided areas of favourable microclimates that discouraged fire spread and supported the recovery of these montane temperate rainforests. Copyright © 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

泥河湾盆地籍箕滩剖面记录的6400年以来环境变化与人类活动影响

本文对泥河湾盆地籍箕滩剖面地表下65～ 75cm、140～150cm、190～ 200cm和300～310cm处的4块泥质样品进行了AMS14C测年,校正后的年代分别为2117cal.a B.P.、3081cal.a B.P.、5481cal.aB.P.和6420cal.a B.P.,表明籍箕滩剖面305cm以上地层形成于全新世中晚期.籍箕滩剖面的孢粉、炭屑和磁化率分析,揭示了研究区中全新世以来的植被演替、气候变化和人类活动的影响.6400～ 5800cal.a B.P.,气候总体温暖湿润,籍箕滩南面的浅山地带可能有森林生长,孢粉百分比和炭屑含量的变化表明,该阶段植被对气候变化和人类活动影响非常敏感.6000cal.a B.P.前人类活动使籍箕滩剖面南面浅山地带的森林遭到一定破坏;6000～5800cal.a B.P.,籍箕滩周边的人类活动可能有所减弱或迁移他处,籍箕滩剖面南面浅山地带的森林得到一定恢复;5500 cal.a B.P.左右的降温事件和4000 cal.a B.P.左右的干旱事件以及人类活动,使得泥河湾盆地的森林植被破坏后再也没有恢复到之前的景观,草原植被迅速发展;4000～2000cal.a B.P.,气候以冷干为主,区域内森林植被几近消失,只在水分条件较好的地方有小片阔叶灌丛林生长,植被类型表现为草原或干草原.泥河湾盆地中晚全新世以来的气候变化与其他地方的对比表明,东亚季风的衰退具同步性.     

A study on the meat and bone meal and poultry by-product meal as protein substitutes of fish meal in practical diets for Litopenaeus vannamei juveniles

A study was conducted to evaluate the effects of meat and bone meal (MBM) and poultry by-product meal (PBM) as the replacement of fish meal in the diets on the growth performance, survival and apparent digestibility coefficients (ADC) of Litopenaeus vannamei. The basal diets were formulated with 22% fish meal and other ingredients which provided about 40% protein and 9% lipid in the diet. The experimental diets included MBM or PBM to replace 0, 20%, 40%, 60% and 80% of total fish meal respectively. All diets were iso-nitrogenous and isocaloric in gross terms. The results showed that there were no significant differences (Pτ;0.05) in growth performance and ADC among the treatments fed with the diets in which 0–60% fish meal had been replaced with MBM, while the percent weight gain (WG, %), body length gain (BLG, %) and ADC significantly decreased when the MBM was up to 80% of the fish meal. There were no significant differences (Pτ;0.05) in growth performance and ADC among all the treatments fed with the diets in which 0–80% fish meal had been replaced with PBM.     

D290树脂-活性炭吸附富集电感耦合等离子体质谱法测定铜精矿中铂钯

矿产品中痕量贵金属元素的测定通常需要富集分离,在检测过程中谱线干扰较多。本文对铜精矿样品在高温下灼烧除去碳和硫,采用盐酸+王水+氢氟酸消解体系进行分解,利用D290阴离子交换树脂-活性炭作为吸附剂富集铂和钯,以Y、In、Bi为内标元素,105Pd和195Pt作为测量同位素,用电感耦合等离子体质谱法(ICP-MS)测定铂和钯的含量。铂和钯的吸附率均达到90%以上,加标回收率分别为92.0%和96.0%,检出限分别为0.126 ng/g和0.105 ng/g,方法精密度(RSD,n=6)小于4%。应用于实际铜精矿样品分析,测定值与锍镍试金-ICP-MS测定结果一致。本法的样品处理体系最大限度地减少了样品中其他金属离子对待测元素的影响,选择的内标元素和高纯氦碰撞反应可有效地减少基体效应和同质异位素干扰。相比于锍镍试金法,该方法的样品前处理简单,铂和钯的富集效果明显,测定检出限低。     

Vegetation and fire history since the last glacial maximum in an inland area of the western Mediterranean Basin (Northern Iberian Plateau,NW Spain)

We reconstructed vegetation responses to climate oscillations, fire and human activities since the last glacial maximum in inland NW Iberia, where previous paleoecological research is scarce. Extremely sparse and open vegetation composed of steppic grasslands and heathlands with scattered pioneer trees suggests very cold and dry conditions during the Oldest Dryas, unsuitable for tree survival in the surroundings of the study site. Slight woodland expansion during the Bølling/Allerød was interrupted by the Younger Dryas cooling. Pinewoods dominated for most of the early Holocene, when a marked increase in fire activity occurred. Deciduous trees expanded later reaching their maximum representation during the mid-Holocene. Enhanced fire activity and the presence of coprophilous fungi around 6400–6000 cal yr BP suggest an early human occupation around the site. However, extensive deforestation only started at 4500 cal yr BP, when fire was used to clear the tree canopy. Final replacement of woodlands with heathlands, grasslands and cereal crops occurred from 2700 cal yr BP onwards due to land-use intensification. Our paleoecological record can help efforts aimed at restoring the natural vegetation by indicating which communities were dominant at the onset of heavy human impact, thus promoting the recovery of currently rare oak and alder stands.     

Electron spin resonance dating of Quaternary bone material from Tasmanian caves—A comparison with ages determined by aspartic acid racemization and C14

Abstract

Fourteen bone samples are analysed to test the usefulness of equivalent dose (ED) determinations by electron spin resonance (ESR) as a rapid method of determining relative age and making an estimate of absolute age. ED values are compared with eight aspartic acid dates and two C¹⁴ dates. The latter are dates on charcoal found in close association with bone at archaeological sites. For samples less than 25 000 years old an excellent correlation is obtained when ED values are compared with dates obtained by the other two methods. The relationship suggests that ED values can be converted to estimates of bone age by assuming a mean annual dose rate of 0.1 rad/yr. Age determinations provide little evidence to support earlier suggestions that elements of the Late Pleistocene megafauna survived until the end of the Pleistocene. Bone material at some sites in the‐Florentine Valley and near Montagu appears to be much older than had previously been believed. Only one site (Main Cave, Montagu) containing megafaunal elements appears to be terminal Pleistocene in age but the possibility of reworking of megafauna material from nearby older sites cannot be excluded. ESR dating has considerable potential as an exploratory dating tool but can only be applied to dense, unaltered bone samples. Attempts to analyse five samples from Kutikina Cave in Western Tasmania were unsuccessful because of post‐depositional contamination of the bone.     

湖北屈家岭遗址孢粉、炭屑记录与古文明发展*

湖北屈家岭遗址附近的河湖相沉积剖面及文化层的孢粉和炭屑分析表明,距今5400—4200年间,遗址周边地区分布有常绿阔叶和落叶阔叶林,大量的禾本科(Gramineae)和松属(Pinus)花粉及炭屑表明这一时期有强烈的人类活动,暖湿的气候条件为屈家岭文化和石家河文化发展奠定了基础。距今4200—2200年间,莎草科（Cyperaceae）花粉和水蕨(Ceratopteris)孢子的减少反映生境干旱化,遗址周边发育由蒿属（Artemisia）、藜科(Chenopodiaceae)、唐松草（Thalictrum）和蕨类植物组成的坡草丛;这种生境干旱化是由气候变干和强烈人类活动所致。伴随着生境日趋干旱化,屈家岭文化和石家河文化走向衰亡。距今2200年前,莎草科花粉和水蕨孢子含量增加表明这一时期遗址周围生境比较湿润,与此同时,大量的禾本科花粉及高浓度的炭屑指示着又一人类活动高潮期的到来。     

古人类用火研究及其进展

火的使用在人类进化过程中发挥了非常重要的作用。学术界对于人类使用火的历史与过程做了大量的研究,检验古人类遗址区域是否发生过燃烧事件的技术手段也在不断地进步。通过对南非开普敦Wonderwerk洞穴、以色列Qesem洞穴、北京周口店猿人洞以及湖北黄龙洞等地古人类用火相关文献的系统调研和归纳总结,认为探讨一个遗址是否存在古人类主动用火时,首先要获取该遗址的文化考古和地层资料,确定是否曾发生过燃烧事件,然后分析是何物质发生燃烧,以及与人类活动的联系。分析表明,目前还没有任何单一的方法可以确定更新世早期的古人类用火信息,多种方法的结合才可能得到比较准确的结论。选择宏观形态分析初步判断有火活动的区域,利用傅立叶红外光谱(FTIR)、元素碳含量分析等地球化学手段确定火事件发生的确切证据,再利微观形态及微地层分析对完整沉积物进行系统研究以揭示其就地用火的可能性,从而形成古人类用火的完整证据链。由于碳稳定同位素在植被、气候与人类活动相互联系方面的广泛应用,在古人类用火研究引入这一技术手段,可为该领域提供新的研究方法和思路。     

Holocene fire and vegetation dynamics in a montane forest, North Cascade Range, Washington, USA

We reconstructed a 10,500-yr fire and vegetation history of a montane site in the North Cascade Range, Washington State based on lake sediment charcoal, macrofossil and pollen records. High-resolution sampling and abundant macrofossils made it possible to analyze relationships between fire and vegetation. During the early Holocene (> 10,500 to ca. 8000 cal yr BP) forests were subalpine woodlands dominated by Pinus contorta. Around 8000 cal yr BP, P. contorta sharply declined in the macrofossil record. Shade tolerant, mesic species first appeared ca. 4500 cal yr BP. Cupressus nootkatensis appeared most recently at 2000 cal yr BP. Fire frequency varies throughout the record, with significantly shorter mean fire return intervals in the early Holocene than the mid and late Holocene. Charcoal peaks are significantly correlated with an initial increase in macrofossil accumulation rates followed by a decrease, likely corresponding to tree mortality following fire. Climate appears to be a key driver in vegetation and fire regimes over millennial time scales. Fire and other disturbances altered forest vegetation at shorter time scales, and vegetation may have mediated local fire regimes. For example, dominance of P. contorta in the early Holocene forests may have been reinforced by its susceptibility to frequent, stand-replacing fire events.