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Development and optimisation of tracking methods to facilitate movement ecology research for the conservation management of black cockatoos in Western Australia
Get PDFThe three black cockatoo species endemic to south-west Western Australia – Carnaby’s cockatoo (Calyptorhynchus latirostris), Baudin’s cockatoo (C. baudinii) and forest red-tailed black cockatoo (C. banksii naso) are threatened and have Recovery Plans guiding conservation efforts. Threats include habitat loss due to land clearing for urban, agricultural and industrial development; competition with other species for nest hollows; poaching; disease; vehicle-strike and illegal shooting.
This research built on previous black cockatoo research with an overall aim to develop and validate reliable methods to track all three species, to gain insight into their movement, distribution, habitat use, activity and behaviour.
In an initial proof of concept trial, we attached tail-mounted tags to two Baudin’s cockatoos. Both birds were successfully tracked for several months after release, demonstrating satellite telemetry can be used to locate and track forest species.
We then developed a double-tag mounting protocol to attach a tail-mounted ARGOS PTT satellite tag and back-mounted solar-powered UvA-BiTS GPS tag to captive black cockatoos. The combination of UvA-BiTS back mount and ventral tail mounted Telonics tags was the best tolerated and provided excellent GPS and ARGOS satellite location data with no interference between the two types of tag.
The focus then moved to the development of an automated classifier tool that used accelerometer data from UvA-BiTS GPS tags to remotely identify behaviours and calculate activity budgets. Using accelerometer data from 15 birds post-release, we determined black cockatoos spend most of their time at rest, interspersed with foraging activity through the day and some movement between roost sites and feeding habitat.
To maximise the retention time of tail-mounted tags, the tail feather life span and time of moulting was studied using moulted tail feathers from captive cockatoos and tagged bird post-release. Captive cockatoos had a mean feather lifespan of 410 days, suggesting tail feathers do not always moult annually. Peak tail feather moulting occurs from December to March, the non-breeding period. The optimal time to attach tail mounted tags is from May to September.
The development and optimisation of tracking methodologies for use on black cockatoos has facilitated the tracking of all three species in the wild. This research has provided data which have enabled identification of key roosting, foraging and breeding habitat and determination of flock movement patterns and habitat use at a landscape scale across the species’ distribution ranges. This information is being used to guide black cockatoo conservation management in relation to habitat protection and restoration
A case study investigating the effects of emergency vaccination with Brucella abortus A19 vaccine on a dairy farm undergoing an abortion outbreak in China
Get PDFBrucellosis is an important zoonosis that results in substantial economic losses to the livestock industry through abortions and reduced milk yield. This study investigated an abortion outbreak in a dairy herd and then explored the effects of emergency vaccination with Brucella abortus A19 vaccine on the incidence of abortion and milk yield. A full dose of vaccine (6 × 1010—12 × 1010 colony forming units, CFU) was administered subcutaneously to calves and non-pregnant heifers, and a reduced dose (6 × 108—12 × 108 CFU) to adult cows and pregnant replacement heifers. Rose Bengal Test was used to screen Brucella infection status and then positive samples were tested with a C-ELISA. Animals that tested positive for both tests were considered positive to Brucella spp. The animal-level seroprevalence of brucellosis was 23.1% (95% CI: 17.0, 30.2), and the attributable fraction of abortions in seropositive animals was 89.1% (95% CI: 64.3, 96.7). The odds of seropositivity were significantly higher in cows that aborted compared to cows that calved normally (OR = 21.4, 95% CI: 4.4, 168.4). Cows in sheds A2 and C1 were 10.2 (95% CI: 1.4, 128.0) and 17.0 (95% CI: 2.8, 190.3) times more likely to be seropositive than cows in shed B1. Antibodies were not detectable in most heifers 12 months post-vaccination. The effectiveness of the vaccine in preventing abortions was estimated to be 56.8% (95% CI: 15.8, 77.8) for the entire herd, but increased to 86.7% (95% CI: 4.4, 98.1) when only primiparous heifers were considered. Furthermore, a significant increase in the average herd 305-day milk yield one-year after vaccination was also observed relative to that in the previous three years. It is concluded that emergency vaccination of a dairy herd undergoing an abortion outbreak with the A19 vaccine effectively reduced the incidence of abortion and indirectly increased milk yield one-year after vaccination
Autoethnographic poetry: On being a casual academic
Get PDFThe following autoethnographic poetry represents the experience of being a casual academic before the COVID-19 pandemic. The writing highlights the personal-professional challenges of negotiating employment precarity, organisational subjectivity, and performativity within the academic workspace. While personal, the situations and sentiments are shared across the casualised cohort. The collection forms a bell curve, highlighting one year’s experiences of changing employment conditions and engagement within the neoliberal university arena (pre-pandemic). The writing starts with emergent hope and shared understanding, through the realities of casualisation, organisational power, and draconian decisions, before gently finishing with loss, regret, and coffee. Early versions of Cap in hand, I ask, and Conversations appeared in Major Threat: Punk Rock Academia (A ‘zine).
In Australia, to meet the ebb and flow of student attendance and budget needs, universities employ teaching and research academics on a short term basis (semester by semester), colloquially referred to as ‘casuals’ or ‘sessionals’ (or ‘adjuncts’). Other terms within the literature include academic underclass, disposable academics, gypsy scholars, lost tribe, invisible faculty, and throwaway academics. This transient cohort is paid on a set hourly rate calculated and allocated by task expectations and student enrolment.
The stories and experiences of casualised academics are often unheard. This marginalised and transient cohort exists outside the formal university structure, without access to many of the resources required to perform tasks, including office/computer access, photocopying, and paid professional development. Many academics engage in casual employment hoping it will lead to permanent work (Brown et al., 2010; Davies et al., 2009). However, casual work does not provide the full range of skills required for ongoing academic employment (May et al., 2013). Casualisation of labour, especially within the neoliberal university, can alter an individual’s personal and professional perception of their abilities, further influencing their employment opportunities and sense of self-worth.
Government reporting requirements and university record-keeping make it difficult to accurately report actual casual academic figures (Baik et al., 2018; Dodo-Balu, 2017; Junor, 2004). Discrepancies are highlighted in the NTEU’s 2013 comparison between Government statistics showing 21.8% casual academics in Australian universities, compared to 61%, reported by Unisuper data. Four years later, Kniest (2018) reported that around 65% of university employees were precariously employed, with 43% on casual contracts and 22% on limited fixed-term contracts. While casual staffing models have become integrated within the university structure, there has been a lack of attention to the necessary infrastructure to provide support, training, and inclusion.
The pandemic has rewritten the priorities and role of all academics in universities and provided a catalyst for university staff reform. Initially, casual academics were the first to lose work, with over 8,000 job losses by May 2020 (Littleton & Stanford, 2021). Currently, work opportunities and conditions are changing with increased public scrutiny, legal action to redress wage theft, conversion of casual roles to ongoing/fixed terms, and changes to the Fair Work Act to define the role of a casual employee. Change is coming, slowly but surely
Inhibition of autophagy promotes the elimination of liver cancer stem cells by CD133 aptamer-targeted delivery of doxorubicin
Get PDFDoxorubicin is the most frequently used chemotherapeutic agent for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma. However, one major obstacle to the effective management of liver cancer is the drug resistance derived from the cancer stem cells. Herein, we employed a CD133 aptamer for targeted delivery of doxorubicin into liver cancer stem cells to overcome chemoresistance. Furthermore, we explored the efficacy of autophagy inhibition to sensitize liver cancer stem cells to the treatment of CD133 aptamer-doxorubicin conjugates based on the previous observation that doxorubicin contributes to the survival of liver cancer stem cells by activating autophagy. The kinetics and thermodynamics of aptamer-doxorubicin binding, autophagy induction, cell apoptosis, and self-renewal of liver cancer stem cells were studied using isothermal titration calorimetry, Western blot analysis, annexin V assay, and tumorsphere formation assay. The aptamer-cell binding andintracellular accumulation of doxorubicin were quantified via flow cytometry. CD133 aptamer-guided delivery of doxorubicin resulted in a higher doxorubicin concentration in the liver cancer stem cells. The combinatorial treatment strategy of CD133 aptamer-doxorubicin conjugates and an autophagy inhibitor led to an over 10-fold higher elimination of liver cancer stem cells than that of free doxorubicin in vitro. Future exploration of cancer stem cell-targeted delivery of doxorubicin in conjunction with autophagy inhibition in vivo may well lead to improved outcomes in the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma
My Enemy’s Enemy: Iran’s Approach to the Re-emergence of the Taliban
No full textOver the years, Iran’s approach to the Taliban has had ups and downs. Iran welcomed the United States’ 2001 invasion of Afghanistan and worked with the American forces to overthrow the Taliban. Nevertheless, it was not long before Iran adopted an utterly opposite policy by compromising with the Taliban and supplying it with political and military support. This article examines domestic and regional factors contributing to this dramatic change in Iran’s behaviour toward the Taliban. It provides an assessment of how Tehran’s threat perception of the US military presence across its borders, the rise of the Islamic State in Khorasan Province, the increasing Afghan drug trafficking, and the influx of refugees from Afghanistan to Iranian territory have prompted Tehran to pursue a different approach toward the Taliban. It also explains how Iran’s intention to sustain water supply from Afghanistan’s rivers to the eastern provinces of Iran and resume profitable trade with Afghanistan has acted as a catalyst in expanding Iran–Taliban relations. This article argues that Iran sees the Taliban as an agent to weaken the United States, prevent the spread of ISIS in Khorasan, and strengthen Iran’s influence in Central Asia. The article concludes that although the Taliban’s rise to power in Afghanistan poses challenges for Iran, the benefits it brings are such that it prevents Tehran from relinquishing ties with the Taliban
Tourism as a transformative economic agent in regional Australia: A case study of operators' use of social media
No full textPurpose
This study utilises a case study approach to explore how local tourism providers in the Shire of Collie, Western Australia (Collie), a coal-mining region, use social media to promote the providers' businesses and the destination.
Design/methodology/approach
Semi-structured interviews with 11 local, small business tourism providers were conducted. These interviews explored the use of social media from local tourism providers' perspectives.
Findings
The findings show that local tourism providers in Collie recognise the benefits of using social media for promotion, although there are some barriers when using social media. Barriers included insufficient time, difficulty in measuring the impact of social media and a lack of knowledge on how to use social media effectively. Participant benefits included reaching a wider audience and a “younger” demographic.
Research limitations/implications
As a small regional destination case study, a limited number of tourism businesses were included in the study. Therefore, this study utilised Dickman's 5 A's of a successful tourism destination to encapsulate a robust representation of tourism businesses.
Social implications
This study details the experiences of local tourism providers in a rural destination, providing insight into using social media to market a rural tourist destination. The study provides a methodology for application to other rural tourist destinations, particularly emerging tourism destinations, in order to understand how local tourism providers use social media.
Originality/value
This study provides insights on local tourism providers' perspectives by detailing their experiences in a town and region transforming their tourism offering. The introduction of small-scale renewable energy sees mining communities' economic landscape changing. Further, opportunities for employment within the coal mining sector are declining and there is a need to develop new industry to support the economy. Tourism is an integral part of this transition in Collie. This study offers insights into how local tourism providers are adapting and utilising social media to promote the town's newly established tourism offerings
Runoff change induced by vegetation recovery and climate change over carbonate and non-carbonate areas in the karst region of South-west China
No full textKarst plant habitats are generally harsh and vulnerable to climate and human interferences. Restoration of karst vegetation and its effect on water resources are affected not only by climate and anthropological interferences but also by different bedrock lithologies. In this study, changes to climatic factors, vegetation indices of the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), the leaf area index (LAI) and runoff during 1982–2015 were statistically identified over the Yangchang river basin (YRB) with two contrasting bedrock lithologies (carbonate rock and detrital rock) in southwest China. The Budyko equation and the hydrological model in LPJ (the Lund-Potsdam-Jena Dynamic Global Vegetation Model) were calibrated and improved to separate runoff change that could be attributed to climate and vegetation changes during 1982 ~ 2015. LPJ was used to predict the potential vegetation for natural recovery without human interference and its effect on the hydrological budget in YRB. Results reveal that the execution of the major ecological restoration project (the Grain for Green Project) in YRB since the early 2000 s has significantly increased NDVI and LAI even in the drier period of 2004 ~ 2015. However, the human effort of vegetation restoration only reaches about 25% of the potential capacity in the whole study area. The reforestation in YRB could decrease runoff by about 7.0 to 7.6% in the period from 2004 to 2015, and 11.2% in the future when vegetation shifts from artificial to natural vegetation recovery. Meanwhile, thick soil in the non-carbonate area can store more water to support a large proportion of forest, and raise drought resistance. However, the limited water holding capacity of weathered bedrock in the carbonate area restricts large tree growth, and thus reduces drought resistance. These results point a need for consideration of how bedrock geology influences available water limitations when designing suitable reforestation strategies in southwest China
Data describing the eco-physiological responses of Elaeagnus angustifolia grown under contrasting regime of water and fertilizer in coal-mined spoils
Get PDFTo improve our understanding of how coal mining areas can be re-vegetated and ecosystem function restored, we examined the potential effects of five water (W) regimes (40, 50, 60, 70 and 80% of field capacity), five nitrogen (N) (0, 24, 60, 96 and 120 mg kg‒1 soil) and five phosphorus (P) fertilizer doses (0, 36, 90, 144 and 180 mg kg‒1 soil), which control the growth and development of Elaeagnus angustifolia under adverse environmental conditions. To optimize the W-N-P application rate, three factors and five levels of central composite design along with an optimization technique named response surface methodology were utilized. Here we provide data on root-shoot biomass ratio, leaf dry matter content, stomatal conductance, chlorophyll (Chl) a, Chl b, membrane stability index and soluble protein content of E. angustifolia. The data described in this article are available in Mendeley Data, DOI: 10.17632/2vfbrdxyf2.2 [1]. These data could be used to evaluate the improvement in growth performance of E. angustifolia subjected to various regimes of W, N and P. This dataset showed that E. angustifolia grew optimally in coal-mine spoils when irrigated at 66% of field capacity and supplemented with 74.0 mg N and 36.0 mg P kg‒1 soil. This could considerably help the success of revegetation in coal-mined degraded arid areas where W is scarce. This article contains data complementary to the main research entitled "Fine-tuning of soil water and nutrient fertilizer levels for the ecological restoration of coal-mined spoils using Elaeagnus angustifolia" in the Journal of Environmental Management (Roy et al., 2020)
Phosphorus and potassium application improves fodder yield and quality of sorghum in Aridisol under diverse climatic conditions
Get PDFFodder yield and quality must be improved for sustainable livestock production. A lack of or low application of phosphorus (P) and potassium (P) are among the leading constraints of lower fodder yield and quality of sorghum [most cultivated fodder crop during kharif season (crop cultivation in summer and harvesting during winter] in Aridisol of Pakistan. Therefore, this two-year field study evaluated the role of different P and K levels on fodder yield and quality of sorghum cultivar ‘Ijar-2002’ planted in Multan and Okara districts, Punjab, Pakistan. Seven P-K (kg ha−1) levels, i.e., T1 (40–0), T2 (80–0), T3 (0–40), T4 (0–60), T5 (40–40), T6 (80–40), T7 (60–80) and an untreated T0 (control) were included in the study. Results indicated that individual effects of years, locations and P-K levels had a significant effect on fodder yield and quality. All treatments received an equal amount of nitrogen (i.e., 120 kg ha−1). Application of P-K in Aridisols at both locations significantly improved fodder yield, dry matter yield, and ether contents during both years. The T6 (80–40 kg ha−1) significantly improved yield and quality traits of sorghum fodder except for crude fiber (CF) and acid and neutral detergent fiber (ADF and NDF) at both locations during both years of study. Moreover, fodder harvested from Multan observed significantly higher CF, ADF, NDF, cellulose and hemicellulose contents than Okara. However, sorghum grown in Okara harvested more fodder yield due to more plant height and ether contents. In conclusion, planting sorghum in Aridisols, fertilized with 80–40 kg ha−1 P-K seemed a viable option to harvest more fodder yield of better quality
Changes in positive and negative voice content in cognitive‐behavioural therapy for distressing voices
Get PDFObjective
People who experience distressing voices frequently report negative (e.g. abusive or threatening) voice content and this is a key driver of distress. There has also been recognition that positive (e.g. reassuring, or guiding) voice content contributes to better outcomes. Despite this, voice content has been neglected as a standalone outcome in evaluations of psychological therapies for distressing voices. We aimed to examine whether a modular cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) intervention for voices led to changes in negative and positive voice content.
Design/Methods
In a naturalistic, uncontrolled pre- and post- service evaluation study, 32 clients at an outpatient psychology service for distressing voices received eight sessions of CBT for distressing voices and completed self-report measures of negative and positive voice content at pre-, mid- and post- therapy.
Results
There was no significant change in positive voice content. There was no significant change in negative voice content from pre- to post-therapy; however, there was a significant change in negative voice content between mid and post-treatment in which the cognitive therapy component was delivered. The CBT treatment was also associated with significant changes in routinely reported outcomes of voice-related distress and voice severity.
Conclusions
The cognitive component of CBT for distressing voices may be associated with changes in negative, but not positive, voice content. There may be benefit to enhancing these effects by developing treatments targeting specific processes involved in negative and positive voice content and further exploring efficacy in well-powered, controlled trials with more comprehensive measures of voice content