We construct a state-and-transition model for mammals in tropical savannas in northern Australia to synthesize ecological knowledge and understand mammalian declines. We aimed to validate the existence of alternative mammal assemblage states similar to those in arid Australian grasslands, and to speculate on transition triggers. Based on the arid grassland model, we hypothesized that assemblage...

Drought is a natural hazard that has significant impact on economic, agricultural, environmental, and social aspects. In the present study details analysis of rainfall data has been carried out for the years 1981-2011. Standard precipitation index (SPI) has been used to evaluate the precipitation deficit in the Karun watershed of Iran. The results indicated that 1981-82,82-83,83-84,84-85,88-89,...

Root diseases have long been prevalent in Australian grain-growing regions, and most management decisions to reduce the risk of yield loss need to be implemented before the crop is sown. The levels of pathogens that cause the major root diseases can be measured using DNA-based services such as PreDicta B. Although these pathogens are often studied individually, in the field they often occur as ...

Background: Three groups of factors related to topography, geology and hydrology have influence on the triggering of shallow landslides in soil material. In this paper a single representative factor (T-factor) for the topography is proposed, which can be used to define threshold values for the possibility of shallow soil slides. This study was carried out in the Dayi area, Guizhou Province, Chi...

A large-scale heavy rainfall disaster occurred in Joso City, Japan, in September 2015, and one third of the city area (40 km2) was flooded by the Kinu River. Artificial radionuclides such as 134Cs and 137Cs were known to have accumulated in the river bottom sediment after their release in the 2011 Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant accident. It was thought that these radionuclides might hav...

Climate change is expected to increase future abiotic stresses on ecosystems through extreme weather events leading to more extreme drought and rainfall incidences [Jentsch A, et al. (2007) Front Ecol Environ 5(7):365-374]. These fluctuations in precipitation may affect soil biota, soil processes [Evans ST, Wallenstein MD (2012) Biogeochemistry 109:101-116], and the proportion of exotics in inv...

Previous work has indicated a clear, consistent diurnal cycle in rainfall and cold cloudiness coverage around tropical cyclones. This cycle may have important implications for structure and intensity changes of these storms and the forecasting of such changes. The goal of this paper is to use passive and active microwave measurements from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) Microwave...

OBJECTIVES To investigate trends in Escherichia coli resistance, bacteraemia rates and post-bacteraemia outcomes over time. METHODS Trends in E. coli bacteraemia incidence were monitored from January 1999 to June 2011 using an infection surveillance database including microbiological, clinical risk factor, infection severity and outcome data in Oxfordshire, UK, with imported temperature/rainf...

Introduction: Rangeland ecosystems provide multiple ecosystem services, including feed resources for wild and domestic herbivores in semi-arid areas. However, under the ever increasing environmental changes, the impact of rainfall variability on the productivity and vegetation dynamics of rangelands are the great challenges that pastoral community are facing today. As a result, the potentials o...