bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Recruitment of grey and red‐legged partridges (Perdix perdix and Alectoris rufa) in relation to population density and habitat
Authors: Rands M. R. W. 
Published: March 2009

The recruitment of first‐year grey and red‐legged partridges into subsequent breeding populations was investigated on 17 study areas in Britain.The density of birds recruited per unit area increased with the density of birds available in their first autumn for potential recruitment in the following spring but decreased with adult density. The relationship between recruitment and adult density, while always negative, differed significantly between areas. These differences were correlated with variation in the amount of nesting habitat available to both species of partridge and with variation in nesting habitat quality. Recruitment of grey partridges was related to length of available nesting habitat, the amount of residual dead grass in the nesting cover, and earth bank height at the base of the nesting cover. Recruitment of red‐legged partridges was also related to length of nesting habitat, together with the amount of nettle in the nesting cover.It is suggested that the attractiveness of different areas to settling recruits is determined by the amount and quality of nesting habitat available.
Predation by domestic cats in an English village
Authors: Churcher P. B. , Lawton J. H. 
Published: March 2009

We studied predation by approximately 70 domestic cats (Felis catus L.) in the Bedfordshire village of Felmersham over a one‐year period. All the prey items brought home by virtually all the cats in the village were recorded and, where possible, identified. A total of 1090 prey items (535 mammals, 297 birds and 258 unidentified animals) were taken, an average of about 14 per cat per year. Twenty two species of birds and 15 species of mammals were identified. The most important items were woodmice (17%), house sparrows (16%) and bank voles (14%).Old cats of both sexes caught fewer prey over the year than young cats. Female cats on the edge of the village also caught more prey than female cats in intermediate or central areas of the village; male cats showed no such effect. The type of prey caught also varied with position in the village; ‘core’ cats caught proportionately more birds than ‘edge’ cats. There was some indication in the data that cats caught fewer prey in areas where cat density was highest, but this effect was impossible to disentangle from position in the village. Weather apparently influenced hunting success. Temperature had no direct influence, but fewer prey were caught in winter; cats also caught less on wet days and windy days.Estimates of the number of house sparrows in the village at the start of the breeding season, and the number of sparrows known to have been caught by the cats, suggest that at least 30% of the sparrow deaths in the village were due to cats. Domestic cats would appear to be major predators in this typical English village.
Static intraspecific allometry of jaws and teeth in Cercopithecus aethiops
Authors: Kieser J. A. , Groeneveld H. T. 
Published: March 2009

Adult static intraspecific allometry of jaw size and tooth area was evaluated in a sample of 100 Cercopithecus aethiops crania (50 male, 50 female). Tooth areas were calculated from mesiodistal and buccolingual measurements of all the teeth in both arcades and were scaled to four viscero‐cranial measurements: bimaxillary breadth, maxillo‐alveolar length, mandibular length and bigonial width. Allometric coefficients calculated for jaw dimensions alone indicate tighter viscerocranial integration in females than in males. A finding of note was that half of the variation in maxillo‐alveolar length may be accounted for by variation in mandibular length: females are isometric, males negatively allometric.A similar degree of allometric mosaicism was found when maxillary incisor size was scaled to maxillary length and width. In females, the relationship was negatively allometric, whilst incisor size in males was found to be unrelated to either. Negative allometry characterized the relationship of canine base area to jaw length in both sexes, with males additionally being positively allometric to mandibular width.The scaling of postcanine tooth areas to jaw length was characterized by a dichotomous pattern: males showed significant mandibular integration whilst females showed only significant maxillary integration. Compensatory tooth size interaction between maxillary canine base area and the summed incisor and postcanine areas was suggested by the significant negative allometric relation between them.
Home range use and habitat selection by Red deer (Cerrus elaphus) in a Sitka spruce plantation as determined by radio‐tracking
Authors: CATT D. C. , STAINES B. W. 
Published: March 2009

The home range behaviour and habitat selection by Red deer (Cervus elaphus L.) in a mixed‐age Sitka spruce plantation was studied from1979–82 using radio‐telemetry. Females used areas with rides, young replanted and pre‐thicket crops, older stands where there were checked trees, more in proportion to availability than old closed‐canopy stands, open‐hill ground and high‐elevation newly‐established forest. They used open areas more at night, dusk and dawn, and the more secluded thickets during the day. Compared to females, young males were found more in older stands, high‐altitude young plantation and on open‐hill ground.Home range size (406–1008 ha for females and1062–3059 ha for males) was smaller for animals with a high proportion of favourable habitats in their range, although larger range size did not incorporate a higher total area of favourable habitat. Individual ranges overlapped.Females used the same range from season to season and from year to year. Intensity of range usage is discussed. Males dispersed a mean distance of 15 km from their area of capture during their first or second year of age. One young male used different areas each season after dispersal. Females centred their activity in the same river catchment from season to season, but male activity centres changed from one catchment to another.Comparison is made with the results of studies of habitat selection in the same forest using dung‐accumulation techniques, and with the ranging behaviour of Red deer on open‐hill ground.
Microclimatic adaptation and differences in food consumption and assimilation efficiency of different shell colour morphs of the land snail Arianta arbustorum
Authors: ABDEL‐REHIM A. H. 
Published: March 2009

Food consumption and assimilation efficiency of different shell colour morphs adapted to various microclimatic conditions were determined. Five‐factor analysis of variance (adaptation temperature, relative humidity, phenotypic shell colour, age class and time of acclimatization) was used. There are differences between different levels of adaptation temperature and relative humidity in the effect on food consumption in the two morphs. The interaction of these two factors is also significant. There is no effect of the phenotypic shell colour on the food consumption, but there is a relation between shell colour and adaptation temperature. Food consumption is greater in the juveniles. The interactions between age class and adaptation temperature or relative humidity are relevant. Acclimatization to these conditions shows a highly significant effect on the food consumption. The brown and yellow morphs of Arianta arbustorum consumed different amounts of food in relation to the adaptation temperature.Assimilation efficiency is independent of temperature but declines at high relative humidity. There is a relation between adaptation temperature and relative humidity, but not between the phenotypic shell colour and age class factors. The yellow morphs show higher assimilation efficiencies than the brown morphs during cold adaptation to 5 °C and at the highest level of relative humidity (98%).
The Vetigastropoda and the systematics of streptoneurous Gastropoda (Mollusca)
Authors: SALVINI‐PLAWEN L. V. , HASZPRUNAR G. 
Published: March 2009

The status of the Vetigastropoda, created 1980 to unite zeugobranch and trochoid archaeo‐gastropods, is reconsidered and confirmed in the light of recent investigations. The most important synapomorphic characters of the Vetigastropoda are the ctenidial sense organs (so‐called bursicles), the epipodial sense organs, and the special structure of the oesophagus. The conditions of the archaeogastropod oesophagus are comparatively described.An examination of the relationships of the Vetigastropoda establishes the archaeogastropod nature of the Architaenioglossa. It also demonstrates the monophyletic origin of all higher gastropods, including the Caenogastropoda (s.str.) as well as the Pentaganglionata (= Euthy‐neura). The Campanilidae, Valvatidae, Rissoellidae, Omalogyridae, and the Allogastropoda (= Architectonicoidea and Pyramidelloidea) share characteristics with both of the above‐mentioned groups, but cannot be classified within any of them. These groups are regarded as subsequent offshoots between the caenogastropod and the pentaganglionate level of organization. The level of Archaeogastropoda is redefined by the hypoathroid/dystenoid nervous system and simple tentacle nerves; the remaining Streptoneura are classified as Apogastropoda with epiathroid nervous system, parapedal commissure, and bifurcated tentacle nerves.
Sexual segregation in winter, spring dispersal and habitat use in the pheasant (Phasianus colchicus)
Authors: Hill D. A. , Ridley M. W. 
Published: March 2009

Sexual segregation, spring dispersal and late winter to spring habitat selection were studied in the pheasantPhasianus colchicusL. on two areas for which the proportions of different habitats were similar. On one of the sites (Damerham) hand‐reared pheasants were released for shooting. On the other (Fulwell) no releasing or shooting took place.The sex ratio of birds feeding in fields in autumn favoured males because females fed in groups within woods. Groups of birds were significantly segregated by sex during early to late winter periods, but by late March they were not. Male groups and solitary males in winter were more evenly dispersed than female groups.At Fulwell, female winter groups consisted of regular group members (mainly adults) and transitory individuals called ‘drifters’ (mainly immatures).Females in their first breeding attempt dispersed further from their winter range to their breeding range than did adult females and females dispersed further than males. Males gaining a territory for the first time moved significantly further than old territory owners. Territorial males moved less than non‐territorial males between successive spring ranges.During March June, habitat use by 33 radio‐tagged females changed markedly from mixed and deciduous woodland to fields sown with winter and spring corn. The implications for management are outlined.
Late endocytic dysfunction as a putative cause of amyloid fibril formation in Alzheimer’s disease
Authors: Yuyama Kohei , Yanagisawa Katsuhiko 
Published: March 2009

AbstractThe assembly of amyloid β‐protein to amyloid fibrils is a critical event in Alzheimer’s disease. Evidence exists that endocytic pathway abnormalities, including the enlargement of early endosomes, precede the extraneuronal amyloid fibril deposition in the brain. We determined whether endocytic dysfunction potently promotes the assembly of amyloid β‐protein on the surface of cultured cells. Blocking the early endocytic pathway by clathrin suppression, inactivation of small GTPases, removal of membrane cholesterol, and Rab5 knockdown did not result in amyloid fibril formation on the cell surface from exogenously added soluble amyloid β‐protein. In contrast, blocking the late endocytic pathway by Rab7 suppression markedly induced the amyloid fibril formation in addition to the enlargement of early endosomes. Notably, a monoclonal antibody specific to GM1‐ganglioside‐bound amyloid β‐protein, an endogenous seed for Alzheimer amyloid, completely blocks the amyloid fibril formation. Our results suggest that late but not early endocytic dysfunction contributes to the amyloid fibril formation by facilitating the generation of amyloid seed in the Alzheimer’s brain.
Prenatal ethanol exposure persistently impairs NMDA receptor‐dependent activation of extracellular signal‐regulated kinase in the mouse dentate gyrus
Authors: Samudio‐Ruiz Sabrina L. , Allan Andrea M. , Valenzuela Carlos Fernando , Perrone‐Bizzozero Nora I. , Caldwell Kevin K. 
Published: March 2009

AbstractThe dentate gyrus (DG) is the central input region to the hippocampus and is known to play an important role in learning and memory. Previous studies have shown that prenatal alcohol is associated with hippocampal‐dependent learning deficits and a decreased ability to elicit long‐term potentiation (LTP) in the DG in adult animals. Given that activation of the extracellular signal‐regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) signaling cascade by NMDA receptors is required for various forms of learning and memory, as well as LTP, in hippocampal regions, including the DG, we hypothesized that fetal alcohol‐exposed adult animals would have deficits in hippocampal NMDA receptor‐dependent ERK1/2 activation. We used immunoblotting and immunohistochemistry techniques to detect NMDA‐stimulated ERK1/2 activation in acute hippocampal slices prepared from adult fetal alcohol‐exposed mice. We present the first evidence linking prenatal alcohol exposure to deficits in NMDA receptor‐dependent ERK1/2 activation specifically in the DG of adult offspring. This deficit may account for the LTP deficits previously observed in the DG, as well as the life‐long cognitive deficits, associated with prenatal alcohol exposure.
Inhibition of transmitter release from rat sympathetic neurons via presynaptic M1muscarinic acetylcholine receptors
Authors: Kubista H , Kosenburger K , Mahlknecht P , Drobny H , Boehm S 
Published: March 2009

Background and purpose: M2, M3and/or M4muscarinic acetylcholine receptors have been reported to mediate presynaptic inhibition in sympathetic neurons. M1receptors mediate an inhibition of Kv7, CaV1 and CaV2.2 channels. These effects cause increases and decreases in transmitter release, respectively, but presynaptic M1receptors are generally considered facilitatory. Here, we searched for inhibitory presynaptic M1receptors.Experimental approach: In primary cultures of rat superior cervical ganglion neurons, Ca2+currents were recorded via the perforated patch‐clamp technique, and the release of [3H]‐noradrenaline was determined.Key results: The muscarinic agonist oxotremorine M (OxoM) transiently enhanced3H outflow and reduced electrically evoked release, once the stimulant effect had faded. The stimulant effect was enhanced by pertussis toxin (PTX) and was abolished by blocking M1receptors, by opening Kv7 channels and by preventing action potential propagation. The inhibitory effect was not altered by preventing action potentials or by opening Kv7 channels, but was reduced by PTX and ω‐conotoxin GVIA. The inhibition remaining after PTX treatment was abolished by blockage of M1receptors or inhibition of phospholipase C. When [3H]‐noradrenaline release was triggered independently of voltage‐activated Ca2+channels (VACCs), OxoM failed to cause any inhibition. The inhibition of Ca2+currents by OxoM was also reduced by ω‐conotoxin and PTX and was abolished by M1antagonism in PTX‐treated neurons.Conclusions and implications: These results demonstrate that M1, in addition to M2, M3and M4, receptors mediate presynaptic inhibition in sympathetic neurons using phospholipase C to close VACCs.
5‐hydroxytryptamine induced relaxation in the pig urinary bladder neck
Authors: Recio Paz , Barahona María Victoria , Orensanz Luis M , Bustamante Salvador , Martínez Ana Cristina , Benedito Sara , García‐Sacristán Albino , Prieto Dolores , Hernández Medardo 
Published: March 2009

Background and purpose: 5‐Hydroxytryptamine (5‐HT) is one of the inhibitory mediators in the urinary bladder outlet region. Here we investigated mechanisms involved in 5‐HT‐induced relaxations of the pig bladder neck.Experimental approach: Urothelium‐denuded strips of pig bladder were mounted in organ baths for isometric force recordings of responses to 5‐HT and electrical field stimulation (EFS).Key results: After phenylephrine‐induced contraction, 5‐HT and 5‐HT receptor agonists concentration‐dependently relaxed the preparations, with the potency order: 5‐carboxamidotryptamine (5‐CT) > 5‐HT = RS67333 > (±)‐8‐hydroxy‐2‐dipropylaminotetralinhydrobromide > m‐chlorophenylbiguanide > α‐methyl‐5‐HT > ergotamine. 5‐HT and 5‐CT relaxations were reduced by the 5‐HT7receptor antagonist (2R)‐1‐[(3‐hydroxyphenyl)sulphonyl]‐2‐[2‐(4‐methyl‐1‐piperidinyl)ethyl]pyrrolidine hydrochloride and potentiated by (S)‐N‐tert‐butyl‐3‐(4‐(2‐methoxyphenyl)‐piperazin‐1‐yl)‐2‐phenylpropanamide dihydrochloride (WAY 100135) and cyanopindolol, 5‐HT1Aand 5‐HT1A/1Breceptor antagonists respectively. Inhibitors of 5‐HT1B/1D, 5‐HT2, 5‐HT2B/2C, 5‐HT3, 5‐HT4, 5‐HT5Aand 5‐HT6receptors failed to modify 5‐HT responses. Blockade of monoamine oxidase A/B, noradrenergic neurotransmission, α‐adrenoceptors, muscarinic and purinergic receptors, nitric oxide synthase, guanylate cyclase and prostanoid synthesis did not alter relaxations to 5‐HT. Inhibitors of Ca2+‐activated K+and ATP‐dependent K+channels failed to modify 5‐HT responses but blockade of neuronal voltage‐gated Na+‐, Ca2+‐ and voltage‐gated K+(Kv)‐channels potentiated these relaxations. Adenylyl cyclase activation and cAMP‐dependent protein kinase (PKA) inhibition potentiated and reduced, respectively, 5‐HT‐induced responses. Under non‐adrenergic, non‐cholinergic, non‐nitrergic conditions, EFS induced neurogenic, frequency‐dependent, relaxations which were resistant to WAY 100135 and cyanopindolol.Conclusions and implications: 5‐HT relaxed the pig urinary bladder neck through muscle 5‐HT7receptors linked to the cAMP‐PKA pathway. Prejunctional 5‐HT1Areceptors and Kvchannels modulated 5‐HT‐induced relaxations whereas postjunctional K+channels were not involved in such responses. 5‐HT7receptor antagonists could be useful in the therapy of urinary incontinence produced by intrinsic sphincter deficiency.
Community Participatory Ecological Art and Education
Authors: Song Young Imm Kang 
Published: March 2009

AbstractThis paper presents a phenomenological case study on ecological artist Lynne Hull by investigating the connections between ecological art, nature, and education. The research examines Hull's ‘positive gesture towards the Earth’ as conceptualized in her work of creating habitats for wildlife (Hull, 2004, para 1). It illustrates how she seeks to inspire changes in human behaviour through her artwork in addition to developing action steps based on her works.Through an examination of Hull's work, the researcher explores how ecological art can inspire environmental education by presenting innovative ways of thinking about existing concepts. The paper discusses how educators can incorporate inquiries about ecological art into the school curriculum. Furthermore, it considers ways in which educators can adopt Hull's art‐making processes and integrate these into the curriculum. It argues that educators can help students to interact with these artworks and develop their own creative processes in a meaningful way that involves art, aesthetics, and nature – all of which may raise students' consciousness about the environment in themselves and others. Ultimately, appreciating the elements of nature and their connection to the aesthetic can become a vehicle for raising awareness about broader
Assessment Focus in Studio: What is Most Prominent in Architecture, Art and Design?
Authors: De La Harpe Barbara , Peterson J. Fiona , Frankham Noel , Zehner Robert , Neale Douglas , Musgrave Elizabeth , McDermott Ruth 
Published: March 2009

AbstractWhat can be learned about assessment from what educators in the creative practices focus their studio publications on? What should form the focus of assessment in architecture, art and design studios? In this article we draw on 118 journal articles on studio published over the last decade in three disciplines; architecture, art and design to inform the focus of studio assessment. We believe that what is published by educators themselves in these disciplines reveals what matters most to them. In addition, we argue that regardless of the primary emphasis placed in each discipline, assessment in studio should encompass a broad set of indicators. Within the wider literature including in architecture, art and design, a view of assessment is emerging that recognises the process and the person, beyond a view that positions the product or art/design arte‐fact above all else. Therefore, drawing on what educators in architecture, art and design mentioned most in the journal publications analysed, as well as the literature on good assessment, we offer a holistic model to guide and take studio assessment in the creative disciplines further.
The City of Richgate: A/r/tographic Cartography as Public Pedagogy
Authors: Irwin Rita L. , Bickel Barbara , Triggs Valerie , Springgay Stephanie , Beer Ruth , Grauer Kit , Xiong Gu , Sameshima Pauline 
Published: March 2009

AbstractThe City of Richgate project worked with eight intergenerational immigrant families and examined immigrant experiences and narratives through a community‐engaged process that employed a/r/tography as a methodology. As such, the research also investigated the extent to which a/r/tographical research could visually and narratively portray the analysis of data collected by the co‐a/r/tographers. After interviewing and collecting images from each family, large artistic gates (banners) were created. This first phase of the project revealed the power of images in situ, and thus the power of a/r/tography in situ. For the community members and co‐a/r/tographers meanings were constructed within ongoing a/r/tographic inquiries described as collective artistic and educational praxis. The second phase involved the identification of important places by each family within the City of Richmond. After analysing all of the data, several works of art were created with each family in mind: bus shelter images juxtaposing close‐up and far away geographical images; side‐by‐side images portraying historical and contemporary images of family ideals and/or issues; banners illustrating families in meaningful poses; and archival collections portraying the importance of identity and memory in the transformation of culture. This phase culminated in a citywide exhibition of the artwork performing public pedagogy. The exhibition questioned the idea of a City of Richmond having a community centre, and instead exhibited many Richgates, or conceptions of Richmond. Rather than having a city centre, there are many centres, a Network of Cities of Richgates, where centres are constantly changing and shifting to reflect the narratives of individuals living in a psycho‐geographical region of a city.
Predicting Performance in Art College: How Useful are the Entry Portfolio and Other Variables in Explaining Variance in First Year Marks?
Authors: O'Donoghue Donal 
Published: March 2009

AbstractThis article examines if and to what extent a set of pre‐enrolment variables and background characteristics predict first year performance in art college. The article comes from a four‐year longitudinal study that followed a cohort of tertiary art entrants in Ireland from their time of entry in 2002 to their time of exit in 2006 (or before, for those who failed or dropped out). Using descriptive and inferential statistics, the article shows that portfolio score at entry and school leaving examination results predict performance in first year. The predictive validity of both measures, however, was not particularly strong. Combined, portfolio score at entry and school leaving examination only accounted for 15.5 per cent of variance in first year marks, leaving a large percentage of variance unexplained.