Methane and Nitrous Oxide Emissions from Rice-Duck and Rice-Fish Complex Ecosystems and the Evaluation of Their Economic Significance

Rice-duck （RD） and rice-fish （RF） ecological systems are major complex planting and breeding models of rice paddy fields in southern China. Studying the methane （CH4） and nitrous oxide （N2O） emissions and their economic value from these two ecosystems can provide theoretical and practical basis for further development and utilization of these classical agricultural techniques. CH4 and N2O emissions from RD and RF ecological systems were measured in situ by using static chambers technique. Using global warming potentials （GWPs）, we assessed the greenhouse effect of CH4 and N2O and their economic value. Results showed that the peaks of CH4 emission fluxes from RD and RF appeared at full tillering stage and at heading stage, and the average emission fluxes were significantly （P〈 0.05） lower than that from CK. N2O fluxes remained low when the field is flooded and high after draining the water. Compared with CK, the total amount of N2O emissions was significantly （P〈0.05） higher and slightly lower than those from RD and RF, respectively. In 2006 and 2007, the total greenhouse effect of CH4 and N20 from RD and RF were 4 728.3 and 4 611 kg CO2 ha^-1, 4 545 and 4 754.3 kg CO2 ha^-1, respectively. The costs of greenhouse effect were 970.89 and 946.81 RMB yuan ha^-1, and 933.25 and 976.23 RMB yuan ha^-1, respectively, which were significant lower than those from CK （5 997.6 and 5 391.5 RMB yuan ha^-1）. Except for the environment cost of CH4 and N2O, the economic benefits from RD and RF were 2 210.64 and 4 881.92 RMB yuan ha^-1; 3 798.37 and 5 310.64 RMB yuan ha^-1, respectively, higher than those from CK. Therefore, RD and RF complex ecological planting and breeding models can effectively decrease and control CH4 and N2O emissions, and they are two of the effective strategies to reduce greenhouse gases from rice paddy fields and contribute in alleviating global warming. Thus, their adoption is important to the environment together with their economy benefits.

Warming effects on permafrost ecosystem carbon fluxes controlled by plant nutrients

With the support by the National Natural Science Foundation of China,a recent study by the research group led by Prof.Yang Yuanhe(杨元合)from the Institute of Botany,Chinese Academy of Sciences shows that plant nutrients control the response of permafrost ecosystem carbon fluxes to warming。

Formation and functions of arbuscular mycorrhizae in coastal wetland ecosystems:A review

Context:Coastal wetlands are ecotones interspaced by land and ocean and are among the most sensitive and vulnerable ecosystems worldwide.They are unique in hydrological,edaphic,atmospheric,and biological characteristics,and play important roles in maintaining the ecological security and ecosystem services of coastal zones.Arbuscular mycorrhizae(AM)are symbiont composed of plant roots and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi(AMF),which are soilborne microorganisms widely distributed in various habitats.Many previous studies on mycorrhiza have focused on terrestrial ecosystems while few on wetlands,especially coastal wetlands.Method:We systematically reviewed previous relevant studies to explore the formation and functions of AM in coastal wetland ecosystems as well as the environmental factors that affect them.Habitat characteristics,morphological types,and species diversity of AMF in the coastal wetlands were summarized.Both responses of AMF to environmental factors during AM formation and the functions of AM in coastal wetlands were discussed.Result:AMF are worldwide distributed in coastal wetland and are mainly limited by flooding,hypoxia,soil pH,salinity and the host plants identification.AMF play important roles in coastal wetlands,involving promoting nutrient uptake of host plants,improving the characteristics of rhizospheric soil,and enhancing plant resistance to salt and flooding stress.Conclusion:More comprehensive studies of AMF in vitro in coastal wetlands would be helpful for the conservation and restoration of coastal wetland ecosystems in the changing world.

Ecosystem assessment and protection effectiveness of a tropical rainforest region in Hainan Island, China

Ecosystem services have become one of the core elements of ecosystem management and evaluation. As a key area of ecosystem services and for maintaining national ecological security, ecosystem changes and implementation effect evaluation are important in national key ecological function zones, for promoting the main function zone strategy and for improving the construction of an ecological civilization. This article studies the ecological zone of a tropical rainforest region in the central mountain area of Hainan Island, China. Multi-source satellite data and ground observation statistics are analyzed with geo-statistics method and ecological assessment model. The core analysis of this paper includes ecosystem patterns, quality and services. By means of spatial and temporal scale expansion and multidimensional space-time correlation analysis, the trends and stability characteristics of ecosystem changes are analyzed, and implementation effect evaluation is discussed. The analysis shows a variety of results. The proportion of forest area inside the ecological zone was significantly higher than the average level in Hainan Island. During 1990–2013, settlement gradually increased inside the ecological zone. After implementation of the zone in 2010, human activity intensity increased, with the main land use being urban construction and land reclamation. Water conservation in the ecological function zone was higher than that outside the zone. In general, it increased slightly, but had obvious fluctuations. Soil conservation inside the zone was also better than that outside. However, it demonstrated dramatic fluctuations and relatively poor stability during 1990–2013. The human disturbance index inside the zone was significantly lower than that outside, and had a lower biodiversity threat level. Especially in 2010–2013, the increased range of the human disturbance index inside the zone was significantly less than that outside.