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Genome-wide analysis reveals distinct global populations of pink bollworm (Pectinophora gossypiella)
Get PDFThe pink bollworm (Pectinophora gossypiella) is one of the world's most destructive pests of cotton. This invasive lepidopteran occurs in nearly all cotton-growing countries. Its presence in the Ord Valley of North West Australia poses a potential threat to the expanding cotton industry there. To assess this threat and better understand population structure of pink bollworm, we analysed genomic data from individuals collected in the field from North West Australia, India, and Pakistan, as well as from four laboratory colonies that originated in the United States. We identified single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) using a reduced-representation, genotyping-by-sequencing technique (DArTseq). The final filtered dataset included 6355 SNPs and 88 individual genomes that clustered into five groups: Australia, India-Pakistan, and three groups from the United States. We also analysed sequences from Genbank for mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) locus cytochrome c oxidase I (COI) for pink bollworm from six countries. We found low genetic diversity within populations and high differentiation between populations from different continents. The high genetic differentiation between Australia and the other populations and colonies sampled in this study reduces concerns about gene flow to North West Australia, particularly from populations in India and Pakistan that have evolved resistance to transgenic insecticidal cotton. We attribute the observed population structure to pink bollworm's narrow host plant range and limited dispersal between continents
Discourses Shaping Primary School Leaders’ Approaches to Transition to School in New Zealand
Get PDFChildren’s initial transition from early childhood education (ECE) to school has been well studied across the world, with diverse accounts of policy and practice in a variety of contexts. However, to date, the specific contributions of those school staff in leadership roles who shape and oversee transition-to-school processes have been under-researched. Furthermore, little research to date has considered transition to school through a discourse lens. This paper responds to these gaps, reporting findings from a post-structural discourse analysis of interviews with five primary school leaders (deputy/associate principals or across school leaders) responsible for supporting children transitioning from ECE to large New Zealand primary schools. The data analysis suggested that leaders’ ways of talking about transition to school reflected four specific discourses, which we termed structural, relational, pedagogical, and achievement discourses. These discourses within the schools intersected with each other and with wider social and educational discourses (e.g., discourses of managerial leadership, “best transition practice,” sociocultural, child readiness, neoliberal, data, and play). The paper looks critically at the discourses on transition that both produce and are reproduced by policies and practices in some of New Zealand’s schools. In doing so, the paper offers a fresh perspective on the role of primary school leaders in constructing transition-to-school approaches within their school contexts. The paper highlights the importance of critical examination of discursive forces and invites school leaders and others to exercise agency in constructing transition-to-school approaches and discourses within their specific contexts
The Research Data Landscape in Aotearoa New Zealand: A report undertaken in partnership with the Aotearoa New Zealand Committee on Data in Research (CoDiR)
Get PDFData and datasets are often described as a core strategic asset for Aotearoa New Zealand (Aotearoa) and indispensable for the government’s ambition of being a small nation with an advanced, adaptive, and inclusive economy. In the context of our research, science and innovation (RSI) ecosystem, the value of data cannot be overstated.
The purpose of this report is to provide a review (the Review) of Aotearoa’s research data landscape. Research data are data that are used as primary sources to support technical or scientific enquiry, research, or artistic activity; as evidence in the research process; and/or are commonly accepted in the
research community as necessary to provide a foundation for, or validate research findings and results. The Review covers four core areas:
• Te Tiriti o Waitangi and data sovereignty
• research data ecosystems
• research data infrastructure
• research data cultures.
Although informed by international data landscape reviews, this Review emphasises the unique considerations and structural features of the Aotearoa data landscape. Based on our analysis and observations from a series of targeted workshops, we provide a set of recommendations on how to strengthen the system and advance shared aspirations for better outcomes. The recommendations are organised under the five headings from Nosek’s Pyramid of Social Change, setting out a phased strategy for culture and behaviour change. In implementing these recommendations, we recognise that the articles of Te Tiriti should be embedded throughout, consistent with sector requirements (MBIE, 2023d)
Taxonomic, biological, population dynamics and behavioural studies on sod webworms (Lepidoptera : pyralidae: crambinae and scopariinae) of some Waikato (New Zealand) hill country pastures
No full textNew Zealand has a rich fauna of sod webworms (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae: Crambinae and Scopariinae) which have been implicated in sporadic outbreaks of pasture damage. This study investigates sod webworms of south facing hill country slopes of some Waikato pastures. Four aspects are considered: taxonomy of the species present; some features of their biology; population dynamics of Eudonia sabulosella (Walker) (the most common species); and adult behaviour, especially flight.
Taxonomy is detailed for male and female adults (with accompanying genitalia figures) and for eggs, larvae and pupae where available. Nine species are involved: Orocrambus flexuosellus (Doubleday), and O. vitellus (Doubleday) (Crambinae); Eudonia psammitis (Meyrick), E. sabulosella (Walker), “Scoparia” bisinualis Hudson, “S”. Diphtheralis Walker, “S”. halopis Meyrick, “S”. philerga Meyrick and “S”. submariginalis (Walker).
A summary of meteorological data including soil moisture content, soil temperature, air temperature, relative humidity and rainfall is given for the main study sites.
Life cycles and generation times with information on the duration of adult seasons are presented for each species. Habitats of eggs, larvae, pupae and adults are defined and selection of oviposition sites by female Eudonia sabulosella is investigated. Studies are made on food types, larval growth rates and adult reproductive maturity. Longevity of adults, mating frequencies and female fecundity (taken as the number of eggs found in dissected field collected females) are measured. Egg fertility and viability as well as egg incubation times are investigated.
Life tables are presented for Eudonia sabulosella on hill country pasture. Key factor analysis is undertaken to identify major mortality factors. Parasitism by Aucklandella geiri (Ichneumonidae) and arthropod and avian predation on sod webworm larvae are studied. Pathogen infection of E. sabulosella by nematodes (some of which were Steinernema bibionis Wouts et al.) and a neogregarine protozoan (Mattesia sp.) is investigated. Effects of the protozoan on host size (body weight and length) and female fecundity are measured. Median lethal doses of pathogen are presented for larvae and pupae. Methods of protozoan transmission are discussed.
Adult flight activity is interpreted in relation to air temperature, humidity, rainfall, barometric pressure, wind speed and direction, cloud cover, lunar cycle, reproductive state of the adult, time of day, species and sex. Susceptible pastures are indicated. An understanding of some of the factors affecting the sporadic (temporal and spatial) occurrence of sod webworm infestations has been gained
A Study of the Adequacy of Post Functional Definitions of Art
No full textIn this thesis, I investigate the adequacy of post-functional definitions of art, including institutional, historical, disjunctive and buck-passing definitions. I evaluate these definitions with respect to their extensional adequacy, intentional adequacy, and informativeness.
Philosophers of art have not always made a clear distinction between definitions of art and theories of art. I argue that this distinction is important. A definition of art must provide the means to distinguish artworks from non-artworks. In contrast, a theory of art need not do this, but it should be informative about such matters as the production or reception of artworks. To clarify what a definition is, I explain the concept of essence and from there, investigate various accounts of essentialism and anti-essentialism about art.
I conclude that none of the definitions of art so far proposed are adequate. However, I argue that we do not in fact need a definition of art. Theories of art are potentially of considerably more use than definitions
Self-trained centroid classifiers for semi-supervised cross-domain few-shot learning
Get PDFState-of-the-art cross-domain few-shot learning methods for image classification apply knowledge transfer by fine-tuning deep feature extractors obtained from source domains on the small labelled dataset available for the target domain, generally in conjunction with a simple centroid-based classification head. Semi-supervised learning during the meta-test phase is an obvious approach to incorporating unlabelled data into cross-domain few-shot learning, but semi-supervised methods designed for larger sets of labelled data than those available in few-shot learning appear to easily go astray when applied in this setting. We propose an efficient semi-supervised learning method that applies self-training to the classification head only and show that it can yield very consistent improvements in average performance in the Meta-Dataset benchmark for cross-domain few-shot learning when applied with contemporary methods utilising centroid-based classification
Improving prediction of potential for treatment completion at Tai Aroha
Get PDFParticipant non-completion can be a major problem for treatment programmes. Staff may try to minimise non-completion by deciding who to select for treatment using professional intuition and referral information. It can be difficult for treatment staff to make these decisions regarding the potential for programme completion due to a lack of clear guidelines about what information to consider. This lack of clear guidelines can increase susceptibility to biases, and lead to unreliable and potentially inaccurate decisions. Research has identified ‘simple rules’ that are tools to aid decision-making quickly, effectively, and consistently. Therefore, using past treatment data, we1 aimed to identify predictors of programme completion vs. non-completion at Tai Aroha—a residential treatment programme based in Hamilton—to explore whether a “simple rule” can be developed from information readily available at the time of referral, to support staff decision-making when selecting offenders to attend treatment, with the potential to increase programme completion. We were successful in the development of a simple rule to aid Tai Aroha staff selection decisions. The implications, and limitations of our rule and our study are discussed, and future research relating to simple rules are identified
Āta whakarongo: Understanding whānau experiences of audiology early intervention
Get PDFFor tamariki with hearing loss, early intervention is of critical importance in maximising speech and language, socio-emotional and academic development outcomes. Better hearing outcomes can be achieved by minimising diagnosis delays and initiating intervention treatment as soon as possible. Preliminary data from Waikato District Health Board indicated an equity gap at the point of diagnosis with persisting inequities for tamariki Māori during the delivery of early intervention services. High rates of appointment non-attendance within this group (27% Māori vs. 8% for non-Māori) are a cause for concern when approximately 50% of total appointments are for tamariki Māori. This research seeks to understand the experiences of Māori whānau accessing Waikato’s Audiology Early Intervention Service in order to identify changes the service can make to improve Māori engagement in the future. This study uses qualitative methodologies within a kaupapa Māori framework to investigate the access experiences of Māori whānau of tamariki identified with hearing loss. Interviews with six whānau from Hamilton city and rural Waikato provided rich narratives to inform changes to the Audiology Service to improve the hearing outcomes of tamariki Māori. Whānau shared systems and practical barriers that contributed to challenges with attending appointments including the location, appointment timing, travel and parking. From entering an unwelcoming waiting area, whānau described the added stress experienced to the depth of their emotional response to the hearing loss diagnosis. All shared positive interactions with staff and detailed what could have made their health experience better. After leaning into the kōrero and connecting to the whānau experience, a Manaaki-based pathway is proposed to support Māori ways of being, to ease whānau through the barriers and to combat the alienating experiences of engaging with the health system
Studies on Paphies australis (Mesodesmatidae) in Whangārei, Aotearoa New Zealand: an investigation into their declining health.
Get PDFDisease outbreaks in marine species can have devastating consequences, including increasing host mortality, destabilising commercial production, altering ecosystem functioning, and jeopardising human health. A changing ocean climate is expected to increase host stress and the risk of disease outbreaks. Particularly through new and emerging diseases and opportunistic infections.
Wild bivalve molluscs provide economic, ecological, and socio-cultural benefits. Healthy and sustainable kaimoana (shellfish/bivalves, seafood) are intrinsically linked to the wellbeing of many communities in New Zealand. Over the past decade there has been a noticeable decline in the general health of native marine bivalves, characterised by an increase in observation of mass die-offs. Reasons for this are not clear and could be due to a number of factors, such as sedimentation, harvesting pressures, or disease. Baseline health data on wild bivalve populations are very rare and therefore it is very difficult to identify the causation of ill health. There is a need to establish health baselines to help benchmark changes in infection prevalence and intensity and identify drivers of bivalve mortality events.
Wild bivalve populations are often located in remote and isolated parts of New Zealand. When a mortality event occurs, the logistics of obtaining quality samples for accurate diagnosis can be hindered due to time delays and sample degradation. To gain a better understanding of these limitations for diagnostics using bacteriology, in Chapter 2 I investigate typical sample collection methods (i.e., samples collected and sent to a testing laboratory) and sample collections immediately in the field to understand what effect different sample methods have on number and types of bacteria isolated. Although the results of Chapter 2 found there were limitations to both sampling methods, it did identify that typical sampling techniques were not wholly optimal, and the information gained by sampling immediately in the field retained additional information that could be essential for disease diagnostics. Field sampling for bacteriology was applied throughout this thesis research.
Pipi (Paphies australis) are native bivalves to New Zealand, inhabiting the shallow subtidal of estuaries and bays. Pipi have suffered serious population declines in an area of northern New Zealand (Whangārei) since 2009. I investigate possible drivers of the poor health of pipi in Whangārei, with the objective of identifying the mechanisms that have contributed to the decline, and prevention of the recovery of pipi in Whangārei, with a primary focus of disease as a causative agent. I establish a health baseline of pipi from Whangārei using histopathology, bacteriology, and qPCR of Endozoicomonas spp., a bacteria previously identified in mortality bivalves (Chapter 3). The health baseline was compared against samples collected during three mass mortality events to help identify drivers of mass mortality events (Chapter 4). Through laboratory experimentation, I test whether pipi exposed to stressors had higher infection intensity and prevalence of Endozoicomonas spp. (Chapter 5). Finally, using archived samples, I test whether the baseline data established was consistent through time and help to provide insights into considerations when analysing bivalve mass mortality events (Chapter 6).
I found that Endozoicomonas spp. make an important part of pipi host microbiome. Although Endozoicomonas spp. are highly prevalent in pipi collected during a mass mortality event, their infection intensity was significantly lower in moribund pipi than healthy pipi. The prevalence and infection intensity of Endozoicomonas spp. were not driven by environmental stressors. The stressors, however, did appear to impact host health, with high suspended sediment loads and water temperatures of 24°C appeared to be unfavourable to pipi. Overall, Endozoicomonas sp. does not appear to be a main driver in the declining population of pipi from Whangārei and is probably not important to bivalve health. The reduced prevalence and infection intensity of Endozoicomonas sp. in healthy pipi strongly suggests these bacteria are symbiotic. A relationship that has been reported for this bacterial group in species of coral and sponges.
The establishment of a health baseline represents a significant step forward towards biosecurity preparedness by being able to identify changes in infection prevalence and intensity against it. The operational use of these data when paired with historical data will be a powerful tool to identify patterns of disease dynamics and emerging disease
Multiple benefits and trade-offs of changes in landscape structure and composition surrounding avocado orchards
Get PDFAgroecosystems are facing a number of challenges, including declines in biodiversity and associated ecosystem services, emphasizing the need to change the current practices and approaches used within the industry. Ecological intensification, a management strategy that utilizes ecological processes to increase the production of crops while also reducing environmental impacts compared to conventional farming practices, provides a solution to counteract these harmful impacts. The field of landscape ecology provides insight into how ecological intensification practices could be integrated into landscape-level management. This field has found contrasting outcomes in various locations and crops, highlighting the context-specific nature of the interactions between the landscape and ecosystems and the need for tailored approaches to ecological intensification. In this thesis, I contribute to this growing field by exploring the relationship between the landscape and avocado pollinator biodiversity and pest abundance in the Bay of Plenty, which is the primary region for avocado orchards in New Zealand. In Chapter 2, I analyzed how the landscape surrounding avocado orchards impacted various aspects of insect pollinator communities, including species richness, evenness, abundance, biomass and mean body mass. Additionally, in Chapter 3, I investigated the influence of the landscape on the abundance of pest species such as thrips, leafroller, mealy bugs and scale as well as its effects on yield and fruit quality. My synthesized findings show that the dynamics between the landscape and avocado pests and pollinators within agroecosystems are shaped by multiple variables. This thesis also highlights a tradeoff where increasing pollinator abundance is accompanied by higher thrips abundance. Consequently, to balance the control of pests and pollinator conservation, holistic landscape management strategies are crucial. In conclusion, results from my thesis offers valuable insight into the relationship between the landscapes and avocado pests and pollinators in agroecosystems, highlighting the importance of comprehensive landscape management strategies to increase sustainable avocado production.
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