1,721,021 research outputs found
Space use, habitat selection and activity patterns of female sardinian mouflon (Ovis orientalis musimon) during the lambing season
No full textWe analysed space use, habitat selection and activity patterns in female mouflons using radio tracking during lambing. During the birth period, mothers increased their home ranges to reach birth places suitably covered by Mediterranean scrubland. During lactation, mothers used Mediterranean scrubland more than non-mothers. Mothers decreased the use of meadows precisely when, according to a grass quality index, productivity of meadows was highest; this was likely due to the lack of concealment for lambs that would, thus, be vulnerable to eagle attacks. Accordingly, females are argued to adopt anti-predator tactics during lactation, trading high-quality foraging meadows for safer scrubland that provides good concealment for lambs. Despite the high temperatures recorded during the day in this period, lactating females showed greater activity levels, due to their need to meet greater energetic demands for lactation. This effort by mouflon mothers in such a poor environment as the Sardinian accounted for their lower productive success than in other European populations
The mouflon: A problematic species or a species in trouble? Different perspectives from the Alps and from Sardinia.
No full textThe key role of lamb presence in affecting flight response in Sardinian mouflon (Ovis orientalis musimon)
No full textObservations of the flight response in mammals are commonly used to test the behavioural response to predation risk. Such a response is likely to be stronger in more sensitive individuals such as females, and females with offspring in particular, as well as during such periods as the birth season. From August 2005 to July 2006 we recorded the flight distances of different mouflon group types in a natural population in Sardinia. The comparison of the flight distances of the groups (n(groups) = 375, n(mouflons) = 1303) provided evidence for the key role of lamb presence. Female groups with lambs fled at greater distances than male groups and female groups without lambs. This difference was linked to the females' priority to secure the survival of their offspring. Indeed, the uniformity of the flight distances of males and non-reproductive females was in contrast to the general expectations regarding ungulate species. In fact, smaller females were expected to be more sensitive to predation risk than larger males. The absence of major differences is probably due to the low sexual dimorphism of mouflon. Flight distances were shorter during the rut than during the lambing season, arguably because during the mating less time and energies were available for anti-predator behaviour. However, during the rut females with lambs still fled at greater distances than females without lambs, arguably because mothers took it as a priority to protect their parental investment rather then to find a potential mate
Livestock displace European mouflon from optimal foraging sites
No full textThe conflict between free-ranging livestock and wildlife is a serious conservation concern across rural communities worldwide. Livestock may affect wild herbivores via direct competition for resources due to spatial and diet overlap or via behavioural interference. It is imperative that we disentangle the effects of livestock on wildlife behaviour to obtain an empirical basis able to stir management and conservation decisions. Here, we studied the effect of livestock presence on the habitat selection in a free-ranging European mouflon (Ovis aries musimon) population in Sardinia, where the species is under strict protection. We collected spatial data on mouflon and livestock during two consecutive years to investigate whether the mouflon selection of key feeding grassland sites was negatively impacted by the livestock presence. We found that mouflon preferably selected grassland, and its selection significantly increased when grass was of better quality (greener). We showed that livestock presence led to the displacement of mouflon from such preferred feeding sites, an effect clearly exacerbated by livestock proximity. We indeed found that the selection of grassland by mouflon dropped significantly when the distance between livestock and mouflon was below ~ 650 m, providing a useful management threshold indication. Livestock presence in close proximity displaced mouflon to sub-optimal habitat, and its effects may have negative impact on the population dynamic of this species which is already characterized by low female productivity within harsh Mediterranean environment. Our results give clear management indications aimed at better managing livestock grazing within natural areas to ultimately improve wildlife conservation
The key role of lamb presence in affecting flight response in Sardinian mouflon (Ovis orientalis musimon)
No full textObservations of the flight response in mammals are commonly used to test the behavioural response to predation risk. Such a response is likely to be stronger in more sensitive individuals such as females, and females with offspring in particular, as well as during such periods as the birth season. From August 2005 to July 2006 we recorded the flight distances of different mouflon group types in a natural population in Sardinia. The comparison of the flight distances of the groups (n(groups) = 375, n(mouflons) = 1303) provided evidence for the key role of lamb presence. Female groups with lambs fled at greater distances than male groups and female groups without lambs. This difference was linked to the females' priority to secure the survival of their offspring. Indeed, the uniformity of the flight distances of males and non-reproductive females was in contrast to the general expectations regarding ungulate species. In fact, smaller females were expected to be more sensitive to predation risk than larger males. The absence of major differences is probably due to the low sexual dimorphism of mouflon. Flight distances were shorter during the rut than during the lambing season, arguably because during the mating less time and energies were available for anti-predator behaviour. However, during the rut females with lambs still fled at greater distances than females without lambs, arguably because mothers took it as a priority to protect their parental investment rather then to find a potential mate
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Dicroceliosis in cattle: epidemiological updates in Sardinia and anthelmintic field trial
No full textVariations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Prevalence, molecular characterization and risk factor analysis for giardia duodenalis infections in dogs in sardinia (Italy)
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