1,481 research outputs found
The use of aquatic macrophytes to assess water quality changes in some Galloway lochs; an exploratory study
The littoral aquatic macrophytes flora of 31 Galloway lochs was surveyed in 1983-84. Despite methodological limitations, differences between contemporary and documentary floristic data suggest oligotrophication in 8 out of 23 sites since 1904-1905. The appearance of Sphagnum spp. in Loch Fleet, together with an apparent loss of calcicole species from other sites, may represent a floristic response to water acidification
Occurrence of Sphagnum moss in the sublittoral of several Galloway lochs, with particular reference to Loch Fleet
A survey of the sublittoral vegetation of eight Galloway
lochs in 1985 showed that Sphagnum was abundant in L. Fleet.
It was found in four other lochs, being particularly abundant
in Loch Stroan and Loch Troal. Reference to historical data
suggests that Sphagnum established after 1905, while evidence
from sediment cores indicates a very recent appearance
Cpost-19601 in Loch Fleet. These changes may be a floristic
response to water acidification in Galloway
Drones and Digital Photogrammetry: From Classifications to Continuums for Monitoring River Habitat and Hydromorphology
Recently, we have gained the opportunity to obtain very high-resolution imagery
and topographic data of rivers using drones and novel digital photogrammetric
processing techniques. The high-resolution outputs from this method are
unprecedented, and provide the opportunity to move beyond river habitat classification
systems, and work directly with spatially explicit continuums of data.
Traditionally, classification systems have formed the backbone of physical river
habitat monitoring for their ease of use, rapidity, cost efficiency, and direct comparability.
Yet such classifications fail to characterize the detailed heterogeneity
of habitat, especially those features which are small or marginal. Drones and
digital photogrammetry now provide an alternative approach for monitoring
river habitat and hydromorphology, which we review here using two case studies.
First, we demonstrate the classification of river habitat using drone imagery
acquired in 2012 of a 120 m section of the San Pedro River in Chile, which was at
the technological limits of what could be achieved at that time. Second, we
review how continuums of data can be acquired, using drone imagery acquired
in 2016 from the River Teme in Herefordshire, England. We investigate the precision
and accuracy of these data continuums, highlight key current challenges,
and review current best practices of data collection, processing, and management.
We encourage further quantitative testing and field applications. If current
difficulties can be overcome, these continuums of geomorphic and hydraulic
information hold great potential for providing new opportunities for understanding
river systems to the benefit of both river science and management
Characteristics of C-4 photosynthesis in stems and petioles of C-3 flowering plants
Most plants are known as C-3 plants because the first product of photosynthetic CO2 fixation is a three-carbon compound. C-4 plants, which use an alternative pathway in which the first product is a four-carbon compound, have evolved independently many times and are found in at least 18 families. In addition to differences in their biochemistry, photosynthetic organs of C-4 plants show alterations in their anatomy and ultrastructure. Little is known about whether the biochemical or anatomical characteristics of C-4 photosynthesis evolved first. Here we report that tobacco, a typical C-3 plant, shows characteristics of C-4 photosynthesis in cells of stems and petioles that surround the xylem and phloem, and that these cells are supplied with carbon for photosynthesis from the vascular system and not from stomata. These photosynthetic cells possess high activities of enzymes characteristic of C-4 photosynthesis, which allow the decarboxylation of four-carbon organic acids from the xylem and phloem, thus releasing CO2 for photosynthesis. These biochemical characteristics of C-4 photosynthesis in cells around the vascular bundles of stems of C-3 plants might explain why C-4 photosynthesis has evolved independently many times
Photosynthetic acclimation of Nannochloropsis oculata investigated by multi-wavelength chlorophyll fluorescence analysis
Multi-wavelength chlorophyll fluorescence analysis was utilised to examine the photosynthetic efficiency of the biofuel-producing alga Nannochloropsis oculata, grown under two light regimes; low (LL) and high (HL) irradiance levels. Wavelength dependency was evident in the functional absorption cross-section of Photosystem II (σII(λ)), absolute electron transfer rates (ETR(II)), and non-photochemical quenching (NPQ) of chlorophyll fluorescence in both HL and LL cells. While σII(λ) was not significantly different between the two growth conditions, HL cells upregulated ETR(II) 1.6-1.8-fold compared to LL cells, most significantly in the wavelength range of 440-540nm. This indicates preferential utilisation of blue-green light, a highly relevant spectral region for visible light in algal pond conditions. Under these conditions, the HL cells accumulated saturated fatty acids, whereas polyunsaturated fatty acids were more abundant in LL cells. This knowledge is of importance for the use of N. oculata for fatty acid production in the biofuel industry. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd
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