Elevation of \u3ci\u3eCicindela nigrior\u3c/i\u3e to Species Rank

Cicindela nigrior Schaupp (1884) has a complex taxonomic history as a subspecies, variety, and aberration of the morphologically plastic tiger beetle C . scutellaris. Schaupp gave the varietal name nigrior to what he apparently thought was a melanistic form of Cicindela scutellaris unicolor Dejean. Leng (1902) listed both nigrior and unicolor as varieties of scutellaris Say. However, Horn (1905) llsted nigrior and unicolor as aberrations of obscura Say (=scutellaris). Later he listed nigrior as a variety of scutellaris unicolor (Horn 1916). The Leng catalog (1920) shows both nigrior and unicolor as subspecies of scutellaris, while Vaurie (1950) and Boyd et al. (1982) placed nigrior as a synonym of unicolor. In this paper we raise the name nigrior” to species level and present morphological, behavioral, and ecological data to Justify species status

Corticular Photosynthetic Dynamics for a Coastal Evergreen Shrub: Myrica Cerifera

I quantified seasonal variations in corticular photosynthesis in 1st through 5th order branches of Myrica cerifera L. (Myricaceae) in order to determine whether corticular photosynthesis contributes to whole plant carbon gain by reducing respirational CO2 loss. Maximum % refixation was 110 ± 39 % of CO2 efflux in the dark (Rd) in 1st order branches during winter, minimum was 18 ± 3 % in 5th order branches during summer. Variations in % refixation paralleled changes in photosynthetically active radiation (PAR). As light attenuated with increasing branch order % refixation decreased. Increased PAR in the winter due to a more sparse canopy lead to increases in % refixation. Total chlorophyll content and chlorophyll a:b ratios were consistent with shade acclimation as branch order increased. Corticular photosynthesis may be a mechanism to enhance shrub expansion due to increased whole plant carbon use efficiency (CUE) and water use efficiency (WUE) attributed to refixation

Improving COPD Care at the University of North Carolina Internal Medicine Outpatient Clinic

The Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease has encouraged symptom assessment for all chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients and pulmonary rehabilitation for COPD patients with high symptom burden and risk of exacerbations. Pulmonary rehabilitation has been shown to improve their symptoms, quality of life, and exercise tolerance and to reduce readmissions and mortality in patients with a recent exacerbation (≤4 weeks from prior hospitalization). However, many patients never have the opportunity to take advantage of pulmonary rehabilitation because systematic ways of assessing symptoms, identifying symptomatic patients, and referring those who would benefit from pulmonary rehabilitation are lacking. In the University of North Carolina general medicine clinic, symptom assessment and pulmonary rehabilitation referrals were not done prior to this effort. The project’s primary goal was to systematically screen for dyspnea symptoms during all COPD patient encounters, with secondary goals of improving rates of screening for hypoxia, referrals to pulmonary rehabilitation in symptomatic patients, and documentation in the electronic health record

Observation of Magnetic Supercooling of the Transition to the Vortex State

We demonstrate that the transition from the high-field state to the vortex state in a nanomagnetic disk shows the magnetic equivalent of supercooling. This is evidence that this magnetic transition can be described in terms of a modified Landau first-order phase transition. To accomplish this we have measured the bulk magnetization of single magnetic disks using nanomechanical torsional resonator torque magnetometry. This allows observation of single vortex creation events without averaging over an array of disks or over multiple runs.Comment: 11 pages preprint, 4 figures, accepted to New Journal of Physic

Exploration of potential triggers for self-directed behaviours and regurgitation and reingestion in zoo-housed chimpanzees

The unique challenges faced by animals living in zoos can lead to the production of anxiety-related behaviours. In this study we aimed to understand what specific factors may cause chimpanzees to display these behaviours. In non-human primates, displacement behaviours, such as self-scratching and yawning, are considered markers of anxiety and stress, and Regurgitation and Reingestion (R/R) is considered an abnormal behaviour with negative consequences for physical health. We examined the possible triggers of R/R, scratching, and yawning in a group of zoo-housed chimpanzees and followed this up with an analysis of long-term data to examine further aspects of R/R behaviour. In the first study we conducted focal observations on 18 adult chimpanzees at Edinburgh Zoo, UK, in addition to all occurrence sampling of visitors using flash photography, screaming and banging on the glass in the exhibit. 158 h of data were analysed and Generalised Linear Mixed Models revealed that yawning was significantly more likely if there was a long period of time since the last feed and when there were moderate numbers of visitors in the zoo. There were trends that yawning was more likely to occur if children screamed and that scratching was more likely to occur if visitors used flash photography. R/R occurred most often within 40 min of a feed, but was not affected by the inter-feed interval preceding that feed, positive or negative social interactions, or visitor numbers or behaviour. As there was no obvious daily trigger for R/R, an analysis of long-term data (2009 to 2015) was conducted to investigate if social or dietary factors affected rates of R/R over a larger timescale. It was found that R/R rates in the months before a significant diet change were not different from R/R rates in the months after, but it was found that R/R rates decreased over the five-year period. Lastly, we found no evidence that the introduction of individuals engaging in R/R lead to resident chimpanzees habitually adopting the behaviour, despite considerable opportunities to observe it. These findings have implications for welfare interventions aimed to reduce R/R and/or anxiety behaviours in captive populations and for the translocation of individuals that are known to engage in R/R between groups.Peer reviewe