Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Optical sensing of turfgrass chlorophyll content and tissue nitrogen

Differences in soil microenvironment affect the availability of N in small areas of large turfgrass stands. Optical sensing may provide a method for assessing plant N needs among these small areas and could help improve turfgrass uniformity. The purpose of this study was to determine if optical sensing was useful for measuring turfgrass re- sponses stimulated by N fertilization. Areas of 'U3' bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers. ), 'Midfi eld' bermudagrass (C. dactylon (L.) Pers. x C. transvaalensis Burtt-Davy), and 'SR1020' creeping bentgrass (Agrostis palustris Huds.) were divided into random- ized complete blocks and fertilized with different N rates. A spectrometer was used to measure energy refl ected from the turfgrass within the experimental units at 350 to1100 nm wavelengths. This spectral information was used to calculate normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and green normalized difference vegetation index (GNDVI). These spectral indices were regressed with tissue N and chlorophyll content determined from turfgrass clippings collected immediately following optical sensing. The coeffi cients of determination for NDVI and GNDVI regressed with tissue N averaged r 2 = 0.76 and r 2 = 0.81, respectively. The coeffi cients of determination for NDVI and GNDVI regressed with chlorophyll averaged r 2 = 0.70 and r 2 = 0.75, respectively. Optical sensing was equally effective for estimating turfgrass responses to N fertilization as more commonly used evaluations such as shoot growth rate (SGR regressed with tissue N; r 2 = 0.81) and visual color evaluation (color regressed with chlorophyll; r 2 = 0.64).
Establishing a monitoring baseline for threatened large ungulates in eastern Cambodia

Monitoring ungulate populations is an essential part of wildlife management with ungulates performing essential ecosystem roles including structuring populations of large carnivores. A number of ungulate species in Southeast Asia are also globally threatened and are therefore important conservation targets in their own right. We estimated large (> 15 kg) ungulate densities in two protected areas, i.e. Mondulkiri Protected Forest and Phnom Prich Wildlife Sanctuary, in eastern Cambodia using distance-based line transect sampling. During the 2009/2010 and 2010/2011 dry seasons, we surveyed 110 line transects (randomly distributed across 3,406 km2) for a total of 1,310 km. We used DISTANCE 6.0 to model detection functions from observations of banteng Bos javanicus, wild pig Sus scrofa and red muntjac Muntiacus muntjak generating estimates of group density, cluster size and individual density. Estimated densities ± SE were 1.1 ± 0.2 individual banteng/km2, 1.4 ± 0.4 individual wild pig/km2 and 2.2 ± 0.2 individual red muntjac/km2 giving an overall density of approximately 4.7 large ungulates/km2. Although wild pig and red muntjac densities were within the range of estimates reported from ecologically similar protected areas in tropical Asia, overall large ungulate density is much lower than the intrinsic carrying capacity of deciduous dipterocarp forest. This appears largely to be due to the scarcity of large deer (i.e. hog deer Axis porcinus, sambur Cervus unicolor and Eld's deer Cervus eldii) as a result of extensive historic hunting. Current large ungulate densities appear too low to support a viable tiger Panthera tigris population in the long term, and ungulate recovery, driven by strong protected area management, needs to be achieved before tiger populations can be restored.
Population Size of Devils Hole Pupfish (Cyprinodon diabolis) Correlates with Water Level

Abstract Population estimates of the Devils Hole pupfish (Cyprinodon diabolis) extending over a 25-year period reveal an annual population cycle that reaches a low during spring and a high during fall. The four earliest years (1972–1976) preceded a U.S. Supreme Court water rights decision intended to protect pupfish habitat. Mean and maximum population sizes during those four years were significantly lower than during subsequent periods examined through 1997, and annual minimum population size was significantly lower during 1972–1976 than during 1991–1997. Annual maximum population size is positively correlated with water level for the month in which it occurred as well as for the month one year prior to the time of the estimate. The lowest historic water levels occurred during the period 1972–1976, and over the past 60,000 years comparable or lower water levels may have occurred only during the altithermal, about 6000 years before the present. During these two periods the Devils Hole pupfish population has probably experienced its most severe bottlenecks.
What can metazoan parasites reveal about the taxonomy of Scomber japonicus Houttuyn in the coast of South America and Madeira Islands

The metazoan parasites of four populations of the chub mackerel Scomber japonicus were analysed from two localities in the Atlantic Ocean (Madeira Islands, Portugal, and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) and two localities in the Pacific Ocean (Callao, Peru, and Antofagasta, Chile), collected during 2002 and 2003. A total of 373 fish specimens were studied and 34 metazoan parasite species were obtained. Parasites identified from the populations of chub mackerel studied could be separated into three categories: parasites with a wide distribution, present in the Pacific and Atlantic, parasites proper of the Pacific Ocean and parasites proper of the Atlantic Ocean. The analyses of some highly specific parasites of the genus Scomber (i.e. monogeneans of the genus Kuhnia and didymozoid digeneans) strongly suggest the need for a revision of the taxonomic status of chub mackerels from the Atlantic and Pacific coast of America. The results demonstrated the usefulness of parasites as adequate tools to clarify the taxonomic status of their hosts.
New Philippine record of south american sailfin catfishes (Pisces: Loricariidae)

A taxonomic and biogeographic study of the introduced suckermouth armored catfishes locally known as “janitor fish” is briefly described. Specimens were collected from five sites in the Laguna de Bay basin and were examined for 19 meristic and 37 morphometric characters and other external features including coloration. Results were compared with existing literature on fishes in the family Loricariidae. Examination revealed that specimens of janitor fish, previously reported as Hypostomus plecostomus, actually belong to the genus Pterygoplichthys, family Loricariidae. Collected specimens consisted of two species—Pterygoplichthys disjunctivus and Pterygoplichthys pardalis. Both species were collected from the five sites except in Pasig River where only P. disjunctivus was collected.
Does Social Network Matter in Knowledge Output?

This paper examines two important aspects of knowledge output: the degree of concentration in knowledge output and the nature of social network, taking the Economic and Political Weekly (EPW), a known scholarly periodical in the social sciences, as a case. We analyse the author data, looking at the frequency distribution of authors against the number of papers published and the social network of authors during the period 1996–2005. While the degree of concentration is assessed using a power law, namely Lotka’s law, the co-author data is transformed to a symmetric sociogram. The study covers 1,803 authors who published research articles in the EPW, including contributions by social scientists, policy professionals and scientists. It appears the progress in Indian social science has an apparent link with the history of EPW, accounting for a significant part of intellectual output and scholarly discourses in Indian social science. Taking cues from scholarly lineages, which investigate knowledge as a social phenomenon including the sociology of science, economics of knowledge and social network theory, we examine an important question: What is the degree of concentration prevailing in the EPW, during 1996–2005? Does the social network of authors, captured from the data, provide explanations for the degree of concentration? Our analysis shows that a high degree of the concentration of the authors and a relatively organised social network of authors coexist, indicating that the concentration in knowledge output, perhaps, is inherently linked to the structure.
Over-Summering and Biotypic Diversity of Schizaphis graminum (Homoptera: Aphididae) Populations on Noncultivated Grass Hosts

Abstract Greenbug, Schizaphis graminum (Rondani), populations over-summering on noncultivated grass hosts may be implicated in early fall infestations in wheat. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between over-summering greenbugs on noncrop hosts and fall infestations on wheat. Since greenbug populations on noncultivated hosts may also act as reservoirs of virulence genes, the biotypes of collected aphids were also determined. The grass species present at three sites (two in Oklahoma and one in Kansas) were identified and a species richness curve was generated. Greenbugs were collected at these sites and their hosts and biotypes determined. At Hays, KS, a persistent over-summering greenbug population lead to an early fall infestation in wheat. At the sites in Oklahoma, where over-summering greenbugs were not detected, the fall infestation occurred 3 months later. Biotypes G, I, K, and a new biotype (i.e., previously undescribed) were found on noncultivated hosts at Hays, but only biotypes I and K were found on the cultivated wheat. Finding a new biotype supports the hypothesis that biotypic diversity (new combinations of virulence genes) is generated and maintained on noncultivated grasses, which may then act as reservoirs of virulence genes found in populations on crops.
Protein and mineral contents of pea (Pisum sativum L.) genotypes grown in central Anatolian region of Turkey.

This study investigated differences in protein and mineral contents in grains of nineteen pea (Pisum sativum L.) cultivars. Statistically significant variations were found amongst the genotypes for all variables. The protein and minerals analyzed for all pea genotypes show that protein varies from 21.13 to 27.05, potassium from 562.8 to 937.8 mg/ 100 g, phosphorus from 163.4 to 374.2 mg/100 g, calcium from 45.91 to 157.40 mg/100 g, magnesium from 47.31 to 102.81 mg/100 g, sulfur from 75.69 to 194.4 mg/100 g, iron from 2.19 to 5.84 mg/100 g and zinc from 2.10 to 5.71 mg/100 g. Negative and significant relationships were found statically between protein content and potassium (K), between protein content and sulfur (S), and between protein content and zinc (Zn).
Conifer growth, Armillaria ostoyae root disease, and plant diversity responses to broadleaf competition reduction in mixed forests of southern interior British Columbia

Broadleaf trees are routinely removed from conifer plantations during vegetation management treatments, but whether the removal increases tree productivity or affects root disease and plant diversity is unknown. The effects of manual and chemical reduction of paper birch (Betula papyrifera Marsh.) and trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) on conifer survival, growth, root disease incidence, and plant community diversity were investigated for 5 years in Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii var. glauca (Beissn.) Franco) and lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta Dougl. ex Loud. var. latifolia Engelm.) plantations in southern interior British Columbia. Broadleaves were reduced by manual, girdling, and cut-stump glyphosate treatments for 5 years but most severely following cut-stump glyphosate and with a delay due to slow death following girdling. Conifer survival was reduced for 35 years following manual cutting or girdling of birch because of a 1.5- to 4-fold increase in mortality due to Armillaria ostoyae (R.
Nitrogen benefits of lupins, field pea, and chickpea to wheat production in south-eastern Australia

Nitrogen balances of narrow leaf lupin (Lupinus angustifolius L.), albus lupin (L. albus L.), field pea (Pisum sativum L.), chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.), and barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) sown over a range of dates were examined in 1992 in a rotation study at Wagga Wagga, NSW. Each N budget included assessment of dependence on fixed as opposed to soil N, peak aboveground biomass N, and N removed as grain or returned as unharvested aboveground crop residues. N balances of wheat sown across the plots in 1993 were assessed similarly in terms of biomass and grain yield. Yields, N2 fixation, and crop residue N balances of the legumes were markedly influenced by sowing time, and superior performance of lupins over other species was related to higher biomass production and proportional dependence on N2 fixation, together with a poorer harvest index. Residual N balances in aboveground biomass after harvest of the 1992 crops were significantly correlated with soil mineral N at 1993 sowing and with biomass and grain N yields of the resulting wheat crop. Best mean fixation and grain N yield came from albus lupin. Wheat grain N yields following the 2 lupins were some 20% greater than after fiield pea and chickpea and 3 times greater than after barley. Net soil N balance based solely on aboveground returns of N of legumes in 1992 through to harvest of wheat in 1993 was least for narrow leaf lupin-wheat ( –20 kg N/ha), followed by albus lupin-wheat ( –44), chickpea-wheat ( –74), and field pea-wheat ( –96). Corresponding combined grain N yields (legume+wheat) from the 4 rotations were 269, 361, 178, and 229 kg N/ha, respectively. The barley-wheat rotation yielded a similarly computed soil N deficit of 67 kg/ha. Data are discussed in relation to other studies on legume-based rotations.
Determinants of Journalists' Attitude towards Coverage of Agriculture and Rural Development News in Botswana

A simple random sampling technique was used to select 54 journalists representing 60 per cent of the journalists in media outlets in Gaborone, Botswana to determine their attitude towards coverage of agriculture and rural development news. Data were collected through a face validated, structured questionnaire on demographic characteristics, attitude and barriers to coverage of agriculture and rural development news. Data were analysed with SPSS, using frequency counts, percentages, means and standard deviations and multiple regression analysis. The results showed that journalists’ positive attitudinal disposition include media should be used for rural mobilisation (4.39), and there is need to have specialised agriculture and rural development columnists (4.13). Also, prominent barriers to coverage of agriculture and rural development news are lack of technical equipment (1.9); lack of specialisation (1.9); inadequate personnel (1.8); and editors’ preferences (1.7). Significant determinants were gender (t = 2.31), age (t = 2.58), place of current residence (t = 3.62) and years of experience (t = -3.48). The paper recommends that there is need for coverage of agriculture and rural development news to improve in the study area, policymakers and planners as well as media outfit managers should pay proper attention to the highlighted barriers and the significant determinants.
Resistência Quantitativa à Ferrugem da Folha em Genótipos de Aveia Branca: II - Avaliação de Componentes de Resistência*

Quantitative resistance to crown rust in white oat genotypes: II - Evaluation of resistance components The use of quantitative resistance as a form to control oat (Avena sativa) crown rust can be a viable alternative, once there is differentiated reaction among oat genotypes in field, which shows great variation. The slow disease progress observed in the field is the result of combined effects of resistance components as low infection efficiency, longer latent period, low number of spores per pustule and little pustules size. This work was accomplished in 1999 and 2000, and its objective was to quantify the resistance components above mentioned in 31 white oat genotypes. The reaction of these genotypes was evaluated in the field, from 1996 to 2000, and they were classified in four groups. Evaluation of resistance components was accomplished in seedlings and adult plants maintained in controlled conditions, and the last two components were also quantified in leaves collected in the field trials. Genotypes showed variability for all measured characteristics, except for latent period in seedlings, and those genotypes classified as resistant in the field presented the best combination of desirable components.
Combining Expectancies

Five experiments examine the combined effects of spatial and non-spatial cues on the latency of an orientation judgement. In Experiment 1 an interaction between position and form expectancies is observed: There is an unusual delay in response time (RT) when expectancies mismatch—that is, when an unexpected (uncued) form appears at an expected (cued) position or an expected (cued) form appears at an unexpected (uncued) position. This interaction is inconsistent with the spatial spotlight model's prediction that position and form expectancy effects will be additive. The position-form interaction is eliminated when target position discriminability is made difficult by adding a distractor item at the location not containing a target (Experiment 2) or by decreasing the validity of the positional cue (Experiment 3). Decreasing the validity of the form cue has no effect on the interaction. The mismatching expectancy interaction is not unique to combinations of position and form—it is also observed when temporal (Experiment 4) and colour (Experiment 5) expectancies are combined with form expectancies. The effects of advance knowledge of position therefore suggest no special status for location compared to other stimulus attributes. Thus, at least for combined expectancies, the notion of a uniquely spatial mental spotlight seems unjustified. It is hypothesized that expectancy interactions may reflect a hierarchical crosstalk relation between dimensions of encoding.
Host Specialization in Phytophagous Insects

Insects are by far the most diverse group of organisms on Earth; estimates of their current diversity range as high as 30 million species (58). A large fraction of these species feed on plants (154, 214), and Mitter et al (134) have shown that plant-feeding clades are consistently much more diverse than their nonphytophagous sister groups. By feeding at the base of the food chain, these insects have access to a potentially enormous supply of resources; these are extensively subdivided among species, as most phytophagous insects are highly host specific (55, 56, 133, 154). Investigations of the causes of host specialization in insects could therefore contribute substantially to our understanding of the origin and maintenance of diversity in this group. The evolution of plant-insect associations has been guided to a large extent by plant chemistry in some, but not all, insect groups (26, 55, 57, 153). For instance, related species of butterflies often use plants that are chemically similar, even if taxonomically distant (23, 57, 188, 190). Cladistic analyses of papilionid butterflies and Ophraella leaf beetles and their host plants have revealed that host shifts are most likely to occur among chemically similar plants, even though cladograms of these insects and their host plants are not congruent (68, 131, 132). In addition, introduced plants are generally colonized by insects that feed on chemically similar plants; those with impoverished faunas are biochemically or taxonomically unusual (214, 250). Finally, within a defined set of hosts, insect herbivores have been found to
Evidence of inbreeding depression in the critically endangered parrot, the kakapo

Decreased genome‐wide heterozygosity of inbred individuals can result in reduced survival and reproductive fitness (i.e. inbreeding depression). However, showing such heterozygosity–fitness correlations in endangered species, especially those that are already genetically impoverished, has proven to be difficult. New Zealand's kakapo (Strigops habroptilus) is a critically endangered, flightless parrot that now survives only on islands free of introduced predators. The recent population bottleneck of 51 individuals, lek mating system (where only females care for eggs and young) and the fact that all but one of the population's founders came from the same insular population, render them particularly susceptible to inbreeding depression. The present study uses 25 microsatellite loci to derive estimates of relatedness to investigate heterozygosity–fitness correlations in kakapo. After accounting for the effects of co‐variables, there was no evidence that male heterozygosity affected variation in egg fertility, but there was evidence that female heterozygosity affected fecundity (i.e. clutch size) and hatching success; that is, more homozygous females lay smaller clutches and had lower hatching success. The present study detected significant heterozygosity–fitness correlations and demonstrates that inbreeding is a contributing factor towards relatively low hatching success, which in turn reduces population growth in this highly endangered, flightless parrot.
Identification and characterization of a novel virulence-Associated metalloprotease from aeromonas hydrophila.

Received: Revised: Accepted: January 22, 2014 May 29, 2014 July 02, 2014 Aeromonas hydrophila is an important fish pathogen causing hemorrhagic septicemia. Proteolytic enzymes may play a critical role in invasive infections of this bacterium. In this paper, a 426-aa protease (designated ahMP) with zincbinding motif was identified. SDS-PAGE analysis indicated that the recombinant ahMP was 64 kDa in size. The ahMP protease was classified as a zinc-dependent metalloprotease as its activity could be inhibited by zinc specific metal and metal ion chelators. The cells inoculated with ahMP underwent progressively cytopathic changes. To further confirm the role of this protease in A. hydrophila, we perform challenge experiments in fish and mice. In the ahMP-injected fish, death occurred within 48 h and the death rate was up to 16.7% (5/30), while most of ahMP-injected mice (8/10) showed clinical signs although there were no deaths. The organs from ahMP-injected mice and fish showed similar histopathological changes, including extensive vascular alterations, exudative lesions and cell necrosis. Together, these results suggest that a novel A. hydrophila metalloprotease, ahMP, is identified and is likely an important contributor to pathogenicity of this bacterium in fish. ©2014 PVJ. All rights reserved
Use of Lake Areas in Winter by Woodland Caribou

Abstract Understanding space-use patterns of highly mobile animals, such as woodland caribou (Rangifer tarandus caribou Gmelin), is required for ecosystem conservation. We consider the use of lakes in winter as important habitat for woodland caribou both to reduce predation risk and acquire food. To test scale differences relative to caribou use of ice-covered lakes in winter, we compare the use of ice-covered lakes within a regional study area and within sub-regional landscapes at two spatial levels: (1) seasonal selection of winter ranges and (2) daily locations. We used 100% minimum convex polygons with a 500-m buffer for winter ranges, and 500-m radius buffer around individual radio telemetry locations of 27 caribou from 1995 to 2000 as spatial measures of use of lakes of various dimensions by caribou. In the winter-range analysis, caribou used areas with more lakes in the 5–100-ha size class, including lakes with more perimeter, larger area, and higher fractal dimensions as compared with the relative distribution of available lakes. These patterns were confirmed at the regional level (Manitoba border in the west to the Hudson Bay lowlands to the east) and at the sub-regional level. At the finest level of resolution of daily locations, caribou selected lakes with greater area and perimeter in the west but not in the east. Our findings should be considered when developing local plans for forest management and designing landscapes where the conservation of woodland caribou is a goal.