Responses of White-Footed Mice and Meadow Voles to Flyovers of an Aerial Predator Silhouette

Author Institution: Department of Zoology, The Ohio State University; Department of Poultry and Wildlife Sciences, University of NebraskaThe response of white-footed mice and meadow voles to a stylized hawk model pulled overhead was studied. Behavior such as looking up and following the path of the model, immobility, and/or entering a nest can was observed and statistically analyzed. Overall responsiveness peaked as the model passed directly overhead. Stationary models elicited fewer instances of immobility than moving models while significantly increasing the number of white-footed mice that entered nest cans. Meadow voles were more likely to move about the 36 x 20 x 15 cm cage, but not into nest cans, during stop-go flyovers than during non-stop flyovers

Avian scavengers, but not conspecifics, feeding on the carcasses of storm-killed Turkey Vultures on the Falkland Islands

No Abstract

Inclement weather forces stopovers and prevents migratory progress for obligate soaring migrants

Migrating birds experience weather conditions that change with time, which affect their decision to stop or resume migration. Soaring migrants are especially sensitive to changing weather conditions because they rely on the availability of environmental updrafts to subsidize flight. The timescale that local weather conditions change over is on the order of hours, while stopovers are studied at the daily scale, creating a temporal mismatch. We used GPS satellite tracking data from four migratory Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura) populations, paired with local weather data, to determine if the decision to stopover by migrating Turkey Vultures was in response to changing local weather conditions. We analyzed 174 migrations of 34 individuals from 2006 to 2019 and identified 589 stopovers based on variance of first passage times. We also investigated if the extent of movement activity correlated with average weather conditions experienced during a stopover, and report general patterns of stopover use by Turkey Vultures between seasons and across populations. Stopover duration ranged from 2 h to more than 11 days, with 51 % of stopovers lasting < 24 h. Turkey Vultures began stopovers immediately in response to changes in weather variables that did not favor thermal soaring (e.g., increasing precipitation fraction and decreasing thermal updraft velocity) and their departure from stopovers was associated with improvements in weather that favored thermal development. During stopovers, proportion of activity was negatively associated with precipitation but was positively associated with temperature and thermal updraft velocity. The rapid response of migrating Turkey Vultures to changing weather conditions indicates weather-avoidance is one of the major functions of their stopover use. During stopovers, however, the positive relationship between proportion of movement activity and conditions that promote thermal development suggests not all stopovers are used for weather-avoidance. Our results show that birds are capable of responding rapidly to their environment; therefore, for studies interested in external drivers of weather-related stopovers, it is essential that stopovers be identified at fine temporal scales.https://doi.org/10.1186/s40462-021-00274-

Characterization and differentiation of sublittoral sandbanks in the southeastern North Sea

Marine sublittoral sandbanks are essential offshore feeding grounds for larger crustaceans, fish and seabirds. In the southern North Sea, sandbanks are characterized by considerable natural sediment dynamics and are subject to chronic bottom trawling. However, except for the Dogger Bank, sandbanks in the southeastern North Sea have been only poorly investigated until now. We used an extensive, multi-annual dataset covering ongoing national monitoring programmes, environmental impact assessments, and basic research studies to analyse benthic communities on sublittoral sandbanks, evaluating their ecological value against the backdrop of similar seafloor habitats in this region. The analysis revealed complex spatial structuring of sandy seafloor habitats of the southeastern North Sea. Different infauna clusters were identified and could be specified by their composition of characteristic species. The sandbanks shared common structural features in their infauna community composition although they were not necessarily characterized by particularly high biodiversity compared to other sandy habitats. A close association of one of the main bioturbators in the southern North Sea, the sea urchin Echinocardium cordatum, with sandbanks was detected, which may promote the sediment-bound biogeochemical activity in this particular seafloor habitat. This would corroborate the status of sandbanks as sites of high ecological value calling for consideration in marine conservation

Study of bound states in 12Be through low-energy 11Be(d,p)-transfer reactions

The bound states of 12Be have been studied through a 11Be(d,p)12Be transfer reaction experiment in inverse kinematics. A 2.8 MeV/u beam of 11Be was produced using the REX-ISOLDE facility at CERN. The outgoing protons were detected with the T-REX silicon detector array. The MINIBALL germanium array was used to detect gamma rays from the excited states in 12Be. The gamma-ray detection enabled a clear identification of the four known bound states in 12Be, and each of the states has been studied individually. Differential cross sections over a large angular range have been extracted. Spectroscopic factors for each of the states have been determined from DWBA calculations and have been compared to previous experimental and theoretical results

Causes of admission to a raptor rehabilitation centre and factors that can be used to predict the likelihood of release

Admission records of rescued birds are an important source of information for tracking the prevalence of human‐related threats to wildlife. In this study, we used admission records from January 2015 to December 2016 to review the causes for raptor admissions to a raptor rehabilitation centre in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, and to determine factors that can be used to predict the outcome of rehabilitation. During the study period, 242 raptors were admitted to the centre, representing 33 species. The major causes of admission were collision‐related injuries (52%), grounded birds (12%) and orphaned chicks (10%). The most common casualties were spotted eagle‐owl Bubo africanus (23%), yellow‐billed kite Milvus migrans aegyptius/parasitus (12%), jackal buzzard Buteo rufofuscus (10%) and western barn owl Tyto alba (10%). The rehabilitation centre had a release rate of 48%. Reason for admission was a significant predictor of the outcome of rehabilitation while other variables were not. Raptors with no severe injuries such as orphaned chicks and grounded birds were more likely to have successful rehabilitation treatment than raptors suffering from collision injuries. Wildlife rehabilitators can use the results of the present study to develop triage guidelines for raptors admitted to rehabilitation centres.National Research Foundation (ZA), Inyuvesi Yakwazulu‐Natali and Hawk Mountain Sanctuary Association.https://wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/aje2022-02-08hj2021Mammal Research InstituteZoology and Entomolog

Low-energy Coulomb excitation of 62^{62}Fe and 62^{62}Mn following in-beam decay of 62^{62}Mn

Sub-barrier Coulomb-excitation was performed on a mixed beam of $^{62}$Mn and $^{62}$Fe, following in-trap $\beta^{-}$ decay of $^{62}$Mn at REX-ISOLDE, CERN. The trapping and charge breeding times were varied in order to alter the composition of the beam, which was measured by means of an ionisation chamber at the zero-angle position of the Miniball array. A new transition was observed at 418~keV, which has been tentatively associated to a $(2^{+},3^{+})\rightarrow1^{+}_{g.s.}$ transition. This fixes the relative positions of the $\beta$-decaying $4^{+}$ and $1^{+}$ states in $^{62}$Mn for the first time. Population of the $2^{+}_{1}$ state was observed in $^{62}$Fe and the cross-section determined by normalisation to the $^{109}$Ag target excitation, confirming the $B(E2)$ value measured in recoil-distance lifetime experiments.Comment: 9 pages, 10 figure

Design of a 2-D Cementation Experiment in Porous Medium Using Numerical Simulation

International audienceThe validation and qualification of reactive transport simulation tools has motivated the design and simulation, at a laboratory scale, of an experiment in which flow, advective/dispersive transport of solutes and physicochemical transformation affecting a porous medium are strongly coupled. Several possible experimental setups (or designs) have been evaluated using numerical simulation. The selected experimental design involves the successive precipitation and perforation of a clogging obstacle composed of calcium oxalate. Before an experiment can actually be conducted, this problem is proposed as a numerical benchmark for reactive transport codes and simulated using the coupled reactive transport code Hytec (CIG-École des mines, France)

Far From \u27Easy\u27 Spectroscopy with the 8π and GRIFFIN Spectrometers at TRIUMF-ISAC

The 8π spectrometer, installed at the TRIUMF-ISAC facility, was the world\u27s most sensitive γ-ray spectrometer dedicated to β-decay studies. A description is given of the 8π spectrometer and its auxiliary detectors including the plastic scintillator array SCEPTAR used for β-particle tagging and the Si(Li) array PACES for conversion electron measurements, its moving tape collector, and its data acquisition system. The recent investigation of the decay of 124Cs to study the nuclear structure of 124Xe, and how the β-decay measurements complemented previous Coulomb excitation studies, is highlighted, including the extraction of the deformation parameters for the excited 0+ bands in 124Xe. As a by-product, the decay scheme of the (7+) 124Cs isomeric state, for which the data from the PACES detectors were vital, was studied. Finally, a description of the new GRIFFIN spectrometer, which uses the same auxiliary detectors as the 8π spectrometer, is given

Ranging behaviour of Long-crested Eagles Lophaetus occipitalis in human-modified landscapes of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

The ranging behaviour of raptors in human-altered environments, such as agricultural and suburban landscapes, is becoming increasingly important for conservationists in the context of unprecedented high rates of anthropogenic land use change. We studied the movement ecology of adult Long-crested Eagles Lophaetus occipitalis fitted with geographic positioning system transmitters in an agricultural landscape in KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa. Mean home ranges (± SD) of males and females estimated using the autocorrelated kernel density estimator (AKDE) method were 608 ± 552 ha (n = 5) and 664 ± 844 ha (n = 4), respectively. Core areas (KDEhref 50%) were estimated as 80 ± 38 ha and 39 ± 20 ha for males and females, respectively. We also recorded exploratory behaviour (in the form of long excursions) in two of the birds, of up to 49 km from the centre of their home range. The relatively small home ranges reported in this study are suggestive of productive foraging habitats whereby Long-crested Eagles can meet their energy requirements without having to travel long distances to obtain resources. Consistent with predictions, non-breeding male and female Long-crested Eagles showed similar ranging behaviour, which includes occasional exploratory behaviour.Le comportement des rapaces dans les environnements modifiés par l’homme, tels que les paysages agricoles et suburbains, devient de plus en plus important pour les défenseurs de la nature dans le contexte des taux élevés sans précédent de changement d’utilisation des terres par l’homme. Nous avons étudié l’écologie du mouvement des Aigles huppards adultes Lophaetus occipitalis équipés d’émetteurs de système de positionnement géographique dans un paysage agricole de la province du KwaZulu-Natal, en Afrique du Sud. Les domaines vitaux moyens (± SD) des mâles et des femelles estimés à l’aide de la méthode de l’estimateur de densité de noyau autocorrélé (AKDE) étaient respectivement de 608 ± 552 ha (n = 5) et 664 ± 844 ha (n = 4). Les zones centrales (KDEhref 50%) ont été estimées à 80 ± 38 ha et 39 ± 20 ha respectivement pour les mâles et les femelles. Nous avons également enregistré un comportement exploratoire (sous forme de longues excursions) chez deux des oiseaux, jusqu’à 49 km du centre de leur domaine vital. Les domaines vitaux relativement petits signalés dans cette étude suggèrent des habitats de gagnage productifs où l’Aigle huppard peut satisfaire ses besoins énergétiques sans avoir à parcourir de longues distances pour obtenir des ressources. Conformément aux prévisions, les Aigles huppards mâles et femelles non reproducteurs ont montré un comportement territorial similaire, y compris un comportement exploratoire occasionnel.http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/tost202021-08-06hj2020Mammal Research InstituteZoology and Entomolog