In Situ Dynamics of F-Specific RNA Bacteriophages in a Small River: New Way to Assess Viral Propagation in Water Quality Studies

The occurrence and propagation of enteric viruses in rivers constitute a major public health issue. However, little information is available on the in situ transport and spread of viruses in surface water. In this study, an original in situ experimental approach using the residence time of the river water mass was developed to accurately follow the propagation of F-specific RNA bacteriophages (FRNAPHs) along a 3-km studied river. Surface water and sediment of 9 sampling campaigns were collected and analyzed using both infectivity and RT-qPCR assays. In parallel, some physico-chemical variables such as flow rate, water temperature, conductivity and total suspended solids were measured to investigate the impact of environmental conditions on phage propagation. For campaigns with low flow rate and high temperature, the results highlight a decrease of infectious phage concentration along the river, which was successfully modelled according to a first-order negative exponential decay. The monitoring of infectious FRNAPHs belonging mainly to the genogroup II was confirmed with direct phage genotyping and total phage particle quantification. Reported k decay coefficients according to exponential models allowed for the determination of the actual in situ distance and time necessary for removing 90 % of infectious phage particles. This present work provides a new way to assess the true in situ viral propagation along a small river. These findings can be highly useful in water quality and risk assessment studies to determine the viral contamination spread from a point contamination source to the nearest recreational areas.     

Prymnesium parvum Population Dynamics During Bloom Development: A Role Assessment of Grazers and Virus1

Schwierzke, Leslie, Daniel L. Roelke, Bryan W. Brooks, James P. Grover, Theodore W. Valenti, Jr., Mieke Lahousse, Carrie J. Miller, and James L. Pinckney, 2010. Prymnesium parvum Population Dynamics During Bloom Development: A Role Assessment of Grazers and Virus. Journal of the American Water Resources Association (JAWRA) 46(1):63-75. DOI: 10.1111/j.1752-1688.2009.00391.x Abstract: The toxic haptophyte Prymnesium parvum is a harmful alga known to cause fish-killing blooms that occur worldwide. In Texas (United States), P. parvum blooms occur in inland brackish water bodies and have increased in frequency and magnitude in recent years. In this study we conducted three consecutive field experiments (Lake Whitney) to investigate the influence of zooplankton and viruses on P. parvum bloom dynamics during the time of year when blooms are still typically active in Texas (early spring). A localized P. parvum bloom developed during our study that involved increasing levels of toxicity (based on Pimephales promelas and Daphnia magna bioassays). Only in our last experiment, during later stages of bloom development and under highly toxic conditions, did the presence of grazers show a statistically significant, negative effect on P. parvum population dynamics. During this experiment, a rotifer-dominated zooplankton community emerged, composed mostly of Notholca laurentiae, suggesting that this species was less sensitive than other grazers to toxins produced by P. parvum. Microzooplankton may have also been important at this time. Similarly, only our final experiment demonstrated a statistically significant, negative effect of viruses on P. parvum. This exploratory study, resulting in observed impacts on P. parvum populations by both grazers and virus, enhances our understanding of P. parvum ecology and highlights direction for future studies on resistance of zooplankton to prymnesin toxins and algal-virus interactions.     

Interregional comparison of karst disturbance: West-central Florida and southeast Italy

The karst disturbance index (KDI) consists of 31 environmental indicators contained within the five broad categories: geomorphology, hydrology, atmosphere, biota, and cultural. The purpose of this research is to apply the KDI to two distinct karst areas, west Florida, USA, and Apulia, Italy. Through its application, the utility of the index can be validated and other important comparisons can be made, such as differences in the karst legislations implemented in each region and the effect of time exposure to human occupation to each karst terrain. Humans have intensively impacted the karst of southeast Italy for thousands of years compared to only decades in west-central Florida. However, west-central Florida's higher population density allows the region to reach disturbance levels comparable to those reached over a longer period in Apulia. Similarly, Italian karst is more diverse than the karst found in west-central Florida, creating an opportunity to test all the KDI indicators. Overall, major disturbances for southeast Italy karst include quarrying, stone clearing, and the dumping of refuse into caves, while west-central Florida suffers most from the infilling of sinkholes, soil compaction, changes in the water table, and vegetation removal. The application of the KDI allows a benchmark of disturbance to be established and later revisited to determine the changing state of human impact for a region. The highlighting of certain indicators that recorded high levels of disturbance also allows regional planners to allocate resources in a more refined manner.     

More than friends? Behavioural and genetic aspects of heterosexual associations in wild chacma baboons

In mammals, fathers are facultative caretakers, and male care is expected to evolve only if it is directed towards related young. Yet, in several promiscuous primate societies, males seem to care for infants despite a presumably low paternity confidence. In cercopithecines, cohesive associations (‘friendships’) between a lactating female and an adult male are frequent and provide the female and her infant with protection against various sources of aggression, including infanticide. However, the benefits gained by males through such relationships remain unclear, in part, because the relatedness between males and their protected infants has rarely been examined. Moreover, little is known about the nature of the cues underlying kin discrimination by males in societies where females mate polyandrously. In this study, we combine behavioural and genetic data from wild chacma baboons (Papio ursinus) in Namibia to investigate (1) whether males are related to their friend’s infant and (2) whether similarity between the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) genotype of males and infants (potentially perceived through odour phenotype) favours the establishment of friendships. We first show that males share close genetic ties with their friend’s infants, most often by having sired the infant. Secondly, we find that male–infant MHC (Class II–DRB) similarity, in contrast to paternity, does not predict male–infant associations. Overall, our results clarify the nature of the evolutionary benefits gained by males in these heterosexual associations, which can be considered as true paternal care. However, the proximate mechanisms underlying paternity recognition remain to be identified.     

Feedbacks between conservation and social-ecological systems

Robust ways to meet objectives of environmental conservation and social and economic development remain elusive. This struggle may in part be related to insufficient understanding of the feedbacks between conservation initiatives and social-ecological systems, specifically, the ways in which conservation initiatives result in social changes that have secondary effects on the environments targeted by conservation. To explore this idea, we sampled peer-reviewed articles addressing the social and environmental dimensions of conservation and coded each paper according to its research focus and characterization of these feedbacks. The majority of articles in our sample focused either on the effect of conservation initiatives on people (e.g., relocation, employment) or the effect of people on the environment (e.g., fragmentation, conservation efficacy of traditional management systems). Few studies in our sample empirically addressed both the social dynamics resulting from conservation initiatives and subsequent environmental effects. In many cases, one was measured and the other was discussed anecdotally. Among the studies that describe feedbacks between social and environmental variables, there was more evidence of positive (amplifying) feedbacks between social and environmental outcomes (i.e., undesirable social outcomes yielded undesirable environmental effects and desirable social outcomes yielded desirable environmental effects). The major themes within the sampled literature include conflict between humans and wild animals, social movements, adaptive comanagement, loss of traditional management systems, traditional ecological knowledge, human displacement and risks to livelihoods, and conservation and development. The narratives associated with each theme can serve as hypotheses for facilitating further discussion about conservation issues and for catalyzing future studies of the feedbacks between conservation and social-ecological systems.     

Our disappearing past: a GIS analysis of the vulnerability of coastal archaeological resources in California’s Santa Barbara Channel region

Coastal archaeological resources around the world often coincide with dense contemporary human populations and a rapidly changing physical environment. Projected sea level rise and urban expansion during the 21^st century threaten to destroy much of our global coastal archaeological heritage. In this study, we adapt an environmental vulnerability analysis to quantify the threats of modern development and sea level rise on archaeological sites in California’s Santa Barbara Channel region. Using spatial and statistical techniques, we create a Cultural Resource Vulnerability Index that combines environmental factors, current and projected urban footprints, and archaeological site positioning. We illustrate the importance of this method for targeting threatened archaeological sites for mitigation and salvage research. In the process, we highlight the significance of coastal archaeological sites for helping better understand contemporary environmental and cultural issues, underscoring the need to preserve or salvage these sites for their significant research value.     

A building education programme in North Yemen

In December 1982 the central highlands of the Yemen Arab Republic suffered an earthquake that caused extensive damage to traditional buildings in the area. In the aftermath of the relief effort for victims of the disaster, a project was set up to provide local builders with simple information about the means of strengthening homes. This education programme has now been running for almost three years. This report describes the activities of the project, and assesses some of the issues that emerge from this kind of education work, and the methods that have been used.