Hábitos alimenticios y percepción de las personas hacia la Lechuza blanca (Tyto alba tuidara, J.E.Gray 1829) en un barrio urbano del sur de Chile: Implicancias para la conservación

People’s perception on birds of prey is heavily infl uenced by its intrinsic value, utility, myths and superstitions. In particular, negative perceptions may encourage poaching and persecution of these birds, affecting their conservation status. One nocturnal raptor species widely distributed across the world is the Barn Owl (Tyto alba, Tytonidae). In Chile, this species has been recorded and studied exclusively in rural and sub-urban areas. However, in the city of Valdivia Barn owls exist within the city boundaries. In this study we documented the feeding habits of Barn owls nesting in urban settings of Valdivia, and we analyze the opinions of local neighbors toward the owls. To characterize the diet of owls, we collected all pellets found around their nesting tree on a monthly basis between August 2010 and August 2011. We interviewed the neighbors using a questionnaire that included questions about the utility, ethical or aesthetic value of the owl and the tree where they nested. Our results indicate that the main prey of the Barn Owl was the Long-tailed Colilargo (Oligoryzomys longicaudatus).The neighbors’ perception was favorable to the Barn Owl primarily for aesthetic and ethical reasons, and not utilitarian reasons. Our results suggest that people perception in urban areas is different than in rural areas, where previous studies showed the prevalence of utilitarian values. This positive perception represents a great potential to promote conservation and environmental education in the city, creating a link between people and the natural elements they have in their environment.La percepción que tienen las personas frente a las rapaces está fuertemente infl uenciada por su valor intrínseco, por su utilidad, y por mitos y supersticiones. En particular, las percepciones negativas pueden fomentar la caza furtiva y la persecución de estas aves, afectando su estado de conservación. Una rapaz nocturna distribuida a nivel mundial es la lechuza blanca (Tyto alba, Tytonidae). En Chile, esta especie ha sido registrada y estudiada exclusivamente en zonasrurales y sub-urbanas. Sin embargo, en la ciudad de Valdivia existen lechuzas habitando dentro del perímetro urbano. En este trabajo documentamos la composición de especies de roedores consumidos por las lechuzas blancas dentro de un barrio urbano, y evaluamos la percepción de los vecinos sobre la presencia de lechuza blanca en su barrio. Para caracterizar la dieta de las lechuzas, recolectamos egagrópilas mensualmente entre agosto de 2010 y agosto de 2011. Para conocer la percepción de los vecinos, se elaboró un cuestionario que incluyó preguntas sobre el valor utilitario, ético o estético de la lechuza y del árbol donde nidifi caba. Nuestros resultados indican que la presa más consumida por la lechuza blanca fue el ratón colilarga (Oligoryzomys longicaudatus). La percepción de las personas resultó favorable hacia la lechuza blanca principalmente por razones estéticas y éticas, y no utilitarias. Nuestros resultados sugieren que la percepción de las personas en áreas urbanas es distinta de las zonas rurales, donde trabajos previos han mostrado que prevalecen los valores utilitarios. Esta percepción positiva podría representar un gran potencial para favorecer la conservación y la educación ambiental en la ciudad, generando un vínculo entre las personas y los elementos naturales que poseen en su entorno.&nbsp

Otolith microchemistry and diadromy in Patagonian river fishes

Coastal habitats in Chile are hypothesized to support a number of diadromous fish species. The objective of this study was to document migratory life histories of native galaxiids and introduced salmonids from a wide latitudinal range in Chilean Patagonia (39–48°S). Otolith microchemistry data were analysed using a recursive partitioning approach to test for diadromy. Based on annular analysis of Sr:Ca ratios, a diadromous life history was suggested for populations of native Aplochiton taeniatus, A. marinus, and Galaxias maculatus. Lifetime residency in freshwater was suggested for populations of A. zebra and G. platei. Among introduced salmonids, populations of Oncorhynchus tshawytscha and O. kisutch exhibited patterns consistent with anadromy, whereas the screened population of O. mykiss appeared restricted to freshwater. Salmo trutta exhibited variable patterns suggesting freshwater residency and possibly anadromy in one case. The capacity and geographic scope of hydropower development is increasing and may disrupt migratory routes of diadromous fishes. Identification of diadromous species is a critical first step for preventing their loss due to hydropower development

Asymptomatic internal carotid artery stenosis and cerebrovascular risk stratification

Background The purpose of this study was to determine the cerebrovascular risk stratification potential of baseline degree of stenosis, clinical features, and ultrasonic plaque characteristics in patients with asymptomatic internal carotid artery (ICA) stenosis. Methods This was a prospective, multicenter, cohort study of patients undergoing medical intervention for vascular disease. Hazard ratios for ICA stenosis, clinical features, and plaque texture features associated with ipsilateral cerebrovascular or retinal ischemic (CORI) events were calculated using proportional hazards models. Results A total of 1121 patients with 50% to 99% asymptomatic ICA stenosis in relation to the bulb (European Carotid Surgery Trial [ECST] method) were followed-up for 6 to 96 months (mean, 48). A total of 130 ipsilateral CORI events occurred. Severity of stenosis, age, systolic blood pressure, increased serum creatinine, smoking history of more than 10 pack-years, history of contralateral transient ischemic attacks (TIAs) or stroke, low grayscale median (GSM), increased plaque area, plaque types 1, 2, and 3, and the presence of discrete white areas (DWAs) without acoustic shadowing were associated with increased risk. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were constructed for predicted risk versus observed CORI events as a measure of model validity. The areas under the ROC curves for a model of stenosis alone, a model of stenosis combined with clinical features and a model of stenosis combined with clinical, and plaque features were 0.59 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.54-0.64), 0.66 (0.62-0.72), and 0.82 (0.78-0.86), respectively. In the last model, stenosis, history of contralateral TIAs or stroke, GSM, plaque area, and DWAs were independent predictors of ipsilateral CORI events. Combinations of these could stratify patients into different levels of risk for ipsilateral CORI and stroke, with predicted risk close to observed risk. Of the 923 patients with <70% stenosis, the predicted cumulative 5-year stroke rate was <5% in 495, 5% to 9.9% in 202, 10% to 19.9% in 142, and <20% in 84 patients. Conclusion Cerebrovascular risk stratification is possible using a combination of clinical and ultrasonic plaque features. These findings need to be validated in additional prospective studies of patients receiving optimal medical intervention alone. Copyright © 2010 by the Society for Vascular Surgery

Cheese trademarks: Italian dairy firms’ practices during the 20th century

Trademarks have recently become a very useful sources for business historians. This longitudinal analysis of the twentieth-century trademarking activities of the most important Italian dairy firms of the era, namely Galbani, Invernizzi and Locatelli, demonstrates that trademarks were used both as a protective weapon against competitors and as an innovation carrier to open up new markets. This article also argues that trademark registrations had another dual purpose – not only were they used as buffers against negative shocks but they were also used to support periods of economic growth. A fundamental finding of this work is that trademarks, across various types of registrations, were closely connected to the features on which the companies based their sales strategies

Totally bounded uniformities

The article contains no abstrac