Genetic variability in pitch pine (Pinus rigida Mill.) growing in the Niepołomice Forest as determined by ISSR markers

The study aimed to determine the genetic variability in pitch pine (Pinus rigida Mill.) growing in the Niepołomice Forest (southern Poland). In the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, Adolf Cieślar of the Department of Forestry Research in Mariabrunn near Vienna, Austria established the experimental crops of pitch pine. During the study, 227 trees that grew in seven subunits were considered; an analysis of genetic polymorphism using the intersimple sequence repeats (ISSR) technique revealed that pitch pine is genetically variable. The average number of alleles at a given locus for all the pine trees was 1.649, while the effective number of alleles at the loci was 1.435. The value of expected heterozygosity was 0.254, while the percentage of polymorphic loci was 75.30%. The average genetic distance between the examined pines was 0.082. Principal coordinate analysis (PCoA) divided the examined pines into three groups, which was also confirmed by the structure-analysis results of the software STRUCTURE. The resulting division was mainly generated by the SR70 primer, which was indicated to be the primer that differentiated the examined populations of pitch pine. Affiliation of particular trees to selected groups was based on their occurrence in individual crops. This suggests a different origin of the seeds used to establish the research plots of pitch pine in the Niepołomice Forest

An in-House System for the Precise Measurement of Electrical Potentials and Mechanical Properties of Soft Tissues: Design and Validation Using Adult Mammalian Tendon Fascicle Bundles

Tissues, such as skin, bones, and tendons, exhibit a piezoelectric effect, which may be an important phenomenon in terms of tissue renewal and regeneration as well as the possibility of modifying their mechanical behavior. In this article, we present the design and development of an in-house system for the precise measurement of electrical potentials and mechanical properties of tendons. The system was validated using tendon fascicle bundles derived from positional as well as energy-storing tendons from various adult mammals (porcine, bovine, and deer samples). The presented system is able to capture changes in elastic and viscoelastic properties of tissue as well as its time–voltage response and, thus, may be used in a broad spectrum of future studies to uncover factors influencing piezoelectric phenomena in tendons. This, in turn, will help to optimize current methods used in physiotherapy and postoperative treatment for effective tendon recovery

Forest management and hunting in areas adjacent to national parks: the example of the Magura National Park

The aim of the study was to evaluate arguments for hunting and its impact on forest management and conservation in national parks as well as areas directly adjacent to them. The issue was examined using the example of the Magura National Park (MNP) for which data on the number of deer and predatory mammals included in the statistical yearbooks for 2013–2014 were available. The quality and size of the food sources provided by this type of forest habitat were evaluated using data obtained from the literature. We also included data on the dietary habits of wolves and lynxes as well as their impact on the number of large ungulates in our analysis. The maximum carrying capacity of forest stands in the Magura National Park was determined to be 789 deer units (dear unit = 1 red deer or 0,3 elk or 5 roe deer), whereas in fact in 2014, the abundance of ungulates reached a total of 1230 deer units. Our analysis evaluating the impact of wolf and lynx populations on ungulates in the area showed that these predators can kill up to 212 deer per year (140 individuals by wolves and 72 by lynxes). The growth in deer population, however, varies from 25,8% to 27,7%, which in the MNP amounts to 258–277 new born individuals per year, meaning that the wolf and lynx populations in the MNP are not able to prevent the number of deer from growing. The current population of ungulates (1230 deer units ) having reached a density of 6,6 deer units/km2 exceeds the capacity of the MNP and thus poses a real threat to maintaining both, the nature of the park and the adjacent stands. This article shows that the natural maintenance of balance in the predator-prey relationship is unlikely under these conditions and failure to allow for anthropogenic interference to regulate the number of ungulates in protected areas may result in an increase in the density of their population. Potential destruction of other valuable assets such as forest habitats may consequently follow

Intestinal Helminth Communities of Grey Partridge Perdix perdix and Common Pheasant Phasianus colchicus in Poland

The aim of this study was to describe the morphology and means of identification of helminths in native partridges (65) and introduced pheasants (32) in Poland and to determine the level of intestinal infection of these birds by helminths using parasitological and ecological indices. The birds were acquired during the hunting season in the years 2015–2017. Nematodes, Capillaria phasianina, cestodes, Railietina friedbergeri, and one trematode, Brachylaima sp. were recorded for the first time in partridges in Poland. Our findings indicate that parasites are more prevalent in pheasants (prevalence 70.4%) than in partridges (prevalence 50.0%). The component community and infracommunity of parasites of partridges are more diverse (Simpson’s diversity index: 0.63 and mean Brillouin diversity index: 0.10 ± 0.17) and less dominated by a single parasite species (Capillaria sp., Berger-Parker dominance index: 0.53) than the pheasant parasite community (Simpson’s diversity index: 0.07, mean Brillouin diversity index: 0.005 ± 0.02, dominant species Heterakis gallinarum, Berger-Parker dominance index: 0.96). There were statistically significant differences between partridges and pheasants in the Brillouin diversity index and in the prevalence of Heterakis gallinarum (55.6% in pheasants vs. 19.0 in partridges). There were significant differences between wild and farmed partridges in the prevalence of infection by Capillaria sp. (4.3% vs. 37.5%) and H. gallinarum (39.1 vs. 6.2%). In conclusion, the pheasant was shown to be a reservoir, carrier, and shedder of nematodes, which may increase the risk of infection in partridges