Size-frequency data were collected for two rheophilic fish species, Cottus perifretum and Leuciscus cephalus, at the confluences of 18 lowland tributaries along the regulated River Meuse (the Netherlands) between May 2004 and April 2005. Cottus perifretum is a resident species, using these stream mouth habitats throughout its entire life: i.e. as a spawning, nursery and adult habitat. Leuciscus cephalus is a transient species that uses these stream mouth habitats only as a temporary 0+ juvenile habitat during fall and early winter. This study suggests that the stream mouth habitats along the River Meuse fulfil different ecological functions for C. perifretum and L. cephalus.
A new method of wild boar, Sus scrofa (Linnaeus), census tentatively called the “Carpathian technique” was tested in Poland during February and March 2000–2004. This method is based on the relationship between absolute population density (N/1000 ha of forest) and a snow track index (T/Km x day-1). The absolute density of wild boar was estimated on the basis of 177 sampling plots, of 400–500 ha. Snow tracks of wild boar were counted along line transects with a total length of 4,442 km. High correlation (r=0.59 - 0.88) between the density of tracks counted along line transects (T/Km*day-1) and species density calculated from sampling plots (N/1000 ha) has been obtained. This relationship was employed to calculate the density of wild boar in 58 Forest Districts and 2 National Parks. In forest districts and National Parks, the lowest density of wild boar i.e. 0.49 animals/1000 ha of forest was recorded in Bieszczady Mountains, and the highest density (120.7 individuals/1000 ha) was recorded in the Myślibórz Forest District. Over respective regions (that includes several forest districts and the sampled National Parks), density of wild boar was the lowest in Carpathian and Sudety Mountains, near density = 4.06 animals/1000 ha, while in north-eastern and southern lowland regions density varied from 9.0 to 19.71 animals/1000 ha, respectively. The highest density (36.7 animals/1000 ha) was recorded in north-western lowland forest region.
The pilot study deals with the clinical results of the regenerative therapeutical method in intraosseous periodontal defects done by surgical augmentation procedure using a material of a new generation prepared on the basis of a bioactive glass. A group of 10 individuals were treated properly for chronic periodontitis. Some of treated infraalveolar periodontal lesions, both periodontal pockets and interradicular defects, persisted or recurred in posterior teeth. In order to eliminate them they were indicated for advanced periodontal surgery or regenerative surgical therapy stimulating healing processes of supportive tissues, mostly alveolar bone around treated teeth. Relevant clinical parameters, i. e. values of the pocket depth, gingival recession, and loss of attachment were evaluated before and after the periodontal surgery and compared with each other. The therapy led to significant improvement of clinical parameters in terms of the reduction of pocket depth and loss of attachment values. and R. Slezák, V. Paulusová
Papilionid butterflies of the tribe Troidini are specialists on plants of the family Aristolochiaceae. The role of plant volatiles in host recognition by adult and larval stages of these insects remains unknown. We used Battus polydamas archidamas (Papilionidae: Troidini) and its host-plant, Aristolochia chilensis (Aristolochiaceae), to study: (i) the olfactory and electrophysiological responses of adults to headspace volatiles of the host-plant, (ii) the chemical composition of the headspace volatiles of the host-plant, (iii) the patterns of aggregation of larvae in the field in order to ascertain the time when they leave the plant where the eggs were laid, and (iv) the olfactory responses of solitary-feeding fourth-instar larvae to headspace volatiles of the host-plant. Larvae left their initial host-plant during the third or fourth instar. Host-plant headspace volatiles attracted fourth-instar larvae as well as adults; adult females were more responsive than males. Taken together, these results reveal changes in the responsiveness to host-plant volatiles during development, and provide an insight into the host-plant specialization of this butterfly.
This article provides a critique of the use of Esping-Andersen and Kemeny’s typologies of welfare and housing regimes, both of which are often used as starting points for country selections in comparative housing research. We find that it is conceivable that housing systems may reflect the wider welfare system or diverge from it, so it is not possible to “read across” a housing system from Esping-Andersen’s welfare regimes. Moreover, both are dated and require revisiting to establish whether they still reflect reality. Of the two frameworks, Esping-Andersen’s use of the state-market-family triangle is more geographically mobile. Ultimately, housing systems are likely to be judged on the “housing outcomes” that they produce. However, it is suggested that current use of variables within EU-SILC in order to establish “housing outcomes” may be misleading since they do not reflect acceptable standards between countries with greatly differing general living standards and cultural norms.
The precise rainfall estimate with appropriate spatial and temporal resolutions is a key input to distributed hydrological models. However, networks of rain gauges are often sparsely distributed in developing countries. To overcome such limitations, this study used some of the existing gridded rainfall products to simulate streamflow. Four fridded rainfall products, including APHRODITE, CFSR, PERSIANN, and TRMM, were used as input to the SWAT distributed hydrological model in order to simulate streamflow over the Srepok River Catchment in Vietnam. Besides that, the available rain gauges data were also used for comparison. Amongst the four different datasets, the TRMM and APHRODITE data show their best match to rain gauges data in simulating the daily and monthly streamflow with satisfactory precision in the 2000–2006 period. The result indicates that the TRMM and APHRODITE data have potential applications
in driving hydrological model and water resources management in data-scarce and ungauged areas in Vietnam.
Giant pandas (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) are now confined to fragmented habitats in western China, with more than 60 % of individuals inhabiting 63 protected areas. Knowledge of the environmental features required by giant pandas is critically important for protected area spatial arrangement and subsequent assessments. Here we developed a distribution model for giant pandas in the Tangjiahe Nature Reserve using Ecological Niche Factor Analysis (ENFA) model. We found that less than 40 % of this key reserve is of high suitability for giant pandas, highly suitable habitat being primarily characterized as coniferous forests away from roads within the reserve. Although there was a clear core zone occupied by giant pandas, which included the vast majority of known giant panda locations, only about 45 % of this zone was classified as highly suitable habitat (suitable and optimal). Therefore, the spatial arrangement within the reserve may need to be modified to effectively manage the remaining population of giant pandas. Of particular concern are several tourism proposals being considered by local government, which, if implemented, will increase the isolation of the local population from those in the surrounding area. Our analysis identifies Caijiaba and Baixiongping as areas that should become conservation priorities. Our approach provides valuable data to advise conservation policy and could be easily replicated across other protected areas.