Production and conservation of nutrient-rich small fish (SIS) in ponds and wetlands for nutrition security and livelihoods in South Asia: Proceedings of a World Bank/SAFANSI funded regional workshop on small fish and nutrition, Dhaka, Bangladesh, 1st - 2nd March 2014

Small indigenous fish species (SIS) are an important source of essential macro- and micronutrients that can play an important role in the elimination of malnutrition and micronutrient deficiencies in the populations of many South and Southeast Asian countries. Of the 260 freshwater fish species in Bangladesh, more than 140 are classified as SIS and are an integral part of the rural Bangladeshi diet. As many SIS are eaten whole, with organs and bones, they contain high amounts of vitamins and minerals, including calcium, and iron and zinc. Some SIS, such as mola, are also rich in vitamin A. SIS are often cooked with vegetables and a little oil, so they contribute to the food diversity of the rural poor.SIS are recognized as a major animal-source food group, contributing to improved food and nutrition security and livelihoods of the people of South and Southeast Asia. The purpose of this workshop is to bring together policy makers, extension agents, researchers, non-governmental and development organizations to share knowledge about small fish, their contribution to better nutrition, production technologies, and strategies for wider dissemination of pond culture and wetland based-production and conservation technologies. The workshop is expected to generate ideas for further research and development of sustainable technologies for production, management and conservation of SIS for the benefit of the people of Bangladesh as well as the South and Southeast Asian region.

Recent advances in our knowledge of the biology and conservation of mahseers

Mahseers (Tor khudree), at one time considered to be of single species, are now represented by 6 valid species distributed all over India. Studies on their food habits, ecology of spawning grounds, eggs, larval development and especially methods of artificial propagation have advanced in recent years. Transport of eggs of Tor khudree by air in moist cotton has been possible for easy distribution. Breeding of T. khudree not only by hypophysation, but even without it in small ponds by manipulation of flow of water, exercise and feed has also been possible. Fry and fingerlings of T. khudree are being distributed to many of the states in the country to help conserve the species.

Architectural research and its enemies

Like the Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) that preceded it, the UK government's proposed Research Excellence Framework (REF) is a means of allocating funding in higher education to support research. As with any method for the competitive allocation of funds it creates winners and losers and inevitably generates a lot of emotion among those rewarded or penalised. More specifically, the 'winners' tend to approve of the method of allocation and the 'losers' denigrate it as biased against their activities and generally unfair. An extraordinary press campaign has been consistently waged against research assessment and its methods by those involved in architectural education, which I will track over a decade and a half. What follows will question whether this campaign demonstrates the sophistication and superior judgment of those who have gone into print, or conversely whether its mixture of misinformation and disinformation reveals not just disenchantment and prejudice, but a naivety and a depth of ignorance about the fundamentals of research that is deeply damaging to the credibility of architecture as a research-based discipline. With the recent consultation process towards a new cycle of research assessment, the REF, getting under way, I aim to draw attention to the risk of repeating past mistakes. Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2010.

Habitat degradation and conservation status assessment of gallinaceous birds in the Trans-Himalayas, China

The greatest concentration of Chinese Galliformes occurs in the Trans-Himalayas. We selected 4 northwestern Yunnan counties (Lijiang, Shangri-la, Deqin, and Weixi) in the Trans-Himalayas to assess the conservation status of 9 gallinaceous forest birds. We

Genetic diversity and conservation of endangered animal species

The loss of biodiversity resulting from extinctions is receiving increasing attention. Over several thousands of animal species have been evaluated and recognized as endangered species. Inbreeding depression has been demonstrated in many wild animal speci

Mitochondrial control region sequence variation within the argali wild sheep (Ovis ammon): evolution and conservation relevance

The phylogenetic relationship of several subspecies of Ovis ammon were analyzed by comparing DNA sequences within the entire mitochondrial D-loop region. Five putative subspecies of ammon (dalai-lamae, darwini, hodgsoni, sairensis and adamerzi) were sampled from four provinces in China [Xinjiang, Qinghai, Gansu and Xizang (Tibet)] and two (servertzovi and nigrimontana) from Uzbekistan. The argalis sampled represent most of the currently recognized putative Subspecies of argali. Analysis of mtDNA sequences revealed high variability within ammon (7.7%), ranging from 2.4 to 11.5%. MaxiMUM-Parsimony tree indicated that nigrimontana from Uzbekistan diverged First, followed by severtzovi from Uzbekistan. The dispersal of argalis into China gave rise to three clades, suggesting that the argali originated in Western Asia and then dispersed throughout the central Asian highlands on a southeastward course. Among the Chinese argalis, mtDNA analysis places dalailamae genetically closer to hodgsoni than to darwini. Severtzovi and.. nigrimontana are two separate subspecies and genetically distinct from the Chinese argali.