Determining shark size from forensic analysis of bite damage

Bite damage patterns have long been used to estimate shark species and body size, with somewhat limited success. The lack of fit between damage patterns and shark size is partially due to variation in tooth size and shape within an individual. The ability to accurately predict body size from bite patterns is important for better understanding the ecological and behavioral underpinnings of shark bites/attacks on marine organisms, humans, and submarine equipment. To this end, we measured interdental distance (IDD) between the most labial teeth in the first six tooth files on both the upper and lower jaws, as well as the circumference of the portion of each jaw that bears teeth, for prepared jaw sets from fourteen shark species and regressed these data against total length. IDD is allometric as well as an accurate predictor of total length in all species examined, except Carcharhinus acronotus. Tooth-bearing circumference is also allometric and predictive of total length in all species. Though considerable overlap exists in IDD and circumference ranges among species for the total length ranges examined, Carcharodon carcharias and Isurus sp. can be differentiated from Carcharhinus limbatus, Carcharhinus brevipinna, and C. acronotus based on these values alone. When combined with knowledge of species-specific feeding behavior, geographic distribution, and habitat preferences, these simple measures from bite damage patterns allow quick, accurate assessment of shark size and potential species.     

Latitude or biogeographic breaks? Determinants of phenotypic (co)variation in fitness-related traits in Betaeus truncatus along the Chilean coast

Ectothermal organisms distributed along environmental gradients in a wide geographical distribution display extensive phenotypic variation. This is particularly pervasive along latitudinal clines, which are linked to gradual changes in environmental factors. Widespread species may also be distributed among biogeographic breaks, which in contrast to smooth clines, often show abrupt changes in phenotypic traits. In species with widespread latitudinal distribution that also encompass important biogeographical breaks, it is not clear which of those factors prevails on shaping the phenotypic variation or if some traits are particularly more sensitive to one or the other. To evaluate this, we measured 4 fitness-related traits in 6 populations of the intertidal snapping shrimp Betaeus truncatus, as its distribution along Chile expands over 40° in latitude and three major biogeographical provinces. Here, we statistically evaluated the role of both, latitude and biogeographic breaks, on mean population values of fitness-related traits but also on the variances and covariances (i.e., P-matrix) between them. Overall, our results (1) indicate that latitude is more important than breaks in shaping the phenotypic variation of most of these fitness-related traits, (2) show that the differences in the variance–covariance relationship among traits between the extremes of the gradient arises from gradual increases in variance and rather sharp changes in covariance at mid-latitudes and (3) show that at present, it is difficult to unambiguously determine whether natural selection or plasticity is responsible for the observed pattern in means, variances and covariances and only further work might disentangle these possibilities.     

Trace element contents in fine particulate matter (PM<Subscript>2.5</Subscript>) in urban school microenvironments near a contaminated beach with mine tailings,Chañaral,Chile

Air quality in schools is an important public health issue because children spend a considerable part of their daily life in classrooms. Particulate size and chemical composition has been associated with negative health effects. We studied levels of trace element concentrations in fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) in indoor versus outdoor school settings from six schools in Chañaral, a coastal city with a beach severely polluted with mine tailings. Concentrations of trace elements were measured on two consecutive days during the summer and winter of 2012 and 2013 and determined using X-ray fluorescence. Source apportionment and element enrichment were measured using principal components analysis and enrichment factors. Trace elements were higher in indoor school spaces, especially in classrooms compared with outdoor environments. The most abundant elements were Na, Cl, S, Ca, Fe, K, Mn, Ti, and Si, associated with earth’s crust. Conversely, an extremely high enrichment factor was determined for Cu, Zn, Ni and Cr; heavy metals associated with systemic and carcinogenic risk effects, whose probably origin sources are industrial and mining activities. These results suggest that the main source of trace elements in PM_2.5 from these school microenvironments is a mixture of dust contaminated with mine tailings and marine aerosols. Policymakers should prioritize environmental management changes to minimize further environmental damage and its direct impact on the health of children exposed.     

The influence of diet on intra and inter-individual variability of urinary excretion of arsenic species in Italian healthy individuals

To study the effect of eating foods with a high arsenic (As) content on the intra and inter-individual variability of urinary concentrations of the As species, daily urine samples were collected for 10 consecutive days from 12 healthy male subjects. A daily food diary was kept throughout the study period. Personal exposure to airborne As was measured once during the study. As³, As⁵, monomethylarsonic acid (MMA), dimethylarsinic acid (DMA) and arsenobetaine were determined in all urine samples by inductive coupled plasma mass spectrometry, and the sum of As³ + As⁵ + MMA + DMA (iAs) by hydride generation-atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Exposure to airborne As was below the limit of detection in all samplings. As³ was found in only 19.2% and As⁵ in only 3.3% of the urine samples, whereas high urinary concentrations of arsenobetaine were observed. With the exception of arsenobetaine, expressed as a percentage, a significant inter-individual variability was observed for all species of As, for iAs and for the MMA/DMA ratio (p < 0.001). Instead, the intra-individual variability was significant only for the MMA/DMA ratio (p < 0.001). Among foods with a high As content, only a heavy consumption of seafood was shown to influence inter-individual variability of DMA%, arsenobetaine expressed as μg g⁻¹ creatinine and iAs. In conclusion, even in populations with a high intake of organic As through foods, the finding of a significant inter-individual but no significant intra-individual variability of urinary species confirms the usefulness of urinary As speciation for biological monitoring of exposure to As.     

Cytotoxicity and genotoxicity of Guaribas river water (Piauí, Brazil), influenced by anthropogenic action

In general, tropical rivers have a great impact on human activities. Bioaccumulation of toxins is a worldwide problem nowadays and has been, historically, overlooked by the supervisory authorities. This study evaluated cytogenotoxic effects of Guaribas river (a Brazilian river) water during dry and rainy seasons of 2014 by using the Allium cepa test system. The toxicogenetic variables, including root growth, mitotic index, and chromosomal aberrations, were analyzed in meristematic cells of A. cepa exposed to water samples taken from the up-, within, and downstream of the city Picos (state: Piauí). The physical-chemical parameters were also analyzed to explain water quality and possible anthropogenic action. Additionally, the presence of heavy metals was also analyzed to explain water quality and possible damaging effects on eukaryotic cells. The results suggest that the river water exerted cytotoxic, mutagenic, and genotoxic effects, regardless of the seasons. In addition, Guaribas river presented physico-chemical values outside the Brazilian laws, which can be a characteristic of human pollution (domestic sewage, industrial, and local agriculture). The genetic damage was positively correlated with higher levels of heavy metals. The pollution of the Guaribas river water may link to the chemical contamination, including the action of heavy metals and their impacts on genetic instability in the aquatic ecosystem. In conclusion, necessary steps should be taken into account for further toxicogenetic studies of the Guaribas river water, as it has an influence in human health of the same region of Brazil.     

TNT removal from culture media by three commonly available wild plants growing in the Caribbean

Plants growing in the Caribbean, Rubia tinctorum, Lippia dulcis and Spermacoce remota, were used in vitro to remove TNT from culture media. Plants were found to be resistant to high TNT levels. S. remota was able to remove TNT in less than 48 h. Part of the TNT was physically removed from the culture media by evaporation.     

Multibiomarker approach in fish to assess the impact of pollution in a large Brazilian river, Paraiba do Sul

This article examines the advantages of the use of biomarkers as environmental indicators by applying it to Paraiba do Sul watershed, one of the most important Brazilian water bodies, which is in a critical environmental situation. We use a multibiomarker approach in fish as an integrated strategy to assess the impact of pollution. It comprehends a general biomarker of fish health, the condition factor (CF), and specific biomarkers of contaminant exposure such as metallothionein (MT), acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity and biliary polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) metabolites. Our results revealed different effects in the fish from diverse locations with varying degrees of pollution. Furthermore, fish located just upstream of the water-treatment plant of the metropolitan area of Rio de Janeiro has shown to be affected by metals. This study indicates the usefulness of integrating a set of biomarkers to define the effects of anthropogenic inputs in aquatic bodies under complex polluted situations.     

Improving effectiveness of systematic conservation planning with density data

Systematic conservation planning aims to design networks of protected areas that meet conservation goals across large landscapes. The optimal design of these conservation networks is most frequently based on the modeled habitat suitability or probability of occurrence of species, despite evidence that model predictions may not be highly correlated with species density. We hypothesized that conservation networks designed using species density distributions more efficiently conserve populations of all species considered than networks designed using probability of occurrence models. To test this hypothesis, we used the Zonation conservation prioritization algorithm to evaluate conservation network designs based on probability of occurrence versus density models for 26 land bird species in the U.S. Pacific Northwest. We assessed the efficacy of each conservation network based on predicted species densities and predicted species diversity. High‐density model Zonation rankings protected more individuals per species when networks protected the highest priority 10‐40% of the landscape. Compared with density‐based models, the occurrence‐based models protected more individuals in the lowest 50% priority areas of the landscape. The 2 approaches conserved species diversity in similar ways: predicted diversity was higher in higher priority locations in both conservation networks. We conclude that both density and probability of occurrence models can be useful for setting conservation priorities but that density‐based models are best suited for identifying the highest priority areas. Developing methods to aggregate species count data from unrelated monitoring efforts and making these data widely available through ecoinformatics portals such as the Avian Knowledge Network will enable species count data to be more widely incorporated into systematic conservation planning efforts.     

流域的可持续管理:国际多个流域的案例研究

全球淡水资源正在不断受到污染和亏耗,威胁着可持续发展及人类和生态系统的健康.本文通过美国、日本、瑞士和巴西四个不同流域的案例研究,阐述了与淡水资源密切相关的可持续发展中的缺陷,指明了水资源可持续管理的总体方向.由于近几十年来人口的增长和经济的发展,每个流域的水质、流量和生物资源量都在下降.但是对于不同的流域来说,与水有关的这些问题的严重程度和文化观念大不相同,因而形成各自独特的水资源管理政策.在工业化国家,例如美国、瑞士和日本,这类政策允许采用资金密集型和能源密集型技术,使得这些国家在满足其水资源需求的同时还能尽量降低人类健康风险.然而,从可持续发展的观点看,以有限的自然资源为基础制定的这类政策,并非长久之计.对于新兴工业化国家(如巴西)来说,昂贵的水资源管理技术在经济上常常行不通,因而限制了新兴工业化国家和发展中国家对发达国家提供的技术的利用程度.要实现水资源的可持续管理,发达国家、新兴工业化国家和发展中国家都需要经历一个学习的过程,同时还需要遵循本文介绍的可持续发展的通用原则.