Use of Upland and Riparian Areas by Wintering Bald Eagles and Implications for Wind Energy

Weather can shape movements of animals and alter their exposure to anthropogenic threats. Bald eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) are increasingly at risk from collision with turbines used in onshore wind energy generation. In the midwestern United States, development of this energy source typically occurs in upland areas that bald eagles use only intermittently. Our objective was to determine the factors that cause wintering bald eagles to occupy riparian areas and riskier, upland areas. We tracked 20 bald eagles using telemetry in the Upper Midwest (MN, IA, MO, WI, IL, USA) during winter 2014–2015 and 2015–2016 and evaluated habitat use by eagles in response to variation in weather and time of year. Eagles used riparian areas more when wind speed and atmospheric pressure were low. Exclusive use of uplands was more frequent during weather systems with low pressure and high humidity and after long periods of cold weather. There was a non-linear response to time of year (measured by days before migration) in the frequency of exclusive use of uplands or riparian areas. Probability of exclusive use of either landscape was generally constant within 95 days prior to migration. The probability of use of riparian areas, however, was markedly less during dates >100 days before migration. Our results suggest that eagles are most likely to be exposed to wind energy developments located in upland areas during low pressure systems, after long periods of cold weather, and several months before the onset of spring migration. This information helps to better understand the factors influencing bald eagle habitat use in winter and will be useful to managers and developers wishing to establish effective strategies to avoid, minimize, and mitigate take, and to survey for mortalities at wind energy developments. © 2020 The Wildlife Society.     

A CRYGC gene mutation associated with autosomal dominant pulverulent cataract

Purpose

To describe at molecular level a family with pulverulent congenital cataract associated with a CRYGC gene mutation.

Methods

One family with several affected members with pulverulent congenital cataract and 230 healthy controls were examined. Genomic DNA from leukocytes was isolated to analyze the CRYGA-D cluster, CX46, CX50 and MIP genes through high-resolution melting curve and DNA sequencing.

Results

DNA sequencing in the affected members revealed the c.143G>A mutation (p.R48H) in exon 2 of the CRYGC gene; 230 healthy controls and ten healthy relatives were also analyzed and none of them showed the c.143G>A mutation. No other polymorphisms or mutations were found to be present.

Conclusion

In the present study, we described a family with pulverulent congenital cataract that segregated the c.143G>A mutation (p.R48H) in the CRYGC gene. A few mutations have been described in the CRYGC gene in autosomal dominant cataract, none of them with pulverulent cataract making clear the clinical heterogeneity of congenital cataract. This mutation has been associated with the phenotype of congenital cataract but also is considered an SNP in the NCBI data base. Our data and previous report suggest that p.R48H could be a disease-causing mutation and not an SNP.     

Circadian emergence and movement of captive juvenile tuatara (Sphenodon spp.)

Abstract

Knowledge of the circadian behaviour of young tuatara (Sphenodon spp.) is relatively scarce because tuatara are difficult to observe in the wild. We document diurnal, nocturnal and crepuscular emergence and movements (half‐body movement, walking and running) of three groups of captive juvenile tuatara (2‐ and 3‐year‐old Sphenodon guntheri, and 5‐year‐old S. punctatus). Juvenile tuatara emerge predominantly at night, but move around above ground, mainly during the day and around sunset. Differences in emergence andmove‐ment scores between the three study groups were evident, probably linked with age, species or housing conditions, which were inevitably coupled in our study. We found that 2‐year‐old tuatara in captive conditions emerged less frequently than, but once above ground, moved more than 3‐ and 5‐year‐olds in semi‐captive conditions. Activities in semi‐captive conditions were not correlated with temperature, light or humidity. We conclude that young tuatara may be primarily adapted to nocturnal activity, but thermal restrictions and possible hardwired adaptations to avoid predators and conspecifics may make day‐time movements safer.     

Molecular Diagnosis of an Ocular Toxocariasis Patient in Vietnam

An ocular Toxocara canis infection is reported for the first time in Vietnam. A 34-year-old man residing in a village of Son La Province, North Vietnam, visited the National Eye Hospital (NEH) in August 2011. He felt a bulge-sticking pain in his left eye and loss of vision occurred over 3 months before visiting the hospital. The eye examination in the hospital showed damage of the left eye, red eye, retinal fibrosis, retinal detachment, inflammation of the eye tissues, retinal granulomas, and a parasitic cyst inside. A larva of Toxocara was collected with the cyst by a medical doctor by surgery. Comparison of 264 nucleotides of internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) of ribosomal DNA was done between our Vietnamese Toxocara canis and other Toxocara geographical isolates, including Chinese T. canis, Japanese T. canis, Sri Lankan T. canis, and Iranian T. canis. The nucleotide homology was 97-99%, when our T. canis was compared with geographical isolates. Identification of a T. canis infection in the eye by a molecular method was performed for the first time in Vietnam.     

Population structure and residency of whale sharks Rhincodon typus at Utila,Bay Islands,Honduras

There were 479 reported whale shark Rhincodon typus encounters between 1999 and 2011 at the island of Utila, which forms part of the Meso‐American Barrier Reef System (MBRS) in the western Caribbean Sea. The majority of R. typus were found to feed on small bait fish associated with various tuna species. Ninety‐five individual R. typus, ranging from 2 to 11 m total length (L_T), were identified through their unique spot patterns. A significant male bias (65%) was present. There was no significant difference between the mean ± s.d . L_T of female (6·66 ± 1·65 m) and male (6·25 ± 1·60 m) R. typus. Most R. typus were transient to Utila, with 78% sighted only within a single calendar year, although some individuals were sighted in up to 5 years. Mean residency time was modelled to be 11·76 days using maximum likelihood methods.     

Seasonal Habitat Use of Agoutis (Dasyprocta azarae) is Driven by the Palm Attalea phalerata in Brazilian Pantanal

Resource availability can influence animal movement causing changes in home‐range size and arrangement between seasons. We investigated the influence of acuri palm (Attalea phalerata) on the occupancy of agouti Dasyprocta azare during both the dry and rainy seasons, as well as the abandonment probabilities in the transition between seasons in the Brazilian Pantanal. The agoutis occupied a high proportion of the forested areas in the rainy season (0.83), but the occupancy decreased in the dry season (0.39). In the rainy season, occupancy by agoutis was not correlated with acuri palm availability, while in the dry season, it was positively correlated with the palm's availability. The acuri palm availability also drove the agoutis' probability of site abandonment from the rainy to the dry season, with higher abandonment probability in sites with low acuri palm availability. These findings show that this large‐seeded palm can be an important resource for the agoutis' populations during the fruit‐scarcity period. The acuri palm seeds may be particularly important for agoutis using fragmented forests, given that the large‐seeded palms are able to persist even in small fragments, which is untrue for other important resource.     

Estimating dispersal distributions at multiple scales: within‐colony and among‐colony dispersal rates,distances and directions in European Shags Phalacrocorax aristotelis

Knowledge of the rate, distance and direction of dispersal within and among breeding areas is required to understand and predict demographic and genetic connectivity and resulting population and evolutionary dynamics. However dispersal rates, and the full distributions of dispersal distances and directions, are rarely comprehensively estimated across all spatial scales relevant to wild populations. We used re‐sightings of European Shags Phalacrocorax aristotelis colour‐ringed as chicks on the Isle of May (IoM), UK, to quantify rates, distances and directions of dispersal from natal to subsequent breeding sites both within IoM (within‐colony dispersal) and across 27 other breeding colonies covering 1045 km of coastline (among‐colony dispersal). Additionally, we used non‐breeding season surveys covering 895 km of coastline to estimate breeding season detection probability and hence potential bias in estimated dispersal parameters. Within IoM, 99.6% of individuals dispersed between their natal and observed breeding nest‐site. The distribution of within‐colony dispersal distances was right‐skewed; mean distance was shorter than expected given random settlement within IoM, yet some individuals dispersed long distances within the colony. The distribution of within‐colony dispersal directions was non‐uniform but did not differ from expectation given the spatial arrangement of nest‐sites. However, 10% of all 460 colour‐ringed adults that were located breeding had dispersed to a different colony. The maximum observed dispersal distance (170 km) was much smaller than the maximum distance surveyed (690 km). The distribution of among‐colony dispersal distances was again right‐skewed. Among‐colony dispersal was directional, and differed from random expectation and from the distribution of within‐colony dispersal directions. Non‐breeding season surveys suggested that the probability of detecting a colour‐ringed adult at its breeding location was high in the northeastern UK (98%). Estimated dispersal rates and distributions were therefore robust to incomplete detection. Overall, these data demonstrate skewed and directionally divergent dispersal distributions across small (within‐colony) and large (among‐colony) scales, indicating that dispersal could create genetic and demographic connectivity within the study area.     

Memory and prediction in natural gaze control

In addition to stimulus properties and task factors, memory is an important determinant of the allocation of attention and gaze in the natural world. One way that the role of memory is revealed is by predictive eye movements. Both smooth pursuit and saccadic eye movements demonstrate predictive effects based on previous experience. We have previously shown that unskilled subjects make highly accurate predictive saccades to the anticipated location of a ball prior to a bounce in a virtual racquetball setting. In this experiment, we examined this predictive behaviour. We asked whether the period after the bounce provides subjects with visual information about the ball trajectory that is used to programme the pursuit movement initiated when the ball passes through the fixation point. We occluded a 100 ms period of the ball''s trajectory immediately after the bounce, and found very little effect on the subsequent pursuit movement. Subjects did not appear to modify their strategy to prolong the fixation. Neither were we able to find an effect on interception performance. Thus, it is possible that the occluded trajectory information is not critical for subsequent pursuit, and subjects may use an estimate of the ball''s trajectory to programme pursuit. These results provide further support for the role of memory in eye movements.