Soil paludification and Sphagnum bog initiation: the influence of indurated podzolic soil and fire     

Alice Schaffhauser  Serge Payette  Michelle Garneau  Élisabeth C. Robert 《Boreas: An International Journal of Quaternary Research》2017,46(3):428-441

The initiation and growth of boreal peatlands developed on well‐drained, sandy landforms are closely associated with podzolic soil paludification processes. The origin of Sphagnum bogs extending on large deltaic plains was examined to test the hypothesis of the dual impact of indurated (ortstein) podzols and fire on forest soil paludification and concurrent peatland initiation and expansion. Mineral soil, basal organic matter and peat monoliths were sampled for soil and macrofossil analyses along an 800‐m toposequence starting from a mixed‐wood boreal forest to a Sphagnum bog (Lebel bog, eastern Quebec, Canada), and ending at a peat dome in the thickest section of the peatland. Mineral soils along the toposequence are ortstein humo‐ferric podzols distributed in the forest environment and beneath Sphagnum peat in the bog, except at the peat dome. Initial peatland growth occurred c. 6000 cal. a BP. Soil paludification coincided with the cessation of fire occurrence as recorded in the organic and mineral layers preceding Sphagnum expansion. Unlike most temperate and boreal raised bogs, the Sphagnum bog developed directly from a forest environment without passing through a transitional fen stage. Conifer forests regenerated successively after several fires between 4200 and 1600 cal. a BP before bog expansion. Pre‐bog forests were composed of fire‐prone black spruce (Picea mariana) and jack pine (Pinus banksiana) trees, and ericaceous species. Given the distribution and thickness of ortstein horizons progressively decreasing and disappearing towards the peatland dome, growth and expansion of the Sphagnum bog was not caused by soil induration processes, which could have potentially impeded vertical and horizontal drainage. The development of indurated podzols outside and several hundred metres inside the peatland preceded the initiation and expansion of the Sphagnum bog. Cessation of fire activity appears to be a key factor facilitating the lateral expansion of the Sphagnum bog under wet soil conditions.  相似文献   

Selection and quality assessment of Landsat data for the North American forest dynamics forest history maps of the US     

Karen Schleeweis  Samuel N. Goward  Chengquan Huang  John L. Dwyer  Jennifer L. Dungan  Mary A. Lindsey 《International Journal of Digital Earth》2016,9(10):963-980

Using the NASA Earth Exchange platform, the North American Forest Dynamics (NAFD) project mapped forest history wall-to-wall, annually for the contiguous US (1986–2010) using the Vegetation Change Tracker algorithm. As with any effort to identify real changes in remotely sensed time-series, data gaps, shifts in seasonality, misregistration, inconsistent radiometry and cloud contamination can be sources of error. We discuss the NAFD image selection and processing stream (NISPS) that was designed to minimize these sources of error. The NISPS image quality assessments highlighted issues with the Landsat archive and metadata including inadequate georegistration, unreliability of the pre-2009 L5 cloud cover assessments algorithm, missing growing-season imagery and paucity of clear views. Assessment maps of Landsat 5–7 image quantities and qualities are presented that offer novel perspectives on the growing-season archive considered for this study. Over 150,000+ Landsat images were considered for the NAFD project. Optimally, one high quality cloud-free image in each year or a total of 12,152 images would be used. However, to accommodate data gaps and cloud/shadow contamination 23,338 images were needed. In 220 specific path-row image years no acceptable images were found resulting in data gaps in the annual national map products.  相似文献   

Modeling the risk of spread and establishment for Asian longhorned beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis) in Massachusetts from 2008-2009     

Andrew J. Shatz  Florencia Sangermano  Jennifer Miller  Arthur Elmes 《国际地球制图》2016,31(8):813-831

Land managers responsible for invasive species removal in the USA require tools to prevent the Asian longhorned beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis) (ALB) from decimating the maple-dominant hardwood forests of Massachusetts and New England. Species distribution models (SDMs) and spread models have been applied individually to predict the invasion distribution and rate of spread, but the combination of both models can increase the accuracy of predictions of species spread over time when habitat suitability is heterogeneous across landscapes. First, a SDM was fit to 2008 ALB presence-only locations. Then, a stratified spread model was generated to measure the probability of spread due to natural and human causes. Finally, the SDM and spread models were combined to evaluate the risk of ALB spread in Central Massachusetts in 2008–2009. The SDM predicted many urban locations in Central Massachusetts as having suitable environments for species establishment. The combined model shows the greatest risk of spread and establishment in suitable locations immediately surrounding the epicentre of the ALB outbreak in Northern Worcester with lower risk areas in suitable locations only accessible through long-range dispersal from access to human transportation networks. The risk map achieved an accuracy of 67% using 2009 ALB locations for model validation. This model framework can effectively provide risk managers with valuable information concerning the timing and spatial extent of spread/establishment risk of ALB and potential strategies needed for effective future risk management efforts.  相似文献   

Seismic hazard mapping and mitigation policy development in the central USA and western China     

Zhenming Wang  Alice M. Orton  Lanmin Wang  Edward W. Woolery 《Natural Hazards》2016,81(1):387-404

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Gondwana breakup: no evidence for a Davie Fracture Zone offshore northern Mozambique,Tanzania and Kenya   总被引：1，自引：0，他引：1       下载免费PDF全文

Jennifer Klimke  Dieter Franke 《地学学报》2016,28(4):233-244

Plate tectonic reconstructions assume a major inactive transform fault, the Davie Fracture Zone, in the West Somali Basin, along which Madagascar is thought to have migrated southwards following Gondwana breakup in the Mesozoic. Based on the interpretation of reflection seismic data, we show that the Walu Ridge offshore Kenya and the Kerimbas Basin offshore northern Mozambique are tectonically unrelated to the southward motion of Madagascar and correlate with Late Cretaceous volcanism and inversion in Kenya and the evolution of the East African Rift System respectively. Offshore Tanzania, geophysical data do not show basement structures indicating the presence of a major transform fault. These results challenge the commonly supported transform margin concept and imply a more southerly pre‐breakup position of Madagascar within Gondwana. Opening of the West Somali Basin by SW‐propagating oblique rifting and seafloor spreading is proposed.  相似文献   

<Emphasis Type="Italic">Deepwater Horizon</Emphasis> Oil Spill Impacts on Salt Marsh Fiddler Crabs (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Uca</Emphasis> spp.)     

Scott Zengel  Steven C. Pennings  Brian Silliman  Clay Montague  Jennifer Weaver  Donald R. Deis  Michelle O. Krasnec  Nicolle Rutherford  Zachary Nixon 《Estuaries and Coasts》2016,39(4):1154-1163

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill was the largest marine oil spill in US waters to date and one of the largest worldwide. Impacts of this spill on salt marsh vegetation have been well documented, although impacts on marsh macroinvertebrates have received less attention. To examine impacts of the oil spill on an important marsh invertebrate and ecosystem engineer, we conducted a meta-analysis on fiddler crabs (Uca spp.) using published sources and newly available Natural Resources Damage Assessment (NRDA) and Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative (GoMRI) data. Fiddler crabs influence marsh ecosystem structure and function through their burrowing and feeding activities and are key prey for a number of marsh and estuarine predators. We tested the hypothesis that the spill affected fiddler crab burrow density (crab abundance), burrow diameter (crab size), and crab species composition. Averaged across multiple studies, sites, and years, our synthesis revealed a negative effect of oiling on all three metrics. Burrow densities were reduced by 39 % in oiled sites, with impacts and incomplete recovery observed over 2010–2014. Burrow diameters were reduced from 2010 to 2011, but appeared to have recovered by 2012. Fiddler crab species composition was altered through at least 2013 and only returned to reference conditions where marsh vegetation recovered, via restoration planting in one case. Given the spatial and temporal extent of data analyzed, this synthesis provides compelling evidence that the Deepwater Horizon spill suppressed populations of fiddler crabs in oiled marshes, likely affecting other ecosystem attributes, including marsh productivity, marsh soil characteristics, and associated predators.  相似文献   

Data-Driven Predictive Modeling of Mineral Prospectivity Using Random Forests: A Case Study in Catanduanes Island (Philippines)     

Emmanuel John M. Carranza  Alice G. Laborte 《Natural Resources Research》2016,25(1):35-50

The Random Forests (RF) algorithm is a machine learning method that has recently been demonstrated as a viable technique for data-driven predictive modeling of mineral prospectivity, and thus, it is instructive to further examine its usefulness in this particular field. A case study was carried out using data from Catanduanes Island (Philippines) to investigate further (a) if RF modeling can be used for data-driven modeling of mineral prospectivity in areas with few (i.e., <20) mineral occurrences and (b) if RF modeling can handle predictor variables with missing values. We found that RF modeling outperforms evidential belief (EB) modeling of prospectivity for hydrothermal Au–Cu deposits in Catanduanes Island, where 17 hydrothermal Au–Cu prospects are known to exist. Moreover, just like EB modeling, RF modeling allows analysis of the spatial relationships between known prospects and individual layers of predictor data. Furthermore, RF modeling can handle missing values in predictor data through an RF-based imputation technique whereas in EB modeling, missing values are simply represented by maximum uncertainty. Therefore, the RF algorithm is a potentially useful method for data-driven predictive modeling of mineral prospectivity in regions with few (i.e., <20) occurrences of mineral deposits of the type sought. However, further testing of the method in other regions with few mineral occurrences is warranted to fully determine its usefulness in data-driven predictive modeling of mineral prospectivity.  相似文献   

Where Are the Women? Accounting for Discrepancies in Female Doctorates in U.S. Geography     

David H. Kaplan  Jennifer E. Mapes 《The Professional geographer》2016,68(3):427-435

Although there have been noticeable improvements in recent years, geography continues to be a predominantly male discipline. The percentage of women receiving PhDs in geography has tracked lower than the U.S. average of female PhDs. Previous studies of women's contribution to geography have focused on personal accounts or on the study of some of the most prominent practitioners, with a few studies using basic data on PhDs awarded and Association of American Geographers membership to determine trends. This article provides a comprehensive overview of doctoral degrees in geography by gender, over time, and across all universities in the United States by examining an alternative database, that of doctoral dissertations. The analysis yields three separate types of results. First, historical and contemporary variations among U.S. universities are examined. Second, data indicate that male and female doctoral students differ in the sex of their advisor. Third, a simple regression model explains some of the discrepancies in the proportion of female doctoral students by department. In sum, this article provides a comprehensive empirical study of the factors that might contribute to the continued disparities in female doctoral students in geography.  相似文献   

The Deep Carbon Cycle: Scientific Discoveries of the Deep Carbon Observatory     

Craig M. Schiffries  Andrea Johnson Mangum  Jennifer Mays  Michelle Hoon-Starr  Robert M. Hazen 《《地质学报》英文版》2018,92(Z1):5-5

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Do Macroalgal Mats Impact Microphytobenthos on Mudflats? Evidence from a Meta-Analysis,Comparative Survey,and Large-Scale Manipulation     

Alice F. Besterman  Michael L. Pace 《Estuaries and Coasts》2018,41(8):2304-2316

Eutrophication and species introductions have resulted in increased macroalgal biomass in coastal ecosystems around the globe. Macroalgal mats may compete with microphytobenthos (MPB) for light and nutrients and, due to their position in the canopy, have a negative impact on MPB biomass. We tested this effect by conducting a meta-analysis of prior experiments, as well as a comparative survey, and a macroalgal-removal manipulation in the coastal lagoons of the Virginia Coastal Reserve (VCR) on the eastern shore of Virginia (USA). In all cases, MPB biomass was estimated using benthic chlorophyll as a proxy. While prior individual studies documented impacts of macroalgae, when effect sizes were averaged across studies, there was no consistent effect of macroalgal biomass on MPB biomass. In the VCR, a non-native red macroalga, Gracilaria vermiculophylla, dominates intertidal mats and attains high biomasses at some sites. Nevertheless, MPB biomass was unrelated to macroalgal mass based on a survey of mudflats. Further, when macroalgae were experimentally manipulated on a mudflat using a before and after impact design, there was no change in MPB. Based on the meta-analysis, survey, and manipulation we conducted, macroalgal mats do not have a generalizable effect on MPB, interactions seem context-dependent, and in the VCR, the effects on MPB appear neutral. This finding is important given the significance of MPB in supporting food webs and other estuarine ecosystem functions, as well as the increasing frequency and intensity of macroalgal blooms.  相似文献