Foraging by the endangered black-breasted button-quail (Turnix melanogaster) within fragmented rainforest of an agricultural landscape

We studied the foraging habitat of the endangered black-breasted button-quail (Turnix melanogaster) in 13 rainforest patches of an agricultural landscape (23.4 km(2)) in eastern Australia to assess its use of fragmented habitats outside conservation reserves. The species foraged only in the three largest patches (17.4, 40.0, 63.8 ha in size), all of which were connected to open eucalypt forest, and in intact rainforest. Occurrence of birds was greatest in the largest patch. The maximum number of individuals within the study area was estimated to be 22. Radio-tracking of nine birds revealed that three were resident in the largest patch for periods of over 100 days; no movements between patches were detected. Three radio-tagged birds were taken by avian and mammalian predators. Our results indicated that the long-term future of the species in agricultural landscapes is bleak and that management action is urgently needed to arrest its decline in these ecosystems, (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

The effect of leaf area reduction on corn plants during the reproduction phase

Reduction in leaf area in corn plants during reproduction changes physiological metabolism and consequently the accumulation of dry matter in grains. The aim of this work was to study changes in agronomic characteristics caused by defoliation in corn during the reproduction phase. The experiment was carried out in Uberlândia, Minas Gerais state, in the agricultural year 2007/2008. The experiment was arranged in a randomized block design, consisting of seven treatments: control without defoliation, removal of two apical leaves, removal of four apical leaves, removal of all leaves above spike, removal of four intermediate leaves, removal of all leaves below spike, and removal of all plant leaves, with five repetitions. The genotype used for the evaluations was hybrid NB 7376. Defoliation was carried out when plants were at the growth stage R2. The variables assessed were: yield, density of spikes and corncobs, root resistance and stem integrity. When all leaves above the spike were removed, grain yield was reduced by 20%. Corncob density, stem integrity and root resistance to uprooting were also affected. Spike density was only affected when all plant leaves were removed. The leaf area remaining physiologically active above the spike was found to be most efficient in terms of grain yield.

Efficiency Measures in the Agricultural Sector: With Applications

Copyright 2013 Springer Netherlands.

Social network analysis applied to knowledge creation and transfer in the portuguese agricultural R&D field: an exploratory study

Paper presented at the 9th European Conference on Knowledge Management, Southampton Solent University, Southampton, UK, 4-5 Sep. 2008. URL: http://academic-conferences.org/eckm/eckm2008/eckm08-home.htm

A multivariate analysis of socio-demographic factors, water contact patterns and Schistosoma mansoni infection in an endemic area in Brazil

Associations between socio-demographic factors, water contact patterns and Schistosoma mansoni infection were investigated in 506 individuals (87% of inhabitants over 1 year of age) in an endemic area in Brazil (Divino), aiming at determining priorities for public health measures to prevent the infection. Those who eliminated S. mansoni eggs (n = 198) were compared to those without eggs in the stools (n = 308). The following explanatory variables were considered: age, sex, color, previous treatment with schistosomicide, place of birth, quality of the houses, water supply for the household, distance from houses to stream, and frequency and reasons for water contact. Factors found to be independently associated with the infection were age (10-19 and > 20 yrs old), and water contact for agricultural activities, fishing, and swimming or bathing (Adjusted relative odds = 5.0, 2.4, 3.2, 2.1 and 2.0, respectively). This suggests the need for public health measures to prevent the infection, emphasizing water contact for leisure and agricultural activities in this endemic area.

Brazilian mosquito (Diptera: Culicidae) fauna: I. Anopheles species from Porto Velho, Rondônia state, western Amazon, Brazil

This study contributes to knowledge of Anopheles species, including vectors of Plasmodium from the western Brazilian Amazon in Porto Velho, Rondônia State. The sampling area has undergone substantial environmental changes as a consequence of agricultural and hydroelectric projects, which have caused intensive deforestation and favored habitats for some mosquito species. The purpose of this study was to diagnose the occurrence of anopheline species from collections in three locations along an electric-power transmission line. Each locality was sampled three times from 2010 to 2011. The principal adult mosquitoes captured in Shannon trap were Anopheles darlingi, An. triannulatus, An. nuneztovari l.s., An.gilesi and An. costai. In addition, larvae were collected in ground breeding sites for Anopheles braziliensis, An. triannulatus, An. darlingi, An. deaneorum, An. marajoara, An. peryassui, An. nuneztovari l.s. and An. oswaldoi-konderi. Anopheles darlingi was the most common mosquito in the region. We discuss Culicidae systematics, fauna distribution, and aspects of malaria in altered habitats of the western Amazon.

Urban land use and land cover change analysis and modeling a case study area Malatya, Turkey

Dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Geospatial Technologies.

Dispersión agrícola y cambio social en las Sierras de Córdoba (ca. 1000 a C.- 1600 d C.) Agricultural spread and social change in Córdoba Hills (ca. 1000 b C- 1600 a D.)

El proceso cultural en las Sierras de Córdoba fue habitualmente concebido como marginal con respecto al Noroeste Argentino. Tras el establecimiento del esquema básico de la secuencia prehispánica, a mediados del siglo pasado, se definió una etapa agroalfarera de cronología tardía, que continuaba a una extensa etapa precerámica cuyos límites se aproximaban a la transición Pleistoceno-Holoceno. Se hacía referencia, de este modo, al advenimiento de un modo de vida agrícola y aldeano, que reemplazaba a otro basado en la caza y recolección. Dicha transformación, alternativamente atribuida a la población cazadora local o a una migración de grupos agricultores desde regiones vecinas, se habría consumado hacia 1500 AP, fijando uno de los límites de la dispersión de la agricultura andina. Es necesario destacar la extremada escasez y el carácter indirecto de las evidencias arqueológicas utilizadas para sustentar la ocurrencia de tal proceso. Asimismo, la vigencia de supuestos que han comenzado a mostrar inconsistencias con los resultados de las recientes investigaciones. Entre ellos, principalmente, el que asume que la introducción de la agricultura dio paso a una transformación radical de las sociedades prehispánicas, constituyendo un hito fundamental en su devenir histórico, el comienzo de una nueva etapa. Nuestros últimos estudios en el sector central de las Sierras de Córdoba apuntaron, entre otros objetivos, a reconocer indicadores arqueológicos directos de producción agrícola, así como de la manipulación y consumo de plantas cultivadas. Los primeros resultados nos permiten vislumbrar un escenario complejo que desafía los modelos vigentes. El consumo de maíz, por ejemplo, parece haber antecedido por muchos siglos a la adopción de prácticas agrícolas. El acceso a este cultígeno, sumado a otros elementos, indicaría cambios entre los cazadores-recolectores serranos, promovidos por su integración en redes macrorregionales que los vincularon con sociedades agricultoras de la vertiente oriental andina y quizás del Chaco Santiagueño, por lo menos desde 2500 AP. En definitiva, la agricultura no parece haber sido adoptada rápidamente ni provocado transformaciones profundas e inmediatas en la organización de los grupos prehispánicos. Se ha observado, por el contrario, la incorporación gradual de distintas innovaciones que incluso permiten relacionar la manipulación y más tarde el cultivo de plantas domesticadas, con procesos de intensificación productiva de mayor escala temporal. Uno de nuestros objetivos en este proyecto consiste, básicamente, en profundizar las investigaciones en curso a fin de ampliar el cuerpo de datos con el cual analizar y discutir el problema de la dispersión agrícola en la región. Ello implica el tratamiento de diferentes líneas de evidencia, en particular: 1) la distribución regional de sitios arqueológicos y las modalidades de ocupación de las tierras cultivables; 2) la búsqueda de superficies de cultivo en sitios estratificados; y 3) estudios arqueobotánicos, polínicos y de isótopos estables. Se entiende que no le corresponde a la arqueología asumir apriorísticamente el significado histórico de la introducción de la agricultura, sino establecerlo en cada caso puntual a través de la investigación concreta. Nuestro segundo objetivo consiste, por lo tanto, en delinear los cambios (económicos, tecnológicos, políticos, sociales) que acompañaron al proceso de dispersión agrícola. Ello implica el tratamiento de diferentes problemas, entre otros: 1) las prácticas de apropiación de los recursos silvestres; 2) la continuidad y cambio tecnológico; 3) la movilidad y la articulación microambiental; y 4) los aspectos políticos y sociales ligados a prácticas como la molienda grupal y la producción del arte rupestre. The radical chage of societies from hunter-gatherers to farmers in 1500 BP was considered a milestone whitin the cultural process of pre-hispanic societies in Cordoba Hill. But there is a shortage of archaeological remains to support this change and there are weak hypotheses of absolute transformations. During the last years, our studies carried out on the central area of Cordoba Hill have tried to recognize direct archaeological signs of agriculture production as well as the handling and consumption of crops. The first results show a complex set that challenges the current theoretical models. For example, the corn was probably eatten prior to its adoption for farm practices. Our first main consists in increasing a corpus of data about the spread of agriculture in Cordoba region that we have been researching for the last years. These researches involve different lines of evidence: 1-regional location of archaeological sites and kinds of occupation on cultivable lands; 2-the search for plots at archaeological sites; 3-archaeobotanical, pollen and stable isotopes studies. Our second main consists in outlining changes within the spread of agriculture. It implies to considering different problems: 1-the practices to gatherer wild resources; 2-the continuity and changes of technologies; 3-the mobility and the articulation on the micro-environment; 4-political and social aspects in connection with activities such as groupal grinding and rock art productions.

Bird community in an Araucaria forest fragment in relation to changes in the surrounding landscape in Southern Brazil

The dynamics of the bird community in a small forest fragment was evaluated along seven years in relation to changes in the surrounding landscape. The study area is an Araucaria forest fragment in Southern Brazil (state of Paraná). The sampling period covered the years 1988 through 1994 and the mark-release-recapture method was utilized. The landscape analysis was based on Landsat TM images, and changes in exotic tree plantations, native forest, open areas (agriculture, pasture, bare soil, and abandoned field), and "capoeira"(native vegetation < 2 m) were quantified. The relationship between landscape changes and changes in abundance diversity of forest birds, open-area birds, forest-edge birds, and bamboo specialists was evaluated. Richness estimates were run for each year studied. The richness recorded in the study area comprised 96 species. The richness estimates were 114, 118 and 110 species for Chao 1, Jackknife 1 and Bootstrap, respectively. The bird community varied in species richness, abundance and diversity from year to year. As for species diversity, 1991, 1993 and 1994 were significantly different from the other years. Changes in the landscape contributed to the increase in abundance and richness for the groups of forest, open-area and bamboo-specialist species. An important factor discussed was the effect of the flowering of "taquara" (Poaceae), which contributed significantly to increasing richness of bamboo seed eaters, mainly in 1992 and 1993. In general, the results showed that landscape changes affected the dynamics and structure of the bird community of this forest fragment over time, and proved to have an important role in conservation of the avian community in areas of intensive forestry and agricultural activities.

A concentric analysis of the impact of urbanization on the threatened European tree frog in an agricultural landscape

Pond-breeding amphibians are affected by site-specific factors and regional and landscape-scale patterns of land use. Recent anthropogenic landscape modifications (drainage, agriculture intensification, larger road networks, and increased traffic) affect species by reducing the suitable habitat area and fragmenting remaining populations. Using a robust concentric approach based on permutation tests, we evaluated the impact of recent landscape changes on the presence of the endangered European tree frog (Hyla arborea.) in wetlands. We analyzed the frequency of 1 traffic and 14 land-use indices at 20 circular ranges (from 100-m up to 2-km radii) around 76 ponds identified in western Switzerland. Urban areas and road surfaces had a strong adverse effect on tree frog presence even at relatively great distances (from 100 m up to 1 km). When traffic measurements were considered instead of road surfaces, the effect increased, suggesting a negative impact due to a vehicle-induced effect. Altogether, our results indicate that urbanization and traffic must be taken into account when pond creation is an option in conservation management plans, as is the case for the European tree frog in western Switzerland. We conclude that our easy-to-use and robust concentric method of analysis can successfully assist managers in identifying potential sites for pond creation, where probability of the presence of tree frogs is maximized.

Habitat, breeding performance, diet and individual age in Swiss barn owls (Tyto alba)

Intensification of farming over the past 50 years has homogenised the landscape structure and contributed to the decline of bird populations in Europe. To better target the conservation of the Barn Owl Tyto alba, we assessed the influence of the landscape structure on breeding performance in western Switzerland. The analyses considered a 23-year data set of breeding parameters collected in an area dominated by intensive agriculture. Using a Geographic Information System approach, landscape characteristics were described around 194 nest sites. Our analyses showed that nest-box occupancy, laying date, clutch and brood size, egg volume and probability of producing a second annual clutch were not significantly associated with any of the eight principal landscape variables (agricultural land, woodland, urban area, hedgerows, cereals, sugar beet, maize and meadow). Nevertheless, the probability that a breeding pair occupied a nest-box decreased the more roads there were surrounding the nest-box. The absence of strong associations between habitat features and breeding parameters suggests that prey availability may be relatively similar between the different breeding sites. In our study area Barn Owls can always find suitable foraging habitats around most nest-boxes.

Could Hyperglycaemia and Troponin I predict outcome in intensive care after congenital heart surgery in children?

Objective: To establish if hyperglycaemia and cardiac Troponin I (cTnI) after congenital heart surgery on cardiopulmonary bypass in children could predict outcome in intensive care unit. Methods: retrospective cohort study including 274 children (mean age 4.6 years; range 0 - 17 years-old). CTnI and glucose values were retrieved from our database. Integrated values (area under the curve (AUC)) were calculated for evaluation of sustained hyperglycaemia and then normalised per hour (48h-Gluc/h). Maximal cTnI, fi rst glucose value (Gluc1) and 48h-Gluc/h were then correlated with duration of mechanical ventilation, ICU stay and mortality using cut-off values. Results: The mean duration of mechanical ventilation was 5.1 ± 7.2 days and ICU stay was 11.0 ± 13.3 days, 11 patients (3.9%) died. Hyperglycaemia (>6.1 mmol/l) was present in 68% of children at admission and was sustained in 85% for 48 hours. The mean value of Gluc1 (7.3 ± 2.7 vs. 11.8 ± 6.4 mmol/l, p < 0.0001), 48h-Gluc/h (7.4 ± 1.4 vs. 9.9 ± 4.6 mmol/l/h, p < 0.0001) and cTnI max (16.7 ± 21.8 vs. 59.2 ± 41.4 mcg/l, p < 0.0001) were signifi cantly lower in survivors vs. non survivors. Cut-off values and odds ratio are summarised in Table 1. Analyses for duration of mechanical ventilation and for length of stay in ICU are depicted in Table 2. Conclusions: Hyperglycaemia is frequent after cardiopulmonary bypass and sustained in the fi rst 48 hours. Admission glycaemia and cTnI max are associated with a high risk of mortality, prolonged duration of mechanical ventilation and prolonged length of stay in ICU.

Absence of domestic triatomine colonies in an area of the coastal region of Ecuador where Chagas disease is endemic

Rhodnius ecuadoriensis is considered the second most important vector of Chagas disease in Ecuador. It is distributed across six of the 24 provinces and occupies intradomiciliary, peridomiciliary and sylvatic habitats. This study was conducted in six communities within the coastal province of Guayas. Triatomine searches were conducted in domestic and peridomestic habitats and bird nests using manual searches, live-bait traps and sensor boxes. Synantrhopic mammals were captured in the domestic and peridomestic habitats. Household searches (n = 429) and randomly placed sensor boxes (n = 360) produced no live triatomine adults or nymphs. In contrast, eight nymphs were found in two out of six searched Campylorhynchus fasciatus (Troglodytidae) nests. Finally, Trypanosoma cruzi DNA was amplified from the blood of 10% of the 115 examined mammals. Environmental changes in land use (intensive rice farming), mosquito control interventions and lack of intradomestic adaptation are suggested among the possible reasons for the lack of domestic triatomine colonies.

Wildflower areas within revitalized agricultural matrices boost small mammal populations but not breeding Barn Owls

Agro-ecosystems have recently experienced dramatic losses of biodiversity due to more intensive production methods. In order to increase species diversity, agri-environment schemes provide subsidies to farmers who devote a fraction of their land to ecological compensation areas (ECA). Several studies have shown that invertebrate biodiversity is actually higher in ECA than in nearby intensively cultivated farmland. It remains poorly understood, however, to what extent ECA also favour vertebrates, such as small mammals and their predators, which would contribute to restore functioning food chains within revitalized agricultural matrices. We studied small mammal populations among eight habitat types - including wildflower areas, a specific ECA in Switzerland - and habitat selection (radiotracking) by the barn owl Tyto alba, one of their principal predators. Our prediction was that habitats with higher abundances of small mammals would be more visited by foraging Barn owls during the period of chicks' provisioning. Small mammal abundance tended to be higher in wildflower areas than in any other habitat type. Barn owls, however, preferred to forage in cereal fields and grassland. They avoided all types of crops other than cereals, as well as wildflower areas, which suggests that they do not select their hunting habitat primarily with respect to prey density. Instead of prey abundance, prey accessibility may play a more crucial role: wildflower areas have a dense vegetation cover, which may impede access to prey for foraging owls. The exploitation of wildflower areas by the owls might be enhanced by creating open foraging corridors within or around wildflower areas. Wildflower areas managed in that way might contribute to restore functioning food chains within agro-ecosystems.

Get a GRIP: Should Area Revenue Coverage Be Offered through the Farm Bill or as a Crop Insurance Program? 2007

The successful expansion of the U.S. crop insurance program has not eliminated ad hoc disaster assistance. An alternative currently being explored by members of Congress and others in preparation of the 2007 farm bill is to simply remove the “ad hoc” part of disaster assistance programs by creating a standing program that would automatically funnel aid to hard-hit regions and crops. One form such a program could take can be found in the area yield and area revenue insurance programs currently offered by the U.S. crop insurance program. The Group Risk Plan (GRP) and Group Risk Income Protection (GRIP) programs automatically trigger payments when county yields or revenues, respectively, fall below a producer-elected coverage level. The per-acre taxpayer costs of offering GRIP in Indiana, Illinois, and Iowa for corn and soybeans through the crop insurance program are estimated. These results are used to determine the amount of area revenue coverage that could be offered to farmers as part of a standing farm bill disaster program. Approximately 55% of taxpayer support for GRIP flows to the crop insurance industry. A significant portion of this support comes in the form of net underwriting gains. The expected rate of return on money put at risk by private crop insurance companies under the current Standard Reinsurance Agreement is approximately 100%. Taking this industry support and adding in the taxpayer support for GRIP that flows to producers would fund a county target revenue program at the 93% coverage level.