1 2476-3128 667 General Plant Richness and Diversity Response to Different Treatments of Animal in Kalashak Rangelands (Case Study: Kermanshah Province) Sadeghirad A. b Arzani H. c Azarnivand H. d b College of Nature.Resour., Univ. of Tehran, Tehran, Iran. c College of Nature.Resour., Univ. of Tehran, Tehran, Iran. d College of Nature.Resour., Univ. of Tehran, Tehran, Iran. 1 9 2015 4 12 1 10 23 08 2015 23 08 2015 Evaluation of plant richness and diversity is important in rangeland ecosystems because biological control, conservation of genetic resources and the control of natural ecosystems are possible by identifying diversity. One of the factors affecting the richness and diversity is animals' utilization of the vegetation. Therefore, this research was done to study the plant richness and diversity response to different treatments of animals. To this end, four sites with none, half, equal and twice as much grazing capacity were selected. Treatments were identified due to vegetation cover changes, distance from water, distance from the village and grazing times. Using located transects, samples were (systematic randomization) taken from vegetation (transects four and plots 40 and in the area a total of 160 plots were harvested). The results showed that the highest species richness and diversity belonged to sites' grazing capacity equal and grazing capacity half. But this was the least in the without-grazing site. Thus, animals' exploiting the rangelands properly (grazing capacity equal and grazing capacity half) can increase the richness and diversity. Lack of rangeland long-term grazing leads to poor plants. So, both severe grazing and long-term exclusion should be avoided. The full protection of rangeland does not necessarily lead to the maximum diversity.
668 General Application of Nearest Neighbor Indices in Studying Structure of the Unlogged Beech (Fagus Orientalis Lipsky) Forests in Kheyrud, Nowshahr Nouri Z. e Zobeiri M. f Feghhi J. g Marvie Mohadjer M. R. h e College of Natur. Resour., Univ.of Tehran, Tehran, Iran. f College of Natur. Resour., Univ.of Tehran, Tehran, Iran. g College of Natur. Resour., Univ.of Tehran, Tehran, Iran. h College of Natur. Resour., Univ.of Tehran, Tehran, Iran. 1 9 2015 4 12 11 21 23 08 2015 23 08 2015 The quantitative description of forest structure can be regarded as one of the most usable working tools in modern forest management.The study aims at analyzing the stand structure in unlogged beech forests using nearest neighbor indices. Data collection was done in compartment 319 with an area about 48 ha in Educational and Experimental Forests of University of Tehran. Species and DBH of all trees with DBH > 7.5 cm were recorded. The location of each tree species was determined using azimuth and distance method in order to map tree positions. The nearest neighbor indices including Clark and Evans’s index, species mingling’s index (DMi), Relative mingling index (S) and diameter differentiation index (Tij) were then calculated using Crancod ver. 1.3 software. Using Clark and Evans’ index, the spatial pattern of trees in the study area was determined as clustered. The value of mingling index (0.31) indicated low mingling of species in these forests. The mean value of Tij (0.43) indicates moderate differentiation of trees regarding DBH, whereas S index (0.44) which is greater than 0 implies species separation in the study area. This research emphasizes the application of nearest neighbor indices in studying the beech stands structure. 669 General Recreational Interests of Visitors and Their Effects on Miankaleh Wildlife Refuge Masoodi M. i Salman Mahiny A. R. j Mohammadzadeh M. k Mirkarimi S. H. l i College of Fisheries and Environ. Sci., Gorgan Univ. of Agric. Sci. and Natur. Resour., j College of Fisheries and Environ. Sci., Gorgan Univ. of Agric. Sci. and Natur. Resour., k College of Fisheries and Environ. Sci., Gorgan Univ. of Agric. Sci. and Natur. Resour., l College of Fisheries and Environ. Sci., Gorgan Univ. of Agric. Sci. and Natur. Resour., 1 9 2015 4 12 23 40 23 08 2015 23 08 2015 Today, ecotourism is a major tourist activity around the world. Ecotourism is one of the strategies for supporting conservation and ensuring income in the protected areas. When implemented within the capabilities of natural systems evaluated based on natural and socio-economic factors, ecotourism can simultaneously lead to regional prosperity and environmental protection. The goal of research is determination of natural potential, recreational opportunity, and effective factors in their choice in natural areas. The area is located south of the Caspian Sea in Mazandaran and Golestan Provinces. We used questionnaires and field survey for collecting public opinions. Results indicated the high tendency of visitors for bird watching, swimming, nature photography and filming and boating among all the suggested recreational activities. Also, the Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney tests were used for assessment of the relationships between age, sex and visitor groups and recreational activities. We found significant relationships between the groups in many of recreational activities such as research, resting and photography and filming of nature. The results of this study showed this area lacked sufficient facilities for visitors, therefore planning, preparation and implementation of comprehensive tourism infrastructure are essential to attract more ecotourists that can also reduce negative effects of recreational activities on the environment. 670 General Using Eggs of Two Species, Ardea cinerea and Chlidonia shybrid,as Biomonitors for PAH Compounds in Anzali Wetland Zamani M. m Khorasani N. n Riyahi Bakhtiyari A. R. o Rezaee K. p m College of Natur. Resour., Univ. of Tehran, Karaj, Alborz, Iran. n College of Natur. Resour., Univ. of Tehran, Karaj, Alborz, Iran. o College of Natur. Resour. and Marine Sci., Tarbiat Modares Univ., Noor, Mazandaran, Iran. p College of Agric. Eng. and Technol., Univ. of Tehran, Karaj, Alborz, Iran. 1 9 2015 4 12 41 53 23 08 2015 23 08 2015 In the present study, 10 egg samples of two bird species and 16 surface sediment samples were collected in order to determine the concentrations and origins of 23 PAH compounds. Then, PAH compounds were extracted using the clean-up method, following which the compounds were analyzed with the GC-MS. The total concentrations of the 22 PAH compounds (except for perylene) were determined within the ranges of 560.05 to 833.66 and 185 to 284.15 ng g-1 dry weight in the sediment samples and the bird egg samples, respectively. The results of the statistical tests indicated that there is no significant relationship between the total concentration of the 22 PAH compounds in the sediment samples collected from the two regions studied. Nevertheless, the concentration of these compounds in the samples of the Ardea cinerea eggs was obtained more than that of Chlidonia shybrida. The results from the tests aiming at the determination of the origin of PAH compounds and of perylene demonstrated a biogenic origin for perylene and a petrogenic origin for the PAH compounds. Since the concentrations of the PAH compounds analyzed in all the sediment and egg samples indicated the same distribution and origin, it can be concluded that these compounds were accumulated in the birds' eggs from the breeding areas and that the eggs of the two species studied can be considered as suitable biomonitors for PAH compounds. 671 General Relationship between Soil Macro fauna Biodiversity and Trees and Shrubs in Riparian Forest of Maroon River in Khuzestan Province Askarpur M. Sayad E. Taleshi H. College. of Natur. Resour., Behbahan Khatam Alanbia Univ., Khuzestan, Iran. Dept. of Natur. Resour., Razi Univ., Kermanshah, Iran. College. of Natur. Resour., Behbahan Khatam Alanbia Univ., Khuzestan, Iran. 1 9 2015 4 12 55 65 23 08 2015 23 08 2015 Soil macrofauna biodiversity has an important role in ecosystem services. In order to find how soil macrofauna biodiversity is related to trees and shrubs in riparian forest of Maroon River in Khuzestan province, soil macrofauna were collected using hand-sorting procedure from 0-10 and 10-25 cm soil depths in 50 cm × 50 cm plots, 50 meters from each other on transects 100 meters apart and perpendicular to the river. Totally, 175 sampling plots were taken. In each plot, quantitative characteristics of trees and shrubs were measured. Soil macrofauna abundance and biomass were highest at 0-10 cm soil depth. Macrofauna biodiversity had a stronger correlation with Tamarisk properties than Euphrates poplar. In contrast, macrofauna biodiversity was not different under Tamarisk and Euphrates poplar. But earthworm was higher under Euphrates poplar cover. The most important parameter of soil macrofauna biodiversity in this area was crown cover. Therefore we could state that regardless of tree species, crown cover of these forests should be conserved because it maintains soil macrofauna biodiversity. 672 General Assessment of Different Methods of Form Factor Determination for Volume Estimation of Planted Populus deltoides and Taxodium distichum Trees (Klodeh Region– Mazandaran Province) Eslamdoust J. Sohrabi H. Hosseini M. Moradi Z. College of Natur. Resour. and Mariane Sci., Tarbiat Modares Univ., Noor, Mazandaran, Iran. College of Natur. Resour. and Mariane Sci., Tarbiat Modares Univ., Noor, Mazandaran, Iran. College of Natur. Resour. and Mariane Sci., Tarbiat Modares Univ., Noor, Mazandaran, Iran. College of Natur. Resour., Gilan Univ., Gilan, Iran. 1 9 2015 4 12 67 76 23 08 2015 23 08 2015 One of the most important factors in determining the volume of trees is selection of appropriate form factor. In the present study, four different methods of form factor calculation were evaluated for two rapid growth species including Populus deltoides and Taxodium distichum. For this purpose, in each stand, 12 trees per 4 diameter class ranging from 10 to 45 cm in DBH were randomly selected and diameter at breast height of all trees was measured. Then, using sectional measurement (cylindrical volume formula and Esmalyan) method, the actual volume of each tree was calculated. Also, Real (Fr), Normal (F0.1), Artificial (F1.3) and Hohenadl (Fh) form factors were measured. Analyses of variances were used to investigate any significant differences between the calculated coefficients. Dunnett's test was used to explore significant differences between various methods of coefficient calculation and the real form factor coefficients. Results showed that for Populus deltoides, artificial form factor (0.50) was closer to the real form factor (0.51) while for Taxodium distichum, hohenadl form factor (0.52) was closest to the real form factor (0.50). In addition, natural and artificial form factors were related to DBH, but real and hohenadl form factors were not related to DBH. Artificial form factor can be used for both species in this study as a suitable and useful form factor. 673 General Fractal Description of Tree Canopy and Soil Bulk Density in Zagros Forests, (Case Study: Bisotun Protected Area) Gholami Sh. Sayad E. College of Agric., Razi Univ., Kermanshah, Iran. College of Agric., Razi Univ., Kermanshah, Iran. 1 9 2015 4 12 77 86 23 08 2015 23 08 2015 In Zagros forest ecosystem, spatial variability of soil and vegetation properties are controlled by series of physical and biological parameters including topographical and anthropogenic factors. Distribution patterns of these properties are greatly variable. In the current study, geostatistics and fractal theory were used to assess the spatial variability of tree canopy and soil bulk density in a part of Zagros forests in Kermanshah province. The spatial structure was investigated by calculating the variogram and fractal dimension. The results showed that none of the variables had a spatial autocorrelation and indeed confirmed the lack of any significant spatial structure. Even though the soil bulk density had an intermediate spatial structure with the exponential model, it is not remarkable and autocorrelation did not show any sign of spatial dependency. The study of distribution and fractal behavior of variables showed an intensive variability in the study area, and spatial variability did not have a remarkable structure. Fractal dimension of both variables also were high. Totally, it seems that as a result of disturbance and pressure effect on this ecosystem spatial dependency of the variables has decreased to the level that they could be accepted independent.