Extrinsic and intrinsic factors influence daily activity of a Mediterranean cyprinid

Factors shaping individual behavior remain poorly understood for European cyprinids. We examined the effects of extrinsic (temperature and year) and intrinsic factors (body size and shoal size) on the daily activity of chub Squalius torgalensis, a critically endangered cyprinid found in the Torgal stream, Portugal. We quantified chub behaviors while snorkeling, using instantaneous sampling of focal individuals, in spring 2009 and 2010. We used Principal Component Analysis to describe individual behavior and assessed competing models relating individual behavior to explanatory variables using Akaike's Information Criterion. Year had a strong influence on chub behavior, with individuals spending more time drift foraging and orienting in 2009, whereas in 2010 they spent more time benthic foraging and cruising. Shoal size did not influence behaviors in 2009, but in 2010 individuals in small shoals foraged benthically and searched with greater frequency than those in large shoals. Individuals increased cruising and decreased searching as they grew in length, but the opposite trend was observed as temperature increased. Our results indicate that both extrinsic and intrinsic factors influence daily activity of chub, with individual behaviors varying between years, and depending upon shoal size, body size and temperature. This suggests that chub display high levels of individual behavioral flexibility, which may be important for fish inhabiting harsh and highly variable Mediterranean streams. Conservation efforts for this species will benefit by integrating behavioral information into management strategies.     

农用柴油机低温起动性能初探

论述了农用柴油机低温起动时存在的问题，并且介绍使用进气歧管空气加热器后改进起动性能的效果以及使用中应注意的问题     

Assessment of the profile of powdery mildew and its damage function at low disease intensities in field experiments with winter wheat

Damage by mildew to winter wheat was studied in 11 field experiments in the Netherlands. Damage is described by the simple function: –0.013 (SE=0.003) kg are^–1 per pustule-day of mildew per leaf, from second node stage to early dough at yield levels of 70 to 90 kg are^–1, in diseasefree plots. No deviations from linearity at disease stresses from zero to two thousand pustuledays per leaf were observed. Years, cultivars or soil types did not affect the damage function significantly. The effects of mildew on some yield components were suggested.Mildew profiles in untreated plots could be described by the equation: CM=CLA^b, in which CM and CLA are the cumulative pustule number and the cumulative leaf area, respectively, calculated both from top to bottom of the canopy, and totals standardized at unity. Estimates of the gradient parameter b aveaged 3.4 (SE=0.9). Observed differences in steepness of the profiles did not affect the damage function significantly.Samenvatting Opbrengstderving van wintertarwe door meeldauw werd bestudeerd in 11 veldproeven in Nederland. De schade bedroeg gemiddeld 0.013 (SE=0.003) kg are^–1 per puistdag meeldauw per blad, vanaf het tweede-knoop stadium tot begin deegrijp bij opbrengstniveaus van 70 tot 90 kg are^–1, in de blanco. Bij een ziektestress van 0 tot 2000 puistdagen meeldauw per blad werd geen afwijking van een rechtlijnig verband gevonden. De schaderelatie werd niet significant beïnvloed door de verschillende jaren, rassen of grondsoorten. Het effect van meeldauw op enkele opbrengstcomponenten werd aangetoond.Meeldauwprofielen in de onbehandelde veldjes konden worden beschreven met de vergelijking: CM=CLA^b, waarin CM het cumulatieve aantal puistjes is en CLA het cumulatieve bladoppervlak, beide berekend van bovenin het bladerdek naar beneden, de totalen gestandaardiseerd op één. De gradiënt parameter b bedroeg gemiddeld 3.4 (SE=0.9). Waargenomen verschillen in steilte van de meeldauwprofielen beïnvloedde de schaderelatie niet aantoonbaar.     

Attraction ofTrichogramma platneri to eggs of some lepidopterous pests of avocado

The attraction ofTrichogramma platneri Nagarkatti (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) to eggs of two lepidopterous avocado pests,Boarmia sel-enaria (Schiffermüller) (Geometridae) andCryptoblabes gnidiella (Millière) (Phycitidae), was evaluated in olfactometer tests. The mobility of the wasp as measured by a mobility index was 0.6 for males and 1.8 for females; the males had a lower mobility and a lower search capacity index than the females. Frozen and fresh youngB. selenaria eggs had the greatest attraction forT. platneri, which diminished with increasing age of the eggs. The eggs ofC. gnidiella were also attractive to the parasitoid. Contribution from the Agricultural Research Organization. No. 2704-E, 1989 series.     

寄主因素对白虫小茧蜂产卵的影响

在实验室观察了白虫小茧蜂的产卵行为,从化学及物理的角度探讨了寄主因素对白虫小茧蜂产卵的影响。这些寄主因素包括寻主利它素、寄主表皮的化学物质,显微结构和柔软性。实验表明:寄主表皮的柔软性是影响该小茧蜂产卵的关键因素。寻主利它素、寄主表皮的化学物质和结构均对产卵没有影响。     

二百方子沼泽湿地无机氮的垂直运移规律

以二百方子湿地为对象,模拟研究了沼泽湿地硝态氮和铵态氮在一定水位条件下的垂直运移过程。结果表明:沼泽湿地土壤中硝态氮的穿透曲线具有不对称的多峰结构,而铵态氮的穿透曲线均具有偏峰型结构,且有明显的拖尾现象;各层土壤中硝态氮和铵态氮的穿透曲线最高峰出现的时间及其峰值高低均存在显著差异。     

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.     

'Looking up' behavior in the holding area of the milking parlor: its relationship with step-kick, flight responses and productivity of commercial dairy cows

Commercial dairy cows milked in a parlor system are packed close together in the holding area before milking. The present study examined the relationships of ‘looking up’ behavior with some other behaviors and the productivity of 1116–1153 cows from five farms. The individual identities of the cows looking up in the holding area were recorded at 5 min intervals during six intermittent afternoon milking sessions. Entrance into the milking parlor and the numbers of steps and kicks by cows while the milking person was attaching the milking cups, were recorded in six milking sessions. Flight responses in the pasture after milking were recorded over four days intermittently. The frequency of ‘looking up’ behavior weakly, but significantly correlated with flight starting distance (r = 0.10, P < 0.05), while the correlation with the number of step‐kicks during milking was not significant. As for productivity, lactation number (r = ?0.18, P < 0.001), milk yield (r = ?0.15, P < 0.001) and fat content (r = ?0.15, P < 0.001) were negatively correlated with the frequency of ‘looking up’ behavior. Age of cows was correlated with the frequency of ‘looking up’ behavior as well as lactation number (r = ?0.21, P < 0.001). Entrance order was positively correlated with the frequency of ‘looking up’ behavior (r = 0.15, P < 0.001). The ‘looking up’ behavior was observed more frequently in cows in their third or less lactation compared with cows which were in their fourth or greater lactation (P < 0.05). The lactation number of cows was correlated with their milk yield (r = 0.36, P < 0.001) and flight starting distance (r = ?0.21, P < 0.001). In conclusion, ‘looking up’ behavior shown by cows in the holding area before milking might be an indicator of low motivation for milking, mainly because of fear of humans, and an aversion to milking caused by insufficient experience in being milked.     

杆式除草器的土壤反作用力

为了改进杆式除草器的入土性能并减少其牵引阻力,在实验室土槽内对四种不同形状的除草器的土壤反作用力进行了测试。本试验采用了裂区实验设计;土壤类型为主区,除草器的形状,转速、前进速度及耕深在小区内。实验数据是由一个计算机化六分力式数据采集系统采集的。在测试的四种形状中,十字形截面的除草器所受到的牵引阻力和垂直支反力最小,具有良好的入土性能,优于圆形、方形和三角形截面的除草器。