Cooperation, control, and concession in meerkat groups

"Limited control" models of reproductive skew in cooperative societies suggest that the frequency of breeding by subordinates is determined by the outcome of power struggles with dominants. In contrast, "optimal skew" models suggest that dominants have full control of subordinate reproduction and allow subordinates to breed only when this serves to retain subordinates' assistance with rearing dominants' own litters. The results of our 7-year field study of cooperative meerkats, Suricata suricatta, support the predictions of limited control models and provide no indication that dominant females grant reproductive concessions to subordinates to retain their assistance with future breeding attempts.     

Rapid screening and confirmation for drugs and metabolites in racing animals by tandem mass spectrometry

A screening and confirmation procedure for drugs and metabolites in the blood serum and urine of racing animals was developed. Equine blood serum was spiked with low concentrations of several drugs of interest. Canine blood serum and urine were collected following oral doses of diethylcarbamazine, procaine, and phenylbutazone. Serum, urine, and extracts of each were analyzed, using a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer. Simultaneous screening of up to 50 drugs was possible in a single sample, in less than 2 minutes. Detection limits for most compounds were in the ng/ml to microgram/ml range, using 1-microliter samples. This procedure provided fast, sensitive screening for selected drugs and metabolites in blood serum and urine.     

Germination of stratified and non-stratified seeds of red alder at two germination temperatures

Two- to four-week stratification of red alder seeds slightly increased the speed of germination but did not improve total germination under alternating warm temperatures (30°C/20°C), yet significantly improved speed and total germination under cool temperatures (15°C/5°C) that simulated early spring outdoor nursery bed conditions. Only seeds that received four-week stratification achieved complete germination at the cooler temperatures. Strong seed source variation in response to seed treatments was observed at the cool regime. The Yacolt source germinated well regardless of seed treatments, even without stratification, while five other sources needed two to four weeks of stratification to achieve above 50% germination. Possible reasons for this variation are discussed.     

The development and management of country parks in England and Wales

The habit of making day and half-day visits to the countryside of England and Wales has increased considerably during the last few years, particularly with the extension of car ownership. Country Parks, areas of attractive countryside now totalling over 13,5000 ha, have been set aside specifically to meet this demand. Many of the parks have been established near to centres of population in an attempt to relieve congestion on the roads, to ease pressure on more remote and solitary places and to reduce the risk of damage to vulnerable and valuable areas of countryside. Country Parks therefore play a positive role within the national policy for conservation and recreation and this is discussed. Management of the parks is vitally important if their attractiveness and interests are to be ensured for future enjoyment. Some of the problems of preventing deterioration of the landscapes of popular beuty spots are considered.     

National parks in Great Britain and the achievement of nature conservation purposes

The ten National Park Authorities of England and Wales are concerned mainly with landscape conservation and provision for outdoor recreation. Nature conservation is not primary park purpose and only authority has its own nature reserves. Nature conservation purposes are pursued in the parks as elsewhere by the Nature Conservancy Council and by the appropriate County Conservation Trust. The achievements of these two organisations—the former national and governmental, the latter local and voluntary—are compared and contrasted.The number of national Nature Reserves established by the Nature Conservancy nationally assessed. The Conservacy appears to have treated the parks much as it has treated the rest of the country. Local Conservation Trusts have also accorded the parks no more—but also no less—attention than elsewhere. Trust reserves tend to be more or less uniformally distributed throughout the counties of England and Wales. This pattern corresponds with the distribution of Trust members and arises because membership rates tend to be highest in the more rural areas (including the National Parks) where absolute population levels are low. Finally, the National Park Authorities themselves have all but neglected nature conservation purposes in the parks. This lack of interest is consistent with the low priority afforded to nature conservation by local authorities in general and by rural authorities in particular. But whilst past achievements have been slight, future prospects are, by comparison, quite bright.     

Population decline of northern dusky salamanders at Acadia National Park, Maine, USA

We investigated and reviewed the current and historic distribution of northern dusky salamanders (Desmognathus fuscus fuscus) in Acadia National Park (ANP), Maine, USA during 1938-2003. Historical data indicate that northern dusky salamanders were once widespread and common in ANP. We conducted intensive surveys for stream salamanders during 2000-2003 and observed only two adult northern dusky salamanders on one stream. No eggs or larvae were observed. Although the cause of the observed population decline is unknown, we identify multiple potential stressors including stocking of predatory fishes, fungal pathogens, substrate embeddedness, and widespread pollution (i.e., from atmospheric pollutants) of surface waters at ANP. Our data suggest that ANP streams may no longer be suitable for northern dusky salamanders. This investigation is the first to document the decline of a stream dwelling amphibian species in a national park (i.e., areas that are not subject to obvious habitat loss or major changes in land use) with widespread mercury contamination of its surface waters.     

Testing of a pond‐side molecular diagnostic tool for the detection of white spot syndrome virus in shrimp aquaculture

White spot disease in penaeid shrimp is caused by the white spot syndrome virus (WSSV). It is the most economically important disease of farmed warm‐water shrimp, causing extensive economic losses estimated from $8 to $15 billion since its emergence in the 1990s. Early diagnosis of disease is critical in the management of outbreaks and to avoid crop losses. Diagnosis of white spot disease is generally carried out in centralized laboratory settings using molecular biology approaches. However, this mode of testing can be expensive and time consuming, requiring laboratory equipment, highly trained laboratory personnel, dedicated laboratory space, and long‐distance transportation of samples from field to lab. In‐field diagnostics are gaining credence as tools for rapid and early animal disease detection, allowing diagnosticians and farmers to potentially manage disease outbreaks from the pond side. In the present study, we describe the development and application of a new in‐field point‐of‐need diagnostic test and platform for the diagnosis of WSSV in remote settings (shrimp farms). We report its performance in laboratory and field settings and compare it with current gold‐standard diagnostic approaches. We discuss the potential benefits (and barriers to uptake) of applying such testing in the global shrimp farming sector.     

Effects of helpers on juvenile development and survival in meerkats

Although breeding success is known to increase with group size in several cooperative mammals, the mechanisms underlying these relationships are uncertain. We show that in wild groups of cooperative meerkats, Suricata suricatta, reductions in the ratio of helpers to pups depress the daily weight gain and growth of pups and the daily weight gain of helpers. Increases in the daily weight gain of pups are associated with heavier weights at independence and at 1 year of age, as well as with improved foraging success as juveniles and higher survival rates through the first year of life. These results suggest that the effects of helpers on the fitness of pups extend beyond weaning and that helpers may gain direct as well as indirect benefits by feeding pups.     

The operational planting stock quality testing program at Weyerhaeuser

The value of the Seedling Testing System (STS) is five-fold. First, it minimizes the utilization of poor quality stock that might result in regeneration failure. Second, it assists nursery managers in estimating cold hardiness of seedlings in support of the nursery frost control program. Third, it helps prevent crop losses due to pathological problems in the greenhouse and nursery. Fourth, it helps the nursery staff develop good working relationships with outside customers who benefit from the testing service. Fifth, it is a valuable tool for the nursery and tree improvement research program.