Search results for "Forestry"
showing 10 items of 1998 documents
The impact of Carpobrotus cfr. acinaciformis (L.) L. Bolus on soil nutrients, microbial communities structure and native plant communities in Mediter…
2016
Background and aims: Carpobrotus spp. are amongst the most impactful and widespread plant invaders of Mediterranean habitats. Despite the negative ecological impacts on soil and vegetation that have been documented, information is still limited about the effect by Carpobrotus on soil microbial communities. We aimed to assess the changes in the floristic, soil and microbial parameters following the invasion by Carpobrotus cfr. acinaciformis within an insular Mediterranean ecosystem. Methods: Within three study areas a paired-site approach, comparing an invaded vs. a non-invaded plot, was established. Within each plot biodiversity indexes, C and N soil content, pH and microbial biomass and st…
Use of biochar as peat substitute for growing substrates of Euphorbia × lomi potted plants
2016
Biochar from conifers wood was used in soilless culture as growing substrate alternative to peat for ornamental crops. Potted plants of Euphorbia × lomi Rauh cv. ‘Ilaria’ were grown with different mixtures (v:v) of brown peat and biochar in order to evaluate main physical and chemical characteristics of this biomaterial as well as its effect on plant growth, ornamental characteristics and nutrients uptake. Biochar addition to peat increased pH, EC and K content of the growing substrates, as well as air content and bulk density. Biochar content of substrates significantly affected plant growth and biomass partitioning: higher number of shoots and leaves, leaf area and leaf dry weight were re…
A meta-analysis on the ecological effects of aquaculture on the water column: dissolved nutrients
2007
Environmental effects of aquaculture loadings have often been reviewed descriptively, and thus have not provided quantitative estimates of the overall response in the water column. Meta-analytical reviewing techniques allow the contextualisation of quantitative effects in the domain of current literature. In the present paper, more than 50 peer-reviewed articles were analysed and about 425 study cases used to test whether worldwide cultivations have a differential effect on dissolved nutrient levels. Meta-analysis feasibility depends on obtaining an estimate of the effect size from every study and the most common measure of effect size (Hedges’ d) is the difference between means of controls…
25S rDNA-based molecular monitoring of glomalean fungi in sewage sludge-treated field plots
2001
Recycling of sewage wastes in agriculture is likely to affect the biological activity of soils through contamination of ecosystems by pathogens and metallic or organic micropollutants. The impact of sewage sludge spreading under field conditions on arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM) formation by a community of glomalean fungi was evaluated using a nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and discriminating primers based on 25S rDNA polymorphisms to detect different fungal species within root systems. Medicago truncatula was grown in soil of field plots amended or not with a composted sewage sludge, spiked or not with organic or metallic micropollutants. Overall AM development in roots decreased with …
Distribution and diversity of fish species along the Sudanese Red Sea coast based on three combined trap and gillnet surveys
2021
Abstract On the western shore of the semi-enclosed coral-reef rich Red Sea, the 850 km coastline of the Red Sea State of the Republic of Sudan provides livelihoods to artisanal fishers, but the present state of the living natural resources and the impact of fisheries are poorly known. To provide a baseline on the biodiversity and fish abundance three fisheries research surveys spanning the entire Sudanese coast were carried out in 2012−13 designed around the seven Sudanese fisheries management areas. Baited traps and gillnets were employed to sample the various reef habitats and fish assemblages from inshore to deeper outer reef archipelagos. The highest species richness, functional diversi…
Spatial variability of macrozoobenthic community and trophic structure of a subtropical lagoon on southeastern Brazil's Atlantic coast
2013
The objective of this study was to investigate the macrobenthic community of two compartments of the Maricá-Guarapina lagoon system, along the coast of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in relation to its abiotic sediment factors. An additional discrimination between sites was made, wherever the macrophyte Typha domingensis was found. This vegetation supposedly represents a potentially important food source for consumers. Furthermore, the trophic pathways were analyzed functionally by means of stable isotope analysis to assess the role of organic matter sources for consumers in the study area. In conclusion, the results showed differences between abiotic features in the compartments of the lagoon sys…
The relevance of urban agroforestry and urban remnant forest for avian diversity in a densely-populated developing country: the case of Port-au-Princ…
2021
9 pages; International audience; Urban green spaces can contribute to conserve some of the original avian diversity in urbanized landscapes. However, the relative contribution of urban agriculture vs. urban forest remnants to the preservation of the avifauna in large cities, particularly in developing countries in the tropics, remains poorly documented. We assessed bird assemblages in the densely-populated capital city of Port-au-Prince in Haiti, one of the poorest countries in the world. From early January to late April 2018, 10 censuses per site were conducted in 16 urban green sites, consisting of 8 unexploited, private forest patches and 8 agroforestry plantations, embedded within the u…
Defoliation effects on plant and soil properties in an experimental low arctic grassland community – the role of plant community structure
2008
In Northern Fennoscandia, sub-arctic and arctic grasslands are commonly grazed by the semi-domesticated reindeer. Reindeer grazing is known to affect plant production and belowground processes, such as nutrient mineralization in these grasslands, but little is known of the role of plant community structure in the response of plant and soil properties to the defoliation of plants. Using soil and seeds from a low arctic meadow, we established a 23-week greenhouse experiment to test whether communities of different plant species richness (one, two or four species) and composition (three different replicated compositions within each richness level) respond to defoliation in a different way. We …
Downscaling rice yield simulation at sub-field scale using remotely sensed LAI data
2019
Abstract Crop modeling and remote sensing are key tools to gain deeper understanding on cropping system dynamics and, ultimately, to increase the sustainability of agricultural productions. This study presents a system to estimate rice yields at sub-field scale based on the integration of a biophysical model and remotely sensed products. Leaf area index (LAI) data derived from decametric optical imageries (i.e., Landsat-8, Landsat-7 and Sentinel–2A) were assimilated into the WARM rice model via automatic recalibration of crop parameters at a fine spatial resolution (30 m × 30 m), targeting the lowest error between simulated and remotely sensed LAI. The performance of the system was evaluate…
Role of Soil Organisms in the Maintenance of Species-Rich Seminatural Grasslands through Mowing
2009
To preserve species-rich grasslands, management practices such as mowing are often required. Mowing is known to promote aboveground conditions that help to maintain plant species richness, but whether belowground effects are important as well is not known. We hypothesized that if mowing decreases belowground carbon transfer by reducing root mass, this will reduce the abundance and activity of soil decomposers and lead to diminished nutrient availability in soil. In grasslands, this would provide a means to mitigate the negative effects of nitrogen enrichment on plant species richness. We established experimental plots on grassland with one-third of plots growing untouched, one-third mowed o…