New insights into seasonal foraging ranges and migrations of minke whales from the Salish Sea and coastal British Columbia.

In the Salish Sea and coastal waters of British Columbia, minke whales are known to establish small home ranges during the feeding season. Beyond the feeding season little is known of their movements or distribution. To determine movement patterns of minke whales in these waters we used photo-identification data that were collected opportunistically from 2005-2012. These data were from four non-overlapping areas between 48ºN and 53ºN. Despite year-round search effort, minke whales were only encountered between April and October. Most of the 44 unique minke whales identified in 405 encounters displayed fidelity to areas both within and among feeding seasons. Five of these individuals also made relatively large-scale intra-annual movements between areas on six occasions. They were documented to move up to at least 424km in a northerly direction early in the season and up to at least 398km in a southerly direction late in the season. We believe that the seasonal patterns of these movements provide new insight into the foraging ranges and migrations of individuals. Ecological markers provide further evidence that the minke whales we photographed undertake annual long distance migrations. Scars believed to be from cookiecutter shark bites were observed on 43 individuals and the majority of minke whales documented with good quality images each year had acquired new scars since the previous feeding season. Furthermore, the commensal barnacle Xenobalanus globicipitis was observed on three individuals. Since these sharks and barnacles are from warm waters, it can be inferred that they interacted with the minke whales at lower latitudes. These findings may have important implications for our understanding of minke whale populations in the Salish Sea and the management of this species in the North Pacific

Transition to university: the role played by emotion

Students experience transition to university as challenging. Recent studies implicate emotion in university success. This paper reports on a pilot study to examine the extent to which school to university transition is experienced as emotional. Understanding the role of emotion in this transition can inform mechanisms for student support. This qualitative study used focus group interviews to elicit insider accounts of transition. The pilot cohort consisted of a tutorial group of twenty-eight students from within the class of one hundred and eight first year students at one Faculty of Dentistry in South Africa. Three focus group interviews were conducted. Issues identified in the literature as significant were used to analyse the data. Eleven descriptive tags related to transition and associated with emotion were identified from the data. These were clustered into four themes – ‘academic challenges’, ‘friends and family’, ‘outside constraints’ and ‘identity’. Findings suggest that emotions are a natural part of the experience of transition. Drawing on insights of students’ emotional needs, it is suggested that students in transition need a roadmap and a guide. A framework, to be used as a roadmap, is suggested. Peer mentoring is discussed as a mechanism for mediating the framework and thus for supporting students in the transition.Web of Scienc

Surface elevation change and mass balance of Icelandic ice caps derived from swath mode CryoSat-2 altimetry

We apply swath processing to CryoSat-2 interferometric mode data acquired over the Icelandic ice caps to generate maps of rates of surface elevation change at 0.5 km postings. This high-resolution mapping reveals complex surface elevation changes in the region, related to climate, ice dynamics, and subglacial geothermal and magmatic processes. We estimate rates of volume and mass change independently for the six major Icelandic ice caps, 90% of Iceland's permanent ice cover, for five glaciological years between October 2010 and September 2015. Annual mass balance is highly variable; during the 2014/2015 glaciological year, the Vatnajökull ice cap (~70% of the glaciated area) experienced positive mass balance for the first time since 1992/1993. Our results indicate that between glaciological years 2010/2011and 2014/2015 Icelandic ice caps have lost 5.8 ± 0.7 Gt a−1 on average, ~40% less than the preceding 15 years, contributing 0.016 ± 0.002 mm a−1 to sea level rise

North-east sector of the Greenland Ice Sheet to undergo the greatest inland expansion of supraglacial lakes during the 21st century

The formation and rapid drainage of supraglacial lakes (SGL) influences the mass balance and dynamics of the Greenland Ice Sheet (GrIS). Although SGLs are expected to spread inland during the 21st century due to atmospheric warming, less is known about their future spatial distribution and volume. We use GrIS surface elevation model and regional climate model outputs to show that at the end of the 21st century (2070-2099) approximately 9.8 ± 3.9 km3 (+113% compared to 1980-2009) and 12.6 ± 5 km3 (+174%) of meltwater could be stored in SGLs under moderate (RCP 4.5) and high (RCP 8.5) climate change scenarios respectively. The largest increase is expected in the north-eastern sector of the GrIS (191% in RCP 4.5 and 320% in RCP 8.5), whereas in west Greenland, where the most SGLs are currently observed, the future increase will be relatively moderate (55% in RCP 4.5 and 68% in RCP 8.5)

Chronic OVA allergen challenged Siglec-F deficient mice have increased mucus, remodeling, and epithelial Siglec-F ligands which are up-regulated by IL-4 and IL-13

Abstract Background In this study we examined the role of Siglec-F, a receptor highly expressed on eosinophils, in contributing to mucus expression, airway remodeling, and Siglec-F ligand expression utilizing Siglec-F deficient mice exposed to chronic allergen challenge. Methods Wild type (WT) and Siglec-F deficient mice were sensitized and challenged chronically with OVA for one month. Levels of airway inflammation (eosinophils), Siglec-F ligand expresion and remodeling (mucus, fibrosis, smooth muscle thickness, extracellular matrix protein deposition) were assessed in lung sections by image analysis and immunohistology. Airway hyperreactivity to methacholine was assessed in intubated and ventilated mice. Results Siglec-F deficient mice challenged with OVA for one month had significantly increased numbers of BAL and peribronchial eosinophils compared to WT mice which was associated with a significant increase in mucus expression as assessed by the number of periodic acid Schiff positive airway epithelial cells. In addition, OVA challenged Siglec-F deficient mice had significantly increased levels of peribronchial fibrosis (total lung collagen, area of peribronchial trichrome staining), as well as increased numbers of peribronchial TGF-β1+ cells, and increased levels of expression of the extracellular matrix protein fibronectin compared to OVA challenged WT mice. Lung sections immunostained with a Siglec-Fc to detect Siglec-F ligand expression demonstrated higher levels of expression of the Siglec-F ligand in the peribronchial region in OVA challenged Siglec-F deficient mice compared to WT mice. WT and Siglec-F deficient mice challenged intranasally with IL-4 or IL-13 had significantly increased levels of airway epithelial Siglec-F ligand expression, whereas this was not observed in WT or Siglec-F deficient mice challenged with TNF-α. There was a significant increase in the thickness of the peribronchial smooth muscle layer in OVA challenged Siglec-F deficient mice, but this was not associated with significant increased airway hyperreactivity compared to WT mice. Conclusions Overall, this study demonstrates an important role for Siglec-F in modulating levels of chronic eosinophilic airway inflammation, peribronchial fibrosis, thickness of the smooth muscle layer, mucus expression, fibronectin, and levels of peribronchial Siglec-F ligands suggesting that Siglec-F may normally function to limit levels of chronic eosinophilic inflammation and remodeling. In addition, IL-4 and IL-13 are important regulators of Siglec-F ligand expression by airway epithelium

The dopamine D2/D3 receptor agonist quinpirole increases checking-like behaviour in an operant observing response task with uncertain reinforcement: a novel possible model of OCD.

Excessive checking is a common, debilitating symptom of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). In an established rodent model of OCD checking behaviour, quinpirole (dopamine D2/3-receptor agonist) increased checking in open-field tests, indicating dopaminergic modulation of checking-like behaviours. We designed a novel operant paradigm for rats (observing response task (ORT)) to further examine cognitive processes underpinning checking behaviour and clarify how and why checking develops. We investigated i) how quinpirole increases checking, ii) dependence of these effects on D2/3 receptor function (following treatment with D2/3 receptor antagonist sulpiride) and iii) effects of reward uncertainty. In the ORT, rats pressed an 'observing' lever for information about the location of an 'active' lever that provided food reinforcement. High- and low-checkers (defined from baseline observing) received quinpirole (0.5mg/kg, 10 treatments) or vehicle. Parametric task manipulations assessed observing/checking under increasing task demands relating to reinforcement uncertainty (variable response requirement and active-lever location switching). Treatment with sulpiride further probed the pharmacological basis of long-term behavioural changes. Quinpirole selectively increased checking, both functional observing lever presses (OLPs) and non-functional extra OLPs (EOLPs). The increase in OLPs and EOLPs was long-lasting, without further quinpirole administration. Quinpirole did not affect the immediate ability to use information from checking. Vehicle and quinpirole-treated rats (VEH and QNP respectively) were selectively sensitive to different forms of uncertainty. Sulpiride reduced non-functional EOLPs in QNP rats but had no effect on functional OLPs. These data have implications for treatment of compulsive checking in OCD, particularly for serotonin-reuptake-inhibitor treatment-refractory cases, where supplementation with dopamine receptor antagonists may be beneficial

'Duck to water' or 'fish out of water'? Diversity in the experience of negotiating the transition to university

Winstone and Hulme present a critical discussion of the notion of transition to university. They argue that the common emphasis on the challenging nature of the transition fails to acknowledge the diversity in students’ experiences; for some students, the liminality and discomfort experienced during this critical period in their educational journey can be a transformational and empowering rite of passage. Rather than homogenising students’ experiences, Winstone and Hulme argue that it is beneficial to explore the transition experience through the lens of students’ expectations and subsequent experiences and to view the transition to university as part of a trajectory of transition experience within a student’s educational journey. The chapter also presents practical suggestions for engaging multiple student voices in understanding and facilitating positive transition experiences

Mass balance reassessment of glaciers draining into the Abbot and Getz Ice Shelves of West Antarctica

We present a reassessment of input-output method ice mass budget estimates for the Abbot and Getz regions of West Antarctica using CryoSat-2-derived ice thickness estimates. The mass budget is 8 ± 6 Gt yr−1 and 5 ± 17 Gt yr−1 for the Abbot and Getz sectors, respectively, for the period 2006–2008. Over the Abbot region, our results resolve a previous discrepancy with elevation rates from altimetry, due to a previous 30% overestimation of ice thickness. For the Getz sector, our results are at the more positive bound of estimates from other techniques. Grounding line velocity increases up to 20% between 2007 and 2014 alongside mean elevation rates of −0.67 ± 0.13 m yr−1 between 2010 and 2013 indicate the onset of a dynamic thinning signal. Mean snowfall trends of −0.33 m yr−1 water equivalent since 2006 indicate recent mass trends are driven by both ice dynamics and surface processes