Universities should lead on the plant-based dietary transition

National audienc

Little Ravens \u27Corvus mellori\u27 hunt, kill and eat individuals of two species of shorebird

The Little Raven Corvus mellori is an omnivore that occasionally eats small birds. Most birds taken are thought to be eaten as carrion, though several records exist of ravens hunting and killing Budgerigars Melopsittacus undulates and a Spotted Turtle-Dove Streptopelia chinensis (Higgins et al. 2006). Both cases of bird depredation record Little Ravens attacking from above and stabbing prey to death with their beaks. Here, we report a pair of Little Ravens hunting, killing and eating a lone Sharp-tailed Sandpiper Calidris acuminita at Cheetham Wetlands, near Melbourne, Victoria (37° 53\u27 56"S, 144° 47\u27 33"E; 420 ha; see Antos et al. 2007 for a description). We also report an event which strongly implies they hunted and ate an adult Red-capped Plover Charadrius ruficapillus, and observations of hunting and eating eggs and chicks

Occurrences of cooperative breeding in the masked lapwing vanellus miles

The Masked Lapwing Vanellus miles is a common ground-nesting shorebird inhabiting grasslands, paddocks, rivers, lakes, swamps and, tidal mud flats. It is particularly common in the urban areas of Phillip Island, Victoria (Dann 1981, Marchant and Higgins 1993). The Masked Lapwing usually lays between one and four eggs (the mean number of eggs per clutch of this study was 3.6 ± 1 SD) that hatch after 31 days. Both sexes incubate eggs, brood young and defend the eggs and young. Masked Lapwings produce precocial and nidifugous chicks that remain with the adults on defended territories until fledging (Marchant and Higgins 1993, Thomas 1969). The chicks are able to feed themselves within hours of hatching and rely on their parents only for protection (alarm signals) and warmth (brooding) (Marchant and Higgins 1993). Here we report three instances of likely co-operative breeding of Vanellus miles on Phillip Island between 18 July and 13 September 2012

Tests of ecogeographical relationships in a non-native species: what rules avian morphology?

The capacity of non-native species to undergo rapid adaptive change provides opportunities to research contemporary evolution through natural experiments. This capacity is particularly true when considering ecogeographical rules, to which non-native species have been shown to conform within relatively short periods of time. Ecogeographical rules explain predictable spatial patterns of morphology, physiology, life history and behaviour. We tested whether Australian populations of non-native starling, Sturnus vulgaris, introduced to the country approximately 150 years ago, exhibited predicted environmental clines in body size, appendage size and heart size (Bergmann\u27s, Allen\u27s and Hesse\u27s rules, respectively). Adult starlings (n = 411) were collected from 28 localities from across eastern Australia from 2011 to 2012. Linear models were constructed to examine the relationships between morphology and local environment. Patterns of variation in body mass and bill surface area were consistent with Bergmann\u27s and Allen\u27s rules, respectively (small body size and larger bill size in warmer climates), with maximum summer temperature being a strongly weighted predictor of both variables. In the only intraspecific test of Hesse\u27s rule in birds to date, we found no evidence to support the idea that relative heart size will be larger in individuals which live in colder climates. Our study does provide evidence that maximum temperature is a strong driver of morphological adaptation for starlings in Australia. The changes in morphology presented here demonstrate the potential for avian species to make rapid adaptive changes in relation to a changing climate to ameliorate the effects of heat stress

Who engaged in the team-based assessment? Leveraging EdTech for a self and intra-team peer-assessment solution to free-riding

Abstract A STEM-based faculty in an Australian university leveraged online educational technology to help address student and academic concerns associated with team-based assessment. When engagement and contribution of all team members cannot be assured, team-based assessment can become an unfair and inaccurate measure of student competency. This case study explores the design and capacity of an online self and intra-team peer-assessment of teamwork strategy to measure student engagement and enable peers to hold each other accountable during team-based assessments. Analysis of student interactions across 39 subjects that implemented the strategy in 2020, revealed that an average of 94.4% of students completed the self and intra-team peer-assessment task when designed as part of a summative team-based assessment. The analysis also revealed that an average of 10.3% of students were held accountable by their peers, receiving feedback indicating their teamwork skills and behaviours were below the required minimum standard. Furthermore, the strategy was successfully implemented in cohorts ranging from seven to over 700 students, demonstrating scalability. Thus, this online self and intra-team peer-assessment strategy provided teaching teams with evidence of student engagement in a team-based assessment while also enabling students to hold each other accountable for contributing to the team task. Lastly, as the online strategy pairs with any discipline-specific team-based assessment, it provided the faculty with a method that could be used consistently across its schools to support management and engagement in team-based assessments

Author Correction: Senescence of song revealed by a long-term study of the Seychelles warbler ( Acrocephalus sechellensis )

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper

Three molecular markers show no evidence of population genetic structure in the Gouldian finch (Erythrura gouldiae)

Assessment of genetic diversity and connectivity between regions can inform conservation managers about risk of inbreeding, potential for adaptation and where population boundaries lie. The Gouldian finch (Erythrura gouldiae) is a threatened species in northern Australia, occupying the savannah woodlands of the biogeographically complex monsoon tropics. We present the most comprehensive population genetic analysis of diversity and structure the Gouldian finch using 16 microsatellite markers, mitochondrial control region and 3,389 SNPs from genotyping-by-sequencing. Mitochondrial diversity is compared across three related, co-distributed finches with different conservation threat-statuses. There was no evidence of genetic differentiation across the western part of the range in any of the molecular markers, and haplotype diversity but not richness was lower than a common co-distributed species. Individuals within the panmictic population in the west may be highly dispersive within this wide area, and we urge caution when interpreting anecdotal observations of changes to the distribution and/or flock sizes of Gouldian finch populations as evidence of overall changes to the population size of this species

Data from: Three molecular markers show no evidence of population genetic structure in the Gouldian finch (Erythrura gouldiae)

Assessment of genetic diversity and connectivity between regions can inform conservation managers about risk of inbreeding, potential for adaptation and where population boundaries lie. The Gouldian finch (Erythrura gouldiae) is a threatened species in northern Australia, occupying the savannah woodlands of the biogeographically complex monsoon tropics. We present the most comprehensive population genetic analysis of diversity and structure the Gouldian finch using 16 microsatellite markers, mitochondrial control region and 3,389 SNPs from genotyping-by-sequencing. Mitochondrial diversity is compared across three related, co-distributed finches with different conservation threat-statuses. There was no evidence of genetic differentiation across the western part of the range in any of the molecular markers, and haplotype diversity but not richness was lower than a common co-distributed species. Individuals within the panmictic population in the west may be highly dispersive within this wide area, and we urge caution when interpreting anecdotal observations of changes to the distribution and/or flock sizes of Gouldian finch populations as evidence of overall changes to the population size of this species