Restricted cross-scale habitat selection by American beavers

Animal habitat selection, among other ecological phenomena, is spatially scale dependent. Habitat selection by American beavers Castor canadensis (hereafter, beaver) has been studied at singular spatial scales, but to date no research addresses multi-scale selection. Our objectives were to determine if beaver habitat selection was specialized to semiaquatic habitats and if variables explaining habitat selection are consistent between landscape and fine spatial scales. We built maximum entropy (MaxEnt) models to relate landscape-scale presence-only data to landscape variables, and used generalized linearmixed models to evaluate fine spatial scale habitat selection using global positioning system (GPS) relocation data. Explanatory variables between the landscape and fine spatial scale were compared for consistency. Our findings suggested that beaver habitat selection at coarse (study area) and fine (within home range) scales was congruent, and was influenced by increasing amounts of woody wetland edge density and shrub edge density, and decreasing amounts of open water edge density. Habitat suitability at the landscape scale also increased with decreasing amounts of grass frequency. As territorial, central-place foragers, beavers likely trade-off open water edge density (i.e., smaller non-forested wetlands or lodges closer to banks) for defense and shorter distances to forage and obtain construction material. Woody plants along edges and expanses of open water for predator avoidance may limit beaver fitness and subsequently determine beaver habitat selection

MR448: Bees and Their Habitats in Four New England States

Bees are crucial to pollination in unmanaged ecosystems and some crops, and their roles are increasingly understood in four states in the Northeastern U.S., abbreviated “NNE” in this paper: Maine (ME), Massachusetts (MA), New Hampshire (NH), and Vermont (VT). The four states have in common many native bee and plant species, forest types, and natural communities. They share drought events and risk of wildfire (Irland 2013). They are exposed to many of the same major storms (e.g., hurricanes, Foster 1988), pollution events (Hand et al. 2014), and effects ascribed to climate change (Hayhoe et al. 2008). Beekeeping enterprises (the western honey bee, Apis mellifera, an introduced species) of various sizes exist in each of the states. By including the four states in this review, we hope to better understand wild bee distributions, inspire the expansion of floral resources to support bee populations in a strategic manner, reduce use of pesticides, create pollinator corridors, and protect subtle habitat features such as ground nest sites for solitary bees and patches of native vegetation that are free of invasive plants. Our objective in this review is to synthesize from a conservation standpoint the state of knowledge regarding bees in NNE, including their diversity, and biology especially as it relates to climate change. We review foraging and nutrition, nest ecology, parasites and parasitoids, native vs. managed bees, and interactions with plants. We then turn our focus to bee habitats, and identify 15 habitat types we find useful for recognizing essential bee resources. We discuss habitat aspects including forest succession, invasive plants, land use alterations, and agriculture including impacts of pesticides, and cover economic aspects of crop-related pollination reservoirs in NNE that demonstrate cost-effectiveness at various scales. We present habitat improvement strategies including passive and active approaches, based on the literature and our experiences in NNE, and we suggest plants for pollinator plantings. Wherever pertinent throughout the text, we highlight threats to bees in our region such as pests and pathogens, pesticides, and habitat loss. Finally, we identify gaps in knowledge that could help in prioritizing directions for future research. We hope this review will be useful to anyone seeking to protect bees and their habitats.https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/aes_miscreports/1029/thumbnail.jp

Upper limb nerve transfer surgery in patients with tetraplegia

IMPORTANCE: Cervical spinal cord injury (SCI) causes devastating loss of upper extremity function and independence. Nerve transfers are a promising approach to reanimate upper limbs; however, there remains a paucity of high-quality evidence supporting a clinical benefit for patients with tetraplegia. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the clinical utility of nerve transfers for reanimation of upper limb function in tetraplegia. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: In this prospective case series, adults with cervical SCI and upper extremity paralysis whose recovery plateaued were enrolled between September 1, 2015, and January 31, 2019. Data analysis was performed from August 2021 to February 2022. INTERVENTIONS: Nerve transfers to reanimate upper extremity motor function with target reinnervation of elbow extension and hand grasp, pinch, and/or release. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: The primary outcome was motor strength measured by Medical Research Council (MRC) grades 0 to 5. Secondary outcomes included Sollerman Hand Function Test (SHFT); Michigan Hand Outcome Questionnaire (MHQ); Disabilities of Arm, Shoulder, and Hand (DASH); and 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) physical component summary (PCS) and mental component summary (MCS) scores. Outcomes were assessed up to 48 months postoperatively. RESULTS: Twenty-two patients with tetraplegia (median age, 36 years [range, 18-76 years]; 21 male [95%]) underwent 60 nerve transfers on 35 upper limbs at a median time of 21 months (range, 6-142 months) after SCI. At final follow-up, upper limb motor strength improved significantly: median MRC grades were 3 (IQR, 2.5-4; P = .01) for triceps, with 70% of upper limbs gaining an MRC grade of 3 or higher for elbow extension; 4 (IQR, 2-4; P \u3c .001) for finger extensors, with 79% of hands gaining an MRC grade of 3 or higher for finger extension; and 2 (IQR, 1-3; P \u3c .001) for finger flexors, with 52% of hands gaining an MRC grade of 3 or higher for finger flexion. The secondary outcomes of SHFT, MHQ, DASH, and SF36-PCS scores improved beyond the established minimal clinically important difference. Both early (\u3c12 months) and delayed (≥12 months) nerve transfers after SCI achieved comparable motor outcomes. Continual improvement in motor strength was observed in the finger flexors and extensors across the entire duration of follow-up. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: In this prospective case series, nerve transfer surgery was associated with improvement of upper limb motor strength and functional independence in patients with tetraplegia. Nerve transfer is a promising intervention feasible in both subacute and chronic SCI

World distribution, diversity and endemism of aquatic macrophytes

To test the hitherto generally-accepted hypothesis that most aquatic macrophytes have broad world distributions, we investigated the global distribution, diversity and endemism patterns of 3457 macrophyte species that occur in permanent, temporary or ephemeral inland freshwater and brackish waterbodies worldwide. At a resolution of 10 × 10° latitude x longitude, most macrophyte species were found to have narrow global distributions: 78% have ranges (measured using an approach broadly following the IUCN-defined concept “extent of occurrence”) that individually occupy <10% of the world area present within the six global ecozones which primarily provide habitat for macrophytes. We found evidence of non-linear relationships between latitude and macrophyte α- and γ-diversity, with diversity highest in sub-tropical to low tropical latitudes, declining slightly towards the Equator, and also declining strongly towards higher latitudes. Landscape aridity and, to a lesser extent, altitude and land area present per gridcell also influence macrophyte diversity and species assemblage worldwide. The Neotropics and Orient have the richest ecozone species-pools for macrophytes, depending on γ-diversity metric used. The region around Brasilia/Goiás (Brazil: gridcell 10–20 °S; 40–50 °W) is the richest global hotspot for macrophyte α-diversity (total species α-diversity, ST: 625 species/gridcell, 350 of them Neotropical endemics). In contrast, the Sahara/Arabian Deserts, and some Arctic areas, have the lowest macrophyte α-diversity (ST <20 species/gridcell). At ecozone scale, macrophyte species endemism is pronounced, though with a>5-fold difference between the most species-rich (Neotropics) and species-poor (Palaearctic) ecozones. Our findings strongly support the assertion that small-ranged species constitute most of Earth’s species diversity

2012 Wild Blueberry Project Reports

The 2012 edition of the Wild Blueberry Project Reports was prepared for the Wild Blueberry Commission of Maine and the Wild Blueberry Advisory Committee by researchers at the University of Maine, Orono. Projects in this report include: 1. Do wild blueberries alleviate risk factors related to the Metabolic Syndrome? 2. Development of effective intervention measures to maintain and improve food safety for wild blueberries 3. Control tactics for blueberry pest insects, 2012 4. Development and implementation of a wild blueberry thrips IPM program, 2012 5. IPM 6. Biology of blueberry and pest insects, 2012 7. Biology of beneficial insects and blueberry pollination, 2012 8. Pesticide residues on lowbush blueberry, 2012 9. Maine wild blueberry –mummy berry research and extension 10. Efficacy of Apogee growth regulator for stimulating rhizome growth into bare spots in wild blueberry fields 11. Velpar by Matrix pre and post-emergence applications - demonstration plots 12. Wild blueberry Extension Education Program in 2012 INPUT SYSTEMS STUDY: 13. Systems approach to improving the sustainability of wild blueberry production, Year Three of a four-year study – experimental design 14. Food safety- Prevalence study of Escherichia coli O157:H7, Listeria monocytogenes and Salmonella spp. on lowbush blueberries (Vaccinium angustifolium) 15. Abundance of insect pest species and natural enemies in lowbush blueberry fields maintained under different management practices 16. Input Systems Study: Systems approach to improving the sustainability of wild blueberry production, Year 3 of a four-year study, disease management results 17. Plant productivity, Year Three of a four-year study 18. Systems approach to improving the sustainability of wild blueberry production, Year Three of a four-year study, weed management results 19. Effects of organic and conventional management systems on the phosphorus solubility of lowbush blueberry barren soils 20. Systems approach to improving sustainability of wild blueberry production – soil health and chemistry measures 21. Evaluation of fungicides for control of mummy berry disease (ancillary study) 22. Systems approach to improving the sustainability of wild blueberry production – Ancillary land-leveling study, Year Two of a four-year study (ancillary study) 23. Pre-emergent combinations of herbicides for weed control in wild blueberry fields – 2012 results from the 2011 trial (ancillary study) 24. Pre-emergent combinations of herbicides for weed control in wild blueberry fields – 2012 trial (ancillary study) 25. Evaluation of herbicides for control of fineleaf sheep fescue for grass control in wild blueberries (ancillary study) 26. Pre-emergence application timing and rate of Alion and Sandea in combination with Velpar or Sinbar on weed control and injury to wild blueberry (ancillary study) 27. Compost and mulch effects on soil health and nutrient dynamics in wild blueberry (ancillary study

Flow Management for Hydropower Extirpates Aquatic Insects, Undermining River Food Webs

Dams impound the majority of rivers and provide important societal benefits, especially daily water releases that enable on-peak hydroelectricity generation. Such “hydropeaking” is common worldwide, but its downstream impacts remain unclear. We evaluated the response of aquatic insects, a cornerstone of river food webs, to hydropeaking using a life history–hydrodynamic model. Our model predicts that aquatic-insect abundance will depend on a basic life-history trait—adult egg-laying behavior—such that open-water layers will be unaffected by hydropeaking, whereas ecologically important and widespread river-edge layers, such as mayflies, will be extirpated. These predictions are supported by a more-than-2500-sample, citizen-science data set of aquatic insects from the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon and by a survey of insect diversity and hydropeaking intensity across dammed rivers of the Western United States. Our study reveals a hydropeaking-related life history bottleneck that precludes viable populations of many aquatic insects from inhabiting regulated rivers.Keywords: citizen science, biodiversity, biological traits, river ecology, damsKeywords: citizen science, biodiversity, biological traits, river ecology, dam

A simple method to estimate spatial complexity in aquatic plants

We used a computerized approach to measure spatial complexity for the structural habitat provided by eight aquatic plant species collected from backwater lagoons located in the Upper Paraná River floodplain, Brazil. The plant species were: Cabomba furcata Schult. and Schult.f., Eichhornia azurea (Sw.) Kunth (stems and roots), Eichhornia crassipes (Mart.) Solms, Egeria najas Planchon, Heteranthera cf. zosterifolia, Potamogeton cf pusillus, Utricularia foliosa L., and Nymphaea amazonum Mart. and Zucc. The upper 0.5 m length of the terminal stems was quantified for complexity. Mean frequency and length of the interstices were significantly different among plant species. Spatial complexity varied (F = 17.30; p < 0.0001) among the different plant species with E. azurea roots and U. foliosa exhibiting the highest levels and E. azurea and N. amazonum stems the lowest. These unique spatial complexities suggested that aquatic plants possessed a differential contribution to the habitat heterogeneity in Upper Paraná River lagoons