Factors influencing biodiversity within organic and conventional systems of arable farming – methodologies and preliminary results

This report was presented at the UK Organic Research 2002 Conference. This paper describes the approaches and preliminary results of a study that is designed to provide a large amount of data at a range of scales in order to investigate the potential factors influencing biodiversity on arable farmland on comparable organic and conventional farms. In particular, the study examines the role of non-crop habitats within the different farming systems and how the extent and management of non-crop habitats differs between them. A detailed description of the methodologies being employed to establish differences in non-crop habitat, plant, invertebrate and bird diversity is given. The study remains in its early stages as a result of the impact of Foot and Mouth disease on the fieldwork schedule during 2001. The process of setting up the study revealed that the numbers of farmers growing cereals organically are low as a proportion of the organic sector as a whole, despite recent large increases in numbers of farmers converting to organic production. Preliminary results from the first year of fieldwork on plants reveal significant differences between organic and conventional farms in terms of the numbers of weed species on fields and non-significant differences in numbers of species found on non-crop habitats

Lived Experiences of Female Science Majors at a Two-Year College

This study focused on the lives of women majoring in science at a two-year institution. The specific research goal was to investigate the lived experiences of first year female science majors at Waycross College, relevant to their career choices. The participants in this study consisted of 6 young women enrolled as science majors in the fall semester of 2005. Two interview sessions were conducted during their first year of study. They were able to share their stories as young women and share their perspectives relative to their chosen fields of study. Analyzed using the feminist standpoint theory perspective of Sandra Harding, the interviews revealed several emerging themes. First, all of the participants indicated some form of parental support throughout the duration of the study. They all indicated that one or both parents were a constant resource for encouragement in their career pursuits. Second, the influence of boyfriends played a significant role in the decision-making processes of the participants. Third, most of the participants revealed either negative advising experiences or no advising experiences at all. There was certainly an obvious decline in the quality of the advising experiences for all of the participants. Last, the analysis of the interviews revealed that the participants felt no connection to or within their chosen majors. There was an absence of mentoring programs, friendship networks in the classes, and social or organizational opportunities 2 that could prove advantageous in improving the experiences of women majoring in the sciences

Grassland management affects vegetation structure, bats and their beetle prey

Agricultural grasslands provide vital habitats for many species. Yet despite representing a significant proportion of European land use, they are disproportionately understudied compared to arable systems. Increases in productivity and intensification have led to changes in management practices, which are likely to affect grassland habitats and the ecological communities that they support. This study simultaneously monitored three trophic levels to assess the impacts of permanent versus temporary pasture (leys) on vegetation composition, carabid and dung beetle abundance, and the activity of beetle-feeding bats. Leys had lower abundances of soil-inhabiting dung beetles, which may be explained by the more recent exposure to tilling compared with permanent pasture. Beetle-feeding bat activity was also greater in leys, with positive relationships between E. serotinus activity and Onthophagus abundance across both pasture types. However, the lack of any positive relationships between beetle-feeding bat activity and Aphodius, a well-known prey genus, suggests that other key prey orders (Lepidoptera) may be of more influence on bat activity. As well as the management of pasture, differences in cattle management between pasture types can have a significant impact on vegetation and soil structure, which influence invertebrate communities and potentially dictate habitat suitability for bats

Whiteness In Sports

Created by Neenah Estrella-Luna\u27s Fall 2019 Sociology 110 course. Zine addresses white privilege in sports, diversity in the leagues, Colin Kaepernick, Kyle Korver, Adam Jones, and Lawrence (Larry) G. Nassar.https://digitalcommons.salemstate.edu/zines/1006/thumbnail.jp

Vegetation database of Great Britain: Countryside Survey

This paper describes the vegetation database created as part of the Countryside Survey (CS) of Great Britain (GIVD ID EU-GB-003) which was established to monitor ecological and land use change in 1978 (http://www.countrysidesurvey.org.uk). The sample design is based on a series of stratified, randomly selected 1 km squares, which numbered 256 in the 1978 survey, 500 in the 1990 survey, 569 in the 1998 survey and 591 in the 2007 survey. Stratification of sample squares was based on predefined strata (called land classes) which have been derived from a classification of all 1 km squares in Britain based on their topographic, climatic and geological attributes obtained from published maps. A series of vegetation plots were located within each 1 km square using a restricted randomisation procedure designed to reduce aggregation. Linear features (road verges, watercourse banks, hedges, arable margins and field boundaries) and areal features (fields, unenclosed land and small semi-natural biotope patches) were sampled. Linear plots were 1 x 10 m laid out along a feature whilst unenclosed land and small biotopes were sampled using 2 m x 2 m plots. Larger randomly-placed plots were nested 14 m² plots with an inner nest of 2 m x 2 m. Within each 1 km Countryside Survey sample square the land cover and all landscape features were mapped and each parcel of land (and vegetation plot) has been assigned to a Broad Habitat/EUNIS habitat type. This database of vegetation plots is a very useful resource. The data is freely available from the website, however, there are restrictions on the release of the spatial location of the plots. There is now a considerable time-series of plots within the database going back to 1978 representing different habitat types and landscape features that can be analysed to determine changes in vegetation metrics (e.g. Ellenberg scores) and individual species. Vegetation changes can be linked to environmental drivers and the spatial scale (across GB) is sufficiently large to analyse gradients in most driving variables

Solar Cycle Observations

We describe the defining observations of the solar cycle that provide constraints for the dynamo processes operating within the Sun. Specifically, we report on the following topics: historical sunspot numbers and revisions; active region (AR) flux ranges and lifetimes; bipolar magnetic region tilt angles; Hale and Joy's law; the impact of rogue ARs on cycle progression and the amplitude of the following cycle; the spatio-temporal emergence of ARs that creates the butterfly diagram; polar fields; large-scale flows including zonal, meridional, and AR in-flows; short-term cycle variability; and helioseismic results including mode parameter changes.Comment: 39 pages, 11 figures, ISSI workshop on Solar and Stellar Dynamos (June 2022). Submitted to Space Science Reviews, May 2023. This is the revised version accepted September 202

Qualitative impact assessment of land management interventions on ecosystem services (“QEIA”). Report-3 theme-5C: biodiversity - semi-natural habitats

This project assessed the impacts of 741 potential land management actions, suitable for agricultural land in England, on the Farming & Countryside Programme’s Environmental Objectives (and therefore Environment Act targets and climate commitments) through 53 relevant environmental and cultural service indicators. The project used a combination of expert opinion and rapid evidence reviews, which included 1000+ pages of evidence in 10 separate reports with reference to over 2400 published studies, and an Integrated Assessment comprising expert-derived qualitative impact scores. The project has ensured that ELM schemes are evidence-based, offer good value for money, and contribute to SoS priorities for farming