Characterizing Interpersonal Influence for Grassland Conservation Behaviours in a Unique Population

Interpersonal communication can influence the decisions people make about engaging in conservation behaviours. In-depth interviews with Tibetan pastoralists serve as the basis for examining interpersonal communication patterns and sources of interpersonal influence about grassland conservation behaviours. Herding and family groups are key collectives; salient sources of information vary across types of information. Salient individuals are those with credibility and means control: community leaders, elders, veterinarians, and government officials. Explicit information about conservation comes from religious leaders. The findings have significant implications for understanding the function and nature of interpersonal influence in unique population groups regarding conservation actions.     

The effects of tertiary treated municipal wastewater on fish communities of a small river tributary in Southern Ontario, Canada

Fish community changes associated with a tertiary treated municipal wastewater effluent outfall in the Speed River, Ontario, Canada, were evaluated at nine sites over two seasons (2008) using standardized electrofishing. Habitat evaluations were conducted to ensure that the riffle sites selected were physically similar. The fish community was dominated by several species of darters that differed in their response to the effluent outfall. There was a significant decrease in Greenside Darter (Etheostoma blennioides) but an increase in Rainbow Darter (E. caeruleum) abundance directly downstream of the outfall. Stable isotope signatures (δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N), which indicate shifts in energy utilization and flow, increased in Rainbow Darter downstream, but showed no change in Greenside Darter. Rainbow Darter may be exploiting a food source that is not as available at upstream sites giving them a competitive advantage over the Greenside Darter immediately downstream of the outfall.     

Clear and present danger? The use of a yeast biosensor to monitor changes in the toxicity of industrial effluents subjected to oxidative colour removal treatments

Discharges of coloured effluents into surface waters provide conspicuous evidence of the impact of industry on the environment. The textile industry is an obvious candidate for sources of such discharges. Conventional treatment methods appear to alleviate this situation by removing colour, however the affect on toxicity is less obvious. The objective of this study was to examine the changes in effluent toxicity during the course of two alternative wastewater treatment methods, ozonation and electrochemical oxidation, using a novel toxicity biosensor, GreenScreen EM. The biosensor is capable of measuring both general acute toxicity (cytotoxicity), and more specifically genotoxicity, that is damage to a cell's DNA structure, replication or distribution, caused by substances that may be mutagenic and/or carcinogenic. The biosensor utilises a modified strain of the brewers yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, incorporating a gene encoding green fluorescent protein (GFP) linked to the inducible promoter of the DNA damage responsive RAD54 gene. Upon exposure to a genotoxin, the production of GFP is up-regulated in parallel with RAD54, and the resulting cellular fluorescence provides a measure of genotoxicity. Acute toxicity is simultaneously determined by monitoring relative total growth of the cell culture during incubation. The results presented in this paper show that a reduction in colouration does not necessarily correspond to a reduction in effluent toxicity.     

Microbes do not follow the elevational diversity patterns of plants and animals

The elevational gradient in plant and animal diversity is one of the most widely documented patterns in ecology and, although no consensus explanation exists, many hypotheses have been proposed over the past century to explain these patterns. Historically, research on elevational diversity gradients has focused almost exclusively on plant and animal taxa. As a result, we do not know whether microbes exhibit elevational gradients in diversity that parallel those observed for macroscopic taxa. This represents a key knowledge gap in ecology, especially given the ubiquity, abundance, and functional importance of microbes. Here we show that, across a montane elevational gradient in eastern Peru, bacteria living in three distinct habitats (organic soil, mineral soil, and leaf surfaces) exhibit no significant elevational gradient in diversity (r2<0.17, P>0.1 in all cases), in direct contrast to the significant diversity changes observed for plant and animal taxa across the same montane gradient (r2>0.75, P<0.001 in all cases). This finding suggests that the biogeographical patterns exhibited by bacteria are fundamentally different from those of plants and animals, highlighting the need for the development of more inclusive concepts and theories in biogeography to explain these disparities.     

Black swans,cognition, and the power of learning from failure

Failure carries undeniable stigma and is difficult to confront for individuals, teams, and organizations. Disciplines such as commercial and military aviation, medicine, and business have long histories of grappling with it, beginning with the recognition that failure is inevitable in every human endeavor. Although conservation may arguably be more complex, conservation professionals can draw on the research and experience of these other disciplines to institutionalize activities and attitudes that foster learning from failure, whether they are minor setbacks or major disasters. Understanding the role of individual cognitive biases, team psychological safety, and organizational willingness to support critical self‐examination all contribute to creating a cultural shift in conservation to one that is open to the learning opportunity that failure provides. This new approach to managing failure is a necessary next step in the evolution of conservation effectiveness.     

Seed dispersal by pulp consumers, not "legitimate" seed dispersers, increases Guettarda viburnoides population growth

We examined the effect of seed dispersal by Purplish Jays (Cyanocorax cyanomelas; pulp consumers) and the Chestnut-eared Ara?ari (Pteroglossus castanotis; "legitimate" seed dispersers) on population growth of the small tree Guettarda viburnoides (Rubiaceae) in northeastern Bolivian savannas. Because each bird species differs with respect to feeding and post-feeding behavior, we hypothesized that seed dispersal by each species will contribute differently to the rate of increase of G. viburnoides, but that seed dispersal by either species will increase population growth when compared to a scenario with no seed dispersal. To examine the effects of individual dispersers on the future population size of G. viburnoides, we projected population growth rate using demographic models for G. viburnoides that explicitly incorporate data on quantitative and qualitative aspects of seed dispersal by each frugivore species. Our model suggests that seed dispersal by C. cyanomelas leads to positive population growth of G. viburnoides, whereas seed dispersal by P. castanotis has a detrimental effect on the population growth of this species. To our knowledge, this is the first study to report negative effects of a "legitimate" seed disperser on the population dynamics of the plant it consumes. Our results stress the importance of incorporating frugivore effects into population projection matrices, to allow a comprehensive analysis of the effectiveness of different dispersers for plant population dynamics.     

Sediment quality assessment of Beasley Lake: bioaccumulation and effects of pesticides in Hyalella azteca

Beasley Lake is a Conservation Effects Assessment Program (CEAP) watershed in the intensively cultivated Mississippi Delta, USA. Lake sediment quality at three sites was evaluated in 2004 and 2008 for biological impairment and uptake (animal tissue pesticide residues) from 14 pesticides and three metabolites using Hyalella azteca (Saussure). Eleven pesticides and three metabolites were detected in sediment among the three sites in 2004 and all 17 compounds examined were detected among the three sites in 2008, with the herbicide atrazine having the greatest concentrations. Twenty-eight-day H. azteca survival and growth (mg w/w) indicated no survival effects at any site for either year, but growth impairment occurred in H. azteca exposed to sediments in 2004, whereas growth enhancement occurred in H. azteca exposed to sediments at one site in 2008. Pesticides observed in animal tissue pesticide residues occurred more frequently and in greater concentrations in 2004 compared with 2008. Thirteen pesticides were detected in animal tissue pesticide residues in 2004, with chlorpyrifos occurring in the greatest concentrations, and six pesticides were detected in 2008, with p,p′-DDT occurring in the greatest concentrations. H. azteca tissue pesticide residues of seven pesticides, two herbicides, three insecticides, one insecticide metabolite, and p,p′-DDT, were associated with growth.     

Decreased influenza virus pathogenesis by infection with germicidal UV-irradiated airborne virus

Respiratory infections are acquired by the inhalation of airborne microorganisms. To evaluate the effect of germicidal UV-irradiation on airborne contagion, infectious clouds of influenza A/PR8/34 virus were generated and exposed to known intensities of UV. Thereafter, the airborne virus was used to infect mice wherein the pathogenesis of the viral pneumonia was evaluated. Increasing doses of UV inactivated infectious airborne virus in a dose-dependent manner and reduced the mortality rates as compared to an infectious cloud of untreated virus. When a sublethal cloud of infectious virus was used, UV-irradiation modified the viral infection, as quantitated by pulmonary virus titers, from a severe pneumonitis to a milder form of the disease. These data demonstrate the efficacy of germicidal UV-irradiation in disinfection of air by reducing the concentration of viable organisms which, in turn, reduces the severity of respiratory infection when transmitted to the susceptible host.