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ABSTRACT More people feed birds and other wildlife than hunt and fish combined. Despite its popularity, many bird‐feeding traditions lack scientific data. We examined seed and feeder use by wild birds in the United States and Canada, and how seed use may change by season and geographic region. Between 2005 and 2008, 173 individuals from 38 states and 3 provinces in Canada made 20,077, 45‐minute observations at bird feeders, recording 106 species and 1,282,424 bird visits. Of the 10 seed types most commonly used in bird seed blends, 3 are most attractive to birds: black‐oil sunflower, medium sunflower chips, and white proso millet. Other seeds such as red milo are less attractive. Chickadees (Poecile spp.), nuthatches (Sitta spp.), and larger finches (Carpodacus spp.) were most abundant at black‐oil sunflower, smaller finches (Carduelis spp.) were most abundant at Nyjer® (Wild Bird Feeding Institute, Chicago, IL) and sunflower chips, and sparrows (Spizella spp.) were most abundant at white proso millet. Bird‐feeding traditions have been widely reported in books, magazines, newspaper articles, and websites. These traditions are often conflicting and have not been verified empirically. Studies such as this can be used to develop scientifically based recommendations that can lead to a better bird‐feeding experience and that attract fewer species with known negative ecological consequences. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

ABSTRACT Millions of Americans and Canadians participate in the feeding of wild birds. We surveyed hobbyists about their bird‐feeding experience, and examined demographic and regional differences in responses, to determine the types of bird‐feeding practices taking place and to identify themes important for wildlife managers to communicate with people who feed birds. Between autumn 2005 and winter 2008–2009, we recruited a non‐random sample from the interested public though both print and electronic media. We had 1,291 individuals from 48 states (USA) and 7 Canadian provinces who completed our mail and website survey. Survey respondents were primarily female (67%) and ≥45 years old (77%). Most respondents offered alternative foods in addition to traditional bird seed (≥82%) and provided other resources besides food to attract birds (≥75%). Our respondents fed birds because it brought nature (84%) and accompanying sound (81%) to the area, as a hobby (79%), and to help the birds (79%). Respondents felt attracting more bird species (69%), a greater number of birds (41%), and no pests (35%) would make their bird‐feeding experience more satisfying. Given the interested public's desire to increase bird diversity at their feeders and to help birds, managers have the opportunity to develop messages promoting habitat enhancement in addition to feeding, and provide suggestions for reducing the risk of disease transmission and pest species at feeders. © 2013 The Wildlife Society.

Abstract Exposure to pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) culminates in heterogeneous outcomes, including variation in Mtb antigen-specific interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) T-cell responses. IFN-γ-independent cytokines, including tumor necrosis factor (TNF) and interleukin (IL-2), offer potential diagnostic improvements and insights into pathogenesis. We hypothesized that ESAT6/CFP10 TNF and IL-2 responses improve Mtb infection detection among exposed household contacts (HHCs) and are associated with index case Mtb aerosolization (i.e., cough aerosol culture positive for Mtb growth, CAC+) and HIV co-infection. We enrolled individuals with PTB and their HHCs in a longitudinal study in Nairobi, Kenya. We measured TNF and IL-2 in HHCs from QuantiFERON-TB Plus TB1 tube supernatants. An additional 9.2% (25) HHCs beyond the 58.6% (129) with an IFN-γ response demonstrated an antigen-specific increase in IL-2 and TNF. HHCs of CAC + participants were more likely to have positive IL-2 (84.6% vs. 53.8%, p = 0.02) and IFN-γ (88.0% vs. 54.9%, p = 0.01), but not TNF responses, compared to CAC-negative individuals. While HIV co-infection in the index was negatively associated with IFN-γ responses in HHCs (35.7% vs. 62.3%, p = 0.03), IL-2 and TNF responses did not differ. Antigen-specific ESAT6/CFP10 IL-2 and TNF may increase rates of Mtb infection detection and provide insights into Mtb transmission and pathogenesis.

Abstract Interrupting transmission events is critical to tuberculosis control. Cough-generated aerosol cultures predict tuberculosis transmission better than microbiological or clinical markers. We hypothesize that highly infectious individuals with pulmonary tuberculosis (positive for cough aerosol cultures) have elevated inflammatory markers and unique transcriptional profiles compared to less infectious individuals. We performed a prospective, longitudinal study using cough aerosol sampling system. We enrolled 142 participants with treatment-naïve pulmonary tuberculosis in Kenya and assessed the association of clinical, microbiologic, and immunologic characteristics with Mycobacterium tuberculosis aerosolization and transmission in 129 household members. Contacts of the forty-three aerosol culture-positive participants (30%) are more likely to have a positive interferon-gamma release assay (85% vs 53%, P = 0.006) and higher median IFNγ level (P

Objective: Little is known about regimen choice for latent tuberculosis infection in the United States. Since 2011, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recommended shorter regimens—12 weeks of isoniazid and rifapentine or 4 months of rifampin—because they have similar efficacy, better tolerability, and higher treatment completion than 6–9 months of isoniazid. The objective of this analysis is to describe frequencies of latent tuberculosis infection regimens prescribed in the United States and assess changes over time. Methods: Persons at high risk for latent tuberculosis infection or progression to tuberculosis disease were enrolled into an observational cohort study from September 2012–May 2017, tested for tuberculosis infection, and followed for 24 months. This analysis included those with at least one positive test who started treatment. Results: Frequencies of latent tuberculosis infection regimens and 95% confidence intervals were calculated overall and by important risk groups. Changes in the frequencies of regimens by quarter were assessed using the Mann-Kendall statistic. Of 20,220 participants, 4,068 had at least one positive test and started treatment: 95% non-U.S.–born, 46% female, 12%

Ilyocypris leptolinea Wang & Zhai, sp. nov. is described from late Quaternary sediments in central-eastern Inner Mongolia, northern China. The new species, which has a carapace shape and pitted surface typical of the genus, is characterised by double rows of fine, densely arranged marginal ripplets, separated by an inner list, along both anterior and posterior calcified inner lamellae in the left valve. Outline analysis and Principal Component Analysis indicate that its morpho-space overlaps with I. bradyi Sars, 1890, I. japonica Okubo, 1990, and I. mongolica Martens, 1991, which have living or fossil representatives in Inner Mongolia, but it is clearly discriminated from I. innermongolica Zhai & Xiao, 2013. Judging from the relatively coarse lithology dominated by silt and sand, and the lack of accompanying brackish-water ostracods, I. leptolinea Wang & Zhai, sp. nov. may have lived in a relatively shallow freshwater lake. It perhaps can be added to the list of species that went extinct during the Quaternary, but the timing and process of extinction await further investigation.

As a famous fossil Lagerstätte, the mid-Cretaceous (ca. 100 Ma) amber from Kachin, northern Myanmar, harbors one of the most diverse Mesozoic palaeobiotas yet discovered. Over the past few years, reports of organisms trapped in Kachin amber have increased exponentially. Ostracods, as fully aquatic animals, are so far represented in Kachin amber by two records of specimens without soft parts (1 valve and two carapaces) as well as an exceptional assemblage with well-preserved soft parts comprising 39 specimens of three species assigned to the families Candonidae and Loxoconchidae. Since the last-mentioned focused on the exceptional preservation of giant sperm and reproductive organs in only one species, we here present in-depth morphological descriptions of all three species including a new genus: Myanmarcypris hui Wang et al., 2020, Electrocypria burmitei gen. et sp. nov., and Sanyuania sp. We further describe taphonomic traits indicating that the studied ostracods were quickly surrounded by resin and instantly immobilized. The palaeoenvironment is considered to be a vegetated brackish (mesohaline-oligohaline) lagoon.

Ostracods are common microcrustaceans in inland waters, widely used as (palaeo-) environmental indicators. Information on their species distribution worldwide is extremely fragmentary, and usually biased towards some regions, hampering attaining a general view of their biogeography. The Iberian Peninsula, the Balearic Islands and Macaronesia are considered biodiversity hotspots as part of the Mediterranean Region, whose non-marine ostracod fauna was reviewed in the 1990s accounting for 88 species. Most of these data were included in the NODE database (Non-marine Ostracod Distribution in Europe). Here, we present IMOST (Ibero-Balearic and Macaronesian OSTracod database), a non-marine ostracod database for the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic and Macaronesian Islands, incorporating data included in NODE plus many new records from recently published studies and new unpublished observations. Our database stores data in separated and standardised spreadsheets, one for each data source. Moreover, the database also offers updated, reviewed and accurate coordinates of the cited occurrence and taxonomic identification. According to the data compiled in IMOST, we updated the list of non-marine ostracods in the studied region from 88 to 118 species. Nevertheless, we expect that the actual number of species for the included regions should be higher, considering other Mediterranean countries with smaller areas but more extensive surveys (e.g. 152 species in Italy). The updated database is instrumental for our understanding of the biodiversity and biogeographic patterns of these organisms in this hotspot, as well as for analysing their species-environment relationships in a context of global changes.

Immunological mechanisms of susceptibility to nontuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) disease are poorly understood. To understand NTM pathogenesis, we evaluated innate and antigen-specific adaptive immune responses to Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) in asymptomatic individuals with a previous history of MAC lung disease (MACDZ). We hypothesized that Mav-specific immune responses are associated with susceptibility to MAC lung disease. We measured MAC-, NTM-, or MAC/Mtb-specific T-cell responses by cytokine production, expression of surface markers, and analysis of global gene expression in 27 MACDZ individuals and 32 healthy controls. We also analyzed global gene expression in Mycobacterium avium-infected and uninfected peripheral blood monocytes from 17 MACDZ and 17 healthy controls. We were unable to detect increased T-cell responses against MAC-specific reagents in MACDZ compared to controls, while the responses to non-mycobacteria derived antigens were preserved. MACDZ individuals had a lower frequency of Th1 and Th1* T-cell populations. In addition, MACDZ subjects had lower transcriptional responses in PBMCs stimulated with a mycobacterial peptide pool (MTB300). By contrast, global gene expression analysis demonstrated upregulation of proinflammatory pathways in uninfected and M. avium-infected monocytes, i.e. a hyperinflammatory in vitro response, derived from MACDZ subjects compared to controls. Together, these data suggest a novel immunologic defect which underlies MAC pathogenesis and includes concurrent innate and adaptive dysregulation which persists years after completion of treatment.

Abstract Background People living with HIV (PLHIV) who reside in high tuberculosis burden settings remain at risk for tuberculosis disease despite treatment with anti-retroviral therapy and isoniazid preventive therapy (IPT). The performance of the World Health Organization (WHO) symptom screen for tuberculosis in PLHIV receiving anti-retroviral therapy is sub-optimal and alternative screening strategies are needed. Methods We enrolled HIV-positive adults into a prospective study in western Kenya. Individuals who were IPT-naïve or had completed IPT > 6 months prior to enrollment were eligible. We evaluated tuberculosis prevalence overall and by IPT status. We assessed the accuracy of the WHO symptom screen, GeneXpert MTB/RIF (Xpert), and candidate biomarkers including C-reactive protein (CRP), hemoglobin, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), and monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio for identifying pulmonary tuberculosis. Some participants were evaluated at 6 months post-enrollment for tuberculosis. Results The study included 383 PLHIV, of whom > 99% were on antiretrovirals and 88% had received IPT, completed a median of 1.1 years (IQR 0.8–1.55) prior to enrollment. The prevalence of pulmonary tuberculosis at enrollment was 1.3% (n = 5, 95% CI 0.4–3.0%): 4.3% (0.5–14.5%) among IPT-naïve and 0.9% (0.2–2.6%) among IPT-treated participants. The sensitivity of the WHO symptom screen was 0% (0–52%) and specificity 87% (83–90%). Xpert and candidate biomarkers had poor to moderate sensitivity; the most accurate biomarker was CRP ≥ 3.3 mg/L (sensitivity 80% (28–100) and specificity 72% (67–77)). Six months after enrollment, the incidence rate of pulmonary tuberculosis following IPT completion was 0.84 per 100 person-years (95% CI, 0.31–2.23). Conclusions In Kenyan PLHIV treated with IPT, tuberculosis prevalence was low at a median of 1.4 years after IPT completion. WHO symptoms screening, Xpert, and candidate biomarkers were insensitive for identifying pulmonary tuberculosis in antiretroviral-treated PLHIV.

Plantain (Plantago lanceolata L.) is recognised for its ability to improve summer feed productivity as well as mitigate nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from grazed pastoral soils. This study aims to determine the proportion of plantain required in perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) and white clover (Trifolium repens L.), or RWC, mixed swards to maintain yield stability and to quantify N2O emission reductions. The botanical composition was monitored when plantain was sown at different rates of 0%, 30%, 50% and 70% in RWC pastures under grazing by dairy cows over 2 grazing years. Urine from cows grazing RWC (6.15 g N L−1), 30% (5.40 g N L−1) and 50% (4.40 g N L−1) plantain mixed pastures was used to measure N2O emissions (n = 5) from the pastures of their origin and to assess the impact of the plantain rhizosphere on N2O emissions by applying the RWC urine to the 50% plantain mixed pasture, and vice versa, in late summer–autumn using the static chambers technique. After declining in spring, the plantain content recovered in early autumn and reached a peak of 40% in the 30% plantain mixed pasture and around 50% in the 50% and 70% plantain mixed pastures in winter. A lower N content in urine, and therefore a lower urine N-loading rate from cows grazing in the 50% plantain mixed pasture, resulted in 39% lower total N2O emissions compared to RWC urine treatment. In conclusion, 30% to 50% plantain in mixed pastures was stable throughout the 2 years, and it not only reduced the urinary N concentration in grazing cattle but also contributed to reduced N2O EFs.

Incorporating plantain with perennial ryegrass and white clover (RGWC) can improve the quality and quantity of grazing pastures; however, the sowing rate could affect the persistence of plantain, pasture yield, and nutritive value in different seasons. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of increasing sowing rates of plantain when established with RGWC on the dry matter (DM) yield, botanical composition, nutritive value, and bioactive compounds of the pasture over the first two years after sowing; and to determine the relationship between plantain content and nutritive characteristics in different seasons. The pasture treatments were RGWC, RGWC + low plantain rate (PLL), RGWC + medium plantain rate (PLM), and RGWC + high plantain rate (PLH). The results showed that annual DM yield was similar between treatments. The average plantain content (including leaves and reproductive stem) was 32, 44, and 48% in PLL, PLM, and PLH, respectively. The plantain composition increased in the first 15 months, then declined rapidly to about 20–30% at day 705 after sowing. Compared with RGWC, the plantain-RGWC pastures (PLL, PLM, PLH) had a higher content of organic matter digestibility (OMD), ash, starch, non-structural carbohydrates (NSC), P, S, Ca, Mg, Na, Cl, Zn, B, Co, aucubin, acteoside, and catalpol, while they contained a lower composition of DM%, acid detergent fibre (ADF), neutral detergent fibre (NDF), crude fat (CF), Fe, and Mn. These differences were linearly associated with the content of plantain leaves in the pasture and were higher in summer and autumn than in spring. In conclusion, incorporating plantain into the RGWC pasture can improve herbage nutritive quality, thus potentially increasing farm productivity and environmental benefits. However, further work is required to investigate management interventions to sustain plantain content beyond two years from sowing.

This paper presents an updated geological reconstruction of the Quaternary evolution of the River Thames at its downstream extremities, close to the North Sea coast, based on new data from multi-disciplinary and citizen-science sources. In this area, the interaction of the Thames with the MIS 12 (Anglian) glaciation is an important part of the Quaternary archive. The Anglian ice sheet, which reached parts of north and east London, was responsible for diverting the Thames southwards into its present course, although the footprint of the maximum ice sheet(s) does not reach the North Sea coast south of Hollesley, Suffolk. Further south, the coastal zone hosts pre-Anglian and early Anglian river-terrace deposits of the pre-diversion Thames system, superimposed upon which are products of later post-Anglian rivers, of both Middle and Late Pleistocene age. On the peninsula between the Stour and Blackwater–Colne estuaries, the lowest and most recent terrace of the pre-diversion Thames includes evidence directly pertaining to the glacial disruption event, for which geochronological data are reported here for the first time. The first post-diversion terrace of the Thames also reaches this peninsula, the river having essentially re-joined its original valley before crossing the alignment of the modern coastline. This terrace passes beneath Clacton-on-Sea, where it includes the type locality of the Clactonian Palaeolithic Industry. The area of interest to this paper, in NE Essex and southern Suffolk, includes a number of interglacial and Palaeolithic sites, the data from which assist in constraining the chronostratigraphy of the sequence. In some cases, there has been uncertainty as to whether these sites represent pre-Anglian environments and hominin occupations, part of the palaeo-Thames sequence, or whether they are the product of later post-Anglian streams, formed after the Thames had migrated southwards. This paper compiles evidence from a wide range of recent sources, including developer-funded archaeological appraisal and citizen-science activities, to explore and update the evidence from sites at Ipswich, Upper Dovercourt and Thorpe-le-Soken, as well as a number of localities associated with the Clacton Channel Deposits (host to the type-Clactonian), amongst others. The resulting new data are placed within the wider context of the Quaternary fluvial archives in southern Britain, with a discussion of how disparate sources of information, including the work of citizen scientists, have contributed.

Burmese Cretaceous amber (∼99 Ma, Myanmar) is famous for the preservation of a wide range of fauna and flora, including representatives of marine, freshwater and terrestrial groups. Here, we report on three ostracod specimens, that came visible as syninclusions to an aquatic isopod. The three specimens represent three different taxa, that were found preserved in a single piece of amber. One of the described specimens was studied using µCT scanning data. On the basis of general carapace morphology we assign all three to the group Podocopida, and (tentatively) its ingroup Cypridocopina. A lack of visibility of more particular diagnostic features such as adductor muscle scars and details of the marginal zone precludes a further identification, but we discuss possible affinities with either the marine-brackish group Pontocypridoidea or the non-marine group Cypridoidea. The taphonomy indicates that the studied ostracods had been subject to limited (if any) post-mortem transport, which could be consistent with marginal marine environments.

This article reviews the literature on nitrate leaching under sheep grazing systems and focuses on identifying future research needs. Urinary nitrogen (N) is an important source of the nitrate leached from pastoral agriculture. Urinary N excretion can be measured or simulated using models and has been well characterised for dairy systems. It is difficult to continuously monitor the urinary N excretion of sheep under field conditions; consequently, measurements of N excretion in sheep urine are limited. Urination events by sheep vary greatly in volume (0.5 L to 6.9 L), concentration (3 to 13.7 g N/L), and frequency (8 to 23 events/day); this variation results in a corresponding variation in N loading rates in urine patches. The amount of nitrate leached under pastures grazed by sheep has typically varied between 1 and 50 kg N/ha/year, but rates as high as 300 kg N/ha/year have been reported. The quantity of nitrate leached under sheep depends on the season, climate, quantity and timing of drainage, the interaction between forage production and stocking rate, fertiliser applied, N fixation by legumes, forage type, and grazing management. The majority of studies examining nitrate leaching under sheep grazing systems are more than 20 years old; so, there is little recent information on nitrate leaching under modern pasture-based sheep production systems. Further research is required to quantify nitrate leaching levels under current sheep farming practices, to understand the impacts of this leaching on water quality, and to help identify effective strategies to reduce the transfer of N from grazed paddocks to receiving water bodies. This additional information will help provide information for decision support tools, including models and management practices, to help sheep farmers minimise their impact on the aquatic environment.

Abstract Background The World Health Organization (WHO) considers pregnant women to be a risk group for severe influenza disease. We conducted a systematic review to evaluate influenza disease incidence in pregnant women in order to inform estimates of influenza vaccine impact for low-resource countries. Methods We performed electronic literature searches, targeting studies on the following outcomes in pregnant women: attack rate, hospitalization rate, intensive care unit admission rate, mortality rate, and disability-adjusted life years lost. Only original studies published in peer-reviewed journals that had laboratory confirmation for influenza virus infection and included population-based incidence rates with denominator data were included. We summarized study characteristics in descriptive tables and outcome-specific Forest plots. We generated summary incidence rates using random effects models and assessed statistical heterogeneity by visual examination of Forest plots, and by χ 2 and I2 tests. Results We identified 1543 articles, of which nine articles met the study inclusion criteria. Five were case series, three were cohort studies, and one was a randomized controlled trial. Eight studies were from high-income countries, and one was from an upper middle-income country. Six studies reported results for pandemic influenza, and three reported seasonal influenza. Statistical heterogeneity was high for all outcomes, and methodologies and duration of surveillance varied considerably among studies; therefore, we did not perform meta-analyses. Conclusions Study quality was very low according to GRADE criteria. More data on influenza disease incidence in pregnant women, particularly in low- and middle-income countries and for seasonal influenza disease, are needed to inform public health decision-making.