73 research outputs found
The distribution of tree and grass roots in savannas in relation to soil nitrogen and water
AbstractHere we describe the fine root distribution of trees and grasses relative to soil nitrogen and water profiles. The primary objective is to improve our understanding of edaphic processes influencing the relative abundance of trees and grasses in savanna systems. We do this at both a mesic (737mm MAP) site on sandy-loam soils and at an arid (547mm MAP) site on clay rich soils in the Kruger National Park in South Africa. The proportion of tree and grass fine roots at each soil depth were estimated using the δ13C values of fine roots and the δ13C end members of the fine roots of the dominant trees and grasses at our study sites. Changes in soil nitrogen concentrations with depth were indexed using total soil nitrogen concentrations and soil δ15N values. Soil water content was measured at different depths using capacitance probes. We show that most tree and grass roots are located in the upper layers of the soil and that both tree and grass roots are present at the bottom of the profile. We demonstrate that root density is positively related to the distribution of soil nitrogen and negatively related to soil moisture. We attribute the negative correlation with soil moisture to evaporation from the soil surface and uptake by roots. Our data is a snapshot of a dynamic process, here the picture it provides is potentially misleading. To understand whether roots in this system are primarily foraging for water or for nitrogen future studies need to include a dynamic component
A survey of phytoestrogenic activity in Kansas flint hills pastures
The botanical composition and basal
cover of three Kansas Flint Hills pastures
located in Butler and Chase counties was
surveyed to estimate the incidence of plant
species that contain appreciable levels of
estrogenic activity. Many-flowered scurfpea
and Ladino clover were the only plant species
classified as high in estrogenic activity.
Although significant estrogenic activity
existed in specific species, the willingness of
livestock to consume those species is unclear
Evaluation of Ralgro® on pasture and subsequent feedlot performance and carcass merit of mexican crossbred steers
A pasture/feedlot field study was conducted
to evaluate the effects of a single
Ralgro® implant during the stocker phase on
steer grazing performance and subsequent
feedlot performance and carcass merit. A
total of 2,764 steers of Mexican origin averaging
449 lb were assembled in Texas and
shipped to Kansas, where they grazed on
three intensively-early-stocked Flint Hills
pastures. At initial processing, the steers
were individually weighed and randomly
assigned to either a non-implanted control
group or a Ralgro implant group. Ralgro
steers gained more (23 lb; P<0.01) than
controls during the 82- to 93-day grazing
phase. Following the grazing phase, all steers
were shipped to a commercial feedlot in
southwestern Kansas where steers from each
pasture were individually weighed and given
a single Component E-S® implant. Immediately
after processing, steers from each
pasture were sorted into either a light- or
heavy-weight pen, regardless of pasture
implant treatment, resulting in six feedlot
pens. Days on feed ranged from 127 to 197.
Control steers gained faster (P<0.01) during
the feedlot phase; however, Ralgro steers had
higher cumulative weight gains across the
combined pasture and feedlot phases
(P<0.01) and averaged three fewer days on
feed (P<0.05). There were no significant
differences for marbling, fat thickness, ribeye
area, KPH fat, or yield grade. Ralgro
steers had lower (P<0.05) quality grades
because of a higher incidence (P<0.001) of
steers with B and C carcass maturities
Biological and geophysical feedbacks with fire in the Earth system
Roughly 3% of the Earth's land surface burns annually, representing a critical exchange of energy and matter between the land and atmosphere via combustion. Fires range from slow smouldering peat fires, to low-intensity surface fires, to intense crown fires, depending on vegetation structure, fuel moisture, prevailing climate, and weather conditions. While the links between biogeochemistry, climate and fire are widely studied within Earth system science, these relationships are also mediated by fuels—namely plants and their litter—that are the product of evolutionary and ecological processes. Fire is a powerful selective force and, over their evolutionary history, plants have evolved traits that both tolerate and promote fire numerous times and across diverse clades. Here we outline a conceptual framework of how plant traits determine the flammability of ecosystems and interact with climate and weather to influence fire regimes. We explore how these evolutionary and ecological processes scale to impact biogeochemical and Earth system processes. Finally, we outline several research challenges that, when resolved, will improve our understanding of the role of plant evolution in mediating the fire feedbacks driving Earth system processes. Understanding current patterns of fire and vegetation, as well as patterns of fire over geological time, requires research that incorporates evolutionary biology, ecology, biogeography, and the biogeosciences
Fogo e dinâmica da comunidade lenhosa em cerrado sentido restrito, Barra do Garças, Mato Grosso
Influence of fire history and soil properties on plant species richness and functional diversity in a neotropical savanna
The influence of the conservation status and changes in the rainfall regime on forest-savanna mosaic dynamics in Northern Brazilian Amazonia
Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries
Background
Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres.
Methods
This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries.
Results
In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia.
Conclusion
This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries
Invasive plants have broader physiological niches
Invasive species cost the global economy billions of dollars each year, but ecologists have struggled to predict the risk of an introduced species naturalizing and invading. Although carefully designed experiments are needed to fully elucidate what makes some species invasive, much can be learned from unintentional experiments involving the introduction of species beyond their native ranges. Here, we assess invasion risk by linking a physiologically
based species distribution model with data on the invasive success of 749 Australian acacia and eucalypt tree species that have, over more than a century, been introduced around the world. The model correctly predicts 92% of occurrences observed outside
of Australia from an independent dataset. We found that invasiveness is positively associated with the projection of physiological niche volume in geographic space, thereby illustrating that species tolerant of a broader range of environmental conditions are more likely to be invasive. Species achieve this broader tolerance in different ways, meaning that the traits that define invasive success are context-specific. Hence, our study reconciles
studies that have failed to identify the traits that define invasive success with the urgent and pragmatic need to predict invasive
success
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