Parentage analyses suggest female promiscuity and a disadvantage for athletic males in the colour-polymorphic lizard Podarcis melisellensis

Although laboratory measurements of whole-animal performance have become a standard tool in evolutionary biology, if and how interindividual variation in performance translates into differential fitness remains poorly understood. Particularly rare are studies that have connected performance to mating and reproductive success in the field. In this study, we use DNA microsatellite parentage analyses to study the fitness gradient in a colour-polymorphic lizard, Podarcis melisellensis. We report on two surprising findings. First, contrary to our expectations, individual sprint speed and bite force capacity correlated negatively, not positively, with male mating and reproductive success. Second, we found an unexpected degree of promiscuity in females. Also, contrary to traditional parental investment theory, the variation in mating success and reproductive success was as high in females as in males. Our results call for a better integration of whole-animal performance and life history traits, and for a reconsideration of the ideas on the likeliness of sexual selection acting on female phenotypes.     

Regional and Local Scale Modeling of Stream Temperatures and Spatio-Temporal Variation in Thermal Sensitivities

Understanding variation in stream thermal regimes becomes increasingly important as the climate changes and aquatic biota approach their thermal limits. We used data from paired air and water temperature loggers to develop region-scale and stream-specific models of average daily water temperature and to explore thermal sensitivities, the slopes of air–water temperature regressions, of mostly forested streams across Maryland, USA. The region-scale stream temperature model explained nearly 90 % of the variation (root mean square error = 0.957 °C), with the mostly flat coastal plain streams having significantly higher thermal sensitivities than the steeper highlands streams with piedmont streams intermediate. Model R ² for stream-specific models was positively related to a stream’s thermal sensitivity. Both the regional and the stream-specific air–water temperature regression models benefited from including mean daily discharge from regional gaging stations, but the degree of improvement declined as a stream’s thermal sensitivity increased. Although catchment size had no relationship to thermal sensitivity, steeper streams or those with greater amounts of forest in their upstream watershed were less thermally sensitive. The subset of streams with three or more summers of temperature data exhibited a wide range of annual variation in thermal sensitivity at a site, with the variation not attributable to discharge, precipitation patterns, or physical attributes of streams or their watersheds. Our findings are a useful starting point to better understand patterns in stream thermal regimes. However, a more spatially and temporally comprehensive monitoring network should increase understanding of stream temperature variation and its controls as climatic patterns change.     

Jack-of-all-trades master of all? Snake vertebrae have a generalist inner organization

Snakes are a very speciose group of squamates that adapted to various habitats and ecological niches. Their ecological diversity is of particular interest and functional demands associated with their various styles of locomotion are expected to result in anatomical specializations. In order to explore the potential adaptation of snakes to their environment we here analyze variation in vertebral structure at the microanatomical level in species with different locomotor adaptations. Vertebrae, being a major element of the snake body, are expected to display adaptations to the physical constraints associated with the different locomotor modes and environments. Our results revealed a rather homogenous vertebral microanatomy in contrast to what has been observed for other squamates and amniotes more generally. We here suggest that the near-absence of microanatomical specializations in snake vertebrae might be correlated to their rather homogeneous overall morphology and reduced range of morphological diversity, as compared to lizards. Thus, snakes appear to retain a generalist inner morphology that allows them to move efficiently in different environments. Only a few ecologically highly specialized taxa appear to display some microanatomical specializations that remain to be studied in greater detail.     

The Price of Responsibility: Ethics of Animal Husbandry in a Time of Climate Change

This paper examines the challenges that climate change raises for animal agriculture and discusses the contributions that may come from a virtue ethics based approach. Two scenarios of the future role of animals in farming are set forth and discussed in terms of their ethical implications. The paper argues that when trying to tackle both climate and animal welfare issues in farming, proposals that call for a reorientation of our ethics and technology must first and foremost consider the values that drive current livestock production. This paper sets forth and discusses the broader societal values implicit in livestock production. We suggest that a virtues approach would improve our thinking and practice regarding animal agriculture, facilitating a move from livestock production to animal husbandry. This change in animal agriculture in a time of climate change would stress virtues such as attentiveness, responsibility, competence, and responsiveness as central elements in any mitigation or adaptation program.     

Transient dynamics of invasive competition: barred owls, spotted owls, habitat, and the demons of competition present

The recent range expansion of Barred Owls (Strix varia) into the Pacific Northwest, where the species now co-occurs with the endemic Northern Spotted Owl (Strix occidentalis caurina), resulted in a unique opportunity to investigate potential competition between two congeneric, previously allopatric species. The primary criticism of early competition research was the use of current species' distribution patterns to infer past processes; however, the recent expansion of the Barred Owl and the ability to model the processes that result in site occupancy (i.e., colonization and extinction) allowed us to address the competitive process directly rather than inferring past processes through current patterns. The purpose of our study was to determine whether Barred Owls had any negative effects on occupancy dynamics of nesting territories by Northern Spotted Owls and how these effects were influenced by habitat characteristics of Spotted Owl territories. We used single-species, multi-season occupancy models and covariates quantifying Barred Owl detections and habitat characteristics to model extinction and colonization rates of Spotted Owl pairs in southern Oregon, USA. We observed a strong, negative association between Barred Owl detections and colonization rates and a strong positive effect of Barred Owl detections on extinction rates of Spotted Owls. We observed increased extinction rates in response to decreased amounts of old forest at the territory core and higher colonization rates when old-forest habitat was less fragmented. Annual site occupancy for pairs reflected the strong effects of Barred Owls on occupancy dynamics with much lower occupancy rates predicted for territories where Barred Owls were detected. The strong Barred Owl and habitat effects on occupancy dynamics of Spotted Owls provided evidence of interference competition between the species. These effects increase the importance of conserving large amounts of contiguous, old-forest habitat to maintain Northern Spotted Owls in the landscape.     

A framework for practical and rigorous impact monitoring by field managers of marine protected areas

Monitoring is a crucial component of conservation in marine protected areas (MPAs) as it allows managers to detect changes to biodiversity and to infer cause of change. However, the complexities of sampling designs and associated statistical analyses can impede implementation of monitoring by managers. Two monitoring frameworks commonly used in marine environments are statistical testing and parameter estimation. For many managers these two approaches fail to help them detect change and infer causation for one or more reasons: the complexity of the statistical test, no decision-making structure and a sampling design that is suboptimal. In collaboration with marine park rangers in Egypt, we instigated a monitoring framework to detect impacts by snorkelers in a pragmatic but scientifically rigorous way. First, we used a literature review to define causal criteria to facilitate inference. This was essential because our sampling design was suboptimal due to a lack of baseline data and there was only one impact site. Second, we established a threshold level of coral damage that if exceeded would trigger management to reduce the impact of snorkelers. This provided a clear decision-making structure. Third, we estimated effect sizes with confidence intervals to detect change. For the field managers, this approach to detection was easier to understand than assessing a null hypothesis and provided critical information for decision making. At no stage during the short study period did snorkelers cause damage that exceeded the threshold and thus mitigation was not required. In situations of technical and financial constraints this framework will increase the implementation of effective impact monitoring for many activities in MPAs and enhance management of marine biodiversity.     

A global community-sourced assessment of the state of conservation technology

Conservation technology holds the potential to vastly increase conservationists’ ability to understand and address critical environmental challenges, but systemic constraints appear to hamper its development and adoption. Understanding of these constraints and opportunities for advancement remains limited. We conducted a global online survey of 248 conservation technology users and developers to identify perceptions of existing tools’ current performance and potential impact, user and developer constraints, and key opportunities for growth. We also conducted focus groups with 45 leading experts to triangulate findings. The technologies with the highest perceived potential were machine learning and computer vision, eDNA and genomics, and networked sensors. A total of 95%, 94%, and 92% respondents, respectively, rated them as very helpful or game changers. The most pressing challenges affecting the field as a whole were competition for limited funding, duplication of efforts, and inadequate capacity building. A total of 76%, 67%, and 55% respondents, respectively, identified these as primary concerns. The key opportunities for growth identified in focus groups were increasing collaboration and information sharing, improving the interoperability of tools, and enhancing capacity for data analyses at scale. Some constraints appeared to disproportionately affect marginalized groups. Respondents in countries with developing economies were more likely to report being constrained by upfront costs, maintenance costs, and development funding (p = 0.048, odds ratio [OR] = 2.78; p = 0.005, OR = 4.23; p = 0.024, OR = 4.26), and female respondents were more likely to report being constrained by development funding and perceived technical skills (p = 0.027, OR = 3.98; p = 0.048, OR = 2.33). To our knowledge, this is the first attempt to formally capture the perspectives and needs of the global conservation technology community, providing foundational data that can serve as a benchmark to measure progress. We see tremendous potential for this community to further the vision they define, in which collaboration trumps competition; solutions are open, accessible, and interoperable; and user-friendly processing tools empower the rapid translation of data into conservation action. Article impact statement: Addressing financing, coordination, and capacity-building constraints is critical to the development and adoption of conservation technology.     

Process enhancing strategies for the reduction of Cr(VI) to Cr(III) via photocatalytic pathway

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - This discourse aimed at providing insight into the strategies that can be adopted to boost the process of photoreduction of Cr(VI) to Cr(III). Cr(VI)...     

Advanced ash management technologies for CFBC ash

The combustion of high-sulphur coal demands the reduction of sulphur emissions. The sorbent most often used in sulphur capture technology is calcium-based. Ashes from technologies such as circulating fluidized bed combustion (CFBC), therefore, contain high calcium levels. The use and disposal of these ashes poses challenges, because of highly exothermic reactions with water, high-pH leachates, and excessive expansion of solidified materials. This paper looks at the potential of two post-combustion ash treatment processes, CERCHAR hydration and AWDS disposal, in solving these challenges. A high-sulphur coal-derived CFBC ash is examined, after CERCHAR hydration treatment, in conjunction with a conventionally hydrated ash, in a range of chemical, geotechnical and utilization scenarios. The ashes are used to make no-cement and roller-compacted concrete as well as Ash Water Dense Suspensions (AWDS). The solidified mortar paste from no-cement concrete is subjected to an extensive geochemical examination to determine how solidification progresses and strength develops, from a chemical point of view.     

Prenatal diagnosis of dilated coronary sinus with persistent left superior vena cava in a fetus with trisomy 18

A case of dilated coronary sinus with persistent left superior vena cava diagnosed at 33 weeks in a fetus with trisomy 18 is reported. The features of this cardiac anomaly on prenatal ultrasonography and its association with trisomy 18 are discussed. Published in 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.