China and India: friends or foes?

In 1988, Sino-India security cooperation was restored after decades of deep hostility following the 1962 China-India border war. Yet, in 1998, security cooperation between the two countries came to collapse such that Indian nuclear test, Pokhran II, was specifically targeted against China. What has determined the rise and fall of Sino-India cooperation from the late 1980s onwards? How far can Sino-India security cooperation be re-established in the twenty-first century? My research builds on the International Relations theorizing on the security dilemma and costly-signalling, and the Political Psychology literature on enemy images. It adopts a mixed-method approach to originally investigate the causal mechanisms promoting Sino-India security cooperation from 1988 to 1998, showing how far these are replicable in the light of the demise of security cooperation from 1998 onwards. It envisages a scope for peaceful interactions between two states whose relationship will be a key determinant of 21st century international security

Control of bracken (Pteridium aquilinum) and feeding preferences in pastures grazed by wild ungulates in an area of the Northern Apennines (Italy)

The diminution of pastoral activities in marginal areas, and consequently of livestock grazing, implies a strong encroachment of invasive vegetation. The conservation of the open areas is however particularly important for wildlife management. With this aim, this paper describes the results obtained in a protected area on the Apennine mountains (Italy), encroached by Pteridium aquilinum (L.) Kuhn. Two restoration practices were carried out by the Administration of the Regional Park of the Laghi di Suviana e Brasimone (Bologna, Italy), in order to reverse the infestation of bracken and restore pastures within the park. The pasture, only grazed by wild animals, was improved through different treatments (ploughing followed by cuttings vs harrowing), each followed by seeding of a forage mixture. Our results showed better performance of the ploughing both as pastoral value of recovered pasture and as botanical composition. Some differences in the effects of the two restoration techniques were also found on the biodiversity index and on floristic richness. Data about grazing selection of the single botanical species have also been collected. The tesults also showed different behaviour in feeding preferences for wild ungulates in comparison to domestic stocks, giving a better evaluation of the real forage availability for wild herbivores

fecal nitrogen and dietary quality relationships in fallow deer

Fecal nitrogen of free ranging and captive herbivores is correlated with dietary nitrogen, as well as other dietary chemical characteristics. Besides, only few experimental studies examined in depth the precision of these relationships. This study investigates the correlation between fecal and dietary nitrogen in fallow deer (Dama dama), using data from 38 feeding trials collected from captive subjects. Significant linear regressions were found for all the dietary and fecal chemical components, but only nitrogen showed a noteworthy result (R2=0.76), very similar to the results obtained by several authors in other deer species (Robbins, 1993). Use of fecal nitrogen however, has been criticised because plant secondary compounds, such as tannin, may artificially inflate levels of fecal nitrogen; moreover, the binding effect of tannin is strongly reduced in mixed diets. After all, fecal nitrogen confirms its usefulness in studies about feeding strategies of free living ruminants

A disorder of surfactant metabolism without identified genetic mutations

BACKGROUND: Surfactant metabolism disorders may result in diffuse lung disease in children. CASE PRESENTATION: We report a 3-years-old boy with dry cough, progressive hypoxemia, dyspnea and bilateral ground glass opacities at chest high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) who had no variants in genes encoding surfactant proteins or transcription factors. Lung histology strongly suggested an abnormality of surfactant protein. A 7-month course of pulse intravenous high-dose methylprednisolone plus oral hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin led to gradual weaning from oxygen and oral steroids, and to improvement of cough and dyspnea. Over the follow-up period, hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin were not withdrawn as cough and dyspnea re-appeared at each attempt and disappeared at re-start. At 6 years of age chest HRCT still appeared unchanged, but clinical symptoms or signs were absent. CONCLUSIONS: In children suspected of inborn errors of pulmonary surfactant metabolism who do not have a recognized genetic mutation, lung biopsy with consistent histology may help physicians to address the definitive diagnosis

Environmental improvement and conservation of useful pastures for wild herbivores in a Regional Park on the Apennines mountains

In order to investigate some effects of the environmental management with faunistic purpose on pastures located on the Apennines mountains, in open areas subjected to bracken fern (Pteridium aqulinum) infestation, samples of vegetation were taken for three years on an open area in the Regional Park of "Laghi di Suviana e Brasimone" (BO). Experimental samples, taken before and after the agronomical works, showed the effects of the pasture improvement on botanical composition, richness and biodiversity. The agronomical pasture management produced a considerable decrease in bracken density and an increase on biodiversity, and the final average value of the Pastoral Value index was quadruplicate. These results confirmed the effectiveness of the actions carried out and the importance of maintaining a continuous programme of pasture management through annual clearing of vegetation

Habitat improvements with wildlife purposes in a grazed area on the Apennine mountains

In many European countries, the abandonment of traditional practices in the last decades produced remarkable effects on agricultural land use. In marginal mountain lands, one of the most evident outcomes is the reduction of the surfaces occupied by open habitats, mostly represented by meadows and pastures. The ecological consequences of reduced grazing in the pastures concerned not only the vegetation structure but also the floristic composition and the biodiversity of the herbaceous component, which is modified by the progressive establishment of woody species. For these reasons, it is important to carry out specific programs of habitat improvements in order to restore and maintain herbaceous vegetation, both for faunistic purposes and biodiversity conservation. In this note we describe the effectiveness of agronomical intervention carried out to enhance pasture quality in a protected area, once grazed by domestic animals, now utilised exclusively by wild fauna. The study was carried out for five years in a Regional Park (Parco Regionale dei Laghi di Suviana e Brasimone, Emilia Romagna, central Italy), in an experimental area where the vegetation was characterised by a high presence of bracken fern. Agronomical operations consisted of the restoration of a pasture, using an appropriate forage mixture. After the restoration, data collection concerned botanical composition, floristic richness and biodiversity of vegetation. Moreover, the utilization of single species by wild fauna was assessed by means of the defoliation rate methodology in order to evaluate the real consumption of each plant species. The results obtained in the studied area confirmed the efficiency of the improvement in terms of botanical composition and pastoral value of the pasture and they provided detailed information about selection of different plant species by wild ungulates

Feeding evaluation of spontaneous species used by wild ungulates

Abandonment of traditional agricultural practices can produce remarkable effects on land use and on the vegetal composition of marginal areas. This is particularly true in the once grazed zones in the mountain environments, that are now affected by encroachment of shrubby vegetation. The conservation of these open areas and the preservation of a correct ratio pasture/wood are of extremely importance for wild animals. In this note we describe the effectiveness of agronomical intervention carried out to enhance pasture quality in a protected area of central Italy. Data collection concerned botanical composition, floristic richness and biodiversity of vegetation, before and after the intervention efforts. Moreover, data on utilization of single species were collected in order to evaluate the real consumption of each plant species by wild animals. Results confirmed the efficiency of the improvement of the studied area in terms of botanical composition and of pastoral value and they provided useful indications about the actual utilization of non forage plants by wild ungulates