Total and Nonresidual Concentrations of Selected Elements in Two Soil Series on the Island of Hawaii

Thirty Aridisol soil samples of the Kawaihae soil series on the dry, leeward, northwestern side of the island of Hawaii and 13 Histosol samples of the Papai series on the wet, windward, eastern side of the island were subjected to (1) complete dissolution by a mixture ofHN03, HCl, and HF to determine total concentrations of Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, and Zn and (2) extraction of these metals by shaking 10 g soil: 100 mL 0.5M HCl solutions for 16hr to determine nonresidual concentrations. Analyses were performed mainly by flame and electrothermal atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Loss on ignition (LOI) and soil pH were also determined. Total metal concentrations, quantity extracted, LOI, and soil pH were analyzed statistically. Compared to the Histosol, the Aridisol samples typically contain more Co, Cr, Fe, and Mn, less Cu, similar concentrations of Ni and Zn, and have less LOI and higher pH. The Aridisol exhibits a high degree of correlation between total Cr and Ni, while a strong negative correlation occurs between Cu, Mn, Co, and Fe individually with LOI in the Histosol. The mean concentrations of these metals in both soils are significantly greater than those which occur in soils of the conterminous United States. The effectiveness of extraction by the acid solution, as measured by the percentage of metal extracted, is approximately Mn > Co > Cu > Cr > Fe > Zn - Ni for the Aridisol and Cu - Zn > Co - Mn > Fe - Ni > Cr for the Histosol; the difference is attributed to weathering under different climatic conditions. The latter soils exhibit a higher degree of correlation for percentages of metals extracted among the various metals and with LOI

Electron microscopy of quantum dots

This brief review describes the different types of semiconductor quantum dost systems, their main applications and which types of microscopy methods are used to characterize them. Emphasis is put on the need for a comprehensive investigation of their size distribution, microstructure, chemical composition, strain state and electronic properties, all of which influence the optical properties and can be measured by different types of imaging, diffraction and spectroscopy methods in an electron microscope

Climate change and the decline of a once common bird

Climate change is predicted to negatively impact wildlife through a variety of mechanisms including retraction of range. We used data from the North American Breeding Bird Survey and regional and global climate indices to examine the effects of climate change on the breeding distribution of the Rusty Blackbird (Euphagus carolinus), a formerly common species that is rapidly declining. We found that the range of the Rusty Blackbird retracted northward by 143 km since the 1960s and that the probability of local extinction was highest at the southern range margin. Furthermore, we found that the mean breeding latitude of the Rusty Blackbird was significant and positively correlated with the Pacific Decadal Oscillation with a lag of six years. Because the annual distribution of the Rusty Blackbird is affected by annual weather patterns produced by the Pacific Decadal Oscillation, our results support the hypothesis that directional climate change over the past 40 years is contributing to the decline of the Rusty Blackbird. Our study is the first to implicate climate change, acting through range retraction, in a major decline of a formerly common bird species

Age, condition and dominance-related sexual ornament size before and during the breeding season in the black grouse Lyrurus tetrix

Male ornaments function as honest cues of male quality in many species and are subject to intra- and intersexual selection. These ornaments are generally studied during peak expression, however their size outside the breeding season may determine ultimate ornament size and costliness, and as such reproductive success. We investigated whether male black grouse Lyrurus tetrix eye comb size was related to age, condition and measures of male dominance before and during the breeding season. Total combined eye comb size began to increase ~70 d before the start of the breeding season. Adult males (aged ≥ 2 yr old) had consistently larger eye combs than younger males (1 yr old) both before and during the breeding season. Heavier and more dominant adult males (attending the lek more frequently and successfully reproducing) had larger eye combs. For younger males, those that were heavier had larger eye combs. Additionally, males that spent more time on the lek showed increased eye comb size as the breeding season approached. Overall we find that ornament size is positively related to dominance and condition before and during the breeding season. Since dominance is accrued through year-round interactions in many species, the ability to maintain larger signals over prolonged periods, including outside of the breeding season, is likely to be beneficial for adults. For younger males, it is likely that they cannot sustain or are constrained from producing larger eye combs over long periods of time. They therefore prioritise growth of their ornaments later, and according to the amount of time they spend on the lek

Dissimilar responses of fungal and bacterial communities to soil transplantation simulating abrupt climate changes.

Both fungi and bacteria play essential roles in regulating soil carbon cycling. To predict future carbon stability, it is imperative to understand their responses to environmental changes, which is subject to large uncertainty. As current global warming is causing range shifts toward higher latitudes, we conducted three reciprocal soil transplantation experiments over large transects in 2005 to simulate abrupt climate changes. Six years after soil transplantation, fungal biomass of transplanted soils showed a general pattern of changes from donor sites to destination, which were more obvious in bare fallow soils than in maize cropped soils. Strikingly, fungal community compositions were clustered by sites, demonstrating that fungi of transplanted soils acclimatized to the destination environment. Several fungal taxa displayed sharp changes in relative abundance, including Podospora, Chaetomium, Mortierella and Phialemonium. In contrast, bacterial communities remained largely unchanged. Consistent with the important role of fungi in affecting soil carbon cycling, 8.1%-10.0% of fungal genes encoding carbon-decomposing enzymes were significantly (p < 0.01) increased as compared with those from bacteria (5.7%-8.4%). To explain these observations, we found that fungal occupancy across samples was mainly determined by annual average air temperature and rainfall, whereas bacterial occupancy was more closely related to soil conditions, which remained stable 6 years after soil transplantation. Together, these results demonstrate dissimilar response patterns and resource partitioning between fungi and bacteria, which may have considerable consequences for ecosystem-scale carbon cycling

A Systematic Review of the Reliability and Validity of Behavioural Tests Used to Assess Behavioural Characteristics Important in Working Dogs

Background Working dogs are selected based on predictions from tests that they will be able to perform specific tasks in often challenging environments. However, withdrawal from service in working dogs is still a big problem, bringing into question the reliability of the selection tests used to make these predictions. Methods A systematic review was undertaken aimed at bringing together available information on the reliability and predictive validity of the assessment of behavioural characteristics used with working dogs to establish the quality of selection tests currently available for use to predict success in working dogs. Results The search procedures resulted in 16 papers meeting the criteria for inclusion. A large range of behaviour tests and parameters were used in the identified papers, and so behaviour tests and their underpinning constructs were grouped on the basis of their relationship with positive core affect (willingness to work, human-directed social behaviour, object-directed play tendencies) and negative core affect (human-directed aggression, approach withdrawal tendencies, sensitivity to aversives). We then examined the papers for reports of inter-rater reliability, within-session intra-rater reliability, test-retest validity and predictive validity. Conclusions The review revealed a widespread lack of information relating to the reliability and validity of measures to assess behaviour and inconsistencies in terminologies, study parameters and indices of success. There is a need to standardise the reporting of these aspects of behavioural tests in order to improve the knowledge base of what characteristics are predictive of optimal performance in working dog roles, improving selection processes and reducing working dog redundancy. We suggest the use of a framework based on explaining the direct or indirect relationship of the test with core affect

The phylogenetic composition and structure of soil microbial communities shifts in response to elevated carbon dioxide

http://www.nature.com/ismej/journal/v6/n2/full/ismej201199a.htmlOne of the major factors associated with global change is the ever-increasing concentration of atmospheric CO2. Although the stimulating effects of elevated CO2 (eCO2) on plant growth and primary productivity have been established, its impacts on the diversity and function of soil microbial communities are poorly understood. In this study, phylogenetic microarrays (PhyloChip) were used to comprehensively survey the richness, composition and structure of soil microbial communities in a grassland experiment subjected to two CO2 conditions (ambient, 368 p.p.m., versus elevated, 560 p.p.m.) for 10 years. The richness based on the detected number of operational taxonomic units (OTUs) significantly decreased under eCO2. PhyloChip detected 2269 OTUs derived from 45 phyla (including two from Archaea), 55 classes, 99 orders, 164 families and 190 subfamilies. Also, the signal intensity of five phyla (Crenarchaeota, Chloroflexi, OP10, OP9/JS1, Verrucomicrobia) significantly decreased at eCO2, and such significant effects of eCO2 on microbial composition were also observed at the class or lower taxonomic levels for most abundant phyla, such as Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, Actinobacteria, Bacteroidetes and Acidobacteria, suggesting a shift in microbial community composition at eCO2. Additionally, statistical analyses showed that the overall taxonomic structure of soil microbial communities was altered at eCO2. Mantel tests indicated that such changes in species richness, composition and structure of soil microbial communities were closely correlated with soil and plant properties. This study provides insights into our understanding of shifts in the richness, composition and structure of soil microbial communities under eCO2 and environmental factors shaping the microbial community structure

Rare Earth Elements in Soils from Selected Areas on the Island of Hawaii

Fifty soil samples from the wet, windward (east) side and dry, leeward (west) side of the Island of Hawaii were analyzed for La, Ce, Sm, Eu, Yb, and Lu by neutron activation/gamma-ray spectroscopic analysis. Data on concentrations in each sample are listed and analyzed statistically for soil samples collected from the western slope of Kohala Mountain, the western coastal plain of Mauna Kea , and the northeastern coastal plain of Mauna Loa . Rare earth element (REE) concentrations are two to six times greater in soils from the western , dry side of the island ; arid good statistical correlation is exhibited among the samples for pairs of individual REEs. In the organic-rich soils of the east side, correlations are poor but are markedly improved when sample weights are adjusted for weight due to organic matter and water in soil colloids. If the mean compositions of selected rock samples from the Hawaii Reference Suite are representative of the compositions of the parent materials, REEs in the soils are moderately enriched (up to two times, based on oven-dry weights). Rare earth element concentrations in the island 's western soils are as much as two times greater than the mean REE values of common sedimentary rock s worldwide; however , they are well within the concentration ranges of soils of continental origin . The eastern soils tend to have less La and Ce, but similar amounts of the middle and heavy REEs