Communal Oviposition in the Northern Two-lined Salamander (Eurycea bislineata) in Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario

While surveying a stream for amphibians in Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada, I discovered a clutch of Two-lined Salamander (Eurycea bislineata) eggs on the underside of a partially submerged rock. I counted 165 eggs and measured them using ImageJ from a digital photograph. The quantity of eggs is far greater than any known clutch size for this species, and it was likely deposited by more than one female. This is the first report of communal oviposition in this species in Canada

Combustion in microgravity: The French contribution

AbstractMicrogravity (drop towers, parabolic flights, sounding rockets and space stations) are particularly relevant to combustion problems given that they show high-density gradients and in many cases weak forced convection. For some configurations where buoyancy forces result in complex flow fields, microgravity leads to ideal conditions that correspond closely to canonical problems, e.g., combustion of a spherical droplet in a far-field still atmosphere, Emmons' problem for flame spreading over a solid flat plate, deflagration waves, etc. A comprehensive chronological review on the many combustion studies in microgravity was written first by Law and Faeth (1994) and then by F.A. Williams (1995). Later on, new recommendations for research directions have been delivered. In France, research has been managed and supported by CNES and CNRS since the creation of the microgravity research group in 1992. At this time, microgravity research and future activities contemplated the following:–Droplets: the “D2 law” has been well verified and high-pressure behavior of droplet combustion has been assessed. The studies must be extended in two main directions: vaporization in mixtures near the critical line and collective effects in dense sprays.–Flame spread: experiments observed blue flames governed by diffusion that are in accordance with Emmons' theory. Convection-dominated flames showed significant departures from the theory. Some theoretical assumptions appeared controversial and it was noted that radiation effects must be considered, especially when regarding the role of soot production in quenching.–Heterogeneous flames: two studies are in progress, one in Poitiers and the other in Marseilles, about flame/suspension interactions.–Premixed and triple flames: the knowledge still needs to be complemented. Triple flames must continue to be studied and understanding of “flame balls” still needs to be addressed

Terrestrial dispersal of juvenile Mink Frog (Lithobates septentrionalis) in Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario

Dispersal following metamorphosis is critical for sustaining anuran metapopulations. Mink Frog (Lithobates septentrionalis) is a primarily aquatic species that is common in eastern Canada. The species is not well studied, and little is known about the terrestrial dispersal of recently metamorphosed individuals. Here we present our observations on the phenology of terrestrial activity in recently metamorphosed Mink Frogs in Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada. Despite a sampling effort of over 26 000 trap nights over two years (2010 and 2011) in an area with a known population of Mink Frogs, we observed only 35 individuals, all of which were recent metamorphs, in late summer 2011, suggesting annual variability of recruitment. Because all Mink Frogs were observed in a riparian area, it is likely that this species uses riparian corridors to disperse toward other wetlands, thus avoiding forested areas

Death rates from malaria epidemics, Burundi and Ethiopia.

Death rates exceeded emergency thresholds at 4 sites during epidemics of Plasmodium falciparum malaria in Burundi (2000-2001) and in Ethiopia (2003-2004). Deaths likely from malaria ranged from 1,000 to 8,900, depending on site, and accounted for 52% to 78% of total deaths. Earlier detection of malaria and better case management are needed

Injection of insect membrane in Xenopus oocyte: An original method for the pharmacological characterization of neonicotinoid insecticides

Insect nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) represent a major target of insecticides, belonging to the neonicotinoid family. However, the pharmacological profile of native nAChRs is poorly documented, mainly because of a lack of knowledge of their subunit stoichiometry, their tissue distribution and the weak access to nAChR-expressing cells. In addition, the expression of insect nAChRs in heterologous systems remains hard to achieve. Therefore, the structure–activity characterization of nAChR-targeting insecticides is made difficult. The objective of the present study was to characterize insect nAChRs by an electrophysiological approach in a heterologous system naturally devoid of these receptors to allow a molecular/cellular investigation of the mode of action of neonicotinoids