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Sunday 11 December 2016

Negative effect of removing pulp from unripe fleshy fruits: seed germination pattern of Celtis sinensis in relation to the temporal context of fruit consumption

Published Date
Volume 19, Issue 4pp 411–416

Short Communication
DOI: 10.1007/s10310-013-0430-1

Cite this article as: 
Yoshikawa, T. & Isagi, Y. J For Res (2014) 19: 411. doi:10.1007/s10310-013-0430-1

Author
Abstract

We explored the temporal effects of fruit consumption on the subsequent seed germination pattern of a fleshy-fruited tree, the Chinese hackberry (Celtis sinensis). Via nursery-based sowing experiments, we investigated (1) how pulp removal affected seed germination patterns at the different stages of fruit maturation, and (2) how the timing of seed dispersal (August, October, and December) affected the germination patterns of seeds from ripe fruits after the removal of pulp. We found that the removal of pulp from around the seeds of ripe fruit had no effect on the percentage and timing of germination. In contrast, the removal of pulp from seeds of unripe fruits largely reduced the germination percentage. The time of sowing did not affect the germination percentage, whereas the timing of germination was delayed for seeds that were sown later or under shaded environments.

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For further details log on website :
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10310-013-0430-1

An easy, accurate and efficient procedure to create forest fire risk maps using the SEXTANTE plugin Modeler

Published Date
Volume 27, Issue 6pp 1361–1372

Original Paper
DOI: 10.1007/s11676-016-0267-5

Cite this article as: 
Duarte, L. & Teododo, A.C. J. For. Res. (2016) 27: 1361. doi:10.1007/s11676-016-

Author 
  • Lia Duarte
  • Ana Cláudia Teododo
Abstract 


To prevent, detect, and protect against forest fires, forest personnel need to define rules for determining forest fire risk. In Portugal, all municipalities must annually produce forest fire risk (FFR) maps. To produce more reliable FFR maps more easily, we developed an open source model using the Modeler plugin of SEXTANTE in the program QGIS version 2.0 Dufour. The model provides all the maps involved in the FFR model (susceptibility map, hazard map, vulnerability map, economic value map, and potential loss map) and was produced according to Portuguese Forest Authority’s (AFN, Autoridade Florestal Nacional) rules for determining the FFR. This model was tested for the Portuguese municipality Santa Maria da Feira, where 40 % of the total municipality area falls in the category “very high” or “high” fire risk. The “very high” fire risk area is mainly classified as broad-leaved forest and has the steepest slopes (>15 %). The distance of burned areas to roads was also analyzed; the proportion of burned areas increased with increasing distance to the main roads. In addition, 92.6 % of the “high” and “very high” risk zones were located in areas with lower elevation. These results confirmed that forest fire is strongly influenced not only by environmental factors but also by anthropogenic factors. The procedure implemented here was compared with our open source application already available in QGIS and also to the same procedure implemented in GIS proprietary software. Although the results were obviously the same, the model developed here presents several advantages over the other two approaches. Besides being faster, it is easy to change the model parameters according to user needs (i.e., to the rules of different countries), and can be modified and adapted to other variables and other areas to create risk maps for different natural phenomena (e.g., floods, earthquakes, landslides). The model is easy to use and to create risk and hazard maps rapidly in a free, open source environment that does not require any programming knowledge.

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For further details log on website :
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11676-016-0267-5

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