Guano morphology has the potential to inform conservation strategies in British bats

Bats are primary consumers of nocturnal insects, disperse nutrients across landscapes, and are excellent bioindicators of an ecosystem’s health, however four of the seventeen Great British species are listed as declining. In this study we aim to investigate the link between bat guano morphology and diet, specifically looking at the ability to predict 1) species, 2) dietary guild, and 3) bat size, using guano morphology alone. Guano from 16 bat species sampled from across Great Britain were analysed to determine various morphological metrics. These data were coupled with diet data obtained by an extensive literature review. It was found that guano morphology overlapped too much to make predictions on the species of bat which deposited the guano, however, in some cases, it could be used to indicate the dietary guild to which the bat belonged. In general, guano morphology seems more correlated to diet than species. This enables the identification of the most important prey taxa within a local environment; a crucial step for informing conservation strategies

Evaluation of Ankom F58 Filter Bags Compared to Dacron Bags and Beakers for Analysis of Acid Detergent Fiber

Feed and fecal samples were analyzed to compare three methods of determining acid detergent fiber. Each sample was weighed into both Dacron and Ankom F58 fiber bags and then analyzed using an Ankom fiber analyzer. Results were then compared to the Van Soest beaker method. Ankom F58 bags helped reduce washout of small particles associated with Dacron bags, but fecal samples needed to be incubated in detergent for an extended amount of time to isolate acid detergent fiber material. Utilizing a technique that produces correct acid detergent fiber values is important for producers because these values are used as a proxy for calculating total digestible nutrients of feedstuffs

A plea for an objective psychiatry

I have chosen to write a plea for an Objective Psychiatry and will continue my thesis along the following lines: -(a) A Critical Survey of the History of Psychiatry (b) The Physiology of Mind (c) The Physiology of some Abnormal States (d) The "Pathology” of the Psychoses (1) Melancholia (2) Mani a (3) Dementia Praecox (4) Toxic States (5) Delusional States (6) Degenerative States (7) After-effects of Head Injuries (e) Prognosis and Treatment (f) Summary and Conclusion

Liver transplant recipients’ experiences and perspectives of a telehealth-delivered lifestyle programme A qualitative study

Introduction Dietary modification and exercise are encouraged to address cardiometabolic risk factors after solid organ transplantation. However, the lived experience of attempting positive lifestyle changes for liver transplant recipients is not known. The aim of this study was to explore the experiences of liver transplant recipients and their perspectives of a 12-week telehealth lifestyle programme and assess the feasibility of this innovative health service. Methods Focus groups and one-on-one interviews were conducted with participants who had completed a 12-week, group-based, telehealth-delivered diet and exercise programme and thematic qualitative analysis was used to code and theme the data. Results In total, 19 liver transplant recipients participated in the study (25-68 years, median time since transplant 4.4 years, 63% male). Overarching themes included: (a) 'broad telehealth advantages' which highlighted that telehealth reduced the perceived burdens of face-to-face care; (b) 'impact of employment' which identified employment as a competing priority and appeared to effect involvement with the programme; (c) 'adapting Mediterranean eating pattern to meet individual needs' which identified the adaptability of the Mediterranean diet supported by sessions with the dietitian; (d) 'increasing exercise confidence' which recognised that a tailored approach facilitated confidence and acceptability of the exercise component of the programme. Discussion A telehealth lifestyle programme delivered by dietitians and exercise physiologists is an acceptable alternative to face-to-face care that can meet the needs of liver transplant recipients. There is a need to further innovate and broaden the scope of routine service delivery beyond face-to-face consultations

The COVID-19 pandemic and youth in recent, historical perspective: more pressure, more precarity

Young people have faced some of the hardest social and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and associated lockdowns. Taking a critical Youth Studies perspective, we draw on research with nearly 1,000 16-to-30-year olds in North East England in order to rectify the 'structured absence’ of young people’s viewpoints in national media and political commentary about the pandemic. Our findings contradict narratives about young people as lockdown 'rule breakers’ and demonstrated the immediate pressures that they faced vis-à-vis family and social life, well-being, and education and employment. Going further than most recent COVID-19 research – and in disagreement with the notion of a so-called 'COVID generation’ - we locate these pressures of the moment within the already hostile social-economic conditions that existed for young people in the UK pre-COVID and a discussion of the pressures to come, particularly in terms of longer-term labour market conditions and outcomes. Amidst very rapidly changing political and economic circumstances in the UK, continuing precarity for young people seems to be one certainty. We conclude by identifying some important priorities for youth research

Population genetics and demographic resilience in three aquatic invertebrates

Freshwater environments are threatened worldwide by external stressors and biodiversity decline, with major implications for ecosystem resilience. The genetic consequences so far have been neglected, especially for freshwater invertebrates, though their abundance, diversity, ease of sampling and functional importance renders them ideal candidates for genetic appraisal. For three freshwater invertebrates (Amphinemura sulcicollis, Isoperla grammatica and Baetis rhodani) novel microsatellite markers were developed so that genetic structure, and genetic diversity could be assessed throughout upland Wales. The aim was to investigate dispersal and the genetic response to environmental stressors. Genetic diversity in these species was compared to species diversity across whole macroinvertebrate assemblages to investigate what factors might cause a correlation between these fundamental levels of biodiversity. The demographic history of each species was also investigated with the aim of assessing whether reduced genetic diversity was due to bottlenecks and more broadly, what this indicates in terms of the populations’ resilience. Species differed in their genetic structure and genetic diversity. All three species showed effective dispersal and geneflow, with each species displaying panmixa across catchments in southern and mid-Wales. However, A. sulcicollis and I. grammatica revealed genetic isolation and reduced genetic diversity at specific northern sites. Genetic and species diversity were correlated positively only in A. sulcicollis, where isolation combined with a common driver were the likely cause. There was evidence of recent bottlenecks in all three species. All these results could be explained by an underlying genetic response to post-industrial acidification: reduced genetic diversity correlated significantly with acidity for A. sulcicollis, while reduced species diversity and genetic bottleneck signatures was consistent with chronic and episodic acidification across the Welsh region. Overall, these results show how a positive correlation between species and genetic diversity can never be assumed, and illustrate how assessments of genetic health expand insights available from traditional biodiversity assessment

Evaluation of Ankom F58 Filter Bags Compared to Dacron Bags and Beakers for Analysis of Acid Detergent Fiber

Feed and fecal samples were analyzed to compare three methods of determining acid detergent fiber. Each sample was weighed into both Dacron and Ankom F58 fiber bags and then analyzed using an Ankom fiber analyzer. Results were then compared to the Van Soest beaker method. Ankom F58 bags helped reduce washout of small particles associated with Dacron bags, but fecal samples needed to be incubated in detergent for an extended amount of time to isolate acid detergent fiber material. Utilizing a technique that produces correct acid detergent fiber values is important for producers because these values are used as a proxy for calculating total digestible nutrients of feedstuffs

Female teat size is a reliable indicator of annual breeding success in European badgers: Genetic validation

Assessing which females have bred successfully is a central requirement in many ecological field studies, providing an estimate of the effective female population size. Researchers have applied teat measurements previously to assess whether females, in a variety of mammalian species, have bred; however, this technique has not been validated genetically. Furthermore, several analytical techniques are available to classify individuals, but their misclassification rates have not been compared. We used 22 microsatellite loci to assign maternity, with 95% confidence, within a high-density population of European badgers Meles meles, as plural and subterranean breeding means that maternity cannot be inferred from behavioural observations. The teat lengths and diameters of 136 females, measured May–July 1994–2005, from social groups in which all offspring were assigned a mother, were reliable indicators of recent breeding success. A Generalised Linear Mixed Model (GLMM) classified both breeding and non-breeding females with lower error rates than discriminant analyses and crude teat-size criteria. The GLMM model logit probability = −20 + 1.8 month + 1.6 mean teat length + 1.0 mean teat diameter can be applied quickly in the field to assess the probability with which a female badger should be assigned maternity. This is a low-cost measure which, after validation, could be used in other badger or mammalian populations to assess the breeding success of females. This may be a particularly useful welfare tool for veterinary practitioners, especially during badger culls

Science with coffee and hobnobs

Many parents or guardians of primary school pupils have little knowledge of science, and many lack confidence in their ability to help their children, though most welcome the chance to do so. We describe our experiences running a series of meetings in the form of coffee sessions at local primary schools, where parents can increase their knowledge and confidence in the science their children study, and engage in simple experiments with their children to apply the knowledge they gain. We discuss how this programme can be instrumental in improving the profile of scientific education and scientific careers for children of a young age

Racial Disparities in Access to Community Water Supply Service in Wake County, North Carolina

Anecdotal evidence suggests that historically African American communities on the fringes of cities and towns in North Carolina have been systematically denied access to municipal drinking water service. This paper presents the first statistical analysis of the role of race in determining water access in these fringe areas, known as extraterritorial jurisdictions. Using publicly available property tax data, we quantified the percentage of residences with municipal water service in each census block in Wake County (the second-largest by population in North Carolina). Using the resulting water service maps plus 2010 U.S. Census data, we employed a logistic regression to assess whether race is a significant predictor of water service access in census blocks within extraterritorial jurisdictions when controlling for property value and population density. We find that every 10% increase in the African American population proportion within a census block increases the odds of exclusion from municipal water service by 3.8% (p\u3c0.05). These results suggest the need for follow-up research to explore the resulting health implications, especially because previous studies have shown that the private wells upon which such communities rely for potable water are at elevated risk of contamination from leaking septic tanks and other sources