Use by small and medium mammals of wildlife crossing structures on two motorways in south-western France. Results of the first two years of camera-trap surveys

Depuis 2012, 9 passages à petite et moyenne faune (8 buses sèches au droit d’ouvrages hydrauliques et une buse sèche en milieu boisé) nouvellement installés sous deux autoroutes du centre-ouest de la France ont été suivis par pièges photographiques sur des périodes variant de 9 à 24 mois selon les sites. Au total 5338 passages concernant 16 espèces de petits, moyens et grands Mammifères (Micromammifères exclus), comptant parmi celles les plus soumises aux collisions routières, ont été détectés. Le nombre moyen de passages par jour et par ouvrage observé de 1,20 ± 0,70 ET est similaire à d’autres suivis menés en Europe de l’Ouest sur des ouvrages semblables. Près de 91 % de ces passages sont attribuables à 5 espèces : le Blaireau Meles meles (45 %), le Renard roux Vulpes vulpes (19 %), le Lapin de garenne Oryctolagus cuniculus (9 %), la Genette commune Genetta genetta (9 %) et la Fouine Martes foina (9 %). Le nombre de jours de suivi et la saison influencent tout deux significativement les nombres de passages journaliers détectés de ces cinq espèces. Une augmentation du nombre de leurs passages d’un facteur 8 est observée sur les deux premières années de l’étude. Les suivis ayant démarré juste après la mise en service des ouvrages, cette augmentation peut s’expliquer au regard du temps nécessaire aux animaux pour trouver les dispositifs de franchissement et les incorporer dans leurs patrons de déplacements via une période d’adaptation et de processus d’apprentissage. Les diminutions significatives des taux de refus observées chez les Blaireau et Renard au cours du suivi corroborent l’hypothèse d’une accoutumance de la faune aux ouvrages. Indépendamment de la durée du suivi, les nombres de passages détectés de Blaireau, Renard, Lapin et Fouine montrent des saisonnalités spécifiques marquées ; celles-ci pouvant coïncider avec le rythme d’activité des espèces au cours de l’année. Ces premiers résultats sont encourageants et incitent à poursuivre le suivi pour mesurer l’efficacité des ouvrages une fois la période d’adaptation de la faune passée. Pour ce faire, le suivi par pièges photographiques devra être couplé d’échantillonnages additionnels pour évaluer les bénéfices individuels et populationnels de ces ouvrages pour la faune sauvageSince 2012, camera-trap surveys have been carried out to study the use by wildlife of 9 newly-constructed underpasses on two motorways in south-western France (8 modified culverts and 1 underpass for small animals). A total of 5338 successful crossings of 16 small, medium and large mammal species were detected over a 9 to 24 month period (the duration varied with each site). The results comprise the majority of roadkill species, but micro-mammals were excluded from the survey. The mean observed daily crossing rate of 1.20 ± 0.70 SD per structure is comparable to other studies carried out in Western Europe at similar sites. Of the detected crossings, 91 % were made by 5 species: Eurasian badger Meles meles (45 %), Red fox Vulpes vulpes (19 %), Common rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus (9 %), Common genet Genetta genetta (9 %) and Stone marten Martes fouina (9 %). For these abundant species both the duration of the survey (number of days) and the season were shown to have a significant influence on the number of crossing events. Monitoring began shortly after the installation of each crossing structure. Over a 2-year period, an almost eight-fold increase in use was observed as wild fauna found the crossing structures and incorporated them into their movement patterns through adaptation periods and learning processes. Throughout the survey a decrease in refusal rate by Red fox and Badger was observed, supporting the 'habituation' hypothesis. Usage was significantly different throughout the seasons for Badger, Red fox, Rabbit, and Stone marten. Each of these seasonal patterns could be correlated with species activity throughout the year. The initial survey results are encouraging and suggest that continued long-term monitoring is important to assess the effectiveness of crossing structures after the period of adaptation. To this end, our camera-trap surveys must be accompanied by appropriate additional sampling to measure the individual and population benefits for wildlife of these underpasse

An English cover-up: masks, murders, and English cruelty in Goncourt, Lorrain, and Schwob

Fin-de-siècle writers from diverse disciplines were drawn to the seductive potential of masks and disguise; mask-wearing characters of indefinite identity, indeterminate gender, and insecure psychology proliferate in their texts. However, when characters are designated as English in such stories, they are also, and with remarkable frequency, associated with cruelty or murder: the mask-wielding murderers of Marcel Schwob’s ‘MM. Burke et Hare, Assassins’ carry out their crimes in Britain upon British victims; Edmond de Goncourt weaves his theatrical narrative around the mask-like demeanour of Lord Annandale in La Faustin; and Jean Lorrain’s malicious Lord Ethal exacerbates the Duc de Fréneuse’s perverse obsessions with masks in Monsieur de Phocas. This article explores this unexpected correlation, and examines the ways that English masks are used as narrative devices – at once to mould and play with national distinctions, and to reflect upon the psychological state of the French subject

Fréquentation de buses dédiées aux passages de la petite et moyenne faune sous deux autoroutes de l’ouest de la France. Bilan des deux premières années de suivis par pièges photographiques

Use by small and medium mammals of wildlife crossing structures on two motorways in south-western France. Results of the first two years of camera-trap surveys. Since 2012, camera-trap surveys have been carried out to study the use by wildlife of 9 newly-constructed underpasses on two motorways in south-western France (8 modified culverts and 1 underpass for small animals). A total of 5338 successful crossings of 16 small, medium and large mammal species were detected over a 9 to 24 month period (the duration varied with each site). The results comprise the majority of roadkill species, but micro-mammals were excluded from the survey. The mean observed daily crossing rate of 1.20 ± 0.70 SD per structure is comparable to other studies carried out in Western Europe at similar sites. Of the detected crossings, 91 % were made by 5 species : Eurasian badger Meles meles (45 %), Red fox Vulpes vulpes (19 %), Common rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus (9 %), Common genet Genetta genetta (9 %) and Stone marten Martes foina (9 %). For these abundant species both the duration of the survey (number of days) and the season were shown to have a significant influence on the number of crossing events. Monitoring began shortly after the installation of each crossing structure. Over a 2-year period, an almost eight-fold increase in use was observed as wild fauna found the crossing structures and incorporated them into their movement patterns through adaptation periods and learning processes. Throughout the survey a decrease in refusal rate by Red fox and Badger was observed, supporting the ''habituation'' hypothesis. Usage was significantly different throughout the seasons for Badger, Red fox, Rabbit, and Stone marten. Each of these seasonal patterns could be correlated with species activity throughout the year. The initial survey results are encouraging and suggest that continued long-term monitoring is important to assess the effectiveness of crossing structures after the period of adaptation. To this end, our camera-trap surveys must be accompanied by appropriate additional sampling to measure the individual and population benefits for wildlife of these underpasses.Depuis 2012, 9 passages à petite et moyenne faune (8 buses sèches au droit d’ouvrages hydrauliques et une buse sèche en milieu boisé) nouvellement installés sous deux autoroutes du centre-ouest de la France ont été suivis par pièges photographiques sur des périodes variant de 9 à 24 mois selon les sites. Au total 5338 passages concernant 16 espèces de petits, moyens et grands Mammifères (Micromammifères exclus), comptant parmi celles les plus soumises aux collisions routières, ont été détectés. Le nombre moyen de passages par jour et par ouvrage observé de 1,20 ± 0,70 ET est similaire à d’autres suivis menés en Europe de l’Ouest sur des ouvrages semblables. Près de 91 % de ces passages sont attribuables à 5 espèces : le Blaireau Meles meles (45 %), le Renard roux Vulpes vulpes (19 %), le Lapin de garenne Oryctolagus cuniculus (9 %), la Genette commune Genetta genetta (9 %) et la Fouine Martes foina (9 %). Le nombre de jours de suivi et la saison influencent tout deux significativement les nombres de passages journaliers détectés de ces cinq espèces. Une augmentation du nombre de leurs passages d’un facteur 8 est observée sur les deux premières années de l’étude. Les suivis ayant démarré juste après la mise en service des ouvrages, cette augmentation peut s’expliquer au regard du temps nécessaire aux animaux pour trouver les dispositifs de franchissement et les incorporer dans leurs patrons de déplacements via une période d’adaptation et de processus d’apprentissage. Les diminutions significatives des taux de refus observées chez les Blaireau et Renard au cours du suivi corroborent l’hypothèse d’une accoutumance de la faune aux ouvrages. Indépendamment de la durée du suivi, les nombres de passages détectés de Blaireau, Renard, Lapin et Fouine montrent des saisonnalités spécifiques marquées ; celles-ci pouvant coïncider avec le rythme d’activité des espèces au cours de l’année. Ces premiers résultats sont encourageants et incitent à poursuivre le suivi pour mesurer l’efficacité des ouvrages une fois la période d’adaptation de la faune passée. Pour ce faire, le suivi par pièges photographiques devra être couplé d’échantillonnages additionnels pour évaluer les bénéfices individuels et populationnels de ces ouvrages pour la faune sauvage.Fagart Sylvain, Heurtebise Cédric, Quaintenne Gwenaël, Jourde Philippe, Micol Thierry. Fréquentation de buses dédiées aux passages de la petite et moyenne faune sous deux autoroutes de l’ouest de la France. Bilan des deux premières années de suivis par pièges photographiques. In: Revue d'Écologie (La Terre et La Vie), tome 71, n°1, 2016. pp. 82-98

Epidural motor skills measurements for haptic training

International audienceEpidural procedure can be a challenging skill to learn. Veterinarians must feel how many ligaments they get through before performing the injection in the exact location, relying solely on haptic perception, on a wide range of animal sizes. Force, torque, and position sensors were mounted on a needle to measure an epidural injection procedure. We provide here the data analysis that led to the needle insertion force profile extraction, to be used in procedural haptic simulators

A lumped parameter model to evaluate the relevance of excess air as a tracer of exchanged flows between transmissive and capacitive compartments of karst systems

International audienceThe objective of this study was to evaluate the relevance of using excess air (EA) for the characterization of drain/matrix exchange in karst systems using a rainfall discharge model coupled with the simulation of EA measured at the outlet of the studied system. The conceptual model assumes a linear relationship between the formation of EA and the increase of hydrostatic pressure in the capacitive part of the aquifer. The simulated EA at the spring consists of the mixing of water circulating in the different compartments of the aquifer, with their own EA signature. The analysis is performed taking as an example the Durzon karst system (Larzac, France). The modeling is applied using daily rainfall discharge time series and 18 EA measurements at the main outlet of the karst system within 3 hydrological cycles. The main modeling results show that EA variations measured at the karst spring can be explained by recharge processes and exchange between conduit and matrix. EA measurements at the spring thus contain valuable information about the flow dynamics within the aquifer. Furthermore, results show that the use of EA measurements, despite their sparse temporal resolution, allows for reducing uncertainties in the estimation of some parameters of the reservoir model used for the simulation of karst spring discharge

Lupus activity and outcomes in lupus patients undergoing maintenance dialysis

International audienceObjectives Lupus activity has long been considered to decline after initiation of maintenance dialysis (MD). This assumption is based on limited historical data. We aimed to describe the natural history of lupus in patients undergoing MD. Methods We assembled a national retrospective cohort of lupus patients who started dialysis between 2008 and 2011, included in the REIN registry with a 5-year follow-up. We analysed healthcare consumption from the National Health Data System. We evaluated the proportion of patients ‘off-treatment’ (i.e. receiving 0–5 mg/d of corticosteroids, without any immunosuppressive therapy) after the start of MD. We describe the cumulative incidences of non-severe and severe lupus flares, cardiovascular events, severe infections, kidney transplantation and survival. Results We included 137 patients (121 females and 16 males), with a median age of 42 years. The proportion of patients ‘off-treatment’ at dialysis initiation was 67.7% (95% CI: 61.8, 73.8%), and increased to 76.0% (95% CI: 73.3, 78.8) at 1 year and 83.4% (95% CI: 81.0, 85.9%) at 3 years, with a lower proportion in younger patients. Lupus flares mainly occurred in the first year after MD initiation, and at 12 months 51.6% of patients had presented a non-severe lupus flare and 11.6% a severe lupus flare. In addition, 42.2% (95% CI: 32.9, 50.3%) and 23.7% (95% CI: 16.0, 30.7%) of patients at 12 months had been hospitalized for cardiovascular events or infections, respectively. Conclusion The proportion of lupus patients off-treatment increases after MD initiation, but non-severe and severe lupus flares continue to occur, mainly during the first year. This calls for the continued follow-up of lupus patients by lupus specialists after dialysis initiation

Imported Malaria, Collapsing Glomerulopathy, and Focal and Segmental Glomerulosclerosis

International audienc