Taxonomy,distribution,and contemporary exposure of terrestrial mammals to floods and human pressure across different areas for biodiversity conservation in China

A significant research focus is placed on identifying animal species and areas at future risk to human-induced alterations of the environment and long-term changes in climatic conditions.Yet,the extent to which exposure to extreme climatic events and intense human pressure can increase the risk of harmful impacts on species remains poorly investigated.Focusing on terrestrial mammals in China,one of the world’s megadiverse countries,we investigated patterns of contemporary exposure to floods and human pressures and determined their taxonomic representation and distribution across three major area-based conservation schemes,namely,national nature reserves(NNRs),priority areas for biodiversity conservation(PABCs),and key biodiversity areas(KBAs).Among the 440 species assessed with moderate or high exposure to floods,327(∼75%)also qualified as moderate or high in exposure to intense human pressure.These species mainly belong to the orders Chiroptera,Eulipotyphla,and Rodentia.Likewise,there were 305,311,and 311 species with moderate or high exposure to flood and intense human pressure represented across NNRs,PABCs,and KBAs,respectively.Our findings support the prioritization of KBAs for expansion of site-based protection efforts such as NNRs in China,considering threats to species from exposure to adverse effects from both extreme climate and human pressure.

Trees and Shrubs of Zerafshan State National Reserve, Uzbekistan

The riparian (tugai) forest ecosystems of Central Asia are a biodiversity hotspot with unique many trees and shrubs. Intense human pressure and global warming have caused habitat destruction in Zerafshan State National park and it’s 23.5 ha. There grow more than 300 higher plants. We analysed the wild flora and the remains of the species diversity that previously existed on the site of the forestry enterprise, the modern biodiversity of trees and shrubs in the described territory are represented by 52 species from among representatives of 21 plant families. These monitoring and results indicated that some tree species might in the near future become extinct in the wild. We therefore recommend that the local people be encouraged to stop using these trees.

Real-time human blood pressure measurement based on laser self-mixing interferometry with extreme learning machine

In this paper, we present a method based on self-mixing interferometry combing extreme learning machine for real-time human blood pressure measurement. A signal processing method based on wavelet transform is applied to extract reversion point in the self-mixing interference signal, thus the pulse wave profile is successfully reconstructed. Considering the blood pressure values are intrinsically related to characteristic parameters of the pulse wave, 80 samples from the MIMIC-II database are used to train the extreme learning machine blood pressure model. In the experiment, 15 measured samples of pulse wave signal are used as the prediction sets. The results show that the errors of systolic and diastolic blood pressure are both within 5 mm Hg compared with that by the Coriolis method.

Tropical forest canopies and their relationships with climate and disturbance： results from a global dataset of consistent field-based measurements

Background： Canopy structure, defined by leaf area index （LAI）, fractional vegetation cover （FCover） and fraction of absorbed photosynthetically active radiation （fAPAR）, regulates a wide range of forest functions and ecosystem services. Spatially consistent field-measurements of canopy structure are however lacking, particularly for the tropics. Methods： Here, we introduce the Global LAI database： a global dataset of field-based canopy structure measurements spanning tropical forests in four continents （Africa, Asia, Australia and the Americas）. We use these measurements to test for climate dependencies within and across continents, and to test for the potential of anthropogenic disturbance and forest protection to modulate those dependences. Results： Using data collected from 887 tropical forest plots, we show that maximum water deficit, defined across the most arid months of the year, is an important predictor of canopy structure, with all three canopy attributes declining significantly with increasing water deficit. Canopy attributes also increase with minimum temperature, and with the protection of forests according to both active （within protected areas） and passive measures （through topography）. Once protection and continent effects are accounted for, other anthropogenic measures （e.g. human population） do not improve the model. Conclusions： We conclude that canopy structure in the tropics is primarily a consequence of forest adaptation to the maximum water deficits historically experienced within a given region. Climate change, and in particular changes in drought regimes may thus affect forest structure and function, but forest protection may offer some resilience against this effect.

Research on the Regional Ecological Environment Evaluation and Application under the Influence of the Severe Earthquake Disaster

To conduct the ecological restoration and reconstruction of disaster areas after the severe earthquake, such as Wenchuan Earthquake and Lushan Earthquake, this article uses region al ecological environment evaluation and ecological footprint to construct a quantitative analysis model on the basis of ecololgical environment indexes in Mianzhu City. Through this model, resource status of the regional environment in Mianzhu is analyzed, as well as the ecological capacity and the ecological security. Based on the evaluation and analysis, this paper provides multi-path development strategies of ecological restoration and sustainable development of human settlements after the earthquake.