#Low rainfall and extreme temperatures double risk of baby elephant deathsextremes of temperature and rainfall are affecting the survival of elephants working in timber camps in Myanmar
and can double the risk of death in calves aged up to five new research from the University of Sheffield has found.
this could decrease the populations of already endangered Asian elephants. The researchers matched monthly climate records with data on birth and deaths to track how climate variation affects the chances of elephant survival.
It is hoped this research--which was published in the journal Ecology--will make a difference by highlighting the importance of protecting vulnerable calves in captivity from the effects of climate changeexperts at the University of Sheffield accessed unique recordings of the life
and deaths of more than 8000 elephants from Myanmar spanning three generations throughout almost a century.
The elephants in the database are semi-captive animals working in the timber industry by pushing and dragging logs.
Our results show that the optimal conditions for elephant survival correspond to high rainfall and a moderate temperature of 23 C but that further from those optimal conditions elephant survival was lower.
Overall switching from good to bad climatic conditions within an average year significantly increases mortality rates of elephants of all ages.
The most dramatic example comes from baby elephants whose risk of death before the age of five approximately doubles in the hottest weather in comparison to the optimal moderate temperature for elephant survival.
The researchers found that increases in deaths from heat stroke and infectious diseases accounted for the larger number of deaths during the hot months.
Elephants are vulnerable to heat stress because their large size and because they don't sweat like humans
or pant like dogs to cool down. These results could have important implications for Asian elephant populations both in western zoos where they may experience unfamiliar climate added Hannah
and in range countries where climate may be changing faster than elephants can adapt to it.
It also highlights the importance of protecting vulnerable calves from extremes of temperature because more calves will be needed to maintain the dwindling population of endangered Asian elephants.
The project is funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) and was carried out at the University of Sheffield and Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin and the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research in Germany.
Story Source: The above story is provided based on materials by University of Sheffield. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length.
Journal Reference c
#Plant scientists demonstrate new means of boosting maize yieldsa team of plant geneticists at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) has demonstrated successfully
and corals allow researchers to quantify climate variation prior to instrumental measurements. An international research team has investigated now hundreds of these proxy records from across the globe
Dogs caring for orphaned kittens chimps sharing food or dolphins nudging injured mates to the surface.
In corn reproduction male flowers at the top of the plants distribute pollen grains two at a time through individual tubes to tiny cobs on the stalks covered by strands known as silks in a process known as double fertilization.
The manipulation of corn plant genes that has been going on for millennia--resulting in the production of multicolored Indian corn cobs of various colors like red purple blue
and weighed every individual kernel out of each cob from the harvests. While the majority of kernels had an endosperm
and the University of Aix-Marseille. Gaining ground on the seaalthough The french Guiana coastline remains protected by human developments for the time being that of Guyana is disrupted already highly.
I. Eglinton of the Eidgenã ssische Technische Hochschule and Raymonde Bonnefille of the Universit d'Aix-Marseille. The role that the environment played in the evolution of hominins--the tribe of human and ape ancestors
whose family tree split from the ancestors of chimpanzees and bonobos about 6 million years ago--has been the subject of a century-long debate.
Among other things one theory dating back to 1925 posits that early human ancestors developed bipedalism as a response to savannas encroaching on shrinking forests in northeast Africa.
In addition to informing scientists about the environment that our ancestors took shape in Feakins'study provides insights into the landscape that herbivores (horses hippos
#Corn cobs eyed for bioenergy productioncorn crop residues are often left on harvested fields to protect soil quality
if postharvest corn cob residues were removed from fields. This work led by Agricultural research service (ARS) soil scientist Brian Wienhold supports the USDA priority of developing new sources of bioenergy.
Wienhold with the ARS Agroecosystem Management Research Unit in Lincoln Neb. led studies that compared runoff rates
The scientists also removed cobs from half of the test plots that were protected by the residues.
But the presence or absence of cobs on the residue-protected plots did not significantly affect sediment loss rates.
even though cob residues did slightly delay the onset of runoff sediment loss rates were affected not significantly by the presence or absence of the cobs.
The results indicated that the cobs could be removed from other residue and used for bioenergy feedstock without significantly interfering with the role of crop residues in protecting soils.
In a related study Wienhold examined how the removal of cob residues affected soil nutrient levels.
Over the course of a year his sampling indicated that cobs were a source of soil potassium
#24 new species of flower fly have been found in Central and Southern Americaa team of scientists have described twenty four new species of dipterans belonging to Quichuana genus of which only a further 24 species were known.
The researchers including two Spanish biologists have been studying the forests of Central and Southern America for ten years and they have published now their results in the Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society.
A ten-year study in forests of the American continent has resulted in the description of 24 new insect species from the Quichuana genus that are also known as'flower flies'.
which is a group with similar characteristics to that of bees and wasps but with a different taxonomic order.
and one of the authors of the study the species of the Quichuana genus are not well known as they live in tropical forest areas where insect studies are scarce.
while in flight whereas others were taken as larva and were raised then in our laboratories as adults outlines the researcher.
and how a relationship has been established between the insect species and their plant development environment adds the researcher.
According to the author the discovery of this insect-plant relationship is especially important for establishing conservation methods both for these species and others that share the same development environment.
and biological control of plagues as their larvae feed on other insects that are damaging to crops
and ornamental plants such as plant louses. Story Source: The above story is provided based on materials by Plataforma SINC.
#West Nile virus spreading due to mosquitoes in orchards and vineyards, experts warnwashington State university researchers have linked orchards
and vineyards with a greater prevalence of West Nile virus in mosquitoes and the insects'ability to spread the virus to birds horses and people.
Is that because there are more birds there? says Crowder. Is that because there are more mosquitoes there?
That hasn't really been linked together. Crowder working with fellow entomologist Jeb Owen other WSU colleagues and the State department of Health merged data from a variety of sources including West Nile infections in humans horses
and birds surveys of virus-bearing mosquitoes breeding bird surveys and detailed land use maps and climate data from around the Northwest.
The researchers found that habitats with high instances of the disease in horses and birds also have significantly more mosquitoes--as well as American robins
and house sparrows the two bird species implicated the most in the disease's transmission. These same habitats are also resulting in much higher rates of infection within mosquitoes themselves said Crowder.
We find that all three of these things--abundances of house sparrows and American robins abundance of mosquitoes and the actual prevalence of West Nile in mosquitoes--are increasing in landscapes with a higher proportion of land in orchard habitats.
These habitats says Crowder include both orchards and vineyards. It's still unclear why the habitats would create such a perfect storm for the virus. The researchers speculate that mosquitoes are drawn to orchards for plant nectar during flowering
while robins and house sparrows use them for nesting and feeding. Together the insects and birds become focal points for the disease.
Story Source: The above story is provided based on materials by Washington state University. The original article was written by Eric Sorensen.
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. Journal Reference e
#Vultures foraging far and wide face a poisonous futurea first ever study of the range and habits of white-backed vultures across southern Africa shows that they often shun national parks preferring to forage further afield on private farmland.
This behaviour and their tendency to scavenge in groups means that vultures risk encountering dead cattle that have been administered veterinary drugs that are poisonous to them
or even poisoned carcasses intended to control other carnivores such as jackals. The research using Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite transmitters to track the movements of adolescent vultures is published in the journal PLOS ONE.
The white-backed vulture is a widespread but declining species in Africa and it is listed now as endangered.
In India several vulture species are on the verge of extinction due to accidental poisoning from cattle carcasses that contain anti-inflammatory drugs administered by farmers.
These drugs are nonlethal to cattle yet fatal to vultures. There is a concern that these drugs could become more widely used in Africa.
Vultures prefer to feed in savannah grassland habitats and away from other competing carnivores such as lions and the new study shows that the birds will go to considerable lengths to find food crossing multiple state boundaries with each bird on average ranging across an area twice the size of England.
Co-lead author Dr Stephen Willis School of Biological and Biomedical sciences Durham University said: We found that young vultures travel much further than we ever imagined to find food sometimes moving more than 220 kilometres a day.
Individuals moved through up to five countries over a period of 200 days emphasising the need for conservation collaboration among countries to protect this species. In South africa the vultures avoided the national parks that have been established to conserve wildlife.
As a result these parks are unlikely to protect such a wide-ranging species against threats in the wider landscape.
The vultures may actively avoid parks with numerous large mammal predators due to competition for food
and find easier pickings on cattle carcasses in farmland outside these protected areas. We found evidence that individual birds were attracted to'vulture restaurants'where carrion is regularly put out as an extra source of food for vultures
and where tourists can see the birds up close. As a result these individuals reduced their ranging behaviour.
Such'restaurants'could be used in future to attract vultures to areas away from sites where they are at high risk of poisoning.
The team tracked six immature African white-backed vultures (Gyps africanus: five for 200 days and one for 101 days) across southern Africa using GPS tracking units
which were strapped carefully to the birds'backs. Co-lead author Louis Phipps who recently graduated from the University of Pretoria said:
Modern farming practices mean that vultures face an increasing risk of fatal poisoning. The provision of an uncontaminated supply of food research into veterinary practices and education for farmers could all be part of a future solution
if vulture numbers continue to plummet. Story Source: The above story is provided based on materials by Durham University.
Note: Materials may be edited for content and length h
#In beef production, cow-calf phase contributes most greenhouse gasesscientists have known long that cattle produce carbon dioxide
and methane throughout their lives but a new study pinpoints the cow-calf stage as a major contributor of greenhouse gases during beef production.
In a new paper for the Journal of Animal Science scientists estimate greenhouse gas emissions from beef cattle during different stages of life.
They show that depending on which production system farmers used beef production has a carbon footprint ranging from 10.7 to 22.6 kg of carbon dioxide equivalent per kg of hot carcass weight.
According to study co-author Frank Mitloehner an associate professor in the Department of Animal Science at UC Davis one source of greenhouse gases was surprising
If you look at everything that contributes to greenhouse gases through the beef supply chain then it is the cow-calf that produces the greatest greenhouse gases Mitloehner said.
The more roughage is in the diet of the ruminant animal the more methane is produced by the microbes in the gut of the ruminant
and barnacles would never survive the heat stress above the tides in isolation. They could only persist in groups suggesting that with stress organisms were better off together--despite their competition--than apart.
The hypothesis suggests for example that marine ecosystem managers who want to help tropical fish should focus on sustaining foundational species in the ecosystem such as corals.
#Biologists use diag trees to help solve gypsy moth mysteryworking beneath the towering oaks and maples on the University of Michigan's central campus Diag undergraduate researchers and their faculty adviser helped explain an observation that had puzzled insect ecologists who study voracious leaf-munching gypsy moth caterpillars.
The caterpillars which defoliate and sometimes kill stands of trees in the Upper Midwest and the Northeast are especially fond of oaks
but sugar maple trees appear to be relatively resistant to the European pest. Biologists wondered whether the caterpillars shun sugar maples in part
because their leaves are less nutritious than the leaves of other trees. To find out U-M biochemist Ray Barbehenn
and several of his undergraduate research assistants compared the protein quality of red oak and sugar maple leaves from trees on the Diag.
when gypsy moths do most of their feeding. However the researchers found that protein is more abundant in oak leaves than in maple leaves.
These results help us understand the nutritional reasons why insects perform better or worse on different species of plants.
and forestry to improve the resistance of plants to insect pests he said. In the short term though this is basic research that is driven by the curiosity of ecologists to understand nature better.
She said her work studying protein metabolism in gypsy moth caterpillars shaped her decision to pursue a doctorate in nutrition.
In the gypsy moth study the students used a long-pole pruner to reach into the crowns of Diag oaks and maples and collect leaves.
The whole-body essential amino acid composition of gypsy moth caterpillars was measured to estimate their optimum dietary protein composition which was compared with the EAA compositions of oak and maple leaves.
The ability to literally walk out the door to work on tree defenses against pests like the gypsy moth coupled with an abundance of undergraduate talent makes the U-M campus an ideal location for studies in insect chemical ecology Barbehenn said.
The protein study showed that gypsy moths would have to devour more maple leaves than oak leaves to achieve the same amount of nourishment.
These climate-driven changes could lead to changes in the com po si tion of north east ern forests
i cal Research proved accu rate when com pared to data on actual bud burst in the north east ern United states. In the cur rent paper pub lished online in Geo phys
used in plan ning exer cises by the Inter gov ern men tal Panel on Cli mate Change.
They found that the north ern parts of the United states will have more pro nounced changes than the south ern parts with the largest changes occur ring in Maine New york Michi gan and Wisconsin.
#Stable fisher population found in the Southern Sierra Nevadaafter experiencing years of population decline on the West Coast a recent study examining fisher populations found that--at least in the southern Sierra nevada--the animal's numbers appear to be stable.
The findings are relatively good news for the cat-sized relative of the weasel family.
The forest-dwelling fisher (Martes pennanti) once lived throughout most of the mountains in northern California and the Sierra nevada and in the Rocky mountains Cascades and Coast ranges.
For seeds and fruit in particular bright color is thought to have evolved to attract the agents of seed dispersal especially birds.
Deceived birds eat the fruit and ultimately release its seeds over a wide geographic area. The fruit of this bastard hogberry plant was scientifically delightful to pick says principal investigator Peter Vukusic Associate professor in Natural Photonics at the University of Exeter.
#Misconceptions about a popular pet treata popular dog treat could be adding more calories than pet owners realize
dog and 30 percent of the daily calorie requirements for a 10-pound dog. While calorie information isn't currently required on pet treats
and pet owners need to be aware of pet treats like these bully sticks as a source of calories in a dog's diet said Lisa M. Freeman DVM Phd DACVN professor of nutrition at TCSVM
With obesity in pets on the rise it is important for pet owners to factor in not only their dog's food but also treats and table food Freeman added.
Most respondents were female dog owners. We were surprised at the clear misconceptions pet owners and veterinarians have with pet foods
For example 71 percent of people feeding bully sticks to their pets stated they avoid by-products in pet foods yet bully sticks are for all intents and purposes an animal by-product.
Twenty-three percent of the respondents fed their dogs bully sticks. Further research with a larger sample size is needed to determine
His prediction bears fruit in the new work in which finely detailed patterns of graphene are laced into gaps created in sheets of h-BN.
Combs bars concentric rings and even microscopic Rice Owls were laid down through a lithographic process.
and Great depression-era ditches constructed by Works Progress Administration (WPA) in an effort to control mosquitoes.
but squattier Spartina patens) and other high marsh plants dominate The old WPA mosquito ditches also fulfill the crabs'habitat requirements.
Mosquito ditches that can only be reached by a hard slog through undeveloped marshland do not display the striking die off
The revelation of the slumbering menace of the mosquito ditches raises the prospect of other submerged impacts that may surface under the influence of new contemporary pressures.
As land use shifted from agriculture toward tourism the local chamber of commerce funded an effort to draw off standing water through drainage ditches to suppress the mosquito population.
The program was probably not very effective at controlling mosquito-borne disease Coverdale says but it did put a lot of people to work
The Cape cod Mosquito Control Project continues ditch-dredging under the Barnstable County Department of health and the Environment.
#New control strategies for bipolar bark beetlespopulation explosions of pine beetles which have been decimating North american forests in recent decades may be prevented by boosting competitor
and predator beetle populations a Dartmouth study suggests. Bark beetles are the most destructive forest pests worldwide.
Management and climate change have resulted in younger denser forests that are even more susceptible to attack.
Though intensively studied for decades until now an understanding of bark beetle population dynamics--extreme ups and downs--has remained elusive.
The Dartmouth-led study published in the January issue of the journal Population Ecology confirmed for the first time that the abundance of a certain animal species--in this case the southern pine beetle--fluctuates innately between extremes with no middle ground.
That is different from most species such as deer warblers and swallowtail butterflies whose populations tend to be regular around some average abundance based on food weather and other external factors says Matt Ayres a professor in the Department of Biological sciences at Dartmouth and senior author on the paper.
The new research by Dartmouth scientists and their forester colleagues could provide the means to limit this seemingly bipolar dynamic keeping the bark beetles at the lower stable population level.
The studies identify the presence of bark beetle competitors and predators (specifically two other beetles) as the predominant limiting factor that can keep the bark beetles at a low stable equilibrium.
The authors suggest that the presence of these competitors and predators could be encouraged as a control strategy.
The pine beetles produce pheromones chemical signals that attract enough competitors and predators to prevent outbreaks says Sharon Martinson a member of the research team and first author on the new paper.
Leaving more dead trees in forests can provide habitat for competitor beetles that rarely kill tree
and for predators that eat both beetle species. The authors suggest that other pest species with catastrophic impacts may also have natural dynamics that include a tipping point between the bipolar population states.
By learning what factors control those tipping points impacts on ecosystems can be averted through monitoring and occasional intervention strategies.
#Parasites of Madagascars lemurs expanding with climate changerising temperatures and shifting rainfall patterns in Madagascar could fuel the spread of lemur parasites
and the diseases they carry. By combining data on six parasite species from ongoing surveys of lemur health with weather data and other environmental information for Madagascar as a whole a team of Duke university researchers has created probability
maps of likely parasite distributions throughout the island today. Then using climate projections for the year 2080 they estimate what parasite distributions might look like in the future.
We can use these models to figure out where the risk of lemur-human disease transmission might be highest
and use that to better protect the future of lemur and human health said lead author Meredith Barrett who conducted the study while working as a graduate student at Duke.
Lemurs are native to the African island of Madagascar where climate change isn't the only threat to their survival.
More than 90 percent of the lemurs'forest habitat has already been cleared for logging farming and grazing.
A key part of saving these animals is ensuring that they stay healthy as environmental conditions in their island home continue to shift Barrett said.
what these changes could mean for lemur health by taking a cue from the parasites they carry.
The team focused on six species of mites ticks and intestinal worms commonly known to infect lemurs.
The parasites are identified in lemur fur and feces. Some species--such as pinworms whipworms and tapeworms--cause diarrhea dehydration and weight loss in human hosts.
Others particularly mites and ticks can transmit diseases such as plague typhus or scabies. When the researchers compared their present-day maps with parasite distributions predicted for the future they found that lemur parasites could expand their range by as much as 60 percent.
Whipworms for example which are confined now largely to Madagascar's northeast and western coasts may become widely distributed on the country's southeastern coast as well.
Anne Yoder senior author on the study and Director of the Duke Lemur Center said the research is particularly important now as lemurs have been identified by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as the most endangered mammals on earth.
Warmer weather means that parasites could grow and reproduce more quickly or spread to higher latitudes
and elevations where once they were unable to survive. As lemur parasites become more prevalent the diseases they carry could show up in new places.
The spread could be harmful to lemur populations that have encountered never these pests before and lack resistance to the diseases they carry.
Shifting parasite distributions could have ripple effects on people too. As human population growth in Madagascar drives people and their livestock into previously uninhabited areas wildlife-human disease transmission becomes increasingly likely.
Jason Brown of Duke university and Randall Junge of the Columbus Zoo & Aquarium were also authors of this study.
We are familiar with how animals use a fight or flight strategy to face external challenges.
The study took into account the state of different breeds the multiple implications of their conservation the interaction with other animal species (wild and domestic) and the consequences of goat grazing from an environmental point of view.
Strangely enough the biggest loss in the genetic resources of indigenous animals has been observed in Europe although the situation is unknown in many areas as explained to SINC by Rocã o Rosa Garcã a researcher at SERIDA and coauthor of the study.
It is a reality that the grazing of these animals can cause damaging effects on the environment
and often the goat is the only source of animal protein in their diet explains Rosa Garcã a. The team led by Koldo Osoro Otaduy manager of the Animal Production Systems Area at SERIDA
and analysing to what extent the goat competes with local fauna in each region and whether it interferes with the survival of the most sensitive species outlines Rosa Garcã a. Story Source:
We could potentially strengthen the immune system by providing this bacterium to animals at a stage
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