The power of monitoring: optimizing survey designs to detect occupancy changes in a rare amphibian population

Biodiversity conservation requires reliable species assessments and rigorously designed surveys. However, determining the survey effort required to reliably detect population change can be challenging for rare, cryptic and elusive species. We used a tropical bromeliad-dwelling frog as a model system to explore a cost-effective sampling design that optimizes the chances of detecting a population decline. Relatively few sampling visits were needed to estimate occupancy and detectability with good precision, and to detect a 30% change in occupancy with 80% power. Detectability was influenced by observer expertise, which therefore also had an effect on the sampling design – less experienced observers require more sampling visits to detect the species. Even when the sampling design provides precise parameter estimates, only moderate to large changes in occupancy will be detected with reliable power. Detecting a population change of 15% or less requires a large number of sites to be surveyed, which might be unachievable for range-restricted species occurring at relatively few sites. Unless there is high initial occupancy, rare and cryptic species will be particularly challenging when it comes to detecting small population changes. This may be a particular issue for long-term monitoring of amphibians which often display low detectability and wide natural fluctuations

Neurological symptoms and signs in HTLV-1 patients with overactive bladder syndrome

OBJECTIVE: To compare neurological symptoms and signs in HTLV-1 asymptomatic carriers and HTLV-1 patients with overactive bladder (OB) syndrome. METHODS: We studied 102 HTLV-1 positive individuals without HAM/TSP (HTLV-1 associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis) divided into two groups according to the presence or absence of OB syndrome. Clinical interview, neurological exam and proviral load was performed in all patients. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: Individuals with OB were more commonly female (84.3 vs. 60.8% of asymptomatics, p=0.01). The prevalence of neurological complaints was higher in OB group, especially hand or foot numbness and arm or leg weakness. There was no difference between the groups in neurological strength and reflexes. Weakness complaint remained strongly associated with OB in multivariate logistic regression analysis adjusting for sex and age [adjusted odds ratio and 95%CI 3.59 (1.45-8.88) in arms and 6.68 (2.63-16.93) in legs]. Proviral load was also different between the two groups with higher level on OB individuals