Predicting and understanding spatio-temporal dynamics of species recovery : implications for Asian crested ibis Nipponia nippon conservation in China

Acknowledgements This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 31372218) and cofunded by the China Scholarship Council (CSC) and the ITC Research Fund, Enschede, the Netherlands. We thank Shaanxi Hanzhong Crested Ibis National Nature Reserve for sharing the data of nest site locations. We are grateful to Brendan Wintle, Justin Travis and two anonymous reviewers for helpful comments on a previous version of the manuscript.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Molluscs of an intertidal soft-sediment area in China:Does overfishing explain a high density but low diversity community that benefits staging shorebirds?

The Yellow Sea is a key staging ground for shorebirds that migrate from Australasia to the Arctic each spring. A lot of attention has been paid to the impact of habitat loss due to land reclamation on shorebird survival, but any effects of overfishing of coastal resources are unclear. In this study, the abundance of molluscs in the intertidal mudflats of northern Bohai Bay on the Chinese Yellow Sea was investigated in 2008–2014 from the perspective of their importance as food for northward migrating shorebirds, especially Red Knots Calidris canutus. Numerically contributing 96% to the numbers of 17 species found in spring 2008, the bivalve Potamocorbula laevis (the staple food of Red Knots and other shorebirds) dominated the intertidal mollusc community. In the spring of 2008–2014, the densities of P. laevis were surprisingly high, varying between 3900 and 41,000 individuals/m2 at distinctly small sizes (average shell lengths of 1.1 to 4.8 mm), and thus reaching some of the highest densities of marine bivalves recorded worldwide and providing good food for shorebirds. The distribution of P. laevis was associated with relatively soft sediments in close proximity to the recently built seawalls. A monthly sampling programme showed steep seasonal changes in abundance and size. P. laevis were nearly absent in winter, each year settling on the intertidal mudflats anew. Peak densities were reached in spring, when 0-age P. laevis were 1–3 mm long. The findings point to a highly unusual demographic structure of the species, suggesting that some interfering factors are at play. We hypothesise that the current dominance of young P. laevis in Bohai Bay reflects the combined pressures of a nearly complete active removal of adult populations from mid-summer to autumn for shrimp farming (this clearing of adults may offer space for recruitment during the next spring) and low numbers of epibenthic predators of bivalves, such as shrimps and crabs, due to persistent overfishing in recent decades (allowing freshly settled juveniles to reach high densities). To the best of our knowledge, the idea that overfishing of competing marine mesopredators benefits staging shorebirds, at least in the short term, is novel; it now needs further experimental and comparative scrutiny. The long-term effects of overfishing on benthic communities of the mudflats need further investigation

Rotating BTZ-like black hole and central charges in Einstein-bumblebee gravity

We obtain an exact rotating BTZ-like black hole solution by solving the corresponding gravitational field equations in Einstein-bumblebee gravity theory. Result is presented for the purely radial Lorentz symmetry violating and can only exist with a linear functional potential of the bumblebee field. This black hole has two horizons and an ergosphere which are dependent on the bumblebee coupling constant $\ell$. We study the AdS/CFT correspondence of this black hole, find that the entropy product of its inner and outer horizons is universal. So the central charges of the dual CFT on the boundary can be obtained via the thermodynamic method, and they can reappear black hole mass and angular momentum in the bulk.Comment: 12 pages, no figure. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:2201.0668

The synthesis and characterization of 1111-type diluted magnetic semiconductors (La1-xSrx)(Zn1-xTMx)AsO (TM = Mn, Fe, Co)

The doping effect of Sr and transition metals Mn, Fe, Co into the direct-gap semiconductor LaZnAsO has been investigated. Our results indicate that the single phase ZrCuSiAs-type tetragonal crystal structure is preserved in (La1-xSrx)(Zn1-xTMx)AsO (TM = Mn, Fe, Co) with the doping level up to x = 0.1. While the system remains semiconducting, doping with Sr and Mn results in ferromagnetic order with TC ~ 30K, and doping with Sr and Fe results in a spin glass like state below ~6K with a saturation moment of ~0.02 muB/Fe, an order of magnitude smaller than the ~0.4 muB/Mn of Sr and Mn doped samples. The same type of magnetic state is observed neither for (Zn,Fe) substitution without carrier doping, nor for Sr and Co doped specimens.Comment: Accepted for publication in EP

Spiral Complete Coverage Path Planning Based on Conformal Slit Mapping in Multi-connected Domains

Generating a smooth and shorter spiral complete coverage path in a multi-connected domain is an important research area in robotic cavity machining. Traditional spiral path planning methods in multi-connected domains involve a subregion division procedure; a deformed spiral path is incorporated within each subregion, and these paths within the subregions are interconnected with bridges. In intricate domains with abundant voids and irregular boundaries, the added subregion boundaries increase the path avoidance requirements. This results in excessive bridging and necessitates longer uneven-density spirals to achieve complete subregion coverage. Considering that conformal slit mapping can transform multi-connected regions into regular disks or annuluses without subregion division, this paper presents a novel spiral complete coverage path planning method by conformal slit mapping. Firstly, a slit mapping calculation technique is proposed for segmented cubic spline boundaries with corners. Then, a spiral path spacing control method is developed based on the maximum inscribed circle radius between adjacent conformal slit mapping iso-parameters. Lastly, the spiral path is derived by offsetting iso-parameters. The complexity and applicability of the proposed method are comprehensively analyzed across various boundary scenarios. Meanwhile, two cavities milling experiments are conducted to compare the new method with conventional spiral complete coverage path methods. The comparation indicate that the new path meets the requirement for complete coverage in cavity machining while reducing path length and machining time by 12.70% and 12.34%, respectively.Comment: This article has not been formally published yet and may undergo minor content change

Silver spoon effects of hatching order in an asynchronous hatching bird

The silver spoon hypothesis proposes that individuals which develop under favourable conditions will gain fitness benefits throughout their lifetime. Hatching order may create a considerable size hierarchy within a brood and lead to earlier-hatched nestlings having a competitive advantage over their siblings, which has been illustrated in some studies. However, there have been few explorations into the effect on subsequent generations. Here, using a 15-year-long study, we investigated the long-term fitness consequence of hatching order in the endangered crested ibis, Nipponia nippon, a species with complete hatching asynchrony. In this study, we found strong support for silver spoon effects acting on hatching order. Compared to later-hatched nestlings, first-hatched nestlings begin reproduction at an earlier age, have higher adult survival rates, possess a longer breeding life span and achieve higher lifetime reproductive success. Interestingly, we found carry-over effects of hatching order into the next generation. Nestlings which hatched earlier and became breeders in turn also produced nestlings with larger tarsus and better body condition. Additionally, we found a positive correlation among life-history traits in crested ibis. Individuals which started reproduction at a younger age were shown to possess a longer breeding life span. And the annual brood size increased with an individual’s breeding life span. This suggests that the earlier-hatched nestlings are of better quality and the ‘silver spoon’ effects of hatching order cover all life-history stages and next generation effects