Extensive dispersal of Roanoke logperch (Percina rex) inferred from genetic marker data

The dispersal ecology of most stream fishes is poorly characterised, complicating conservation efforts for these species. We used microsatellite DNA marker data to characterise dispersal patterns and effective population size (N_e) for a population of Roanoke logperch Percina rex, an endangered darter (Percidae). Juveniles and candidate parents were sampled for 2 years at sites throughout the Roanoke River watershed. Dispersal was inferred via genetic assignment tests (ATs), pedigree reconstruction (PR) and estimation of lifetime dispersal distance under a genetic isolation‐by‐distance model. Estimates of N_e varied from 105 to 1218 individuals, depending on the estimation method. Based on PR, polygamy was frequent in parents of both sexes, with individuals spawning with an average of 2.4 mates. The sample contained 61 half‐sibling pairs, but only one parent–offspring pair and no full‐sib pairs, which limited our ability to discriminate natal dispersal of juveniles from breeding dispersal of their parents between spawning events. Nonetheless, all methods indicated extensive dispersal. The AT indicated unrestricted dispersal among sites ≤15 km apart, while siblings inferred by the PR were captured an average of 14 km and up to 55 km apart. Model‐based estimates of median lifetime dispersal distance (6–24 km, depending on assumptions) bracketed AT and PR estimates, indicating that widely dispersed individuals do, on average, contribute to gene flow. Extensive dispersal of P. rex suggests that darters and other small benthic stream fishes may be unexpectedly mobile. Monitoring and management activities for such populations should encompass entire watersheds to fully capture population dynamics.     

富平关中奶山羊临床型乳房炎病原菌的分离鉴定

为进一步探讨关中奶山羊乳房炎感染病原菌的情况,对富平县三个不同乡镇的79头患病奶山羊,共118份奶样进行分离鉴定,共分离出7种共126个菌株.其中大肠杆菌36株,占28.5%;金黄色葡萄球菌28株,占22.2%;绿脓杆菌23株,占18.3%;链球菌21株,占16.7%;变形杆菌8株,占6.3%;蜡样芽孢杆菌6株,占4.8%;酵母菌4株,占3.2%.认为该研究区域的关中奶山羊乳房炎主要是由大肠杆菌,金黄色葡萄球菌、绿脓杆菌、链球菌所致.     

Soil organic matter fractionation as a tool for predicting nitrogen mineralization in silty arable soils

After decades of searching for a practical method to estimate the N mineralization capacity of soil, there is still no consistent methodology. Indeed it is important to have practical methods to estimate soil nitrogen release for plant uptake and that should be appropriate, less time consuming, and cost effective for farmers. We fractionated soil organic matter (SOM) to assess different fractions of SOM as predictors for net N mineralization measured from repacked (disturbed) and intact (undisturbed) soil cores in 14 weeks of laboratory incubations. A soil set consisting of surface soil from 18 cereal and root‐cropped arable fields was physically fractionated into coarse and fine free particulate OM (coarse fPOM and fine fPOM), intra‐microaggregate particulate OM (iPOM) and silt and clay sized OM. The silt and clay sized OM was further chemically fractionated by oxidation with 6% NaOCl to isolate an oxidation‐resistant OM fraction, followed by extraction of mineral bound OM with 10% HF (HF‐res OM). Stepwise multiple linear regression yielded a significant relationship between the annual N mineralization (kg N/ha) from undisturbed soil and coarse fPOM N (kg N/ha), silt and clay N (kg N/ha) and its C:N ratio (R² = 0.80; P < 0.01). The relative annual N mineralization (% of soil N) from disturbed soils was related to coarse fPOM N, HF‐res OC (% of soil organic carbon) and its C:N ratio (R² = 0.83; P < 0.01). Physical fractions of SOM were thus found to be the most useful predictors for estimating the annual N mineralization rate of undisturbed soils. However, the bioavailability of physical fractions was changed due to the disturbance of soil. For disturbed soils, a presumed stable chemical SOM fraction was found to be a relevant predictor indicating that this fraction still contains bio‐available N. The latter prompted a revision in our reasoning behind selective oxidation and extraction as tools for characterizing soil organic N quality with respect to N availability. Nonetheless, the present study also underscores the potential of a combined physical and chemical fractionation procedure for isolating and quantifying N fractions which preferentially contribute to bulk soil N mineralization. The N content or C:N ratio of such fractions may be used to predict N mineralization in arable soils.     

Temporal changes of soil physical quality under two residue management systems

Although crop residue management is known to affect near‐surface soil physical quality, little is known about the temporal variability of these indicators over short time intervals. This study evaluates the temporal changes of nine indicators of soil physical quality. These are organic carbon content, structural stability index, bulk density, macroporosity, air capacity, relative field capacity, plant available water capacity, Dexter's S‐index and saturated hydraulic conductivity. A second set of soil physical indicators, based on the distribution of soil pore volume, was also evaluated. The indicators were determined in three different times during the growing cycle of winter durum wheat cultivated within a long‐term field research carrying out in Southern Italy and comparing two types of crop residue management, that is, burning (B) and soil incorporation (I). Only the bulk density changed over time for both treatments, although the air capacity also changed for the incorporation of wheat residues. Residual effects of the autumnal soil tillage and soil compaction were a common source of variability, irrespective of which treatment was used. Based on the existing guidelines for evaluating the physical quality of these agricultural soils, optimal or near‐optimal values were detected in about half of the cases under consideration. This suggests that both B and I create sufficiently good conditions for crop growth during the crop cycle. The comparison between observed and optimal soil pore distribution function was always poor. The pore volume distributions showed lower densities of small pores and relatively higher densities of large pores than the proposed optimal distribution. This study also suggests that the considered optimal or references curves probably cannot be applied successfully to a wide range of agricultural soils.     

鸭链球菌的分离与耐药性监测

本研究利用鲜血琼脂和营养琼脂培养基,从自然发病的鸭体内成功分离出链球菌19株,革兰氏染色镜检可见革兰氏阳性球菌呈长链状排列,生化试验和动物接种试验结果表明,所分离的细菌对鸭有致病性。药敏试验结果表明,分离的菌株耐药性均很强,除7株对丁胺卡那中度敏感外,其余菌株对丁胺卡那、头孢曲松钠、氧氟沙星等14种药物低度敏感或不敏感。说明鸭链球菌耐药性在不断增强,给鸭链球菌病的防治带来了一定的困难。     

Soil bulk density corrections for providing a better relationship with root growth in gravelly soil

Abstract

Bulk density of a Tifton (Plinthitic Paleudult; fine loamy, siliceous, thermic) soil containing 5.8 to 11.0% of the sample weight as pebbles was 0.06–0.12 g/cc lower when corrections were made for presence of pebbles or concretions. A method for determining the bulk density of the soil matrix between pebbles or concretions is outlined. After adjustment, the bulk density at which root penetration was inhibited in this soil closely approximated that for soils which do not contain concretions. The proposed procedure reflects more nearly how bulk density changes where plant roots are growing than previously published procedures do.     

Impact of organic residues and mineral fertilizer application on soil–crop system: II soil attributes

The effects of crop residues alone (Cr⁺) or combined with inorganic fertilizer (FCr⁺) sewage sludge (SS) and humentos (H) on soil properties were studied in a five-season wheat–guar rotation. Incorporation of Cr⁺ and SS significantly decreased pH by 5–9%. Highest organic carbon (OC) was observed in SS plots, whereas Cr⁺ resulted in values threefold that of the control. The added effect of Cr⁺ (46%) combined with fertilizer on total nitrogen (TN) was greater than Cr⁺ by 28%. The fraction of total residue N mineralized was 71%, whereas net N mineralized in Cr⁺, SS, H and FCr⁺ plots at 0–20 and 20–40 cm depths were 39.8, 52.3, 11.4, 66.7 mg kg^?1 and 21.2, 27.9, 8.2, 41.2 mg kg^?1, respectively. Integrated application of Cr⁺ with fertilizer had a synergistic effect on P content (3.49–3.69 units), but soil levels has never exceeded 13 mg P kg ^?1. Sole Cr⁺ significantly increased topsoil cation-exchange capacity (CEC) compared with the control treatment (9.39–21.59%). Application of SS, FCr⁺ and Cr⁺ significantly increased water-holding capacity and decreased bulk density by 9–15% and 8–9%, respectively, suggesting that such practice can restore the productivity of degraded soils and improve crop yields.     

Phenotypes Including Immunocompetence in Scavenging Local Chicken Ecotypes in Tanzania

A study was conducted to determine the variations in physical characters and immunocompetence among scavenging local chicken ecotypes in Tanzania. Eighty-four adult scavenging local chickens from four eco-climatic regions of Tanzania were studied. Measurements of adult body weight, body length, shank length and egg weight and observations of plumage colour and pattern, earlobe colour, skin colour and the shape of the comb were conducted. The antibody response to sheep red blood cells, serum haemolytic complement and the cutaneous response to phytohaemagglutinin-P were assessed. Five ecotypes were identified and named Mbeya, Morogoro-medium, Ching'wekwe, Kuchi and Singamagazi. Singamagazi and Kuchi were significantly heavier, with longer shanks and heavier eggs than the other ecotypes. The average adult body weight for males ranged from 1621 g (Mbeya) to 2915 g (Singamagazi). Average female weights ranged from 1108 g (Morogoro-medium) to 2020 g (Singamagazi). Mean egg weights ranged from 37.65 g (Ching'wekwe) to 45.61 (Singamagazi). The Kuchi had mostly rose and walnut combs, while the other ecotypes were mostly single combed. In each ecotype there were chickens with a high or low antibody response to red blood cells, but there was a significant difference between the ecotypes.     

Differences between carcass grades in some morphological, behavioral and physiological measurements at early and middle stages of fattening in crossbred steers

The differential variables for carcass grades were identified from morphological, behavioral and physiological measurements of young steers at a commercial farm. Thirty‐five Japanese Black × Holstein steers aged 6–10 months were randomly assigned to three pens. The steers had free access to ryegrass hay and a restricted amount of concentrate diet for the first 6 months of trial. They were then given oat straw ad libitum and an additional concentrate diet until slaughter. Behavioral observations (15 categories) were carried out once every 2 weeks for 2 h after feeding. Bodyweight was measured, blood sampled (for seven metabolic hormones and five metabolites), ultrasonic scanning conducted and physical measurements taken (10 parts for each animal) in months 1, 3 and 5 (early fattening stage, EFS) and in months 7, 9 and 11 (middle fattening stage, MFS) of the trial. Temperament scores during these procedures, entry order into restraint stalls, social rank and average daily gain were also assessed. A factor analysis and one‐way anova were used to identify clusters of variables which had different factor scores between carcass grades. As for the carcass yields, a cluster of chest girth and depth, bodyweight, withers and hip height, and rump length (P < 0.01), and a cluster of the frequency of scratching the body with facilities (P < 0.05) were identified as differential variables in the EFS. In the MFS, a cluster of concentrations of cortisol and epinephrine, and the frequency of eating straw were identified (P < 0.10). As for the carcass quality grade, a cluster of social rank, triglyceride concentration and the frequencies of stand‐chewing cud and eating hay, and a cluster of the frequency of investigating facilities (both P < 0.10) were identified in the EFS. In the MFS, a cluster of hip height, bodyweight, cannon circumference, chest depth, withers height and chest girth, and a cluster of the frequencies of eating a concentrate diet and stand‐chewing the cud, and social rank (both P < 0.10) were identified. In conclusion, bodyweight, chest girth and depth, withers and hip height were identified as good differential variables for future carcass grades of young steers. Facility enrichment that encourages steers to eat hay in the EFS, and to eat a concentrate diet in and after the MFS would be effective in upgrading carcass grades. High incidence of investigating and scratching the body with facilities and stand‐chewing the cud might lead to lower carcass grades.