Barriers and Opportunities for Integrating Social Science into Natural Resource Management: Lessons from National Estuarine Research Reserves

The need for cross-disciplinary scientific inquiries that facilitate improved natural resource management outcomes through increased understanding of both the biophysical and human dimensions of management issues has been widely recognized. Despite this broad recognition, a number of obstacles and barriers still sometimes challenge the successful implementation of cross-disciplinary approaches. Improving understanding of these challenges and barriers will help address them and thereby foster appropriate and effective utilization of cross-disciplinary approaches to solve natural resource management challenges. This research uses a case study analysis of the United States National Estuarine Research Reserve System to improve understanding of the critical factors that influence practitioners’ decisions related to incorporating social science into their natural resource management work. The case study research is analyzed and evaluated within a Theory of Planned Behavior framework to (1) determine and describe the factors that predict practitioners’ intent to incorporate social science into their natural resource related activities and (2) recommend potential strategies for encouraging and enabling cross-disciplinary approaches to natural resource management. The results indicate that National Estuarine Research Reserve practitioners’ decisions related to incorporating social science are primarily influenced by (1) confidence in their own capability to incorporate social science into their work and (2) beliefs about whether the outcomes of incorporating social science into their work would be valuable or beneficial.     

Jumps in Euribor and the effect of ECB monetary policy announcements

The main tool that the ECB uses to influence monetary policy is through the short-term refinancing rate, a change in the short-term interest rate can in turn cause the whole yield curve to shift. In addition to central bank announcements, interbank rates such as Euribor are also influenced by, forward guidance from the ECB, various macroeconomic events, liquidity in the money markets and the perceived credit worthiness of financial institutions. Forward rates are usually used by policy makers and market practitioners to examine expectations, but options provide additional information about the uncertainty of these expectations, particularly future jump expectations. This research examines the jump characteristics of the 3-month Euribor futures contract and its corresponding futures option contracts using both a jump diffusion model with a Bernoulli jump distribution and option-implied parameters using a jump diffusion process with Poisson distribute. We find that both the Bernoulli jump analysis of historical data and implied jump diffusion model succinctly capture diffusion volatility, jumps and jump size. Using a regression analysis to examine the effect of ECB refinancing rate monetary policy announcements on the 3-month Euribor and the associated jump parameters, we find a significant relationship between ECB announcements and the probability of a jump in Euribor. Regression coefficients on the implied jump amplitude parameters suggest that the market correctly anticipates the direction of the rate announcement suggesting option-implied jump parameters can predict, to some extent, ECB announcements. However, our results also show that there is significant uncertainty before the announcements, and this implies that monetary policy communication is not having the full desired effect.     

Nitrate Dynamics in Two Streams Impacted by Wastewater Treatment Plant Discharge: Point Sources or Sinks?

We examined nitrate processing in headwater stream reaches downstream of two wastewater treatment plant outfalls during low streamflow. Our objectives were to quantify nitrate mass flux before and after effluent discharge and to use field and laboratory techniques to assess the mechanism of nitrate uptake. Microcosm experiments were utilized to determine the location of nitrate processing, and molecular biomarkers were used to detect and quantify microbial denitrification. At one site, downstream nitrate mass flux was significantly (p = 0.01) lower than sum of upstream and wastewater effluent fluxes, indicating rapid stream assimilation of incoming nitrate in the vicinity of the point source. Microcosm experiments supported the theory that nitrate processing occurs in sediments. Molecular assays for denitrifcation‐associated functional genes nosZ, nirS, and nirK, provided evidence that effluent contained enriched denitrifying communities relative to ambient stream water. Nitrate loss at the site with greater uptake was correlated with sulfate loss (p < 0.01; r² = 0.86), suggesting a possible link between sulfate reducing bacteria and denitrifying bacterial communities. Results suggest there is an opportunity to better understand nitrate dynamics in cases where point sources may act as point sinks under specific sets of conditions.     

Nuptial feeding of spermless spermatophores in the Hawaiian swordtail cricket, Laupala pacifica (Gryllidae: Triginodiinae)

Crickets in the genus Laupala (subfamily Trigonidiinae) have an elaborate courtship system, defined by a highly ritualized serial transfer of multiple spermatophores. Males produce multiple “micro” spermatophores followed by a final “macro” spermatophore during a single mating bout. Remarkably, the microspermatophores of L. cerasina, the first species whose mating system was studied in detail, were discovered to be spermless. However, in a study of another species, L. pacifica, sperm transfer was reported after every copulation suggesting that L. pacifica microspermatophores contain sperm. The presence or absence of sperm in the microspermatophore has important implications for the evolution of this exaggerated courtship system and the origin of nuptial gifts. In this study, we systematically examined L. pacifica spermatophore contents for sperm using a fluorescent nuclear stain. We detected sperm only in macrospermatophores. This finding suggests that spermless microspermatophores are typical for Laupala; thus, to determine the origin of this highly modified phenotype will require comparative analyses with closely related outgroups that exhibit less exaggerated courtship systems.