Quantifying insect emergence in tidal freshwaters and the importance of aquatic prey in wetland-dependent songbird diet

Insectivorous birds and their arthropod prey are experiencing widespread population declines, driven largely by anthropogenic disturbance and climate change. For wetland-dependent insectivores that consume a mixture of terrestrial and aquatic insects, understanding the availability, consumption, and nutritional qualities of aquatic diet subsidies is important for conservation. I use prothonotary warblers (Protonotaria citrea) as a model species throughout this work, because their breeding season aligns with aquatic insect emergence and they include aquatic insects when provisioning nestlings. In the first chapter, I estimate aquatic insect emergence from tidal freshwaters, which are understudied compared to nontidal systems. Using continuous field sampling with emergence traps, I found that aquatic insect biomass emerging from tidal freshwater habitats along the James River Estuary are among the highest published to date. These emergence estimates help to assess the overlap of pulsed aquatic resources with critical life history periods of riparian consumers. In the second chapter, I quantify prothonotary warbler nestling diet across two years and nine populations throughout their breeding range. Using DNA metabarcoding, I found that nestlings in all populations were provisioned with emergent aquatic insects and aquatic mollusks. However, aquatic diet components in each population differed taxonomically and throughout the breeding season. Diet determinations confirm widespread consumption of aquatic prey, but do not speak to how nestlings are impacted by presence or absence of aquatic diet items during development. In the third chapter, I analyze the variation in nestling condition for the James River Estuary populations with estimated aquatic insect emergence and quantified diets. Using a combination of mass-based and physiological indicators for condition, I found that early-season nestlings tended to be heavier than average, with greater circulating concentrations of essential polyunsaturated fatty acids and lower concentrations of pro-inflammatory lipid metabolites. Better nestling condition at times when nestlings are provisioned with more aquatic prey provides evidence that aquatic prey subsidies are important for developing nestlings

Perspectives on the application of technology to enhance learning in an undergraduate nursing degree programme

This paper discusses concepts and practice relating to the use of computer-based technologies for enhancing learning. It draws on examples from a UK nursing degree programme

Building, not burning bridges in research:insider/outsider dilemmas and engaging with the bridge community

Researchers navigate a complex network of relationships, positions, and responsibilities that are determined by their discipline, funding bodies, and the research community they are studying. Tensions often emerge between and across each of these different spaces. This paper uses reflexive autobiographical writing to discuss some of the ongoing challenges faced with engaging a diverse a group of stakeholders in relation to sociological research on the gender inequalities of bridge as a serious leisure activity. Drawing on the researchers’ personal notes and exchanges during a project on sexism and the card game bridge, as well as the survey data from this project, this paper explores the ways that a combined team of insider/outsider researchers strive to balance the relationship and commitment they have to the pursuit of knowledge and the user community. Many projects face this balancing act which can permeate every stage of the research process and can be witnessed frequently in project meetings, yet there is still little published in relation to these conversations that take place between research team members

Breastfeeding duration and its relation to weight gain, eating behaviours and positive maternal feeding practices in infancy

Research examining the relationship between breastfeeding and infant weight has generated conflicting results. Few studies account for significant covariates and many suffer methodological problems such as retrospective self-report. The current study aimed to investigate relationships between breastfeeding duration, infant weight and eating and positive maternal mealtime behaviours, whilst overcoming many of the limitations of previous research. Eighty-one women on low-risk maternity units gave informed consent and were visited at home at 1-week, 1-, 6- and 12-months postpartum. Infants included 45 males and 36 females (mean birth-weight 3.52 kg [SD 0.39]). Mothers and infants were weighed and measured and feeding information was recorded at each visit. Infant weight was converted to a standard deviation score (SDS), accounting for age and sex. Mothers reported infant eating behaviours at 12-months using the Children's Eating Behaviour Questionnaire and were observed feeding their infants solid food at home at 6- and 12-months. Partial correlations (covariates: maternal age, education, BMI, smoking during pregnancy, household income, infant birth weight SDS and age introduced to solid foods) revealed negative associations between breastfeeding duration and 1- to 6- and 1- to 12-month weight gain, and 6- and 12-month weight. Breastfeeding duration was also associated with a slower rate of infant eating and greater observed maternal vocalisations, appropriateness and sensitivity. Results support a dose-response relationship between breastfeeding and infant weight and suggest that breastfeeding may encourage the development of obesity-protective eating behaviours through learning to attend to internal hunger and satiety signals. Future research should investigate whether relationships between slowness in eating and weight extend to satiety responsiveness after infancy

Infant temperament, maternal feeding behaviours and the timing of solid food introduction:The contribution of infant temperament and maternal feeding behaviours

Despite guidance from the World Health Organization and the U.K. Department of Health, many mothers introduce solid food before their infant is 6 months old. The current study aimed to investigate relationships between maternal feeding behaviours (preintroduction and postintroduction to solids), infant temperament, and the timing of introduction to solid food. Eighty-one women were recruited on low-risk maternity units and were contacted at 1 week, 3, and 6 months postpartum. Mothers of infants (45 males, 36 females, mean birth weight 3.52 kg [SD 0.39]) completed the behaviours component of the Infant Feeding Style Questionnaire via telephone interview at 3 months. At 6 months, they were observed feeding their infant solid food at home and reported infant temperament using the Infant Behaviour Questionnaire-Revised (short form). Partial correlations (covariates: birth weight, maternal age, breastfeeding duration, and postnatal depression) revealed negative associations between age of introduction to solid food and temperament (smiling and laughter) and laissez-faire milk feeding behaviours; and positive associations between age of introduction to solid food and restrictive milk feeding behaviours and verbal involvement during an observed mealtime. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis revealed that an infant's birth weight and the degree to which their mothers perceive them to smile and laugh are key predictors of when they will be introduced to solid food, over and above other variables of interest (e.g., maternal milk feeding behaviours, breastfeeding duration, and postnatal depression)

Between equality and discrimination:the paradox of the women’s game in the mind-sport bridge

Gender differences in the sporting world are long-standing and historic. Couched often as biologically given, differences in the uptake, training and playing of sport, from hobby to elite Olympian, are riven with discourses, practices and attitudes regarding the different aptitudes of men and women. Recognizing the ways these gendered differences operate is contentious and problematic, particularly in relation to women-only spaces. Such spaces can be used to promote the development and skills of women while simultaneously perpetuating and reinforcing women’s difference and inequality to men. Using the case study of bridge (the card game), we analyse the ways in which the women’s game is viewed as both hindering women’s progression in the game whilst also providing women spaces to compete internationally. Findings from an email questionnaire with tournament and club players show how the women’s game incapsulates both inequality and opportunity. The women’s game remains a divisive issue within the bridge world as it provides competitive opportunities for women at an elite level, whilst simultaneously being viewed as technically inferior and discriminatory. The paper argues that the tensions and ambivalences of the paradox of women-only spaces reflect ongoing hetero-patriarchal discourses within sporting and leisure contexts

The Montreal Children’s Hospital Feeding Scale:relationships with parental report of child eating behaviours and observed feeding interactions

Feeding problems are common, with implications for nutrition, growth and family stress, placing burden on primary care services. The Montreal Children's Hospital Feeding Scale (MCHFS) is a quick and reliable measure of feeding problems for clinical settings, but there is little examination of its relationship to commonly used research measures of parental feeding practice, child eating behaviour and observations of parent-infant interaction at mealtimes. We examined the relationships between the MCHFS, demographics and early feeding history, weight across the first year, parental report of feeding practices and child eating behaviours, and observations of maternal-infant feeding interaction at 1 year. The MCHFS, Comprehensive Feeding Practices Questionnaire (CFPQ) and Child Eating Behaviour Questionnaire (CEBQ) were completed by 69 mothers when their infants were 1-year-old (37 male, 32 female). Infant weight was measured at 1 week, 1 month, 6 months and 1 year. Mothers were observed feeding their infants at 1 year. The MCHFS was reliable (Cronbach's alpha = .90) and showed significant overlap with other measures of feeding and eating. Potential feeding problems were identified in 10 of the children (14%) reflecting similar rates in other community samples. Higher MCHFS scores were associated with lower birthweight and weight across the first year, greater satiety responsiveness, fussiness and slowness in eating, lower enjoyment of food and food responsiveness, and less observed infant food acceptance. Parents of infants with more feeding problems reported less encouragement of balance and variety in their children's diets. Conclusion: MCHFS showed good criterion validity with other parental report measures of eating and observations of mealtime interactions. MCHFS may be a useful tool for researching feeding problems in community samples

The Effect of Bedslide Report on Patient Satisfaction

https://scholarworks.moreheadstate.edu/student_scholarship_posters/1095/thumbnail.jp

The experiences of new mothers accessing feeding support for infants with Down syndrome during the COVID-19 pandemic

© 2022 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).Infants with Down syndrome are more likely to experience feeding problems and mothers are likely to require more feeding support than mothers of typically developing infants. During the COVID-19 pandemic, many feeding support services changed from face-to-face to online, which impacted some maternal feeding experiences negatively, but no studies to date have explored the impact for mothers of infants with Down syndrome. Thematic analysis was conducted on semi-structured interviews from thirteen new mothers of infants (aged 8-17 months) with Down syndrome in the UK. Three superordinate themes were generated: 1) Every baby with Down syndrome has a unique journey, 2) There’s no point asking, they won’t know, 3) Lack of in-person support. Many mothers expressed frustrations over health professionals’ lack of Down syndrome specific knowledge resulting in unmet needs, further magnified due to the nature of the virtual support being offered. Moreover, mothers struggled with reduced social support from other mothers when encountering feeding problems. These results hold real-world implications for health professionals who could provide more specialised face-to-face feeding support to mothers of infants with Down syndrome. This should be prioritised for children’s overall development and mothers’ wellbeing.Peer reviewe

A scoping review of the complementary feeding practices and early eating experiences of children with Down syndrome.

© The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society of Pediatric Psychology. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).Objective: Children with Down syndrome may experience more challenges in their early feeding and may be introduced to complementary foods comparatively later than typically developing (TD) children. This scoping review aimed to identify and synthesise the existing literature which describes feeding problems and early eating experiences relating to the period of complementary feeding for children with Down syndrome. Methods: Scopus, PubMed, Medline, Web of Science, Psyc Info were searched. Journal articles published between January 1991 and June 2022 which reported on the complementary feeding period with children with Down syndrome were included. Results: Eighteen journal articles met the inclusion criteria. Children with Down syndrome were introduced to complementary foods later than TD children and progressed to more challenging food textures at a slower rate. Gross and fine motor skill delays and sensory difficulties contributed to secondary feeding problems such as difficulties chewing, biting and reduced awareness of food on lips and tongue. Parents of children with Down syndrome reported exercising more caution and employing more controlling feeding practices compared to TD and had higher levels of concern regarding their child’s weight. Conclusions: Guidelines and early feeding support specific to children with Down syndrome should be available before the first complementary foods are introduced and throughout this period. Feeding support should aim to address parental concerns and provide assistance when feeding problems occur, to minimise delays and encourage optimum 3 development of eating abilities. Future research should address the development of feeding problems during this period and to explore possible interventions.Peer reviewe