Starvation metabolism of two common species of chironomids in Biandantang Lake

Starvation metabolism is one of the important parts of respiration for normal activities of chironomids. During April 1996 to March 1997, the relationships of starvation metabolism and temperature, body weight of two common chironomids in Biandantang Lake were carefully investigated. The results showed relationship between starvation metabolism （R, mgO2/ind.d） and body weight （Ww, mg wet wt） was： Chironomus plumosus, 1gR=-2.573＋1.0211gWw （5℃）, 1gR=-2.710＋1.3541gWw （10℃）, 1gR= -1.824＋0.8231gWw （15℃）, 1gR=-1.364＋0.4421gWw （20℃）, 1gR=-2.763＋1.5171gWw （25℃）; and Tokunagayusurika akamusi, 1gR=-2.390＋0.7521gWw （5℃）, 1gR=-1.978＋0.7101gWw （10℃）, 1gR=-1.676＋ 0.6481gWw （15℃）, 1gR=-1.517＋0.6501gWw （20℃）, 1gR=-2.434＋1.2901gWw （25℃）. Relationship of starvation metabolism and temperature （T, ℃） was： C. plumosus, R = -0.051 ＋ 0.021T- 0.0006T^2 ; akamusi, R= -0.051 ＋ 0.021T- 0.0006T^2. The complex relationship of the three parameters was： C. plumosus, R=0.0098Ww^0.3882e^0.1068T; T. akamusi, R=0.0012Ww^1.1936e^0.0711r. With the above regressions, the estimated annual starvation metabolisms of the two chironomid species in Biandantang Lake were： C. plumosus, 24.2791 kJ/m^2.a; T. akamusi, 8.7864 kJ/m^2.a, respectively. This provides a firm foundation for the comparative study of bioenergetics of the chironomids.

Spinosad and neem seed kernel extract as bio-controlling agents for malarial vector,Anopheles stephensi and non-biting midge,Chironomus circumdatus

Objective:Midge egg masses are reported to support non-pathogenic strains of the cholera pathogen.Vibrio cholera（V.cholera）.Mosquito born diseases have been reported to cause millions of death worldwide.The present research reveals the toxicity effect of spinosad and neem seed kernel extract（NSKE） against different larval stages of Anopheles stephensi（An.stephensi） and Chironomus circumdatus（Ch.circumdatus）.Methods:The neem seeds were collected from Marudamalai hills,Bharathiar University,Coimbatore,India.Neem seed kernels were powdered,extracted and diluted for different concentrations（2 ppm to 10 ppm）.Spinosad was purchased from Kalpatharu pesticide Limited,Coimbatore,Tamil Nadu,India and thoroughly mixed with distilled water to prepare various concentrations（0.01 to 0.08 ppm） and used for bioassay.Results:The results depict that spinosad is more toxic in lower concentrations when compared to NSKE and mosquitoes are more susceptible than chironomids.Lethal concentrations were evaluated using the observed mortality.The lowest LC50 value obtained from spinosad against An.stephensi and Ch.circumdalus were 0.002 05 ppm and 0.008 91 ppm.This study investigated on effect of Spinosad and NSKE on the biology of mosquito.The immature stages of both species were susceptible to Spinosad and NSKE.Spinosad and NSKE in individual as well as combined treatment provided additional days in development for mosquitoes.Conclusions:The results conclude that Spinosad and NSKE are potential larvicides against An.stephensi and Ch. circumdatus.

Revision of two holotypes of Nanocladius Kieffer(Diptera:Chironomidae),with a key to males from the East Asia

Two holotypes of the orthoclad genus Nanocladius from Japan were redescribed and illustrated:Nanocladius(Plecopteracoluthus) asiaticus Hayashi and Nanocladius(Nanocladius) tamabicolor Sasa.A key to the males of Nanocladius from the East Asia was provided.

Study on Chironomid Larvae Recognition Based on DWT and Improved KNN

A chironomid larvae images recognition method based on wavelet energy feature and improved KNN is developed. Wavelet decomposition and color information entropy are selected to construct vectors for KNN that is used to classify of the images. The distance function is modified according to the weight determined by the correlation degree between feature and class, which effectively improves classification accuracy. The result shows the mean accuracy of classification rate is up to 95.41% for freshwater plankton images, such as chironomid larvae, cyclops and harpacticoida.

Spatially Different Nutrient Histories Recorded by Multiple Cores and Implications for Management in Taihu Lake, Eastern China

The Taihu Lake,a large shallow lake in the floodplain of the Changjiang(Yangtze) River in the eastern China,is faced with challenging ecological problems resulting from eutrophication,which has affected the regional freshwater supply of a large population.Although efforts have been made to assess the nutrient evolution histories in the northern bays,little is known regarding nutrient histories in different parts across the entire lake basin.In this paper,we present nutrient histories for different parts of the lake based on chironomid transfer functions applied to four short cores obtained from the northern,western and eastern regions of the lake.The chironomid-inferred total phosphorus(CI-TP) concentrations were compared with the phosphorus concentrations obtained by using instrumental and sedimentary data.The results suggest that trophic evolution histories were asynchronous throughout the lake during the past decades in response to different ecological regimes controlled by the nutrient input,wind direction and shoreline topography.The restoration of aquatic plants may be an effective option for the management of lake rehabilitation to ′natural′ conditions.Given the multiple factors controlling the biotic communities in such a large and complex lake,combined analyses among the multi-proxies encountered in the sediments are necessary for comprehensive insight into paleolimnological studies.The spatial heterogeneity in the ecological trajectories within this complicated ecosystem suggests that different management practices should be undertaken for specific lake zones in the Taihu Lake.

Pilot-scale study of removal effect on Chironomid larvae with chlorine dioxide

Chironomid larvae propagated excessively in eutrophic water body and could not be effectively inactivated by the conventional disinfection process like chlorination due to its stronger resistance to oxidation. In this paper, a pilot-scale study of chlorine dioxide preoxidation cooperating with routine clarification process for Chironomid larvae removal was conducted in Shenzhen Waterworks in Guangdong Province, China. The experimental results were compared with that of the existing prechlorination process in several aspects, including the Chironomid larvae removal efficiencies of water samples taken from the outlets of sedimentation tank, sand filter, the security of drinking water and so on. The results showed that chlorine dioxide might be more effective to inactivate Chironomid larvae than chlorine and Chironomid larvae could be thoroughly removed from water by pre-dosing chlorine dioxide process. The GC-MS examination and Ames test further showed that the sort and amount of organic substance in the treated water by chlorine dioxide preoxidation were evidently less than that ofprechlorination and the mutagenicity of drinking water treated by pre-dosing chlorine dioxide was substantially reduced compared with prechlorination.

Inactivation of Chironomid Larvae with Chlorine Dioxide and Chlorine

Chironomid larvae propagate prolifically in eutrophic water body and they cannot be exterminated by conventional disinfection process. The inactivation effects of chlorine and chlorine dioxide on Chironomid larvae were investigated and some bourdary values in practice were determined under .conditions of various oxidaat dosage, organic precursor concentmtion and pH value. In addition, removal effect of different pre-oxidation cambined with coagulation process on Chironomid larvae in raw water was evaluated. It was found that chlorine dioxide possessed better inactivation effect than chlorine. Complete inactivation of Chironomid larvae in raw water was resulted by 1.5 mg/L of chlorine dioxide with 30 min of contact ＇time. Additionally, the organic precursor concentration, pH value had little influence on the inactivation effect. The coagulation jar test showed that Chironomid larvae in the raw water could be completely removed by chlorine dioxide pre-oxidation in combination with the coagulation process at chlorine dioxide dosage of 0.8 mg/L.

Assessment of pesticide contaminated sediment using biological response of tropical chironomid,Chironomus javanus Kiffer as biomarker

To investigate the use of a biomarker for assessment of the effects on the tropical chironomid, Chironomus javanus (C. javanus), Kiffer of sediment contaminated with an insecticide (chlorpyrifos).MethodsA wide range of biological responses to the tropical chironomid exposed were measured, including survival, growth rate and Acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity.ResultsThe measured median lethal concentration (96 h LC50) of chlorpyrifos to C. javanus was 0.056 (95% CI 0.024-0.124) μg/kg. For sub-chronic levels of chlorpyrifos between 0.001 and 0.25 μg/kg administered for 10 days, the effects on the growth of C. javanus were reduced (larva size, head structure width and dry weight) at the significance level (P < 0.01) and the effects were concentration dependent. Following exposure to chlorpyrifos at the level of 0.001 μg/kg for 48 and 96 h, the AChE activity in C. javanus was inhibited compared with control samples (P < 0.05).ConclusionsThis study demonstrated that C. javanus was sensitive when exposed to chlorpyrifos. This species could serve as a potential biomarker for assessing pesticide contamination at low environmental persistence and provides limited effects data on the sensitivity of tropical biota to contaminants for ecological risk assessment of organophosphate pesticides in the tropical aquatic ecosystem.

Immatures of Lutzia fuscana(Wiedemann,1820)(Diptera:Culicidae) in ricefields:implications for biological control of vector mosquitoes

Objective:Rice fields are dynamic mosquito larval habitats with assemblage of different predator taxa,including the larva of the mosquitoes Lutzia.Entomological surveillance in the ricefields is essential to evaluate the potential of these predators as biological resource to regulate vector mosquito population.In view of this,a survey of ricefields for immatures of different mosquito species including Lutzia was conducted.Methods:Survey of selected ricefields was carried out to evaluate the species composition of mosquitoes.Laboratory evaluation of the immatures of Lutzia mosquitoes was carried out to assess its predation potential using mosquitoes and chironomid as preys.Results:The survey revealed the presence of five mosquito species belonging to the genera Anopheles and Culex and the predatory immatures of the mosquito Lutzia Juscana(Wiedemann,1820).The ratio of prey and predatory larva ranged between 1.46 and 4.78 during the study period,with a significant correlation on the relative abundance of the larval stages of Lt.Juscana and Anopheles and Culex larvae.Under laboratory conditions,a single IV instar larvae of Lt.fuscana was found to consume on an average 5 to 15 equivalent instars of Anopheles sp.and Culex sp.larvae per day depending on its age.The prey consumption reduced with the larval stage approaching pupation.When provided with equal numbers of chironomid and Anopheles or Culex larvae,larva of Lt.fuscana consumed mosquito larvae significantly more compared to chironomids.Conclusion: The survey results and the preliminary study on predation are suggestive of the role of Lt.Juscana in the regulation of vector mosquito populations naturally in the ricefields.Since Lt.Juscana is common in many Asian countries,further studies on bioecology will be helpful to justify their use in mosquito control programme.

Response of Cultural Lake Eutrophication to Hemp-retting in Quidenham Mere of England in Post-Medieval

To study the influence of human activity on natural lake, chironomid fauna change in the 700-560cm lake sediment in Quidenham Mere of England associated with chironomid inferred TP presented that the lake experienced a whole eutrophication process due to human hemp-retting in Post-Medieval based on the history record and pollen analysis, which was confirmed by mollusc and ostracod analysis. However, the response of chironomid and mollusc to retting was the strongest with ostracod a little behind. It proved that cultural eutrophication existed in history and could be recovered by itself despite of some long-term unachievahle destroy. And it was most important for external nutrient to be cut off during lake restoration even in ancient times.

四种消毒剂对摇蚊幼虫杀菌效果研究

为筛选四种鱼用消毒剂对摇蚊幼虫(Chironomid larvae)最适消毒条件,在单因素试验基础上,以消毒剂对摇蚊幼虫携带细菌相对灭菌率为考察指标进行正交试验;以消毒后摇蚊幼虫相对存活率、稀有鮈鲫(Gobiocypris rarus)对摇蚊幼虫平均摄食时间、消毒后未杀灭细菌种类为指标,综合评价消毒虫体质量。结果显示:浓度因子对聚维酮碘、新洁尔灭、高锰酸钾的相对灭菌率有极显著影响;时间因子对聚维酮碘的相对灭菌率影响极显著;温度因子对聚维酮碘的相对灭菌率影响极显著,对新洁尔灭影响显著;浓度、时间和温度因子均对戊二醛的相对灭菌率无显著影响;在实验室条件下,根据消毒剂对相对灭菌率的各影响因子主次顺序得到了四种消毒剂消毒摇蚊幼虫的最佳因子参数,其中高锰酸钾:消毒剂浓度60 mg/L,消毒温度28℃,消毒时间1.5 h;聚维酮碘:消毒温度24℃,消毒剂浓度150 mg/L,消毒时间1 h;新洁尔灭:消毒剂浓度3 200 mg/L,消毒温度24℃,消毒时间1 h;戊二醛:消毒温度28℃,消毒时间1.5 h,消毒剂浓度20 000 mg/L。四种消毒剂最佳消毒条件对摇蚊幼虫相对存活率及对稀有鮈鲫摄食效果影响不大;消毒后从不同来源的四份虫体样品共分离出未杀灭的细菌16种,主要隶属于气单胞菌属和不动杆菌属。

气候变化以两种不同方式驱动了丝绸之路路线的变迁

Although climate change has convincingly been linked to the evolution of human civilization on different temporal scales,its role in influencing the spatial patterns of ancient civilizations has rarely been investigated,The northward shift of the ancient Silk Road(SR)route from the Tarim Basin(TB)to the Junggar Basin during~420-850 CE provides the opportunity to investigate the relationship between climate change and the spatial evolution of human societies.Here,we use a new high-resolution chironomidbased temperature reconstruction from arid China,combined with hydroclimatic and historical datasets,to assess the possible effects of climate fluctuations on the shift of the ancient SR route,We found that a cooling/drying climate in the TB triggered the SR route shift during~420-600 CE,However,a warming/wetting climate during~600-850 CE did not inhibit this shift,but instead promoted it,because of the favorable climate-induced geopolitical conflicts between the Tubo Kingdom and the Tang Dynasty in the TB.Our findings reveal two distinct ways in which climate change drove the spatial evolution of human civilization,and they demonstrate the flexibility of societal responses to climate change.

Influence of Chironomid Larvae on oxygen and nitrogen fluxes across the sediment-water interface(Lake Taihu,China)

The microscale distribution of oxygen,the nitrogen flux and the denitrification rates in sediment inhabited by chironomid larvae（Tanypus chinensis） were measured in eutrophic Lake Taihu,China.The presence of the chironomids in the sediment increased the oxygen diffusional flux from 10.4 ± 1.4 to 12.7 ± 2.5 mmol O 2 /（m 2 ·day）.The burrows of the larvae represented ＂hot spots＂ and strongly influenced the nitrogen cycles and diagenetic activity in the sediment.The results indicate that the bioturbation effects of Tanypus chinensis chironomid larvae increased the capacity of the sediment as a sink for nitrate and a source for ammonium.Nitrate influx and ammonium outflux were increased 8.8 and 1.7 times,respectively.Under bioturbation,the amount of nitrate consumed was greater than the amount of ammonium released.The total denitrification rate was also enhanced from 0.76 ± 0.34 to 5.50 ± 1.30 mmol N/（m 2 ·day）.The net effect was that the bioturbated sediments acted as a net sink for inorganic nitrogen under direct and indirect bioturbation effects compared to the control.