Phytophthora urerae sp. nov., a new clade 1c relative of the Irish famine pathogen Phytophthora infestans from South America

An unknown Phytophthora species was discovered in the central Peruvian Andes on blighted foliage of the native South American plant species Urera lacineata. Urera is a genus of native flowering shrubs in the nettle family Urticaceae. This new taxon Phytophthora urerae sp. nov. is herewith formally described based on extensive morphological analysis, phylogenetic analysis of nuclear and mitochondrial loci, and AFLP analysis. Phytophthora urerae sp. nov. is a close relative of the Irish famine pathogen, Phytophthora infestans, and only the third clade 1c taxon described from South America to date. In contrast to the clade 1c taxon Phytophthora andina, first described in South America as a hybrid, P. urerae does not appear to be a hybrid based on cloning and sequencing nuclear loci. Findings of new species in South America may provide novel insights into the origin and evolutionary history of clade 1c Phytophthora species.     

The Effect of Exogenous Applications of Salicylic Acid on Drought Tolerance and Up-Regulation of the Drought Response Regulon of Iraqi Wheat

Journal of Crop Science and Biotechnology - Drought is a major limiting factor of wheat production globally. In this research, salicylic acid was used in order to increase drought tolerance in...     

The ecosystem services concept: a new Esperanto to facilitate participatory planning processes?

Landscape Ecology - Several case studies investigated the role of ecosystem services in participatory planning processes. However, no systematic study exists that cuts across a large number of...     

Responses of subshrub sagebrush rangeland in North-Western China to changes in livestock numbers and rainfall over 10 years (2004–2013)

Seriphidium transiliense, or subshrub sagebrush, is one of the most important forage resources for livestock in many arid lands, but such resources have been threatened by overgrazing for a long time. A 2013 vegetation survey of an original sagebrush rangeland (2400?ha) in the Tianshan Mountains revealed that nearly half of the area once under sagebrush has been replaced by annual species. This is due to the continual and rapid increase in livestock numbers over the past 30?years. Three smaller sites with different grazing scenarios: no grazing (Site N), a decline (Site 1), and an increase (Site 2) in livestock numbers, were selected to monitor recent changes (from 2004 to 2013) in vegetation biomass and the degree of dominance by sagebrush. Supplanting happened at Site 2 but little occurred at Site 1. There were significant differences between Site 2 and Site 1 in standing biomass in Spring and Summer, but no significant differences in Summer between Site 1 and Site N. The supplanting of sagebrush marks the completion of a dynamic process – in which rainfall plays a crucial role – of damage to sagebrush from heavy grazing in drought years and its rehabilitation by light grazing in some good years. Plant biomass loss was greatest when the land was first subjected to heavy grazing. Sagebrush tends to exist as a sole-dominant species rather than a companion species in sagebrush communities. This suggests that sagebrush continued to survive in pockets where grazing pressure had declined.     

Aboveground biomass,transpiration and water use efficiency in eucalypt plantation fertilized with KCl,NaCl and phonolite rock powder

Potassium has important physiological functions in eucalypt plantations, increasing their productivity when applied to soil via mineral fertilizers. There is interest in identifying alternative sources to KCl owing to its high cost and limited reserves. The aim of the study was to test the effect of replacing KCl with NaCl and phonolite rock powder. Two comparisons were made: (1) application of 283 kg ha^?1 of KCl compared with that of 2125 kg ha^?1 of phonolite rock powder (equivalent to 170 kg ha^?1 of K₂O in both treatments); (2) application of 139 kg ha^?1 of NaCl compared with that of 183 kg ha^?1 of KCl (equivalent to 2.33 kmol Na and K, respectively). Radial growth, soil water content, leaf water potential (Ψ), accumulated transpiration, stem volume and biomass increment, as well as water use efficiency (WUE) were evaluated. In the first comparison, both fertilizations presented equal values for all characteristics evaluated. In the second, the accumulated transpiration in trees fertilized with KCl was 17% higher than that in plants fertilized with NaCl. In contrast, the WUE was 20% higher in the trees fertilized with NaCl than in those fertilized with KCl, reflecting the lower water consumption for the same increment in stem volume and biomass. We conclude that phonolite rock powder and NaCl are possible substitutes for conventional K fertilization performed with KCl.

     

NBA sweet spots: Distance‐based impacts on establishment‐level sales

This paper examines distance‐based effects of the introduction of a National Basketball Association (NBA) team on establishment‐level sales. Using a unique micro dataset with precise geographic location information and industry detail, we apply spatio‐temporal estimation strategies following Harger et al. and Ahlfeldt and Kavetsos. We build on the literature by focusing on sales activity, a broad measure of economic activity, for industries related to the NBA‐product. Our application considers the relocation of the NBA’s Seattle franchise (Supersonics) to Oklahoma City (Thunder). The results reveal spatially differentiated impacts that would be obscured using data aggregated over space or industry. Specifically, food establishments exhibit increased sales and entertainment establishments exhibit decreased sales relative to establishments in the outer most ring of the study area.