Postfire Succession in Big Sagebrush Steppe With Livestock Grazing

Prescribed fire in rangeland ecosystems is applied for a variety of management objectives, including enhancing productivity of forage species for domestic livestock. In the big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata Nutt.) steppe of the western United States, fire has been a natural and prescribed disturbance, temporarily shifting vegetation from shrub–grass codominance to grass dominance. There is limited information on the impacts of grazing to community dynamics following fire in big sagebrush steppe. This study evaluated cattle grazing impacts over four growing seasons after prescribed fire on Wyoming big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata subsp. Wyomingensis [Beetle & Young] Welsh) steppe in eastern Oregon. Treatments included no grazing on burned and unburned sagebrush steppe, two summer-grazing applications after fire, and two spring-grazing applications after fire. Treatment plots were burned in fall 2002. Grazing trials were applied from 2003 to 2005. Vegetation dynamics in the treatments were evaluated by quantifying herbaceous canopy cover, density, annual yield, and perennial grass seed yield. Seed production was greater in the ungrazed burn treatments than in all burn–grazed treatments; however, these differences did not affect community recovery after fire. Other herbaceous response variables (cover, density, composition, and annual yield), bare ground, and soil surface litter did not differ among grazed and ungrazed burn treatments. All burn treatments (grazed and ungrazed) had greater herbaceous cover, herbaceous standing crop, herbaceous annual yield, and grass seed production than the unburned treatment by the second or third year after fire. The results demonstrated that properly applied livestock grazing after low-severity, prescribed fire will not hinder the recovery of herbaceous plant communities in Wyoming big sagebrush steppe.     

Sage Grouse Groceries: Forb Response to Piñon-Juniper Treatments

Juniper and piñon coniferous woodlands have increased 2- to 10-fold in nine ecoregions spanning the Intermountain Region of the western United States. Control of piñon-juniper woodlands by mechanical treatments and prescribed fire are commonly applied to recover sagebrush steppe rangelands. Recently, the Sage Grouse Initiative has made conifer removal a major part of its program to reestablish sagebrush habitat for sage grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) and other species. We analyzed data sets from previous and ongoing studies across the Great Basin characterizing cover response of perennial and annual forbs that are consumed by sage grouse to mechanical, prescribed fire, and low-disturbance fuel reduction treatments. There were 11 sites in western juniper (Juniperus occidentalis Hook.) woodlands, 3 sites in singleleaf piñon (Pinus monophylla Torr. & Frém.) and Utah juniper (Juniperus osteosperma [Torr.] Little), 2 sites in Utah juniper, and 2 sites in Utah juniper and Colorado piñon (Pinus edulis Engelm). Western juniper sites were located in mountain big sagebrush (A. tridentata ssp. vaseyana) steppe associations, and the other woodlands were located in Wyoming big sagebrush (A. tridentata ssp. wyomingensis) associations. Site potential appears to be a major determinant for increasing perennial forbs consumed by sage grouse following conifer control. The cover response of perennial forbs, whether increasing (1.5- to 6-fold) or exhibiting no change, was similar regardless of conifer treatment. Annual forbs favored by sage grouse benefitted most from prescribed fire treatments with smaller increases following mechanical and fuel reduction treatments. Though forb abundance may not consistently be enhanced, mechanical and fuel reduction conifer treatments remain good preventative measures, especially in phase 1 and 2 woodlands, which, at minimum, maintain forbs on the landscape. In addition, these two conifer control measures, in the short term, are superior to prescribed fire for maintaining the essential habitat characteristics of sagebrush steppe for sage grouse.     

The effect of high correlated colour temperature office lighting on employee wellbeing and work performance

Background  

The effects of lighting on the human circadian system are well-established. The recent discovery of 'non-visual' retinal receptors has confirmed an anatomical basis for the non-image forming, biological effects of light and has stimulated interest in the use of light to enhance wellbeing in the corporate setting.     

Single Layer Centrifugation of Stallion Spermatozoa through Androcoll™‐E does not Adversely Affect their Capacitation‐Like Status,as Measured by CTC Staining

This study was designed to evaluate the effect of single layer centrifugation (SLC) and subsequent cold storage on stallion sperm capacitation‐like status and acrosome reaction. Three stallions were included in the study, with three ejaculates per stallion. The samples were examined 4, 24 and 72 h after collection, extension and SLC, with storage at 6°C. Sperm capacitation‐like status was investigated using the fluorescent dye chlortetracycline (CTC). There was no difference in capacitation‐like status between colloid‐selected and non‐selected spermatozoa. Sperm motility decreased significantly during cold storage, whereas the proportion of apparently capacitated spermatozoa increased. There was no change in the proportion of acrosome‐reacted spermatozoa. In conclusion, SLC through Androcoll?‐E does not adversely affect the capacitation‐like status of stallion spermatozoa, although it did increase with time during cold storage.     

The under-recognized dominance of Verrucomicrobia in soil bacterial communities

Verrucomicrobia are ubiquitous in soil, but members of this bacterial phylum are thought to be present at low frequency in soil, with few studies focusing specifically on verrucomicrobial abundance, diversity, and distribution. Here we used barcoded pyrosequencing to analyze verrucomicrobial communities in surface soils collected across a range of biomes in Antarctica, Europe, and the Americas (112 samples), as well as soils collected from pits dug in a montane coniferous forest (69 samples). Data collected from surface horizons indicate that Verrucomicrobia average 23% of bacterial sequences, making them far more abundant than had been estimated. We show that this underestimation is likely due to primer bias, as many of the commonly used PCR primers appear to exclude verrucomicrobial 16S rRNA genes during amplification. Verrucomicrobia were detected in 180 out of 181 soils examined, with members of the class Spartobacteria dominating verrucomicrobial communities in nearly all biomes and soil depths. The relative abundance of Verrucomicrobia was highest in grasslands and in subsurface soil horizons, where they were often the dominant bacterial phylum. Although their ecology remains poorly understood, Verrucomicrobia appear to be dominant in many soil bacterial communities across the globe, making additional research on their ecology clearly necessary.     

Vegetation Characteristics of Mountain and Wyoming Big Sagebrush Plant Communities in the Northern Great Basin

Dominant plant species are often used as indicators of site potential in forest and rangelands. However, subspecies of dominant vegetation often indicate different site characteristics and, therefore, may be more useful indicators of plant community potential and provide more precise information for management. Big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata Nutt.) occurs across large expanses of the western United States. Common subspecies of big sagebrush have considerable variation in the types of sites they occupy, but information that quantifies differences in their vegetation characteristics is lacking. Consequently, wildlife and land management guidelines frequently do not differentiate between subspecies of big sagebrush. To quantify vegetation characteristics between two common subspecies of big sagebrush, we sampled 106 intact big sagebrush plant communities. Half of the sampled plant communities were Wyoming big sagebrush (A. tridentata subsp. wyomingensis [Beetle & A. Young] S. L. Welsh) plant communities, and the other half were mountain big sagebrush (A. tridentata subsp. vaseyana [Rydb.] Beetle) plant communities. In general, mountain big sagebrush plant communities were more diverse and had greater vegetation cover, density, and biomass production than Wyoming big sagebrush plant communities. Sagebrush cover was, on average, 2.4-fold higher in mountain big sagebrush plant communities. Perennial forb density and cover were 3.8- and 5.6-fold greater in mountain compared to Wyoming big sagebrush plant communities. Total herbaceous biomass production was approximately twofold greater in mountain than Wyoming big sagebrush plant communities. The results of this study suggest that management guidelines for grazing, wildlife habitat, and other uses should recognize widespread subspecies as indicators of differences in site potentials.     

Evaluation of the agar gel immunodiffusion test for diagnosis of subclinical paratuberculosis in cattle

Concurrent bacteriologic culture of feces and agar gel immunodiffusion (AGID) testing was performed on all cows and bred heifers over 14 months old in 10 dairy herds during a 32-month period to determine the effectiveness of the AGID test for the detection of subclinical paratuberculosis. Herds were sampled 5 times and, when possible, culled animals were tested again at slaughter. During 5 herd-wide samplings, Mycobacterium paratuberculosis was isolated from 139 fecal specimens obtained from 109 cattle. Results of the AGID test were simultaneously positive 40 of 139 times (28.8%). Thirty-six of the 109 cattle (33.0%) determined to be infected had a positive AGID test result at some point during the 5 herd-wide samplings. When results of tests performed at time of slaughter were included, 117 cattle were identified as infected by culture methods; 55 of these (47.0%) were AGID test-positive at some point during the study. The upper limit of the maximal false-positive rate for the AGID test was 2.1%. On the basis of colony counts from cultures, subclinically infected cows shedding higher numbers of M paratuberculosis in their feces were more likely to have positive AGID test results (P less than 0.0001). In known infected cattle, neither the culture nor AGID test results were consistently positive on repeated testing. Of 48 official calfhood paratuberculosis vaccinates tested as adults, 3 had positive AGID test results and in 1 of these, M paratuberculosis was also isolated from the feces, indicating that the rate of false-positive AGID test results in calfhood vaccinates is low.     

Equine pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction: current understanding and recommendations from the Australian and New Zealand Equine Endocrine Group

The purpose of this article is to provide a review of the current knowledge and opinions about the epidemiology, clinical findings (including sequelae), diagnosis, treatment and monitoring of equine pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction, particularly in the Australian context. This information and the recommendations provided will assist practitioners in making informed decisions regarding the diagnosis and management of this disorder.