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The Waukesha Biota (Brandon Bridge Formation Lagerstätte) is a diverse assemblage of early Silurian (437 Ma) shallow marine fossils from Wisconsin, USA. Their exceptional preservation, in finely laminated dolomitic mudstones, was mediated by tidally‐influenced conditions and/or microbial entombment. Shelly biomineralized animals are rare, but soft‐bodied organisms are common. Arthropods dominate, including trilobites, phyllocarids, ostracodes, a thylacocephalan, a synziphosurine and various enigmatic groups. The fauna also includes evolutionary 'holdovers', such as palaeoscolecids and a lobopodian. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An unusual worm, previously interpreted as the earliest leech, is described from the early Silurian (Llandovery, Telychian) Brandon Bridge Formation Lagerstätte (Waukesha Biota) of Wisconsin (~437 Ma). Lacking preserved internal organs, it is up to ~16 cm long, 8.2 mm wide, with ~250 annulations and a circular structure at one end, interpreted here as the broken end of a molt. It is therefore referred to Cycloneuralia incertae sedis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent discoveries of trackways and trails on ancient tidal flats at Blackberry Hill, Wisconsin, USA, have transformed our understanding of the initial invasion of land, 500 Ma. Huge slug‐like molluscs grazed on microbial mats. Euthycarcinoid (stem myriapod) death traces (mortichnia) suggest that they did not come onto land to feed or breed, but simply to survive; Moon was closer to Earth then, and massive tides stranded animals in tidal pools that gradually dried up. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Protichnites eremita from the Cambrian Elk Mound Group of Wisconsin is reinterpreted based on new material and trackway experiments. Two new forms of P. eremita suggest that the discrete medial imprints of these traces could be produced by the segmented postabdomen of euthycarcinoids from the same deposit. Form 1 could have been produced by a pair of euthycarcinoids traveling together, like in limulid amplexus, where both individuals made imprints with their postabdomens. In this scenario, if one individual held its postabdomen to the left side, it is possible to produce left-handed shingling in trackways and angled segmentation of each medial imprint. Form 2 could have been produced by a single animal traveling in arcing or tightly looping paths. Experimentally-produced medial imprints yield morphologies that are consistent with both trackway forms. Thus, it seems more likely that P. eremita was produced directly by the animal's body (alone or paired) rather than by employing hermit-like behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To discuss successes and challenges of a collaborative pilot project to increase healthy food availability in corner stores in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The Lindsay Heights Healthy Corner Store Initiative aimed to help corner stores sell high-quality produce by increasing supply of healthy foods and funding minor store upgrades to facilitate change.Design: Evaluation research.Setting: Milwaukee, Wisconsin.Participants: Corner stores; youth and adult community members.Intervention: (1) Supporting businesses in purchasing equipment to stock fresh produce, (2) connecting stores with produce sources, and (3) community outreach and marketing.Measures: Partnership capacity, youth engagement in food justice, and community members' usage of corner stores.Analysis: Qualitative analysis; descriptive statistics.Results: Storeowners reported more sold produce items per week and increased noticeable fresh produce upon entrance into the store. There was increased or improved store redesign, fresh produce signage, in-store cooking demonstrations, and small business development resources.Conclusion: Youth learned about new vegetables, increased kitchen skills and proper food storage, and the effects of obesity on overall health. Similar interventions must address infrastructure costs, cooperation with property owners, and local policies and regulations affecting business practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]