青藏高原高寒草原生态系统CO2,CH4和N2O排放通量研究

Using static chamber technique, fluxes of CO2, CHh and N2O were measured in the alpinegrassland area from July 2000 to July 2001, determinations of mean fluxes showed that CO2 and N2Owere generally released from the soil, while the alpine grassland accounted for a weak CH4 sink.Fluxes of CO2, CH4 and N2O ranged widely. The highest CO2 emission occurred in August, whereasalmost 90% of the whole year emission occurred in the growing season. But the variations of CH4and N2O fluxes did not show any clear patterns over the one-year-experiment. During a dailyvariation, the maximum CO2 emission occurred at 16:00, and then decreased to the minimumemission in the early morning. Daily pattern analyses indicated that the variation in CO2 fluxes waspositively related to air temperatures (R2=0.73) and soil temperatures at a depth of 5 cm (R2=4).86),whereas daily variations in CH4 and N2O fluxes were poorly explained by soil temperatures andclimatic variables. CO2 emissions in this area were much lower than other grasslands in plain areas.     

高山冰缘植物游离氨基酸的含量分析

以乌鲁木齐河源区22种主要高山冰缘植物花期叶片为实验材料,分析了游离氨基酸含量.结果表明:多数高山冰缘植物积累大量游离中性氨基酸,总游离氨基酸以脯氨酸(Pro)、苏氨酸(Thr)、天门冬氨酸(Asp)、丙氨酸(Ala)和谷氨酸(Glu)为主要成分.同一植被带不同植物积累游离氨基酸的种类和水平不同,如高山离子芥(Chorispora bungeana)的游离Pro含量占其总游离氨基酸含量的百分比均高出雪莲、黄花夏至草和黄头小甘菊13倍多,含量差异明显.3个植被带植物总游离氨基酸、Pro和中性氨基酸的平均含量,高山流石堆植被高于高山垫状植被和高山草甸植被,高山垫状植被总游离氨基酸和中性氨基酸含量高于高山草甸植被.高山冰缘植物积累不同种类和不同含量水平的游离氨基酸是对严酷环境的一种适应.     

The use of egg shells to infer the historical presence of copepods in alpine lakes

Copepods (Class Crustacea, Order Copepoda) are rarely included in paleoecological studies of lakes because they lack long-lasting exoskeletal remains. We describe the remains of eggs (egg shells) from Hesperodiaptomus copepods that are well preserved and abundant in alpine lake sediments. We demonstrate that the egg shells are the remains of Hesperodiaptomus eggs based on (i) the similar size and morphology of egg shells collected from sediments and those produced from the hatching of eggs obtained from laboratory-maintained Hesperodiaptomus, and (ii) the finding that diapausing eggs collected from lake sediments and hatched in the laboratory produced copepod nauplii that were morphologically indistinguishable from those hatched from eggs produced by laboratory-maintained Hesperodiaptomus. Egg shells were approximately two orders of magnitude more abundant in sediment cores than were viable diapausing eggs, making egg shells superior to viable diapausing eggs for quantifying the historical presence and abundance of Hesperodiaptomus. These results have important implications for alpine lake restoration as egg shells can be used to identify lakes in which Hesperodiaptomus was eliminated by fish introductions but has failed to return after fish eradication, lakes in which the pre-disturbance conditions are likely to be restored only by reintroductions of this important taxon.     

Chemical denudation rates in Kärkevagge, Swedish Lapland

This study examines the spatial and temporal variability of chemical denudation rates in Kärkevagge, northern Sweden. The chemical flux rates within the valley are strongly influenced by the local geology. Chemical denudation rates determined for the study period are more than double those previously reported in the literature for this valley. Rates of greater than 46t km⁻² a⁻¹ were measured at the valley mouth over the course of the melt season. This difference is likely due to differences in measurement technique compared to that used by past researchers. This rate is also much higher than for other arctic and alpine watersheds. Chemical denudation in Kärkevagge is comparable to larger temperate rivers. The rapid chemical denudation in Kärkevagge is likely due to sulfide weathering creating acid solutions.     

Geo–ecology and management of sensitive montane landscapes

Montane (alpine) areas are generally of high value for nature conservation. Such environments and the habitats they support are dynamic and often fragile. They are vulnerable to disturbance from a range of human activities and are responsive to climate changes over short and long timescales. Biodiversity and conservation values are closely linked to geological history, geomorphological processes and soils, and it is crucial that management systems are based on understanding these links.
There are many similarities between the Cairngorm Mountains (Scotland), the Giant Mountains (Czech Republic) and Abisko Mountains (Sweden) in terms of geology, geomorphology, ecology, links with biodiversity and high conservation importance. Comparable pressures and management issues involve, to varying degrees, a history of human use and impacts from deforestation, pasturing, grazing, recreation and atmospheric pollution. Landscape change therefore involves a complex interplay between natural and anthropogenic factors. Managing such change requires better understanding of the geo–ecological processes involved and the factors that determine landscape sensitivity. This is illustrated through a simple framework and examples from the three areas. Comparison of landscape sensitivity between similar montane areas, but in different geographic locations and climatic environments, should allow more informed management planning and a precautionary approach in advance of further changes in human activity and from predicted global warming scenarios.     

Sigmoid wave transitions at alpine treeline

Ecotones that are controlled by a single environmental gradient or a set of correlated environmental factors are hypothesized to show a sigmoid wave form in percentage cover as the ecotone is crossed. This study investigates the sigmoid wave hypothesis at the alpine treeline in Glacier National Park, Montana, USA. We find that approximately half of the sampled locations exhibit a sigmoid wave form in percentage cover across the ecotone. These results indicate that in some cases treeline is controlled by a single environmental gradient or a set of correlated environmental factors. However, in other cases, additional factors that are not correlated with the primary controlling gradient act to change the form of the transition. We investigated surficial geology as a possible controlling factor that would not be correlated with the primary climatic gradients found along transects across the alpine treeline. In at least some of the cases, surficial geology type was shown to be significantly associated with differences between sigmoidal and non‐sigmoidal transitions. These results support previous evidence for sigmoid wave transitions at the boreal forest—tundra ecotone, but also show that the alpine treeline case is more complex. We argue that in cases where ecotones are used as sites for monitoring the effects of climate change on vegetation, care should be taken to utilize only sites that exhibit a sigmoidal transition so as to minimize the effects of non‐climate‐related controlling factors on the interpretations.     

青海沙珠玉高寒区风沙土的数值分类研究

在大量调查、观测、试验、测试的基础上,运用主成分分析和聚类分析方法对沙珠玉地区风沙土的８个典型剖面进行了数值分类,得到了满意的结果。正确地区分了风沙土和当地地带性土壤栗钙土,划分出风沙土类石灰性风沙土亚类的三个土属,即流动石灰性风沙土、半固定石灰性风沙土和固定石灰性风沙土,与传统分类和系统分类的结果一致。     

Channel Form, Bed Material and Sediment Sources of the Sprongdøla, Southern Norway: Evidence for a Distinct Periglacio-Fluvial System

A geomorphological and sedimentological case study is made of the Sprongdøla, a medium-sized river flowing in a predominantly bedrock channel in the mountains of southern Norway. Particular attention is given to bed material characteristics and potential sediment sources. Downstream patterns in clast size and shape, including sphericity and roundness, are poorly developed in the Sprongdøla. There is an apparent absence of down-stream fining and a large proportion of bedload in the lower channel remains in very angular and angular roundness categories. Covariance analysis of clast shape and roundness allows this to be attributed to the widespread input of coarse, angular rock particles derived from snow-avalanche activity on the valley sides and especially from frost-shattering of bedrock in the channel, which produces characteristically slabby clasts. The latter process is important in channel widening and in steepening the channel walls. Strictly fluvial processes, avalanche activity and frost-shattering are controlled in different ways by related annual environmental cycles. Their interaction in the context of the periglacial river channel produces a unique process-sediment-landform association that distinguishes alpine periglacio-fluvial systems from those associated with glacio-fluvial rivers and fluvial landscapes in the temperate zone.