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Immediate Threat (immediate + threat)
Selected AbstractsPersistence of a biocontrol strain of Phlebiopsis gigantea in conifer stumps and its effects on within-species genetic diversityFOREST PATHOLOGY, Issue 5 2001E. J. Vainio Fungal isolations and genetic fingerprinting were used to determine whether Phlebiopsis gigantea stump treatment against Heterobasidion annosum sl. using a single genotype (Rotstop) would affect the genetic diversity of P. gigantea populations. The survival time of P. gigantea was longer in Norway spruce (Picea abies) stumps compared to Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) as no isolates were obtained from pine stumps 6 years after treatment, whereas in about half of the spruce stumps the fungus was still present. The usage of Rotstop did not seem to increase the occurrence of the fungus 5 years after the treatment in fresh (1-year-old) untreated stumps within the same forest stands. All the isolates from the 6-year-old treated spruce stumps were identical in genotype with the Rotstop-strain, whereas all isolates from the fresh untreated spruce and pine stumps differed from it. Within the treated pine stand, the biocontrol usage seemed to have caused a slight reduction in genetic markers not related to Rotstop, but there were no statistically significant differences between the marker frequencies and the local natural population. Thus, Rotstop is not likely to cause any immediate threat to the genetic diversity of P. gigantea. Persistance dans les souches de conifères d'un génotype de Phlebiopsis gigantea utilisée en lutte biologique, et effets sur la diversité génétique de l'espèce L'isolement et l'empreinte génétique ont été utilisés pour savoir si le traitement de souches contre Heterobasidion annosum avec un seul génotype de Phlebiopsis gigantea (Rotstop) peut affecter la diversité génétique des populations de P. gigantea. La durée de survie de P. gigantea a été plus longue dans les souches de Picea abies que dans celles de Pinus sylvestris. Chez celles-ci, aucun isolat n'a été obtenu six ans après le traitement alors que chez environ la moitié des souches d'épicéa le champignon était encore présent. Dans les mêmes peuplements, cinq ans après l'application du Rotstop, l'incidence du champignon ne semblait pas avoir augmenté chez les souches fraîches non traitées, âgées de un an. Tous les isolats obtenus à partir des souches traitées six ans auparavant avaient le même génotype que l'isolat du Rotstop, alors que tous ceux issus de souches fraîches non traitées d'épicéa et de pin étaient différents. Chez le peuplement de pins, le traitement biologique semblait avoir causé une légère réduction des marqueurs génétiques non liés au Rotstop, mais leur fréquence n'était pas statistiquement différente de celle de la population naturelle locale. Ainsi, il apparaît peu probable que le Rotstop soit une menace immédiate pour la diversité génétique du P. gigantea. Persistenz eines Phlebiopsis gigantea -Isolates in Koniferenstümpfen und seine Auswirkungen auf die intraspezifische genetische Diversität Mit Isolierungen und genetischem Fingerprinting wurde untersucht, ob eine Stumpfbehandlung mit einem einzelnen Genotyp von Phlebiopsis gigantea (Rotstop) gegen Heterobasidion annosum sl. die genetische Diversität von P. gigantea -Populationen beeinträchtigen könnte. P. giganteaüberlebte auf Stümpfen von Picea abies länger als auf solchen von Pinus sylvestris. Auf Kiefernstümpfen konnte der Pilz sechs Jahre nach der Behandlung nicht mehr nachgewiesen werden, während er auf 50% der Fichtenstümpfe noch vorhanden war. Eine Rotstop-Anwendung 5 Jahre zuvor hatte offenbar keinen Einfluss auf das Vorkommen von P. gigantea in frischen (einjährigen) unbehandelten Stümpfen im gleichen Bestand. Alle Isolate von den sechs Jahre alten behandelten Fichtenstümpfen hatten den gleichen Genotyp wie das Rotstop-Isolat, während alle Isolate von den frischen (unbehandelten) Fichten-und Kiefernstümpfen anderen Genotypen angehörten. In dem behandelten Kiefernbestand war die Frequenz der nicht mit dem Rotstop-Isolat assoziierten genetischen Marker etwas verringert, der Unterschied zur lokalen natürlichen Population war aber statistisch nicht signifikant. Die Anwendung von Rotstop dürfte somit keine kurzfristige Bedrohung der genetischen Diversität von P. gigantea darstellen. [source] Alarm calls of wintering great tits Parus major: warning of mate, reciprocal altruism or a message to the predator?JOURNAL OF AVIAN BIOLOGY, Issue 2 2006Indrikis Krams When a predator is not an immediate threat, a prey may produce relatively loud alarm calls because the risk is low. Since such calls could nevertheless attract acoustically oriented predators, the cost of predator attraction must be outweighed by factors beneficial to the caller. In this field study we elicited low-risk alarm calls by temporarily catching wintering adult male great tits Parus major at feeders both within and outside their territories. We tested whether the alarm calls of dominant males can be explained in terms of mate warning, reciprocal altruism or notifying the predator of detection. If alarms are intended to warn mates, males accompanied by their mates should give alarm calls both within and outside home range, even if other permanent flock members are absent. If alarms are to be explained by reciprocal altruism, male great tits should give low-risk alarm calls when accompanied by permanent flock members other than mate within and not outside of the home-range. If alarm calling is a message to a predator, males should call when foraging alone. We found that male great tits gave low-risk alarm calls when accompanied by their mates, independent of feeder location. They also gave low-risk alarm calls within home ranges in the presence of other permanent flock members when mates were absent. In contrast, only a few males gave calls when foraging alone within their home ranges, or when in the company of unfamiliar great tits outside their usual home-range. The results suggest that the utterance of alarm calls may be explained as mate protection and reciprocal altruism among familiar individuals. [source] Cytomorphological alterations of the thymus, spleen, head-kidney, and liver in cardinal fish (Apogonidae, Teleostei) as bioindicators of stressJOURNAL OF MORPHOLOGY, Issue 1 2006Lev Fishelson Abstract Morphological and cytological alterations at the light microscope (LM) and transmission electron microscope (TEM) levels were observed in the thymus, spleen, head-kidney, and liver of cardinal fishes (Apogonidae, Teleostei) from the Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea, sampled from a strongly polluted site at the northern end of the gulf, and compared to similar samples from a clean, reference site. At the polluted site, the most prominent change was the formation of numerous deposits of cells rich in phagosomes with lipofucin, melanin granules, and phagocytosed debris, including a high increase in number and dimensions of Hassall's corpuscles and melano-macrophage centers. The number of Hassall's corpuscles was 20 (±8.0)/mm2 and of melano-macrophage centers 18 (±4.0)/mm2 at the polluted site, and 7.0 (±4.0)/m2 vs. 5.0 (±2.0)/mm2 respectively at the reference site. In numerous instances the head kidney's melano-macrophage centers in fishes from the polluted site were encapsulated by reticulocytes, a phenomenon recognized as a marker of neoplasmosis and possible malignancy. In the spleens of fishes from the polluted site, numerous deposits of cell debris, peroxisomes, and enlarged lysosomes were also observed. The livers (hepatopancreas) of fishes from polluted waters demonstrated very strong hyperlipogeny. Many of their hepatocytes were laden with lipid vesicles, fragmented endoplasmic reticulula, and aberrant mitochondria. Although the observed alterations in the glands and liver do not indicate any immediate threat to the life of the fish, they can become crucial with respect to energy turnover and fecundity trajectories. This study strongly suggests the use of cytological alterations in vital organs, such as were observed, as pathological biomarkers to environmental stress. J. Morphol. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Unusual Cu(I)/Ag(I) coordination of Escherichia coli CusF as revealed by atomic resolution crystallography and X-ray absorption spectroscopyPROTEIN SCIENCE, Issue 10 2007Isabell R. Loftin Abstract Elevated levels of copper or silver ions in the environment are an immediate threat to many organisms. Escherichia coli is able to resist the toxic effects of these ions through strictly limiting intracellular levels of Cu(I) and Ag(I). The CusCFBA system is one system in E. coli responsible for copper/silver tolerance. A key component of this system is the periplasmic copper/silver-binding protein, CusF. Here the X-ray structure and XAS data on the CusF,Ag(I) and CusF,Cu(I) complexes, respectively, are reported. In the CusF,Ag(I) structure, Ag(I) is coordinated by two methionines and a histidine, with a nearby tryptophan capping the metal site. EXAFS measurements on the CusF,Cu(I) complex show a similar environment for Cu(I). The arrangement of ligands effectively sequesters the metal from its periplasmic environment and thus may play a role in protecting the cell from the toxic ion. [source] Landscape linkages and conservation planning for the black bear in west-central FloridaANIMAL CONSERVATION, Issue 1 2004Jeffery L. Larkin The Greater Chassahowitzka black bear population is the smallest documented in North America with fewer than 20 individuals. Its future depends on landscape linkages with other bear populations that are separated by denatured habitat. We used a Geographic Information System (GIS) to identify potential landscape linkages between this isolated population and six others in Florida. Pathway lengths ranged from 60,194 km with varying potentials for facilitating black bear dispersal. Each pathway incorporated 35,88% conservation land and encountered at least 11 dispersal bottlenecks. Even pathways that incorporated extensive conservation land encountered bottlenecks that make these linkages potentially unviable. All six pathways, however, passed through ,95% core black bear habitat. Thus, the infrastructure for a conservation network is still largely intact. The Suwannee pathway provides the best opportunity to restore connectivity between the Greater Chassahowitzka Ecosystem (GCE) and a southward colonising bear population in the Big Bend region. However, intensification of development poses an immediate threat to maintaining connectivity between the GCE and other bear populations in Florida. Through immediate strategic planning and active conservation and restoration measures, many of the generated pathways can provide long-term connectivity. Least-cost path analyses can aid in the conservation of wide-ranging animals by providing managers with a science-based, empirically derived blueprint of potential landscape linkages. [source] Assessing genetic diversity for conservation management: a case study of a threatened reptileANIMAL CONSERVATION, Issue 2 2009K. A. Miller Abstract The consequences of inbreeding in small isolated populations are well documented, yet populations are often managed in isolation to avoid irreversibly mixing genetic lineages and to maintain the historic integrity of each population. Three remaining populations of Whitaker's skink (Cyclodina whitakeri) in New Zealand, remnants of a once wider distribution, illustrate the conflict between this genetic goal (separate management of populations) with the more tangible and immediate threats of small population size and inbreeding. Middle and Castle Islands harbour populations of C. whitakeri and have been separated from each other and from the mainland for ,10 000 years. The single mainland population at Pukerua Bay is extremely small, declining and deemed a high priority for management. We sequenced a 550 bp region of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA,ND2) and genotyped animals from all three populations at 13 microsatellite loci. The population of C. whitakeri at Pukerua Bay showed marked differences from the island populations at both mtDNA (unique, fixed haplotype) and microsatellite loci (FST,0.20), and private alleles were detected at a high frequency (24% of all alleles). However, we attribute this pattern to an historic genetic gradient coupled with rapid genetic drift. Further, animals in captivity show genetic signatures of both Pukerua Bay and island populations, despite the goal to maintain a pure Pukerua Bay stock. The mixed genetic stock in captivity provides an opportunity for the addition of skinks from Middle Island to evaluate the risks of further population hybridization, including the disruption of potential local adaptation, while mitigating the risks of inbreeding. [source] | ||||||||||