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Review of BBC Radio 3's The Middlemarch Monologues, 20 March 2022
No full textArticle from the George Eliot Review. Digitized and hosted by the George Eliot Review Online, editor Beverley Park Rilett.Publishe
Alabama Extension Commercial Horticulture Virtual Events and Social Media Evaluation System During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Get PDFAlabama has a rapidly growing specialty crop industry valued at 103 million in value-added products. The demand for fresh fruits and vegetables remained high during the COVID-19 pandemic. To support producers with timely information, the Alabama Extension Commercial Horticulture Team used three different social media (SM) events along with a unique monitoring and evaluation system as formative evaluations. Overall, 120 virtual events via a Facebook channel and a farmer group page reached 2,271 direct and 57,000 indirect participants with many new clients and beginning farmers that found the information useful and timely.PublishedYe
Effects of human activity on the habitat utilization of Himalayan marmot (Marmota himalayana) in Zoige wetland
Get PDFHuman activity is increasingly and persistently disturbing nature and wild animals. Affected wildlife adopts multiple strategies to deal with different human influences. To explore the effect of human activity on habitat utilization of Himalayan marmot (Marmota himalayana), habitat utilization patterns of three neighboring marmot populations in habitats affected differently by human activities were recorded and compared. We found that (a) distance between reproductive burrows (a represent of reproductive pairs) becomes shorter under the influence of human activities, and more burrows were dug as temporary shelters, resulting in shorter distance between those shelters and shorter distance flee to those shelters and, consequently, shorter flight initiation distance when threatened. More burrows that are closer to the disturbed habitats improve the ability to escape from threats. (b) Reproductive burrow site selection of the species is determined by the availability of mounds in the habitat, and breeding pairs selectively build reproductive (also the hibernation) burrows on mounds, potentially to improve surveillance when basking and the drainage of burrows. Human activities generally drive breeding pairs away from the road to dig their reproductive burrows likely to reduce disturbance from vehicles. However, even heavy human activity exerts no pressure on the distance of reproductive burrows from the road or the mound volume of the high disturbance population, potentially because mounds are the best burrowing site to reproduce and hibernate in the habitat. Marmots deal with disturbance by digging more burrows in the habitat to flee more effectively and building reproductive burrows on mounds to gain better vigilance and drainage efficiency.publishedye
Review: John Mullan, The Artful Dickens: The Tricks and Ploys of the Great Novelists
No full textArticle from the George Eliot Review, digitized and hosted by the George Eliot Review Online.Publishe
Data from: Dumpsters and other human structures as habitat for invasive African rock agama lizards in Florida
No full textInvasive species often use habitat differently than native species and can benefit by using underutilized habitats during the invasion process. The Peter’s Rock Agama (Agama picticauda) — native to savannahs of sub-Saharan Africa — is successfully invading urban habitats in Florida, USA. During a collection trip in urban southern Florida, we observed high A. picticauda abundance around dumpsters used for human refuse, potentially because dumpsters provide refuge, thermoregulatory opportunities, abundant arthropod prey, and have few competitors. In this study, we surveyed A. picticauda abundance and built resource selection functions describing habitat use in urban southern Florida. We tested whether hypothesized habitat features predictably influenced the abundance and occupancy of A. picticauda among sites and whether individuals used specific habitat features within sites. Across sites, A. picticauda abundance was positively correlated with the number of dumpsters, and, within sites, dumpsters appear to be preferred habitat. Other structures that influenced population- and individual-level habitat selection included crevices in human-made substrates and electrical units, both of which provide refugia. Our study provides a quantitative assessment of urban habitat use by this non-native species, and supports the importance of human structures as habitat. Our results suggest the intriguing possibility that the A. picticauda invasion in Florida may be exploiting a vacant niche in urban habitats during the invasion process
Data for A chromosome-level genome assembly for the Eastern Fence Lizard (Sceloporus undulatus), a reptile model for physiological and evolutionary ecology
No full textBackground: High-quality genomic resources facilitate investigations into behavioral ecology, morphological and physiological adaptations, and the evolution of genomic architecture. Lizards in the genus Sceloporus have a long history as important ecological, evolutionary, and physiological models, making them a valuable target for the development of genomic resources. Findings: We present a high-quality chromosome-level reference genome assembly, SceUnd1.0, (utilizing 10X Genomics Chromium, HiC, and PacBio data) and tissue/developmental stage transcriptomes for the Eastern Fence Lizard, Sceloporus undulatus. We performed synteny analysis with other snake and lizard assemblies to identify broad patterns of chromosome evolution including the fusion of micro- and macrochromosomes. We also used this new assembly to improve genome assemblies for 34 additional Sceloporus species, improving these assemblies from 1% coverage to 43% coverage on average. Finally, we used RNAseq and whole-genome resequencing data to compare three assemblies, each representing an increased level of cost and effort: Supernova Assembly with data from 10X Genomics Chromium; HiRise Assembly that added data from HiC; and PBJelly Assembly that added data from PacBio sequencing. We found that the Supernova Assembly contained the full genome and was a suitable reference for RNAseq and SNP calling, but the chromosome-level scaffolds provided by the addition of HiC data allowed synteny and whole genome association mapping analyses. The subsequent addition of PacBio data provided negligible gains. Conclusions: These new genomic resources provide valuable tools for advanced molecular analysis of an organism that has become a model in physiology and evolutionary ecology.In Revie
Impacts of Multiple Environmental Changes on Long-Term Nitrogen Loading From the Chesapeake Bay Watershed
Get PDFExcessive nutrient inputs from land, particularly nitrogen (N), have been found to increase the occurrence of hypoxia and harmful algal blooms in coastal ecosystems. To identify the main contributors of increased N loading and evaluate the efficacy of water pollution control policies, it is essential to quantify and attribute the long-term changes in riverine N export. Here, we use a state-of-the-art terrestrial-aquatic interface model to examine how multiple environmental factors may have affected N export from the Chesapeake Bay watershed since 1900. These factors include changes in climate, carbon dioxide, land use, and N inputs (i.e., atmospheric N deposition, animal manure, synthetic N fertilizer use, and wastewater discharge). Our results estimated that ammonium (NH4+) and nitrate (NO3-) export increased substantially (66% for NH4+ and 123% for NO3-) from the 1900s to the 1990s and then declined (32% for NH4+ and 14% for NO3-) since 2000. The temporal trend of dissolved organic nitrogen (DON) export paralleled that of dissolved inorganic N, while particulate organic nitrogen export was relatively constant during 1900-2015. Precipitation was the primary driver of interannual variability in N export to the Bay. Wastewater discharge explained most of the long-term change in riverine NH4+ and DON fluxes from 1900 to 2015. The changes in atmospheric deposition, wastewater, and synthetic fertilizer were responsible for the trend of riverine NO3-. In light of our model-based attribution analysis, terrestrial non-point source nutrient management will play an important role in achieving water quality goals. Plain Language Summary Excessive nitrogen can enter estuarine and coastal areas from land, disturbing coastal ecosystems and causing serious environmental problems. The Chesapeake Bay is one of the regions that have experienced hypoxia and harmful algal blooms in recent decades. This study estimated nitrogen export from the Chesapeake Bay watershed (CBW) to the estuary from 1900 to 2015 by applying a state-of-the-art numerical model. Nitrogen loading from the CBW continually increased from the 1900s to the 1990s and has declined since then. The key contributors to nitrogen export have shifted from atmospheric nitrogen deposition (before the 1960s) to synthetic nitrogen fertilizer (after the 1980s). Antipollution policies and implementation measures have played critical roles in the decrease of nitrogen export since the 1980s, and further reduction in riverine nitrogen export will likely require regulation on the application of nitrogen fertilizer.PublishedYe
Statistically Determining the Spatial Extent of Relativistic Electron Precipitation Events Using 2-s Polar-Orbiting Satellite Data
Get PDFRelativistic electron precipitation (REP) from the outer radiation belt into Earth's atmosphere poses risks for satellites and affects Earth's climate, producing ozone-destroying compounds. Characterizing the spatial extent of REP events, which are periods of precipitation localized in space and time, is important for quantifying these effects and improving understanding of outer radiation belt dynamics, allowing quantification of the relative roles of atmospheric and magnetopause particle loss. Following Shekhar et al. (2017, https://doi.org/10.1002/2017JA024716), who used 16 s resolution data from particle detectors onboard NOAA's Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellites (POES) and the ESA's Meterological Operational (MetOp) Satellites, we work to more precisely determine the spatial extent of REP events using higher-resolution (2 s) data from the same instruments. We algorithmically search through 6 years of data (October 2012 to December 2018) from a maximum of seven simultaneously orbiting satellites, identifying REP events and determining their start and end times and locations. We find that the majority of events are highly localized spatially and, unlike Shekhar et al. (2017, https://doi.org/10.1002/2017JA024716), we do not observe a cluster of broad events around midnight magnetic local time (MLT). Based on case studies, we suggest that this discrepancy results from the differences in data resolution, indicating that the broad regions of precipitation around midnight MLT identified by Shekhar et al. (2017, https://doi.org/10.1002/2017JA024716) may be composed of several adjacent but narrowly confined regions of precipitation, potentially with independent causes. Additional work is necessary to further classify events and identify their likely mechanisms.PublishedYe
Decision making tools for evaluating candidate species for de-extinction
No full textAs genetic editing technologies develop and the possibility of species resurrection becomes more likely, de-extinction is being considered as a tool to restore extinct species and stem biodiversity loss. While promising, de-extinction poses a set of tradeoffs, including the potential restoration of ecosystem function and services versus the lost opportunity cost for other conservation priorities. Given such tradeoffs what is needed is a decision tool to evaluate whether an individual species is a viable candidate for de-extinction. To address this need, we developed a framework for evaluating species for de-extinction based on the principles of structured decision-making. First, we established four fundamental objectives which evaluate the major concerns when assessing a species for de-extinction: biological and ecological processes, socioeconomic conditions, political or legal processes, and cultural and ethical considerations. For each objective we developed evaluation criteria with Likert-type scales ranging from -2 (unfavorable) to +2 (favorable). The scores from each category can be weighted based on their overall importance to the local decision-making context and relevant impacts. The overall score provides insight into the many considerations for using de-extinction as a conservation decision alternative, which we illustrate with several example species evaluations. Overall, our tool lays the groundwork for a transparent and systematic evaluation of candidate species for de-extinction.N