scholarly journals Seed Predation on Oil-Polluted and Unpolluted Vachellia (Acacia) Trees in a Hyper-Arid Desert Ecosystem

Insects ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (10) ◽  
pp. 665
Author(s):  
Marco Ferrante ◽  
Daniella M. Möller ◽  
Gabriella M. Möller ◽  
Yael Lubin ◽  
Michal Segoli
Keyword(s):  
Oil Spill ◽  
Seed Predation ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Keystone Species ◽  
Ground Level ◽  
Desert Ecosystem ◽  
Arid Environments ◽  
Animal Diversity ◽  
Arid Desert ◽  
Predation Rates

Acacia trees are keystone species in many arid environments, supporting high levels of plant and animal diversity. In Israel, the populations of Vachellia (formerly Acacia) tortilis (Forssk.) and V. raddiana (Savi) are declining at an alarming rate. Severe infestations by bruchid beetles (Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae) are among the major causes of seed mortality, but additional environmental stressors can reduce the defence level of the seeds, exacerbating their susceptibility to predators. In a hyper-arid desert ecosystem affected by two major oil spills (in 1975 and 2014), we quantified seed predation rates caused by insect granivores before and after the pods dropped to the ground. We recorded predation rates of up to 84% for both tree species, and higher predation rates at the ground level than in the canopy, suggesting that repeated infestations occur. These results reinforce the call to protect the populations of large ungulates such as gazelles, which kill the bruchids by feeding upon the pods, and promote seed germination and dispersion. We found no clear evidence of a negative effect of the oil spill on seed predation, indicating that oil pollution did not increase the vulnerability of the seeds to granivores even in trees affected by the recent oil spill.

scholarly journals Oil Pollution Affects the Central Metabolism of Keystone Vachellia (Acacia) Trees

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 6660
Author(s):  
Marco Ferrante ◽  
Anuma Dangol ◽  
Shoshana Didi-Cohen ◽  
Gidon Winters ◽  
Vered Tzin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Oil Spills ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Keystone Species ◽  
Desert Ecosystem ◽  
Arid Environments ◽  
Central Metabolism ◽  
Adult Trees ◽  
Metabolite Profiles ◽  
One Year

Vachellia (formerly Acacia) trees are native to arid environments in Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, where they often support the local animal and plant communities acting as keystone species. The aim of this study was to examine whether oil pollution affected the central metabolism of the native keystone trees Vachellia tortilis (Forssk.) and V. raddiana (Savi), as either adults or seedlings. The study was conducted in the Evrona Nature Reserve, a desert ecosystem in southern Israel where two major oil spills occurred in 1975 and in 2014. Leaf samples were collected to analyze the central metabolite profiles from oil-polluted and unpolluted adult trees and from Vachellia seedlings growing in oil-polluted and unpolluted soils in an outdoor setup. We found that oil pollution had a stronger effect on one-year-old seedlings than on adult trees, reducing the levels of amino acids, sugars, and organic acids. While adult trees are mildly affected by oil pollution, the effects on young seedlings can cause a long-term reduction in the population of these keystone desert trees, ultimately threatening this entire ecosystem.

The Impact of Terrestrial Oil Pollution on Parasitoid Wasps Associated With Vachellia (Fabales: Fabaceae) Trees in a Desert Ecosystem, Israel

2020 ◽  
Vol 49 (6) ◽  
pp. 1355-1362
Author(s):  
Daniella M Möller ◽  
Marco Ferrante ◽  
Gabriella M Möller ◽  
Tamir Rozenberg ◽  
Michal Segoli
Keyword(s):  
Community Composition ◽  
Oil Spill ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Sampling Site ◽  
Desert Ecosystem ◽  
Parasitoid Wasps ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Animal Diversity ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Oil is a major pollutant of the environment, and terrestrial oil spills frequently occur in desert areas. Although arthropods account for a large share of animal diversity, the effect of oil pollution on this group is rarely documented. We evaluated the effects of oil pollution on parasitoid wasps associated with Vachellia (formerly Acacia) tortilis (Forssk.) and Vachellia raddiana (Savi) trees in a hyper-arid desert that was affected by two major oil spills (in 1975 and 2014). We sampled the parasitoid populations between 2016 and 2018 in three sampling sites and compared their abundance, diversity, and community composition between oil-polluted and unpolluted trees. Parasitoid abundance in oil-polluted trees was lower in one of the sites affected by the recent oil spill, but not in the site affected by the 1975 oil spill. Oil-polluted trees supported lower parasitoid diversity than unpolluted trees in some sampling site/year combinations; however, such negative effects were inconsistent and pollution explained a small proportion of the variation in parasitoid community composition. Our results indicate that oil pollution may negatively affect parasitoid abundances and diversity, although the magnitude of the effect depends on the tree species, sampling site, and the time since the oil spill.

Investigations on the Concentrations of K, Na Ca, Fe and P in Cymomorium from the Gobi Arid Desert Ecosystem, North-Western China

2012 ◽  
Vol 518-523 ◽  
pp. 4521-4531
Author(s):  
Wei Xuan Fang
Keyword(s):  
Plant Species ◽  
Western China ◽  
Desert Ecosystem ◽  
Indigenous Species ◽  
Arid Environments ◽  
Resistant Plant ◽  
Dry Land ◽  
Iron Mine ◽  
Arid Desert ◽  
Oasis Ecosystem

Investigations on macronutrients (K, Na, Ca, Mg and P) and micronutrients (Fe) in windy sand- and salt-resistant plant species such as Cymomorium can help us to get a better understand their behaviours of ecologically environment geochemistry in the Gobi arid desert ecosystem. This study presents our investigations on the concentrations of K, Na Ca, Mg, Fe and P in xerophilous, sabulicolous, superhalophilous Cymomorium from the oasis ecosystem in the Beishan-Tianshan Gobi arid desert, northwestern China. The mean concentrations of macronutrients (K, Na, Ca, Mg and P) in Cymomorium Songaricum Rupr. are, respectively, 1.29±0.29 % K, 2.45±1.08 % Na, 2966±2038 μg g–1 Ca, 2038±1746 μg g–1Mg and 1462±457 μg g–1P. Although the average concentrations of Fe concentrations (341±361 μg g–1) is within the normal range of Fe in plant species, the maximum Fe concentrations (1400 μg g-1) were detected in Cymomorium stemmed from the sandy lowland around the Shaquanzi iron mine of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in China. It suggested that the indigenous species of Cymomorium might be one of the appropriate xerohalophyte species to restore the vegetation of the oasis, saline land use for agriculture or arid environments destroyed by mining activities in the dry land because it may have higher ability to accumulate K, Na, Ca, Mg, Fe and P from saline soils, and it belongs to the native salt-resistant plant species.

scholarly journals Niche Differentiation and Co-Occurrence Network of Fungal Communities Associated with Host Affiliations in an Extremely Arid Desert Ecosystem

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yiling Zuo ◽  
Xia Li ◽  
Jingya Yang ◽  
Jiaqiang Liu ◽  
Xueli He ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Endophytic Fungi ◽  
Sequence Similarity ◽  
Mutual Exclusion ◽  
Keystone Species ◽  
Fungal Communities ◽  
Desert Ecosystem ◽  
Desert Plants ◽  
Desert Ecosystems ◽  
Desert Shrubs ◽  
Arid Desert

Abstract Background: Desert shrubs represent high productivity and play essential roles in maintaining the biodiversity and stability of ecosystem functioning in arid desert ecosystems. These xerophytic plants provide specific biotic and abiotic conditions for the resident specialist microorganisms. However, a robust understanding of the structural composition of the fungal microbiome associated with desert plants and especially the relationship between above- and belowground communities is currently lacking. In this study, we examined the endophytic fungal communities associated with the root, stem, and leaf tissues of five desert shrubs using Illumina MiSeq sequencing of internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) sequences.Results: A total of 337 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) of endophytic fungi were identified at a 97% sequence similarity level. Pleosporales were dominant and played an irreplaceable role as keystone species in maintaining the connectivity and complexity of the fungal networks. Desert shrub identity significantly affected the community composition of the endophytic fungi in different tissues. Compared with the fungi in the aboveground tissues, root-associated fungi represented the most abundant reservoir of biodiversity in the desert habitat and displayed significantly high tissue specificity. Interestingly, the aboveground stems and leaves showed higher taxonomic overlap with underground root tissues than with each other. The root fungal network revealed the highest connectivity, and the interspecies relationships between desert fungal OTUs revealed a high percentage of co-presence rather than mutual exclusion. In addition, members of Hypocreales played a central role in connecting the above- and belowground fungal networks.Conclusions: This study represents the first example of research revealing plant-fungus endophytic associations in an extremely arid desert ecosystem with the simultaneous consideration and comparison of above- and belowground niches. Understanding the complex host-microbe interactions associated with desert plants could provide a basis for the exploitation of plant-fungus associations in the manipulation of the shrub microbiome for ecological restoration purposes.

scholarly journals Invertebrate and vertebrate predation rates in a hyperarid ecosystem following an oil spill

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marco Ferrante ◽  
Daniella Möller ◽  
Gabriella Möller ◽  
Esteban Menares ◽  
Yael Lubin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Oil Spill ◽  
Predation Rates

scholarly journals Characterization of microbial response to petroleum hydrocarbon contamination in a lacustrine ecosystem

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emilio D’Ugo ◽  
Milena Bruno ◽  
Arghya Mukherjee ◽  
Dhrubajyoti Chattopadhyay ◽  
Roberto Giuseppetti ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Oil Spill ◽  
Petroleum Hydrocarbon ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Primary Source ◽  
Hydrocarbon Contamination ◽  
Petroleum Hydrocarbon Contamination ◽  
Microbial Response ◽  
Pollution Event ◽  
Hydrocarbonoclastic Potential

AbstractMicrobiomes of freshwater basins intended for human use remain poorly studied, with very little known about the microbial response to in situ oil spills. Lake Pertusillo is an artificial freshwater reservoir in Basilicata, Italy, and serves as the primary source of drinking water for more than one and a half million people in the region. Notably, it is located in close proximity to one of the largest oil extraction plants in Europe. The lake suffered a major oil spill in 2017, where approximately 400 tons of crude oil spilled into the lake; importantly, the pollution event provided a rare opportunity to study how the lacustrine microbiome responds to petroleum hydrocarbon contamination. Water samples were collected from Lake Pertusillo 10 months prior to and 3 months after the accident. The presence of hydrocarbons was verified and the taxonomic and functional aspects of the lake microbiome were assessed. The analysis revealed specialized successional patterns of lake microbial communities that were potentially capable of degrading complex, recalcitrant hydrocarbons, including aromatic, chloroaromatic, nitroaromatic, and sulfur containing aromatic hydrocarbons. Our findings indicated that changes in the freshwater microbial community were associated with the oil pollution event, where microbial patterns identified in the lacustrine microbiome 3 months after the oil spill were representative of its hydrocarbonoclastic potential and may serve as effective proxies for lacustrine oil pollution.

scholarly journals La paradoja de mezquites (Prosopis spp.): La invasión de especies o potenciadores de la biodiversidad?

2017 ◽  
pp. 23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jordan Golubov ◽  
María C. Mandujano ◽  
Luis E. Eguiarte
Keyword(s):  
Keystone Species ◽  
Arid Environments ◽  
Perennial Species ◽  
Semiarid Environments ◽  
High Species Diversity ◽  
Ecological Importance ◽  
Associated Species ◽  
Semi Arid ◽  
Arid And Semiarid

Arid and semi-arid environments contain relatively high species diversity and are subject to intense use, in particular extensive cattle grazing. The expansion of perennial species in to the grasslands decreases the value of the rangeland, because it makes necessary to control the shrubs, which is not practical in the long term. This paper is a bibliographic review of the ecological importance of the Prosopis (mequite) genus. We compiled information on all the species associated to mesquite (ca. 208 genera and 600 species from different taxa) and we propase that it is important to conserve the mesquites in order to maintain the diversity of the other associated species. We also stress the importance of mesquite as a keystone species in the balance of nitrogen and carbon in the arid and semiarid environments soils. We conclude that the conservation of the mesquites is very relevant, in particular in areas where people want to remove them and convert the environment to grasslands.

Response to the Esso Bernicia oil spill

1995 ◽  
Vol 103 ◽  
pp. 233-245
Author(s):  
Peter Foxton ◽  
Martin Heubeck
Keyword(s):  
Oil Spill ◽  
Environmental Effects ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Subsequent Development ◽  
Fuel Oil ◽  
Contingency Planning ◽  
Heavy Fuel Oil

SynopsisA brief description is given of the accident to the tanker Esso Bernicia that resulted in the release of 1174 tonnes of heavy fuel oil into the harbour at Sullom Voe. The measures taken to deal with the spill and the resulting oil pollution are described and their effectiveness assessed. Aspects of the environmental effects are considered with particular reference to birds, otters and sheep. Wide-ranging inquiries were made into the cause of the incident, the adequacy of the response, and the effects of the pollution. The actions that resulted are described. Finally the significance of the event is considered in relation to the subsequent development of oil spill contingency planning at Sullom Voe, and in the wider context of Shetland.

Putting the Tree Back into the Landscape

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Beresford-Jones
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Land Use Changes ◽  
Keystone Species ◽  
South Coast ◽  
Desert Ecosystem ◽  
Landscape Changes ◽  
The South

This book began with the archaeology of the Ullujaya and Samaca basins of the lower Ica Valley on the south coast of Peru. The archaeological investigations described here were undertaken to answer the following questions. Were these basins ever significantly more productive and vegetated landscapes? If so, when and how did change take place, and why? And how did these ecological and landscape changes correlate with cultural ones? The second part of the book conducted a thorough review of the botanical and agroforestry literature, together with the researchers' own observations, on the ecological keystone species of the region, the huarango — a tree of the genus Prosopis — to show how important a role this genus plays in the desert ecosystem of the south coast of Peru. This concluding chapter seeks to achieve a synthesis between these two parts to offer answers to those aforementioned questions posed by today's austere landscape of the lower Ica Valley. In so doing, it proposes a model for geomorphological, ecological, and land-use changes through time for the basins of the lower Ica Valley. It also aims to relate this model to cultural trajectories.

Analyses of Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Intertidal Sediments Resulting from Two Spills of No. 2 Fuel Oil in Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts

1978 ◽  
Vol 35 (5) ◽  
pp. 510-520 ◽  
Author(s):  
John M. Teal ◽  
Kathryn Burns ◽  
John Farrington
Keyword(s):  
Gas Chromatography ◽  
Oil Spill ◽  
Aromatic Hydrocarbons ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Fuel Oil ◽  
Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry ◽  
Glass Capillary ◽  
Marsh Sediments ◽  
Insight Into

We have analyzed the two- and three-ring aromatic hydrocarbons from the Wild Harbor oil spill in September 1969 and the Winsor Cove oil spill in October 1974, in intertidal marsh sediments, using glass capillary gas-chromatographic and mass-fragmentographic analyses. Naphthalenes with 0–3 alkyl substitutions and phenanthrenes with 0–2 substitutions decreased in concentration with time in surface sediments. The more substituted aromatics decreased relatively less and in some cases actually increased in absolute concentration. The changes in composition of the aromatic fraction have potential consequences for the ecosystem and provide insight into geochemical processes of oil weathering. Key words: oil pollution, aromatic hydrocarbons; gas chromatography; gas chromatography–mass spectrometry; geochemistry; marsh; sediments; oil spills

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