The Scarabaeoid Beetles of Maryland (Coleoptera)

This research recognizes 267 species of scarabaeoid beetles occurring in Maryland. We provide a brief overview of the geology, climate, and vegetation of the state. Keys to the families within Scarabaeoidea occurring in Maryland are provided. We also offer an introduction for each family, keys to all taxa, species descriptions, distributions, and distribution maps for all species, months that adults are observed, notes on their natural history, illustrations, and a glossary of terms. Maryland’s species are found in eight families: Lucanidae (7), Passalidae (1), Geotrupidae (17), Trogidae (18), Ochodaeidae (1), Hybosoridae (2), Glaphyridae (1), and Scarabaeidae (220). Published as Bulletin of the University of Nebraska State Museum, Volume 33, Issue Date: 1 March 2023 340 pages, 7 x10 , color illustrations; file size 70 MBhttps://digitalcommons.unl.edu/zeabook/1140/thumbnail.jp

Combining Revealed and Stated Preference Data to Estimate the Nonmarket Value of Ecological Services: An Assessment of the State of the Science

This paper reviews the marketing, transportation, and environmental economics literature on the joint estimation of revealed and stated preference data. The revealed preference and stated preference approaches are first described with a focus on the strengths and weaknesses of each. Recognizing these strengths and weaknesses, the potential gains from combining data are described. A classification system for combined data that emphasizes the type of data combination and the econometric models used is proposed. A methodological review of the literature is pursued based on this classification system. Examples from the environmental economics literature are highlighted. A discussion of the advantages and disadvantages of each type of jointly estimated model is then presented. Suggestions for future research, in particular opportunities for application of these models to environmental quality valuation, are presented.Nonmarket Valuation, Revealed Preference, Stated Preference

Phylogenetic structure of vertebrate communities across the A ustralian arid zone

Aim To understand the relative importance of ecological and historical factors in structuring terrestrial vertebrate assemblages across the A ustralian arid zone, and to contrast patterns of community phylogenetic structure at a continental scale. Location Australia. Methods We present evidence from six lineages of terrestrial vertebrates (five lizard clades and one clade of marsupial mice) that have diversified in arid and semi‐arid A ustralia across 37 biogeographical regions. Measures of within‐lineage community phylogenetic structure and species turnover were computed to examine how patterns differ across the continent and between taxonomic groups. These results were examined in relation to climatic and historical factors, which are thought to play a role in community phylogenetic structure. Analyses using a novel sliding‐window approach confirm the generality of processes structuring the assemblages of the A ustralian arid zone at different spatial scales. Results Phylogenetic structure differed greatly across taxonomic groups. Although these lineages have radiated within the same biome – the A ustralian arid zone – they exhibit markedly different community structure at the regional and local levels. Neither current climatic factors nor historical habitat stability resulted in a uniform response across communities. Rather, historical and biogeographical aspects of community composition (i.e. local lineage persistence and diversification histories) appeared to be more important in explaining the variation in phylogenetic structure. While arid‐zone assemblages show an overall tendency towards phylogenetic clustering, this pattern was less pronounced at finer spatial scales. Main conclusions By focusing within different taxonomic groups and between those groups within regions, we show that although the vertebrate lineages we examined exhibited high diversity and low turnover across the arid zone, the underlying phylogenetic structure differs between regions and taxonomic groups, suggesting that taxon‐specific histories are more important than habitat stability in determining patterns of phylogenetic community relatedness.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/98265/1/jbi12077.pd

The structure and diversity of strain-level variation in vaginal bacteria

The vaginal microbiome plays an important role in human health and species of vaginal bacteria have been associated with reproductive disease. Strain-level variation is also thought to be important, but the diversity, structure and evolutionary history of vaginal strains is not as well characterized. We developed and validated an approach to measure strain variation from metagenomic data based on SNPs within the core genomes for six species of vaginal bacteria

Water Security in Three Major Industries

Source: ICHE Conference Archive - https://mdi-de.baw.de/icheArchiv

The interpretation of particle size, shape, and carbon flux of marine particle images is strongly affected by the choice of particle detection algorithm

In situ imaging of particles in the ocean are rapidly establishing themselves as powerful tools to investigate the ocean carbon cycle, including the role of sinking particles for carbon sequestration via the biological carbon pump. A big challenge when analysing particles in camera images is determining the size of the particle, which is required to calculate carbon content, sinking velocity and flux. A key image processing decision is the algorithm used to decide which part of the image forms the particle and which is the background. However, this critical analysis step is often unmentioned and its effect rarely explored. Here we show that final flux estimates can easily vary by an order of magnitude when selecting different algorithms for a single dataset. We applied a range of static threshold values and 11 different algorithms (seven threshold and four edge detection algorithms) to particle profiles collected by the LISST-Holo system in two contrasting environments. Our results demonstrate that the particle detection method does not only affect estimated particle size but also particle shape. Uncertainties are likely exacerbated when different particle detection methods are mixed, e.g., when datasets from different studies or devices are merged. We conclude that there is a clear need for more transparent method descriptions and justification for particle detection algorithms, as well as for a calibration standard that allows intercomparison between different devices