四川盆地西缘4种人工林土壤团聚体碳氮磷生态化学计量学特征

采集四川盆地西缘都江堰灵岩山柳杉、含笑、桢楠和麻栎4种人工林两个层次(0-20 cm和20-40 cm)土壤样品,通过干筛法分离6个团聚体组分,分析各团聚体组分有机碳、全氮和全磷含量,并计算生态化学计量比值.结果显示,含笑林土壤平均碳、氮、磷含量为15.07、1.78和0.33 g/kg,总体低于其他3个森林类型;柳杉林0-20 cm土壤碳、氮、磷含量分别为20-40 cm土壤的2.38、1.72和1.51倍;而其他3种人工林土壤碳氮磷含量在两个土壤层次之间差异较小.团聚体粒径对土壤碳氮磷含量及化学计量比没有显著影响,但林型、土壤层次和团聚体之间的交互作用对土壤碳氮磷含量及其化学计量比影响显著;含笑林土壤碳氮磷化学计量比都显著低于其他3种人工林.本研究表明森林群落对土壤碳氮磷含量及其化学计量比有显著影响,而林型效应与土壤层次和团聚体粒径有关.     

寒温带兴安落叶松林土壤团聚体特征及其影响因素研究

以寒温带兴安落叶松(Larix gmelinii)林为研究对象,分析其土壤团聚体的分布及其有机碳含量特征,并探讨各土壤因子对团聚体稳定性的影响。在兴安落叶松林内设置28块30 m×30 m的样地,以0—10、10—20、20—40、40—60 cm分层取土样,测定各理化指标含量、不同粒级土壤团聚体及其有机碳含量。结果表明,兴安落叶松林土壤团聚体各粒级含量高低为(0.25—2 mm粒径)团聚体>(<0.053 mm粒径)团聚体>(0.053—0.25 mm粒径)团聚体,各粒级团聚体表层(0—10 cm)含量均显著区别于其他各层;土壤团聚体的平均质量直径(MWD)、几何平均直径(GMD)分别为0.53 mm和0.22 mm,分维数(D)为2.78,土壤团聚体稳定性较高且存在剖面差异;土壤有机碳主要分布于0.25—2 mm粒径的大团聚体中(34.51g·kg^-1),贡献率为52.10%,粒径0.053—2 mm土壤团聚体中有机碳含量最低(6.30 g·kg^-1),贡献率为16.42%;随土层深度增加,各粒级团聚体有机碳含量和0.25—2 mm团聚体有机碳贡献率逐渐减小,<0.25 mm团聚体贡献率逐渐增大,40 cm以下各粒级贡献率趋于稳定;兴安落叶松林土壤团聚体的粒径分配和稳定性受到林龄和林型的显著影响;大团聚体(0.25—2mm)含量与土壤总有机碳(SOC)呈极显著正相关关系(P<0.01),微团聚体(<0.25 mm)含量与Al、Mg等金属氧化物含量呈显著正相关关系(P<0.05);大团聚体(0.25—2 mm)含量和MWD、GMD指标与pH值呈极显著负相关关系(P<0.01),与土壤含水量、速效钾、有效磷、有机磷呈显著正相关关系(P<0.05)。综上,土壤有机质和金属氧化物分别为兴安落叶松林土壤0.25—2 mm大团聚体和<0.25 mm微团聚体的主要胶结物质,土壤水分、养分和酸碱条件对团聚体的形成和稳定产生影响。     

典型城市森林旱季土壤团聚体稳定性与微生物胞外酶活性耦合关系

为了探究典型城市森林土壤团聚体稳定性旱季变化特征及影响因子,以广州市不同演替阶段的针叶林(Pine forest,PF)、针阔混交林(Mixed pine and broadleaf forest,MF)、常绿阔叶林(Broad-leaved evergreen forests,BF)为研究对象,分析表层土(0—10 cm)和剖面土(10—30 cm)团聚体稳定性、理化性质和微生物生物量及胞外酶活性等相关因子特征,以及土壤团聚体稳定性驱动因素与影响因素的耦合关系。结果表明,(1)土壤团聚体机械稳定性的平均重量直径(D_(MW))随土壤深度增加呈减小趋势,相反,几何平均直径(D_(GM))和重量分形维数(D_m)随土壤深度增加呈增大趋势。土壤团聚体水稳性的D_(MW)和D_(GM)呈MFBFPF,而D_m变化与之相反。(2)土壤微生物酶活性易受磷限制,其受限制程度呈MFBFPF,与土壤团聚体水稳性在森林类型中变化规律一致。(3)土壤理化性质、微生物生物量、酶活性等因子对土壤团聚体机械稳定性整体空间差异解释程度为13.3%,而对土壤团聚体水稳性整体空间差异解释程度为40.0%。(4)土壤微生物熵和微生物胞外酶活性是土壤团聚体稳定性的主要驱动因子,水稳性主要受微生物生物量碳和酸性磷酸酶活性影响,而其机械稳定性主要受微生物生物量氮磷影响。(5)演替后期的针阔混交林和常绿阔叶林土壤表现出较高的碳利用效率及较低的氮利用效率,微生物可通过调控微生物生物量和调节碳氮元素利用效率来改善演替后期群落受磷限制状况,进而影响土壤团聚体稳定性。研究结果可为城市森林土壤质量评价和生态环境保护提供理论依据。     

喀斯特地区不同土地利用方式下土壤团聚体中养分和酶活性的研究——以花江为例

为探究土壤团聚体中土壤养分及酶活性的分布特征,以喀斯特地区不同土地利用方式下的灌木林地、皇竹草地、狼尾草地、花椒林地及荒草地土壤为研究对象,研究团聚体中各粒级土壤养分及酶活性的含量,分析了土壤养分与团聚体酶活性之间的相关关系.结果表明:5种不同土地利用方式下土壤养分含量在0.25 mm粒级均最高,脲酶及蔗糖酶活性表现为灌木林地皇竹草地狼尾草地花椒林地荒草地,碱性磷酸酶表现为花椒林地灌木林地皇竹草地狼尾草地荒草地;酶活性随着土壤粒级的减小逐渐增大.将团聚体的含量、养分及酶活性结合考虑,发现2—1 mm粒级团聚体中的养分含量和酶活性对土壤的贡献率最大,土壤团聚体脲酶、蔗糖酶及碱性磷酸酶均与土壤养分呈显著或极显著正相关.说明酶活性可作为土壤肥力的指标之一,且充分显示了土壤性质在不同土地利用方式下及不同粒级中的多样性.     

耕作和施肥扰动下土壤团聚体稳定性影响因素研究

稳定的土壤团聚结构对种子发芽、根系发育、作物生长以及有机碳保护有着重要的影响,深入了解人为扰动下土壤团聚体稳定性影响因素有着重要意义.选择两种不同母质发育土壤上长期施用畜禽粪便和化肥5个田块耕层土壤团聚体为供试土壤,采用相关分析、因子分析和回归分析方法探讨了土壤有机碳库、土壤养分和理化性质与团聚体稳定性间的关系.研究结果表明,与施用化肥比较,施用畜禽粪便显著提高了土壤团聚体稳定性;不同母质类型土壤上,海相沉积物母质土壤上团聚体稳定性显著高于河相冲积物母质土壤.相关分析结果表明溶解性有机碳(包括DOC和HWOC)和总磷含量与土壤团聚体稳定性显著或极显著相关;因子分析结果显示,土壤化学因子是第一影响因素,土壤碳库因子是第二影响因素,其中海相沉积物母质土壤上团聚体稳定性主要受土壤化学因子影响;河相冲积物母质土壤团聚体稳定性主要受土壤碳库因子影响,施用化肥土壤受两个因素影响均较小.回归分析结果显示热水提取态有机碳和钙是本研究条件中影响土壤团聚体稳定性的主要因素.     

改良剂对矿区复垦土壤机械稳定性团聚体及有机碳的影响

为探究不同改良剂及施用时间对矿区复垦土壤结构和肥力的影响,在襄垣煤矿复垦区设置田间微区,研究施用改良剂6个月和1年时,泥炭和腐殖酸对复垦土壤机械稳定性团聚体分布与稳定性、土壤有机碳含量及土壤红外光谱特征的影响.结果显示,施用泥炭和腐殖酸6个月时大团聚体( 0.25 mm)含量增加,施用泥炭和腐殖酸1年时大团聚体含量减少,微团聚体(0.25 mm)含量增加.施用改良剂6个月时,泥炭和腐殖酸各处理土壤平均重量直径(MWD)和几何平均直径(GMD)均高于空白对照,均以5%腐殖酸处理最高,与空白对照相比分别增`加了10.95%和22.43%;施用泥炭和腐殖酸1年时,泥炭各处理土壤MWD和GMD仍高于空白对照,腐殖酸各处理土壤MWD和GMD则均低于空白对照.施用泥炭和腐殖酸能够增加土壤总有机碳及各粒级团聚体有机碳含量.施用改良剂6个月及1年时均以5%腐殖酸处理土壤总有机碳含量最高,分别较空白对照增加了566.35%和502.59%.施用泥炭6个月和1年时土壤 0.25 mm大团聚体有机碳增量最大,而施用腐殖酸6个月和1年时土壤0.25-0.053 mm团聚体有机碳增量最大.综上所述,泥炭和腐殖酸有利于大团聚的形成,能改善团聚体的稳定性,增加土壤有机碳、碳水化合物、含氧官能团、多糖及取代芳香类物质的含量,但施用改良剂1年大团聚体含量和有机碳含量会减少,施用腐殖酸1年会降低复垦土壤团聚体稳定性.(图4表1参33)     

不同耕作方式对红壤旱地土壤理化性状及玉米产量的影响

通过田间试验,研究了免耕(T1)、翻耕(T2)、免耕+秸秆覆盖(T3)、翻耕+秸秆覆盖(T4)、翻耕+秸秆深埋(T5)5种耕作方式下土壤理化状况及玉米(Zea mays L)产量.结果表明,使用了秸秆的耕作方式(T3、T4、T5)有利于改良土壤的理化性状、提高玉米产量;翻耕与免耕相比,翻耕能改良土壤物理性状、提高土壤有机质和氮素含量、提高玉米产量,但翻耕土壤中有效磷和速效钾的含量比免耕土壤中低.T5对降低耕层土壤容重、增加土壤孔隙度、提高土壤含水量、改善土壤结构、提高有机质和氮素含量及提高玉米产量有最好的效果;T3对提高耕层土壤有效磷和速效钾含量最明显,对改善土壤结构也表现出较好的效果.因此,丘陵区红壤早地采用翻耕+秸秆深埋的耕作方式,对改良土壤理化性状,提高经济效益有重要意义.     

四川盆地西缘4种人工林土壤团聚体及有机碳特征

土壤团聚体作为土壤结构的基本单元,强烈影响着土壤物理化学性质.通过干筛法对四川盆地西缘4种人工林(柳杉林、含笑林、桢楠林和麻栎林)两个土壤层次(0-20 cm和20-40 cm)土壤团聚体及有机碳进行研究.结果表明:4种人工林土壤团聚体均以2 mm粒径为主,而0.5-0.25 mm粒径团聚体仅占1.07%-3.39%;柳杉人工林0-20 cm土壤有机碳含量比20-40 cm高2倍多,其他3种人工林两个土壤层次差异幅度相对较小;与2 mm土壤大团聚体相比,各林地微小团聚体有机碳含量相对较高.2 mm粒径团聚体对有机碳贡献率达到72%-87%.但是,较小粒径土壤团聚体有机碳储量相对较高.综上所述,就土壤团聚体及有机碳特征而言,柳杉林和麻栎林比桢楠林和含笑林更适合用于当地植被恢复.     

保护性耕作对土壤团聚体及微生物学特性的影响研究进展

土壤团聚体是土壤结构的基本单元,是评价土壤质量的重要指标之一。土壤微生物是形成土壤团聚体最活跃的生物因素。保护性耕作在中国已得到广泛应用,探析保护性耕作对土壤团聚体和土壤微生物学特性的影响,有助于农业生产的可持续发展。文章综述了不同保护性耕作方式下土壤团聚体和微生物学特性的研究进展,归纳总结了保护性耕作对土壤团聚体分布特征、稳定性、有机碳含量、酶活性和微生物多样性影响以及土壤团聚体与土壤微生物之间关系。结果表明:与传统翻耕相比,保护性耕作增加了表层土壤团聚体的平均重量直径(MWD)、几何平均重量直径(GMD)和水稳性团聚体含量,促进了土壤大团聚体的形成,提升了土壤团聚体稳定性;保护性耕作提高了表层土壤有机碳含量,有利于土壤有机碳的固定;保护性耕作能有效提高土壤酶活性,土壤酶活性在不同粒径团聚体内分布特征和活性高低存在差异;保护性耕作提高土壤微生物生物量和土壤微生物多样性,提高土壤真菌/细菌比值,使土壤微生物群落向以真菌为优势菌群的方向发展;土壤微生物含量和组成在不同粒径团聚体中存在差异,微团聚体中有更高的土壤细菌和真菌含量。针对目前研究现状,提出了因地制宜推广保护性耕作、适宜的轮耕制度、适量秸秆还田的可能性及未来的研究方向。     

复垦土壤团聚体稳定性和胶结物质对不同施肥的响应北大核心CSCD

土壤团聚体的组成和稳定性是评价土壤质量的重要指标,土壤胶结物质是团聚体形成的物质基础,两者密切相关.通过研究不同施肥处理下团聚体胶结物质含量的变化,阐明采煤塌陷区复垦土壤团聚体的分布与形成机制.设不施肥(CK)、施化肥(NPK)、单施有机肥(M)和有机无机肥配施(MNPK)4个处理,另取未复垦生土(RS)和周边未破坏多年种植的熟土(US)作为参照.采集耕层(0-20 cm)非扰动的土样,利用干筛法分析团聚体(> 2、0.25-2、0.053-0.25 mm)和粉黏粒组分(<0.053 mm)的分布比例,测定团聚体有机胶结物质(多糖、富里酸、胡敏酸和有机碳)和无机胶结物质(碳酸钙和颗粒组成)的含量.结果表明,同RS相比,各施肥处理均显著提高了> 0.25 mm机械稳定性团聚体的数量(R0.25),增幅为5.32%-5.94%,但是均显著降低了平均重量直径(mean weight diameter,MWD)(除M处理外),降幅为7.51%-9.83%,而M处理显著提高了几何平均直径(geometric mean diameter,GMD),增幅为5.65%.同CK相比,各施肥处理对大团聚体(> 0.25 mm)以及粉黏粒组分(<0.053 mm)的分布比例无显著影响,仅M和MNPK处理显著降低了微团聚体(0.053-0.25 mm)的分布比例,降幅为49.45%-62.40%.各施肥处理对富里酸含量无显著影响.NPK处理仅显著降低了土壤有机碳含量.M处理显著提高了土壤有机碳和碳酸钙含量,却显著降低了土壤黏粒含量.而MNPK处理显著提高了土壤各胶结物质含量(除富里酸和黏粒外).胶结物质与机械稳定性团聚体的分布比例和稳定性的冗余分析结果表明,各胶结物质中,仅胡敏酸对机械稳定性团聚体的分布比例和稳定性变化的解释率达到了显著水平(P <0.05),能够解释57.1%机械稳定性团聚体的分布比例和稳定性变化,并且其单独贡献率为75.9%.综上所述,经过6年培肥,同未复垦土壤相比,各施肥处理显著提高了大团聚体的数量,但同周边农田土壤相比,仍有待进一步培肥提高团聚体稳定性;MNPK处理是提高该复垦土壤有机胶结物质含量最有效的措施,胡敏酸是影响该复垦土壤机械稳定性团聚体的分布比例和稳定性变化的唯一显著的胶结物质.(图5表6参36)     

Rapid,recurring, structured survey versus bioblitz for generating biodiversity data and analysis with a multispecies abundance model

A bioblitz inexpensively and quickly generates biodiversity data, but bioblitzes are often conducted with haphazard, unreplicated sampling. Results tend to be taxonomically, geographically, or temporally biased, lack metadata, and consist of lists of observed taxa that do not enable further analyses or correction for imperfect detection. A rapid, recurring, structured survey (RRSS) uses a structured sampling design and temporal and spatial replication to survey randomly selected sites on a conservation property. We participated in a loosely structured bioblitz and a subsequent RRSS at Big Canoe Creek Nature Preserve in Springville (St. Clair County), Alabama (USA) to compare observed richness derived from the 2 survey approaches. The RRSS data structure enabled us to fit models that accounted for imperfect detection to estimate abundances, occupancy probabilities, and habitat associations. The loosely structured bioblitz data could not be used in such models. We present a new integrated multispecies abundance model that we applied to avian RRSS data. Our model extension enables estimation for the community, employs data augmentation to estimate the number of undetected species, and incorporates covariates. The RRSS generated a more comprehensive and less biased list of observed taxonomic richness than the loosely structured bioblitz (e.g., 73 vs. 45 bird species and 104 vs. 63 insect families from the RRSS vs. loosely structured bioblitz, respectively). Models fit to the RRSS data identified seasonal patterns in avian community composition and allowed for estimation of habitat–occupancy relationships for insect taxa. The RRSS protocol has potential for broad transferability as a standardized, quick, and inexpensive way to inventory biodiversity and estimate ecological parameters while providing an outreach opportunity.     

Compliance with and ecosystem function of biodiversity offsets in North American and European freshwaters

Land-use change via human development is a major driver of biodiversity loss. To reduce these impacts, billions of dollars are spent on biodiversity offsets. However, studies evaluating offset project effectiveness that examine components such as the overall compliance and function of projects remain rare. We reviewed 577 offsetting projects in freshwater ecosystems that included the metrics project size, type of aquatic system (e.g., wetland and creek), offsetting measure (e.g., enhancement, restoration, and creation), and an assessment of the projects’ compliance and functional success. Project information was obtained from scientific and government databases and gray literature. Despite considerable investment in offsetting projects, crucial problems persisted. Although compliance and function were related to each other, a high level of compliance did not guarantee a high degree of function. However, large projects relative to area had better function than small projects. Function improved when projects targeted productivity or specific ecosystem features and when multiple complementary management targets were in place. Restorative measures were more likely to achieve targets than creating entirely new ecosystems. Altogether the relationships we found highlight specific ecological processes that may help improve offsetting outcomes.     

Representation of the world's biophysical conditions by the global protected area network

Protected areas (PAs) are often implemented without consideration of already existing PAs, which is likely to cause an overrepresentation of certain biophysical conditions. We assessed the representativeness of the current PA network with regard to the world's biophysical conditions to highlight which conditions are underprotected and where these conditions are located. We overlaid terrestrial and marine PAs with information on biophysical conditions (e.g., temperature, precipitation, and elevation) and then quantified the percentage of area covered by the PA network. For 1 variable at a time in the terrestrial realm, high temperature, low precipitation, and medium and very high elevation were underrepresented. For the marine realm, low and medium sea surface temperature (SST), medium and high sea surface salinity (SSS), and the deep sea were underrepresented. Overall, protection was evenly distributed for elevation across the terrestrial realm and SST across the marine realm. For 2 variables at a time, cold and very dry terrestrial environments had mostly low protection, which was also the case for low SST and low and medium SSS across most depths for marine environments. Low protection occurred mostly in the Sahara and the Arabian Peninsula for the terrestrial realm and along the Tropic of Capricorn and toward the poles for the marine realm. Although biodiversity measures are of prime importance for the design of PA networks, highlighting biophysical gaps in current PAs adds a frequently overlooked perspective. These gaps may weaken the potential of PAs to conserve biodiversity. Thus, our results may provide useful insights for researchers, practitioners, and policy makers to establish a more comprehensive global PA network.     

Quantitative composition of the defensive secretion ofBledius species (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Oxytelinae) is adapted to naturally occurring predators

Summary The adaptation of defensive secretions to their target organisms was examined for the abdominal gland secretions ofBledius furcatus, B. spectabilis andB. arenarius. Therefore the target organisms of the secretion of theseBledius species (i.e. their predators) had to be identified. At the collection sites examined these were the earwigLabidura riparia, the antCataglyphis bicolor, the flyLispe candicans, different carabids of the generaPogonus, Dichirotrichus, Dyschirius, Bembidion andCalathus and the wading birdsHaematopus ostralegus andCalidris alba. The secretion of the abdominal glands contains the toxin ptoluquinone dissolved in either-dodecalactone and 1-undecene (B. furcatus andB. spectabilis) or in octanoic acid and octyloctanoate (B. arenarius). The ratio of these solvents is species-specific. Application experiments using some of the natural insect predators (L. riparia, C. bicolor, Pogonus, Di. gustavii, Dyschirius) revealed that these solvent ratios provided a more effective deterrent than other possible ratios. Thus by combining the solvents in certain ratios, the capability of cuticular penetration and therefore the effectiveness of the defensive secretions are adapted to their natural targets.     

Democracy versus development: New urban debates

The politics of development includes subtexts of choice, as underpinned by community consensus (or lack of it), against the larger backdrop of a liberal democracy, with its intricate power structures that influence the choice of concepts and often lead to complicity rather than consent. A dilemma exists between the understanding of field-level practitioners and that of academics, whose understandings of progress differ. Progress can (and often does) imply long-term change across generations whereas development is often more a matter of crisis management and delivering tangible results to end-users. This makes it a bone of contention across political systems, irrespective of local or global dynamics. Development can emerge as a tool to be wielded for power and further political mileage at the expense of progress. Progress cannot be studied as a counterpoint to development as the sense of history is often missing in development interventions. Development tends to be piecemeal as its very logic often stems from the rationale of power. This is not to suggest, however, that development is only about politics; it is definitely more than the politics of everyday life and involves all of civil society that requires its critical and immediate attention. In this sense, it has become a priority for politicians with an underlying agenda designed to out-manouevre dissent and all statements of protest.     

A palaeo-hydrogeological model for arsenic contamination in southern and south-east Asia

An argument is presented in which areas of natural arsenic contamination of modern groundwaters throughout Asia have a common origin. Arsenic originally accumulated in oceanic ferro-manganoan sediments of the eastern Palaeo-Tethys. This was further concentrated through oceanic crustal extinction in what later became the south-east Chinese accreted mineralised terrain. Proto-Himalayan uplift of this area created the palaeo-drainage systems of the Ganges – Brahmaputra, Irrawaddy, Mekong, and Red Rivers, with consequent headwater erosion of arsenic-rich sediments. Their downstream deposition as immature and easily redistributed Neogene sandstones, silts, and iron-rich clays has created secondary and tertiary reservoirs of adsorbed and authigenic arsenic, from which the current arsenic-rich groundwaters have evolved. Considering river basins within the above palaeo-hydrogeological framework provides a basis for assessing the risk of arsenic in groundwater basins of south and south-eastern Asia.     

A framework to measure the wildness of managed large vertebrate populations

As landscapes continue to fall under human influence through habitat loss and fragmentation, fencing is increasingly being used to mitigate anthropogenic threats and enhance the commercial value of wildlife. Subsequent intensification of management potentially erodes wildness by disembodying populations from landscape-level processes, thereby disconnecting species from natural selection. Tools are needed to measure the degree to which populations of large vertebrate species in formally protected and privately owned wildlife areas are self-sustaining and free to adapt. We devised a framework to measure such wildness based on 6 attributes relating to the evolutionary and ecological dynamics of vertebrates (space, disease and parasite resistance, exposure to predation, exposure to limitations and fluctuations of food and water supply, and reproduction). For each attribute, we set empirical, species-specific thresholds between 5 wildness states based on quantifiable management interventions. We analysed data from 205 private wildlife properties with management objectives spanning ecotourism to consumptive utilization to test the framework on 6 herbivore species representing a range of conservation statuses and commercial values. Wildness scores among species differed significantly, and the proportion of populations identified as wild ranged from 12% to 84%, which indicates the tool detected site-scale differences both among populations of different species and populations of the same species under different management regimes. By quantifying wildness, this framework provides practitioners with standardized measurement units that link biodiversity with the sustainable use of wildlife. Applications include informing species management plans at local scales; standardizing the inclusion of managed populations in red-list assessments; and providing a platform for certification and regulation of wildlife-based economies. Applying this framework may help embed wildness as a normative value in policy and mitigate the shifting baseline of what it means to truly conserve a species.     

Sexual Predators,Energy Development,and Conservation in Greater Yellowstone

Abstract: In the United States, as elsewhere, a growing debate pits national energy policy and homeland security against biological conservation. In rural communities the extraction of fossil fuels is often encouraged because of the employment opportunities it offers, although the concomitant itinerant workforce is often associated with increased wildlife poaching. We explored possible positive and negative factors associated with energy extraction in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE), an area known for its national parks, intact biological diversity, and some of the New World's longest terrestrial migrations. Specifically, we asked whether counties with different economies—recreation (ski), agrarian (ranching or farming), and energy extractive (petroleum)—differed in healthcare (gauged by the abundance of hospital beds) and in the frequency of sexual predators. The absolute and relative frequency of registered sex offenders grew approximately two to three times faster in areas reliant on energy extraction. Healthcare among counties did not differ. The strong conflation of community dishevel, as reflected by in‐migrant sexual predators, and ecological decay in Greater Yellowstone is consistent with patterns seen in similar systems from Ecuador to northern Canada, where social and environmental disarray exist around energy boomtowns. In our case, that groups (albeit with different aims) mobilized campaigns to help maintain the quality of rural livelihoods by protecting open space is a positive sign that conservation can matter, especially in the face of rampant and poorly executed energy extraction projects. Our findings further suggest that the public and industry need stronger regulatory action to instill greater vigilance when and where social factors and land conversion impact biological systems.     

Cost‐effective conservation of an endangered frog under uncertainty

How should managers choose among conservation options when resources are scarce and there is uncertainty regarding the effectiveness of actions? Well‐developed tools exist for prioritizing areas for one‐time and binary actions (e.g., protect vs. not protect), but methods for prioritizing incremental or ongoing actions (such as habitat creation and maintenance) remain uncommon. We devised an approach that combines metapopulation viability and cost‐effectiveness analyses to select among alternative conservation actions while accounting for uncertainty. In our study, cost‐effectiveness is the ratio between the benefit of an action and its economic cost, where benefit is the change in metapopulation viability. We applied the approach to the case of the endangered growling grass frog (Litoria raniformis), which is threatened by urban development. We extended a Bayesian model to predict metapopulation viability under 9 urbanization and management scenarios and incorporated the full probability distribution of possible outcomes for each scenario into the cost‐effectiveness analysis. This allowed us to discern between cost‐effective alternatives that were robust to uncertainty and those with a relatively high risk of failure. We found a relatively high risk of extinction following urbanization if the only action was reservation of core habitat; habitat creation actions performed better than enhancement actions; and cost‐effectiveness ranking changed depending on the consideration of uncertainty. Our results suggest that creation and maintenance of wetlands dedicated to L. raniformis is the only cost‐effective action likely to result in a sufficiently low risk of extinction. To our knowledge we are the first study to use Bayesian metapopulation viability analysis to explicitly incorporate parametric and demographic uncertainty into a cost‐effective evaluation of conservation actions. The approach offers guidance to decision makers aiming to achieve cost‐effective conservation under uncertainty.     

Threats to intact tropical peatlands and opportunities for their conservation

Large, intact areas of tropical peatland are highly threatened at a global scale by the expansion of commercial agriculture and other forms of economic development. Conserving peatlands on a landscape scale, with their hydrology intact, is of international conservation importance to preserve their distinctive biodiversity and ecosystem services and maintain their resilience to future environmental change. We explored threats to and opportunities for conserving remaining intact tropical peatlands; thus, we excluded peatlands of Indonesia and Malaysia, where extensive deforestation, drainage, and conversion to plantations means conservation in this region can protect only small fragments of the original ecosystem. We focused on a case study, the Pastaza‐Marañón Foreland Basin (PMFB) in Peru, which is among the largest known intact tropical peatland landscapes in the world and is representative of peatland vulnerability. Maintenance of the hydrological conditions critical for carbon storage and ecosystem function of peatlands is, in the PMFB, primarily threatened by expansion of commercial agriculture linked to new transport infrastructure that is facilitating access to remote areas. There remain opportunities in the PMFB and elsewhere to develop alternative, more sustainable land‐use practices. Although some of the peatlands in the PMFB fall within existing legally protected areas, this protection does not include the most carbon‐dense (domed pole forest) areas. New carbon‐based conservation instruments (e.g., REDD+, Green Climate Fund), developing markets for sustainable peatland products, transferring land title to local communities, and expanding protected areas offer pathways to increased protection for intact tropical peatlands in Amazonia and elsewhere, such as those in New Guinea and Central Africa which remain, for the moment, broadly beyond the frontier of commercial development.