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Table of Content
    Volume 22 Issue 3
    20 May 2014

    Deciduous shrub of Sophora moorcroftiana is the major vegetation type in the riparian zone of the middle reaches of the Yarlung Zangbo River. This species is widely distributed in arid and warm sandy habitats of the broad valley from Lazi to Zedang regions. Sophora moorcroftiana community has low species richness. La et al. studied plant species richness pattern along the Yarlung Zangbo River, and the association with environmental factors (for details see pages 337–347 of this issue). The picture shows the S. moorcroftiana community in the broad valley of the middle reaches of the Yarlung Zangbo River. (Photographed by Ciren Dunzhu)

      
    Editorial
    Rapid development of biodiversity informatics in China
    Keping Ma
    Biodiv Sci. 2014, 22 (3):  251-252.  doi:10.3724/SP.J.1003.2014.14107
    Abstract ( 1869 )   HTML ( 28 )   PDF (1353KB) ( 6003 )   Supplementary Material   Save
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    Biodiversity Informatics
    A review of marine biodiversity information resources
    Kwangtsao Shao, Han Lee, Yungchang Lin, Kunchi Lai
    Biodiv Sci. 2014, 22 (3):  253-263.  doi:10.3724/SP.J.1003.2014.14021
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    Although biodiversity of marine remains high, it increasingly suffers from human interference and destruction. The world’s largest open, online, georeferenced database is the Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS); it has information on a total of 120,000 species with 37 million records. The World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) has collected taxonomic information on 220,000 global marine species. Besides these two large databases, three single-taxa databases were established for marine organisms—FishBase, AlgaeBase, and Hexacorallians of the World. Many databases on organisms are cross-taxa and include both terrestrial and marine species, such as Encyclopedia of Life (EOL), CoL (Species 2000) , Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS), Wikispecies, ETI Bioinformatics, Barcode of Life (BOL), GenBank, Biodiversity Heritage Library (BHL), SeaLifeBase, Marine Species Identification Portal, and FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Fact Sheets. Above databases were mainly established to focus on taxonomy and species descriptions. The Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), Discover Life, AquaMaps, etc. can provide integrated ecological distribution data, user customized maps, and data for download. By changing the values of environmental factors such as water temperature and salinity in an established distribution model, the distribution of a species can be predicted with different parameters. Websites of other organizations, such as Google Earth Ocean, National Geographic, and NGOs such as ReefBase, aim to raise public awareness on ocean conservation with rich and diversified content. Google Images and Google Scholar are very useful in cooperating with keywords provided by marine biodiversity websites to complement the lack of images or references. Most of the above websites are linked to each other, and thus users can access and query data conveniently. To be useful for conservation, biodiversity databases need both to promote public usage in addition to the integration and sharing of data. In this article, we build on a speech by Rainer Froese in Paris to demonstrate how to use marine biodiversity data to conduct research on the impact of climate change on fish distribution. Finally, we also briefly introduce the status of marine biodiversity databases in Mainland China and Taiwan, including the Cross-Strait collaboration, as well as recommendations for how to link to global databases.

    Scratchpads 2.0: a virtual research environment for biodiversity sciences in the Internet era
    Lisong Wang, Vincent S Smith, Hongrui Zhang, Xianchun Zhang
    Biodiv Sci. 2014, 22 (3):  264-276.  doi:10.3724/SP.J.1003.2014.14012
    Abstract ( 1905 )   HTML ( 9 )   PDF (801KB) ( 3932 )   Supplementary Material   Save
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    We describe key features of the Scratchpads 2.0 Virtual Research Environment (VRE), which supports the creation, management and reuse of biodiversity data. This paper provides an introduction to recent developments and status of the Scratchpads 2.0 system, including its technical architecture. Key features include mechanisms to integrate individual research data and online resources, creation and management of multilingual content, license and authorization of system and data content, dynamic tracing of data editing history, research team cooperation, and methods of data paper publication. Important technical features include effective maintenance and installation of the system, ability to build distributed architecture, modularized function and development, and implementation of related information standards. These are put into a context with related biodiversity informatics tools. Scratchpads was designed with accurate role orientation, a deep understanding of taxonomic research requirements, and excellent technical solutions. All of these attributes contribute to Scratchpads’ importance to e-infrastrature in the Internet era for taxonomy, thereby providing us with a promising tool to complete ambitious projects like World Online Flora.

    Process-oriented ecological modeling approach and scientific workflow system
    Huijie Qiao, Congtian Lin, Jiangning Wang, Liqiang Ji
    Biodiv Sci. 2014, 22 (3):  277-284.  doi:10.3724/SP.J.1003.2014.13267
    Abstract ( 1978 )   HTML ( 15 )   PDF (347KB) ( 3816 )   Save
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    A scientific workflow system is designed specifically to organize, manage and execute a series of research steps, or a workflow, in a given runtime environment. The vision for scientific workflow systems is that the scientists around the world can collaborate on designing global-scaled experiments, sharing the data sets, experimental processes, and results on an easy-to-use platform. Each scientist can create and execute their own workflows and view results in real-time, and then subsequently share and reuse workflows among other scientists. Two case studies, using the Kepler system and BioVeL, are introduced in this paper. Ecological niche modeling process, which is a specialized form of scientific workflow system included in both Kepler system and BioVeL, was used to describe and discuss the features, developmental trends, and problems of scientific workflows.

    Plant DNA barcoding and framework for biodiversity data sharing platform
    Chunxia Zeng, Yanan Wang, Yuhua Wang, Hong Wang
    Biodiv Sci. 2014, 22 (3):  285-292.  doi:10.3724/SP.J.1003.2014.13268
    Abstract ( 1766 )   HTML ( 9 )   PDF (282KB) ( 3830 )   Save
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    DNA barcoding technology provides an opportunity for rapid, accurate, and standardized species-level identification using short DNA sequences. This method speeds up species identification and classification, and presents a new tool for the management, conservation and sustainable development of biodiversity at a global level. Due to improvements in plant barcode database availability and functionality, it is becoming feasible to meet increasing demands for biodiversity information. A framework is needed for a barcoding server platform that utilizes, integrates, and shares among different data types. Such a platform would be an important step towards enabling the public to rapidly identify species and acquire species-related digital information. In this paper, we review current progress on plant DNA barcoding. Secondly, we summarize the current status of, and identify bottlenecks for, plant DNA barcode reference libraries specifically. Thirdly, in the Big Data era, it is indispensable to manage and make good use of massive amounts of plant information. We provide the following suggestions for the framework of server platform: (1) metadata should be substantial, accurate and correlative; (2) data should be normalized; (3) query entrance is convenient, efficient, easy to manage, and available for large-scale data sharing and global communication.

    Sharing and publishing of biodiversity data: recent trends and future suggestions
    Xiaolei Huang, Gexia Qiao
    Biodiv Sci. 2014, 22 (3):  293-301.  doi:10.3724/SP.J.1003.2014.13269
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    Biodiversity research, conservation practices, natural resource management, and scientific decision-making increasingly depend on the sharing and integration of large amounts of primary data. In recent years, there has been an appeal increased sharing of biodiversity data, however, many scientists actively or passively resist sharing data. Some major cultural and technological obstacles exist among scientists, such as keeping data private to conduct other analyses, conflicts of interests with colleagues, lack of benefits, unfamiliarity with public databases, lack of user-friendly data submission tools, and lack of time and funding. One solution to improve the culture of data sharing is to provide benefits to scientists who share data (e.g. data citations). Recently, some organizations and scientists have advocated data publishing under peer review as a reward mechanism for individuals involved in data creation, management and sharing, and as a way to effectively increase the use and reuse of data. New data journals have been launched to fulfill the function of publishing data. In fact, besides the advocate of scholarly publication of data, an improved joint data archiving policy by databases and scientific journals may be more practically feasible to improve data sharing in a broader sense. In this article we review recent progress in data sharing and publishing and discuss to what extent data papers can boost data sharing and how to define ‘data sharing’ and ‘data publishing’. We also provide suggestions for improving data sharing by individual scientists, data repositories, journals, and funding agencies/institutions.

    Marine Biodiversity Special Feature
    The variation of biodiversity of macrobenthic fauna with salinity and water depth near the Pearl Estuary of the northern South China Sea
    Jinghuai Zhang
    Biodiv Sci. 2014, 22 (3):  302-310.  doi:10.3724/SP.J.1003.2014.13141
    Abstract ( 2196 )   HTML ( 8 )   PDF (584KB) ( 2508 )   Save
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    To study the relationship between macrobenthic fauna and environmental factors, we investigated four transects from coast to deep-sea waters near the Pearl Estuary in the northern South China Sea from July -August 2006 (Summer, wet season), April-May 2007 (Spring, normal water season), and October-December 2007 (Autumn, dry season). A total of 273 species, 256 species and 148 species were identified in spring, summer and autumn, respectively. Macrobenthic fauna belonging to the Annelida phylum had the greatest species richest, followed by Arthropoda, Mollusca, and Echinodermata. The species richness, abundance and biomass of macrobenthic fauna increased from estuary sites to coastal sites, and decreased from coastal sites to deep-sea sites. The Shannon-Wiener index of macrobenthic fauna was higher in coastal sites than those in estuary and deep-sea sites. The species evenness of macrobenthic fauna was the highest in deep-sea sites, followed by coast and estuary sites. The k-dominance curves of macrobenthic fauna were higher in estuary and deep-sea sites than that in coastal sites. These results show that the macrobenthic biodiversity was the highest in coastal sites. Species richness, abundance, and biomass of macrobenthic fauna are negatively correlated with water depth in spring and autumn, but only biomass of macrobenthic fauna is negatively correlated with water depth in summer. The species richness, abundance, Shannon-Wiener index, and species evenness of macrobenthic fauna are positively correlated with salinity in the bottom of the water column in summer, but are not correlated in spring and autumn.

    Spatial and temporal variations of invertebrate community in the Yangtze River Estuary and its adjacent waters
    Yong Xu, Weiwei Xian, Wenlong Li
    Biodiv Sci. 2014, 22 (3):  311-319.  doi:10.3724/SP.J.1003.2014.13173
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    In order to study the spatial and temporal variations of invertebrate community structure and diversity in the Yangtze River Estuary and its adjacent waters, we investigated invertebrate populations using fixed double bottom trawling during the springs of 1999-2012. Results show that: (1) there were 41 invertebrate species recorded, belonging to 6 classes, 10 orders, and 23 families. Crustaceans were the most recorded species (26 species), followed by mollusks (13 species). The number of recorded species decreased over the sampling period; (2) dominant invertebrates included Loligo japonica, Portunus trituberculatus, Palaemon gravieri, and Trachypenaeus curvirostris. There was significant inter-annual variation but Loligo japonica was the most dominant species across the sampling period; (3) there was significant inter-annual variation in invertebrate abundance, species richness and diversity in the estuary. Abundance, species richness and diversity peaked in 1999 and 2001, and increased after 2004; (4) there were 2 or 3 species assemblages in the estuary, which had different indicator species; (5) the temporal variation in the invertebrate community can be divided into three distinct periods. 1999-2001 featured high species diversity, 2004-2007 saw a decrease to the lowest species diversity, and by 2009-2012 diversity had recovered but was still below the level of 1999-2001. A decline in crab populations has resulted in the decline of overall invertebrate biomass, while deficiencies at high trophic levels has promoted a diversification of invertebrate diet.

    Distribution and community characteristics of planktonic copepods in the northwest coastal waters off Hainan Island
    Rouxin Sun, Yanguo Wang, Guangshan Lian, Mao Lin
    Biodiv Sci. 2014, 22 (3):  320-328.  doi:10.3724/SP.J.1003.2014.13137
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    We analyzed the structure, distribution, and seasonal changes of planktonic copepod communities, as well as their relationships with environmental factors using data collected from 21 stations in the northwest coastal waters off Hainan Island between November 2008 and July 2009. A total of 44 species of planktonic copepods was identified, with 25, 23, 22, and 23 species found in autumn (November), winter (January), spring (April) and summer (July), respectively. The dominant species were mainly warm water species, such as Canthocalanus pauper, Subeucalanus subcrassus, Temora turbinate, Acartia spinicauda, Calanopia elliptica and Euchaeta concinna, etc. There were significant changes in copepod abundance among seasons; total copepod abundance was highest in winter with 409 ind./m3, followed by autumn with 144 ind./m3, spring with 55 ind./m3 and summer with 17 ind./m3, respectively. Distributional data showed that an area of high copepod density appeared in the southern portion of the study area in winter, while there was an area of high copepod density in the center of the survey area in autumn. Copepod abundance was higher in deeper waters, and lower in the coastal areas in spring and summer. Species diversity index was highest in summer and followed by spring, autumn and winter in turn. The evenness index of spring and summer copepod communities was higher than those of autumn and winter. The structure of these planktonic copepod communities reflects tropical and subtropical floristic characteristics. Species composition varied significantly with season, and copepod abundance was noticeably affected by water temperature and diatom cell abundance. We detected no obvious correlationship between copepod abundance and salinity.

    Taxonomy and morphological identification of Pyrocystaceae (Pyrocystales, Dinophyta) species on the coasts of China
    Yulong Pan, Ruixiang Li, Shuang Liu, Sheng Zhao, Yiting Liu
    Biodiv Sci. 2014, 22 (3):  329-336.  doi:10.3724/SP.J.1003.2014.13249
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    Taxonomic studies on the family Pyrocystaceae are scarce because of the group’s special life cycle and complicated taxonomic history. In this study, a detailed literature review of Pyrocystaceae is presented, and cysts of 11 species belonging to Pyrocystaceae are studied using morphological taxonomy methods. We believe that one species should be moved to genus Dissodinium, the remaining 10 species (including 2 varieties and 2 formas) are more reasonably kept in genus Pyrocystis. We also present a morphological description of each species. Furthermore, we believe that the taxonomic relationships between Dissodinium pseudolunula and Pyrocystis lunula, P. elegans and P. robusta require further study.

    Plant species-richness and association with environmental factors in the riparian zone of the Yarlung Zangbo River of Tibet, China
    La Qiong, Zhaxi Ciren, Weidong Zhu, Min Xu, Yang Zhong
    Biodiv Sci. 2014, 22 (3):  337-347.  doi:10.3724/SP.J.1003.2014.13186
    Abstract ( 2228 )   HTML ( 19 )   PDF (798KB) ( 4208 )   Supplementary Material   Save
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    Studying patterns of species richness and their causal factors remain important topics in ecology. How species composition, richness and vegetation type change along environmental gradients within the riparian zone of Yarlung Zangbo River have been relatively little studied. Here, a total of 90 plots (6 plots×15 altitudinal transects) were sampled along an altitudinal gradient within this riparian zone. A total of 238 species of vascular plants were recorded, and results of a Detrended Correspondence Analysis indicated that both altitude and longitude play important roles in determining species composition. Canonical Correspondence Analysis showed that the 90 plots could be divided into five vegetation types, and that these vegetation types were affected most by altitude and longitude. We found a slightly inverted U-shaped relationship between species richness and altitude and longitude. Species richness was positively correlated with precipitation and vegetation cover.

    Original Papers
    Species abundance–distribution relationship and its interpretation in plant communities on the Songnen grasslands, China
    Dayong Han, Yunfei Yang
    Biodiv Sci. 2014, 22 (3):  348-357.  doi:10.3724/SP.J.1003.2014.13190
    Abstract ( 2165 )   HTML ( 7 )   PDF (706KB) ( 3604 )   Supplementary Material   Save
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    The species abundance–distribution relationship (SAD) is a key issue in biodiversity science, yet there is no consensus about the mechanism that shape the SAD. The two most widely-recognized explanations are Brown’s niche breadth hypothesis and metapopulation dynamics theory. To test these two hypotheses on the Songnen grasslands, we investigated plant species growth-form composition and interpatch distance in Leymus chinensis–forb community patches in 2007 and 2008. We employed a growth-form adaption index (GAI), a measure of species adaptation, as a surrogate for species niche breadth and employed shortest distance to nearest patch to indicate the dispersal and colonization process of plant species. Two-year data showed that a species’ local abundance was positively correlated with this species’ regional distribution. Furthermore, the SAD showed no obvious variation among years. Both abundance and distribution of a species were closely correlated with plant growth-form; species with higher abundance and wider distributions were mainly comprised of rhizomatous root, erect grass-like stem, or erect dicot stem growth forms. By contrast, species with lower abundance and narrow distributions were mainly comprised of basal rosette stem or bushy root growth forms. GAI was both positively and linearly correlated with abundance and distribution of a species. A few species were distributed widely, whereas most species were distributed more narrowly. This result directly supports the niche breadth hypothesis. Shortest distance to nearest patch exhibited a negative power-law correlation with both abundance and distribution of a species, whereas no correlation was detected between species composition similarity index and distance of patch pairs, results which failed to support the metapopulation dynamic theory. We argue that dispersal processes may be an important potential mechanism for shaping the SAD relationship of the plant communities in Songnen Leymus chinensis meadows.

    Recovery dynamics of secondary forests with different disturbance intensity in the Gutianshan National Nature Reserve
    Yuanjie Xu, Dunmei Lin, Xiangcheng Mi, Haibao Ren, Keping Ma
    Biodiv Sci. 2014, 22 (3):  358-365.  doi:10.3724/SP.J.1003.2014.13202
    Abstract ( 1848 )   HTML ( 13 )   PDF (544KB) ( 1895 )   Supplementary Material   Save
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    Understanding the underlying processes of secondary forest recovery after disturbances such as logging is essential for biodiversity conservation and ecosystem rehabilitation. We surveyed 12 forest plots (1 ha in size) with different extents of anthropogenic disturbances in the Gutianshan National Nature Reserve and explored the community dynamics of secondary forest recovery by applying multivariate statistical ana- lysis. We found significant differences in community composition among various recovery phases, whereas high similarities of community composition were observed within the same recovery phase. No significant difference in species richness was observed among recovery stages, but species richness tended to increase during the recovery process. Species evenness in Chinese fir forests was relatively low whereas no significant difference occurred in other forests. The main differences in community composition and species diversity were found in the canopy layer. Respective indicator species were found in shrubs and regeneration layers during different recovery phases. The most representative indicator species were deciduous shrubs or heliophilous trees for plantation forests of Chinese fir, evergreen shrubs or small trees for young secondary forests, sub-canopy evergreen trees for old secondary forests, and canopy species for old-growth forests, respectively. Overall, species diversity recovered rigorously. Also the life-form composition of saplings in the same recovery phase presented consistent trends in spite of complex and unpredictable changes in species composition during the recovery process.

    Change in weed seed bank diversity over 13 consecutive years of rice- duck and straw returning farming system in the rice-wheat rotated wheat fields
    Can Zhao, Weimin Dai, Shushun Li, Shouhui Wei, Jiguang Wei, Chaobin Zhang, Sheng Qiang
    Biodiv Sci. 2014, 22 (3):  366-374.  doi:10.3724/SP.J.1003.2014.13264
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    Research has shown that rice-duck farming systems can effectively control weed infestations in rice paddy fields, but it remains elusive how this type of system influences the dynamics and density of weeds in wheat fields. In order to explore the diversity of weeds in wheat field seed banks, we conducted a long-term experiment (13 consecutive years) to observe changes in weed seed bank diversity in rice-wheat rotated wheat fields in Danyang, Jiangsu Province. Results showed that the density of weed seeds in wheat field seed banks decreased continuously. The seed density of 18 weed species, including Alopecurus aequalis, Mazus japonicus, and Cardamine hirsuta, all decreased gradually with some annual fluctuations, and the overall rate of decrease for seeds of all weed species was 97%. Furthermore, rice-duck and wheat rotation farming decreased the richness, diversity, and evenness of weed species in wheat fields. Ecological indices implied a gradual change, which included fewer species, lower density, and lower diversity after adopting rice-duck and wheat return farming. The same conclusions could be drawn from both Jaccard’s similarity indices and Bray-Curtis coefficient of weed communities in wheat fields. Consecutive implementation of rice-duck and wheat rotation farming can significantly decrease both density and biodiversity of weeds in the seed bank of these ecosystems.

    Microsatellite genetic diversity and fine-scale spatial genetic structure within a natural stand of Liriodendron chinense (Magnoliaceae) in Lanmushan, Duyun City, Guizhou Province
    Aihong Yang, Jinju Zhang, Hua Tian, Xiaohong Yao, Hongwen Huang
    Biodiv Sci. 2014, 22 (3):  375-384.  doi:10.3724/SP.J.1003.2014.14013
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    The Chinese tulip tree (Liriodendron chinense), an endangered species scattered throughout subtropical China and northern Vietnam, suffers from severe habitat fragmentation. Understanding the genetic diversity and fine-scale spatial genetic structure (SGS) of fragmented populations is critical for developing successful conservation strategies for endangered species. In this study, we investigated the population genetic diversity and fine-scale spatial genetic structure in a wild, fragmented population of L. chinense using 13 polymorphic microsatellite loci. No significant differences in genetic diversity were found among habitat fragments or age classes (P > 0.05). Two genetically heterogeneous subpopulations were revealed through Bayesian assignment analysis and Principal Coordinates Analysis (PCoA). Significant SGS was found within the whole population within 200 m, while weak spatial aggregation of related individuals in the two subpopulations was found within 20 m. SGS intensity was weak in this population (Sp = 0.0090), and it was stronger in the village subpopulation (Sp = 0.0067) than in the hill subpopulation (Sp = 0.0053). Liriodendron chinense is a predominantly outcrossing tree and its winged seeds are wind-dispersed, a fact that may reduce SGS intensity in the species. Furthermore, low population density and flat hypsography also likely influence the SGS of L. chinense. The presence of significant heterozygote deficiency in the population (FIS = 0.099, P < 0.01) suggests a genetic signal of habitat fragmentation. Therefore, measures for promoting pollen flow should be taken for in situ conservation. For ex situ conservation, individuals should be sampled at 20 m apart to efficiently capture genetic diversity of wild populations.

    Research Bulletin
    Bat species diversity and conservation in Libo World Natural Heritage Site of South China Karst
    Tianyou Yang, Xiufa Hou, Yingxiang Wang, Jiang Zhou
    Biodiv Sci. 2014, 22 (3):  385-391.  doi:10.3724/SP.J.1003.2014.13148
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    During field surveys between October, 2010 and October, 2011, we investigated bat species diversity in 69 caves in 6 townships in the Libo World Natural Heritage Site located in the South China Karst region. We also investigated bat specimens from the zoological museum of the School of Life Sciences, Guizhou Normal University, and reviewed pertinent literature as well. We uncovered 7 families encompassing 24 bat species in the area, including 2 new records of species for Guizhou Province, i.e., Myotis blythii and Hipposideros pomona, and 11 species first documented in Libo. Unfortunately, many caves have been exploited for tourism, thereby posing a great threat to the survival of cave-dwelling bats. We propose some special strategies that could be taken to protect the bats roosting in these caves.

    Effects of different amounts of straw returning treatments on soil nematode community in purple soil
    Cui Hua, Pengfei Wu, Xianjin He, Bo Zhu
    Biodiv Sci. 2014, 22 (3):  392-400.  doi:10.3724/SP.J.1003.2014.13217
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    We evaluated the effects of 4 years of straw returning (2007-2011) on the nematode communities of the purple soil area in the hilly areas of central Sichuan basin, China, using the four treatments of 100, 50, 30, and 0% of straw returned to cropland. The Baermann method was used to extract nematodes from soil samples (0-15 cm). A total of 2,380 individuals, belonging to 2 classes, 8 orders, 24 families, and 39 genera, were extracted. The dominant genera included Tylencholaimus and Prionchulus, comprising 31% of total soil nematode individuals. Our results showed that soil nematode communities differed among the four treatments. Densities of the total nematode community, and fungivores and predators-omnivores specifically exhibited greater fluctuations with reducing straw return levels, while densities of bacterivores increased with reducing straw levels. Plant-parasite density, diversity index(H'), plant-parasite index (PPI) and Wasilewska index (WI) first increased and then decreased with reduction of straw return, while genera number, free-living nematode maturity index (MI) and channel ratio (CR) presented the opposite trend. Nematode diversity index (H') was highest at 30-50% straw return levels. But there were no significant differences among treatments for all of the indexes. The content of soil available potassium, which significantly increased at the lower levels of straw return, was significantly correlated with diversity indices of nematode communities. Our results suggested that straw return management changes the nematode community through its action on the content of soil available potassium, and that level of 30-50% of straw returning were optimal in the hilly areas of central Sichuan basin in terms of maximizing nematode diversity.

    Bioinventories
    First report of Gyrodinium fusiforme and G. moestrupii (Dinophyceae) in China Sea waters
    Haifeng Gu, Zhaohe Luo, Lili Liu, Yue Gao
    Biodiv Sci. 2014, 22 (3):  401-406.  doi:10.3724/SP.J.1003.2014.13226
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    The athecate dinoflagellate genus Gyrodinium includes heterotrophic species that prey on other dinoflagellates, and thus play an important role in marine ecology. Information about the Gyrodinium diversity along the coast of China is limited. Here we report on the characteristics of two species, Gyrodinium fusiforme Kofoid & Swezy and Gyrodinium moestrupii Yoon, Kang, and Jeong that were isolated from a Karenia mikimotoi bloom sample in the East China Sea. The cells of G. fusiforme were fusiform with a length of 48.0-58.0 μm and a width of 18.0-23.0 μm. Cells of G. moestrupii were also fusiform and approximately 30 μm long and 15 μm wide. Partial large subunit (LSU) ribosomal DNA sequences were obtained from single cells of G. fusiforme and G. moestrupii and phylogenetic trees were built using maximum likelihood (ML) and Bayesian inference (BI). In the phylogenetic trees the genus Gyrodinium is monophyletic, and G. fusiforme groups together with G. fissum, but separates from G. spirale although they are similar in morphology. G. fusiforme and G. moestrupii can prey on Karenia mikimotoii and Prorocentrum dentatum respectively. The high abundance of G. fusiforme during K. mikimotoi bloom suggests it may play a role in bloom decline.

    Forums
    Major policies and measures on biodiversity adaptation to climate change: international experience and enlightenment
    Ying Liu, Yueyu Zou, Liucai Zhu, Weiling Wu, Pei Li
    Biodiv Sci. 2014, 22 (3):  407-413.  doi:10.3724/SP.J.1003.2014.13210
    Abstract ( 2075 )   HTML ( 9 )   PDF (208KB) ( 4594 )   Save
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    Climate change is a major threat to biodiversity and ecosystem services. We analyzed current policies and measures relating to biodiversity adaptation to climate change in some of the most developed countries and developing mega-biodiversity countries. Some governments recognize the great importance and urgency of action on biodiversity adaptation and have released national strategies. The most popular approach is an ecosystem-based adaptation approach, embodied by measures such as increasing landscape connectivity as well as improving management and restoration of existing protected areas to achieve higher resilience. Most governments consider climate change and its impacts on biodiversity an interdisciplinary topic, which needs continual, collaborative monitoring. Addressing the impacts of climate change also requires an assessment of the vulnerability of biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. The establishment of high-level coordination mechanisms coupled with sufficient funding is required to fully implement adaptation policies and measures. Based on these foreign experiences and current progress in China, we hereby propose the following suggestions: (1) highlight the crucial importance of a biodiversity and a well-adapted ecosystem while enabling society to adapt to climate change; (2) improve capability of integrated management of protected areas to build biodiversity and ecosystem resilience; (3) integrate comprehensive monitoring network and conduct regular and continuing assessment of the vulnerability of biodiversity to climate change in China.


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