Mate choice in the brown thornbill (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Acanthiza pusilla</Emphasis>): are settlement decisions,divorce and extrapair mating complementary strategies?

In socially monogamous birds, females may express mate preferences when they first select a breeding partner, through divorce and subsequent breeding dispersal to a new partner and through extrapair mating. We examined settlement patterns, divorce and breeding dispersal in a sedentary Australian passerine, the brown thornbill (Acanthiza pusilla), in relation to two traits known to influence extrapair paternity (male age and male size). Settlement decisions, divorce and territory switching behaviour were all female strategies that reduced their likelihood of breeding with 1-year-old males. Females preferred to settle in territories with 2+ -year-old males, were more likely to divorce 1-year-old males, and only switched territories if they had an opportunity to form a new pair bond with an old male. In contrast, female settlement and divorce decisions were not influenced by male size. Female thornbills obtain a direct benefit from preferring older males as social mates because breeding success improves with male age in brown thornbills. Nevertheless, divorce rates in this species were low (14% of pair bonds were terminated by divorce), and individuals rarely switched territories following the death of a mate. Both of these mating strategies appeared to be primarily constrained by the distance adults moved to initiate a new pair bond (1–2 territories) and by the limited availability of unpaired older males in the immediate neighbourhood.Communicated by M. Webster     

Testosterone upregulates lipoprotein status to control sexual attractiveness in a colorful songbird

A salient feature of many secondary sexual characteristics in animals is that their expression is controlled by sex-steroid hormones. However, for only a few types of ornaments do we know the precise molecular mechanism by which androgens like testosterone (T) enhance trait production. We studied the red carotenoid-based beak of male zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata), which serves as a sexually selected trait and is thought to be T dependent. In previous research, we demonstrated that the extent to which male finches produce lipoproteins in the bloodstream, which bind carotenoid pigments acquired from the diet and transport them to peripheral tissues, regulates the accumulation of carotenoids in the body and beak pigmentation. Here we show that T acts to upregulate lipoprotein production and allows male zebra finches to display flashy, sexually attractive coloration. Levels of circulating T in blood positively and significantly predicted lipoprotein profile (as measured by cholesterol levels), blood carotenoid concentration, and beak color. Exogenous T administration elevated cholesterol and carotenoid status as well as beak redness. Last, experimental inhibition of T (using the anti-androgen flutamide) downregulated lipoprotein production and carotenoid circulation and faded the beak. This androgen- and lipoprotein-mediated system represents one of the more detailed physiological mechanisms underlying the development of a sex-steroid-dependent trait in animals.     

Greening Nigeria's economy for industrial and environmental sustainability: Polyurethane production as a test case

The study focused on Nigeria's polyurethane (PU) production process as a test case. Though it is currently insignificant when viewed from a global perspective, PU production in Nigeria is not eco‐friendly. Traditionally, PU is produced by reacting petro‐based polyol with a poly‐isocyanate, which is made from amines and phosgene and are currently imported into the country. These two materials are detrimental to the human health and environment, indicating that Nigeria's PU industries need to re‐examine their production inputs for environmental compliance. The objective of this study is to review the PU industry for nontoxic reagents that could be sourced locally vis‐à‐vis overcoming sustainable development (greening the economy) challenges in Nigeria. Non‐isocyanate polyurethane (NIPU) is preferred to petro‐polyurethane because, in comparison, NIPU has improved thermal and chemical resistance, porosity and water absorption, and is less toxic. Engaging local resources to produce PU is economically feasible; in addition, NIPU is relatively advantageous to human health and the environment. Aside from being economically feasible, production of NIPU in Nigeria has the propensity to greatly enlarge the growth of the existing PU industry to tremendous heights and contribute to diversifying and improving the overall economy.     

Urea Fluctuations in Stream Baseflow across Land Cover Gradients and Seasons in a Coastal Plain River System

Urea‐N is a component of bioavailable dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) that contributes to coastal eutrophication. In this study, we assessed urea‐N in baseflow across land cover gradients and seasons in the Manokin River Basin on the Delmarva Peninsula. From March 2010 to June 2011, we conducted monthly sampling of 11 streams (4 tidal and 7 nontidal), 2 wastewater treatment plants, an agricultural drainage ditch, and groundwater underlying a cropped field. At each site, we measured urea‐N, DON, dissolved organic carbon (DOC), total dissolved nitrogen (TDN), NO₃^?‐N, and NH₄⁺‐N. In general, urea‐N comprised between 1% and 6% of TDN, with the highest urea‐N levels in drainage ditches (0.054 mg N/L) and wetland‐dominated streams (0.035–0.045 mg N/L). While urea‐N did not vary seasonally in tidal rivers, nontidal streams saw distinct urea‐N peaks in summer (0.038 mg N/L) that occurred several months after cropland fertilization in spring. Notably, the proportion of wetlands explained 78% of the variance in baseflow urea‐N levels across the Manokin watershed. In wetland‐dominated basins, we found urea‐N was positively related to water temperature and negatively related to DOC:DON ratios, indicating short‐term urea‐N dynamics at baseflow were more likely influenced by instream and wetland‐driven processes than by recent agricultural urea‐N inputs. Findings demonstrate important controls of wetlands on baseflow urea‐N concentrations in mixed land‐use basins.     

Variations in Newspaper Coverage on Water in the U.S. Intermountain West

Water is a salient issue in the Intermountain West of the United States (U.S.), with concerns ranging from water scarcity and drought to intermittent flooding and water quality risks. This paper investigates coverage of water issues across seven newspapers in the core of the U.S. Intermountain West region. Newspapers have the potential to set agendas and influence perceived salience of issues among consumers. The Intermountain West region shares common concerns about water supply and demand, climate change, and water quality. We investigate whether or not local daily newspaper coverage of water issues provides a more local or regional sensitivity. Findings from this exploratory study reveal differences in water coverage across local daily newspapers. The overall volume of water‐related articles differed across newspapers as did proportion of articles on specific water topics and connecting issues. Coverage of local issues was more dominant than might be expected given mass media trends, but water geography in articles extended across the U.S. and the world in every newspaper studied. Variations in newspaper coverage of water issues suggests more local nuance persists despite the experience of common water issues across the region.     

Town-scale microbial sewer community and H2S emissions response to common chemical and biological dosing treatments

Controlling hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) odors and emissions using a single, effective treatment across a town-scale sewer network is a challenge faced by many water utilities. Implementation of a sewer diversion provided the opportunity to compare the effectiveness of magnesium hydroxide (Mg(OH)₂) and two biological dosing compounds (Bioproducts A and B), with different modes of action (MOA), in a field-test across a large sewer network. Mg(OH)₂ increases sewer pH allowing suppression of H₂S release into the sewer environment while Bioproduct A acts to disrupt microbial communication through quorum sensing (QS), reducing biofilm integrity. Bioproduct B reduces H₂S odors by scouring the sewer of fats, oils and grease (FOGs), which provide adhesion points for the microbial biofilm. Results revealed that only Mg(OH)₂ altered the microbial community structure and reduced H₂S emissions in a live sewer system, whilst Bioproducts A and B did not reduce H₂S emissions or have an observable effect on the composition of the microbial community at the dosed site. Study results recommend in situ testing of dosing treatments before implementation across an operational system.     

Speaking up and moving up: How voice can enhance employees' social status

A central argument in the literature on employee voice is that speaking up at work carries image risk. Challenging this assumption, we propose that voice can in fact positively affect how employees are viewed by others, thereby enhancing their social status. Using theory on status attainment and the fundamental social perception dimensions of agency and communion, we suggest that employee voice will result in higher status evaluations by increasing the extent to which an employee is judged as confident/competent (agency) and other‐oriented/helpful (communion). We conducted a survey study and two experiments to test these hypotheses. The results supported our predictions. Employees who voiced were ascribed higher status than those who did not, and this effect was mediated by judgments of agency (in all three studies) and communion (in two studies). These results highlight the implications of voice behavior for status enhancement within organizations.     

Detection of Hepatitis E Virus in Sewage After an Outbreak on a French Island

A hepatitis E outbreak, which occurred on a small isolated island, provided an opportunity to evaluate the association between the number of hepatitis E cases in the community and the concentration of virus detected in sewage. Samples were collected from the different sewage treatment plants from the island and analyzed for the presence of hepatitis E (HEV) virus using real-time RT-PCR. We demonstrated that if 1–4 % of inhabitants connected to a WWTP were infected with HEV, raw sewage contained HEV at detectable levels. The finding that such a small number of infected people can contaminate municipal sewage works raises the potential of the further distribution of the virus. Indeed, investigating the routes of transmission of HEV, including the potential for sewage effluent to contain infectious HEV, may help us to better understand the epidemiology of this pathogen, which is considered to be an emerging concern in Europe.     

Environmental bonds and the challenge of long-term carbon sequestration

The potential to capture carbon from industrial sources and dispose of it for the long-term, known as carbon capture and sequestration (CCS), is widely recognized as an important option to reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide emissions. Specifically, CCS has the potential to provide emissions cuts sufficient to stabilize greenhouse gas levels, while still allowing for the continued use of fossil fuels. In addition, CCS is both technologically-feasible and commercially viable compared with alternatives with the same emissions profile. Although the concept appears to be solid from a technical perspective, initial public perceptions of the technology are uncertain. Moreover, little attention has been paid to developing an understanding of the social and political institutional infrastructure necessary to implement CCS projects. In this paper we explore a particularly dicey issue--how to ensure adequate long-term monitoring and maintenance of the carbon sequestration sites. Bonding mechanisms have been suggested as a potential mechanism to reduce these problems (where bonding refers to financial instruments used to ensure regulatory or contractual commitments). Such mechanisms have been successfully applied in a number of settings (e.g., to ensure court appearances, completion of construction projects, and payment of taxes). The paper examines the use of bonding to address environmental problems and looks at its possible application to nascent CCS projects. We also present evidence on the use of bonding for other projects involving deep underground injection of materials for the purpose of long-term storage or disposal.