Biebrza National Park Research Articles

Nutrient mobilisation and losses related to the groundwater level in low peat soils

The changes in dissolved organic carbon (DOC), N-NO3, N-NH4 and P-PO4 concentrations in response to fluctuations in the groundwater table were investigated in the peatlands of Biebrza National Park and some of its surrounding sites. The lowering of the groundwater table during summer time was accompanied by an increase in P-PO4 and N-NH4 concentrations, and in some cases they were exceptionally high compared with undisturbed water. Concentrations of both nutrients correlated with groundwater levels. Decreasing the groundwater level promoted higher concentrations of both nutrients. Nevertheless, elevated concentrations of P-PO4 and N-NH4 occurred in groundwater during the summer months when the outflow of water from peatland was slow. The N-NO3 and DOC concentrations did not change markedly with the lowering of groundwater table or during different seasons.

Ocena wartości żywieniowej sianokiszonek z łąk bagiennych

During the years 2002–2003 a study on evaluation of nutritive value of silage from bog meadows was carried out. Ensilaged plants were harvested from two bog meadows situated in and near the area of the Biebrza National Park. It was a vegetation of Calthion alliance consisting in 70 % of low sedges (meadow I) and a vegetation of Magnocaricion alliance from flooded meadow composed in 80 % of sedges, mostly Carex gracilis (meadow II). Half of the ensilaged material was inoculated with Polmazym (1 l/t of herbage). For a comparison the herbage from the cultivated meadow composed in 80% of grasses and in 20% of herbs and weeds was ensilaged. At the same time the herbage from the same bog meadows was dried for hay. The nutritive value and quality of produced feeds was determined. The quality of silage prepared from bog meadow herbage varied between years. In 2002 the quality of all silages was very good. No butyric acid was found and the content of lactic acid in FM of sedge silage prepared both with and without Polmazym, was similar to that in silage, made from cultivated meadow sward. In 2003 the quality of some bales was low. The butyric acid and greater quantities of acetic acid, especially in silage made without the Polmazym addition, were stated. Silage prepared from bog meadows vegetation contained significantly more crude protein than hay prepared from the same type of vegetation. Also, the content of crude fat and phosphorus was higher and of crude fibre lower. The nutritive value of feeds was significantly improved by ensilage process. The silage made with addition of Polmazym had a higher nutritive value than control silage (without additives). In both years of study they had a higher content of phosphorus and crude protein in the first year of investigation. Phosphorus content both in the hay and in bog meadow silage was significantly smaller than in the silage from the cultivated meadow.

Competition as a factor structuring species zonation in riparian fens ‐ a transplantation experiment

AbstractQuestion: What is the relative importance of competition and physical factors in restricting the occurrence of different fen species to certain zones of the riparian landscape?Location: Biebrza National Park, NE Poland.Methods: We carried out a two‐season reciprocal transplantation experiment: sod‐blocks were replaced between a low‐productive groundwater‐fed small‐sedge fen and a high‐productive fluviogenous tall‐sedge fen. Five treatments were applied to the transplanted sods: (1) no manipulation; (2) fertilization with NPK to exclude the effect of nutrient limitation; (3) clipping vegetation around the transplant to exclude competition for light; (4) clipping + fertilizing; (5) sods were also transplanted within their own environment.Results: After two seasons, the small‐sedge sods transplanted into the high‐productive zone had a biomass two times lower than that of the control transplants, mainly due to a decrease in small sedges and bryophytes. Tall sedges of the high‐productive zone did not respond significantly to transplantation in the low‐productive zone. Removal of the surrounding vegetation largely enhanced the growth of small sedges and bryophytes and, to a lesser degree, of tall sedges. Fertilization, on the other hand, resulted in increased growth of tall sedges, grasses and non‐graminoid herbs.Conclusion: Species characteristic of low‐productive fen communities are competitively excluded from the high‐productive zone through light competition. In contrast, the performance of tall sedges in the low‐productive zone is lowered by nutrient limitation. In the long run this may lead to a complete disappearance of these species from this zone. We did not find evidence that the physical stress of flooding has a direct effect on the performance and distribution of species. Results from the experiment suggest that productivity gradients and their influence on competition intensity are of primary importance for structuring vegetation patterns in lowland riparian fens.

Genetic variation and genotypic diversity in Epipactis helleborine populations from NE Poland

Enzyme electrophoreses were used to estimate genetic variation in five populations of Epipactis helleborine from two National Parks (Biebrza and Wigry) in northeast Poland. It has been proved that populations from these two regions differed in genetic structure, with the populations belonging to the Biebrza group having a higher level of genetic variation than those from Wigry. The number of polymorphic loci (P) ranged from 18.2% to 40.9% and the mean number of alleles per polymorphic locus (Ap) from 2.25 to 2.80. Although the observed heterozygosity (Ho) was lower than the expected one (He) in each population, the values of Ho and He were 2–3 times lower in the populations from Wigry than in those from Biebrza. Excluding the LUK population with the smallest genotypic diversity, the majority of 345 distinct multilocus genotypes occurred only once, sporadically 2–4 times in each population and their frequency ranged from 0.2% to 3.7%. Moreover, factors shaping genetic structure of E. helleborine and their intensity varied in the populations studied. Reproduction from seeds seems to influence greatly the genetic variation of the populations from the Biebrza National Park, while an assortative mating between related individuals or population size appears to be more important in the case of the populations from the Wigry National Park.

The clonal structure of Bacillus thuringiensis isolates from north-east Poland does not correlate with their cry gene diversity

The genetic relationship among 103 natural Bacillus thuringiensis isolates was investigated on the basis of polymerase chain reaction amplification of their specific crystal (cry) protein type genes and chromosomal DNA profiling by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). The strains were recovered from the intestines of small wild rodents and insectivores from the Biebrza National Park and the Lomza Landscape Park of the Narew River Valley in north-east Poland. The percentage of B. thuringiensis strains harbouring genes coding for toxins active against Lepidoptera (cry1, cry2, cry9) was very high (64%) compared with that of Diptera-specific strains (cry4, 14%). No strain with cry genes coding for proteins directed against coleopteran larvae and nematodes was found. After digestion with NotI and AscI, only nine PFGE pulsotypes were observed among all isolates, indicating a clonal structure for the B. thuringiensis population from NE Poland. Interestingly, no correlation was observed between the DNA pulsotype strains and their crystal gene content and diversity. These results therefore emphasize the importance of cry gene horizontal transfer occurring among natural isolates of B. thuringiensis.

Genetic variation and clonal diversity in island Cephalanthera rubra populations from the Biebrza National Park, Poland

Three populations of the orchid species Cephalanthera rubra localized on neighbouring mineral islands in the Biebrza National Park (north-east Poland) were examined using 16 allozyme loci. The percentage of polymorphic loci in these C. rubra populations ranged from 25 to 31.3% and the mean number of alleles per polymorphic locus from 1.25 to 1.31. The levels of observed heterozygosity at polymorphic loci were higher than expected for all populations. The overabundance of heterozygotes was noted in every population. The values of fixation indices were highly negative. The genetic differentiation among the three populations was small ( F ST = 0.0173), albeit statistically significant ( P < 0.001). The level of gene flow varied from 13 to 16. Fourteen multilocus genotypes were found among the 401 ramets sampled from the populations. Only four of them were common for all populations. The frequency of genotypes was different in these three populations of C. rubra . Some of the multilocus genotypes dominated in the given populations, others were found sporadically. Genetic variation within C. rubra populations is mainly the result of small population sizes and reflects the influences of breeding system and type of reproduction. On the other hand, these properties are also connected with habitat conditions. © 2003 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society , 2003, 143 , 99‐108. l S ¢ l

Spatial genetic structure and clonal diversity of island populations of lady's slipper (Cypripedium calceolus) from the Biebrza National Park (northeast Poland).

Three populations of the rare and endangered plant species Cypripedium calceolus were included in a study of genetic diversity and spatial genetic structure in the Biebrza National Park, northeast Poland. Analysis of 11 allozyme loci indicate that the populations of this species contained high genetic variability (P = 45.5%, A= 1.73). On the other hand, the genetic differentiation (FST = 0.014, P < 0.05) among C. calceolus populations was very low when compared to other species with similar life history characteristics. The observed high rate of gene flow (Nm = 18) may suggest that the populations studied derived from each other in the recent past. Five polymorphic allozyme markers identified 109 multilocus genotypes in three populations and the majority of them (67%) were population-specific. One of the populations studied, characterized by particularly extensive vegetative reproduction, showed the lowest clonal diversity (G/N = 0.15) and heterozygosity (HO = 0.111) values and the highest FIS(0.380), when compared to other two populations (G/N = 0.26-0.27, HO= 0.166-178, FIS = 0.024-0.055). This may indicate that clonal reproduction has an important influence on the genetic structure of C. calceolus populations. The longevity of genets, the out-crossing breeding system and the presence of recruitment from seeds are factors maintaining genetic diversity in C. calceolus.

Dynamics of island populations of Cypripedium calceolus in the Biebrza river valley (north-east Poland)

Three Cypripedium calceolus populations were observed in the Biebrza National Park (north-east Poland) for 11 years (1989–99). The populations differed in the number of genets and ramets and in their dynamics. Differences were in the proportion of flowering ramets, number of flowers, fruiting and recruitment. Fruiting and recruitment are low in populations of Cypripedium calceolus. Fruiting is probably pollinators limited, and recruitment is limited by environmental conditions. Changes in the size of populations of this species are caused by the following processes: changes in the number of genets (their appearance and death), changes in the size of clones (growth of individuals and their disintegration, death of individual ramets), dormancy of genets, and animal pressure. © 2002 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 2002, 139, 67–77.

Protein profile and biochemical properties of Bacillus circulans isolated from intestines of small free-living animals in Poland.

Forty-seven strains of Bacillus circulans isolated from the intestinal tract of free-living small mammals from the Narvia and Biebrza National Park (NE Poland) were compared with the electrophoretic whole-cell protein patterns on the basis of SDS-PAGE and biochemical characteristic using API tests (50 CHB and 20E). The strains were grouped into two clusters (I and II) at the similarity of protein pattern of 78% using the simple matching coefficient and clustering on unweighted pair group arithmetic average algorithm (SSM/UPGMA). Each of the clusters comprised reference strains. The rods included in the cluster I are characterized by higher biochemical activity in comparison with the bacilli II.

Diversification of enchytraeid communities (Enchytraeidae, Oligochaeta) of the South Basin of the Biebrza National Park

Species composition and community structure was studied in enchytraeid communities in the soil of plant associations in the Biebrza River valley situated at various distances from the river trough. Thirty species of Enchytraeidae were registered. Considerable similarity was observed for communities inhabiting reed beds, sedge and moss fens. These types of community were different from communities occupying a mineral elevation, a meadow and a swamp alder wood. Habitat location and plant association type have a much smaller effect on the characteristics of a community than the type of soil, mowing frequency and tree cover.

Review of the faunistic study of the Biebrza National Park - bibliography

Review of the faunistic study of the Biebrza National Park - bibliography