The effects of pesticides on species of non-target Heteroptera inhabiting cereal fields in southern England

The effects of pesticides on beneficial predatory arthropods have been widely studied; this paper however deals with their effects on Heteroptera, an important beneficial insect group and food source for farmland birds. Field trials were used to evaluate pesticide effects under realistic conditions of application on a commercial arable farm and compared with previously published laboratory findings. Fungicides were found to produce very low levels of mortality, not significantly different from control treatments. Aphicides varied in their impact, producing non-significant to highly significant mortality levels. The likely ecological impact of pesticides on various heteropteran groups found within the field and field boundary is discussed. © 1997 SCI.     

1+X 证书制度下宠物养护与驯导专业育人模式探析

在1+X证书制度下,以宠物养护与驯导专业为试点,积极探索和实践现代职业教育“产教融合、校企合作、工学结合、知行合一”的人才培养模式,以期提高本专业的育人质量。     

关于提高《小动物疾病学》教学质量途径的探讨

小动物疾病学是一门对临床实践依赖性很强的兽医专业课程,随着宠物医疗行业的崛起,培养面向社会、面向大众和面向科技的全能型本科宠物医师具有一定挑战性。传统的教学模式已不适应现代教育体制需求,针对本科生教学方式逐渐显现出弊端,造成学生毕业无真才实学,丧失就业机遇；思想观念陈旧,实践能力较差；缺乏锐意创新精神,对现代科技医疗领域知之甚少,无法与社会所需型人才对接；因此,对高校小动物疾病学课程进行教学改革,增强学生创新意识和实践能力,紧贴社会需求,培养出专业型宠物医师至关重要。本文论述了小动物疾病学教育教学改革几点建议,以求提高教学质量。     

桃金娘科引鸟植物在华南地区园林绿地的生态景观营造研究

桃金娘科园林植物形态种类丰富,能吸引鸟类、蜂类、蝶类等,对部分桃金娘科引鸟植物的生态效益和景观营造进行评估。结果表明：桃金娘科植物花色艳丽,果实硕大,可作动物食源,能有效吸引具有生态景观价值的野生鸟类如暗绿绣眼鸟、白头鹎、红嘴蓝鹊、红耳鹎、珠颈斑鸠、黑脸噪鹛、乌鸫、领雀嘴鹎等。结合花期吸引传粉昆虫及果期引鸟效果,提出相应的生态景观营造策略,有利于食物网的完善构建,进一步完善绿地生态系统建设。     

Short- and long-term implications of clearcut and two-age silviculture for conservation of breeding forest birds in the central Appalachians, USA

Two-age (deferment or leave tree) harvesting is used increasingly in even-aged forest management, but long-term responses of breeding avifauna to retention of residual canopy trees have not been investigated. Breeding bird surveys completed in 1994-1996 in two-age and clearcut harvests in the central Appalachian Mountains of West Virginia, USA allowed us to document long-term changes in these stands. In 2005 and 2006, we conducted point counts in mature unharvested forest stands and in 19-26 year-old clearcut and two-age harvests from the original study and in younger clearcut and two-age stands (6-10 years old). We found differences in breeding bird metrics among these five treatments and temporal differences in the original stands. Although early-successional species are typically absent from group selection cuts, they were almost as common in young two-age stands as clearcuts, supporting two-age harvests as an alternative to clearcutting. Although older harvests had lower species richness and diversity, they were beginning to provide habitat for some species of late-successional forest songbirds that were absent or uncommon in young harvests. Overall, late-successional forest-interior species were more flexible in their use of different seral stages; several species used both age classes and harvest types in addition to mature forest, which may reflect the lack of edges in our heavily-forested landscape. Consequently, two-age management provides habitat for a diverse group of species as these stands mature and may be an ecologically sustainable alternative to clearcutting in landscapes where brown-headed cowbirds (Molothrus ater) are uncommon.     

Distance to edges, edge contrast and landscape fragmentation: Interactions affecting farmland birds around forest plantations

Afforestation often causes direct habitat losses for farmland birds of conservation concern, but it is uncertain whether negative effects also extend significantly into adjacent open land. Information is thus required on how these species react to wooded edges, and how their responses are affected by edge and landscape characteristics. These issues were examined in Mediterranean arable farmland, using bird counts at 0, 100, 200, 300 and >300 m from oak, pine and eucalyptus edges, embedded in landscapes with variable amounts and spatial configurations of forest plantations. Bird diversity declined away from edges, including that of woodland, farmland and ground-nesting birds. Positive edge responses were also found for overall and woodland bird abundances, and for five of the nine most widespread and abundant species (Galerida larks, stonechat, linnet, goldfinch and corn bunting). Strong negative edge effects were only recorded for steppe birds, with reduced abundances near edges of calandra larks and short-toed larks, but not of little bustards and tawny pipits. Edge contrast affected the magnitude of edge effects, with a tendency for stronger responses to old and tall eucalyptus plantations (hard edges) than to young and short oak plantations (soft edges). There were also species-specific interactions between edge and fragmentation effects, with positive edge responses tending to be strongest in less fragmented landscapes, whereas steppe birds tended to increase faster away from edges and to reach the highest species richness and abundances in large arable patches. Results suggest that forest plantations may increase overall bird diversity and abundance in adjacent farmland, at the expenses of steppe birds of conservation concern. Clustering forest plantations in a few large patches and thus reducing the density of wooded edges at the landscape-scale might reduce such negative impacts.     

Australian surveillance for avian influenza viruses in wild birds between July 2005 and June 2007

Objective   To identify and gain an understanding of the influenza viruses circulating in wild birds in Australia.
Design   A total of 16,303 swabs and 3782 blood samples were collected and analysed for avian influenza (AI) viruses from 16,420 wild birds in Australia between July 2005 and June 2007. Anseriformes and Charadriiformes were primarily targeted.
Procedures   Cloacal, oropharyngeal and faecal (environmental) swabs were tested using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for the AI type A matrix gene. Positive samples underwent virus culture and subtyping. Serum samples were analysed using a blocking enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for influenza A virus nucleoprotein.
Results   No highly pathogenic AI viruses were identified. However, 164 PCR tests were positive for the AI type A matrix gene, 46 of which were identified to subtype. A total of five viruses were isolated, three of which had a corresponding positive PCR and subtype identification (H3N8, H4N6, H7N6). Low pathogenic AI H5 and/or H7 was present in wild birds in New South Wales, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia. Antibodies to influenza A were also detected in 15.0% of the birds sampled.
Conclusions   Although low pathogenic AI virus subtypes are currently circulating in Australia, their prevalence is low (1.0% positive PCR). Surveillance activities for AI in wild birds should be continued to provide further epidemiological information about circulating viruses and to identify any changes in subtype prevalence.     

一起未取得动物诊疗许可证从事动物诊疗活动案的查处

2020年4月,A市农业农村局接群众举报,某宠物商店涉嫌未取得动物诊疗许可证从事动物诊疗活动.经立案调查,认定当事人违法事实存在,证据确凿.根据《中华人民共和国动物防疫法》之规定,责令当事人停止动物诊疗活动,依法给予了"没收违法所得人民币5420元,并处罚款人民币6000元"的行政处罚.本文对该案的基本案情、法律适用及...     

Effects of management regime on the abundance and nest survival of shrubland birds in wildlife openings in northern New England, USA

Many shrubland bird species are declining in eastern North America and as a result forest managers have used a variety of techniques to provide breeding habitat for these species. The maintenance of permanent “wildlife openings” using prescribed burns or mechanical treatments is a widely used approach for providing habitat for these species, but there have been no studies of the effects of treatment regime on bird abundance and nest survival in managed wildlife openings. We studied shrubland birds in wildlife openings on the White Mountain National Forest (WMNF) in New Hampshire and Maine, USA, during 2003 and 2004. We analyzed bird abundance and nest survival in relation to treatment type (burned versus mowed), treatment frequency, time since treatment, and patch area. We found that wildlife openings provided habitat for shrubland birds that are not present in mature forest. There was relatively modest support for models of focal bird species abundance as a function of treatment regime variables, despite pronounced effects of treatment on habitat conditions. This probably was attributable to the combined effects of complex site histories and bird site fidelity. Overall nest success (52%) was comparable to other types of early-successional habitats in the region, but there were few supported relationships between nest survival and treatment variables. We conclude that wildlife openings provide quality habitat for shrubland birds of high conservation interest as long as managers ensure treatment intervals are long enough to permit the development of woody vegetation characteristic of the later stages of this sere. Also, wildlife openings should be large enough to accommodate the territory sizes of all target species, which was ≥1.2 ha in this study.