Management of the ocean's living resources: An essay review

Abstract

The Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS III) focused primarily on the peaceful uses of ocean space. Although security issues were and are involved in many peaceful uses of ocean space, they were not explicitly addressed at UNCLOS III nor covered in the U.N. Convention on the Law of Sea. Since security issues are among the major neglected issues of ocean space, it is the purpose of this article to open the discussion of the legal and political aspects of these issues as relating to the law of the sea.     

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE VOCALIZATIONS OF DOMESTIC GOAT DOES CAPRA HIRCUS IN RESPONSE TO THEIR OFFSPRING'S CRIES

ABSTRACT

The vocalizations emitted by adult female domestic goats in response to their offspring's bleats were recorded, and sonograms were made and analyzed. The calls were segmented, atonal, and broad banded between 200 and 4,840 Hz. The energy was concentrated, on the average, around 1,258 Hz, a frequency close to the optimal hearing capabilities of the species. There were statistically significant individual differences for duration, number of segments, number of harmonics, peak frequency and fundamental frequency. Furthermore, using a discriminant function analysis we were able to correctly assign 76% of the calls to the individuals that emitted them. We concluded that the does have individually distinctive vocalizations, and that the physical characteristics of the bleats allow for locatability and ease of detection of the signal. Therefore, it is possible for the kids to be able to recognize and locate their mothers on the basis of auditory cues.     

ACOUSTIC COMMUNICATION SIGNALS OF MYSTICETE WHALES

ABSTRACT

Mysticete (baleen) whales produce a variety of vocalizations and sounds, but relatively few of these have been well described with accompanying behavior. This review concentrates on the vocalizations consistently associated with behavioral interactions or acoustic exchanges between or among conspecifics. These communication “signals” have been categorized for this review as contact calls of single animals outside of the breeding season (including cow-calf pairs), vocalizations reported during the breeding season (often designated as “songs”), and calls produced by active groups of whales that may or may not have a reproductive function. While much remains unknown, the data obtained thus far indicate that the social vocalizations of baleen whales have structural/functional similarities with those of other mammals and birds.     

Identification of different song types in the European Nightjar Caprimulgus europaeus

ABSTRACT

Capsule: Two distinct song types were identified for male European Nightjars Caprimulgus europaeus with their relative frequency of use changing through the breeding season, indicating a possible link to paired status.

Aims: To test whether two song types could be defined in audio recordings and whether use differed in relation to the paired status of males.

Methods: Unattended acoustic recording devices were placed at a Nightjar study site in Nottinghamshire, United Kingdom, and recordings of churring vocalizations were made during two periods of the breeding season. These recordings were then analyzed to identify the presence/absence of the song terminal phrase and associated audible features.

Results: Two distinct song types were identified in the recorded audio data that differed in their terminal phrasing and overall song duration. The number of Nightjar songs with a terminal phrase increased significantly between the two sampling periods, from lower levels during the site arrival period, to higher levels during the first clutch initiation period.

Conclusion: This study showed that the use of Nightjar song types appears to vary through the breeding season, with males being more likely to produce song with a terminal phrase during the first clutch initiation period, when they are more likely to be paired or in the presence of a female. The unattended acoustic recording method may provide a minimally intrusive means of assessing the number of Nightjar breeding pairs and not just singing males.     

Acoustic surveys of Water Rail Rallus aquaticus over-wintering on Alderney

ABSTRACT

A ‘call count’ survey of Water Rails Rallus aquaticus, using broadcast vocalizations to elicit a response, was carried out on Alderney over two consecutive winters. The species was found to be widespread on the island, with 34 birds found in both winters. Most, 62% in each winter, occurred in habitats associated with water, but 38% unexpectedly occupied drier habitat. The survey presents new information on Water Rail abundance, distribution and habitat use on the island, and indicates that the species does not always require access to wet ground in winter.     

A review of Killer Whale interactions with other marine mammals: predation to co-existence

Killer Whales are well-known as predators of other marine mammals, including the large Sperm and baleen whales. Members of all marine mammal families, except the river dolphins and manatees, have been recorded as prey of Killer Whales; attacks have been observed on 20 species of cetaceans, 14 species of pinnipeds, the Sea Otter, and the Dugong. Ecological interactions have not been systematically studied and further work may indicate that the Killer Whale is a more important predator for some populations than previously believed. Not all behavioural interactions between Killer Whales and other marine mammal species result in predation, however. Some involve 'harassment' by the Killer Whales, feeding by both species in the same area, porpoises playing around Killer Whales, both species apparently 'ignoring' each other, and even apparently unprovoked attacks on Killer Whales by sea lions. These non-predatory interactions are relatively common. We conclude that interactions between Killer Whales and marine mammals are complex, involving many different factors that we are just beginning to understand.     

A PRELIMINARY REPORT ON THE ACOUSTIC COMMUNICATION IN URUGUAYAN CTENOMYS (RODENTIA,OCTODONTIDAE): BASIC SOUND TYPES

ABSTRACT

Subterranean rodents are interesting organisms for communication studies because of their fossorial way of life. Acoustic communication in the South American genus Ctenomys has not yet been studied even though this species is geographically widespread. This paper represents a preliminary survey of Ctenomys vocalizations. Three types of vocal signals were identified: S-, C- and G-signals. Using field, laboratory and literature data, we provide interpretations on the possible functions of these signals. S-signals are harsh and low-pitched putative spatial localization signals that may also encode for sexual identification. C-signals are relatively high-pitched and narrow-banded FM vocalizations that are sexual signals used by females in a copulatory context. Finally, G-signals are harsh and patternless sounds that are aggressive signals used in direct encounters with con- or hetero- specific individuals.     

Interactants and activities on Facebook,Instagram, and Twitter: Associations between social media use and social adjustment to college

ABSTRACT

Research shows use of social media (SM) has important implications for college adjustment. However, most studies only focused on Facebook and did not attend to specific use patterns. Drawing on the activity-audience framework of social media use and literature of college adjustment, we examined the associations between use of Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter and college social adjustment. Regression and cluster analyses of survey data from 257 undergraduates (M_age?=?19.48) showed that SM interactants had stronger and more consistent associations with social adjustment than did activities. Using Facebook and Instagram with on-campus friends and family were related to better social adjustment; using Instagram with strangers was related to poorer adjustment. Students who frequently used all three SM to interact with off-campus friends were less adjusted than those who rarely used the platforms to interact with strangers. Some associations were moderated by SM activities. Implications of college students’ development in the digital age are discussed.     

Obsolescence in LCA–methodological challenges and solution approaches

Purpose

Obsolescence, as premature end of use, increases the overall number of products produced and consumed, and thereby can increase the environmental impact. Measures to decrease the effects of obsolescence by altering the product or service design have the potential to increase use time (defined as the realized active service life) of devices, but can themselves have (environmental) drawbacks, for example, because the amount of material required for production increases. As such, paying special attention to methodological choices when assessing such measures and strategies using life cycle assessment (LCA) needs is crucial.

Methods

Open questions and key aspects of obsolescence, including the analysis of its effects and preventative measures, are discussed against the backdrop of the principles and framework for LCA given in ISO 14040/44, which includes guidance on how to define a useful functional unit and reference flow in the context of real-life use time.

Results and discussion

The open and foundational requirements of ISO 14040/14044 already form an excellent basis for analysis of the phenomenon obsolescence and its environmental impact in product comparisons. However, any analysis presumes clear definition of the goal and scope phase with special attention paid to aspects relevant to obsolescence: the target product and user group needs to be placed into context with the analysed “anti-obsolescence” measures. The reference flow needs to reflect a realized use time (and not solely a technical lifetime when not relevant for the product under study). System boundaries and types of data need to be chosen also in context of the anti-obsolescence measure to include, for example, the production of spare parts to reflect repairable design and/or manufacturer-specific yields to reflect high-quality manufacturing.

Conclusions

Understanding the relevant obsolescence conditions for the product system under study and how these may differ across the market segment or user types is crucial for a fair and useful comparison and the evaluation of anti-obsolescence measures.

     

An investigation of the Common Jellyfish,Aurelia aurita,in the harbour of Trabzon

Summary

Some allometric relationships of the Common Jellyfish, Aurelia aurita, a common species along the Turkish Eastern Black Sea coast, were studied in the harbour of Trabzon. Log bell diameter was linearly related to log wet weight: wet weight = 0.61 . diameter^1.88. Some physico-chemical parameters of the sea water in the harbour are also given.     

AFROTROPICAL BIRD VOCALIZATIONS: A REVIEW OF CURRENT PROBLEMS

ABSTRACT

Knowledge of the vocalizations of Afrotropical birds is very limited and many problems exist. Seasonality of vocal activity has not been properly researched in the context of potential variability in the times of breeding. The different types of duetting and chorus singing, as exemplified by the African barbets, Capitonidae, need to be studied to correct the over-generalized treatment of this subject. Fuller information is required about geographic variation of those vocalizations which there is a tendency to use as criteria for taxonomic separation of species. Other problems which invite more research are mimicry, nocturnal and diurnal song, the extent of species' repertoires of calls, and vocalizations during breeding activities. There is an urgent need for more studies to be made of the vocal behaviour of birds in Africa where threats to the habitats are increasing so rapidly.     

A first test of unattended,acoustic recorders for monitoring Capercaillie Tetrao urogallus lekking activity

Capsule: Automated acoustic recording can be used as a valuable survey technique for Capercaillie Tetrao urogallus leks, improving the quality and quantity of field data for this endangered bird species. However, more development work and testing against traditional methods are needed to establish optimal working practices.

Aims: This study aims to determine whether Capercaillie vocalizations can be recognized in lek recordings, whether this can be automated using readily available software, and whether the number of calls resulting varies with location, weather conditions, date and time of day.

Methods: Unattended recording devices and semi-automated call classification software were used to record and analyse the display calls of Capercaillie at three known lek sites in Scotland over a two-week period.

Results: Capercaillie calls were successfully and rapidly identified within a data set that included the vocalizations of other bird species and environmental noise. Calls could be readily recognized to species level using a combination of unsupervised software and manual analysis. The number of calls varied by time and date, by recorder/microphone location at the lek site, and with weather conditions. This information can be used to better target future acoustic monitoring and improve the quality of existing traditional lek surveys.

Conclusion: Bioacoustic methods provide a practical and cost-effective way to determine habitat occupancy and activity levels by a vocally distinctive bird species. Following further testing alongside traditional counting methods, it could offer a significant new approach towards more effective monitoring of local population levels for Capercaillie and other species of conservation concern.     

C3-PRO: Connecting ResearchKit to the Health System Using i2b2 and FHIR

A renewed interest by consumer information technology giants in the healthcare domain is focused on transforming smartphones into personal health data storage devices. With the introduction of the open source ResearchKit, Apple provides a framework for researchers to inform and consent research subjects, and to readily collect personal health data and patient reported outcomes (PRO) from distributed populations. However, being research backend agnostic, ResearchKit does not provide data transmission facilities, leaving research apps disconnected from the health system. Personal health data and PROs are of the most value when presented in context along with health system data. Our aim was to build a toolchain that allows easy and secure integration of personal health and PRO data into an open source platform widely adopted across 140 academic medical centers. We present C3-PRO: the Consent, Contact, and Community framework for Patient Reported Outcomes. This open source toolchain connects, in a standards-compliant fashion, any ResearchKit app to the widely-used clinical research infrastructure Informatics for Integrating Biology and the Bedside (i2b2). C3-PRO leverages the emerging health data standard Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR).     

L'evoluzione della cerchia legnosa in Quercus Pubescens W. Ein Quercus Ilex L. nel clima di Firenze

Summary

The evolution of the wood ring in Quercus pubescens W. and in Quercus Ilex L. in Florence (from June 1946 to June 1947).

The present study deals with the anatomical characters of the wood ring of Q. pubescens and of Q. Ilex. In both the specimens the wood of the stem and of the young branch has been investigated.

In both plants studied the cambial tissue of the stem starts dividing at the end of April, reaching its maximum activity from May to June.

On the contrary the cambium of the branch differentiates in Q. pubescens a month earlier (18 March-18 April) than in Q. Ilex (18 April-18 May). While in the branch of Q. Ilex a false ring can be seen corresponding to the autumn months, nothing of the kind is found in the branch of Q. pubescens; though it presents a false ring in the stem.

It is difficult to date clearly the period when the cambium stops its activity, but probably it happens at the end of August in the samples of the stem.

The leaf buds of Q. pubescens and of Q. Ilex open during April-May and the young branch is completely developed at the end of June. In both oaks some buds open in autumn, but the small branches are prevented to develop because of the cold.

No comparison can be made between the opening of the buds and the beginning of the cambial activity in the stem and in the branch.

Considering the evolution of these woods and their relationship to climatic factors, we can see that the cambial activity starts during a period of remarkable rainfall and of regular increase of temperature, and stops almost completely at the end of July, when temperature and dryness reach their highest values.

The autumn rainfall would favour again a cambial activity, but the values of the temperature, regularly decreasing, do not allow it.     

Observations on the Forest Dormouse,Dryomys nitedula (Pallas, 1779) (Rodentia: Gliridae), in Syria

Abstract

A new distribution locality for the Forest Dormouse, Dryomys nitedula, is reported from Ashrafiat Al Wade in the Barada River valley, northwest of Damascus. The specimens are morphologically similar to the Arabian and Turkish populations. Some ecological and biological aspects are discussed.     

Phenological responses to small-scale spatial variation in snowmelt timing reveal compensatory and conservative strategies in subarctic-alpine plants

Background: In tundra ecosystems, the adjustment of phenological events, such as bud burst, to snowmelt timing is crucial to the climatic adaptation of plants. Natural small-scale variations in microclimate potentially enable plant populations to persist in a changing climate.

Aims: To assess how plant phenology responds to natural differences in snowmelt timing.

Methods: We observed the timing of eight vegetative and reproductive phenophases in seven dwarf-shrub species in relation to differences in snowmelt timing on a small spatial scale in an alpine environment in subarctic Finland.

Results: Some species and phenophases showed accelerated development with later snowmelt, thus providing full or partial compensation for the shorter snow-free period. Full compensation resulted in synchronous occurrence of phenophases across the snowmelt gradient. In other species, there was no acceleration of development. The timing of phenophases varied between two consecutive years and two opposing mountain slope aspects.

Conclusions: The results have shown three distinct patterns in the timing of phenophases in relation to snowmelt and suggest alternative strategies for adaptation to snowmelt timing. These strategies potentially apply to other species and tundra ecosystems and provide a framework, enabling one to compare and generalise phenological responses to snowmelt timing under different future climate scenarios.     

A consensus multi-view multi-objective gene selection approach for improved sample classification

Background

High-dimensional flow cytometry and mass cytometry allow systemic-level characterization of more than 10 protein profiles at single-cell resolution and provide a much broader landscape in many biological applications, such as disease diagnosis and prediction of clinical outcome. When associating clinical information with cytometry data, traditional approaches require two distinct steps for identification of cell populations and statistical test to determine whether the difference between two population proportions is significant. These two-step approaches can lead to information loss and analysis bias.

Results

We propose a novel statistical framework, called LAMBDA (Latent Allocation Model with Bayesian Data Analysis), for simultaneous identification of unknown cell populations and discovery of associations between these populations and clinical information. LAMBDA uses specified probabilistic models designed for modeling the different distribution information for flow or mass cytometry data, respectively. We use a zero-inflated distribution for the mass cytometry data based the characteristics of the data. A simulation study confirms the usefulness of this model by evaluating the accuracy of the estimated parameters. We also demonstrate that LAMBDA can identify associations between cell populations and their clinical outcomes by analyzing real data. LAMBDA is implemented in R and is available from GitHub (https://github.com/abikoushi/lambda).

     

EQUIPMENT REVIEWS

ABSTRACT

Research on African elephant (Loxodonta africana) vocal communication has increased in recent years, yet there has been very little data collected on the vocal production of infant African elephants. Vocalizations were recorded from a group of five adult female African elephants and 3 dependent offspring (1 male and 2 female) at Disney's Animal Kingdom, Florida, U.S.A., using custom-designed audio-recording collars worn by the adult females. We measured both source and filter features of infant ‘rumble’ vocalizations made during affiliative social interactions and after cessation of nursing from adult females. Rumble vocalizations produced in the ‘nurse cessation’ context exhibited an upward shift in formant frequency locations, compared to rumbles produced during the ‘affiliation’ context. Additionally, call duration increased and fundamental frequencies decreased after nurse cessations for the male, but both females showed the opposite acoustic response. When infant rumbles accompanied nurse cessations, nursing was more likely to resume within 30 seconds compared to nurse cessations without vocalizations. These results suggest that infant rumbles associated with cessation of nursing reflect the motivational state of infants and may influence maternal responsiveness.     

How well does a commercially available wearable device measure sleep in young athletes?

ABSTRACT

The validity of a commercially available wearable device for measuring total sleep time was examined in a sample of well-trained young athletes during night-time sleep periods and daytime naps. Participants wore a FitBit HR Charge on their non-dominant wrist and had electrodes attached to their face and scalp to enable polysomnographic recordings of sleep in the laboratory. The FitBit automatically detected 24/30 night-time sleep periods but only 6/20 daytime naps. Compared with polysomnography, the FitBit overestimated total sleep time by an average of 52 ± 152 min for night-time sleep periods, and by 4 ± 8 min for daytime naps. It is important for athletes and practitioners to be aware of the limitations of wearable devices that automatically detect sleep duration.