Tree-Ring Dates for the Maximum Little Ice Age Advance of Kaskawulsh Glacier, St. Elias Mountains, Canada

A dendroglaciological study at Kaskawulsh Glacier provides the first calendar dating of a Little Ice Age glacier advance in the northeast St. Elias Mountains of Yukon Territory. Ring series from white spruce trees, Picea glauca (Moench) Voss, that had been sheared, tilted, and killed by deposition of till at the glacier’s terminal moraine were cross-dated with a millennium-length ring-width chronology developed at a site near the south end of Kluane Lake, about 25 km north of the glacier forefield. Six cross-dated samples from two sites at Kaskawulsh Glacier suggest that the north lobe of the glacier reached its greatest Holocene extent in the mid-1750s. Additional limited data suggest that the east lobe may have reached its maximum extent somewhat earlier (ca. 1717). This chronology of Little Ice Age activity of Kaskawulsh Glacier is consistent with well-dated glacier chronologies from adjacent mountain ranges in coastal and interior Alaska. The results also demonstrate the potential to derive calendar dates from subfossil wood in the St. Elias Mountains that hitherto had been dated only with much lower precision, using radiocarbon techniques.L’étude dendroglaciologique du glacier Kaskawulsh fournit la première datation de calendrier de l’avancée glaciaire du petit âge glaciaire, dans le nord-est des montagnes St. Elias, territoire du Yukon. Les séries de cernes d’épinettes blanches, Picea glauca (Moench) Voss, qui avaient été abattues, inclinées et tuées par le dépôt de till à la moraine terminale du glacier, ont été contre-datées à l’aide d’une chronologie millénaire de largeur des cernes mise au point à un emplacement situé près du côté sud du lac Kluane, à environ 25 km au nord du front du glacier. Six échantillons contre-datés provenant de deux emplacements du glacier Kaskawulsh suggèrent que le lobe nord du glacier a atteint sa plus grande étendue holocène dans le milieu des années 1750. Par ailleurs, certaines données supplémentaires suggèrent que le lobe est pourrait avoir atteint son étendue maximale un peu plus tôt (vers 1717). Cette chronologie de l’activité du petit âge glaciaire du glacier Kaskawulsh coïncide avec les chronologies bien datées des chaînes de montagnes adjacentes, sur la côte et à l’intérieur de l’Alaska. Les résultats démontrent aussi la possibilité d’établir les dates de calendrier à partir de bois subfossile dans les montagnes St. Elias qui avait été daté avec beaucoup moins de précision jusqu’ici à l’aide de techniques de datation au carbone 14

Cloud cover detection combining high dymanics range sky images and ceilometer measurements

This paper presents a new algorithm for cloud detection based on high dynamic range images from a sky camera and ceilometer measurements. The algorithm is also able to detect the obstruction of the sun. This algorithm, called CPC (Camera Plus Ceilometer), is based on the assumption that under cloud-free conditions the sky field must show symmetry. The symmetry criteria are applied depending on ceilometer measurements of the cloud base height. CPC algorithm is applied in two Spanish locations (Granada and Valladolid). The performance of CPC retrieving the sun conditions (obstructed or unobstructed) is analyzed in detail using as reference pyranometer measurements at Granada. CPC retrievals are in agreement with those derived from the reference pyranometer in 85% of the cases (it seems that this agreement does not depend on aerosol size or optical depth). The agreement percentage goes down to only 48% when another algorithm, based on Red-Blue Ratio (RBR), is applied to the sky camera images. The retrieved cloud cover at Granada and Valladolid is compared with that registered by trained meteorological observers. CPC cloud cover is in agreement with the reference showing a slight overestimation and a mean absolute error around 1 okta. A major advantage of the CPC algorithm with respect to the RBR method is that the determined cloud cover is independent of aerosol properties. The RBR algorithm overestimates cloud cover for coarse aerosols and high loads. Cloud cover obtained only from ceilometer shows similar results than CPC algorithm; but the horizontal distribution cannot be obtained. In addition, it has been observed that under quick and strong changes on cloud cover ceilometers retrieve a cloud cover fitting worse with the real cloud cover.This work was supported by the Andalusia Regional Government (project P12-RNM-2409) and by the Consejería de Educación, Junta de Castilla y León (project VA100U14).Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (CGL2013-45410-R, CMT2015-66742-R, CGL2016-81092-R, and FJCI-2014-22052).FEDER funds under the projects CGL2013-45410-R, CMT2015-66742-R, CGL2016-81092-R.“Juan de la Cierva-Formación” (FJCI-2014-22052) program.European Union H2020-INFRAIA-2014-2015 project ACTRIS-2 (grant agreement No. 654109

Activity patterns of tayra (Eira barbara) across their distribution

Species' activity patterns are driven by the need to meet basic requirements of food, social interactions, movement, and rest, but often are influenced by a variety of biotic and abiotic factors. We used camera-trap data to describe and compare the activity patterns of the relatively poorly studied tayra (Eira barbara) across 10 populations distributed from the south of Mexico to the north of Argentina, and attempted to identify biotic or abiotic factors that may be associated with variation in level of diurnality. In a subset of sites we also aimed to document potential seasonal variation in activity. We used a kernel density estimator based on the time of independent photographic events to calculate the proportion of diurnal, crepuscular, and nocturnal activity of each population. Tayras were mostly active during diurnal periods (79.31%, 759 records), with a lower proportion of crepuscular activity (18.07%, 173 records) yet we documented some variation in patterns across the 10 study areas (activity overlap coefficient varied from Δ4 = 0.64 to Δ1 = 0.95). In northern localities, activity peaked twice during the day (bimodal) with most activity ocurring in the morning, whereas closer to the geographical equator, activity was constant (unimodal) throughout the day, peaking at midday: activity either was unimodal or bimodal in southern localities. Despite investigating multiple potential abiotic and biotic predictors, only latitude was associated with variation in the proportion of diurnal activity by tayras across its range, with increased diurnal activity closer to the equator. Seasonal comparisons in activity showed a tendency to reduce diurnality in dry versus rainy seasons, but the pattern was not consistently significant. This is the most comprehensive description of tayra activity patterns to date, and lends novel insight into the potential flexibility of the species to adapt to local conditions.Fil: Villafañe Trujillo, Álvaro José. Universidad Autonoma de Queretaro.; MéxicoFil: Kolowski, Joseph M.. Instituto de Pesquisas Ecológicas; BrasilFil: Cove, Michael V.. University of Belize; BeliceFil: Medici, Emilia Patricia. Instituto de Pesquisas Ecológicas; BrasilFil: Harmsen, Bart J.. University of Belize; BeliceFil: Foster, Rebbeca J.. University of Belize; BeliceFil: Hidalgo Mihart, Mircea G.. Universidad Juárez Autónoma de Tabasco,; MéxicoFil: Espinosa, Santiago. Universidad Autónoma de San Luis Potosí; MéxicoFil: Ríos Alvear, Gorky. Universidad de Porto; PortugalFil: Reyes Puig, Carolina. Universidad de Porto; PortugalFil: Reyes Puig, Juan Pablo. Universidad de Porto; PortugalFil: Da Silva, Marina Xavier. Universidad Central del Ecuador; EcuadorFil: Paviolo, Agustin Javier. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste. Instituto de Biología Subtropical. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Instituto de Biología Subtropical; ArgentinaFil: Cruz, Paula Andrea. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Nordeste. Instituto de Biología Subtropical. Universidad Nacional de Misiones. Instituto de Biología Subtropical; ArgentinaFil: López González, Carlos Alberto. Universidad Autonoma de Queretaro.; Méxic

Retrieval of aerosol profiles combining sunphotometer and ceilometer measurements in GRASP code

This is a preprint version of article accepted "Roman, A.; et al. Retrieval of aerosol profiles combining sunphotometer and ceilometer measurements in GRASP code. Atmospheric Research, 204: 161-177 (2018). DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016./j.atmosres.2018.01.021".In this paper we present an approach for the profiling of aerosol microphysical and optical properties combining ceilometer and sun/sky photometer measurements in the GRASP code (General Retrieval of Aerosol and Surface Properties). For this objective, GRASP is used with sun/sky photometer measurements of aerosol optical depth (AOD) and sky radiances, both at four wavelengths and obtained from AErosol RObotic NETwork (AERONET), and ceilometer measurements of range corrected signal (RCS) at 1064 nm. A sensitivity study with synthetic data evidences the capability of the method to retrieve aerosol properties such as size distribution and profiles of volume concentration (VC), especially for coarse particles. Aerosol properties obtained by the mentioned method are compared with airborne in-situ measurements acquired during two flights over Granada (Spain) within the framework of ChArMEx/ADRIMED (Chemistry-Aerosol Mediterranean Experiment/Aerosol Direct Radiative Impact on the regional climate in the MEDiterranean region) 2013 campaign. The retrieved aerosol VC profiles agree well with the airborne measurements, showing a mean bias error (MBE) and a mean absolute bias error (MABE) of 0.3 µm3/cm3 (12%) and 5.8 µm3/cm3 (25%), respectively. The differences between retrieved VC and airborne in-situ measurements are within the uncertainty of GRASP retrievals. In addition, the retrieved VC at 2500 m a.s.l. is shown and compared with in-situ measurements obtained during summer 2016 at a high-atitude mountain station in the framework of the SLOPE I campaign (Sierra Nevada Lidar AerOsol Profiling Experiment). VC from GRASP presents high correlation (r=0.91) with the in-situ measurements, but overestimates them, MBE and MABE being equal to 23% and 43%.This work was supported by the Andalusia Regional Government (project P12-RNM-2409) and by the “Consejería de Educación” of “Junta de Castilla y León” (project VA100U14); the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness under the projects, CMT2015-66742-R, CGL2016-81092-R and “Juan de la Cierva-Formación” program (FJCI-2014-22052); and the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme through project ACTRIS-2 (grant agreement no 654109) and the Marie Curie Rise action GRASP-ACE (grant agreement no 778349). The authors thankfully acknowledge the FEDER program for the instrumentation used in this work. COST Action TOPROF (ES1303), supported by COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology), is also acknowledged

Spatial scales of COVID-19 transmission in Mexico

During outbreaks of emerging infectious diseases, internationally connected cities often experience large and early outbreaks, while rural regions follow after some delay. This hierarchical structure of disease spread is influenced primarily by the multiscale structure of human mobility. However, during the COVID-19 epidemic, public health responses typically did not take into consideration the explicit spatial structure of human mobility when designing nonpharmaceutical interventions (NPIs). NPIs were applied primarily at national or regional scales. Here, we use weekly anonymized and aggregated human mobility data and spatially highly resolved data on COVID-19 cases at the municipality level in Mexico to investigate how behavioral changes in response to the pandemic have altered the spatial scales of transmission and interventions during its first wave (March–June 2020). We find that the epidemic dynamics in Mexico were initially driven by exports of COVID-19 cases from Mexico State and Mexico City, where early outbreaks occurred. The mobility network shifted after the implementation of interventions in late March 2020, and the mobility network communities became more disjointed while epidemics in these communities became increasingly synchronized. Our results provide dynamic insights into how to use network science and epidemiological modeling to inform the spatial scale at which interventions are most impactful in mitigating the spread of COVID-19 and infectious diseases in general

Expresión de los Genes de Inmunoglobulina A y Citoquinas Asociadas IL-5, IL-6 y TGF-β en Mucosa Intestinal de Crías de Alpacas (Vicugna pacos) Vacunadas con Antígeno Clostridial

The aim of this study was to determine and compare the expression levels of IgA genes and associated cytokines IL-5, IL-6 and TGF-β in the intestinal mucosa of clinically healthy baby alpaca, that were orally vaccinated with a clostridial antigen. Ten unvaccinated baby alpacas (control) and 15 vaccinated (two doses with a seven-day interval) were used. Sampling was done seven days after the second dose. Likewise, two age subgroups (15-28 and 35-56 days of age at the time of sampling) were considered. Intestinal segments of 2 cm in length were taken from the middle portion of the jejunum and stored at -196 °C. Total RNA extraction was performed and the complementary DNA (cDNA) was synthesized by reverse transcription. Subsequently, real-time PCR was run using specific primers for IL-5, IL-6, TGF-β and exon 3 of IgA. Relative expression evaluation was performed using the 2-ΔΔÄCt method. Vaccinated animals with clostridial antigen had a greater expression of IgA (control: 275.3 fold, vaccinated: 710.2 fold more than the calibrator) (p = 0.005). The vaccinated alpacas of the 15-28 day subgroup expressed IL-5, IL-6 and TGF-β at 1.96, 4.78 and 2.87 fold higher than the calibrator, respectively, with a significant difference with the control group (p<0.05). It is concluded that the administration of clostridial antigen as an oral vaccine in baby alpacas in the first 14 days of age promotes a greater expression of the IL-5, IL-6, TGF-β and IgA genes at the intestinal mucosa level.El estudio tuvo como objetivo determinar y comparar los niveles de expresión de los genes de IgA y citoquinas asociadas IL-5, IL-6 y TGF-β en la mucosa intestinal de crías de alpaca clínicamente sanas vacunadas oralmente con un antígeno clostridial. Se trabajó con 10 crías no vacunadas (control) y 15 crías vacunadas (dos dosis con intervalo de siete días). El muestreo se hizo a los siete días de la segunda dosis. Asimismo, se consideraron dos subgrupos etarios (15-28 y 35-56 días de edad en el momento de la toma de la muestra). Se tomaron segmentos intestinales de 2 cm de longitud de la porción media del yeyuno y se almacenaron a -196 ºC. Se realizó la extracción de ARN total y luego se sintetizó el ADN complementario (ADNc) por transcripción inversa. Luego se realizó la PCR en tiempo real utilizando cebadores específicos para IL-5, IL-6, TGF-β y el exón 3 de IgA. Se realizó la evaluación de la expresión relativa mediante el método 2-ΔΔCt. Las crías vacunadas con antígeno clostridial tuvieron una mayor expresión de IgA (control: 275.3 veces; vacunados: 710.2 veces más que el calibrador) (p=0.005). Las crías vacunadas del subgrupo 15-28 días de edad expresaron IL-5, IL-6 y TGF-β en 1.96, 4.78 y 2.87 veces más que el calibrador, respectivamente, habiendo diferencia significativa con el grupo control (p<0.05). Se concluye que la administración de antígeno clostridial como vacuna oral en crías de alpaca en los primeros 14 días de edad promueve una mayor expresión de los genes de IgA y citoquinas asociadas IL-5, IL-6 y TGF-β a nivel de mucosa intestinal

Aedes albopictus in northeast Mexico: An update on adult distribution and first report of parasitism by Ascogregarina taiwanensis

ABSTRACT Background & objectives: Aedes albopictus has been known as efficient vector of dengue in Asian countries and its wide displacement of Ae. aegypti has been documented in many parts of the world. The present survey was carried out to update the distribution of Ae. albopictus in northeast Mexico and to report the first record of parasitism of mosquitoes by Ascogregarina taiwanensis in Mexico

Promoción de la huerta orgánica y de alimentación saludable en niños de la EEP Nº7 de Puerto Tirol, Chaco

El modelo educativo que tienen actualmente los niños de nuestra región nordeste no desarrolla su capacidad para elegir alimentos saludables, así van adquiriendo hábitos de alimentación no saludables que mantendrán durante toda su vida, a menos que se realice una intervención integral efectiva. La Organización de las Naciones Unidas para la Alimentación y la Agricultura (FAO) considera que los huertos escolares pueden ayudar a mejorar la nutrición y la educación de los niños y familiares, tanto en zonas rurales como urbanas, por lo que alienta a las Escuelas a crear huertos de aprendizaje que puedan ser manejados por los mismos escolares, profesores y padres, que incluyan una variedad de hortalizas y frutas. Se trabajó en una Escuela Primaria de la localidad de Puerto Tirol, Chaco, a la que asisten 575 alumnos con edades de 6 a 14 años, distribuidos en turnos mañana y tarde. Los Objetivos fueron: a) Detectar niños con alteraciones nutricionales y/o hábitos de alimentación saludables, b) Promover hábitos saludables de alimentación, y c) Promover prácticas agroecológicas al reinstalar la huerta orgánica escolar. Materiales y métodos: Se evaluó el estado nutricional y hábitos alimentarios de los alumnos a través de encuestas alimentarias, datos antropométricos y de laboratorio. Se usó la huerta como aula práctica para aprender sobre agroecología, nutrición, disfrute y esparcimiento.Se realizó asistencia técnica, acompañamiento y provisión de insumos para la producción de la huerta. Se realizaron talleres informativos con tutores y docentes, y actividades lúdicas con alumnos de ambos turnos. Resultados: Se encuestó a 258 niños (45% del total): al 99% le gustaban las frutas y al 88% las verduras, pero consumían con frecuencia un 53% frutas y un 59% verduras en sus hogares. Compraban en el kiosco escolar alimentos ricos en azúcar, sal y grasas trans. Los niños expresaron su interés en disponer de frutas y licuados en el kiosco. Respecto a los datos antropométricos sobre 150 niños, un 20 % presentaba bajo peso para su talla y un 10 % sobrepeso.Sobre los análisis de laboratorio realizados a 39 alumnos: un 15% presentaba anemia, un7,7% creatininemias bajas y ninguno elevada. La albúmina resultó normal en todos. Se reinstaló la huerta escolar con participación de alumnos de 5° a 7° grado. Las hortalizascosechadas fueron consumidas por la Escuela y por los alumnos en sus hogares.

First narrow-band search for continuous gravitational waves from known pulsars in advanced detector data

Spinning neutron stars asymmetric with respect to their rotation axis are potential sources of continuous gravitational waves for ground-based interferometric detectors. In the case of known pulsars a fully coherent search, based on matched filtering, which uses the position and rotational parameters obtained from electromagnetic observations, can be carried out. Matched filtering maximizes the signalto- noise (SNR) ratio, but a large sensitivity loss is expected in case of even a very small mismatch between the assumed and the true signal parameters. For this reason, narrow-band analysis methods have been developed, allowing a fully coherent search for gravitational waves from known pulsars over a fraction of a hertz and several spin-down values. In this paper we describe a narrow-band search of 11 pulsars using data from Advanced LIGO’s first observing run. Although we have found several initial outliers, further studies show no significant evidence for the presence of a gravitational wave signal. Finally, we have placed upper limits on the signal strain amplitude lower than the spin-down limit for 5 of the 11 targets over the bands searched; in the case of J1813-1749 the spin-down limit has been beaten for the first time. For an additional 3 targets, the median upper limit across the search bands is below the spin-down limit. This is the most sensitive narrow-band search for continuous gravitational waves carried out so far

Carbon-sensitive pedotransfer functions for plant available water

Currently accepted pedotransfer functions show negligible effect of management-induced changes to soil organic carbon (SOC) on plant available water holding capacity (θAWHC), while some studies show the ability to substantially increase θAWHC through management. The Soil Health Institute\u27s North America Project to Evaluate Soil Health Measurements measured water content at field capacity using intact soil cores across 124 long-term research sites that contained increases in SOC as a result of management treatments such as reduced tillage and cover cropping. Pedotransfer functions were created for volumetric water content at field capacity (θFC) and permanent wilting point (θPWP). New pedotransfer functions had predictions of θAWHC that were similarly accurate compared with Saxton and Rawls when tested on samples from the National Soil Characterization database. Further, the new pedotransfer functions showed substantial effects of soil calcareousness and SOC on θAWHC. For an increase in SOC of 10 g kg–1 (1%) in noncalcareous soils, an average increase in θAWHC of 3.0 mm 100 mm–1 soil (0.03 m3 m–3) on average across all soil texture classes was found. This SOC related increase in θAWHC is about double previous estimates. Calcareous soils had an increase in θAWHC of 1.2 mm 100 mm–1 soil associated with a 10 g kg–1 increase in SOC, across all soil texture classes. New equations can aid in quantifying benefits of soil management practices that increase SOC and can be used to model the effect of changes in management on drought resilience