38 research outputs found
Pattern of Twig Cutting by Introduced Rats in Insular Cloud Forests.
No full textv. ill. 23 cm.QuarterlyWe examined seasonal patterns of twig cutting by the introduced black rat, Rattus rattus, on Haha-jima Island, an island in the Ogasawara (Bonin) group of Japan. Censuses were conducted along seven routes to count the number of trees damaged by twig cutting in each month. Overall, 42.6% (23/54 species) of woody species were damaged. Twig cutting was greatest in spring (March–May). Probability of damage by twig cutting was not correlated with species frequency in the vegetation. This suggests that twig cutting is associated with particular characteristics of target species. Endemic plants experienced a significantly higher probability of twig cutting than alien plants. This may be due to an evolutionary loss of plant defense mechanisms in the absence of herbivorous mammals. Because the overall proportion of individuals damaged by twig cutting was not high, the behavior is unlikely to influence the population dynamics of trees and cause vegetation change. But intense twig cutting was also found on critically endangered plants, so twig cutting by black rats could be a threat to those species
Geographic Variation in Germination Traits in Melia azedarach and Rhaphiolepis umbellata
No full textEffects of treeshelter on seedling performance: a meta-analysis
No full textTreeshelters are used in a variety of environments for forestry and forest restoration purposes. Although their use is often effective, in some cases treeshelters are ineffective. To clarify the effects of treeshelters on seedling performance, a systematic literature review and meta-analysis was conducted. Of the 296 studies related to treeshelters, 139 studies were suitable for extraction of data on mortality rate, browsing damage rate, height growth, or diameter growth. The quality of the literature did not affect the results of the meta-analysis. Mortality, browsing damage, and height growth were positively affected by treeshelters in many subgroup analyses, but diameter growth did not conform with the perceived inhibitory effect of treeshelters. Regarding conifer species, treeshelters had no effect on mortality rate and non-ventilated treeshelters promoted diameter growth. However, many subgroup analyses showed publication bias as indicated by the significantly fewer negative-effect studies. Therefore, the effects of treeshelters may be overestimated although the effects revealed by the meta-analysis were reasonable from the viewpoint of plant physiological reactions. Heterogeneity was high in most of the subgroups, suggesting that factors other than the analyzed subgroups may contribute to the variance in treeshelter effects. Studies on treeshelters are concentrated under specific conditions, such as on species of the genus Quercus and a temperate climate. Thus, other under-represented conditions are considered to constitute research gaps. Further studies in these research gap areas are required to perform a meta-analysis with low heterogeneity.</p
Education and japanese Education in the Final Years of the Qin Dynasty : Kiroku Adachi in Xi'an
No full textapplication/pdfKiroku Adachi is known as an author on “Choan Shiseki no Kenkyu” （The study of historical sites in Chang’an）. He stayed at Shaanxi High Academy in Xi’an as a Japanese educator at the end of the Qing dynasty, between 1906 and 1910. While he was staying in Xi’an, he met Jitsuzou Kuwahara and Uno Tetsuto, who laid the groundwork for Oriental Studies in Japan. The encounter would prompt Adachi to begin his Oriental Studies. In this paper, by examining various documents, I investigate Kiroku Adachi’s education, his study and his life in Xi’an. First, I order Adachi’s personal history, based on the documents in the possession of his grandchild. In Chapter I, “The Trend of Japanese Educators in Shaanxi”, I researched documents of the Japanese Diplomatic Record Office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs about the situation of the Japanese Educators who stayed in Xi’an between 1906 and 1915. In Chapter II, “Approval Process and Curriculum of Shaanxi High Academy”, I investigated Chinese documents about the class schedules of the Shaanxi High Academy where Adachi taught. In Chapter III, “The Life of Japanese Educator Kiroku Adachi”, I analyzed documents concerning the lives of Adachi, Jitsuzou Kuwabara and Tetsuto Uno in Xi’an. These materials describe the attempted theft of the “Nestorian monument” by the Dane Frits Holm in 1907. These records describe the situation regarding the protection of cultural heritage in Xi’an.departmental bulletin pape
Vegetation status on Nishi-jima Island (Ogasawara) before eradication of alien herbivore mammals: rapid expansion of an invasive alien tree,<i>Casuarina equisetifolia</i>(Casuarinaceae)
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