Assessment of Ecotoxicity of Topsoils from a Wood Treatment Site

A series of 9 soil samples were taken at a timber treatment site in SW France where Cu sulphate and chromated copper arsenate (CCA) have been used as wood preservatives (Sites P1 to P9) and one soil sample was collected at an adjacent site on the same soil type (Site P10). Copper was a major contaminant in all topsoils, varying from 65 (Soil P5) to 2600 mg Cu kg-1 (Soil P7), exceeding background values for French sandy soils. As and Cr did not accumulate in soil, except at Site P8 (52 mg As kg-1 and 87 mg Cr kg-1) where CCA-treated posts were stacked. Soil ecotoxicity was assessed with bioassays using radish, lettuce, slug Arion rufus L., and earthworm Dendrobaena octaedra (Savigny). There were significantly differences in lettuce germination rate, lettuce leaf yield, radish root and leaf yields, slug herbivory, and earthworm avoidance. An additional bioassay showed higher negative impacts on bean shoot and root yields, Rhizobium nodule counts on Bean roots, and guaiacol peroxidase activity in primary Bean leaves for soil from Site P7, with and without fertilisation, than for soil from Site P10, despite both soils having a similar value for computed free ion Cu2+ activity in the soil solution (pCu2+). Beans grown in soil from Site P7 that had been fertilised showed elevated foliar Cu content and phytotoxic symptoms. Soils from Sites P7 (treatment plant) and P6 (storage of treated utility poles) had the highest ecotoxicity, whereas soil from Site P10 (high organic matter content and cation exchange capacity) had the lowest. Except at Site P10, the soil factor pCu2+ computed with soil pH and total soil Cu could be used to predict soil ecotoxicity.

Assessment of Methods for Determining Bioavailability of Trace Elements in Soils: A Review

Trace element-contaminated soils(TECSs) are one of the consequences of the past industrial development worldwide. Excessive exposure to trace elements(TEs) represents a permanent threat to ecosystems and humans worldwide owing to the capacity of metal(loid)s to cross the cell membranes of living organisms and of human epithelia, and their interference with cell metabolism.Quantification of TE bioavailability in soils is complicated due to the polyphasic and reactive nature of soil constituents. To unravel critical factors controlling soil TE bioavailability and to quantify the ecological toxicity of TECSs, TEs are pivotal for evaluating excessive exposure or deficiencies and controlling the ecological risks. While current knowledge on TE bioavailability and related cumulative consequences is growing, the lack of an integrated use of this concept still hinders its utilization for a more holistic view of ecosystem vulnerability and risks for human health. Bioavailability is not generally included in models for decision making in the appraisal of TECS remediation options. In this review we describe the methods for determining the TE bioavailability and technological developments, gaps in current knowledge, and research needed to better understand how TE bioavailability can be controlled by sustainable TECS management altering key chemical properties, which would allow policy decisions for environmental protection and risk management.

Inconsistent interspecific and intraspecific differentiation of climate envelopes in a subtropical tree

Aims Comparisons of climate envelopes among species have shown that niche conservatism tends to break down over time.Here,we use the Asian tree genus Platycarya(Juglandaceae)as a case study to test this tendency at relatively short timescales in a single lineage.This,together with a reanalysis of the extant literature,should help evaluate prospects of using correlations between climate and spe-cies occurrence data to infer evolutionary processes.Methods We rely on species distribution models(SDMs)and multivari-ate analyses to compare current and past(Last Glacial Maximum~21ka)climatic envelopes between the two extant Platycarya spe-cies(Platycarya strobilacea and Platycarya longipes)and between mainland and Taiwan populations of P.strobilacea,paying particu-lar attention to autocorrelation issues.We also review interpreta-tions provided in similar studies comparing climate envelopes between and within species,including in studies involving native and introduced populations of the same species.Important Findings We find intraspecific but not interspecific differentiation in climate envelopes of Platycarya,despite the prediction that niche differen-tiation should be stronger between older groups.Our review also suggests that differentiation in climate envelopes need not imply rapid evolutionary divergence.Whereas SDMs can be used to raise evolutionary hypotheses to be validated with other data,we con-clude that it should not be used to directly infer short-term evolu-tionary processes.

Experimental evidence for heritable reproductive time in 2 allochronic populations of pine processionary moth

Phenology allows organisms to overcome seasonally variable conditions through life-cycle adjustment. Changes in phenology can drastically modify the evolutionary tra- jectory of a population, while a shift in the reproductive time may cause allochronic differentiation. The hypothesis of heritable reproductive time was experimentally tested, by studying a unique population of the pine processionary moth Thaumetopoeapityocampa （Den. ＆ Schiff.） which has a shifted phenology, and however co-occurs with the typical population following the classical life cycle. When populations of both types were reared under controlled conditions, the reproductive time was maintained asynchronous, as ob- served in the field. The shifted population was manipulated in the laboratory to reproduce later than usual, yet the offspring emerged in the next year at the expected dates thus ＂com- ing back＂ to the usual cycle. Hybrids from crosses performed between the 2 populations showed an intermediate phenology. From the emergence times of parents and offspring, a high heritability of the reproductive time （h = 0.76） was observed. The offspring ob- tained from each type of cross was genetically characterized using microsatellite markers. Bayesian clustering analysis confirmed that hybrids can he successfully identified and separated from the parental genetic classes by genotyping. Findings support the hypothesis that, for this particular population, incipient allochronic speciation is due to a heritable shift in the reproductive time that further causes assortative mating and might eventually cause ecological adaptation/maladaptation in response to environmental changes.