Home About us Contact | |||
Surveyed Area (surveyed + area)
Selected AbstractsFine-scale genetic structure and inferences on population biology in the threatened Mediterranean red coral, Corallium rubrumMOLECULAR ECOLOGY, Issue 19 2010J.-B. LEDOUX Abstract Identifying microevolutionary processes acting in populations of marine species with larval dispersal is a challenging but crucial task because of its conservation implications. In this context, recent improvements in the study of spatial genetic structure (SGS) are particularly promising because they allow accurate insights into the demographic and evolutionary processes at stake. Using an exhaustive sampling and a combination of image processing and population genetics, we highlighted significant SGS between colonies of Corallium rubrum over an area of half a square metre, which sheds light on a number of aspects of its population biology. Based on this SGS, we found the mean dispersal range within sites to be between 22.6 and 32.1 cm, suggesting that the surveyed area approximately corresponded to a breeding unit. We then conducted a kinship analysis, which revealed a complex half-sib family structure and allowed us to quantify the level of self-recruitment and to characterize aspects of the mating system of this species. Furthermore, significant temporal variations in allele frequencies were observed, suggesting low genetic drift. These results have important conservation implications for the red coral and further our understanding of the microevolutionary processes acting within populations of sessile marine species with a larval phase. [source] Distribution and abundance of patas monkeys (Erythrocebus patas) in Laikipia, Kenya, 1979,2004AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PRIMATOLOGY, Issue 11 2007Lynne A. Isbell Abstract Patas monkeys may be especially vulnerable to local extinction because they live in relatively small, female-philopatric groups at low densities and are strongly polygynous. We assessed a patas monkey population in Kenya's 9,700 km2 Laikipia District over 25 years, using data collected in 1979,1981 and 1992,2004. The data were based on intensive observations of three study groups, "on the ground" counts, and surveys of Laikipia residents. In 1979,1981, a minimum of 415 patas monkeys lived in 14,15 groups. By 2000, the best estimate suggested 310,445 patas monkeys living in 13,17 groups over a greater surveyed area, suggesting that patas monkeys in Laikipia may have undergone a slight decline in numbers over time. Their distribution, however, was similar over time. The relative stability of this population has likely been the result of beneficial co-existence with large-scale cattle ranching. Outside Laikipia, substantial habitat alteration from rising human populations has coincided with the near disappearance of patas monkeys where they were previously more numerous. The small population in Laikipia, probably the largest remaining in Kenya, may therefore be critical to the continued existence of patas monkeys in that country and may be dependent on maintenance of large-scale ranches. Such land use provides patas monkeys with water and broad expanses of Acacia drepanolobium woodlands, the habitat to which patas are restricted in Laikipia. Am. J. Primatol. 69:1223,1235, 2007. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] A multistep process for the dispersal of a Y chromosomal lineage in the Mediterranean areaANNALS OF HUMAN GENETICS, Issue 4 2001P. MALASPINA In this work we focus on a microsatellite-defined Y-chromosomal lineage (network 1.2) identified by us and reported in previous studies, whose geographic distribution and antiquity appear to be compatible with the Neolithic spread of farmers. Here, we set network 1.2 in the Y-chromosomal phylogenetic tree, date it with respect to other lineages associated with the same movements by other authors, examine its diversity by means of tri- and tetranucleotide loci and discuss the implications in reconstructing the spread of this group of chromosomes in the Mediterranean area. Our results define a tripartite phylogeny within HG 9 (Rosser et al. 2000), with the deepest branching defined by alleles T (Haplogroup Eu10) or G (Haplogroup Eu9) at M172 (Semino et al. 2000), and a subsequent branching within Eu9 defined by network 1.2. Population distributions of HG 9 and network 1.2 show that their occurrence in the surveyed area is not due to the spread of people from a single parental population but, rather, to a process punctuated by at least two phases. Our data identify the wide area of the Balkans, Aegean and Anatolia as the possible homeland harbouring the largest variation within network 1.2. The use of recently proposed tests based on the stepwise mutation model suggests that its spread was associated to a population expansion, with a high rate of male gene flow in the Turkish,Greek area. [source] A method for estimating the extent of standing fresh waters of different trophic states in Great BritainAQUATIC CONSERVATION: MARINE AND FRESHWATER ECOSYSTEMS, Issue 3 2001M.A. Palmer Abstract 1.,The total area of standing fresh water in Great Britain has been estimated at approximately 2400 km2. The aim of the work described in this paper was to estimate the extent of the dystrophic, oligotrophic, mesotrophic and eutrophic habitat types making up this total. 2.,Botanical survey data collected by the statutory nature conservation agencies provided habitat type and surface area for 3500 water bodies, mostly in Scotland. Because survey in England and Wales had been less thorough than in Scotland, it was not possible to estimate the areas of habitat types simply by direct extrapolation from the survey sample to the total resource of standing water in Great Britain. 3.,A system of Trophic Ranking Scores (TRS) has been developed for aquatic plant species. Using plant records from the Biological Records Centre, a mean TRS for each 10×10 km square was produced, and Great Britain was divided into TRS bands. For each of these bands, the percentage by surveyed area of each freshwater habitat type was calculated. These percentages were applied to the total area of standing water in each TRS band, obtained from Ordnance Survey summary statistics, in order to predict the proportions of the different habitat types likely to occur in each band. The extent of these habitats in Great Britain as a whole could then be calculated. 4.,Estimates produced by this method of the extent of the four standing freshwater habitat types in Great Britain are: dystrophic , 11 km2 (0.5%); oligotrophic , 1445 km2 (60%); mesotrophic , 267 km2 (11%); eutrophic , 679 km2 (28%). 5.,The application of this work to nature conservation is discussed. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Complementary integrated geophysical investigation around Al-Zayyan temple, Kharga oasis, Al-Wadi Al-Jadeed (New Valley), EgyptARCHAEOLOGICAL PROSPECTION, Issue 3 2005M. A. Atya Abstract Qasr Al-Zayyan or Al-Zayyan temple in Al-Kharga oasis is documented as a node in the fortress chain that was built by the Romans to secure Darb Al-Arbain; the slaver's trade caravan route between Asyuit and Sudan. The historical and archaeological background of the temple is very scarce; it has been ascribed to Amenebis and was restored during the reign of Emperor Antoninus AD 138,161. In March 2001, an integrated ground-penetrating radar (GPR) and magnetic survey to the west of the temple showed the possibility of an existing structural complex intersecting the present temple at about 45°. It was interpreted as a multigate structure or a tomb complex. In March 2002, the relative topographic elevations were measured and the surface archaeological features were marked on a map. Also a complementary integrated geophysical survey including electromagnetic, geomagnetic and GPR was conducted along northern and western extensions of, and partially covering, the formerly prospected structure in the survey of 2001. It was designed to verify the structure, to define its extent on both the northern and western sides, and to decide about a possible excavation. The results verified the formerly prospected structure of 2001; some of its particular features have been detected. The structure therefore has been mapped over the surveyed area at the northern and western parts of the 2001 structure and it might extend wider than the surveyed area. The former proposition of a multigate structure becomes stronger because of its general appearance, and the idea of a tomb complex still exists owing to the presence of some depressions thought to be graves. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Effective CCTV and the challenge of constructing legitimate suspicion using remote visual imagesJOURNAL OF INVESTIGATIVE PSYCHOLOGY AND OFFENDER PROFILING, Issue 2 2007David Williams Abstract This paper compares the effectiveness of public CCTV systems according to meta-reviews, with what might be expected based upon theoretical predictions. The apparent gulf between practice and prediction is explored in the light of the challenges faced by CCTV operators in terms of effective target selection. In addition, counter-intuitive reactions by members of the public to situational symbols of crime deterrence may also undermine the efficacy of CCTV. Evidence is introduced and reviewed that suggests CCTV operators may employ implicit profiles to select targets. Essentially, young, scruffy males who appear to be loitering are disproportionately targeted compared with their base rate use of surveyed areas. However, the extent to which such a profile is diagnostic of criminal intent or behaviour is unclear. Such profiles may represent little more than ,pattern matching' within an impoverished visual medium. Finally, suggestions for future research and effective CCTV operator practice are offered in order to improve target selection. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Three-dimensional inversion of automatic resistivity profiling dataARCHAEOLOGICAL PROSPECTION, Issue 4 2009Nikos G. Papadopoulos Abstract Geophysical investigations through mobile multi-electrode systems, such as the automatic resistivity profiling (ARP) method, can increase the size of the surveyed areas without jeopardizing the spatial resolution of the survey. The representation of the apparent resistivity data in maps corresponding to the different measuring dipoles is sufficient in most routine applications for outlining the buried archaeological structures. In specific cases where a more quantitative interpretation of the apparent resistivity data is demanded, a three-dimensional resistivity inversion can provide the necessary tool for this purpose. This work investigates the possibilities and limitations of the three-dimensional resistivity inversion in processing the ARP data. A three-dimensional finite element smoothness-constrained inversion algorithm was used. The active constraint balancing (ACB) method was also applied in order to enhance the stability and the resolving power of the inversion procedure. Resistivity models that are commonly encountered in archaeological exploration were used to generate synthetic apparent resistivity data using a three-dimensional finite element forward modelling program. Inversion of the synthetic data showed that the maximum investigation depth of the ARP method is comparable to the length of the larger receiving dipole and cannot exceed the 2,2.5,m for the particular ARP device tested in this work. Archaeological structures buried within this depth range can be effectively mapped, while the resolution of the subsurface structures is related to the data acquisition parameters. The inversion algorithm was also used to reconstruct the three-dimensional resistivity distribution from the ARP data set collected from the Andilly archaeological site in France. The results effectively showed that the three-dimensional inversion can act as a complementary tool in acquiring a more quantitative interpretation model of the buried archaeological features. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] |