Wetland hydroperiod classification in the western prairies using multitemporal synthetic aperture radar

Wetlands represent one of the world's most biodiverse and threatened ecosystem types and were diminished globally by about two‐thirds in the 20th century. There is continuing decline in wetland quantity and function due to infilling and other human activities. In addition, with climate change, warmer temperatures and changes in precipitation and evapotranspiration are reducing wetland surface and groundwater supplies, further altering wetland hydrology and vegetation. There is a need to automate inventory and monitoring of wetlands, and as a study system, we investigated the Shepard Slough wetlands complex, which includes numerous wetlands in urban, suburban, and agricultural zones in the prairie pothole region of southern Alberta, Canada. Here, wetlands are generally confined to depressions in the undulating terrain, challenging wetlands inventory and monitoring. This study applied threshold and frequency analysis routines for high‐resolution, single‐polarization (HH) RADARSAT‐2, synthetic aperture radar mapping. This enabled a growing season surface water extent hyroperiod‐based wetland classification, which can support water and wetland resource monitoring. This 3‐year study demonstrated synthetic aperture radar‐derived multitemporal open‐water masks provided an effective index of wetland permanence class, with overall accuracies of 89% to 95% compared with optical validation data, and RMSE between 0.2 and 0.7 m between model and field validation data. This allowed for characterizing the distribution and dynamics of 4 marsh wetlands hydroperiod classes, temporary, seasonal, semipermanent, and permanent, and mapping of the sequential vegetation bands that included emergent, obligate wetland, facultative wetland, and upland plant communities. Hydroperiod variation and surface water extent were found to be influenced by short‐term rainfall events in both wet and dry years. Seasonal hydroperiods in wetlands were particularly variable if there was a decrease in the temporary or semipermanent hydroperiod classes. In years with extreme rain events, the temporary wetlands especially increased relative to longer lasting wetlands (84% in 2015 with significant rainfall events, compared with 42% otherwise).     

Pollen-based reconstructions of Holocene vegetation and climatic change of Tibetan Plateau

A synthesis of Holocene pollen records from the Tibetan Plateau shows the history of vegetation and climatic changes during the Holocene. Palynological evidences from 24 cores/sections have been compiled and show that the vegetation shifted from subalpine/alpine conifer forest to subalpine/alpine evergreen sclerophyllous forest in the southeastern part of the plateau; from alpine steppe to alpine desert in the central, western and northern part; and from alpine meadow to alpine steppe in the eastern and southern plateau regions during the Holocene. These records show that increases in precipitation began about 9 ka from the southeast, and a wide ranging level of increased humidity developed over the entire of the plateau around 8-7 ka, followed by aridity from 6 ka and a continuous drying over the plateau after 4-3 ka. The changes in Holocene climates of the plateau can be interpreted qualitatively as a response to orbital forcing and its secondary effects on the Indian Monsoon which expanded northwards     

Rapid Lateglacial tree population dynamics and ecosystem changes in the eastern Baltic region

A growing body of evidence implies that the concept of 'treeless tundra' in eastern and northern Europe fails to explain the rapidity of Lateglacial and postglacial tree population dynamics of the region, yet the knowledge of the geographic locations and shifting of tree populations is fragmentary. Pollen, stomata and plant macrofossil stratigraphies from Lake Kurjanovas in the poorly studied eastern Baltic region provide improved knowledge of ranges of north‐eastern European trees during the Lateglacial and subsequent plant population responses to the abrupt climatic changes of the Lateglacial/Holocene transition. The results prove the Lateglacial presence of tree populations (Betula, Pinus and Picea) in the eastern Baltic region. Particularly relevant is the stomatal and plant macrofossil evidence showing the local presence of reproductive Picea populations during the Younger Dryas stadial at 12 900–11 700 cal. a BP, occurring along with Dryas octopetala and arctic herbs, indicating semi‐open vegetation. The spread of Pinus–Betula forest at ca. 14 400 cal. a BP, the rise of Picea at ca. 12 800 cal. a BP and the re‐establishment of Pinus–Betula forest at ca. 11 700 cal. a BP within a span of centuries further suggest strikingly rapid, climate‐driven ecosystem changes rather than gradual plant succession on a newly deglaciated land. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Interpolating paleovegetation data with an artificial neural network approach

To drive an atmospheric general circulation model (AGCM), land surface boundary conditions like albedo and morphological roughness, which depend on the vegetation type present, have to be prescribed. For the late Quaternary there are some data available, but they are still sparse. Here an artificial neural network approach to assimilate these paleovegetation data is investigated. In contrast to a biome model the relation between climatological parameters and vegetation type is not based on biological knowledge but estimated from the available vegetation data and the AGCM climatology at the corresponding locations. For a test application, a data set for the modern vegetation reduced to the amount of data available for the Holocene climate optimum (about 6000 years B.P.) is used. From this, the neural network is able to reconstruct the complete global vegetation with a kappa value of 0.56. The most pronounced errors occur in Australia and South America in areas corresponding to large data gaps.     

Rapid vegetation change during the early Holocene in the Faroe Islands detected in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems

High‐resolution pollen, plant macrofossil and sedimentary analyses from early Holocene lacustrine sediments on the Faroe Islands have detected a significant vegetation perturbation suggesting a rapid change in climate between ca. 10 380 cal. yr BP and the Saksunarvatn ash (10 240±60 cal. yr BP). This episode may be synchronous with the decline in δ¹⁸O values in the Greenland ice‐cores. It also correlates with a short, cold event detected in marine cores from the North Atlantic that has been ascribed to a weakening of thermohaline circulation associated with the sudden drainage of Lake Agassiz into the northwest Atlantic, or, alternatively, a period with distinctly decreased solar forcing. The vegetation sequence begins at ca. 10 500 cal. yr BP with a succession from tundra to shrub‐tundra and increasing lake productivity. Rapid population increases of aquatic plants suggest high summer temperatures between 10 450 and 10 380 cal. yr BP. High pollen percentages, concentrations and influx of Betula, Juniperus and Salix together with macrofossil leaves indicate shrub growth around the site during the initial phases of vegetation colonisation. Unstable conditions followed ca. 10 380 cal. yr BP that changed both the upland vegetation and the aquatic plant communities. A decrease in percentage values of shrub pollen is recorded, with replacement of both aquatics and herbaceous plants by pioneer plant communities. An increase in total pollen accumulation rates not seen in the concentration data suggests increased sediment delivery. The catchment changes are consistent with less seasonal, moister conditions. Subsequent climatic amelioration reinitiated a warmth‐driven succession and catchment stabilisation, but retained high precipitation levels influencing the composition of the post‐event communities. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

不整合运移通道类型及输导油气特征

在对不整合空间结构特征研究的基础上,提出了油气沿不整合运移的通道类型:宏观上,存在由不整合面之上底砾岩和不整合面之下半风化岩石两种高效运载层组合成的双运移通道型和单运移通道型两种通道类型;微观上,底砾岩连通孔隙、半风化岩石构造卸荷风化裂缝系统及溶蚀孔洞系统可作为油气运移的主要通道。通过对不整合面上、下岩石物性分析,认为半风化岩石“孔洞缝”系统较底砾岩连通孔隙有更高的输导油气的能力。研究结果表明,不同的运移通道类型具有不同的输导油气特征。在地史时期,构造裂缝系统和溶蚀孔洞系统一直是不整合输导油气的主要通道;对于软地层构成的不整合来说,开始应是卸荷、风化裂缝系统和底砾岩连通孔隙共同构成不整合输导油气的主要通道,当上覆沉积载荷达到一定程度后,主要是底砾岩连通孔隙起输导油气通道作用;对于脆硬地层构成的不整合来说,卸荷、风化裂缝系统和底砾岩连通孔隙一直是不整合输导油气的主要通道。     

大同盆地孔隙地下水化学场的分带规律性研究

本文通过对大同盆地2004年孔隙地下水水化学资料的分析发现,盆地内孔隙地下水的水化学特征在水平方向上具有以盆地中部为中心,呈环状分布的特点,且与盆地水动力分区具有很好的一致性。由山前冲洪积倾斜平原到中部冲湖积平原,地下水依次经历了补给区、径流区和排泄区,相应的主要水化学类型分别为HCO3型、HCO3.SO4型和HCO3.SO4.Cl型。与中深层孔隙水相比,浅层孔隙水由于水位埋深浅,蒸发浓缩强烈,易受人类活动的影响,各组分的含量较高,变化幅度较大,水化学类型也相对复杂。浅层地下水的水质呈好转趋势,深层地下水水质基本保持稳定。     

岩石破坏前后曲线分类及脆-延转换围压研究——蚀变岩常规三轴压缩试验Ⅰ

蚀变岩是工程中少见的软弱岩类,在西南某重大水电工程中,蚀变岩处于工程的重要部位,为保证工程的长期稳定性,对蚀变岩力学特性进行了深入全面的试验研究.通过对孔隙度不同的饱水蚀变岩进行系统的常规三轴压缩试验和总结分析,提出了蚀变岩三轴压缩下破坏前应力.应变曲线可分为3大类,破坏后应力-应变曲线亦可分为3大类的形态模式.并得出结论:蚀变岩的破坏类型受围压与孔隙度的共同影响,在给定的12 MPa围压下蚀变岩以脆性破坏为主,只有孔隙度大于16%且围压大于4 MPa时才有可能进入脆-延转换状态,且脆-延转换围压随孔隙度增加而降低,临界状态应力比随孔隙度增大而增加.     

渤、黄海假潮的气象学成因

对渤、黄海14个主要海湾的原始验潮记录进行了分析，从中筛选出水位变化幅度大于或等于50cm的54个假潮个例，着重分析了伴随假潮过程的天气形势，把可能引发假潮的天气形势归纳为4种基本类型。分析结果显示：绝大多数（92％）引发假潮的天气个例都与锋面活动有关；所有个例中低层大气基本上都是弱静力稳定，且都具有较强的垂直风速切变。根据观测事实和稳定度理论分析认为，低层大气的弱静力稳定层结构以及由垂直风速切变引起的剪切不稳定性，是假潮气象学成因的一种必要条件和物理机制。     

Depth Zonation, Micro habitat, and Morphology of Three Species of Acanthemblemaria (Pisces: Blennioidea) in the Guif of California, Mexico

Abstract. The utilization of the spatial resources of refuge type, size and depth placement is investigated in the three sympatric species of Acanthemblemaria at the cape region of Baja California, Mexico. A. balanorum occupies barnacle testes (Balanus tintinnabulum), A. macrospilus occupies barnacles and mollusk tubes (vermetid gastropods and pholadids), and A. crockeri occupies only mollusk tubes (pholadids). Refuge diameter overlap is higher than overlap in depth. A. crockeri consistently occupies depths below 5m. Competition experiments for barnacle refuges among the three species indicate that A. balanorum is a superior competitor for such refuges. Prior residency of a less superior species changes the outcome of refuge competition in its favor. The morphological specialization of A. balanorum and A. macrospilus is evident in a high correlation between head size and standard length. A. balanorum selects refuges with entrance diameters highly correlated to standard length.