Diving behaviour of female northern rockhopper penguins, Eudyptes chrysocome moseleyi, during the brooding period at Amsterdam Island (Southern Indian Ocean)

The pattern and characteristics of diving in 14 female northern rockhopper penguins, Eudyptes chrysocome moseleyi, were studied at Amsterdam Island (37°50′S; 77°31′E) during the guard stage, using electronic time–depth recorders. Twenty-nine foraging trips (27 daily foraging trips and two longer trips including one night) with a total of 16 572 dives of ≥3 m were recorded. Females typically left the colony at dawn and returned in the late afternoon, spending an average of 12 h at sea, during which they performed ∼550 dives. They were essentially inshore foragers (mean estimated foraging range 6 km), and mainly preyed upon the pelagic euphausiid Thysanoessa gregaria, fishes and squid being only minor components of the diet. Mean dive depth, dive duration, and post-dive intervals were 18.4 m (max. depth 109 m), 57 s (max. dive duration 168 s), and 21 s (37% of dive duration), respectively. Descent and ascent rates averaged 1.2 and 1.0 ms⁻¹ and were, together with dive duration, significantly correlated with dive depth. Birds spent 18% of their total diving time in dives reaching 15 to 20 m, and the mean maximum diving efficiency (bottom time:dive cycle duration) occurred for dives reaching 15 to 35 m. The most remarkable feature of diving behaviour in northern rockhopper penguins was the high percentage of time spent diving during daily foraging trips (on average, 69% of their time at sea); this was mainly due to a high dive frequency (∼44 dives per hour), which explained the high total vertical distance travelled during one trip (18 km on average). Diving activity at night was greatly reduced, suggesting that, as other penguins, E. chrysocome moseleyi are essentially diurnal, and locate prey using visual cues. Received: 9 December 1998 / Accepted: 3 March 1999     

Effects of Amazonian flying rivers on frog biodiversity and populations in the Atlantic rainforest

Given the speed at which humans are changing the climate, species with high degrees of endemism may not have time to avoid extinction through adaptation. We investigated through teleconnection analysis the origin of rainfall that determines the phylogenetic diversity of rainforest frogs and the effects of microclimate differences in shaping the morphological traits of isolated populations (which contribute to greater phylogenetic diversity and speciation). We also investigated through teleconnection analysis how deforestation in Amazonia can affect ecosystem services that are fundamental to maintaining the climate of the Atlantic rainforest biodiversity hotspot. Seasonal winds known as flying rivers carry water vapor from Amazonia to the Atlantic Forest, and the breaking of this ecosystem service could lead Atlantic Forest species to population decline and extinction in the short term. Our results suggest that the selection of morphological traits that shape Atlantic Forest frog diversity and their population dynamics are influenced by the Amazonian flying rivers. Our results also suggest that the increases of temperature anomalies in the Atlantic Ocean due to global warming and in the Amazon forest due to deforestation are already breaking this cycle and threaten the biodiversity of the Atlantic Forest hotspot.     

Critical review for the quantification of leachate production: Evaluation example for the “Oum Azza” public landfill in Rabat city,Morocco

The estimation of leachate quantities produced in landfills is necessary to dimension the treatment plants allowing to reduce the polluting load of these effluents and consequently avoid their negative impacts on the environment. Different leachate quantification methods were used in this study to assess the leachate volume produced at the Oum Azza landfill. The water balance method give comparable estimations of leachate production to the Ouled Berjal landfill ratio. The first method showed average values between 487 and 495 m³/day for 2015, 2018, and 2019, and at the same time, the second method gave values between 470 and 477 m³/day for the same years. In contrast, the World Bank ratio showed high values that vary between 2260 and 2295 m³/day for 2015, 2018, and 2019. The on-site data and the statistical analysis showed us that the World Bank ratio is not adapted for the estimation of the leachates produced in Oum Azza landfill, while the water balance and the ratio of Ouled Berjal landfill allowed to give comparable results to reality.     

Density dependence in social behaviour: home range overlap and density interacts to affect conspecific encounter rates in a gregarious ungulate

Sociality is poorly understood in the context of population processes. We used wild, female elk (Cervus canadensis) equipped with proximity-logging radio collars (n?=?62) from Manitoba, Canada (2007–2009), to test for modifying effects of population density (two areas: 0.42 and 0.22 animals/km²) on the relationship between two measures of sociality. This included the rate at which collared individuals encountered one another per year (encounters logged as animals ranging to within 1.4 m of each other) and the extent to which animals overlapped in annual home range (proportion of shared minimum convex polygon ranges). Overlap was significantly greater in the high density area compared to that of the low, but not if we only considered individuals that directly encountered each other, implying that familiar individuals will maintain a constant degree of range overlap regardless of density. Encounter rate was nonlinearly related to home range overlap. This relationship was also density-dependent, exhibiting negative density dependence at high proportions of overlap, primarily in the high density subpopulation. Sociality, as defined by two interacting measures of behaviour—encounter rate and home range overlap—exhibits a complex nonlinear relationship; we discuss the implications of these results as they pertain to sociobiology, resource competition, and pathogen transmission.     

Family–work conflict and job performance: A diary study of boundary conditions and mechanisms

In this study, we used a within‐person daily research paradigm to examine the relationship between daily family–work conflict (FWC) and daily job performance. On the basis of theory on dynamic behavior, we hypothesized that concentration serves as a mechanism through which daily FWC impairs daily job performance. We further predicted that psychological detachment from work during time‐off (i.e., mentally switching off) buffers the negative relationship between daily FWC and daily job performance. Ninety‐five employees completed daily surveys over one workweek. Multilevel modeling results showed that daily FWC was negatively associated with daily job performance and that concentration mediated this relationship. Furthermore, general psychological detachment, but not daily psychological detachment, buffered the negative relationship between daily FWC and daily job performance. The current findings suggest that daily FWC has negative performance implications and that the general level rather than the daily level of psychological detachment from work helps alleviate the negative implications. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Vegetation succession and impacts of biointrusion on covers used to limit acid mine drainage

A cover with capillary barrier effects (CCBE) was constructed in 1998 on the abandoned Lorraine mine tailings impoundment to limit the generation of acid mine drainage. The Ministry of Natural Resources and Fauna of Quebec (MRNF) is responsible for the site and for all restoration works on it, including CCBE construction. The CCBE is made up of three layers: a 0.3-m layer of sand used as a support and capillary break layer; a moisture-retaining layer with a thickness of 0.5 m (this layer is constructed of a nonplastic silt); and a 0.3-m sand and gravel layer on top. The main objective of the CCBE is to maintain one (or more) of the layers at a high degree of water saturation to impede oxygen migration and acid generation. Vegetation succession on the Lorraine CCBE results in an improvement in soil conditions, leading to the installation of deep-rooted species, which could represent a risk to CCBE long-term performance. Hence, the characterization of vegetation succession is an important aspect of the monitoring strategy for the Lorraine CCBE. Species occurrence was documented, and depth of tree roots was measured by excavation on a regular basis. Eight functional groups of plants were identified; herbaceous plants were the most abundant ecological plant groups. Tree ring counts confirmed that tree colonization started the year of CCBE construction (1999). Of the 11 tree species identified, the most abundant were poplar (Populus spp.), paper birch (Betula payrifera Marsh.), black spruce (Picea mariana Mill.), and willow (Salix spp.). Significant differences in occurrence related to environmental conditions were observed for most functional groups. Root excavation showed that tree roots exceeded the depth of the protective layer and started to reach the moisture-retaining layer; in 2008, root average depth was 0.4 m and the maximal root depth was 1.7 m.     

PBDEs and PCBs in the liver of the St Lawrence Estuary beluga (Delphinapterus leucas): a comparison of levels and temporal trends with the blubber

Due to their lipophilic properties, persistent organic pollutants (POPs) are commonly assessed using the blubber of marine mammals. However, these chemicals are also accumulating in other tissues including the liver. Some pollutants, namely perfluorinated alkyl acids, are found predominately in the liver and blood of marine mammals, and thus monitored in those tissues. This raises the question whether any tissue would represent an identical trend of POPs in the SLE beluga. The current study reports the first temporal trends of PBDEs and PCBs in the liver of 65 SLE belugas. Neither ∑?PBDEs nor major individual PBDE-homolog group concentrations showed significant trends between 1993 and 2007. Also, ∑??PCBs did not change over years, although, tetra-, penta- and hepta-PCB decreased by 7.1, 6.8 and 8.5%, respectively, in males, whereas tetra-, penta- and octa-PCBs declined by 11, 12 and 12.9%, respectively, in females. In order to compare the distribution of POPs between liver and blubber, a lipid normalised concentration ratio R (blubber/liver) for PBDEs and PCBs was calculated for each individual beluga. For all PBDE and several PCB homolog groups, mean R values were not statistically different from unity indicating that the partitioning of these POPs is governed by the tissue lipid-content. Temporal trends of R ratios of PBDEs and PCBs were also examined. There were generally no significant temporal trends except for PBDEs in males where R increased in average by 12.7 ± 2.9% yearly. The stratification of the blubber into a metabolically active (inner) and less active layers (outer blubber) may result in a slower response time of the blubber (full depth) than the liver to the recent change of contamination in the environment and explain the time trend differences between both tissues. This study suggests that the liver is more representative of recent exposure to lipophilic contaminants.     

Variations of periphytic diatom sensitivity to the herbicide diuron and relation to species distribution in a contamination gradient: implications for biomonitoring

Diatoms are commonly used as bioindicators of trophic and saprobic pollution in rivers. However, more knowledge is needed concerning their sensitivity to toxicants such as agricultural herbicides. In this study, seven species of periphytic diatoms were isolated from the Morcille River (Beaujolais area, France) which presents a streamward contamination gradient by pesticides and particularly diuron. The sensitivity of these species to diuron was assessed through ecotoxicological tests based on short-term growth inhibition of monospecific cultures. After application of an appropriate toxicological model, EC50 were determined and the species were ranked according to their tolerance. EC50 values ranged from 4.5 to 19 μg L(-1). Finally, the results were related to field periphyton samples from an upstream and a downstream site in order to check if variations in specific relative abundance between sites are consistent with differences in tolerance to diuron. Species distribution between sites was only partially in accordance with toxicological results suggesting that other factors (toxic or trophic) have an important influence on diatom communities in the river. Nevertheless, diatoms showed their potential to indicate water contamination by pesticides and toxic indices could be developed in complement to existing trophic indices.     

Heavy metal recovery from the fine fraction of solid waste incineration bottom ash by wet density separation

Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management - This work is aimed at exploring the recovery of heavy metals from the fine fraction of solid waste incineration bottom ash. For this study,...