Vacuum-assisted closure for treatment of a deep shell abscess and osteomyelitis in a tortoise

CASE DESCRIPTION: A female Aldabra tortoise (Geochelone gigantea) was evaluated because of focal necrosis of the carapace. CLINICAL FINDINGS: Debridement revealed a 14.5 x 11.5-cm area of shell necrosis, deep abscess formation, and osteomyelitis involving bacterial (Klebsiella pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, and Pseudomonas spp) and fungal pathogens. TREATMENT AND OUTCOME: Following extensive debridement, vacuum-assisted closure incorporating silver-impregnated bandaging materials was used. The wound was considered healed after 55 days, at which time a layer of epidermal tissue with progressing keratinization was present, with smooth underlying ossification. Keratinization with normal pigmentation continued over the next 67 days. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Findings suggested that vacuum-assisted closure with silver-impregnated bandaging materials may provide advantages over traditional methods in the treatment of shell lesions in chelonians, including faster wound healing, improved cosmetic appearance of the healed wound, superior control of microbial contamination, and lower overall treatment costs.     

高产优质黄秋葵新品种“石秋葵1号”选育

"石秋葵1号"是采用系统选育的方法培育而成的黄秋葵新品种。植株生长势强,抗逆性强,株高160~200cm,始花节位5~6,嫰果无棱,绿色,果长12~16cm,横径2.0cm,单果重25g,口感脆嫩,纤维少,商品性好。丰产性好,每667m2产量为2 000kg以上,适合北方地区露地栽培。     

基于决策树和混合像元分解的玉米种植面积提取方法

Landsat 8影像具有较高空间分辨率和时间分辨率,长时间序列Landsat 8-NDVI曲线反映农作物的物候历、种植模式和种植结构信息,是精确提取玉米种植面积的理想数据源。基于时序Landsat 8-NDVI影像提取玉米种植面积的方法中,决策树方法快速、高效,可通过多阈值限定进行分类,但由于混合像元问题,如果阈值设置过宽,提取面积偏大;阈值设置过窄,提取面积偏小;混合像元分解通过计算端元组分丰度可以排除异质地类干扰。因此,以时序NDVI为数据源、耦合使用2种算法是精确提取作物种植面积的有效方法。本研究基于时序Landsat 8-NDVI,提取河北省保定市大田玉米的种植面积。首先,分析典型作物区的NDVI曲线特征,并构建决策树从而初步提取早播夏玉米、小麦夏玉米和春玉米的分布范围。然后,根据端元平均NDVI波谱曲线,进行3种玉米混合度分解,进而根据玉米丰度比例精确提取玉米种植面积。精度评价结果表明:利用本方法提取的玉米种植区总分类精度在98%以上,Kappa系数在0.97以上;所提取的玉米种植类型主要是夏玉米,春玉米种植主要集中在涿州市中部,这与实地调查结果一致。上述定量和定性的评价结果表明该方法可用于快速、精确提取玉米种植面积。     

Incorporating limited field operability and legacy soil samples in a hypercube sampling design for digital soil mapping

Most calibration sampling designs for Digital Soil Mapping (DSM) demarcate spatially distinct sample sites. In practical applications major challenges are often limited field accessibility and the question on how to integrate legacy soil samples to cope with usually scarce resources for field sampling and laboratory analysis. The study focuses on the development and application of an efficiency improved DSM sampling design that (1) applies an optimized sample set size, (2) compensates for limited field accessibility, and (3) enables the integration of legacy soil samples. The proposed sampling design represents a modification of conditioned Latin Hypercube Sampling (cLHS), which originally returns distinct sample sites to optimally cover a soil related covariate space and to preserve the correlation of the covariates in the sample set. The sample set size was determined by comparing multiple sample set sizes of original cLHS sets according to their representation of the covariate space. Limited field accessibility and the integration of legacy samples were incorporated by providing alternative sample sites to replace the original cLHS sites. We applied the modified cLHS design (cLHS_adapt) in a small catchment (4.2 km²) in Central China to model topsoil sand fractions using Random Forest regression (RF). For evaluating the proposed approach, we compared cLHS_adapt with the original cLHS design (cLHS_orig). With an optimized sample set size n = 30, the results show a similar representation of the cLHS covariate space between cLHS_adapt and cLHS_orig, while the correlation between the covariates is preserved (r = 0.40 vs. r = 0.39). Furthermore, we doubled the sample set size of cLHS_adapt by adding available legacy samples (cLHS_adapt+) and compared the prediction accuracies. Based on an external validation set cLHS_val (n = 20), the coefficient of determination (R²) of the cLHS_adapt predictions range between 0.59 and 0.71 for topsoil sand fractions. The R²‐values of the RF predictions based on cLHS_adapt+, using additional legacy samples, are marginally increased on average by 5%.     

Lynx reintroductions in fragmented landscapes of Germany: Projects with a future or misunderstood wildlife conservation?

Eurasian lynx are slowly recovering in Germany after an absence of about 100 years, and additional reintroduction programs have been launched. However, suitable habitat is patchily distributed in Germany, and whether patches could host a viable population or contribute to the potential spread of lynx is uncertain. We combined demographic scenarios with a spatially explicit population simulation model to evaluate the viability and colonization success of lynx in the different patches, the aim being to conclude guidelines for reintroductions. The spatial basis of our model is a validated habitat model for the lynx in Germany. The dispersal module stems from a calibrated dispersal model, while the demographic module uses plausible published information on the lynx’ life history. The results indicate that (1) a viable population is possible, but that (2) source patches are not interconnected except along the German-Czech border, and that (3) from a demographic viewpoint at least 10 females and 5 males are required for a start that will develop into a viable population with an extinction probability of less than 5% in 50 years. The survival rate of resident adults was the most sensitive parameter, and the best management strategy for the success of reintroduction would be to reduce the mortality of residents in the source patches. Nevertheless, the extremely low probability of connectivity between suitable patches makes most of the reintroduction plans isolated efforts, and they are therefore questionable in the long run. With such a model, the suitability of the single habitat patches can be assessed and the most appropriate management scheme applied. This study shows that simulation models are useful tools for establishing the comparative effectiveness of reintroduction plans aimed at increasing the viability of the species.     

Pitfall or priority drift? Participatory tree domestication programs: The case of agroforestry in the Peruvian Amazon

ABSTRACT

The Agroforestry Tree Domestication Program was globally launched in the 1990s by the World Agroforestry Center to increase farmers’ living standards and slow deforestation. After 20 yr of operation, we screen the impacts on farmers’ livelihoods and prospects in one of the implementation sites: the Ucayali region of the Peruvian Amazon. We contrast the viewpoints of two sets of stakeholders: (a) “outsiders”—scientists, technicians, and development workers; and (2) “insiders”—local farmers organized and not organized. Group and semistructured interviews were used for data collection, and system analyses were conducted for their integration and interpretation. Results diverge by subset. “Outsiders” praised the program lastingness but questioned its dependence on external parties for management; they considered land property and product marketing keys to persist and succeed. In contrast, “insiders” considered the program financially not viable as well as third-party and locally dependent. As an alternative they had initiated activities, both forestry related and otherwise, to profit from their acquired technical and managerial skills. Based on these findings, broadening stakeholders’ diversity and set conveniently roles and decision power during the rationale and implementation phases of similar initiatives could prevent such divergences.     

Assessing the consequences of habitat fragmentation for two migratory salmonid fishes

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Invertebrate diversity and national responsibility for species conservation across Europe - A multi-taxon approach

Invertebrates play important roles in ecosystem functioning, but with the decline in biodiversity worldwide, it has become increasingly evident that our knowledge of invertebrate diversity distributions and of how to adequately integrate many invertebrates into conservation strategies is insufficient. We analyzed congruence between patterns of total as well as of endemic species richness of twelve invertebrate taxa across Europe and compared these patterns to those of so far predominantly studied vertebrates and plants. Coarse-scale centers of high collective diversity were identified, all in southern European regions. However, the strength of covariation between diversity patterns strongly depended on the respective taxa, with ground beetles emerging as one of the invertebrate taxa significantly reflecting endemism and total species richness distributions of many invertebrates, vertebrates and plants. Plants and ants showed similarly strong cross-taxon correlations. In contrast, correlations of vertebrates with invertebrates were in part less strong, questioning whether conservation strategies based on the former adequately account for diversity of invertebrates as a whole. Moreover, as the potential impact of environmental factors on diversity distributions varies among taxa, future climate change might affect relationships between richness patterns of different taxa. Our findings draw attention to the necessity of incorporating invertebrates, represented for instance by the highly diverse ground beetles, into national and international conservation decisions. They also highlight the importance of individual countries in maintaining European biodiversity and the responsibility of these countries for specific invertebrate taxa within international conservation frameworks, emphasizing the need for adequate consideration of invertebrates in the implementation of conservation actions.     

Surfactant‐induced deposit structures in relation to the biological efficacy of glyphosate on easy‐ and difficult‐to‐wet weed species

BACKGROUND: Typical active ingredient (AI) residue patterns are formed during droplet drying on plant surfaces owing to the interaction of spray solution characteristics and leaf micromorphology. Currently, comparatively little is known about the influence of AI deposit patterns within a spray droplet residue area on the penetration and biological efficacy of glyphosate. A scanning electron microscope with energy dispersive X‐ray microanalysis has been used to characterise residue patterns and to quantify the area ultimately covered by glyphosate within the droplet spread area. RESULTS: The easy‐to‐wet weed species Stellaria media L. and Viola arvensis L., as well as the difficult‐to‐wet Chenopodium album L. and Setaria viridis L., differing in their surface micromorphology, have been used. Rapeseed oil ethoxylates (RSO 5 or RSO 60) were added to glyphosate solutions to provide different droplet spread areas. Addition of RSO 5 enhanced droplet spread area more than RSO 60, and both caused distinct glyphosate residue patterns. The biological efficacy of treatment solutions showed no significant correlation with the area ultimately covered by glyphosate. CONCLUSION: The results have implications on herbicide uptake models. This study shows that droplet spread area does not correspond to the area ultimately covered by glyphosate, and that the latter does not affect glyphosate phytotoxicity. Copyright © 2009 Society of Chemical Industry     

Hepatic CT attenuation differs in three species of freshwater turtles and hepatic Hounsfield units increase with folliculogenesis in wild Blanding's turtles (Emydoidea blandingii)

Freshwater turtle species are suffering from anthropocentric‐caused population declines, making preservation of professionally managed populations increasingly important. Turtles under professional care have an increased risk to develop hepatic lipidosis, potentially resulting in early death. Computed tomography can provide an antemortem screening for increased fatty liver composition. A goal of this prospective analytical cross‐sectional study was to assess the hepatic attenuation measured as Hounsfield units (HU) in a wild population of a freshwater turtle species, and then compare hepatic HU to freshwater turtles under professional care. Ninety‐five wild Blanding's turtles (BT; Emydoidea blandingii) as well as 10 Vietnamese Pond turtles (VPT; Mauremys annamensis) and six Northern Snake‐Necked turtles (NSNT; Chelodina oblonga) under professional care underwent CT with quantification of hepatic HU. Hepatic HU were correlated to serum chemistry findings and the presence of follicles was recorded in BT. The mean (±SD) hepatic attenuation for 95 wild BT was 97.5 HU ±9.6. There were significant differences in hepatic attenuation among VPT, NSNT, and BT, with median HU values (range) of 5.39 HU (–6.45 to 61.50), 71.74 HU (59.44‐94.49), and 95.43 HU (74.41‐124.56), respectively. Aspartate aminotransferase (AST) values had a weak negative correlation to HU with a coefficient of –0.85 (P < .001). The hepatic attenuation was significantly higher for individuals undergoing folliculogenesis (P = .007). The decreased HU values were significantly negatively correlated with AST values. Findings supported the use of CT as an aid for guiding future management practices in freshwater turtles.