Association of Pythium coloratum and Pythium sulcatum with cavity spot disease of carrots in Western Australia

All 170 Pythium isolates from carrot cavity spot lesions from a field in Western Australia were found to belong to either P. coloratum or P. sulcatum . All isolates of P. coloratum produced large, brownish-black, water-soaked and depressed lesions on mature carrots inoculated with agar plugs colonized by the pathogen. In comparison, only a few isolates of P. sulcatum produced lesions and these were small. In glasshouse trials, P. coloratum produced substantial and numerous lesions at an inoculum density of 0.5% (weight of millet seed-based inoculum/weight of soil), whilst P. sulcatum produced few and small lesions at inoculum densities of 0.8 and 1% and none at 0.5%. This is the first record of P. coloratum as a causal agent of cavity spot of carrots.     

The early development of disease caused by Phytophthora cinnamomi in Eucalyptus marginata and Eucalyptus calophylla grooving in rehabilitated bauxite mined areas

The soil-borne plant pathogen Phytophthora cinnamomi is widely distributed in the jarrah ( Eucalyptus marginata ) forest of Western Australia. Infested areas of the forest are mined for bauxite and the presence of the pathogen could after the survival of trees re-established after mining. Monitoring of 21 revegetated bauxite mined areas found that survival of jarrah and marri ( Eucalyptus calophylla ) trees was high (85–92% and 93–99%, respectively) after 5–7 years but P. cinnamomi was recovered from dead trees. To identify trees for more detailed study, plant symptoms of stress such as suppressed growth, wilting, yellowing of crown, coppice and epicormic growth and visible stem lesions were used. Over a period of 15 months, 30 E. marginata and 28 E. calophylla were carefully excavated and examined for lesions and the presence of P. cinnamomi. P. cinnamomi was consistently isolated from the lignotuber and collar regions of both hosts but never from the roots alone, except in one instance from E. calophylla where it was isolated from a non-lesioned root. In E. calophylla , the lignotuber appears to be very susceptible to invasion by P. cinnamomi in contrast to the roots which appear resistant. The invasion of the pathogen into the lignotuber and collar regions of both species was consistently associated with ponding of water around the plants. This ponding persists for many hours to days after rain and appears to provide an infection court for P. cinnamomi. Development of rehabilitation procedures to reduce this ponding will minimize the risk of tree deaths caused by this pathogen.     

The ability of Phytophthora cinnamomi to infect through unwounded and wounded periderm tissue of Eucalyptus matginata

Unwounded and wounded periderm tissue of 1-year old stems of Eucalyptus marginata were infected and lesioned after 5 days'exposure to either mycelium or motile zoospores of Phytophthora cinnamomi. Lesions produced by P. cinnamomi were longer in wounded than in unwounded stems. The inclusion of non-sterile mine site soil with inocula in the unwounded treatments did not affect the rate or extent to which P. cinnamomi colonized E. marginata stem tissue. The ability of P. cinnamomi zoospores to infect unwounded suberized woody tissue of E. marginata , has important implications for mine site rehabilitation in P. cinnamomi infested areas. This is the first study to demonstrate clearly that zoospores of P. cinnamomi can infect and invade unwounded suberized tissue.     

Use of Vaginal Electrical Resistance to Diagnose Oestrus,Dioestrus and Early Pregnancy in Synchronized Tropically Adapted Beef Heifers

The primary objective of this study was to determine whether a single measurement of intravaginal electrical resistance (VER), using the commercially available Ovatec^® probe, can discriminate between dioestrus and oestrus in Bos indicus females, which had been treated to synchronize oestrus. Santa Gertrudis heifers (n = 226) received one of three oestrous synchronization treatments: double PGF_2α 10 days apart, 8‐day controlled internal drug release (CIDR) treatment or CIDR pre‐synchronization + PGF_2α 10 days after CIDR removal. The heifers were inseminated within 12 h following observed oestrus, or, if not observed, at a fixed time approximately 80 h, following the last synchronization treatment. They were palpated per rectum for signs of pregnancy 9 weeks after artificial insemination (AI). Vaginal electrical resistance measurements were taken at the completion of synchronization treatments (presumed dioestrus), immediately prior to AI (oestrus), and then at 3 and 9 weeks post‐AI. Mean VER differed between presumed dioestrus and oestrus (113.7 vs 87.4, p < 0.001). The area under the receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve was 0.925, indicating that VER was highly discriminatory between dioestrus and oestrus. Vaginal electrical resistance at time of AI was negatively associated with odds of conception when all inseminations were included in the analyses [odds ratio (OR) = 0.97; 95% CI 0.95–1.00; p = 0.018], but not when fixed time AIs were excluded (OR = 1.00; 95% CI 0.97–1.03; p = 0.982). Mean VER readings differed between pregnant and non‐pregnant animals at both 3 weeks (120.5 vs 96.7, p < 0.001) and 9 weeks (124.0 vs 100.3, p < 0.001) post‐AI. However, 3‐ and 9‐week VER measurements were not highly discriminatory between pregnancy and non‐pregnancy (area under ROC curve = 0.791 and 0.736, respectively). Mean VER at time of AI for animals diagnosed in oestrus differed between each of the oestrous synchronization treatments (84.7, 73.6 and 78.9, groups 1–3 respectively, p < 0.001). These findings suggest that measurement of VER may improve accuracy of oestrus diagnoses when selecting cattle for AI following oestrous synchronization programmes involving tropically adapted cattle.     

旋毛虫感染兔血清抗体消长规律的研究

应用旋毛虫肌幼虫干燥冷浸可溶性抗原与聚醛化聚苯乙烯（ＰＡＰＳ）载体微球共价交联制成快诊试剂,对旋毛虫感染兔血清进行检测,初步探明其血清抗体的消长规律。实验显示,以１６０００条肌幼虫／只经口饲喂感染１０只兔,于第７天可检出抗体,并分别于感染后第４５￣４９天先后达到抗体最高水平,然后维持一段时间（２０￣３０天左右）,以后逐渐缓缓下降。此结果与旋毛虫肌幼虫感染宿主后的生活周期相吻合。肌幼虫在肠道内发育为     

Variations in the drift of larval cod (Gadus morhua L.) in the Baltic Sea: combining field observations and modelling

Coupled three-dimensional (3-D) physical oceanographic modelling and field sampling programmes were carried out in May 1988 and August 1991 to investigate the potential drift of larval cod ( Gadus morhua L.) in the Bornholm Basin of the Baltic Sea. The goals were to predict the transport of cod larvae, thus aiding the identification of physical processes influencing larval retention/dispersal. Numerical simulations were performed using a 3-D eddy-resolving baroclinic model based on the Bryan–Cox–Semtner code adapted for the Baltic Sea. Within the Bornholm Basin, the model was initialized with ground truth data of physical parameters obtained on the research cruises, and all simulations were forced with actual wind data. Outside the basin, generalized hydrographic features of the Baltic Sea were utilized by incorporation of simulated hydrographic fields from previous model runs typical for the time periods considered. Larval drift was simulated either by incorporation of passive drifters, or as the initial horizontal distribution of larvae implemented into the model. Drift model simulations of larval transport agreed relatively well with field observations. The influence of variations in the vertical distribution on a smaller scale, i.e. vertical deviations of ± 6 m from the observed mean centre of mass, on the drift was examined, revealing no significant differences in the drift of larvae depending on their vertical distribution. The different wind forcing during the investigated time periods was linked to a retention situation in May 1988 and to a dispersal situation in August 1991. Finally, observed spatial distribution patterns of 1-group cod based on Baltic Young Fish Surveys (BYFS) were compared with their predicted transport in the larval phase and examined with respect to recruitment.     

Effect of liveweight and condition score of ewes at mating,and shearing mid-pregnancy,on birthweights and growth rates of twin lambs to weaning

AIMS: To determine the effects of liveweight and condition score of ewes at mating, and shearing mid-pregnancy, on birthweights and growth rates of twin lambs from birth to the time of weaning, and; to determine whether any effect of condition score is independent of liveweight.

METHODS: Romney ewes (n=435) which conceived within a 17-day mating period and successfully gave birth to and reared twin lambs to weaning were used. Ewes were managed during pregnancy so that their total liveweight increased at a level equivalent to the expected growth of the conceptuses. Approximately half of the ewes were shorn 70 days after the mid-point of mating, and the remainder were left unshorn, at which time they had 6-months' wool growth. All lambs were weighed within 12 h of birth and again at weaning.

RESULTS: There was a significant linear relationship (R²=0.99) between mean group liveweight and condition score of ewes at mating (difference of 7.3 kg per 1.0 unit condition score). Liveweight of ewes at mating had small but significant (p<0.05) positive effects on both birthweights and growth rates of twin lambs to weaning. Ewes that had condition scores of 3.5–4.0 (scale 0–5) at mating gave birth to significantly (p<0.05) lighter lambs than ewes that had condition scores <3.5. The condition score of ewes at mating was positively associated with growth rates of lambs, although this effect was largely explained by variation in the liveweight of ewes at mating.

Twin lambs born to ewes shorn mid-pregnancy were significantly (p<0.05) heavier at birth (by 0.4 kg) and at weaning (p<0.05) than those born to unshorn ewes. The heavier weaning weights of lambs born to ewes shorn mid-pregnancy were due to a heavier birthweights rather than increased growth rate.

CONCLUSIONS: Liveweight and condition score of ewes at mating had small positive effects on growth rates to weaning of twin lambs. Shearing mid-pregnancy increased birthweights and weaning weights of twin lambs. To achieve high weaning weights of twin lambs, farmers should ensure ewes attain high liveweights and condition scores at mating and shear mid-pregnancy. It is speculated that the effects of liveweight and condition score of ewes at mating on weaning weights of twin lambs would be greater than those observed in the present study under conditions in which nutrition of the dam is below optimum.