Ecosystem engineering by hummock-building earthworms in seasonal wetlands of eastern South Africa: Insights into the mechanics of biomorphodynamic feedbacks in wetland ecosystems

This paper resolves the origin of clay hummock micro-topography in seasonal wetlands of the Drakensberg Foothills, providing a review and appraisal of previously-suggested mechanisms of hummock formation in the context of new field and laboratory data. Field surveys revealed neo-formation of clay hummocks in a river channel that had been abandoned in c.1984. Fresh earthworm castings were located atop hummocks protruding from inundated abandoned channel margins. Earthworm castings, and sediment cores taken in hummocks and adjacent hollows, were analysed for soil-adsorbed carbon and nitrogen using an HCN analyser, and for ²¹⁰Pb activity using alpha-geochronology. ²¹⁰Pb activity profiles suggest relative enrichment of the isotope in hummocks, and relative depletion in adjacent hollows. Earthworm castings are characterised by very high ²¹⁰Pb activity, as well as high C and N contents. Hummocks have significantly higher C and N contents than adjacent hollows. Results suggest that it is the foraging activity of earthworms in litter-rich seasonal wetland hollows, and repeated excretion of castings atop adjacent hummocks, that is responsible for the elemental enrichment observed. The paper presents a conceptual model of hummock formation in wetlands through interactions between hydrogeomorphology and earthworm activity, and illustrates a mechanism of biogeomorphic inheritance through which ordered patterns of preferential flow can emerge in ecosystems. Further implications of hummock formation and nodal accumulation of nutrients are considered in relation to wetland resilience and regulatory ecosystem service provision.© 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

[专稿] 生态文明的自然本原

何为生态文明的自然本原?它就是良性的生态循环.生态文明的自然基础是一系列生态系统的良性循环——森林生态系统、草地生态系统、农业生态系统、湖泊生态系统、河流生态系统、海洋生态系统……等等,而良性循环的标志有二:1)为人类提供清洁的水源、新鲜的空气、优质的农-牧-渔产品、舒心的休闲景观等,这些是我们身心健康的前提,没有它们的支撑,人类文明的大厦将难以为继;2)为珍稀濒危以及土著物种提供良好的栖息之地,维持良好的生态平衡关系,增加生态系统对外界干扰的可塑性.     

基于流域的我国生态功能区划方法研究

生态功能区划是我国正在开展的一项关于资源与环境管理的重大基础性工作.生态功能区划的理论和方法是当前生态学、环境科学、地理学等学科面临的一项新的热点课题.本文首先讨论了生态功能区划的概念,从认识区划看,生态功能区划属于生态系统区域划分的范畴,从实践的角度,则强调人文活动对生态系统可持续能力产生的影响,指出自然生态区不是生态功能区,生态功能区须反映人类的利用和价值判断.生态功能区划,不单是以自然要素或自然系统的"地带性分异"为基础,更是以生态系统的等级结构和尺度原则为基础,用生态系统完整性的评价测量人类活动对生态系统的影响,将生态功能区划的科学基础落在"基于生态系统的管理"平台上.文章提出了基于流域的我国生态功能区划的初步思想,讨论了区划的原则和方法,建立了生态系统完整性评价和功能区划分的指标体系.其基本内容是,认识并按照生态系统的自然边界划分生态系统单元;进行生态系统完整性评价;在此基础上划分不同的生态功能区,确定主导生态功能.     

秋季太湖水下光场结构及其对水生态系统的影响

水生态系统中光能的分配很大程度上决定了水生态系统的结构和功能,利用2007年11-12月太湖水体光学特性和组分浓度数据,对秋季太湖水下光场结构特征和水体组分光竞争能力的表征光学量(漫衰减系数、平均余弦)和影响因素(吸收系数比重)进行了分析研究.结果表明,秋季太湖水下辐照度呈现单峰分布,最高值为583nm左右:根据Kd可将黄质和非色素物质主导程度的强弱分为弱、较强、强三个等级;Kd(PAR)平均值为4.61±1.54m-1,水体真光层厚度平均值为1.11±0.35m;太湖水下光场的光能主要分布在青光和黄绿光波长范围内,约占总能量的60%,蓝光和红光波长范围内的能量约占30%,这样的光谱结构有利于铜绿微囊藻和斜生栅藻的生长.     

Dynamic simulation of tropical coral reef ecosystem being disturbed by multiple situations

In consideration of the rapid degradation of coral reef ecosystems, the establishment of models is helpful to comprehend the degradation mechanism of coral reef ecosystems and predict the development process of coral reef communities. According to the characteristics of complex ecosystem of tropical coral reefs in China, the coral reef functional group is the core level variable; combined with the multiple feedback effects of coral reef functional groups and environmental changes, the study presents a coral reef ecosystem dynamics model with hermatypic corals as the core. Based on the simulation of the assumed initial value and the internal feedback of the system, the results show that in the basic simulation(relative health conditions), the coverage area of live corals and coral reefs generally decreased first and then increased, and increased by 4.67% and 6.38% between2010 and 2050, respectively. Based on the calibration model and the current situation of the studied area, the multi-factor disturbance effects of coral reef communities were simulated and explored by setting up three scenarios involving fishing policy, terrestrial deposition, and inorganic nitrogen emissions. Among them, in the single factor disturbance, the fishing policy exerts the most direct impact on the community decline; and the succession phenomenon is obvious; the terrestrial sedimentation has a faster and more integrated effect on the community decline; the effect of inorganic nitrogen emission on the community decline is relatively slow. In the double/multi-factor disturbance, the superimposed disturbance will aggravate the multi-source feedback effect of the coral reef communities development, accelerate the community decay rate, and make its development trajectory more complicated and diverse. This method provides a scientific and feasible method for simulating the damage of long-term coral reef community and exploring the development law and adaptive management of coral reef ecosystems. In the future, it can be further studied in the ecological restoration process and decisionmaking direction of coral reefs.     

华南农田下垫面地气交换和能量收支的观测研究

利用2004年11月至12月在广东省惠州地区进行的湍流连续观测资料,分析非均匀农田近地面层的基本气象要素特征以及水汽和CO2的浓度与通量输送规律,作为今后深入探讨地表非均匀性效应的基础.通过各辐射分量和感热、潜热与土壤热通量的特征分析,研究能量收支的基本状况,并讨论了造成显著能量"不平衡"的原因.观测的基本结果是:(1)近地面1.8 m高度处以北风为主,风速大多低于2 m/s,正午入射太阳辐射约700 W/m2;CO2浓度的日变化范围为600～900 mg/m3,水汽为5～25 g/m3.(2)各气象要素呈现明显的日变化,当地温度日较差约10℃,相对湿度始终高于50%.CO2和水汽的浓度在夜间较白天高,二者的日平均值为713.7 mg/m3和15.9 g/m3;利用涡旋相关法,测得二者的通量在白天高于夜间,日平均值为25.3 mg·m-2·s-1和-4.7×10-2mg·m-2·s.当地的日平均波文(Bowen)比仅为0.04,这主要是由于当地的高湿度造成的.(3)当地存在显著的能量"不平衡"现象,正午时的差额热通量可高达150 W/m2,这可能与平均垂直运动输送的作用、观测误差以及通量和辐射观测的"源地"不匹配等原因有关.研究结果与荒漠、城市和稻田下垫面的观测事实进行了定量比较.     

对海洋科学的认识与实践

"热带西太平洋海洋系统物质能量交换及其影响"是中国科学院海洋领域投入最大、参加人员最多的一个海洋科学先导项目,该项目使我们第一次有机会从海洋系统角度研究中国近海到西太平洋的一些海洋前沿问题。来自物理、化学、生物、地质和大气等不同学科的科学家们围绕共同的问题,在同一个区域、从不同方向开展协同研究。目前,海洋先导专项已在深海探索与研究、海洋能力建设、科考平台建设、技术队伍建设、科研与技术有机融合的体系建设和海洋前沿探索方面取得一系列突破,为全面、综合地开展深海资源的探测与近海生态安全研究奠定了重要基础。海洋先导专项更多系统性、有影响力的成果将在未来不断涌现出来。     

Communicating research on the economic valuation of coastal and marine ecosystem services

Quantifying the monetary value of ecosystem services (ES) provided by coastal and marine resources can help policy makers assess the trade-offs and synergies inherent in ecosystem-based management of marine and coastal environments, thus increasing the social efficiency of decision-making processes. As shown by the valuation literature, the number of coastal and marine management settings where valuation researchers have attempted to make a contribution is rising fast. However, this rise in research activity has not been matched by the increase in the use of economic valuation (EV) in the actual management of coastal and marine resources. This raises an interesting question: is EV responding to the needs of policy makers? This paper provides a comprehensive overview of the knowledge base regarding the economic values for coastal and marine ecosystems. It then discusses how to improve the uptake of ES valuation research by focussing on two core issues which are thought to be essential for more effective communication with the policy community.     

辽宁海洋生态系统恶化的经济学阐释

文章在辨析和定义海洋生态系统概念的基础上,分析辽宁海洋生态系统的恶化态势,主要体现在过度捕捞导致的海洋生物资源衰退,陆源污染、养殖污染和油类污染导致的海洋水体环境污染以及填海造地和海岸侵蚀等导致的海岸生态系统弱化。进而,从公地悲剧理论、环境库兹涅茨理论、外部性理论和产权理论4个维度做出具体的经济学阐释,阐明海洋生态系统恶化态势与经济开发行为之间的关系。     

Predatory pelagic fishes of the Bijagós Archipelago (Guinea-Bissau) show high overlap in diets dominated by sardinella

Knowledge of trophic interactions between the key components of marine communities is required to understand food-web dynamics and develop ecosystem-based management approaches. In West Africa, where fisheries sustain the livelihoods of a significant part of the human population, this understanding is even more urgent, especially in the face of rapidly expanding fisheries and some stock collapses in the region. We studied the feeding ecology of the Crevalle jack Caranx hippos, West African Spanish mackerel Scomberomorus tritor and Guinean barracuda Sphyraena afra in the Bijagós Archipelago, Guinea-Bissau. These are the most abundant pelagic predatory teleost fishes in the area, but little is known about their ecology despite being species with commercial and recreational value, and they likely also play an important role in various African coastal ecosystems. Our findings show a high degree of dietary overlap among these three predator species, despite some degree of segregation by prey size and type. All three predators depend on Sardinella maderensis as the most important prey, which together with other members of the Clupeidae represented 47–96% of the ingested prey items. There was little difference in the diets of the predators between the dry and rainy seasons. These novel findings suggest a ‘wasp-waist’-structured ecosystem in the Bijagós Archipelago in which S. maderensis is the central small-sized pelagic fish species, and stress the need for an ecosystem-based approach to fisheries management in the region, with precautionary measures taken to avoid the overexploitation of clupeids.