Wildlife and humans in outdoor recreational areas near cities

<p>In Naherholungsräumen von Städten herrscht reger Betrieb: am Tag, aber auch in Randzeiten und teils gar in der Nacht. Wildtiere und deren Lebensräume geraten dadurch unter Druck. In stark frequentierten Gebieten sind Rehe weniger aktiv und für viele Wildtierarten ist der Lebensraum reduziert. Wildruhezonen, eine eingeschränkte Er- schliessung und die Lenkung der Besuchenden verbessern die Lebensbedingungen der Wildtiere.</p> <p> </p

Close encounters : analyzing disturbance events between deer and visitors in a recreational forest

Disturbance events between wild animals and visitors of a recreational area are an excellent example to study interaction movement patterns. This paper presents computational movement analysis methods for studying disturbance dynamics, especially when both animals and visitors are tracked. The first method combines trajectory segmentation with animal homeranges aiming at detecting flight events. The second method formalizes the sequence pattern “disturbance-flight-seek cover”. The pattern is then applied searching for differences between different disturbance categories

Rothirschprojekt Aletsch-Goms : Abschlussbericht zum Forschungs- und Managementprojekt 2017–2021

Ab etwa Mitte des 20. Jahrhunderts kommt der Rothirsch im Wallis in nennenswerten Beständen vor. Trotz intensiver Bejagung nehmen die Bestände seither stetig zu und führen teilweise zu Konflikten, insbesondere im Wald und in der Region Aletsch-Goms. Über die Raumnutzung und das Wanderverhalten der Rothirsche in dieser Region lagen bislang einige Einschätzungen und Vermutungen, jedoch kaum gesicherte Fakten vor. Mit dem im Jahr 2017 initiierten Rothirschprojekt Aletsch-Goms wurden bedeutende Wissenslücken für einen fachlich fundierten Umgang mit dieser anspruchsvollen Wildtierart nun geschlossen

Green-up selection by red deer in heterogeneous, human-dominated landscapes of Central Europe

The forage maturation hypothesis (FMH) assumes that herbivores cope with the trade-off between digestibility and biomass in forage by selecting vegetation at intermediate growth. The green wave hypothesis (GWH) extends the FMH to suggest how spatiotemporal heterogeneity in plant quality shapes migratory movements of herbivores. Growing empirical support for these hypotheses mainly comes from studies in vast landscapes with large-scale habitat heterogeneity. It is unclear, however, to what extent ungulates surf green waves in human-altered landscapes with small-scale heterogeneity in terms of land use and topography. We used plant phenological proxies derived from Sentinel 2 satellite data to analyze the habitat selection of 93 collared red deer (Cervus elaphus) in montane and alpine habitats. Using a step selection analysis, we investigated how plant phenology, that is, the instantaneous rate of green-up (IRG) and normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), and a set of variables describing topography and human presence influenced red deer resource selection in open habitats. We learned that red deer selected areas with high biomass at green-up and avoided habitats with possible exposure to human activity. Additionally, landscape structure and topography strongly influenced spatial behavior of red deer. We further compared cumulative access to high-quality forage across migrant strategies and found migrants gained better access than residents. Many migratory individuals surfed the green wave, and their surfing behavior, however, became less pronounced with decreasing distance to settlements. Within the constraints of topography and human land use, red deer track spring green-up on a fine spatiotemporal scale and follow the green wave across landscapes in migration movements. Thus, they benefit from high-quality forage even in human-dominated landscapes with small-scale heterogeneity and vegetation emerging in a heterogenic, dynamic mosaic

A non-randomised, single-centre comparison of induction chemotherapy followed by radiochemotherapy versus concomitant chemotherapy with hyperfractionated radiotherapy in inoperable head and neck carcinomas

BACKGROUND: The application of induction chemotherapy failed to provide a consistent benefit for local control in primary treatment of advanced head and neck (H&N) cancers. The aim of this study was to compare the results of concomitant application of radiochemotherapy for treating locally advanced head-and-neck carcinoma in comparison with the former standard of sequential radiochemotherapy. METHODS: Between 1987 and 1995 we treated 122 patients with unresectable (stage IV head and neck) cancer by two different protocols. The sequential protocol (SEQ; 1987–1992) started with two courses of neoadjuvant chemotherapy (cisplatin [CDDP] + 120-h continuous infusions (c.i.) of folinic acid [FA] and 5-fluorouracil [5-FU]), followed by a course of radiochemotherapy using conventional fractionation up to 70 Gy. The concomitant protocol (CON; since 1993) combined two courses of FA/5-FU c.i. plus mitomycin (MMC) concomitantly with a course of radiotherapy up to 30 Gy in conventional fractionation, followed by a hyperfractionated course up to 72 Gy. Results from the two groups were compared. RESULTS: Patient and tumor characteristics were balanced (SEQ = 70, CON = 52 pts.). Mean radiation dose achieved (65.3 Gy vs. 71.6 Gy, p = 0.00), response rates (67 vs. 90 % for primary, p = 0.02), and local control (LC; 17.6% vs. 41%, p = 0.03), were significantly lower in the SEQ group, revealing a trend towards lower disease-specific (DSS; 19.8% vs. 31.4%, p = 0.08) and overall (14.7% vs. 23.7%, p = 0.11) survival rates after 5 years. Mucositis grades III and IV prevailed in the CON group (54% versus 44%). Late toxicity was similar in both groups. CONCLUSION: Concurrent chemotherapy seemed more effective in treating head and neck tumors than induction chemotherapy followed by chemoradiation, resulting in better local control and a trend towards improved survival

Effect of aliskiren on post-discharge outcomes among diabetic and non-diabetic patients hospitalized for heart failure: insights from the ASTRONAUT trial

Aims The objective of the Aliskiren Trial on Acute Heart Failure Outcomes (ASTRONAUT) was to determine whether aliskiren, a direct renin inhibitor, would improve post-discharge outcomes in patients with hospitalization for heart failure (HHF) with reduced ejection fraction. Pre-specified subgroup analyses suggested potential heterogeneity in post-discharge outcomes with aliskiren in patients with and without baseline diabetes mellitus (DM). Methods and results ASTRONAUT included 953 patients without DM (aliskiren 489; placebo 464) and 662 patients with DM (aliskiren 319; placebo 343) (as reported by study investigators). Study endpoints included the first occurrence of cardiovascular death or HHF within 6 and 12 months, all-cause death within 6 and 12 months, and change from baseline in N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) at 1, 6, and 12 months. Data regarding risk of hyperkalaemia, renal impairment, and hypotension, and changes in additional serum biomarkers were collected. The effect of aliskiren on cardiovascular death or HHF within 6 months (primary endpoint) did not significantly differ by baseline DM status (P = 0.08 for interaction), but reached statistical significance at 12 months (non-DM: HR: 0.80, 95% CI: 0.64-0.99; DM: HR: 1.16, 95% CI: 0.91-1.47; P = 0.03 for interaction). Risk of 12-month all-cause death with aliskiren significantly differed by the presence of baseline DM (non-DM: HR: 0.69, 95% CI: 0.50-0.94; DM: HR: 1.64, 95% CI: 1.15-2.33; P < 0.01 for interaction). Among non-diabetics, aliskiren significantly reduced NT-proBNP through 6 months and plasma troponin I and aldosterone through 12 months, as compared to placebo. Among diabetic patients, aliskiren reduced plasma troponin I and aldosterone relative to placebo through 1 month only. There was a trend towards differing risk of post-baseline potassium ≥6 mmol/L with aliskiren by underlying DM status (non-DM: HR: 1.17, 95% CI: 0.71-1.93; DM: HR: 2.39, 95% CI: 1.30-4.42; P = 0.07 for interaction). Conclusion This pre-specified subgroup analysis from the ASTRONAUT trial generates the hypothesis that the addition of aliskiren to standard HHF therapy in non-diabetic patients is generally well-tolerated and improves post-discharge outcomes and biomarker profiles. In contrast, diabetic patients receiving aliskiren appear to have worse post-discharge outcomes. Future prospective investigations are needed to confirm potential benefits of renin inhibition in a large cohort of HHF patients without D

Crowdsourcing hypothesis tests: Making transparent how design choices shape research results

To what extent are research results influenced by subjective decisions that scientists make as they design studies? Fifteen research teams independently designed studies to answer fiveoriginal research questions related to moral judgments, negotiations, and implicit cognition. Participants from two separate large samples (total N > 15,000) were then randomly assigned to complete one version of each study. Effect sizes varied dramatically across different sets of materials designed to test the same hypothesis: materials from different teams renderedstatistically significant effects in opposite directions for four out of five hypotheses, with the narrowest range in estimates being d = -0.37 to +0.26. Meta-analysis and a Bayesian perspective on the results revealed overall support for two hypotheses, and a lack of support for three hypotheses. Overall, practically none of the variability in effect sizes was attributable to the skill of the research team in designing materials, while considerable variability was attributable to the hypothesis being tested. In a forecasting survey, predictions of other scientists were significantly correlated with study results, both across and within hypotheses. Crowdsourced testing of research hypotheses helps reveal the true consistency of empirical support for a scientific claim.</div