Ecological Succession

Forests line the course of the Kuiseb River, an ephemeral river in the Namib Desert, and several areas of these forests are characterized by high concentrations of tree death (Mizuno, 2005; Mizuno & Yamagata, 2005). We sought to clarify the relationship between recent environmental changes and such tree deaths in the region. In November 2007, we examined the roots of a seedling of Acacia erioloba that was germinated by rainfall beginning in January 2006. The Acacia erioloba had grown to a height of 10cm and its roots to over 230cm, within two years. In the sapling (seedling) stage, Acacia erioloba extends its main roots deeply until it reaches a moist, fine-grained soil layer (sandy silt) and can absorb water through lateral roots. When it reaches the stage at which the water supply from the moist, fine-grained soil layer is insufficient for its growing size, the tree extends innumerable lateral roots within a 50cm depth from the land surface, where they absorb water that has been t...

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This study aims to examine the impact of CEO succession on strategic initiatives, socio-emotional wealth (SEW), and company performance in family companies. The survey method was employed, and data were collected from 98 company management respondents using a questionnaire. Partial Least Square (PLS) Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was used to analyze the data. The results show that CEO succession has a significant influence on strategic initiatives and SEW. However, there was no direct effect of CEO succession on company performance. The mediation of strategic initiatives can mediate the relationship between CEO succession and company performance, whereas SEW cannot. This study contributes to the theoretical development of strategic management and managerial realization for companies in Indonesia.

This research examines the influence of talent management practices on employee performance within selected manufacturing firms in Lagos State, Nigeria. Talent management encompassing talent acquisition, training and development, retention initiatives, and succession planning has become increasingly critical for achieving organizational effectiveness, especially in highly competitive and rapidly evolving sectors such as manufacturing. The study adopted a descriptive survey research design, collecting quantitative data from 310 employees across medium and large-scale manufacturing firms through a structured questionnaire. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, and multiple regression techniques. The results indicate that manufacturing firms in Lagos State actively engage in essential talent management practices, with training and development, as well as retention strategies, emerging as the most influential predictors of employee performance. Correlation analysis revealed strong positive relationships between all talent management components and employee performance, with training and development exhibiting the highest correlation (r = 0.721). Furthermore, multiple regression analysis confirmed that talent acquisition (β = 0.312), training and development (β = 0.298), retention strategies (β = 0.231), and succession planning (β = 0.105) all significantly affect employee performance (R² = 0.552, p < 0.01). The study concludes that effective talent management systems, particularly those emphasizing continuous development and employee retention, substantially enhance workforce productivity and organizational competitiveness. However, succession planning remains relatively underutilized and requires strategic strengthening. Based on these findings, it is recommended that manufacturing firms in Nigeria intensify their investments in employee development and implement transparent succession frameworks to ensure sustainable performance outcomes. These insights contribute to bridging the research gap in Nigeria's manufacturing sector and offer practical guidance for human resource policy formulation.

Although they are important components of forest communities, the general ecology and spatiotemporal patterns of temperate lianas during forest regeneration are largely unknown. The dependence of lianas on other plants for physical support makes them a potentially important driver of community dynamics. We examined 50 years of vegetation data from an old-field succession study to determine the dynamics and community controls on liana expansion within the Piedmont region of New Jersey, USA. Four lianas, Lonicera japonica, Parthenocissus quinquefolia, Toxicodendron radicans, and Vitis spp., occurred in enough abundance for detailed analyses. In general, liana cover peaked during mid-succession (20-30 years post-abandonment) when community composition was mostly herbaceous with scattered trees and shrubs. Liana cover began to decrease as trees became dominant and the canopy closed. Temporal patterns of cover dynamics of abundant species indicated three early-and one late-successional liana species within the community. In contrast to cover, frequency of lianas increased throughout succession, indicating that liana populations persisted despite dramatic declines in cover for the three early-successional species. Temporal dynamics between native and nonnative lianas were similar but spatially distinct as cover of native species dispersed and expanded near the forest edge while the nonnative species preferentially grew far from the forest. These dynamics indicate that successional processes may ultimately lead to the decline of most lianas. However, the persistence of lianas as high numbers of suppressed individuals suggests that they may rebound quickly following canopy disturbance.

Ecological communities often transition from phylogenetic and functional clustering to overdispersion over succession as judged by space-for-time substitution studies. Such a pattern has been generally attributed to the increase in competitive exclusion of closely related species with similar traits through time, although colonisation and extinction have rarely been examined. Using 44 years of uninterrupted old-field succession in New Jersey, USA, we confirmed that phylogenetic and functional clustering decreased as succession unfolded, but the transition was largely driven by colonisation. Early colonists were closely related and functionally similar to residents, while later colonists became less similar to the species present. Extirpated species were generally more distantly related to residents than by chance, or exhibited random phylogenetic/functional patterns, and their relatedness to residents was not associated with time. These results provide direct evidence that the colon...

While goldenrod species are often found to be allelopathic in laboratory settings, its importance in controlling plant community dynamics has been much more difficult to assess. We designed a study to determine whether allelopathy is related to the success of goldenrods in abandoned agricultural land. To accomplish this, we conducted laboratory bioassays for six co-occurring goldenrod species and compared these results to the cover and impacts of these species in the field. We determined the germination responses of two target species to a gradient of leaf extract concentrations to assess the allelopathic potential of these goldenrods. We also used long-term successional data to determine the influence of each goldenrod species on community turnover. Germination percentages in the lab were reduced by leaf extracts for most goldenrod species and varied dramatically among species. In the field, influences of goldenrods on their associated communities were weak and opposite expected allelopathic effects, as the number of associated species generally increased with goldenrod cover. The relative strength of allelopathy among goldenrods was not related to the abundance achieved during succession. In this system, we documented the potential for goldenrods to exhibit allelopathic interactions in a controlled situation. However, these effects were not strong enough to alter community structure and turnover.

The Cambrian successions at the Chihuarruita Hill outcrop, Sonora, Mexico, have yielded two successive linguliform brachiopod assemblages that are transitional between Cambrian Stage 4 and the newly recognized global Wuliuan Stage. The lowermost assemblage includes Dictyonina sp., Paterina sp., Eothele sp., Hadrotreta rara? (Cooper), and Linnarssonia arellanoi? (Cooper), coming from the upper part of the Buelna Formation. The younger, recently named El Gavilán Formation contains a more diverse linguliform brachiopod assemblage, including Acrothele concava Cooper, Batenevotreta? mexicana n. sp., Dictyonina minutipuncta Cooper, Eothele sp., Eoobolus sp., Hadrotreta rara? (Cooper), Linnarssonia arellanoi? (Cooper), Micromitra sp., Paterina sp., and Prototreta sp. The El Gavilán Formation contains a diverse trilobite fauna suggesting Delamaran age in terms of the Laurentian regional stratigraphical scheme. The base of the global Wuliuan Stage and Miaolingian Series is defined by the fir...

In Mediterranean hinterlands, land abandonment has led to the encroachment of woody vegetation prone to fire. The resulting alternation between vegetation closure and sudden opening modifies the composition of avifauna. We first conducted a stratified sampling of the avifauna in a grassland-to-forest gradient representing the closure of vegetation after abandonment (space-for-time substitution). We then conducted postfire diachronic sampling (up to 42 years) on stations belonging to this gradient. Mid-successional shrubland avifauna was the most radically modified after fire—ground-nesting species replacing shrub-nesting species—without significant change in species numbers. In the medium term, shrub-nesting birds widened their distribution in the landscape. While avifauna postfire successions in shrubland paralleled the spontaneous colonization of grasslands by woody vegetation, postfire forest successions were distinguished by the persistence of certain forest birds, resulting in ...

Tropical forests are converted at an alarming rate for agricultural use and pastureland, but also regrow naturally through secondary succession 1 . For successful forest restoration it is essential to understand the mechanisms of secondary succession. These mechanisms may vary across forest types but analyses across broad spatial scales are lacking. Here we analyse forest recovery using 1410 plots from 50 chronosequence sites across the Neotropics. We analyse changes in community composition using species-specific stemwood density (WD), which is a key trait for plant growth, survival, and forest carbon storage. In wet forest, succession proceeds from low towards high community WD (acquisitive towards conservative trait values), in line with standard successional theory. In dry forest, however, succession proceeds from high towards low WD (conservative towards acquisitive) probably because high WD reflects drought tolerance in harsh earlysuccessional environments. Dry season intensity drives WD recovery by influencing the start and trajectory of succession, resulting in convergence of community trait mean over time as vegetation cover builds up. These ecological insights can be used to improve species selection for reforestation. Reforestation species should, amongst others, ideally have a similar WD as the early-successional communities that dominate under the prevailing macroclimatic conditions to establish a first protective canopy layer. During succession the structure and complexity of vegetation increase, modifying environmental conditions and leading to shifts in species performance and composition. Successional pathways depend

for their big contribution to the vegetation surveys; Nelson Rosa for help with botanical identification; Ane Alencar, Paul l.efbvre and Gustavo Negreiros for teaching and helping me with IDRISI; CEPLAC (Comissao Executiva do Plano da Lavoura Cacaueira), Ideme Amaral, Paulo Sarmento and Dr. Gilberto Carvalho for help with the soil analyses; DNAEE (Departamento Nacional de Aguas e Energia Eletrica), for the rainfall data. Moira Adams, Fernando Galvao, Aparecida Lopes, Chieno Suemitso, Ivo Amaral and Rosilene Santana for their help; Dr. Danilo Mendon\a and his family, the Brazilian Army and the small farmers of Anani for permission to study on their land. Mr. Mario Sato for his useful information; my colleagues and the staff in DBMS for their friendship; Rudhi Pribadi and John Taggart for their help with drawings and editing the text and Dionisio, Pam, Mila, Ari, Lirian, Thiago and Thomas for their friendship.

The Cambrian successions at the Chihuarruita Hill outcrop, Sonora, Mexico, have yielded two successive linguliform brachiopod assemblages that are transitional between Cambrian Stage 4 and the newly recognized global Wuliuan Stage. The lowermost assemblage includes Dictyonina sp., Paterina sp., Eothele sp., Hadrotreta rara? (Cooper), and Linnarssonia arellanoi? (Cooper), coming from the upper part of the Buelna Formation. The younger, recently named El Gavilán Formation contains a more diverse linguliform brachiopod assemblage, including Acrothele concava Cooper, Batenevotreta? mexicana n. sp., Dictyonina minutipuncta Cooper, Eothele sp., Eoobolus sp., Hadrotreta rara? (Cooper), Linnarssonia arellanoi? (Cooper), Micromitra sp., Paterina sp., and Prototreta sp. The El Gavilán Formation contains a diverse trilobite fauna suggesting Delamaran age in terms of the Laurentian regional stratigraphical scheme. The base of the global Wuliuan Stage and Miaolingian Series is defined by the fir...

Rezime: Naslednička zajednica nastaje od trenutka otvaranja nasleđa ako postoji zaostavš na koju nasleđuju najmanje dva naslednika. U pravnoj teoriji i sudskoj praksi dominira shvatanje da naslednička zajednica prestaje donošenjem rešenja o nasleđivanju. Oblik svojine na stvarima u nasledničkoj zajednici, među m, određuje i mogućnost njenog prenošenja. Autor brani stav da, od otvaranja nasleđa do idealne ili realne deobe na stvarima koje čine zaostavš nu, sanaslednici s ču zajedničku svojinu. Na osnovu rešenja o nasleđivanju (osim kad je njime izvršena idealna ili realna deoba), koje ima deklaratorni karakter, sanaslednici ne s ču susvojinu. Sledom toga, oni mogu prene nasledne delove samo na sanaslednika. Posle izvršene idealne ili realne deobe suvlasnički deo ili realno određeni isključivi deo naslednika može se prenosi na treća lica.

The succession community arises from the moment of the opening of the heritage, if there is a legacy inherited by at least two heirs. In legal theory and jurisprudence, the dominant view is that the succession community ceases by adopting a decision on inheritance. However, the form of property in matters determines the possibility of its transfer. The author defends the view that, from the opening of the inheritance to an ideal or real division of items that make up the legacy, the co-heirs acquire a common property. On the basis of the decision on inheritance (except when an ideal or real division is performed), which has a declaratory character, the co-heirs do not acquire a co-property. Therefore, they can transfer the hereditary parts to the co-heir only. After executing an ideal or real division, the co-owned part or a real-life exclusive part of the successor may be transferred to third parties.

This study reconsiders problems regarding lithological succession, facies, and carbonate microfacies, and the biostratigraphic markers of the Upper Jurassic-Lower Cretaceous carbonates from the Bihor Mountains. Three types of facies (external marginal, subtidal, and peritidal) were separated for the Upper Jurassic, and two (coastal-peritidal and open shelf) for the Lower Cretaceous carbonates. The micropaleontological assemblages identified contain species that allow the separation of the two formations of different age: Labyrinthina mirabilis, Kurnubia palastiniensis, Neokilianina rahonensis, Clypeina sulcata (Kimmeridgian-Lower Tithonian) and Parakoskinolina? jourdanensis, Montseciella arabica, Palorbitolina lenticularis, Falsolikanella danilovae (Barremian-Lower Aptian). Field observations and data obtained from studies of thin sections and polished slabs indicate that a large part of the Triassic (Ladinian-Lower Carnian) and Lower Cretaceous limestones from Gârda Seacă-Hodobana region, delimited on the geological maps 1:50.000 scale, sheets 56b (Poiana Horea) and 56d (Avram Iancu), belongs in fact to the Upper Jurassic carbonate succession.

This paper aimed at assessing factors affecting human resource succession planning in Tanzania public and private organizations. The study aimed at finding answers to the following four objectives ;assessment of extent of human resources succession planning activities in Tanzania's work organizations; examining of the challenges facing human resources succession planning in the Tanzania work organizations; assessment of the positive factors influencing human resources succession planning in Tanzania work organizations; and looking at strategies used for enhancing the application of human resource succession planning in Tanzania work organizations. The study employed a sample of 60 respondents upon whom questionnaire, key informants, focus group discussions (FGDs) as well as documentary reviews were administered. Random, clustered and stratified sampling techniques were used to build a viable sample from the target population. The data collected were analyzed through excel and SPSS tools. Study findings indicate that majority of the respondents did not have knowledge on the concept of human resource succession planning and how it works in their organizations. Few organizations surveyed conducted succession planning but how effective and regularly done in the organizations remained questionable. Conclusively, the study findings both showed and recommended that human resource succession planning played an important role for the organization development and therefore ,driven by top management commitment and consistent purposive continuous training programs ,attracting and recruiting potentially capable employees, Effective strategic leadership, management development and improving budget were among the strategies identified to be suitable for enhancing effective human resource succession planning in the surveyed organizations.

Increasing coastal urbanisation has resulted in the extensive conversion of natural habitats with manmadehard structures, such as seawalls, which tend to support communities with low biodiversity. While seawallsare often colonised by species that can be found on natural rocky shores, some studies have shown that theircommunity structure and dynamics are markedly different. However, relative to rocky shores, ecological researchon seawalls is limited, and this is especially so in the tropics. To our knowledge, no research to date has examined,in the context of artificial coastal defences, the ecological succession of communities on substrates of varyingcomplexity near the equator. Hence, the aim of the present study is to quantify the patterns of algal succession on‘simple’ and ‘complex’ concrete tiles and granite controls mounted onto seawalls at two offshore sites in Singapore(Pulau Hantu and Kusu Island). Our results revealed the development of an algal assemblage that is typical o...

Toarcian sections studied mainly in Europe have revealed the incidence of Milankovitch forcing with a well-developed, highly stable, 405 ky component of eccentricity, a short-term eccentricity of ~100 kyr, the cycle of obliquity ~36 kyr, and the precession signal at ~21 kyr. Cyclostratigraphic analysis of the Toarcian succession at the Valdorbia section (Umbria-Marche Apennines) was conducted based on time-series of foraminiferal assemblages. Well-developed cyclic patterns were obtained, with several significant cycles corresponding to thicknesses of 3.8-4.1 m / 5.8-6.3 m / 8.2 m / 10.4 m. Comparison with previous studies at the Valdorbia section led us to interpret the cycle of ~4 m as directly related with the short-term eccentricity (95-105 kyr). The rest of the cycles could be assigned to a periodicity of ~140-160 kyr, ~200 kyr and ~250 kyr, and interpreted as indirect signals of the long-term eccentricity, obliquity and precession, whose record would be impeded by the incompleteness of the studied succession and the sampling interval. Studied components in the foraminiferal assemblage show variable cyclostratigraphic patterns, allowing for a differentiation of groups based on similar registered cycles. These groups reveal different responses by the foraminiferal assemblage, associated with particular requirements, to the palaeoenvironmental changes of Milankovitch origin.

The development of fouling communities was assessed to investigate the influence of caged mariculture on sublittoral epibiota. Artificial structures were deployed within 10 m of caged mariculture and at a “reference” location between 150 and 500 m of the study site at four coastal locations (Oban, Scotland; Sitia, Crete; Piran, Slovenia; and Eilat, Israel). The fouling community on the artificial structures was measured both quantitatively and qualitatively bi-monthly between June 2001 and December 2001. Multivariate statistical analysis was used to compare community structure between the study sites and locations. Artificial structures deployed at the mariculture site supported a higher epibiotic biomass than at the reference site at Oban and Eilat. Community composition was significantly different between the mariculture and reference site at Eilat. The biological succession on the structures changed from an autotrophic to a heterotrophic mode over the experimental period at all l...

Na Serra do Espinhaço, Eremanthus incanus (Less.) Less. (Asteraceae) é encontrada formando grandes populações que dominam ambientes savânicos e campestres (Velten & Garcia 2005). Esta espécie pertence à família Asteraceae e é classificada, quanto ao grupo ecológico, como pioneira sendo considerada precursora na invasão de campos . A espécie se desenvolve rapidamente em campos abertos, formando povoamentos homogêneos;isso também acontece dentro da floresta quando há alguma perturbação, pois sendo uma espécie heliófila, é beneficiada pela entrada de luz . Em Minas Gerais, Eremanthus incanus, localmente chamada de "candeia", é submetida a grande pressão exploratória por ser uma espécie florestal de múltiplos usos. Seus caules são muito utilizados como mourões de cerca, devido a grande durabilidade . A espécie também é utilizada para a obtenção de óleo essencial, que é extraído geralmente de suas partes aéreas (Picmanw 1986). Este óleo essencial, cujo princípio ativo é o alfabisabolol, possui propriedades antiflogísticas, antibacterianas, antimicóticas, dermatológicas e espasmódicas (Pedralli 1997), o que aumenta consideravelmente o interesse comercial sobre a espécie . O padrão de distribuição espacial de cada população ou comunidade é caracterizado por sua distribuição numa dada área, ou seja, pela frequência e proximidade de ocorrência dentro da unidade amostral. Em populações de plantas, o padrão de distribuição espacial é influenciado por vários processos ecológicos e evolutivos que acontecem durante a história de vida de uma planta, tais como a dispersão de sementes, a competição intra e inte-ARTIGO

http://dx.doi.org/10.5902/1980509812355O objetivo deste trabalho foi conhecer o processo de dinâmica da vegetação colonizadora em uma área degradada pela extração de ouro. A área em estudo foi estratificada em três ambientes, sendo que em cada ambiente foram alocadas dez parcelas contiguas de 100 m² cada. Para a abordagem da dinâmica foram realizados dois inventários da vegetação arbustivo-arbórea incluindo todos os indivíduos com DAS30 &gt; 3 cm. O primeiro inventário foi realizado no ano de 2008 e o segundo no ano de 2010. Em 2010, os novos indivíduos que atingiram o critério de inclusão (recrutas) foram marcados e medidos, os mortos foram registrados e os sobreviventes mensurados novamente. Foram calculadas as taxas de dinâmica: mortalidade, recrutamento, ganho e perda em área basal de cada ambiente, ficando evidente a importância da dinâmica como ferramenta para auxiliar no entendimento das relações de sucessão ecológicas das espécies. Os índices de diversidade de Shannon entre ...

Although in recent years the issue of state succession has once again assumed a prominence in international legal practice, there remains considerable doubt and confusion as to the content and application of relevant rules and principles. The problem, it is argued, is not so much the lack of state practice, but a failure to appreciate fully the conceptual problems that underlie the construction of doctrine. In an attempt to clarify matters, this article reflects upon two categories of problems that raise continuing difficulties: problems of substance and methodology, and problems of analytical structure. In each case it is argued that the heart of the problem lies in the approach taken as regards the creation, assumption or Imposition of legal obligation In International law, and In the 'construction' of the legal subject It Is the latter point which is taken up in the final section, where an attempt is made to illustrate why international law needs to incorporate within its terms a substantive, rather than merely a formal, conception of the state, and to show how otherwise it Is incapable of explaining legal continuity in times of radical change.

Bisogna occuparsi delle forme delle opere d’arte, dedicarsi alla loro osservazione e tentare di comprenderne il funzionamento – pare volerci dire Venzi con questo suo ultimo lavoro – perché sono proprio le forme a costituire gli strumenti tramite cui i sistemi espressivi ci permettono di costruire significato. Bisogna studiare le forme perché è solo grazie ad esse e per il tramite di esse che i linguaggi artistici possono corrispondere alla loro (e la nostra) inesorabile tensione verso la sensatezza. [...] Ciò che l’ultimo lavoro di Luca Venzi anzitutto ci ricorda è allora che dobbiamo interrogare le forme, dobbiamo studiarle e adoperarci per comprenderle “perché sono” proprio loro - secondo Godard - “a dirci infine che cosa c’è in fondo alle cose”.

Microbial communities play a critical yet under recognized role in the resilience and sustainability of forest ecosystems in Ethiopia. This review synthesizes current knowledge on microbial diversity and function in Ethiopian forests, highlighting their contributions to nutrient cycling, soil fertility, carbon sequestration, and overall forest health. However, their ecological importance has not yet been fully incorporated into national forest monitoring and management programs. Furthermore, research remains heavily concentrated in Afromontane forest ecosystems, while dryland and lowland regions are significantly underrepresented. This geographic imbalance, coupled with the currently limited application of advanced molecular techniques, constrains a comprehensive understanding of microbial dynamics across diverse forest types. Integrating microbial indicators into forest policy, restoration efforts, and monitoring frameworks is essential to strengthen ecosystem resilience, particularly in response to climate change and increasing land-use pressures. This review calls for greater research investment, supportive policy measures, and interdisciplinary collaboration to unlock the full potential of microbial communities in sustainable forest management in Ethiopia.

Soil microbial responses to fire are likely to change over the course of forest recovery. Investigations on long-term changes in bacterial dynamics following fire are rare. We characterized the soil bacterial communities across three different times post fire in a 2 to 152-year fire chronosequence by Illumina MiSeq sequencing, coupled with a functional gene array (GeoChip). The results showed that the bacterial diversity did not differ between the recently and older burned areas, suggesting a concomitant recovery in the bacterial diversity after fire. The differences in bacterial communities over time were mainly driven by the rare operational taxonomic units (OTUs &lt; 0.1%). Proteobacteria (39%), Acidobacteria (34%) and Actinobacteria (17%) were the most abundant phyla across all sites. Genes involved in C and N cycling pathways were present in all sites showing high redundancy in the gene profiles. However, hierarchical cluster analysis using gene signal intensity revealed that t...

One of the challenges for bryozoans is to avoid refiltering water that has already had its plankton removed. Larger colonies develop colony-wide maculae-centered feeding currents to avoid refiltering water and generally have elevated maculae (monticules). We hypothesize that the height and density of spacing of monticules are inversely proportional to curvature of the colony surface. Larger, flatter colonies should have higher and more closely spaced monticules. We compare two Permian stenolaemate bryozoans whose colonies form branches with elliptical cross sections: the smaller and more elliptical cystoporate Evactinostella crucialis (Hudleston, 1883) from Western Australia (N = 17) and the larger and flatter trepostome Tabulipora sp. from eastern North Greenland (N = 15). Using calipers and digital elevation models, we measured curvature, monticule height, and number of monticules per area. Results indicate that Evactinostella branches are at least twice as curved as those of Tabulipora, their monticules are half the height of Tabulipora, and their monticules are 22% less densely spaced than those of Tabulipora. In Evactinostella colonies, surface curvature is inversely proportional to monticule height and spatial density, which is not true for Tabulipora. Therefore, we conclude that the smaller and more curved the colony surface, the less the colony needs robust colonywide feeding currents created by tall, closely spaced monticules. Non-technical Summary Bryozoans (also known as colonial moss animals) filter plankton from ocean water for their food. They struggle with refiltering the same water repeatedly. They have evolved bumps on their colony surfaces to solve this problem. We think the height and spacing of these bumps should be inversely proportional to how curved the colony surface is. We test this idea using 285 million year old fossil bryozoans from Greenland and Australia. We show that the bumps are larger and closer on less-curved colonies as we predicted.

Repeated slash and burn cultivation creates wasteland with thorny shrubs, which then takes a long time to become secondary forests through serial stages of succession. Assisted natural regeneration through silvicultural management is a useful restoration method to accelerate succession. This survey evaluates the effectiveness of a simple silvicultural method for the rehabilitation of degraded lands to productive forest, thereby increasing floristic wealth. Field-based comparative analyses of floristic composition were carried out at a silviculturally managed forest (Popham Arboretum) and a primary forest (Kaludiyapokuna Forest Reserve) which is located in Dambulla in Sri Lanka. Floristic analysis was used to examine the effectiveness of silvicultural techniques for successful restoration of degraded forest in the dry zone. Nine 20 m × 20 m plots in each forest were enumerated and the vegetation ≥ 10 cm girth at breast height was quantitatively analyzed. Cluster analysis resulted in five distinguishable clusters (two from Popham Arboretum and three from Kaludiyapokuna Forest Reserve). Similarity indices were generated to compare the plots within and between sites. Floristic similarity was higher in forest reserve plots compared to arboretum plots. A total of 72 plant species belonging to 60 genera and 26 families were recorded from the study sites. Of the recorded species, Grewia damine and Syzygium cumini (Importance Value Index, IVI = 24 and 23 respectively) were the ecologically co-dominant taxa at the Popham Arboretum. In contrast, Mischodon zeylanicus (IVI = 31), Schleichera oleosa (IVI = 25) and Diospyros ebenum (IVI = 21) were the abundant taxa in the forest reserve.

Lichens are very important component of the ecosystem serving as substrate, shelter, food, nutrient cycle, succession etc. Epiphytic lichens are generally considered to be good indicator of environmental quality. Changes in environmental condition may be reflected in changes to composition of lichen vegetation. They occure in all possible environmental habitats of the worlds. Current studies on lichen represents about 3099 species of lichen from the Indian subcontinent out of 20,000 lichen species from the world. Chhattisgarh is home to many rare, endangered and economically important species, including many species of plants, trees and climbers in diverse habitats, as well as lichens. In Bilaspur district of Chhattisgarh, NTPC has natural and artificial plantations representing the tropical dry deciduous forest types of the country. This study focused on lichen communities around the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) power plant in Bilaspur district of Chhattisgarh. Lichen host species are: Shorea robusta, Diospyros melanoxylon, Lannea grandis, Madhuca longifolia Mangifera indica, Buchanania lanzan and stone surface. A total of 18 lichen species were identified. The variety of lichens that are not disturbed by humans is currently in the pioneer succession stage. The available enumeration of lichen is of great interest will be helpful in conservation and restoration of lichen and their host species in NTPC forest area Bilaspur.

Patterns of succession in Lau Basin hydrothermal vent communities determined with high-resolution imagery and in situ physico-chemical data collected over 4 yr and analyzed within a Geographic Information System show that Alviniconcha snails are a pioneering group, the snail Ifremeria nautilei is a mid-successional species, and the heat-intolerant mussel Bathymodiolus brevior dominates when venting declines. The associated fauna also changes as communities progress through the successional stages, and eventually non-vent-endemic deepsea species appear when venting has mostly subsided. This is a unique example of primary succession in which the primary producers form symbiotic associations with mobile animals, resulting in successional patterns not observed in other systems. I. nautilei dominates newly formed substrates or venting sources where both I. nautilei and Alviniconcha spp. are already established (e.g., by migration), while Alviniconcha spp. seem to be better at colonizing newly active vents (e.g., by settlement) that are remote from colonized vents. Thus, on the scale of a 5-39 m 2 diffuse flow area or a single edifice, the mid-successional species dominates new substrates instead of the pioneering group. These communities are remarkably stable over long time periods relative to other hydrothermal vent regions. In addition to the sequential replacements of species as sites age and overall conditions change, Lau vent animals track changes in vent fluids and relocate themselves when local hydrothermal plumbing changes over small spatial scales.

Lo studio degli scarabei in pietra dura della Sardegna punica (fine VI-III sec. a.C.), oggetto della tesi di dottorato che ha portato alla presente pubblicazione, nasce da un interesse profondo nei confronti della glittica sviluppato in occasione della laurea e maturato ulteriormente negli anni. Tale ricerca ha tentato di soddisfare l’esigenza di disporre di un quadro aggiornato e quanto più possibile completo su una classe di materiali che ancora necessita di approfondimenti, mettendone a fuoco gli aspetti tecnologici, funzionali, tipologici, iconografici e stilistici. La notevole mole di reperti da schedare ed esaminare ha messo in luce una serie di informazioni che si pongono come base per il prosieguo della ricerca sotto tutti i suoi aspetti, da quelli già analizzati a quelli che per difficoltà oggettive non è stato possibile approfondire. Questo lavoro si propone anche come momento di inizio per la prossima valorizzazione e fruizione non solo degli scarabei in pietra dura, ma dell’intera collezione glittica del Museo Archeologico di Cagliari. Infatti attualmente è dedicato uno spazio espositivo tutt’altro che adeguato ad una collezione che annovera reperti di grande interesse e straordinario valore documentale, ferma restando l'oggettiva difficoltà di una esposizione efficace per oggetti con dimensioni così ridotte. Tale lavoro di ricerca  per la prima volta riunisce in un solo lavoro tutti gli scarabei in pietra dura della collezione museale cagliaritana.

The broad-scale reed communities around Lake Nishino in Shiga are habitats for many rare plant species, and also essential components of the local cultural landscape. Their conservation is reported to be a result of traditional reed-land management (cutting and burning) conducted along with the use of reeds for the production of reed-derived goods. However, continuation of management has become difficult due to a decline in the production of reed goods. This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between management frequency and vegetation change. Based on a vegetation survey on 160 plots around Lake Nishino conducted between 1999 and 2002 using the Braun-Blanquet method (Fujii 2005), we conducted a follow-up survey on 89 plots in 2010. We assessed management frequency according to three categories (no, occasional, annual). After vegetation data ordination by DCA, we compared the management frequency categories in regard to vegetation change. The results showed that there was a much greater vegetation change in the 'no' management category than in the other two categories. That change consisted of soil aridification and increase of succession degree. Occasional management could thus be effective for limited-labor maintenance of broad-scale reed communities.

We studied a high-resolution multiproxy data set, including magnetic susceptibility (MS), CaCO 3 content, and stable isotopes (δ 18 O and δ 13 C), from the stratigraphic interval covering the uppermost Maastrichtian and the lower Danian, represented by the pelagic limestones of the Scaglia Rossa Formation continuously exposed in the classic sections of the Bottaccione Gorge and the Contessa Highway near Gubbio, Italy. Variations in all the proxy series are periodic and refl ect astronomically forced climate changes (i.e., Milankovitch cycles). In particular, the MS proxy refl ects variations in the terrigenous dust input in this pelagic, deep-marine environment. We speculate that the dust is mainly eolian in origin and that the availability and transport of dust are infl uenced by variations in the vegetation cover on the Maastrichtian-Paleocene African or Asian zone, which were respectively located at tropical to subtropical latitudes to the south or far to the east of the western Tethyan Umbria-Marche Basin, and were characterized by monsoonal circulation. The dynamics of monsoonal circulation are known to be strongly dependent on precession-driven and obliquity-driven changes in insolation. We propose that a threshold mechanism in the vegetation coverage may explain eccentricity-related periodicities in the terrigenous eolian dust input. Other mechanisms, both oceanic and terrestrial, that depend on the precession amplitude modulated by eccentricity, can be evoked together with the variation of dust infl ux in the western Tethys to explain the detected eccentricity periodicity in the δ 13 C record. Our interpretations of the δ 18 O and MS records suggest a warming event ~400 k.y. prior to the Cretaceous-Paleogene (K-Pg) boundary, and a period of climatic and environmental instability in the earliest Danian. Based on these multiproxy phase relationships, we propose an astronomical tuning for these sections; this leads us to an estimate of the timing and duration of several late Maastrichtian and Danian biostratigraphic and magnetostratigraphic events. * + CP1a -CC25c Ellipsolithus macellus Ellipsolithus macellus C. Tenuis P. dimorph C. primus B. s. C. edwardsii C. p. Micula murus -Micula prinsii Pu. hantk Pseudotextularia elegans Pseudo. hariaensis

Main succession changes are traced down in the Nardus stricta communities from the Central Balkan Range (Bulgaria). The demutational phase covers a period of 2-3 decades. Vegetation dynamics processes are analysed in parallel, according to the method of Braun-Blanquet and the Dominant approach. Classification of the communities according to the two approaches is offered. The Nardetum strictaе and Bruckenthalio-Juniperetum sibiricae associations represent two opposite points in the succession process. The spatial and the syntaxonomic correlation between the vegetation units is analysed, regarding the two phytocoenological schools.

Fire plays a major role in the structuring and functioning of boreal ecosystems. As peatlands are important components of boreal forests, the impact of fire upon these wetter ecosystems is increasingly studied, but with the focus on treed peatlands and Sphagnum-dominated bogs so far. Important fires occurring more frequently in the past decade in southern Northwest Territories (Canada) provide the opportunity to assess early post-fire vegetation regeneration in open rich fens (one, two, and five years post-fire) and to better understand early recovery succession. We aimed to (i) evaluate whether and how open rich fens are affected by fire, and (ii) describe short-term vegetation regeneration for both bryophytes and vascular species. A shift was observed between pioneer bryophytes and brown mosses between the second and fifth year post-fire. Vascular plants, especially slow-growing species and the ones reproducing mainly by seeds, recovered partially. The first bryophyte species recovering were pioneer species adapted to colonize burned environments such as Marchantia polymorpha L. or Ceratodon purpureus (Hedw.) Brid. For vascular plant species, the ones previously present and able to regrow rapidly from unburned plant structures (base of tussocks, rhizomes, roots) were represented by species like Betula glandulosa Michx. or Carex aquatilis Wahlenb. The wetter conditions and lower fuel availability of fen depressional biotopes were important factors controlling the resistance and regeneration of species associated with them.

Limited areas of post-mined peatlands are recolonized by Sphagnum-dominated communities. This study aims to recognize the spontaneous Sphagnum re-establishment process and to verify if Sphagnum directly colonizes the residual peat. Conditions favoring Sphagnum revegetation are suggested. Analyses of vegetation macrofossils of the newly formed peat allow the identification of colonizing species and vegetation succession profile. Botanical components of the pioneer horizon suggest that Sphagnum species can directly colonize the residual peat. When Polytrichum strictum (Kaulf.) Presl and Eriophorum spissum Fernald are present as early colonists, they are rapidly overgrown by Sphagnum species in the succession profile. Vegetation succession resulted mainly in the formation of hummocks and lawns dominated by Sphagnum fuscum (Schimp.) Klinggr., Sphagnum capillifolium (Ehrh.) Hedw., and Sphagnum magellanicum Brid., with a more or less dense ericaceous shrub cover. Floristic, hydrological, and chemical features indicate that a fibric peat accumulation ecosystem is progressively or partially restored.

Los anillos de crecimiento de los árboles contienen información acerca del conjunto de factores ambientales que influyen sobre la dinámica y evolución de los bosques . La tasa de crecimiento anual se considera resultante de una combinación de la tenden-cia relacionada con el aumento del tamaño y la edad, el clima y perturbaciones a escala regional, así como perturbaciones a escala espacial reducida y variabilidad interanual propia de cada individuo . La aplicación de diferentes técnicas estadísticas permite resaltar la información relacionada con unos u otros factores. Así, en el campo de la dendroecología, se han desarrollado metodologías para detectar pulsos en las tasas de crecimiento que permiten localizar perturbaciones locales que han influido en el desarrollo de

The Jaintiapur and adjoining areas of Sylhet district, northeastern part of Bangladesh, exhibit diverse lithological assemblages and complex structural features influenced by Indo-Burma tectonics. The area is part of Sylhet Trough, a sub basin of the Bengal Basin and covered by Cenozoic sedimentary succession. Field investigations, lithological characteristics, stratigraphic correlation, stratigraphic logging, structural features, cross section and mapping of study area and grain size analyses were conducted to interpret the geological framework and depositional history of the region. The stratigraphic succession comprises of Unit-A (Limestone), Unit-B (Black Shale), Unit-C (Pinkish Sandstone), Unit-D (Silty Shale), UnitE (Sandstone-Shale alternation), Unit-F (Yellowish Brown Sandstone), Unit-G (Mottled Clay), Unit-H (Variegated colored Sandstone) and Unit-I (Matrix supported Gravel Bed), recording transitions from shallow marine to alluvial fan depositional environments. Structural analyses identified monoclinal fold, faults, joints, unconformity and fractures indicative of active tectonic deformation. Petrographic results provide insights into provenance, diagenetic processes, transportation mode of sediments, energy condition and reservoir potential. Economic considerations include hydrocarbon source rock, petroleum reservoir rock, groundwater resources, construction materials, and hydrocarbon-bearing structural formations. The study refines the regional geological understanding and offers a baseline for future exploration and sustainable resource management in the Sylhet Basin.

Here we describe a Guadalupian brachiopod fauna from units III to V of the shallow water carbonate succession cropping out at Djebel Tebaga de Medenine, South Tunisia. The fauna comprises 29 taxa of the orders Productida, Orthotetida, Orthida, Rhynchonellida, Athyridida, Spiriferida and Terebratulida, whose distribution is consistent with the Wordian-Capitanian age suggested by the associated fusulinids and conodonts. Most of the brachiopod taxa are pedicle attached genera or cemented ones and thus were permanently attached, and only two were free living concavo-convex semi-infaunal genera; this indicates that they were mostly living in high energy environmental settings, where the settling strategies require firm attachment to the substrate at shallow depth under the influence of fair-weather waves. The brachiopods from South Tunisia are very similar to the fauna from the allochthonous limestones of Pietra di Salomone, Rupe del Passo di Burgio and Rocca di San Benedetto of Sosio Va...

In 1647 the Dutch ship Haarlem, en route from Batavia to the Netherlands Republic, was wrecked in Table . The survivors were encamped over the next year before they were rescued in a fort they constructed called Sandenburgh. Their successful sojourn in the Cape led directly to the establishment of the Dutch colony there in 1652. They survived by living on hunted cormorants and penguins, bartered cattle and sheep, and by drinking fresh water obtained from a well which they sank to a depth of 20 m. The sequence of sediments encountered in the well was recorded by Jodocus Hondius III, grandson of the famous mapmaker, in a book published in 1652, based on accounts given to him by the sailors from the Haarlem. A comparison of the stratigraphy recorded in the well (five sedimentary units) with the Pleistocene and Holocene stratigraphy known from modern studies of these coastal sediments, shows a very good correspondence in terms of lithologies and thicknesses, and attests to the veracity of the sources that provided Hondius with his information. This singular case of a detailed stratigraphic column is interesting in the light it throws on the rudimentary understanding of rock types, stratigraphy and hydrology by Dutch sailors in the mid-17th century, at the beginnings of South African colonial history, more than a decade before the study of stratigraphy was initiated by the work of Steno. The measurements recorded in the description of the well are some of the earliest quantitative data recorded in the history of South African science.

The objective of this study was to identify correlations between environmental variables and cyanobacterial diversity, succession and dominance in three Australian water supply reservoirs. We assessed up to 15 years of in-lake water quality monitoring data from Lake Wivenhoe and Lake Tingalpa (Queensland), and Lake Myponga (South Australia). Lakes Wivenhoe and Tingalpa, subject to a subtropical climate, had higher cyanobacterial richness than Lake Myponga in temperate South Australia. Richness in the subtropical lakes was positively correlated (P \ 0.05) with total cyanobacteria biomass, and cyanobacteria biovolume [ 0.03 mm 3 /l (Alert level 1; World Health Organization) was often composed of multiple cyanobacteria species. Peaks in total cyanobacteria biomass and diversity occurred in all three lakes from late spring to early autumn. Unicellular picocyanobacterial dominance was negatively correlated (P \ 0.05) with total nitrogen while dominance of colonial and filamentous species with larger cells (e.g. Microcystis spp., Raphidiopsis spp., Dolichospermum circinale) was positively correlated (P \ 0.05) with total phosphorus. Among the species with larger cells, diazotrophic D. circinale often dominated when total nitrogen was at low concentrations. Our results support decision making for selecting cyanoHAB control strategies based on single-or multi-species dominance and reinforce that new monitoring technologies could support species-level assessments.

Effective restoration should start from an understanding of the spontaneous processes of vegetation succession and utilize the natural "self-repair" mechanisms. The number of possible restoration treatments (for example, manipulating the level of soil nutrients, propagule sources or disturbance regime) is limited. However, the relatively constant treatments should interact with a great variability of ecosystem states and landscape contexts, making restoration practice a very challenging and hard task. This context dependence of local vegetation dynamics is emphasized by the non-equilibrium ecological paradigm. This paradigm views the developing plant community as a complex dissipative system, which involve a methodology with explicit representation of spatiotemporal patterns. Restoration practice needs simple methods that easy to implement in the routine. However, there is a conflict between the simplicity required by the application and the complexity offered by advanced theory. We propose a solution based on the information theory models of Juhász-Nagy. These models are able to represent complex community patterns in a very simple way. The frequency distribution of species combinations within the community is detected as a function of spatial resolution. Comparing the pattern of species combinations detected in the field with other reference patterns generated by neutral models, we are able to quantify and interpret constraints of vegetation dynamics in an explicit, detailed way. The related information theory models are additive that makes the calculations easy. The basic models are very simple and practical in routine works. Nevertheless the more advanced models of the model family can be connected with spatially explicit individual based models and with advanced techniques analysing complex trajectories in abstract coenostate spaces. The pattern of species combinations can be sampled with long transects in the field. This sampling is rapid and causes minimum sampling disturbance, therefore applicable for the long-term monitoring of restoration experiments as well. We present some case studies to illustrate the application and the interpretation of results. This methodology enables us to study non-equilibrium dynamics and assembly rules of vegetation in a more operative way. Taking into account the structural constraints detected by Juhász-Nagy's models we intend to improve the predictability of the processes, and the effectiveness of restoration treatments.

Un mémoire du Messin Paul Couët du Vivier sur sa jeunesse et la succession de son père (1673)1 Julien Léonard Université de Lorraine CRULH, EA 3945 Les archives familiales recèlent parfois des trésors qui ne sont pas toujours accessibles au chercheur et restent dans des mains privées. Certains de ces documents sont toutefois particulièrement utiles pour compléter des études sociales et culturelles, mais également économiques, comme l'ont bien compris les historiens qui, de plus en plus nombreux, se penchent sur les écrits du for privé2. Le mémoire qui suit relève de ces nouvelles problématiques et peut être utilisé dans cette perspective. Il a été rédigé par Paul Couët du Vivier (1646-1690), un Messin issu d'une famille relativement prestigieuse dans la notabilité réformée de la ville, et il est actuellement conservé parmi les papiers de la famille de Couët de Lorry3. Le 4 janvier 1673, cet avocat au Parlement prend la plume pour synthétiser, parfois maladroitement et de façon répétitive, les griefs qu'il adresse à sa mère, son frère et ses soeurs à propos de la façon d'utiliser et de répartir l'héritage de son père, Jacques Couët du Vivier (1603-1651), lui aussi avocat, mais également capitaine d'une compagnie de la milice urbaine et mort le 19 août 1651 au cours d'une escarmouche contre 1. Je remercie Bruno de Couët de Lorry, propriétaire du document ici édité, pour sa gentillesse et pour son accueil. Je tiens également à exprimer ma reconnaissance envers Jean-Louis Calbat et Bernard Defer pour les renseignements tirés de leurs recherches généalogiques.