Spatial Distribution Modelling of Prothonotary Warbler (Protonotaria citrea) on Breeding Grounds

Ecological niche modeling is used to predict a species’ distribution in a geographic area based on abiotic and biotic variables. Understanding a species’ range is important for conservation and restoration efforts. As anthropogenic forces may alter or deplete habitat, it is important to know the ecological requirements of a species to understand how and what habitat to protect. With the increasing threat of climate change and rising temperature and precipitation, the suitable habitat and the distribution for many species is expected to shift. Migratory species are particularly at risk of these changes as they require suitable habitat not only on their wintering and stopover grounds, but on their breeding grounds. Without suitable breeding grounds, reproductive success is guaranteed to decline for a species. Understanding how these changes affect the range and distribution of a species allows researchers and conservationist to better formulate effective species management plan

Projecting habitat of the nonbreeding Prothonotary Warbler (Protonotaria citrea) under various climate scenarios

Understanding a species’ range, and how it may change over time, allows researchers to develop more robust species management plans and to identify vital habitat for conservation planning. For migratory bird species, different habitats are utilized during different times of year. While a neotropical migratory species’ breeding grounds may be adequate, its wintering ground or various stopover areas may be under threat. In what is known as a carry over effect, the degradation of wintering grounds can lead to poor quality individuals in the breeding range (Rockwell et al., 2012), thus reduced fitness. The tropics are predicted to experience changes in temperature and precipitation as a result of climate change (Neelin et al., 2006). These changes may result in the decline of food resources required by migratory species wintering in the tropics. Resource rich mangrove ecosystems and riparian habitats are highly threatened by climate-induced sea level rise and storm surges (Şekercioğlu et al., 2012). The Prothonotary warbler (Protonotaria citrea) is a habitat specialist that relies on the endangered mangrove forests of coastal wetlands. The effects of climate change may cause species with narrow environmental niches, such as the Prothonotary warbler, to shift their ranges to less suitable habitat (Şekercioğlu et al., 2008)

Analysis of standard DNA procedures on feathers of late 19th to late 20th century Osprey (Pandion haliaetus)

Species with well-documented demographic histories and well known perturbations to gene flow provide good models for understanding how historic events impact contemporary population genetic structure1,2. Osprey (Pandion haliaetus), a marine bird-of-prey, experienced steep declines after widespread organochloride pesticide (e.g. DDT) use in the mid-twentieth century 3, however, population genetic consequences remain unknown. Use of historic specimens can aid population genetic studies4,5, however, these samples can degrade over time impacting quantity and quality of extracted DNA5. We compared the concentrations of extracted DNA of Osprey feathers from museum and research collections to those of contemporary samples collected according to standard field collection protocols

The Art Deco Murals of Hildreth Meière

Review of The Art Deco Murals of Hildreth Meière, Reviewed June 2014 by Lee Viverette, Director of Library, Special Collections and Publications, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, [email protected]

INFLUENCE OF HISTORIC LANDSCAPES AND CONTEMPORARY SPECIES MANAGEMENT ON CHESAPEAKE BAY BALD EAGLES AND OSPREY

Influence of historic landscapes and contemporary species management on Chesapeake Bay Bald Eagles and Osprey Catherine B. Viverette Co-distributed species with well documented demographic histories can provide good models for testing alternative hypotheses about the impact of evolutionary history, contemporary landscapes, and species management on current distribution and population structure. The Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) and Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) have been extensively studied, managed and monitored across their North American breeding range, particularly in the Chesapeake Bay. We used a combination of ecological niche modelling, diet reconstruction, and population genetic modeling to understand the role of historic events--both shallow and deep time--on contemporary species distribution. The first objective of this study was to develop contemporary and paleo-distributional models for North American Bald Eagles and Osprey in order to explore the geographic histories of the two species, including the identity of possible Pleistocene refugia. Potential distribution during past (e.g. Last Glacial Maximum, LGM) and possible future climate scenarios were developed with species occurrence records for Osprey (n = 3034) and Bald Eagles (n = 8859) combined with 19 bioclimatic variables representing current conditions using the maximum entropy model (MaxEnt). Paleoclimatic models predict multiple putative refugia that may explain differences in migratory behavior between the two currently co-distributed species, as well as geographically defined sub-populations within each species. We conducted bulk stable isotope analysis of feathers collected from museum specimens and contemporary nests to investigate the influence of historic declines in critical prey species on distribution of Bald Eagles (n = 41 ) and Osprey (n = 45) in the Chesapeake Bay over the past 140 y. Stable Isotope Analysis in R (SIAR) was used to estimate the relative contribution of potential prey items in order to test the hypothesis that migration of estuarine-dependent and anadromous clupeid fishes represents an historically important seasonal subsidy in the form of marine-derived organic matter (MDOM). SIAR results demonstrate that MDOM contributed approximately 50% of the carbon and nutrients to Bald Eagle and Osprey occupying the upper estuary historically but declined to less than 5% of contemporary diets. Declines in anadromous prey in the diet correspond with historic spatial shifts in distribution and population growth of avian predators over the same period. Finally, we tested the hypothesis that conservation efforts, specifically translocation or “hacking” programs, rather than biogeographical history, best explains the current pattern of genetic variation exhibited by Osprey across their North American breeding range. We genotyped 11 microsatellite loci and a 513 base pair sequence of the cyt b region from 433 Osprey samples in order to investigate current population substructure, the genetic consequences of historic demographic bottlenecks, and the influence of hacking programs on contemporary gene flow. We calculated genetic differentiation (Dest) and Isolation-By-Distance (IBD) among regional populations and spatially cohesive genetic clusters identified using the program STRUCTURE. Our results indicate that although Osprey nesting in North America are subdivided into multiple cohesive genetic clusters, genetic differentiation among groups is low and unrelated to geographic variation. The findings of this study are discussed in light of past and present management practices and broader issues salient to species management and conservation of genetic diversity and adaptive response to future environmental change

Influence of Castration and and a High Protein Diet on Load-Mediated Hypertrophy and Skeletal Muscle Force Production in Rats Following Immobilization

The purpose of the present study to was to to examine the effects of low testosterone on muscle mass and function in rats following 10 days of hindlimb immobilization and determine if a high protein diet enhances load-mediated hypertrophy. Average SOL CSA was significantly lower for immobilized vs. control legs at 0 (30.3%, p < 0.001) and 14 days of reloading (15.9%, p = 0.006). Significant differences in average soleus mass were present at all days of reloading (all p < 0.001). Immobilized SOL Po followed a similar pattern (all p < 0.001), and castrated animals showed lower Po at 14 days (p < 0.050). At present, functional overload in a testosterone-deprived state appears to reduce the regrowth of skeletal muscle size, suggesting that testosterone may play a role in load-mediated hypertrophy following immobilization. As well, a high protein diet did not result in enhanced load-mediated hypertrophy in castrated rats.Master of Art

Age-specific responses to spring temperature in a migratory songbird: older females attempt more broods in warmer springs

Increasing global temperature has led to an interest in plasticity in the timing of annual events; however, little is known about the demographic consequences of changing phenology. Annual reproductive success varies significantly among individuals within a population, and some of that variation has to do with the number of broods attempted by reproducing adults. In birds, female age and the timing of reproduction are often predictors of multiple breeding. We hypothesize that double brooding rates may be affected by spring temperature and that the response may vary with female age. We used a long-term reproductive data set for a migratory songbird, the prothonotary warbler (Protonotaria citrea) to assess which factors influence (a) an individual female\u27s probability of double brooding and (b) the annual variation in population-level double brooding rates. We found that older and earlier nesting birds are more likely to double brood, and that there is no evidence for senescence with regard to this trait such that the oldest females were most likely to double brood. Previous experience with double brooding (i.e., whether the female double brooded in the previous year) significantly increased the probability of doing so again. When assessing annual variation in the double brooding rate, we found an interaction between spring temperature and the proportion of older females in the population. Specifically, older females are more likely to double brood in years with warmer springs, but this relationship was not seen for younger females. Previous studies have shown that warmer temperatures lead to earlier and narrower peaks in resources and we hypothesize that these peaks are more available to older and earlier arriving females, enabling them to successfully raise more than one brood in a season. Understanding how different age classes respond to changing environmental conditions will be imperative to managing declining species

Social Work Students use of Adapted Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction as a Stress Management Strategy

Stress management programs are not available or required in many social work programs, and the need for programming is apparent considering NASW’s self-care mandate and COVID-19 pandemic-related student impacts. Using a convergent mixed methods design, the authors investigated the effects of an adapted mindfulness-based stress reduction course as a stress management strategy for social work students (n=15) during the COVID-19 pandemic to determine if there are any effects on students’ levels of stress and mindful self-care behaviours. Three five-week courses consisting of synchronous meetings and asynchronous practice materials were conducted. The Perceived Stress Scale and Mindful Self-Care Scale were administered to students as pre-test and post-test, and a focus group was conducted at the conclusion of each course’s final week. Three themes emerged: commitment and routine, practice and techniques, and accountability and Wilcoxon signed ranks test results showed no significant effects of adapted mindfulness on students’ perceived stress ( z= -.882, p=.378). However, mindful relaxation (z = -3.04, p=.002), and students’ self-compassion and purpose (z = -2.62, p=.009), and mindful awareness (z = -1.93, p=.054) increased. Although stress levels were not significantly affected, students’ self-care improved, which aligns with the NASW code of ethics mandating professionalism through self-care

Mouse α-synuclein fibrils are structurally and functionally distinct from human fibrils associated with Lewy body diseases.

The intricate process of α-synuclein aggregation and fibrillization holds pivotal roles in Parkinson's disease (PD) and multiple system atrophy (MSA). While mouse α-synuclein can fibrillize in vitro, whether these fibrils commonly used in research to induce this process or form can reproduce structures in the human brain remains unknown. Here, we report the first atomic structure of mouse α-synuclein fibrils, which was solved in parallel by two independent teams. The structure shows striking similarity to MSA-amplified and PD-associated E46K fibrils. However, mouse α-synuclein fibrils display altered packing arrangements, reduced hydrophobicity, and heightened fragmentation sensitivity and evoke only weak immunological responses. Furthermore, mouse α-synuclein fibrils exhibit exacerbated pathological spread in neurons and humanized α-synuclein mice. These findings provide critical insights into the structural underpinnings of α-synuclein pathogenicity and emphasize a need to reassess the role of mouse α-synuclein fibrils in the development of related diagnostic probes and therapeutic interventions