Public participation in municipal planning as a tool for coastal management: case studies from western Sweden

This article analyses four main models of participation in Swedish natural resource management and assesses strengths and weaknesses of one model (participation in physical/spatial planning) based on empirical studies of coastal resource conflicts in two Swedish west coast municipalities. In comparison to other administrative and planning procedures, physical planning offers possibilities to coordinate land and water management across sectors and resources and to broaden stakeholder participation. Local influence on coastal management increases with participation beyond the statutory minimum requirements, although management frameworks and practice of participation need to be developed further. Besides educating professionals and experimenting with combinations of existing procedures, in the long run an adaptation of legislation to the requirements of integrated and sustainable coastal management will be necessary.     

Modeling aerosol formation in opposed-flow diffusion flames

The microstructures of atmospheric pressure, counter-flow, sooting, flat, laminar ethylene diffusion flames have been studied numerically by using a new kinetic model developed for hydrocarbon oxidation and pyrolysis. Modeling results are in reasonable agreement with experimental data in terms of concentration profiles of stable species and gas-phase aromatic compounds. Modeling results are used to analyze the controlling steps of aromatic formation and soot growth in counter-flow configurations. The formation of high molecular mass aromatics in diffusion controlled conditions is restricted to a narrow area close to the flame front where these species reach a molecular weight of about 1000 u. Depending on the flame configuration, soot formation is controlled by the coagulation of nanoparticles or by the addition of PAH to soot nuclei.     

Cholinesterase activity and effects of its inhibition by neurotoxic drugs in Dictyostelium discoideum

Recently, we found acetylcholinesterase (AChE) activity in the ciliate protozoan Paramecium primaurelia. As in the slime mould Dictyostelium discoideum the presence of a serine esterase was found with strong sequence identity to Torpedo AChE, we extended to D. discoideum the investigation on the characterization and possible functions of cholinesterases (ChEs). In amoeboid cells, histochemical, biochemical, and electrophoresis analyses evidenced both a ChE activity able to hydrolyze the substrate PrTChI, and AChE (E.C. 3.1.1.7.) activity similar to Electrophorus electricus AChE. Conversely, butyrylcholinesterase activity was nearly absent, according to our previous results on P. primaurelia. Moreover, the possibility to utilize D. discoideum in a bioassay for the pre-chemical screening both of moist environments and fresh waters, in relation to the occurrence of the neurotoxic organophosphate drugs, such as "basudin", inhibiting ChE activity, was investigated. Exposure to basudin inhibited propionylcholinesterase (PrChE) activity in a dose-dependent manner in the range 10(-1)-10(-7) M (60% at 10(-4) M), without any significant effect on AChE activity. PrChE activity was inhibited slightly by 10(-5) M eserine, and reduced significantly both by 10(-5) M iso-OMPA and BW284C51, classically used to discriminate the different ChE molecular forms. The effects on cell morphology, cell density, and differentiation were evaluated in cultures exposed to PrTChI 10(-5) M or basudin 10(-4) M for a three-day period. The PrTChI-exposed sample exhibited cell morphology, cell density, ability to aggregate, and to form fruiting bodies similar to the control; whereas, the basudin-exposed sample showed anomalies in cell morphology and lower cell density than the control, together with inability to aggregate.     

A longitudinal study of age-specific reproductive output and body condition among male rhesus macaques,<Emphasis Type="Italic"> Macaca mulatta</Emphasis>

In many mammalian species, male reproductive success appears to climb sharply at young adulthood, form a brief plateau during prime ages, and decline among older animals, a pattern often attributed to reduced physical condition with ageing. However, solid evidence to either substantiate or refute this profile among nonhuman primates is lacking. Here, we combine a decade of genetic analysis of paternity among free-ranging rhesus macaques, Macaca mulatta, with information about body condition in order to evaluate how changes in morphology might govern age-specific reproduction among males. We show that age-specific reproductive success traverses the same life history profile as found in other mammals, but reductions in reproductive output with advanced age were associated with reduced chances of survivorship rather than accompanied by diminished body condition. We demonstrate that variance in male age at onset of reproduction is three times greater than variance in female age at onset of reproduction. We provide the first evidence from primates that age-specific reproductive output among males is not a consequence of age-related changes in body condition, but reflects social and demographic factors.     

Prenatal diagnosis of congenital human cytomegalovirus infection

Fifteen fetuses at risk of congenital human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection underwent prenatal diagnosis at 16–30 weeks' gestation by a combination of amniocentesis and fetal blood sampling. HCMV was isolated from the amniotic fluid in six patients, but HCMV-specific IgM was detected in only three of them. Two of the nine neonates, who were delivered following a negative prenatal diagnosis, had congenital HCMV infection diagnosed by virus isolation in the urine. The interval from infection to prenatal testing was 3 and 4 weeks in the two false-negative cases and ⩾ 7 weeks in the true-positive cases. Although timely testing for HCMV infection allows the option of termination of pregnancy, it may be flawed by false-negative results.     

Early succession arthropod community changes on experimental passion fruit plant patches along a land-use gradient in Ecuador

Many tropical landscapes are today characterized by small forest patches embedded in an agricultural mosaic matrix. In such highly fragmented landscapes, agroforests have already been recognized as refuges for biodiversity but few studies have investigated the potential of non-forested land-use types to contribute to overall biodiversity of functionally important taxa in the tropics. This study experimentally investigated species richness, abundance, and community similarity of arthropods on Yellow Passion fruit plants, planted in standardized patches in 30 sites along a land-use intensity gradient. The gradient comprised all major land-use types of the area: forest fragments, abandoned coffee agroforests, coffee agroforests managed under shade trees, pastures, and rice fields in Coastal Ecuador. We found a total of 2123 individuals belonging to 242 species. Overall arthropod species richness increased with light intensity and leaf-surface area and decreased with land-use intensity: forest fragments and abandoned coffee agroforests harboured significantly more species than rice or pastures. Overall diversity in managed coffee agroforests was intermediate between the intensively managed and more natural habitats. However, the three most abundant taxa of arthropods (ants, spiders, and beetles) had the highest number of species in managed coffee agroforests, while ant abundance was highest in abandoned coffee agroforests and spider abundance highest in managed coffee agroforests. Analyses of community similarity revealed that open (pasture, and rice) and shaded (forest, abandoned and managed coffee agroforests) land-use types had distinct arthropod communities. In conclusion, although open agricultural land-use types tend to have fewer species in lower numbers, all land-use types contribute to overall biodiversity of the agricultural matrix because of distinct communities in shaded vs. non-shaded land-use types.     

(<Emphasis Type="Italic">Z</Emphasis>)-9-tricosene identified in rectal gland extracts of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Bactrocera oleae</Emphasis> males: first evidence of a male-produced female attractant in olive fruit fly

It is well-known that Bactrocera oleae (olive fruit fly) females attract conspecific males by using 1,7-dioxaspiro[5,5]undecane (1) as the main component of their sex pheromone, and that 1 is produced in the female rectal gland. Although some authors have claimed that B. oleae males also attract females, to date no male-produced female attractants have been found in this species. In this paper, we report the first identification of a substance unique to males and able to attract females. The findings of the study include the following: (1) females responded in a bioassay to hexane extracts obtained from rectal glands of 15-day-old B. oleae males, (2) the presence of (Z)-9-tricosene (2) was consistently and unambiguously identified in these extracts using gas chromatography (GC) and GC-mass spectrometry methods, (3) in preliminary bioactivity tests, low doses (equivalent to a few males) of chemically and stereoisomerically pure synthetic (Z)-9-tricosene (2) attracted olive fruit fly females. Interestingly, compound 2, commonly called muscalure, is also a well-known component of the house fly (Musca domestica) sex pheromone.     

Modelling farm structural change for integrated ex-ante assessment: review of methods and determinants

This paper provides a literature review of methods and determinants relevant for modelling farm structural change within an integrated modelling chain. Environmental and economic impacts at farm level and individual farm responses to agricultural and agri-environmental policies strongly depend on characteristics like farm size, specialisation, and production intensity. Consequently, up-scaling results of corresponding farm type models in ex-ante assessment exercises requires comprehensive and valid predictions of the farm types’ future relevance under different scenarios. The paper reviews methods relevant to forecasting farm numbers in classes defined by farm typologies with the objective to identify (1) a preferable modelling approach and (2) empirically relevant determinants. Despite the literature's considerable size, even recent studies are rather limited in scope and typically restricted to a subset of farm types and one or very few regions. With regard to data availability, computational complexity and statistical validation procedures, Markov chain models are identified as the only generally suitable method for a broadly scoped modelling approach across European regions and a differentiated farm typology. However, other research on determinants of farm growth, the number of farm holders, farm succession as well as new multi-agent based simulation approaches hint at relevant explanatory variables previously not considered in Markov chain analyses. Their impact seems testable in more ambitious cross-regional and cross-farm type setups.     

Megafaunal-habitat associations at a deep-sea coral mound off North Carolina,USA

Deep-sea corals provide important habitat for many organisms; however, the extent to which fishes and other invertebrates are affiliated with corals or other physical variables is uncertain. The Cape Fear coral mound off North Carolina, USA (366–463 m depth, 33° 34.4′N, 76° 27.8′W) was surveyed using multibeam sonar and the Johnson-Sea-Link submersible. Multibeam bathymetric data (2006) were coupled with in situ video data (2002–2005) to define habitat associations of 14 dominant megafauna at two spatial scales. Results suggested greater habitat specificity of deep-reef fauna than previously documented, with fishes showing greater affinity for certain habitat characteristics than most invertebrates. High vertical profile, degree of coral coverage, and topographic complexity influenced distributions of several species, including Beryx decadactylus, Conger oceanicus, and Novodinia antillensis on the smaller scale (30 × 30 m). On the broad scale (170 × 170 m), several suspension feeders (e.g., N. antillensis, anemones), detritivores (Echinus spp.), and mesopelagic feeders (e.g., Beryx decadactylus, Eumunida picta) were most often found on the south-southwest facing slope near the top of the mound. Transient reef species, including Laemonema barbatulum and Helicolenus dactylopterus, had limited affiliations to topographic complexity and were most often on the mound slope and base. Megafauna at deep-water reefs behave much like shallow-water reef fauna, with some species strongly associated with certain fine-scale habitat attributes, whereas other species are habitat generalists. Documenting the degree of habitat specialization is important for understanding habitat functionality, predicting faunal distributions, and assessing the impacts of disturbance on deep-reef megafauna.