Two decades of community-based conservation yield valuable insights into marine turtle nesting ecology

For the Western Indian Ocean region, there is a significant knowledge gap regarding marine turtle nesting on the continental coast of East Africa. Here we present results from a long-term (2000-2020) community-based monitoring programme in and around Watamu Marine National Park, Kenya, covering 30 km of coastline (c. 6% of the national total). Conservation actions effectively protected nesting turtles and resulted in a near-total cessation of illegal egg harvesting in Watamu Marine National Park. Collected data indicate this is an important marine turtle nesting index site in Kenya and the wider region. Green turtle Chelonia mydas nests were most common (95%), followed by olive ridley turtles Lepidochelys olivacea (4%), with occasional nests of hawksbill Eretmochelys imbricata and leatherback turtles Dermochelys coriacea. Clutches per season increased significantly over the 20-year monitoring period for green turtles (50%) and showed a positive trend for olive ridley turtles. Watamu remains an area at risk from human pressures such as coastal development. Clutch distribution along the Watamu Marine National Park beach has shifted over time, probably because of coastal development and disturbance. Illegal take of adults and eggs continues in areas north and south of the Watamu Marine National Park, possibly slowing rates of recovery. Clutches deemed at risk were moved to a safe location within the National Park, and hatching success was high. Continued conservation efforts, including wider engagement with stakeholders to reduce human pressures, are needed to ensure the perpetuation of this nesting site.Peer reviewe

High-flow nasal cannula oxygen therapy alone or with non-invasive ventilation during the weaning period after extubation in ICU: the prospective randomised controlled HIGH-WEAN protocol

INTRODUCTION: Recent practice guidelines suggest applying non-invasive ventilation (NIV) to prevent postextubation respiratory failure in patients at high risk of extubation failure in intensive care unit (ICU). However, such prophylactic NIV has been only a conditional recommendation given the low certainty of evidence. Likewise, high-flow nasal cannula (HFNC) oxygen therapy has been shown to reduce reintubation rates as compared with standard oxygen and to be as efficient as NIV in patients at high risk. Whereas HFNC may be considered as an optimal therapy during the postextubation period, HFNC associated with NIV could be an additional means of preventing postextubation respiratory failure. We are hypothesising that treatment associating NIV with HFNC between NIV sessions may be more effective than HFNC alone and may reduce the reintubation rate in patients at high risk. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: This study is an investigator-initiated, multicentre randomised controlled trial comparing HFNC alone or with NIV sessions during the postextubation period in patients at high risk of extubation failure in the ICU. Six hundred patients will be randomised with a 1:1 ratio in two groups according to the strategy of oxygenation after extubation. The primary outcome is the reintubation rate within the 7 days following planned extubation. Secondary outcomes include the number of patients who meet the criteria for moderate/severe respiratory failure, ICU length of stay and mortality up to day 90. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: The study has been approved by the ethics committee and patients will be included after informed consent. The results will be submitted for publication in peer-reviewed journals. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT03121482

On the margins Negotiating cultural non-conformity in mid-sixteenth-century ducal Florence

SIGLEAvailable from British Library Document Supply Centre-DSC:DXN025603 / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo

On the mathematics of alluvial river hydraulics

SIGLEAvailable from British Library Document Supply Centre- DSC:DX186990 / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo

On evolution of bed material waves in alluvial rivers

Field and laboratory measurements have shown distinct characteristics of bed sediment waves under differing conditions, whilst their theoretical interpretation has emerged to be equivocal. This note aims to clarify the interpretation of evolution of bed material waves. The complete set of governing equations for the flow-sediment-morphology system is deduced to demonstrate its universally hyperbolic nature, irrespective of the sediment transport functions implemented to close the equations. The hyperbolic nature can admit not only attenuating bed material waves, but also shock-like waves that are not unusual in the real world. It is suggested that the theory of dispersion/diffusion is not universally appropriate for evolution of bed material waves

Vagrant Subantarctic fur seal in the Mayumba National Park, Gabon

A vagrant adult male Subantarctic fur seal Arctocephalus tropicalis was seen and  photographed on the beach in Mayumba National Park in the Gabonese Republic. This is the northern most sighting on record for the species. The likely source of the vagrant is the population at Gough Island, South Atlantic.Key words: Arctocephalus tropicalis, Gabon, vagrant, dispersion

Vagrant Subantarctic fur seal in the Mayumba National Park, Gabon

A vagrant adult male Subantarctic fur seal Arctocephalus tropicalis was seen and photographed on the beach in Mayumba National Park in the Gabonese Republic. This is the northern most sighting on record for the species. The likely source of the vagrant is the population at Gough Island, South Atlantic

Contract farming and decision to adopt rice production : Case of rice cultivation in the BAMA plain in Burkina Faso.

Résumé Le riz au Burkina Faso occupe une place importante dans la consommation des ménages. Cependant, l’offre de riz sur le marché national ne couvre pas la demande locale. Ce qui n’est pas forcement liée à un problème de sous production mais souvent à un problème d’écoulement du paddy. Cette étude cherche à identifier les facteurs qui peuvent motiver un agriculteur à s’engager dans un contrat de vente. Les données utilisées sont des données primaires de 2016, collectées sur la plaine de Bama au Burkina Faso sur un échantillon de 282 riziculteurs tiré aléatoirement selon la formule de Dawson Saunders and Trapp. Deux modèles d’estimations ont été utilisées. D’abord, le model Logit conditionnel en considérant l’homogénéité dans les choix d’adoption des producteurs et ensuite le model Logit mixte aléatoire en considérant que les choix sont hétérogènes. Les résultats économétriques montrent que les producteurs ont des préférences par rapport aux types de contrats proposés et que leurs choix sont influencés significativement par les critères intrinsèques aux contrats. Mots clés : Contrat, Paddy, Préférence, Burkina Faso Abstract Rice in Burkina Faso occupies an important place in household consumption. However, the supply of rice on the national market does not cover local demand. This is not necessarily linked to a problem of underproduction but often to a problem of selling paddy. This study seeks to identify the factors that can motivate a farmer to commit to a sales contract. The data used are primary data from 2016, collected on the Bama plain in Burkina Faso on a sample of 282 rice farmers drawn randomly according to the formula of Dawson Saunders and Trapp. Two estimation models were used. First, the conditional Logit model by considering the homogeneity in the adoption choices of the producers and then the random mixed Logit model by considering that the choices are heterogeneous. The econometric results show that producers have preferences with respect to the types of contracts offered and that their choices are significantly influenced by the criteria intrinsic to the contracts. Key word : Contract, Paddy, Preference, Burkina Fas