Ecological Terms Research Articles

Marine Pelagic Ecosystem Responses to Climate Variability and Change

abstract The marine coastal region makes up just 10% of the total area of the global ocean but contributes nearly 20% of its total primary production and over 80% of fisheries landings. Unicellular phytoplankton dominate primary production. Climate variability has had impacts on various marine ecosystems, but most sites are just approaching the age at which ecological responses to longer term, unidirectional climate trends might be distinguished. All five marine pelagic sites in the US Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) network are experiencing warming trends in surface air temperature. The marine physical system is responding at all sites with increasing mixed layer temperatures and decreasing depth and with declining sea ice cover at the two polar sites. Their ecological responses are more varied. Some sites show multiple population or ecosystem changes, whereas, at others, changes have not been detected, either because more time is needed or because they are not being measured.

Evaluation of Provincial Tourism Competitiveness in the Yellow River Basin Based on Clustering Algorithm

Tourism is an important part of China’s national economy. Promoting the development of regional tourism and improving the level of tourism competitiveness can promote the development of regional economy, society, and people's livelihood. Therefore, in the context of the HQDEV of the YRB, it is of great significance to study the evaluation and promotion strategies of tourism competitiveness along the Yellow River for promoting their HQDEV in terms of ecology, economy, and tourism. Taking the provinces as the research area, this article has constructed an evaluation index system of tourism competitiveness in the provinces and used the entropy weigh, the Topsis, and the natural breakpoint classification method. The economic and tourism industry subsystems and the overall tourism competitiveness level are comprehensively evaluated and analyzed, and on this basis, the promotion strategy of tourism competitiveness of the nine provinces along the Yellow River is proposed. According to the weight of the evaluation index system, the index weight of the ecological environment competitiveness subsystem is 0.3891, of which the index weight of the ecological protection level is 0.3057, and the environmental quality level is 0.0834. The index weight of the subsystem is 0.2691, of which the index weight of the economic innovation level is 0.1695, and the social and people's livelihood level is 0.0996. For the tourism competitiveness, the index weight of the ecological environment competitiveness subsystem is 0.3891, the index weight of the socioeconomic competitiveness subsystem is 0.2691, and the index weight of the tourism industry competitiveness subsystem is 0.3418. The results show that the level of tourism competitiveness along the nine provinces maintains a relatively stable form, but the overall level is not high and the intraregional differences are small.

Investigation the Effectiveness of Storytelling on Fifth Grade Turkish Students’ Environmental Problems

Even though there are numerous studies on environmental education in the literature, they are limited to investigate the effects of stories. In this context, this research aimed to investigate the views of fifth grade Turkish students concerning environmental problems through storytelling. In accordance with this aim, action research has carried out. The study was conducted with 35 students enrolled in a middle school. Four stories related to different environmental topics were told participants during four weeks. Qualitative data were obtained through focus group interviews supported by data analysis of word association test (WAT). WAT included six key words was applied as pre- and post-WAT. The frequency tables and concept networks were constructed based on WAT results. Participants discussed the effects of environmental problems, the consequences of environmental problems, and environmental protection through focus group interviews. According to the WAT results, students mostly associated “human” with “environmental problem” and “environmental pollution”. They also used of ecological terms increased at the end of intervention.

Rural Transformation Driven by Households’ Adaptation to Climate, Policy, Market, and Urbanization: Perspectives from Livelihoods–Land Use on Chinese Loess Plateau

Regional rural systems respond to global environmental change with multi-dimensional transformation. However, in the widespread traditional agricultural areas, rural transformation is often seen as invisible and sometimes remains hidden by official statistics of urbanization and industrialization at a regional level. The study implemented field survey and ethnography methods, exploring the trajectory and driving paths of rural transformation in traditional agricultural areas. The findings indicate that the dominant livelihood experienced a transitional trajectory from traditional farming to jujube-oriented and then to a non-farming livelihood. Furthermore, the land use showed an eco-transformation from farmland to forest land, and from cultivated land gradually to uncultivated land. We also find that the household behaviors actively or passively adapted to environmental effects, such as climate change, market change, urbanization impact, and policy regulation, and then drove non-agricultural transformation and eco-transformation in traditional agricultural areas. Based on these findings, the study confirms that there is a clear rural transformation in traditional agricultural areas, and reveals that the Loess Plateau turned green from bottom to top. Finally, the study calls to take the road of green transformation, and proposals are presented in terms of ecology, livelihood, and industry.

A system-theoretic approach for image-based infectious plant disease severity estimation.

The demand for high level of safety and superior quality in agricultural products is of prime concern. The introduction of new technologies for supporting crop management allows the efficiency and quality of production to be improved and, at the same time, reduces the environmental impact. Common strategies to disease control are mainly oriented on spraying pesticides uniformly over cropping areas at different times during the growth cycle. Even though these methodologies can be effective, they present a negative impact in ecological and economic terms, introducing new pests and elevating resistance of the pathogens. Therefore, consideration for new automatic and accurate along with inexpensive and efficient techniques for the detection and severity estimation of pathogenic diseases before proper control measures can be suggested is of great realistic significance and may reduce the likelihood of an infection spreading. In this work, we present a novel system-theoretic approach for leaf image-based automatic quantitative assessment of pathogenic disease severity regardless of disease type. The proposed method is based on a highly efficient and noise-rejecting positive non-linear dynamical system that recursively transforms the leaf image until only the symptomatic disease patterns are left. The proposed system does not require any training to automatically discover the discriminative features. The experimental setup allowed to assess the system ability to generalise symptoms detection beyond any previously seen conditions achieving excellent results. The main advantage of the approach relies in the robustness when dealing with low-resolution and noisy images. Indeed, an essential issue related to digital image processing is to effectively reduce noise from an image whilst keeping its features intact. The impact of noise is effectively reduced and does not affect the final result allowing the proposed system to ensure a high accuracy and reliability.

Revealing the difference of α-amylase and CYP6AE76 gene between polyphagous Conogethes punctiferalis and oligophagous C. pinicolalis by multiple-omics and molecular biological technique

BackgroundConogethes pinicolalis has been thought as a Pinaceae-feeding variant of the yellow peach moth, Conogethes punctiferalis. The divergence of C. pinicolalis from the fruit-feeding moth C. punctiferalis has been reported in terms of morphology, ecology, and genetics, however there is a lack of detailed molecular data. Therefore, in this study, we investigated the divergence of C. pinicolalis from C. punctiferalis from the aspects of transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics and bioinformatics.ResultsThe expression of 74,611 mRNA in transcriptome, 142 proteins in proteome and 218 metabolites in metabolome presented significantly differences between the two species, while the KEGG results showed the data were mainly closely related to metabolism and redox. Moreover, based on integrating system-omics data, we found that the α-amylase and CYP6AE76 genes were mutated between the two species. Mutations in the α-amylase and CYP6AE76 genes may influence the efficiency of enzyme preference for a certain substrate, resulting in differences in metabolic or detoxifying ability in both species. The qPCR and enzyme activity test also confirmed the relevant gene expression.ConclusionsThese findings of two related species and integrated networks provide beneficial information for further exploring the divergence in specific genes, metabolism, and redox mechanism. Most importantly, it will give novel insight on species adaptation to various diets, such as from monophagous to polyphagous.

Optimal management of stochastic invasion in a metapopulation with Allee effects

Invasive species account for incalculable damages worldwide, in both ecological and bioeconomic terms. The question of how a network of invasive populations can be optimally managed is one that deserves further exploration. A study accounting for partial observability and imperfect detection, in particular, could yield useful insights into species eradication efforts. Here, we generalized a simple model system that we developed in previous work. This model consists of three interacting populations with underlying strong Allee effects and stochastic dynamics, inhabiting distinct locations connected by dispersal, which can generate bistability. To explore the stochastic dynamics, we formulated an individual-based modeling approach. Next, using the theory of continuous-time Markov chains, we approximated the original high-dimensional model by a Markov chain with eight states, with each state corresponding to a combination of population thresholds. We then used the reduced model as the core for a powerful decision-making tool, referred to as a Partially Observable Markov Decision Process (POMDP). Analysis of this POMDP indicates when the system results in optimal management outcomes.

Sensitive Measures of Soil Health Reveal Carbon Stability Across a Management Intensity and Plant Biodiversity Gradient

Soil carbon (C) is a major driver of soil health, yet little is known regarding how sensitive measures of soil C shift temporally within a single growing season in response to short-term weather perturbations. Our study aimed to i) Examine how long-term management impacts soil C cycling and stability across a management intensity and plant biodiversity gradient and ii) Assess how sensitive soil health indicators change temporally over the course of a single growing season in response to recent weather patterns. Here we quantify a variety of sensitive soil C measures at four time points across the 2021 growing season at the W.K. Kellogg Biological Station’s Long Term Ecological Research Trial (LTER) located in southwest Michigan, USA. The eight systems sampled included four annual soybean (Glycine max) systems that ranged in management intensity (conventional, no-till, reduced input, and biologically-based), two perennial biofuel cropping systems (switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) and hybrid poplars (Populus nigra x P.maximowiczii)), and two unmanaged systems (early successional system and a mown but never tilled grassland). We found that unmanaged systems with increased perenniality enhanced mineralizable C (Min C) and permanganate oxidizable C (POXC) values. Additionally, all soil health indicators were found to be sensitive to changes in short-term weather perturbations over the course of the growing season. The implications of this study are threefold. First, this study assess indicators of labile and stable C pools over the course of the growing season and reflects the stability of soil C in different systems. Second, POXC, Min C, and ß-glucosidase (GLU) activity are sensitive soil health indicators that fluctuate temporally, which means that these soil health indicators could help elucidate the impact that weather patterns have on soil C dynamics. Lastly, for effective monitoring of soil C, sampling time and frequency should be considered for a comprehensive understanding of soil C cycling within a system.

Fungal Mushrooms: A Natural Compound With Therapeutic Applications.

Fungi are extremely diverse in terms of morphology, ecology, metabolism, and phylogeny. Approximately, 130 medicinal activities like antitumor, immunomodulation, antioxidant, radical scavenging, cardioprotective and antiviral actions are assumed to be produced by the various varieties of medicinal mushrooms. The polysaccharides, present in mushrooms like β-glucans, micronutrients, antioxidants like glycoproteins, triterpenoids, flavonoids, and ergosterols can help establish natural resistance against infections and toxins.. Clinical trials have been performed on mushrooms like Agaricus blazei Murrill Kyowa for their anticancer effect, A. blazei Murrill for its antihypertensive and cardioprotective effects, and some other mushrooms had also been evaluated for their neurological effects. The human evaluation dose studies had been also performed and the toxicity dose was evaluated from the literature for number of mushrooms. All the mushrooms were found to be safe at a dose of 2000 mg/kg but some with mild side effects. The safety and therapeutic effectiveness of the fungal mushrooms had shifted the interest of biotechnologists toward fungal nanobiotechnology as the drug delivery system due to the vast advantages of nanotechnology systems. In complement to the vital nutritional significance of medicinal mushrooms, numerous species have been identified as sources of bioactive chemicals. Moreover, there are unanswered queries regarding its safety, efficacy, critical issues that affect the future mushroom medicine development, that could jeopardize its usage in the twenty-first century.

Present climate of lake Montcortès (Central Pyrenees): paleoclimatic relevance and insights on future warming

The varved sediments of the Pyrenean Lake Montcortès (Pallars Sobirà, Lleida) embody a unique continuous high-resolution (annual) paleoarchive of the last 3000 years for the circum-Mediterranean region. A variety of paleoclimatic and paleoecological records have been retrieved from these uncommon sediments that have turned the lake into a regional reference. Present-day geographical, geological, ecological and limnological features of the lake and its surroundings are reasonably well known but the lack of a local weather station has prevented characterization of current climate, which is important to develop modern-analog studies for paleoclimatic reconstruction and to forecast the potential impacts of future global warming. Here, the local climate of the Montcortès area for the period 1955-2020 is characterized using a network of nearby stations situated along an elevational transect in the same river basin of the lake. The finding of statistically significant elevational gradients for average temperature and precipitation (-0.59 °C and 82 mm per 100 m elevation, respectively) has enabled to estimate these parameters and their seasonal regime for the lake site. The estimated average annual temperature is 9.7±0.8 °C and the estimated total annual precipitation is 1031±34 mm, in average. A representative climograph has been shaped with these data that can serve as a synthetic descriptive and comparative climatic tool. The same analysis has provided climatic data for modern-analog studies useful to improve the interpretation of sedimentary records in climatic and ecological terms. In addition, the seasonal slope shifting of the climatic elevational gradients has been useful to gain insights about possible future climatic trends under a warming scenario

Yield losses of cereal crops by Fusarium Link: A review on the perspective of biological control practices

Fusarium wilt caused by 58 species is one of the most common fungal diseases causing both quantitative and qualitative losses in all cereal regions around the world. Thus, F. graminearum is the most dominant species on wheat and barley, F. verticilloides on maize, F. fujikiroi on rice and F. thapsinum on sorghum. The use of biological methods seems promising because of their high efficiency in terms of economy, ecology, and disease control. In addition, the key to successful biocontrol is to choose a strong biocontrol agent first. However, the main objective of the work is to make a bibliographical synthesis to facilitate the choice of various practice to control of Fusarium wilt. A complete study was carried out on 180 published literatures during the period 2000–2021, of which 30% were published from 2000–2011 and 70% from 2012–2021. Among 55 genera, strains of genus Trichoderma, Bacillus, Pseudomonas, Streptomyces reduced Fusarium wilt on average by 72.97, 51, 51.77 and 33.36% in greenhouse tests and 56.82, 42.83, 51.51 and 34.91% in the field, respectively. C. rosea, T. harzianum, P. fluorescens and B. subtilis reduced Fusarium on average by 70.33, 74.16, 51.77 and 49.95% in greenhouse tests and 62.55, 48.72, 56.62 and 49.3C%o in the field, respectively. In conclusion, this literature review gathers promising biocontrol agents to control Fusarium species in cereals. Finally, we point out that it would be necessary to take into account the number of repeated uses of biocontrol agents during the cereal production cycle, which is lacking in the literature.

MOLECULAR CHARACTERIZATION AND PHYLOGENETIC ANALYSIS OF THE NATIVE SMALL CARPENTER BEES (CERATINA SPP.) OF NORTH WESTERN, INDIAN HIMALAYAS

Bees are a wonderful creatures on earth; contributing to 73% of pollination services provided byall animals. Although the economic value of domesticated bees is calculated through several scientificmethods, but the actual value of wild bees in terms of economy, ecology and biodiversity are rarelyestimated due to lack of distinct taxonomic keys. Considering the above backdrops, we decided tomolecularly characterize three species of Ceratina native to Indian Himalayas. Three species were reportedas C. sutepensis, C. smaragdula and C. similima based on phylogenetic analysis and comparison with the NCBIdatabase. The COI sequence of C. similima was submitted to the NCBI database for the first time. Nucleotidefrequency analysis showed that partial COI gene sequences were A+T biased (>75%), while the amino acidfrequency analysis showed higher frequency of leucine (16.01%) and serine (11.77%). Multiple sequencealignment of COI sequences of three species illustrated the total variation in 117 SNP’s. Moreover, thepairwise genetic distance analysis reported that C. sutepensis and C.smaragdulawere genetically less distantwhen compared toC. similima. Suchkinds of studies are essential to analyze the biodiversity of location,distinguish cryptic species and develop distinct taxonomic tools for integrative taxonomy of bees.

Integrating Ecological Forecasting into Undergraduate Ecology Curricula with an R Shiny Application-Based Teaching Module

Ecological forecasting is an emerging approach to estimate the future state of an ecological system with uncertainty, allowing society to better manage ecosystem services. Ecological forecasting is a core mission of the U.S. National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON) and several federal agencies, yet, to date, forecasting training has focused on graduate students, representing a gap in undergraduate ecology curricula. In response, we developed a teaching module for the Macrosystems EDDIE (Environmental Data-Driven Inquiry and Exploration; MacrosystemsEDDIE.org) educational program to introduce ecological forecasting to undergraduate students through an interactive online tool built with R Shiny. To date, we have assessed this module, “Introduction to Ecological Forecasting,” at ten universities and two conference workshops with both undergraduate and graduate students (N = 136 total) and found that the module significantly increased undergraduate students’ ability to correctly define ecological forecasting terms and identify steps in the ecological forecasting cycle. Undergraduate and graduate students who completed the module showed increased familiarity with ecological forecasts and forecast uncertainty. These results suggest that integrating ecological forecasting into undergraduate ecology curricula will enhance students’ abilities to engage and understand complex ecological concepts.

Strain Development in Microalgal Biotechnology-Random Mutagenesis Techniques.

Microalgal biomass and metabolites can be used as a renewable source of nutrition, pharmaceuticals and energy to maintain or improve the quality of human life. Microalgae’s high volumetric productivity and low impact on the environment make them a promising raw material in terms of both ecology and economics. To optimize biotechnological processes with microalgae, improving the productivity and robustness of the cell factories is a major step towards economically viable bioprocesses. This review provides an overview of random mutagenesis techniques that are applied to microalgal cell factories, with a particular focus on physical and chemical mutagens, mutagenesis conditions and mutant characteristics.

CENCHRUS LONGISPINUS (HACK.) FERNALD ON ANTHROPOGENICLY TRANSFORMED AREAS OF THE DNIESTER DISTRICT

During the study of flora of ecotopes of the railway tracks of the Dniester embankment, 14 localities of the North American species Cenchrus longispinus were identified. On the sand the plants are better developed, have more lateral shoots. On crushed stone substrate, especially in the interrail space of the railway, plants are low – 7 (10) cm high. In addition, Cenchrus longispinus on the Dniester embankment was found in areas where no radical transformation of the ecotope (beach) is detected. Problem. The adventive species Cenchrus longispinus (Hack.) Fernald in Ukraine is at the expansion stage. It poses significant potential threat to the environment due to stress tolerance, wide ecological amplitude, high degree of naturalization, significant coenotic activity and so on. Much attention is now being paid to the study of the conditions for the emergence and naturalization of new adventitious species, especially quarantine ones. Cenchrus longispinus originates from North America and is distributed with grain bulks. The species has spread to many countries - it has been found in South Africa, India, Moldova, Russia, in a number of European countries. Навести яких. In Ukraine, the species was first detected in the southern regions. It is a kenophyte, agrio-epecophyte and belongs to the quarantine organisms that are partially distributed in Ukraine (A-2). In the ecological sense, the species prefers arid soil conditions. It is a heliophyte, in ecological and coenotic terms - a psammophyte. Most of its populations are concentrated in anthropogenic ecotopes. Methods. In the summer of 2021, anthropogenically transformed areas of the Dniester embankment were surveyed by a route method. The flora of the railway tracks between the railway stations Karolinа-Bugas and Sonyachna was studied. Results. 14 localities of Cenchrus longispinus were identified. Their coordinates are given in the publication. Plants are mostly localized in areas of unauthorized or organised pedestrian crossings over railway tracks. The substrate is crushed stone of railway tracks or adjacent sandy soil. Conclusions. On sand plants, by sight, are better developed, have more lateral shoots, are higher. On the crushed stone substrate of railway tracks, especially in the interrail space, the plants are low - 7 (10) cm high. Specimens on both types of substrate, even those that undergo moderate and severe mechanical damage by pedestrians, possess a significant number of grown additional shoots. Almost all shoots have developed fruit. Cenchrus longispinus on the Dniester embankment is represented not only in areas with strong anthropogenic impact, but also where human influence is moderate or apparently nonexistent. However, all surveyed areas are visited by pedestrians or vacationers.

Evolutionary and ecological signals in Wolbachia-beetle relationships: A review

Intracellular bacteria of the genus Wolbachia are the most abundant endosymbionts infecting many arthropods, with Coleoptera being the most diverse hosts in terms of taxonomy and ecology. There has been great progress in studies on the relations between Wolbachia and beetles, however, only some of the research details the consequences of infection. In this review, I summarise the knowledge on the evolutionary relations or ecological associations between Wolbachia and its beetle hosts. These bacteria often cause cytoplasmic incompatibility in the infected hosts and are responsible for a selective sweep of the mitochondrial genomes in some beetles. Wolbachia can manipulate the sex ratio or reproduction of some species of beetles, however, it does not induce parthenogenesis, with the possible rare exception of some Naupactini. Proof of the co-evolution of Wolbachia with beetles is missing, but some aquatic groups seem to be prone to co-speciation, unlike terrestrial taxa. On the other hand, there is a growing number of studies indicating or proving horizontal transmission of Wolbachia among beetle hosts, mostly via common host plants or the foraging substrate (such as dung). Wolbachia is not alone in infecting beetles as other endosymbiotic bacteria occur in beetles (Rickettsia, Spiroplasma, Cardinium, Arsenophorus), which have often been reported as interchangeable, suggesting the infection by various bacteria is dynamic. Nonetheless, there are still many issues associated with Wolbachia that are not yet been described in beetles (like the provision of nutrition or protection against pathogens) and high-throughput sequencing should be used to improve our understanding of Wolbachia-Coleoptera relations.

SLAM Project - Long Term Ecological Study of the Impacts of Climate Change in the Natural Forest of Azores: III - Testing the impact of edge effects in a native forest of Terceira Island.

The data we present are part of the long-term project "SLAM Project - Long Term Ecological Study of the Impacts of Climate Change in the Natural Forest of Azores" that started in 2012, aiming to understand the impact of biodiversity erosion drivers on Azorean native forests (Azores, Macaronesia, Portugal). The data for the current study consist in an inventory of arthropods collected in three locations of a native forest fragment at Terra-Brava protected area (Terceira, Azores, Portugal) aiming to test the impact of edge effects on Azorean arthropod communities. The three locations were: (i) the edge of the forest, closer to the pastures; (ii) an intermediate area (100 m from edge); and (iii) the deepest part of the native forest fragment (more than 300 m from edge). The study was carried out between June 2014 and December 2015. A total of nine passive flight interception SLAM (Sea, Land and Air Malaise) traps were deployed (three in each of the studied locations), during 18 consecutive months. This study provides the raw data to investigate temporal and edge effect variation for the Azorean arthropod communities. The collected arthropods belong to a wide diversity of taxonomic groups of Arachnida, Diplopoda, Chilopoda and Insecta classes. We collected a total of 13,516 specimens from which it was possible to identify to species level almost all specimens (13,504). These identified specimens belong to 15 orders, 58 families (plus three with only genus or family level identification) and 97 species of arthropods. A total of 35 species are considered introduced, 34 native non-endemic and 28 endemic. Additionally, a total of 10 taxa (12 specimens) were recorded at genus, family or order level. This dataset will allow researchers to test the impact of edge effect on arthropod biodiversity and to investigate seasonal changes in Azorean arthropod native forest communities.

Systematic Review on Effects of Global Climate Change on Birds

Consequences of climatic change in migratory and resident birds in terms of behavior, physiology, genetics, ecology, and evolution are the best documented changes reported in the animal world. This systematic review focuses on the studies conducted in the two most recent decades (2001-2020) regarding the effects of global climate change on birds. The PSALSAR [Protocol, Search, Appraisal, Synthesis, Analysis and Reporting results] approach was used to conduct the review. Information from a total of 170 publications in two databases (PUBMED and Google Scholar) including journal articles, books, book chapters, reviews and reports were extracted and analyzed under ten criteria. An increase in publication number was observed in both databases. Overall, the highest number of publications were available for the year 2019. The highest number (141) of selected publications were journal articles. The highest number of articles (41) were from PLOS One. Selected articles ranged between 1,830 and 2,100. Twenty eight studies were done on a global scale. Other studies scaled around eight regions, five continents and 40 countries. Behavior and ecology related consequences were studied the most. 82 studies used primary data sources and 88 studies used secondary data sources. Quantification, mapping and modelling were the most utilized modes of assessments. Most studied species are Pied Flycatcher (Ficedula hypoleuca), Blue Tit (Cyanistes caeruleus) and Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor) Majority of the publications were based on expansion of knowledge. In conclusion, research based on consequences of climate change is rapidly rising. Long term data sets are being used to study past events and models are being used to make projections. However, only behavior and ecology are studied to a greater extent. Therefore, measures have to be taken to study the other focus areas such as physiology, genetics, and evolution. Especially the lack of specific studies in Sri Lanka indicates a research gap that must be addressed. Keywords: Birds, Climate change, Systematic review, Behaviour, Ecology

Influence of Rural Development of River Tourism Resources on Physical and Mental Health and Consumption Willingness in the Context of COVID-19

This study took the Three Gorges Dam as an example and discussed the influence of river regulation decisions on the sustainable development of surrounding villages. The study used mixed research methods, snowball sampling, and convenience sampling to obtain samples. The questionnaire samples were analyzed by basic statistical tests, t-test, and structural equation modeling (SEM). The respondents’ opinions were collected through semi-structured interviews and finally the results were discussed by multivariate analysis. The findings were that even though the villages were not well developed in terms of economy, environment, and natural ecology, as long as the community security could be stable, the living could be safe and convenient, people’s daily life patterns and leisure behaviors could be maintained, and people could stabilize their minds and emotions and maintain physical and mental health in order to meet their living needs and reduce the burden. There would be time and funds to invest in leisure, tourism activities, and consumption behavior. If the above consumption patterns are continued, people will gain positive perceptions, stimulating people’s willingness to invest in property purchases or to make travel plans again.

Perceptions of ESP Lecturers’ Professional Development in China: An Ecological Perspective

The teaching of English for Special Purposes (ESP) has become the mainstream of English teaching in Chinese universities. This article, from a perspective of Educational Ecology, explored ESP lecturers’ professional development in Chinese universities. Semi-structured interviews were conducted on 13 ESP lecturers who were in the interim of transforming from teaching of English for General Purposes (EGP). It was found that there existed an imbalance in the ESP lecturers’ professional development in terms of internal and external ecology. In order to resume the ecological niche, this article proposed a quadruple symbiosis of ESP lecturers’ professional development, namely an integrity of ESP lecturers’ autonomy, management support, ESP teacher community, and ESP teacher training and enterprise cooperation internship.