Watershed Ecology and the Environment最新文献

Environmental DNA technology develops rapidly in the field of biodiversity detection. Selecting appropriate primers may be one of the key questions. However, there is currently a lack of systematic studies on differences in primer detection efficiencies. This research investigates the efficiency of six universal primers (12S, 16S, 18S, MiFish, Cytb, and COI) in detecting fish species across diverse aquatic ecosystems using an environmental DNA approach. The research spans five study areas, representing marine, river, wetland, lake, and reservoir ecosystems. Illumina MiSeq sequencing and bioinformatics tools were employed for primer performance evaluation. Results indicate that MiFish consistently outperforms other primers, detecting the highest number of fish species across all ecosystems and exhibiting superior taxonomic coverage. Furthermore, marine ecosystems consistently show higher detection numbers across all primers. The absence of commonly identified species detected by all primers emphasizes the necessity of using multiple primers for a comprehensive assessment. This study provides valuable insights into the strengths and limitations of universal primers, highlighting the importance of primer selection for accurate eDNA-based fish monitoring. The findings contribute to the scientific basis for the comprehensive management of aquatic ecosystems, assisting researchers and ecosystem managers in screening suitable fish universal primers for eDNA methods. The study also calls for further research into factors influencing primer performance and encourages the refinement of primers to enhance biodiversity monitoring precision in various ecosystems.

Microplastics (MPs) are recognized as emerging contaminants due to their small size, hazardous nature, and widespread abundance in the environmental compartments. As the largest sink of MPs, oceans are currently the main focus. However, the question about MP particles applies to all environmental niches, including natural wetlands. Unfortunately, natural wetlands have been not explored much in comparison to the ocean and the terrestrial ecosystem for MP occurrence and its toxicity. Meanwhile, these natural wetlands offer important ecological services and have a high biodiversity, both of which could be compromised by the rising levels of MP contamination in such systems. However, due to limited research in natural wetlands possible ecological repercussions are still lacking. Even there are uncertainties about MPs in the wetlands regarding their distribution and fate. Since these wetlands have the potential to trap plastics and could act as a sink for MPs, it becomes essential to investigate the natural wetland for MP contamination and its possible toxicological risks in wetlands. This review summarised the source, potential sink and toxicological consequences of MPs in natural wetlands. The review also illustrated the advancements in the technologies aiming to remove plastic debris from the natural environment.

In recent years, Fenhe River Basin (FRB) wetlands have been facing severe challenges due to climate change and human activities. It was of great significance to understand the dynamic changes of FRB wetlands and their driving factors for ecological protection. Based on the land use data, runoff, rainfall and GDP data of FRB from 1980 to 2020, the evolution characteristics and driving factors of wetland pattern in FRB were analyzed. The results showed that the wetland types in FRB mainly included paddy, reservoir, river, beach and marsh. Among them, natural wetlands accounted for 72.46 %, and constructed wetlands accounted for 27.53 %. The main types of wetlands in FRB were river, reservoirs and beach, which account for 92.26 % of the whole wetland area. However, the dominant position of reservoir patch was more obvious than the others during 1980–2020. Landscape index showed that the shape of landscape tended to be regular and became more fragmentation. The transfer between wetlands and other land use types mainly occurred in the northern and southern parts of the FRB, and the main conversion types were occurred between dry land and wetlands, grassland and wetlands. Both natural and human factors drove the evolution pattern of wetlands, but the emphases were different. Runoff had a significant effect on wetland pattern at landscape level, while rainfall had a more significant effect on wetland evolution at class level. Urbanization rate and GDP had important effects on the evolution of wetland pattern at both class and landscape levels.

The Tutua-Bura-Angoben Shelter Belt project in Ghana, aimed at combating desertification and land degradation, faces an unexpected threat from heavy metal contamination. This study investigates the levels and spatial distribution of arsenic (As), lead (Pb), copper (Cu), and zinc (Zn) within the forest reserve, focusing on the implications for environmental health and sustainable development goals (SDGs). Using Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS), 195 soil samples from the forest reserve were analyzed for heavy metal concentrations. The results reveal significant contamination, with arsenic levels ranging from 3.19 to 138.63 ppm, and an alarming 26 % of the reserve exceeding the 20 ppm threshold for arsenic. Copper, lead, and zinc showed lower contamination levels, with mean concentrations of 13.83 ppm, 7.63 ppm, and 27.53 ppm, respectively. Spatial interpolation using kriging in ArcGIS highlighted localized hotspots of arsenic contamination, primarily influenced by nearby Artisanal Small-Scale Gold Mining (ASGM) activities. The study underscores the urgent need for targeted environmental management strategies, including stricter waste management protocols, sustainable mining practices, and community engagement to mitigate the contamination risks and preserve the ecological integrity of the Tutua-Bura-Angoben Shelter Belt.