Testing for variation in Leptasterias spp. prey preference across different populations and microhabitats

Sea star wasting disease (SSWD) has affected many asteroid populations on the Pacific Northwest coast in recent years. Because sea stars are keystone predators, the absence of them can severely alter the structure of intertidal communities. As populations diminish, it is important to understand what the preferred prey of sea stars is and how prey preference may affect distribution and abundance of sea stars. This laboratory study examined the prey preference of Leptasterias populations from Friday Harbor, Washington, Humboldt County, California, and Pigeon Point, California. The purpose of the study was to 1) determine if sea stars have a preferred prey type, 2) determine if there is a difference in prey preference across different populations, and 3) determine if there is a difference in prey preference between sea stars of different microhabitats (i.e. in pools or attached to rocks within the intertidal). To assess this, multiple binary choice trials were conducted in which sea stars were offered different prey types of equal accessibility. Preference was determined by calculating the average position of sea stars in an experimental tank. Preliminary observations suggest that there is a difference in prey preference between stars of different populations and microhabitats, however statistical analyses are needed at this time. Future studies are necessary that include larger sample sizes, a more controlled laboratory environment, and field-based experiments and observations

O1 haplotype diversity of the invasive colonial tunicate Didemnum vexillum in Drakes Estero and Bodega Bay

The colonial ascidian Didemnum vexillum is an invasive species with detrimental economic and ecological impacts on ecosystems where it is newly introduced. Populations of this recent marine pest are rapidly expanding along the North American coasts and provide the opportunity to assess whether population proximity and shared environmental factors influence genetic relatedness. The population in Tomales Bay, CA is the most diverse measured to date on the Northeast Pacific coast with the population composed of six different haplotypes; other locations are composed of three or four haplotypes. The diversity in Tomales Bay suggests it be an anomaly or possibly a matter associated to areas of limited diversity. D. vexillum populations in isolated areas such as Drakes Estero and Bodega Bay, CA are of close geographic range to Tomales. Drakes’ population is associated with aquaculture structures of the past and Bodega with fishing and recreational boat traffic. This study involved the genetic examination of these populations by barcoding the mitochondrial locus COI to determine haplotype distributions of Drakes Estero and Bodega Bay. From the ten Bodega and five Drakes sequences, there are at least two haplotypes represented. However, the results are preliminary; phylogenetic analysis of all sequences in comparison to the known haplotypes of D. vexillum is necessary before concluding which haplotypes are present in the populations

Testing the salinity tolerance levels of similar invasive species found in the San Francisco Bay

Testing the salinity tolerance levels of similar invasive species found in the San Francisco Bay Julia Smith1,2, Elizabeth Sheets2, and C. Sarah Cohen2 1Department of Teacher Education, California State University, Sacramento 2Department of Biology and Romberg Tiburon Center, San Francisco State University Three non-indigenous colonial ascidian species, Botrylloides violaceus, Botrylloides diegensis, and Botryllus schlosseri, have become well established in San Francisco Bay. Two species, B. violaceous and B. schlosseri, are globally distributed, and understanding the salinity ranges and tolerances of these successful invaders in their introduced habitats is important for predicting their spread. We tested the tolerance of these three morphologically similar species to salinity ranges that they may encounter locally in San Francisco Bay, and globally, in their broad distributions, including a freshwater transit experiment designed to simulate conditions for ships transiting through the Panama Canal. Botrylloides violaceus, B. diegensis, and Botryllus schlosseri were exposed to various salinities (10, 15, 18, and 20 ppt) for a period of 14 hours, and then assessed for two signs of vitality immediately after each treatment, and were monitored for survival after a week. Our preliminary results showed survival of Botrylloides diegensis, and B. violaceus at the lowest (10 ppt) salinity treatment after 1 week, but no colonies of Botryllus schlosseri survived this salinity treatment in a preliminary trial. The three species all showed survival at our higher (15, 18, and 20 ppt) salinity treatments. In a separate trial, the three target species were also exposed to a drastic salinity decrease to 0 ppt for 7 hours, related to conditions in the Panama Canal. There were no signs of immediate survival in colonies that experienced very low salinity conditions. However, small vascular fragments appear to remain in many colonies three weeks later, and are currently being monitored in the event that they may regenerate, as local colonies of each of these speceis have successfully carried out whole body regeneration from vascular fragments as small as 3.9 mm (Benson Chow, unpub. data)

Abundance and community composition of invasive Intertidal Watersipora on the San Francisco Bay Area Outer Coast

Invasive species can lead to serious ecological changes. The San Francisco Bay area is one of the most invaded areas in the world due to the commercial shipping industry and recreational water vessels. While the intertidal is not widely invaded, the harbors and docks are. One exception to this is the invasive, colonial filter-feeding bryozoan Watersipora, which has been found at various rocky outer coast sites. Further investigation into how the sites are invaded by this organism and their impact on native species must be carried out. In this project, at four intertidal sites around the SF Bay outflow, we compared Watersipora abundance at two tidal heights and assessed interactions with organisms. Using two parallel transects, separated by approximately 8 meters, we documented size and growth form of all colonies located one meter to each side of the transect. To assess community interactions, we centered a 15x15 centimeter quadrat over every other colony and photographed it. Using the photographs, organisms within each quadrat were quantified and interactions between Watersipora and organisms were assessed. At all sites, Watersipora abundance was higher in the lower intertidal than the shoreward transect. Comparing the four sites, the two sites more distant from the outflow had more total counts of colonies, in comparison to the two bay proximal sites. This may suggest that the bay outflow isn’t the source of Watersipora spread along the coast, even though it is abundant inside the Bay itself. Investigating community composition around Watersipora colonies showed most interactions with coralline algae, sponges, polychaete tubes, and anemones. Specifically, it was observed overgrowing Phragmatopoma californica tubes, and both overgrowing and being overgrown by sponges. Looking forward, investigation into how Watersipora impacts species in the same ecological niche will be critical to understanding how this invasive organism is impacting the rocky intertidal community

Context-induced Contrast and Assimilation in Judging Supportiveness

Social support research increasingly draws from research on social cognition. Most of this research has studied assimilation and chronically accessible (i.e., frequently activated) social support constructs. This article presents three studies, in both laboratory and treatment settings, on context-induced contrast and assimilation in support judgments. In each study, participants exposed to positive social contexts subsequently rated supportive stimuli more negatively than participants exposed to negative social contexts. These effects were observed in ratings of participants’ own social networks, the social climate of a residential treatment environment, and a videotaped supportive interaction. In two studies, negative contexts also were associated with increased negative affect and affect-related assimilation. That is, participants with more negative affect rated social environments more negatively than participants with less negative emotion. In some circumstances, context- induced contrast and assimilation counteracted each other. These effects have implications for social support interventions

A Survey of CN and CH Variations in Galactic Globular Clusters from SDSS Spectroscopy

We present a homogeneous survey of the CN and CH bandstrengths in eight Galactic globular clusters observed during the course of the Sloan Extension for Galactic Understanding and Exploration (SEGUE) sub-survey of the SDSS. We confirm the existence of a bimodal CN distribution among RGB stars in all of the clusters with metallicity greater than [Fe/H] = -1.7; the lowest metallicity cluster with an observed CN bimodality is M53, with [Fe/H] ~ -2.1. There is also some evidence for individual CN groups on the subgiant branches of M92, M2, and M13, and on the red giant branches of M92 and NGC 5053. Finally, we quantify the correlation between overall cluster metallicity and the slope of the CN bandstrength-luminosity plot as a means of further demonstrating the level of CN-enrichment in cluster giants. Our results agree well with previous studies reported in the literature.Comment: AJ submitted; 80 pages, 22 figure

Do adults with high functioning autism or Asperger Syndrome differ in empathy and emotion recognition?

The present study examined whether adults with high functioning autism (HFA) showed greater difficulties in (i) their self-reported ability to empathise with others and/or (ii) their ability to read mental states in others’ eyes than adults with Asperger syndrome (AS). The Empathy Quotient (EQ) and ‘Reading the Mind in the Eyes’ Test (Eyes Test) were compared in 43 adults with AS and 43 adults with HFA. No significant difference was observed on EQ score between groups, while adults with AS performed significantly better on the Eyes Test than those with HFA. This suggests that adults with HFA may need more support, particularly in mentalizing and complex emotion recognition, and raises questions about the existence of subgroups within autism spectrum conditions

Acceptability and utility of, and preference for wearable activity trackers amongst non-metropolitan cancer survivors

Purpose: The study purpose was to investigate the acceptability and utility of, and preference for, wearable activity trackers (WATs) amongst cancer survivors living in regional and remote areas of Western Australia. Methods: Twenty participants were recruited (Mean age = 63 years, SD = 13) to test two to three trackers from five available models (Fitbit Alta, Garmin Vivofit 2, Garmin Vivosmart, Polar loop 2 and Polar A300). Participants wore each device for two weeks, followed by a one-week washout period between devices. Interviews were conducted with participants to explore user perceptions and experiences. Interview transcripts were analysed using thematic analysis. Results: Four main themes emerged: (i) Consciousness raising; (ii) Prompts and Feedback; (iii) Accuracy and registry of activities; and, (iv) WAT preferences and features. Conclusions: WATs were acceptable and useful to cancer survivors. WATs increased self-awareness of physical activity, provided real time feedback in relation to step goals, and reinforced progress and efforts towards goals. The aesthetics of the WATs were deemed crucial in determining preference and likelihood of use. Implications for cancer survivors: Future interventions may do well to have two different WATs available for participants to choose from, according to activity preferences, aesthetic preferences, and display size

Brief report: how adolescents with ASD process social information in complex scenes. Combining evidence from eye movements and verbal descriptions

We investigated attention, encoding and processing of social aspects of complex photographic scenes. Twenty-four high-functioning adolescents (aged 11–16) with ASD and 24 typically developing matched control participants viewed and then described a series of scenes, each containing a person. Analyses of eye movements and verbal descriptions provided converging evidence that both groups displayed general interest in the person in each scene but the salience of the person was reduced for the ASD participants. Nevertheless, the verbal descriptions revealed that participants with ASD frequently processed the observed person’s emotion or mental state without prompting. They also often mentioned eye-gaze direction, and there was evidence from eye movements and verbal descriptions that gaze was followed accurately. The combination of evidence from eye movements and verbal descriptions provides a rich insight into the way stimuli are processed overall. The merits of using these methods within the same paradigm are discussed