Potential for loss of biodiversity in Malaysia, illustrated by the moth fauna

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Selected abstracts

one characteristic of Scotland, the rest more typical of the lowlands of S and E Britain. A further Site Type is mesotrophic and is found mainly in N England and Scotland. Of the remaining two Site Types, one shows an unusual combination of base-poor and base-rich characteristics and the other comprises brackish sites in Scotland. Use of the classification for producing Trophic Ranking Scores, both for individual species and for sites, and the application of these scores for monitoring the nutrient status of fresh waters are explained. Application of the classification to the selection of sites important for nature conservation is discussed, with special reference to NW Scotland. -from Authors

93Z/00024 The state of the environment of the Loosdrecht lakes J. J. Hofstra & L. Van Liere, Hydrobiologia, 233(1-3), 1992, pp 11-20. The Loosdrecht lakes are a system of shallow, interconnected, peat lakes in the centre of The Netherlands. The main environmental functions of the Loosdrecht lakes are nature and recreation. A Specific Environmental Quality ('Bijzondere Milieukwalitelt') should be set for these lakes. The Loosdrecht lakes have, by increasing external phosphorus loading, changed, from clear lakes with few macrophytes, followed by a period of abundant characean growth, to turbid lakes dominated by cyanobacteria and detrital matter. Sewerage systems and dephosphorization of the supply water led to a decrease in external phosphorus loading but did not result in a decrease of turbidity by suspended particles. Eutrophication of the lake ecosystems is described as a series of phases; status around 1940 is used as an ecological reference system. The state of the environment of the Loosdrecht lakes is visualized using 32 ecological parameters. The state of the environment of the Loosdrecht lakes is far from what is required with respect to a Specific Environmental Quality, as many of the s e l e c t e d parameters, like water transparency, total phosphorus, mineral nitrogen, cyanobacteria, bream Abramis brama, pike Esox lucius, macrophytes, birds and otter Lutra lutra, deviate by over an order of magnitude from their desired levels. -from Authors

are discussed. Loss of diversity is Inevitable in such circumstances but the effects vary; in some instances (eg logging cycles in natural forest) recovery of diversity may be possible. Some higher taxa (families, sub-families) are much more vulnerable than others. This is demonstrated with moth data for Borneo. At one extreme there are groups such as Lasiocampidae (perhaps paralleled by the Dipterocarpaceae) with endemism and high representation in lowland forest and therefore most vulnerable to human disturbance, with high p o t e n t i a l for loss of diversity, including extinction. At the other extreme are groups such as some sections of the Noctuidae (the Gramineae may be comparable) with many geographically widespread taxa with specialism to open and disturbed habitats. These include many taxa that respond positively to human activities and are regarded as pests (or weeds). The family Limacodidae is an exception to this, combining high endemism with high pest status. -from Authors

93Z/00028 Environmental m a n a g e m e n t in Antarctica: instruments and institutions C . M . Harris & J. Meadows, Marine Pollution Bulletin, 25(9-12), 1992, pp 239-249. Instruments and institutions for environmental management in Antarctica have evolved from beginnings in the Antarctic Treaty, with subsequent introduction o f the Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Seals, the Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources, and recommendations made at Treaty meetings. The Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty will improve existing provisions for environmental management in Antarctica. When it enters into force the Protocol will apply to all activities in the Treaty area: it provides rules for environmental impact assessment, conservatinn of fauna and flora, disposal of wastes,prevention of marine pollution and specially protected a n d managed areas. -from Authors

Restoration ecology

93Z/00026 Effects of EC policy implementation on n a t u r a l Spanish habitats M. A. Valladares, Science of the Total Environment, 129(1-2), 1993, pp 71-82. Spain's admission to the European Community has facilitated access to environmental legislation, while o n the other hand the biological wealth of Spain's natural environments has suffered from a lack of careful regulation of the effects of a large number of Community policies. -from Author

93Z/00029 Succession on an A l a s k a n t u n d r a disturbance with and without assisted revegetation with grass R . V . Densmore, Arctic & Alpine Research, 24(3), 1992, pp 238-243. On a construction-disturbed alluvial fan tundra site in the C Brooks Range, plots were evaluated 4 and 11 yr after the site was scarified and partially fertilized and seeded in strips with a grass mix. Cover of the surviving planted grass, Festuca rubra, was <5%. In comparison with the no-grass treatment, grass treatment inhibited or delayed establishment and growth of native plants. Many species, particularly nordegume forbs such as Epilobium latifolium, failed to establish on the grass treatment; establishment of other nonlegume forbs and some shrubs, including Artemisia tilesii and Salix glauca, was delayed; and growth of the dominant shrub Salix alaxensis was inhibited. Legumes such as Astragalus a~vinus established and grew equally well on both treaunents. Grass treatment effects were attributed to the very dense shallow root system of the planted grass and to higher moss cover, which probably reduced soil moisture in the up~_r portion of the soil profile, decreased the number o f safe sites' for seedling establishment, and competed for limited nutrients. -from Author

93Z/00027 Potential for loss of biodiversity in Malaysia, illustrated by the moth fauna J . D . Holloway & H. S. Barlow, in: Pest management and the environment in 2000, ed A.A.S.A. Kadir & H.S. Barlow, (CAB International, with Agricultural Institute of Malaysia), 1992, pp 293-311. Because of the phenomenon of host-plant specificity, moths may indicate potential for loss of diversity general to both plants and animals. Diversity is greatest at the intergrade between lowland forest types and lower montane forests. The effects of forestry practices and conversion to managed systems such as plantation or field crops

93Z/00030 Vesicular-arbuscular m y c o r r h i z a i fungi and i r r i g a t e d mined land reclamation in southwestern Wyoming J . A . White, E. J. DePuit, J. L. Smith & S. E. Williams, Soil Science Society of America Journal, 56(5), 1992, pp 1464-1469. In the Red Desert region, frequency of VAM fungal colonizations in three grass species were substantially increased in plots i n ~ a t e d at rates o f 5 and 10 cm mo "l in the first 2 yr of reclamation. Irrigation at >5 cm mo -l was less impor.rant to funsal colonizations than .irri~ation scheduling during vegetauve establishment. Colomzation of mycotrophic

93Z/00025 The peatlands in F r a n c e : localization, characteristics, use a n d conservation A.-J. Francez, J.-J. Bignon & A.-M. Mollet, Suo, 43(1), 1992, pp 11-24. In France there are two main peatlands-types: topogenous Carex-fens, in the N and E of the country, and ombrogenous Sphagnum-bogs, in the medium montanes. Ten peatlands have been classified as nature reserves. -from Authors