Changes in bird species composition on a remote and well-forested Wallacean Island, South-East Asia

In South-East Asia patterns of forest loss can predict the number of threatened birds. On the oceanic islands of Wallacea, small-scale agriculture, rather than commercial logging, is the main cause of forest loss and conversion, but few studies have directly examined their responses to land use. In 2001, I studied the birds of primary forest and anthropogenic gardens on the well-forested, and remote, Damar Island (198 km²) in the Banda Sea. Furthermore, I examined broad changes to the islands bird fauna by comparing baseline bird lists obtained in the 19th century with 2001 data. The conversion of primary forest to garden resulted in substantial changes in avifaunal composition, and to the abundance of individual bird species, particularly to frugivorous and globally restricted-range species. Of 15 common birds, four were significantly more abundant in primary forest (blue-tailed imperial pigeon Ducula concinna, northern fantail Rhipidura rufiventris, golden whistler Pachycephala pectoralis and red-chested flowerpecker Dicaeum maugei) and one (scaly-breasted honeyeater Lichmera squamata) was more abundant in garden habitat. Incidental observations provided further evidence that many forest specialists (including the island endemic Damar flycatcher Ficedula henrici) rarely, if ever, used garden habitats notwithstanding its relative proximity. The number of resident birds recorded in 2001 (39) was similar to the 1890s (38), but six forest-dependent passerines were extirpated between samples. These losses are associated with the conversion of 25% of the primary forest to modified habitat since the 1890s, but given the sparse species and environmental change data available it is impossible to definitively pinpoint this as the only cause underlying the species losses. This study demonstrates that remote and relatively well-forested islands are not immune to the threatening processes impacting bird populations elsewhere in South-East Asia.     

Energetic Charged Particles in Saturn's Magnetosphere: Voyager 1 Results

Voyager 1 provided the first look at Saturn's magnetotail and magnetosphere during relatively quiet interplanetary conditions. This report discusses the energetic particle populations of the outer magnetosphere of Saturn and absorption features associated with Titan and Rhea, and compares these observations with Pioneer 11 data of a year earlier. The trapped proton fluxes had soft spectra, represented by power laws E(-gamma) in kinetic energy E, with gamma approximately 7 in the outer magnetosphere and gamma approximately 9 in the magnetotail. Structure associated with the magnetotial was observed as close as 10 Saturn radii (R(s)) on the outbound trajectory. The proton and electron fluxes in the outer magnetosphere and in the magnetotail were variable and appeared to respond to changes in interplanetary conditions. Protons with energies >/= 2 million electron volts had free access to the magnetosphere from interplanetary space and were not stably trapped outside approximately 7.5 R(s).     

Zoospores in Scenedesmus obliquus

In basal medium without a nitrogen source a 3-day-old culture of Scenedesmus obliquus produced zoospores, which were biflagellated, had a parietal chloroplast, lacked a pyrenoid, and were apparently not walled. Identical results were produced with new clones. A reconsideration of the relationships and classification of this organism is now essential.     

Role of the isthmus and FGFs in resolving the paradox of neural crest plasticity and prepatterning

Cranial neural crest cells generate the distinctive bone and connective tissues in the vertebrate head. Classical models of craniofacial development argue that the neural crest is prepatterned or preprogrammed to make specific head structures before its migration from the neural tube. In contrast, recent studies in several vertebrates have provided evidence for plasticity in patterning neural crest populations. Using tissue transposition and molecular analyses in avian embryos, we reconcile these findings by demonstrating that classical manipulation experiments, which form the basis of the prepatterning model, involved transplantation of a local signaling center, the isthmic organizer. FGF8 signaling from the isthmus alters Hoxa2 expression and consequently branchial arch patterning, demonstrating that neural crest cells are patterned by environmental signals.     

Voyager 1: energetic ions and electrons in the jovian magnetosphere

The observations of the cosmic-ray subsystem have added significantly to our knowledge of Jupiter's magnetosphere. The most surprising result is the existence of energetic sulfur, sodium, and oxygen nuclei with energies above 7 megaelectron volts per nucleon which were found inside of Io's orbit. Also, significant fluxes of similarly energetic ions reflecting solar cosmic-ray composition were observed throughout the magnetosphere beyond 11 times the radius of Jupiter. It was also found that energetic protons are enhanced by 30 to 70 percent in the active hemisphere. Finally, the first observations were made of the magnetospheric tail in the dawn direction out to 160 Jupiter radii.