A seasonal comparison of prokaryote numbers,biomass and heterotrophic productivity in waters of the KwaZulu-Natal Bight,South Africa

The KwaZulu-Natal Bight is a shallow indentation of the eastern seaboard of South Africa, characterised by a narrow (45 km wide) extension of the continental shelf, with a shelf break at about 100 m. It has a complex hydrography: the waters of the bight are derived from the fast-flowing, southward-trending Agulhas Current, which is fed mostly by the tropical and subtropical surface waters of the South-West Indian Ocean subgyre, which are generally oligotrophic in nature, notably depleted in reduced nitrogen and phosphate except at river mouths and during periodic upwelling of deeper nutrient-rich water. Despite this, the bight is believed to be relatively productive, and it is suggested that efficient nutrient recycling by prokaryotes may sustain primary productivity efficiently, even in the absence of new nutrient inputs. Here we have measured bacterial numbers, biomass and heterotrophic productivity during summer and winter in conjunction with phytoplankton standing stock and factors that influence it. Bacterial distribution closely matched phytoplankton distribution in surface waters, and was highest close to the coast. Bacterial standing stocks were similar to those of oligotrophic systems elsewhere (0.5–5.0 × 10⁵ cells ml^–1; 1 × 10^–8 to 1.25 × 10^–7 g C ml^–1) and increased in association with the development of phytoplankton blooms offshore and with inputs of allochthonous material by rivers at the coast. Heterotrophic productivity in summer was lowest in the far south and north of the bight (0.5 × 10^–10 g C ml^–1 h^–1) but higher close to the shore, over shallow banks, and in association with increased phytoplankton abundance over the midshelf (1.0–3.5 × 10^–9 g C ml^–1 h^–1). There were marked seasonal differences with lower bacterial standing stocks (5 × 10⁴ to 2 × 10⁵ cells ml^–1; 4–5 × 10^–9 to 1–2 × 10^–8 g C ml^–1) and very low bacterial productivity (4 × 10^–11 to 1 × 10^–10 g C ml^–1 h^–1) in winter, probably resulting from lowered rates of primary productivity and dissolved organic matter release as well as reduced riverine allochthonous inputs during the winter drought.     

海洋溢油污染对生物群落和种群的影响及生态系统的恢复

海洋溢油污染带来的最严重的威胁在于它能够改变或破坏海洋环境中正常存在的生态系统。溢油污染对生态系统的初步影响是造成生物物种多样性、丰度、均匀度下降,进一步则是敏感物种消退,另一些机会物种大量繁殖,群落结构受到扰动。受到溢油污染后的生物群落的变化和恢复过程通常呈现的是多种因素共同作用的结果。溢油作为一种外来的扰动因素,对生态系统的发展强行加注了一种相对统一的发展模式,生态系统会经历一些优势种之间强烈的相互作用,种群数量出现大幅度的波动,系统变得敏感脆弱,生态恢复需要一定的时间。本文对国内外几十年来的研究成果进行综述,总结今后应大力开展海洋石油污染调查研究工作的各个方面。     

渤海底栖桡足类群落结构的研究

渤海1998年9月航次的调查结果.小型底栖生物总平均丰度为(8688±5097)个/m2,底栖桡足类居第2位,平均丰度为(663±569)个/m2,占总数量的76%.根据77种底栖桡足类丰度所做的聚类和标序分析将渤海20个站位划分为4个组合.根据11种环境因子数据所做的聚类和主成分分析将研究海域划分为两个生境、4个亚区.对研究海域进行的分区与自然分区是基本一致的.支配研究海域底栖桡足类群落结构的主要环境因子是水深和沉积物粒度.     

白令海夏季浮游植物的群落结构与时空变化

通过1999年和2010年夏季同期7月在白令海(169°E~166°W,50°N~67°N)获取的94份浮游植物样品分析,获得了近十年的始末两个时间节点的浮游植物群落结构与时空变化,探讨了浮游植物群落动态及其与环境因素的关联。研究结果显示,共鉴定浮游植物(>10μm)5门58属153种,分为3个生态类群。硅藻是浮游植物的主体,种类多丰度高,占总种类数目的66.7%,占总丰度的95.2%。鉴于样品属性和空间范围的不同,物种组成有细微差别,丰度有较大差异且空间分布明显不同,高丰度区受控于上层营养盐供给和表层环流系统。优势种从北方温带大洋性硅藻演变为广温广盐性与冷水性硅藻,1999年以西氏新细齿状藻为第一优势种,柔弱伪菱形藻次之;2010年以丹麦细柱藻为第一优势种,冷水性的诺登海链藻次之并在陆架和陆坡占优。浮游植物群落结构较为稳定,由深水群落和浅水群落组成。深水群落分布于太平洋西北部和白令海盆,种类组成以温带大洋性的西氏新细齿状藻、长海毛藻、大西洋角毛藻和广布性的菱形海线藻、扁面角毛藻、笔尖根管藻为主,丰度低,种间丰度分配均匀,优势种多元化,物种多样性高;浅水群落分布于白令海陆坡和陆架,主要由冷水性的诺登海链藻、叉尖角毛藻、聚生角毛藻和广布性的丹麦细柱藻、旋链角毛藻组成,丰度高,种间丰度分配不均匀,优势种突出,物种多样性低。白令海夏季浮游植物种类组成及丰度变化直接受控于表层环流、营养盐、春季冰缘线等环境因素。     

澜沧江上游德钦县亚高山、高山草地群落类型及其特点

摘要：采用样方调查方法获得94个草地群落样方,对澜沧江上游德钦县亚高山、高山草地群落类型及其特点进行了初步分析。结果表明,该县亚高山、高山草地群落类型存在20个类型。在放牧干扰下,大多数群落类型处于退化状态,相互之间存在明显的群落替代关系;调查发现群落中每平方米内平均含8种草本植物,平均盖度62．4％,地上平均生物量是4859kg／hm^2,平均可食率为61．5％;鸢尾群落、牛旁群落和小狼毒群落是草地严重退化后形成的典型有毒害群落类型;长期的高强度放牧虽然增加了群落类型多样性,但减少了群落内物种多样性。总体而言,长期的放牧干扰降低了德钦草地的生物多样性的质量及其生态服务功能,导致草地生态系统的非持续发展。     

猫头刺群落对土壤养分空间异质性的响应

选择腾格里沙漠边缘内蒙古阿拉善左旗境内的猫头刺群落为研究对象,探讨了猫头刺群落植物属性和土壤属性随尺度变化\,空间异质性的变化以及植物属性对土壤属性空间异质性的响应。结果表明,尺度从800 m2增加到1 600 m2,土壤有机质和土壤全氮的空间异质性减小,全磷和有效磷的空间异质性增加,有效氮空间异质性不变,而群落内3种植物密度和叶量的空间异质性基本都趋于增加,说明全磷和有效磷是目前猫头刺群落存在的主要限制因素,尤其是多年生草本植物骆驼蓬。进一步分析表明,这种现象是由于荒漠地区的灌丛“沃岛效应”和植物耗用有效磷以增大吸水力的补偿机制所致。     

Thinking outside the framework: equitable research partnerships for environmental research in Australia

Many environmental science research programmes now adopt community-based philosophies and designs, although there are few applications in Australian Indigenous communities. This research describes the development and testing of a framework of engagement to guide collaboration between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians during an environmental sciences research project. That project aimed to assess trepang (sea cucumber) stocks in Aboriginal waters, and determine the commercial harvest potential of the resource to local people. Its objectives were to undertake trepang survey and mapping, integrate Indigenous knowledge about the resource, and model the existing catch data of commercial fishers operating in the region. The framework of engagement developed to guide the research process comprised a goal, research stages, and a number of guiding principles for collaboration, which were constructed from content analysis of available guidelines and literature and from data gathered during expert interviews. Further data were gathered using participant observation, while implementing the trepang research in accordance with this framework of engagement, and these data were analysed to test and evaluate the framework. Findings indicate discursive and reflective approaches such as action research or adaptive management may better facilitate equitable research partnerships for sustainable development.     

Response of a Resilient Community to Natural Disasters: The Gorkha Earthquake in Nepal, 2015

The ability of a community to withstand and recover from adversities including natural and man-made disasters has emerged as a major policy issue in recent years. This research aims to assess the role of institutional initiatives in building resilient communities and their response to natural disasters like the Gorkha earthquake in Nepal in 2015. The work is based on data collected from primary and secondary sources along with field observations. It is evident that resilient communities are equipped with greater coping capacities in the face of natural disasters and have reduced vulnerability to future hazards. Institutional capacity building and resilient construction including the School Earthquake Safety Program ensured better disaster preparedness. The traditional open spaces and building designs added to the structural resilience. There is, however, a need to build back better and to communicate earthquake-resistant designs to the affected communities.     

微生物对地下水中萘的降解特性及动力学研究

针对我国东北某石油烃污染场地地下水中的萘污染,筛选出了Acinetobacter和Pseudomonas菌属的高效萘降解菌群。该菌群对萘的耐受性较高,且具有良好的乳化性,能够自动调节细胞表面疏水性和自聚集性。不同pH值、萘初始浓度、温度和菌接种量对萘降解效率的影响研究表明:最适菌群生长的pH范围为7.08.0;萘降解效率和速率在1.005.00 mg/L范围内与其初始浓度成正比;在1030 ℃温度范围内均表现出较高的萘降解效率。在此基础上,利用Guass、GuassAmp、LogNomal、Poisson和Pulse数学模型对萘的降解过程进行拟合,其降解速率更符合GuassAmp模型。通过将降解动力学模型中的常数与影响因素相关联,推导出了拟合度较高的多因素影响下的萘降解动力学方程。