Genetic diversity and differentiation of sea trout (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Salmo trutta</Emphasis>) populations in Lithuanian rivers assessed by microsatellite DNA variation

The genetic diversity and differentiation of sea trout were studied in three river basins in Lithuania: Akmena-Dane, Bartuva, and Nemunas. A total of 282 individuals were genotyped at eight microsatellite loci. A similar level of genetic diversity was found in all of the populations studied: mean allelic richness ranged from 3.64 to 5.03, and average expected heterozygosity ranged from 0.588 to 0.721. Significant genetic divergence was observed among the different river basins as well as between populations within the drainages. All pairwise F _ST values were highly significant, ranging from 0.027 to 0.197. The analysis of molecular variance showed rather weak hierarchical population structuring within the Nemunas basin, which may be explained by extensive gene flow among different river basins or, alternatively, reflect the influence of artificial breeding. Information on genetic diversity and differentiation of the Lithuanian sea trout populations will be useful for future management decisions.     

Drought responses of above‐ground and below‐ground characteristics in warm‐season turfgrass

Water shortages have become more chronic as periodic droughts prolong and water demand for urban and agricultural use increases. Plant drought responses involve coordinated mechanisms in both above‐ and below‐ground systems, yet most studies lack comparisons of root and canopy responses under water scarcity and recovery. This is particularly true of research focused on warm‐season turfgrasses in sandy soils with extremely low water holding capacity. To address the lack of examination of coordinated stress and recovery responses, this study compared the above‐ and below‐ground plant responses during a dry‐down period of 21 days and recovery among four warm‐season turfgrass species in the field. Canopy drought responses and recovery were quantified using digital image analysis. In situ root images were captured using a minirhizotron camera system. Common bermudagrass [Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers.] endured the entire drought period without losing 50% green cover while other species lost 50% green cover in 11–34 days predicted from the regression. The interspecific differences in drought resistance were mainly due to root characteristics. Other drought mechanisms appear to be responsible for differences identified in drought resistance between “Zeon” and “Taccoa Green” manilagrass [Zoysia matrella (L.) Merr.]. Recovery was delayed for up to 2 weeks in the second year, warranting further evaluation for turfgrass persistence under long‐term drought. Three‐week drought posed no threat to the survival of zoysiagrass. Species and genotypic variations were found in achieving full post‐recovery, which can be used to develop water conservation strategies and to adjust consumer expectations.     

Phenotype management: a new approach to habitat restoration

The goal of habitat restoration is to provide environmental conditions that promote the maintenance and growth of target populations. But rarely is it considered how the allocation of resources influences the diversity of phenotypes in these populations. Here we present a framework for considering how habitat restoration can shape the development and expression of phenotypes. We call this approach phenotype management as it entails restoring the resources in a habitat to manage phenotypic diversity. Phenotype management is achieved by manipulating the spatial and temporal distribution of resources to alter the degree of competition among individuals. Differences in competition, in turn, lead to changes in phenotypic and life history expression that affect population parameters including demography and effective population size (N_e). To illustrate how phenotype management can be applied, we explore how resource distributions shape variation in phenotypes in two imperiled fishes, Pacific salmon and desert pupfish. In both examples, modulating male reproductive phenotypes changes the allocation of reproductive success among population members to subsequently affect N_e. These examples further demonstrate that whether to increase or decrease phenotypic diversity depends on the primary conservation pressures faced by the species.     

Giants' shoulders 15 years later: lessons,challenges and guidelines in fisheries meta‐analysis

Meta‐analysis has been an integral tool for fisheries researchers since the late 1990s. However, there remain few guidelines for the design, implementation or interpretation of meta‐analyses in the field of fisheries. Here, we provide the necessary background for readers, authors and reviewers, including a brief history of the use of meta‐analysis in fisheries, an overview of common model types and distinctions, and examples of different goals that can be achieved using meta‐analysis. We outline the primary challenges in implementing meta‐analyses, including difficulties in discriminating between alternative hypotheses that can explain the data with equal plausibility, the importance of validating results using multiple lines of evidence, the trade‐off between complexity and sample size and problems associated with the use of model output. For each of these challenges, we also provide suggestions, such as the use of propensity scores for dealing with selection bias and the use of covariates to control for confounding effects. These challenges are then illustrated with examples from diverse subfields of fisheries, including (i) the analysis of the stock–recruit relationship, (ii) fisheries management, rebuilding and population viability, (iii) habitat‐specific vital rates, (iv) life‐history theory and (v) the evaluation of marine reserves. We conclude with our reasons for believing that meta‐analysis will continue to grow in importance for these and many other research goals in fisheries science and argue that standards of practice are therefore essential.     

Does adding microbial mechanisms of decomposition improve soil organic matter models? A comparison of four models using data from a pulsed rewetting experiment

Contemporary soil organic matter (SOM) models have been successful at simulating decomposition across a range of spatial and temporal scales using first-order kinetics to represent the decomposition process; however, recent work suggests the simplicity of the first-order representation of decomposition is not adequate to capture the microbially-driven dynamics of SOM decomposition over short timescales. For example, the response of soils to drying-rewetting events may best be explained by microbial and/or exoenzyme controls on decomposition. To test if adding these microbial mechanisms improves the ability of SOM models to simulate the response of soils to short-term environmental changes, we developed four different SOM decomposition models with varying mechanistic complexity and compared their ability to simulate soil respiration from a pulsed drying-rewetting laboratory-based experiment. Specifically, we tested the ability of the models to capture the timing and magnitude of soil CO₂ efflux in response to rewetting or constant moisture conditions. The results of the comparison suggest that the inclusion of exoenzyme and microbial controls on decomposition can improve the ability to simulate pulsed rewetting dynamics; however, less mechanistic first-order models prevail under steady-state moisture conditions. These modeling results may have implications for understanding the long-term response of soil carbon stocks in response to local and regional climate change.     

Ectopic ureterocele in a cat

A 9-month-old, castrated male domestic shorthair cat with urinary incontinence was referred for surgical correction of an ectopic ureter. Excretory urography revealed hydronephrosis of the right kidney, right hydroureter, and ureterocele. A partial ureterocelectomy and neoureterocystostomy were performed. This report describes the surgical modification of the ureterocele and ectopic ureter to correct ipsilateral hydronephrosis, hydroureter, and urinary incontinence.     

Divergent selection of chickens for antibody response to sheep erythrocytes: kinetics of primary and secondary immunizations

Chicks from lines selectively bred for either high or low antibody response post-primary immunization (PPI) to sheep erythrocytes (SRBC) and their reciprocal crosses were immunized intravenously with 0.1 ml of 0.25% SRBC antigen in Trials 1 and 3 and with 0.1 ml of 0.025%, 0.25%, or 25% SRBC antigen in Trial 2. All initial immunizations were made at 35 days of age, and 0.1 ml of 0.25% SRBC booster dose was given 24 days later. Results showed that (a) population differences appeared by day 4 PPI and persisted through day 24 PPI, (b) regardless of population, peak titers occurred at about the same time for primary and secondary immunizations, (c) dosage of antigen influenced differences among populations in antibody response to primary immunization, and (d) both selected lines had similar responses in 2-mercaptoethanol-sensitive and 2-mercaptoethanol-resistant antibodies to primary but not secondary immunization.     

Introduction to endoscopy

Endoscopy is an area of rapidly growing interest within veterinary medicine. This is understandable, because it is a relatively noninvasive procedure in which a tremendous amount of diagnostic data may be obtained. The purpose of this article is to introduce the novice to the equipment and potential uses of endoscopy.