Long-term trends in stream chemistry and biology in North-East Scotland: Evidence for recovery

Since 1983 stream chemistry and macroinvertebrate ecology were monitored in ten streams draining the eastern Cairngorms. All streams have exhibited a decline in sulphate concentrations in response to reduced acid deposition; in the more acidic systems this has been reflected by a parallel increase in acid neutralizing capacity (ANC). In some streams this coincides with an increase in the abundance of acid-sensitive mayflies which may provide evidence for biological recovery. In the most chronically acidified systems no increased abundance has been observed despite significant increases in ANC. This suggests that further reductions in deposition and sufficient time for a reversal of soil acidification is required before any biotic recovery occurs.     

Perceived risk, displacement and refuging in brown bears: positive impacts of ecotourism?

Ecotourism is a rapidly growing industry with unknown impacts on viewed wildlife that may require novel management action. We examined the impact of viewing activities on the behaviour of brown bears (Ursus arctos) in coastal British Columbia.Domination of the best feeding sites and human avoidance by large male bears has consistently been reported. We, however, saw displacement in time rather than space - during the viewing day large males were less active than at other times, while females with cubs tended to be more active.In each year, females with cubs spent similarly high proportions of their time fishing when people were present. In years with large male activity, less time was spent fishing when people were absent. When freed from the potential threat of large male bears, females with cubs showed no measurable impact of controlled human activity.Human presence at a feeding site impacts the behaviour of brown bears, but not as expected. Temporal avoidance of human activity by large males was observed; indications that they departed upon satiation, before the arrival of morning tours, however, suggests that there was little energetic impact. By displacing large males, viewing activities created a temporal refuge, enhancing feeding opportunities for subordinate age/sex classes. With the strong positive relationships between mean female mass and litter size, this may in turn increase population productivity.     

Sex and population differences in the incidence of a plasma cholinesterase variant

Accumulating knowledge of polymorphic enzyme systems poses intriguing possibilities of anthropologic genetics. Development of an automated procedure for determination of heterozygosity or homozygosity of the atypical plasma cholinesterase allele (E(1)(a)) permitted screening of 2317 individuals during a national Preschool Nutrition Survey and several smaller population studies. Frequencies of the allele (E(1)(a)) closely parallel those previously reported. Caucasians manifested a heterozygote male preponderance of 1.85: 1.     

Temperatures, winds, and composition in the saturnian system

Stratospheric temperatures on Saturn imply a strong decay of the equatorial winds with altitude. If the decrease in winds reported from recent Hubble Space Telescope images is not a temporal change, then the features tracked must have been at least 130 kilometers higher than in earlier studies. Saturn's south polar stratosphere is warmer than predicted from simple radiative models. The C/H ratio on Saturn is seven times solar, twice Jupiter's. Saturn's ring temperatures have radial variations down to the smallest scale resolved (100 kilometers). Diurnal surface temperature variations on Phoebe suggest a more porous regolith than on the jovian satellites.     

Jupiter's Atmosphere: Its Structure and Composition

Recent laboratory and observational data support the hypothesis that the composition of Jupiter's atmosphere is consistent with the relative abundances of the elements found in the sun. A model based on this assumption provides a reasonable interpretation of abundances of hydrogen and other gases obtained from studies of various regions of the planet's spectrum. Two presently unidentified absorptions may be caused by organic molecules in the Jovian atmosphere.     

Polymorphism in pleistocene land snails

Under suitable conditions the colors and patterns of the shells of land snails may be preserved for thousands of years. In a late Pleistocene population of Limicolaria martensiana all the major color forms that occur in modern living snails may be distinguished, and the basic polymorphism is at least 8,000 to 10,000 year old.     

Polymorphism and Population Density in the African Land Snail, Limicolaria martensiana

In natural populations of the African land snail, Limicolaria martensiana, the degree of polymorphism in color and pattern may vary with the density of the population. This could occur because predators eat the snails selectively and use past experience as a guide in finding further prey. Hence contrasting color forms may be at an advantage in dense populations where predators would have ample opportunity to learn to recognize prey.