The Essential Role of Human Dimensions and Stakeholder Participation in States’ Fulfillment of Public Trust Responsibilities

The Public Trust Doctrine (PTD) vests states with a fiduciary responsibility to manage wildlife for the benefit of current and future generations. States have varied approaches to applying the PTD for wildlife management ranging from a traditional focus on hunters, anglers, and trappers to a progressive approach of broad inclusion of all potential stakeholders in their decision-making processes. We argue that states need to gather and incorporate more and better human dimensions (HD) information to fulfill their PTD responsibilities. We describe some of the barriers to increased use of HD and the changes in agency culture, staffing, data gathering, and decision-making processes necessary to integrate HD effectively and comport with the PTD. We conclude that in addition to increasing fulfillment of PTD responsibilities, increased use of HD information will help maintain agency relevance, increase political support, and secure broader agency funding.     

Stewardship as a Path to Cooperation? Exploring the Role of Identity in Intergroup Conflict Among Michigan Wolf Stakeholders

Post-recovery wolf management remains controversial. In Michigan, dialogue centers on hunting wolves but controversy may be more nuanced than simple pro- or anti-hunting positions. Social identity may cause stakeholders to organize in groups and identity differences may be driving controversy. To explore stakeholder disagreement over wolf management, we conducted semi-structured key informant interviews (n = 21) about identity and stewardship in August–September 2012. Four overarching identity themes emerged regarding: (a) management objectives, (b) focal levels, (c) control methods, and (d) justifications for methods. Themes indicated two main researcher-defined identity groups. Interviewees from both groups identified six common stewardship themes: (a) bequest values, (b) ecosystem health, (c) education, (d) existence values, (e) pride in natural resources, and (f) sustainability. Findings suggest stakeholders may be conflicting over opposing identities vis-à-vis organization affiliation, which may be related to what management strategies individuals oppose. Establishing common stewardship objectives through established participation methods may help alleviate controversy.     

Attitudes of Rural Communities Toward Dispersing African Wild Dogs in South Africa

Subsistence pastoralists often view large carnivores negatively given that any loss of livestock is likely to represent a significant economic cost. Consequently, large carnivore conservation initiatives in rural landscapes should incorporate appropriate human–carnivore conflict mitigation strategies. In this study, structured interviews with local residents (n = 247) were used for determining attitudes toward African wild dogs (Lycaon pictus) among rural communities neighboring two protected areas in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Contrary to expectations, the majority of respondents (58%) were generally positive toward wild dogs. This was probably due to a lack of livestock depredation by wild dogs and relatively high levels of formal education among respondents. Respondents with greater knowledge of wild dogs and conflict mitigation had more positive attitudes, and most were aware of effective husbandry techniques. The positive attitudes observed in these rural communities may benefit wild dog dispersal from natal home ranges and the future conservation of this endangered carnivore.     

Is experience on a farm an effective approach to understanding animal products and the management of dairy farming?

The understanding of animal products and dairy farming is important for the promotion of dairy farming. Thus, to examine the effects of farm experience on the understanding of animal products and the management of dairy farming, the interaction between students and dairy cows was investigated in groups of first‐year veterinary nursing students in 2011 and 2012 (n = 201). These students included 181 women and 20 men. Nine items about dairy cows were presented in a questionnaire. The survey was performed before and after praxis on the educational farm attached to the authors' university. After praxis on the farm, increases occurred in the number of positive responses to the items involving the price of milk, dairy farming and the taste of milk. For these items, a significant difference (P < 0.05) was found between the scores obtained before and after training. The results of the study suggested that farm experience is useful for improving the understanding of animal products and dairy farming.     

Establishment and characterization of a dairy goat mammary epithelial cell line with human telomerase (hT‐MECs)

Although research on dairy goat mammary gland have referred extensively to molecular mechanisms, research on lines of dairy goat mammary epithelial cells (MECs) are still rare. This paper sought to establish an immortal MEC line by stable transfection of human telomerase. MECs from a lactating (45 days post‐parturition) Xinong Saanen dairy goat were cultured purely and subsequently transfected with a plasmid carrying the sequence of human telomerase. Immortalized MECs by human telomerase (hT‐MECs) exhibited a typical cobblestone morphology and activity and expression levels of telomerase resembled that of MCF‐7 cells. hT‐MECs on passage 42 grew vigorously and ‘S’ sigmoid curves of growth were observed. Moreover, hT‐MECs maintained a normal chromosome modal number of 2n = 60, keratin 8 and epithelial membrane antigen (EMA) were evidently expressed, and beta‐casein protein was synthesized and secreted. Beta‐casein expression was enhanced by prolactin (P < 0.05). Lipid droplets were found in hT‐MECs, and messenger RNA levels of PPARG, SREBP, FASN, ACC and SCD in hT‐MECs (passage 40) were similar to MECs (passage 7). In conclusion, the obtained hT‐MEC line retained a normal morphology, growth characteristics, cytogenetics and secretory characteristics as primary MECs. Hence, it can be a representative model cell line, for molecular and functional analysis, of dairy goat MECs for an extended period of time.     

Dominance in domestic dogs revisited: Useful habit and useful construct?

In the last decade, the validity and relevance of the dominance model was regularly put into question regarding relationships between canids like dogs and wolves, and consequently, human–dog relationships as well. The concept underlying this model, scientifically defined as an intervening variable reflecting status difference between individuals, is applicable when formal status signals symbolize the long-term relationship between individuals, resulting in a formalized dominance hierarchy. This article reviews the basics underlying the concept of dominance and reflects on the value and importance of some new quantitative studies on the applicability of the concept of dominance in domestic dogs. The conclusions are, first, that formal dominance is present in the domestic dog, expressed by context-independent unidirectional formal status signals. Consequently, formal dominance (e.g., submission) plays an important role in assessing status in dog–dog relationships. Second, that nonverbal status–related communication in humans resembles that in dogs to a considerable degree, and hence dogs may be well able to interpret this human status–related nonverbal communication from their perspective. Dominance is therefore also likely to play a role in human–dog relationships. Hence, the dominance concept might be useful to explain the development of certain problems in dog–dog and dog–human relationships. However, enforcing a dominant status by a human may entail considerable risks and should therefore be avoided.     

Novel human H7N9 influenza virus in China

Outbreaks of H7N9 avian influenza in humans in 5 provinces and 2 municipalities of China have reawakened concern that avian influenza viruses may again cross species barriers to infect the human population and thereby initiate a new influenza pandemic. Evolutionary analysis shows that human H7N9 influenza viruses originated from the H9N2, H7N3 and H11N9 avian viruses, and that it is as a novel reassortment influenza virus. This article reviews current knowledge on 11 subtypes of influenza A virus from human which can cause human infections.     

Phage and MLVA Typing of Salmonella Enteritidis Isolated from Layers and Humans in Belgium from 2000–2010, A Period in which Vaccination of Laying Hens was Introduced

The aim of the study was to characterize isolates of Salmonella enterica serovar Enteritidis (S. Enteritidis) obtained from humans and layer farms in Belgium collected during 2000–2010. Three periods were compared, namely (i) before implementation of vaccination (2000–2004), (ii) during voluntary vaccination (2005–2006) and (iii) during implementation of the national control program (NCP) for Salmonella including mandatory vaccination against S. Enteritidis (2007–2010). The characteristics compared across time periods were distributions of phage type and multiple‐locus variable number tandem‐repeat assay (MLVA). While PT4 and PT21 were predominantly isolated in Belgium in layers and humans before 2007, a significant reduction of those PTs was observed in both populations in the period 2007–2010. The relative proportion of PT4b, PT21c and PT6c was found to have increased considerably in the layer population since 2007. In the human population, PT8, PT1 and the group of ‘other’ PTs were more frequently isolated compared to the previous periods. When comparing the proportion of the predominant MLVA types Q2 and U2, no significant difference was found between the layer and human population in the three periods and between periods within each category (layer and human). A significant difference in isolate distribution among MLVA clusters I and II was found between human and layer isolates recovered during Period 3 and in the human population between Period 1 and 3. Results suggest that the association between S. Enteritidis in layers and the occurrence of the pathogen in humans changed since implementation of the NCP in 2007.     

First Report of Human Trypanosoma cruzi Infection Attributed to TcBat Genotype

Chagas disease is an endemic disease of the American continent caused by Trypanosoma cruzi and divided into six discrete typing units (TcI – TcVI). Nearly 10 million people harbour the infection representing a serious issue in public health. Epidemiological surveillance allowed us to detect a bat‐related T. cruzi genotype (henceforth named TcBat) in a 5‐year‐old female living in a forest area in northwestern Colombia. Molecular tools determined a mixed infection of T. cruzi I and TcBat genotypes. This represents the first report of TcBat infection in humans; the epidemiological consequences of this finding are discussed herein.