Losing a staging area: Eastward redistribution of Afro-Eurasian ruffs is associated with deteriorating fuelling conditions along the western flyway

The fuelling performance of long-distance migrants at staging areas indicates local conditions and determines the viability of migration routes. Here we present a first case study where long-term fuelling performance was documented along two migration routes with differential population trends. Ruffs (Philomachus pugnax) are shorebirds of inland freshwater wetlands that migrate from the sub-Saharan wintering grounds, via Europe, to the northern Eurasian breeding grounds. Assessments from 2001 to 2008 of fuelling during northward migration at the major western and eastern staging site revealed that daily mass gain rates steeply declined across years in the grasslands for dairy production in Friesland, The Netherlands, and remained constant in the Pripyat floodplains in Belarus, 1500 km further east. Migrants in Friesland decreased from 2001 to 2010 by 66%, amounting to a loss of 21,000 individuals when counts were adjusted for length of stay as determined by resightings. In the same period numbers in Pripyat increased by 12,000. Ruffs individually ringed in Friesland were resighted in subsequent springs at increasingly eastern sites including Pripyat. Our results corroborate published evidence for an eastward redistribution of Arctic breeding ruffs and suggest that the decreasing fuelling rates in the westernmost staging area contribute to this redistribution. The shift implies that responses occur within a single generation. The hypothesis that the choice of route during northward migration may be driven by food availability can now be tested by creating greater areas of wet grasslands in Friesland. When local staging conditions improve we predict that ruffs will make the reverse shift.     

Initiation of Parturition in Dairy Cows with a Synthetic Corticosteroid

Inhalt: Durch die parenterale Verabreichung von 2.0, 5.0 oder 10.0 mg Flumethason (6α-9α-Difluoro-16α methylprednisolon) konnte bei Kühen in den letzten 2 Wochen der Gravidität die Geburt ausgelöst werden. Von 26 zwischen dem 268. und 270. Tag der Trächtigkeit behandelten Tieren kamen 23 innerhalb von 38 bis 62 Std. nach der Medikation zur Geburt. In 19 Fallen trat eine Retentio secundinarum ein. 3 Tiere, bei denen die Wirkung nach 72 Std. noch ausgeblieben war, hatten nur 2,5 mg Flumethason erhalten. In dieser Phase der Trächtigkeit beendete die Injektion von 5 mg Flumethason die Graviditdt. Der Unterschied der Trächtigkeitsdauer zwischen behandelten und unbehandelten Tieren ist signifikant (P < 0,001). Weniger sicker war die Wirkung von oral verabreichtem Flumethason (5 und 10 mg), da nur 7 von 11 Tieren mit einer Spontangeburt reagierten. Die tägliche orale Applikation von 10 mg Chlormadinonacetat, beginnend am 268. Tag der Gravidität and die Injektion von 5 mg Flumethason am 270. Tag bewirkte eine Geburtseinleitung bei 6 von 8 Tieren; doch kam es auch hier zur Nachgeburtsverhaltung.     

Roost availability may constrain shorebird distribution: Exploring the energetic costs of roosting and disturbance around a tropical bay

High tides force shorebirds from their intertidal feeding areas to refuges known as roosts. This paper explores the energetic costs of roost disturbance of great knot (Calidris tenuirostris) and red knot (C. canutus) at Roebuck Bay, North-western Australia, assessing disturbance levels at different roost sites through direct observation and automatic radio-telemetry, and applying physiological equations and predictive roost choice models to estimate energetic costs of disturbance through a complete tidal cycle. The study area had a variety of roosts, but use of each was constrained by conditions of tide and time. The roost most suitable for shorebirds on daytime high tides of intermediate height experienced high levels of disturbance from both natural sources (birds of prey) and humans. Flight costs caused by disturbance at this site exceeded the costs of flying to and roosting at the nearest alternative roost, 25 km away. However, shorebirds did not roost at the alternate site, possibly because of the risk of heat stress in a prolonged flight in tropical conditions. Increases in disturbance levels at just one of the roost sites of Roebuck Bay would increase energetic costs substantially, and could easily reach the point at which feeding areas accessed from this roost cannot be used without incurring a net energy deficit. Roost availability can therefore limit access to feeding areas and hence limit population size. Adequate provision and management of roost sites is accordingly an important consideration in conservation of sites used by coastal shorebirds.     

A three-stage symbiosis forms the foundation of seagrass ecosystems

Seagrasses evolved from terrestrial plants into marine foundation species around 100 million years ago. Their ecological success, however, remains a mystery because natural organic matter accumulation within the beds should result in toxic sediment sulfide levels. Using a meta-analysis, a field study, and a laboratory experiment, we reveal how an ancient three-stage symbiosis between seagrass, lucinid bivalves, and their sulfide-oxidizing gill bacteria reduces sulfide stress for seagrasses. We found that the bivalve-sulfide-oxidizer symbiosis reduced sulfide levels and enhanced seagrass production as measured in biomass. In turn, the bivalves and their endosymbionts profit from organic matter accumulation and radial oxygen release from the seagrass roots. These findings elucidate the long-term success of seagrasses in warm waters and offer new prospects for seagrass ecosystem conservation.     

Susceptibility of the taro beetle,Papuana uninodis,to entomopathogenic nematodes

Six strains of entomopathogenic nematodes, Steinernema glaseri (Steiner) (Biosys #326, nc 34, gb), S. feltiae = bibionis (Filipjev) (Biosys #349), S. carpocapsae Weiser (Biosys #25) and Heterorhabditis zealandica Poinar, were evaluated in laboratory tests against taro beetles, Papuana uninodis Prell. Larvae of this species and adult Papuana Arrow spp. were found to be susceptible to entomopathogenic nematodes. The best results were obtained with S. glaseri #326 in larval and adult P. uninodis . The dose causing 50% mortality (LD ) for third instar P. uninodis larvae in Petri dish assays ranged from almost 7000 nematodes/larva for 1 days exposure to less than 250 nematodes/larva for 6 days; in pot assays the concentration causing 50% mortality (LC ) in 2 weeks was 1.4 106 nematodes/m2. For 50 adults in Petri dishes with soil, the LD was ca 20 000 nematodes/ 50 adult for 1 weeks exposure and ca 6000 nematodes/adult for 3 weeks. In pot assays the LC was 2.5 106 nematodes/m2 in 3 weeks. 50 Preliminary tests showed that P. huebneri (Fairmaire) and P. woodlarkiana laevipennis Arrow adults were also most susceptible to S. glaseri #326. A field test on adults Papuana uninodis did not result in damage reduction but served to illustrate the practical difficulties of applying nematodes in remote areas. 50