The post-fledging period, extending from fledging to independence, is a crucial life stage characterized by high mortality due to fledglings' limited mobility and inexperience. During this stage, fledglings gradua...The post-fledging period, extending from fledging to independence, is a crucial life stage characterized by high mortality due to fledglings' limited mobility and inexperience. During this stage, fledglings gradually increase their mobility, leave their parents, disperse from their natal site, and respond to the challenges of new environments. Characterizing these post-fledging movements and space use is essential for understanding juvenile survival strategies and devising targeted conservation measures. The Crested Ibis (Nipponia nippon), an endangered species and a highly protected animals at the national level in China, has seen limited research on its post-fledging movements and space use. From 2015 to 2023, we utilized biologgers, combined with field surveys, to study the movement and space use characteristics of 37 fledglings in Hanzhong City, Shaanxi Province, China, over a two-month post-fledging period. We quantified changes in activity levels (based on overall dynamic body acceleration), independence timing, onset of post-fledging dispersal, habitat selection, and daily activity rhythms after independence. Our results revealed individuals began independent living 26.23 ± 2.34 days post-fledging and onset of dispersal at 25.58 ± 2.33 days, with a range area at the natal of 2.08 ± 0.56 km^(2). The initial 30 days post-fledging are characterized as an ontogenetic phase marked by a rapid increase in body activity level. Fledglings preferred paddy fields during the independent period rather than the forests they relied on before independence. Interestingly, the daily activity rhythm, particularly foraging behavior, peaked at noon—contrasting with the expected morning and evening activity peaks—likely as an adaptation to avoid periods of peak human activity. Additionally, drowning, collisions, and predation in paddy fields are noteworthy causes of fledgling mortality. Consequently, we recommend protecting a 2-km^(2) area around the nest site for at least two-month post-fledging, implementing safety measures around power lines and cesspools. Additionally, reducing human disturbances near foraging habitats and expanding space within paddy fields would help mitigate survival pressures on fledglings.展开更多
Moult is an essential event in the annual cycle of birds.Moult patterns and strategies of birds are crucial for understanding their life-history trade-offs and adaptations to the environment.However,moult knowledge is...Moult is an essential event in the annual cycle of birds.Moult patterns and strategies of birds are crucial for understanding their life-history trade-offs and adaptations to the environment.However,moult knowledge is still lacking for many Eastern Palaearctic birds,especially large endangered species,mainly because of the difficulty in data collection.Here,we used field photography,a non-invasive method,to detect and score moult in the endangered Crested Ibis(Nipponia nippon)and explored the moult timing variations and moult-breeding tradeoffs.The adult Crested Ibis sequentially moults its primaries outward,and secondaries inward from three foci from April to October.Age(adult versus sub-adult)and breeding status(breeding or not)have a significant effect on moult timing.Moult timing does not differ between the sexes,likely because of similar parental investments in breeding.Crested Ibis exhibits significant moult-breeding overlap,because moult is time constrained and needs to finish before the season of food scarcity in winter.Breeding timing(first egg laying date)has a strong impact on moult duration,with late breeders experiencing a longer moult duration,indicating that the moult intensity is slowed down during the breeding period because of trade-offs between moult and breeding.This reflects that energy allocation of late breeders is challenging during extensive periods of moult-breeding overlap,which might partly contribute to their high breeding failure.Our results strongly suggest the existence of a negative relationship between breeding time on one hand,and fitness and moult on the other:early breeders show higher reproductive output and higher quality plumage,whereas late breeders show lower reproductive output and lower quality plumage.展开更多
Bacterial infections of avian embryos can lead to an increase in embryo mortality,and the proliferation of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria aggravates the situation.A low hatching rate also poses a challenge to the po...Bacterial infections of avian embryos can lead to an increase in embryo mortality,and the proliferation of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria aggravates the situation.A low hatching rate also poses a challenge to the population of artificially bred Crested Ibises(Nipponia nippon).This study aims to determine the potential association between bacterial infection and the death of Crested Ibis embryos,and whether there is convergence between antimicrobial resistance and virulence in strain.In this study,13 Escherichia coli and 12 Proteus mirabilis isolates were recovered from dead Crested Ibis embryos.The pathogenicity examination confirmed the pathogenicity of all isolates,and multiple virulence genes detected by PCR-sequencing demonstrated the presence of irp2 and iuc D(100%),fim C and iss(92.31%)in E.coli,and uca A(58.33%)in P.mirabilis.Antimicrobial susceptibility test demonstrated that isolates were mainly resistant to amoxicillin(E.coli:76.92%,P.mirabilis:91.67%),cefazolin(E.coli:76.92%,P.mirabilis:91.67%),oxytetracycline(E.coli:92.31%,P.mirabilis:75.00%)and sulfamethoxazole-trimethoprim(E.coli:53.85%,P.mirabilis:33.33%),and more than 30%of isolates showed multidrug-resistance(MDR).Further analyses detected extended-spectrumβ-lactamase(ESBL)genes,of which blaTEM-1(E.coli:100%,P.mirabilis:100%)had the highest frequency,followed by the blaCTX-M-55(E.coli:92.31%,P.mirabilis:50%),blaCTX-M-14(E.coli:76.92%,P.mirabilis:33.33%),blaCTX-M-65(E.coli:15.38%,P.mirabilis:16.67%),and all isolates were negative for blaSHV and blaOXA.Pearson's correlation analysis showed a positive correlation between the presence ofβ-lactam resistance and ESBL genes,while mainly negative correlations were observed between the presence of ESBL genes and virulence genes.Furthermore,the conjugation experiment and PFGE revealed that the isolates were primarily polyclonal,and there was horizontal transfer of resistance or virulence genes by plasmids.Based on the results,E.coli and P.mirabilis were responsible for embryonic mortality of the ibises in this study.The co-presence and co-transfer of ESBL genes and virulence genes can pose a potential threat to the health of the Crested Ibis,and measures such as prudent use of antimicrobials,and constant surveillance of resistance and pathogenicity,must be implemented at the Crested Ibis breeding base.展开更多
Background: Knowledge of dispersal movement of birds and their habitat preference during the post-fledging period is fundamental to the understanding of their ecological and evolutionary processes. The Crested Ibis is...Background: Knowledge of dispersal movement of birds and their habitat preference during the post-fledging period is fundamental to the understanding of their ecological and evolutionary processes. The Crested Ibis is now being reintroduced to protected sites within its historical range, with the goal of establishing a self-sustaining population that may eventually qualify the species for delisting.Methods: We carried out an ecological study of post-fledging dispersal and habitat use of a reintroduced population of the Crested Ibis(Nipponia nippon) from 2008 to 2012 in Ningshan County, China, by using banding and radio-telemetry methods.Results: In about two weeks(an average of 14.3 days) after fledging, the activities of the fledglings were concentrated in a range of about 100 m around their natal sites, such as the oak-pine forest patches at the edge of open habitats.During this period, fledglings were still partially dependent upon parental care and fed typically on a daily basis.Siblings increasingly became independent by mid-August and then gradually moved away from their natal sites to post-fledging dispersal locations. During the period of the post-fledging dispersal process, most juveniles moving southwest were concentrated at the mean direction(μ = 254.6°, ? = 70.5°) with a mean dispersal distance of 5.1 km.It took an average of 56.4 days to disperse from the natal territory to the first wintering area. Also, forging habitats for juvenile ibis varied with time and local conditions. For example, paddy fields were used most frequently among all habitat types, while shallow rivers just from August to October. Masson pine(Pinus massoniana) was often regarded as the roosting tree species preferred by the Crested Ibis, with the highest utilization rate among all the roosting habitat types. The juveniles of the wild population dispersed four times as far as that of the reintroduced population, but the overall pattern of post-fledging dispersal is similar for the reintroduced and wild populations.Conclusions: Our results are very useful for us to predict the distance and direction of dispersal under various landscape conditions in other released sites. The project is a good example for reintroducing endangered species to their former ranges, and will be valuable for the protection of reintroduced populations of this critically and other endangered species.展开更多
Background: Breeding dispersal is an important ecological process that affects species' population dynamics and colonization of new suitable areas. Knowledge of the causes and consequences of breeding dispersal is...Background: Breeding dispersal is an important ecological process that affects species' population dynamics and colonization of new suitable areas. Knowledge of the causes and consequences of breeding dispersal is fundamental to our understanding of avian ecology and evolution. Although breeding success for a wild and reintroduced population of the Crested Ibis(Nipponia nippon) has been reported, the relationships between individuals' breeding dispersal and their breeding success, age and sex remain unclear.Methods: Ibises' breeding dispersal distance, which is the distance moved by adults between sites of reproduction, was estimated based on the observations of consecutive breeding sites of marked ibis individuals. From observational and capture-recapture data(n as = 102) over 9 years, individuals' breeding dispersal probability in relation to age, sex, and reproductive success wanalyzed via a generalized linear mixed effect modeling approach.Results: Our results show that 55% males and 51% females keep their previous territories following nesting success. Failed breeding attempts increased dispersal probabilities. Both females and males failed in breeding were more likely to disperse with greater distances than successful birds(females: 825 ± 216 m vs 196 ± 101 m, males: 372 Crested Ibis exhibited a female-biased dispersal pattern that the mean dispersal distance± 164 m vs 210 ± 127 m). of females(435 ± 234 m) was much larger than that of males(294 ± 172 m).Conclusion: Our results are fundamental to predict the patterns of breeding dispersal related to reproductive success under different release sites. From the conservation point of view, landscape connectivity between the reintroduced populations should be taken into account in accordance with the distance of breeding dispersal.展开更多
Background:One of the most challenging tasks in wildlife conservation and management is clarifying which and how external and intrinsic factors influence wildlife demography and long-term viability.The wild population...Background:One of the most challenging tasks in wildlife conservation and management is clarifying which and how external and intrinsic factors influence wildlife demography and long-term viability.The wild population of the Crested Ibis(Nipponia nippon)has recovered to approximately 4400,and several reintroduction programs have been carried out in China,Japan and Korea.Population viability analysis on this endangered species has been limited to the wild population,showing that the long-term population growth is restricted by the carrying capacity and inbreeding.However,gaps in knowledge of the viability of the reintroduced population and its drivers in the release environment impede the identification of the most effective population-level priorities for aiding in species recovery.Methods:The field monitoring data were collected from a reintroduced Crested Ibis population in Ningshan,China from 2007 to 2018.An individual-based VORTEX model(Version 10.3.5.0)was used to predict the future viability of the reintroduced population by incorporating adaptive patterns of ibis movement in relation to catastrophe frequency,mortality and sex ratio.Results:The reintroduced population in Ningshan County is unlikely to go extinct in the next 50 years.The popula-tion size was estimated to be 367,and the population genetic diversity was estimated to be 0.97.Sensitivity analysis showed that population size and extinction probability were dependent on the carrying capacity and sex ratio.The carrying capacity is the main factor accounting for the population size and genetic diversity,while the sex ratio is the primary factor responsible for the population growth trend.Conclusions:A viable population of the Crested Ibis can be established according to population viability analysis.Based on our results,conservation management should prioritize a balanced sex ratio,high-quality habitat and low mortality.展开更多
The concept of foraging niche provides an insight into habitat use and dietary information of animals.Knowing intraspecific variation in foraging niche and trophic level is critical to the understanding of the species...The concept of foraging niche provides an insight into habitat use and dietary information of animals.Knowing intraspecific variation in foraging niche and trophic level is critical to the understanding of the species response to environmental changes during the process of range expansion,as well as the habitat management for conservation of threatened species.Using stable isotopic values of eggshell membranes(δ;C andδ;N),we examined whether there are differences in habitat use,trophic level,foraging niche width between the new and old breeding habitats(plains vs.mountains)of wild Crested Ibis(Nipponia nippon)in the early breeding season.Crested Ibis exhibited high variability in bothδ;C andδ;N values,δ;C andδ;N varied as a function of habitat types.Birds breeding in plains had significantly higherδ;C but lowerδ;N values compared to the birds breeding in mountains.Higherδ;N suggested that individuals in mountains consumed a great proportion of higher trophic level prey species in the early breeding season.Moreover,the isotopic niches were distinctly different in positions and showed small overlap between the two habitat types.The niche width was wider in old habitat than in the expanded new habitat.Our results demonstrated that the wild Crested Ibis had a high intraspecific variation in habitat uses and trophic levels in the early breeding season,and they could be divided into mountain and plain groups based on their different foraging niches.The difference inδ;N and niche width revealed that high trophic level food resources might be insufficient in plains.These findings stressed the importance of protecting foraging grounds in mountains and the necessity of improving foraging grounds in plains during winter and spring.Our study highlights the feasibility of investigating intraspecific variation in foraging ecology of birds through non-invasive isotopes of eggshell membranes.Understanding foraging niche variation gives us an insight into the food resource diversity in local areas and provides important information regarding particular foraging habitats that require protection.展开更多
The Crested Ibis (Nipponia nippon) is a critical endangered species of the world. At present, a reintroduction program will be conducted to save this species essentially. However, because the Crested Ibise is a sexual...The Crested Ibis (Nipponia nippon) is a critical endangered species of the world. At present, a reintroduction program will be conducted to save this species essentially. However, because the Crested Ibise is a sexual alike bird, it is very difficult to identify the sex from the morphological character. In order to identify the sex easily and select the right individuals for captive breeding and reintroduction, the sex related gene on W chromosome was amplified and the sex of three Crested Ibises were also identified in the present study. The 262bp fragment was also sequenced, and we found that there were 13 different nucleotide sites with 2.25 of transition/transversion based on the comparison with that of the Oriental White Stork. The sequence will also provide a theoretic base for further designing specific primer for sex related gene in the Crested Ibis.展开更多
Emitting alarm calls may be costly,but few studies have asked whether calling increases a caller’s risk of predation and survival.Since observing animals calling and being killed is relatively rare,we capitalized on ...Emitting alarm calls may be costly,but few studies have asked whether calling increases a caller’s risk of predation and survival.Since observing animals calling and being killed is relatively rare,we capitalized on over 24,000 h of observations of marmot colonies and asked whether variation in the rate that yellow-bellied marmots(Marmota faviventer)alarm called was associated with the probability of summer mortality,a proxy for predation.Using a generalized mixed model that controlled for factors that infuenced the likelihood of survival,we found that marmots who called at higher rates were substantially more likely to die over the summer.Because virtually all summer mortality is due to predation,these results suggest that calling is indeed costly for marmots.Additionally,the results from a Cox survival analysis showed that marmots that called more lived signifcantly shorter lives.Prior studies have shown that marmots reduce the risk by emitting calls only when close to their burrows,but this newly quantifed survival cost suggests a constraint on eliminating risks.Quantifying the cost of alarm calling using a similar approach in other systems will help us better understand its true costs,which is an essential value for theoretical models of calling and social behavior.展开更多
Climate change and its resulting effects on seasonality are known to alter a variety of animal behaviors including those related to foraging,phenology,and migration.Although many studies focus on the impacts of phenol...Climate change and its resulting effects on seasonality are known to alter a variety of animal behaviors including those related to foraging,phenology,and migration.Although many studies focus on the impacts of phenological changes on physiology or ftness enhancing behaviors,fewer have investigated the relationship between variation in weather and phenology on risk assessment.Fleeing from predators is an economic decision that incurs costs and benefts.As environmental conditions change,animals may face additional stressors that affect their decision to fee and infuence their ability to effectively assess risk.Flight initiation distance(FID)—the distance at which animals move away from threats—is often used to study risk assessment.FID varies due to both internal and external biotic and physical factors as well as anthropogenic activities.We asked whether variation in weather and phenology is associated with risk-taking in a population of yellow-bellied marmots(Marmota faviventer).As the air temperature increased marmots tolerated closer approaches,suggesting that they either perceived less risk or that their response to a threat was thermally compromised.The effect of temperature was relatively small and was largely dependent upon having a larger range in the full data set that permitted us to detect it.We found no effects of either the date that snow disappeared or July precipitation on marmot FID.As global temperatures continue to rise,rainfall varies more and drought becomes more common,understanding climate-related changes in how animals assess risk should be used to inform population viability models.展开更多
The nonlinearity and fear hypothesis predicts that highly aroused vocal mammals and birds produce vocalizations(notably alarm calls and screams)which contain a variety of nonlinear phenomena(NLP).Such vocalizations of...The nonlinearity and fear hypothesis predicts that highly aroused vocal mammals and birds produce vocalizations(notably alarm calls and screams)which contain a variety of nonlinear phenomena(NLP).Such vocalizations often sound“noisy”because vocal production systems are over-blown when animals are highly aroused.While much is known about the conditions under which animals produce vocalizations containing NLP and how species respond to them,there is little research about the heritability of such behavioral traits.Using the quantitative genetic animal model,we estimated the genetic basis of“noise”in alarm calls produced by females and found significant heritability in call entropy-our measure of the noisiness.About 9%of the variance in noisiness can be accounted for by genetic differences.Taken together,these findings suggest that the degree to which marmots produce noisy calls is modestly heritable and can be thus subject to further evolution via natural selection.展开更多
For emerging renewable and sustainable energy technologies,single crystal materials have become key materials to enhance electrocatalytic performance because of their atomic-level ordered structures and tailorable sur...For emerging renewable and sustainable energy technologies,single crystal materials have become key materials to enhance electrocatalytic performance because of their atomic-level ordered structures and tailorable surface and interfacial properties.Various single crystal types,including metals,semiconductors,ceramics,organics,and nanocrystals,exhibit superior catalytic selectivity and stability in reactions such as water splitting and carbon/nitrogen cycles,benefiting from high electrical conductivity,tunable energy bands,and active sites with high surface energy.Through surface modification,interfacial atomic doping,and heterostructure construction,the distribution of active sites,electronic structure,and mass transport can be precisely regulated,significantly optimizing the catalytic kinetics of single crystal materials.In situ characterizations elucidate catalytic mechanisms at the atomic scale,while emerging methods like AI-assisted synthesis and bio-template directed growth offer pathways to overcome bottlenecks in the precision and cost of single crystal preparation.In addressing stability challenges in complex environments,strategies such as organic-inorganic hybridization and gradient interface design effectively mitigate interfacial instability.Future research should focus on cross-scale structural regulation and multidisciplinary integration to facilitate the transition of single crystal electrocatalysts from fundamental research to industrial applications,enabling efficient energy conversion.展开更多
Solar-driven carbon dioxide reduction reaction(CO_(2)RR)provides an oppor tunity to produce value-added chemical feedstocks and fuels.However,achieving efficient and stable photoelectrochemical(PEC)CO_(2)RR into selec...Solar-driven carbon dioxide reduction reaction(CO_(2)RR)provides an oppor tunity to produce value-added chemical feedstocks and fuels.However,achieving efficient and stable photoelectrochemical(PEC)CO_(2)RR into selec tive products is challenging owing to the difficulties associated with the optical and the electrical configuration of PEC devices and electrocatalyst properties.Herein,we construct an efficient,concentrated sunlight-driven CO_(2)RR setup consisting of InGaP/GaAs/Ge triple-junction cell as a photoanode and oxide-derived Au(Ox-Au)as a cathode to perform the unassisted PEC CO_(2)RR.Under one-sun illumination,a maximum operating current density of 11.5 mA cm^(-2) with an impressive Faradaic efficiency(FE)of~98%is achieved for carbon monoxide(CO)production,leading to a solar-to-fuel conversion efficiency of~15%.Under concentrated intensity of 10 sun,the photoanode records a maximum current density of~124 mAcm^(-2) and maintains~60%of FE for CO production.The results demonstrate crucial advancements in usingⅢ-Ⅴbased photoanodes for concentrated PEC CO_(2)RR.展开更多
基金funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.32270554,32400400).
文摘The post-fledging period, extending from fledging to independence, is a crucial life stage characterized by high mortality due to fledglings' limited mobility and inexperience. During this stage, fledglings gradually increase their mobility, leave their parents, disperse from their natal site, and respond to the challenges of new environments. Characterizing these post-fledging movements and space use is essential for understanding juvenile survival strategies and devising targeted conservation measures. The Crested Ibis (Nipponia nippon), an endangered species and a highly protected animals at the national level in China, has seen limited research on its post-fledging movements and space use. From 2015 to 2023, we utilized biologgers, combined with field surveys, to study the movement and space use characteristics of 37 fledglings in Hanzhong City, Shaanxi Province, China, over a two-month post-fledging period. We quantified changes in activity levels (based on overall dynamic body acceleration), independence timing, onset of post-fledging dispersal, habitat selection, and daily activity rhythms after independence. Our results revealed individuals began independent living 26.23 ± 2.34 days post-fledging and onset of dispersal at 25.58 ± 2.33 days, with a range area at the natal of 2.08 ± 0.56 km^(2). The initial 30 days post-fledging are characterized as an ontogenetic phase marked by a rapid increase in body activity level. Fledglings preferred paddy fields during the independent period rather than the forests they relied on before independence. Interestingly, the daily activity rhythm, particularly foraging behavior, peaked at noon—contrasting with the expected morning and evening activity peaks—likely as an adaptation to avoid periods of peak human activity. Additionally, drowning, collisions, and predation in paddy fields are noteworthy causes of fledgling mortality. Consequently, we recommend protecting a 2-km^(2) area around the nest site for at least two-month post-fledging, implementing safety measures around power lines and cesspools. Additionally, reducing human disturbances near foraging habitats and expanding space within paddy fields would help mitigate survival pressures on fledglings.
基金provided by the Fundamental Research Funds of Chinese Academy of Forestry(CAFYBB2020SY023)。
文摘Moult is an essential event in the annual cycle of birds.Moult patterns and strategies of birds are crucial for understanding their life-history trade-offs and adaptations to the environment.However,moult knowledge is still lacking for many Eastern Palaearctic birds,especially large endangered species,mainly because of the difficulty in data collection.Here,we used field photography,a non-invasive method,to detect and score moult in the endangered Crested Ibis(Nipponia nippon)and explored the moult timing variations and moult-breeding tradeoffs.The adult Crested Ibis sequentially moults its primaries outward,and secondaries inward from three foci from April to October.Age(adult versus sub-adult)and breeding status(breeding or not)have a significant effect on moult timing.Moult timing does not differ between the sexes,likely because of similar parental investments in breeding.Crested Ibis exhibits significant moult-breeding overlap,because moult is time constrained and needs to finish before the season of food scarcity in winter.Breeding timing(first egg laying date)has a strong impact on moult duration,with late breeders experiencing a longer moult duration,indicating that the moult intensity is slowed down during the breeding period because of trade-offs between moult and breeding.This reflects that energy allocation of late breeders is challenging during extensive periods of moult-breeding overlap,which might partly contribute to their high breeding failure.Our results strongly suggest the existence of a negative relationship between breeding time on one hand,and fitness and moult on the other:early breeders show higher reproductive output and higher quality plumage,whereas late breeders show lower reproductive output and lower quality plumage.
基金supported by Research on Breeding and Healthy Breeding Technology of Xueyu White Chicken(mating line)in Tibet Science and Technology Program(XZ202101ZY0002N)the National Key R&D Program Project(2022YFD1600902-4)Sichuan Province Regional Innovation Cooperation Project(2023YFQ0050)。
文摘Bacterial infections of avian embryos can lead to an increase in embryo mortality,and the proliferation of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria aggravates the situation.A low hatching rate also poses a challenge to the population of artificially bred Crested Ibises(Nipponia nippon).This study aims to determine the potential association between bacterial infection and the death of Crested Ibis embryos,and whether there is convergence between antimicrobial resistance and virulence in strain.In this study,13 Escherichia coli and 12 Proteus mirabilis isolates were recovered from dead Crested Ibis embryos.The pathogenicity examination confirmed the pathogenicity of all isolates,and multiple virulence genes detected by PCR-sequencing demonstrated the presence of irp2 and iuc D(100%),fim C and iss(92.31%)in E.coli,and uca A(58.33%)in P.mirabilis.Antimicrobial susceptibility test demonstrated that isolates were mainly resistant to amoxicillin(E.coli:76.92%,P.mirabilis:91.67%),cefazolin(E.coli:76.92%,P.mirabilis:91.67%),oxytetracycline(E.coli:92.31%,P.mirabilis:75.00%)and sulfamethoxazole-trimethoprim(E.coli:53.85%,P.mirabilis:33.33%),and more than 30%of isolates showed multidrug-resistance(MDR).Further analyses detected extended-spectrumβ-lactamase(ESBL)genes,of which blaTEM-1(E.coli:100%,P.mirabilis:100%)had the highest frequency,followed by the blaCTX-M-55(E.coli:92.31%,P.mirabilis:50%),blaCTX-M-14(E.coli:76.92%,P.mirabilis:33.33%),blaCTX-M-65(E.coli:15.38%,P.mirabilis:16.67%),and all isolates were negative for blaSHV and blaOXA.Pearson's correlation analysis showed a positive correlation between the presence ofβ-lactam resistance and ESBL genes,while mainly negative correlations were observed between the presence of ESBL genes and virulence genes.Furthermore,the conjugation experiment and PFGE revealed that the isolates were primarily polyclonal,and there was horizontal transfer of resistance or virulence genes by plasmids.Based on the results,E.coli and P.mirabilis were responsible for embryonic mortality of the ibises in this study.The co-presence and co-transfer of ESBL genes and virulence genes can pose a potential threat to the health of the Crested Ibis,and measures such as prudent use of antimicrobials,and constant surveillance of resistance and pathogenicity,must be implemented at the Crested Ibis breeding base.
基金the support and help from the Life Science College of Shaanxi Normal UniversityFinancial support was provided by National Nature Science Foundation of China (31172103)
文摘Background: Knowledge of dispersal movement of birds and their habitat preference during the post-fledging period is fundamental to the understanding of their ecological and evolutionary processes. The Crested Ibis is now being reintroduced to protected sites within its historical range, with the goal of establishing a self-sustaining population that may eventually qualify the species for delisting.Methods: We carried out an ecological study of post-fledging dispersal and habitat use of a reintroduced population of the Crested Ibis(Nipponia nippon) from 2008 to 2012 in Ningshan County, China, by using banding and radio-telemetry methods.Results: In about two weeks(an average of 14.3 days) after fledging, the activities of the fledglings were concentrated in a range of about 100 m around their natal sites, such as the oak-pine forest patches at the edge of open habitats.During this period, fledglings were still partially dependent upon parental care and fed typically on a daily basis.Siblings increasingly became independent by mid-August and then gradually moved away from their natal sites to post-fledging dispersal locations. During the period of the post-fledging dispersal process, most juveniles moving southwest were concentrated at the mean direction(μ = 254.6°, ? = 70.5°) with a mean dispersal distance of 5.1 km.It took an average of 56.4 days to disperse from the natal territory to the first wintering area. Also, forging habitats for juvenile ibis varied with time and local conditions. For example, paddy fields were used most frequently among all habitat types, while shallow rivers just from August to October. Masson pine(Pinus massoniana) was often regarded as the roosting tree species preferred by the Crested Ibis, with the highest utilization rate among all the roosting habitat types. The juveniles of the wild population dispersed four times as far as that of the reintroduced population, but the overall pattern of post-fledging dispersal is similar for the reintroduced and wild populations.Conclusions: Our results are very useful for us to predict the distance and direction of dispersal under various landscape conditions in other released sites. The project is a good example for reintroducing endangered species to their former ranges, and will be valuable for the protection of reintroduced populations of this critically and other endangered species.
基金completely supported by the National Nature Science Foundation of China(Nos.31572282 and 31172103)
文摘Background: Breeding dispersal is an important ecological process that affects species' population dynamics and colonization of new suitable areas. Knowledge of the causes and consequences of breeding dispersal is fundamental to our understanding of avian ecology and evolution. Although breeding success for a wild and reintroduced population of the Crested Ibis(Nipponia nippon) has been reported, the relationships between individuals' breeding dispersal and their breeding success, age and sex remain unclear.Methods: Ibises' breeding dispersal distance, which is the distance moved by adults between sites of reproduction, was estimated based on the observations of consecutive breeding sites of marked ibis individuals. From observational and capture-recapture data(n as = 102) over 9 years, individuals' breeding dispersal probability in relation to age, sex, and reproductive success wanalyzed via a generalized linear mixed effect modeling approach.Results: Our results show that 55% males and 51% females keep their previous territories following nesting success. Failed breeding attempts increased dispersal probabilities. Both females and males failed in breeding were more likely to disperse with greater distances than successful birds(females: 825 ± 216 m vs 196 ± 101 m, males: 372 Crested Ibis exhibited a female-biased dispersal pattern that the mean dispersal distance± 164 m vs 210 ± 127 m). of females(435 ± 234 m) was much larger than that of males(294 ± 172 m).Conclusion: Our results are fundamental to predict the patterns of breeding dispersal related to reproductive success under different release sites. From the conservation point of view, landscape connectivity between the reintroduced populations should be taken into account in accordance with the distance of breeding dispersal.
基金The study was supported by Shaanxi Forestry Bureau and National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant Nos.31872245 and 31572282).
文摘Background:One of the most challenging tasks in wildlife conservation and management is clarifying which and how external and intrinsic factors influence wildlife demography and long-term viability.The wild population of the Crested Ibis(Nipponia nippon)has recovered to approximately 4400,and several reintroduction programs have been carried out in China,Japan and Korea.Population viability analysis on this endangered species has been limited to the wild population,showing that the long-term population growth is restricted by the carrying capacity and inbreeding.However,gaps in knowledge of the viability of the reintroduced population and its drivers in the release environment impede the identification of the most effective population-level priorities for aiding in species recovery.Methods:The field monitoring data were collected from a reintroduced Crested Ibis population in Ningshan,China from 2007 to 2018.An individual-based VORTEX model(Version 10.3.5.0)was used to predict the future viability of the reintroduced population by incorporating adaptive patterns of ibis movement in relation to catastrophe frequency,mortality and sex ratio.Results:The reintroduced population in Ningshan County is unlikely to go extinct in the next 50 years.The popula-tion size was estimated to be 367,and the population genetic diversity was estimated to be 0.97.Sensitivity analysis showed that population size and extinction probability were dependent on the carrying capacity and sex ratio.The carrying capacity is the main factor accounting for the population size and genetic diversity,while the sex ratio is the primary factor responsible for the population growth trend.Conclusions:A viable population of the Crested Ibis can be established according to population viability analysis.Based on our results,conservation management should prioritize a balanced sex ratio,high-quality habitat and low mortality.
基金funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.31772483,31900371)the Biodiversity Survey,Monitoring and Assessment Project of Ministry of Ecology and Environment,China(No.2019HB2096001006)。
文摘The concept of foraging niche provides an insight into habitat use and dietary information of animals.Knowing intraspecific variation in foraging niche and trophic level is critical to the understanding of the species response to environmental changes during the process of range expansion,as well as the habitat management for conservation of threatened species.Using stable isotopic values of eggshell membranes(δ;C andδ;N),we examined whether there are differences in habitat use,trophic level,foraging niche width between the new and old breeding habitats(plains vs.mountains)of wild Crested Ibis(Nipponia nippon)in the early breeding season.Crested Ibis exhibited high variability in bothδ;C andδ;N values,δ;C andδ;N varied as a function of habitat types.Birds breeding in plains had significantly higherδ;C but lowerδ;N values compared to the birds breeding in mountains.Higherδ;N suggested that individuals in mountains consumed a great proportion of higher trophic level prey species in the early breeding season.Moreover,the isotopic niches were distinctly different in positions and showed small overlap between the two habitat types.The niche width was wider in old habitat than in the expanded new habitat.Our results demonstrated that the wild Crested Ibis had a high intraspecific variation in habitat uses and trophic levels in the early breeding season,and they could be divided into mountain and plain groups based on their different foraging niches.The difference inδ;N and niche width revealed that high trophic level food resources might be insufficient in plains.These findings stressed the importance of protecting foraging grounds in mountains and the necessity of improving foraging grounds in plains during winter and spring.Our study highlights the feasibility of investigating intraspecific variation in foraging ecology of birds through non-invasive isotopes of eggshell membranes.Understanding foraging niche variation gives us an insight into the food resource diversity in local areas and provides important information regarding particular foraging habitats that require protection.
基金the National Natural ScienceFoundation of China (Grant No. 39870098), the Science and Technology Innovation Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) (Grant No. KSCX2-1-03) and the Young Scientist Group of the CAS.
文摘The Crested Ibis (Nipponia nippon) is a critical endangered species of the world. At present, a reintroduction program will be conducted to save this species essentially. However, because the Crested Ibise is a sexual alike bird, it is very difficult to identify the sex from the morphological character. In order to identify the sex easily and select the right individuals for captive breeding and reintroduction, the sex related gene on W chromosome was amplified and the sex of three Crested Ibises were also identified in the present study. The 262bp fragment was also sequenced, and we found that there were 13 different nucleotide sites with 2.25 of transition/transversion based on the comparison with that of the Oriental White Stork. The sequence will also provide a theoretic base for further designing specific primer for sex related gene in the Crested Ibis.
基金National Geographic Society,UCLA(Faculty Senate and the Division of Life Sciences),a Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory research fellowship,NSF IDBR-0754247,and DEB-1119660 and 1557130 all to D.T.B.DBI-0242960,0731346,1226713,and 1755522 to the RMBL.K.A.was a NSF GRFP fellow during the fnal preparation of this MS。
文摘Emitting alarm calls may be costly,but few studies have asked whether calling increases a caller’s risk of predation and survival.Since observing animals calling and being killed is relatively rare,we capitalized on over 24,000 h of observations of marmot colonies and asked whether variation in the rate that yellow-bellied marmots(Marmota faviventer)alarm called was associated with the probability of summer mortality,a proxy for predation.Using a generalized mixed model that controlled for factors that infuenced the likelihood of survival,we found that marmots who called at higher rates were substantially more likely to die over the summer.Because virtually all summer mortality is due to predation,these results suggest that calling is indeed costly for marmots.Additionally,the results from a Cox survival analysis showed that marmots that called more lived signifcantly shorter lives.Prior studies have shown that marmots reduce the risk by emitting calls only when close to their burrows,but this newly quantifed survival cost suggests a constraint on eliminating risks.Quantifying the cost of alarm calling using a similar approach in other systems will help us better understand its true costs,which is an essential value for theoretical models of calling and social behavior.
基金supported by the University of Ottawa and a NSERC Discovery grant(DGECR-2019-00289,RGPIN-2019-05000)the National Geographic Society,the University of California Los Angeles(Faculty Senate and Division of Life Sciences),an RMBL research fellowship,and the U.S.National Science Foundation(NSF IDBR-0754247 and DEB-1119660 and 1557130 to D.T.B.,as well as DBI 0242960,07211346,1226713,and 1755522 to RMBL).
文摘Climate change and its resulting effects on seasonality are known to alter a variety of animal behaviors including those related to foraging,phenology,and migration.Although many studies focus on the impacts of phenological changes on physiology or ftness enhancing behaviors,fewer have investigated the relationship between variation in weather and phenology on risk assessment.Fleeing from predators is an economic decision that incurs costs and benefts.As environmental conditions change,animals may face additional stressors that affect their decision to fee and infuence their ability to effectively assess risk.Flight initiation distance(FID)—the distance at which animals move away from threats—is often used to study risk assessment.FID varies due to both internal and external biotic and physical factors as well as anthropogenic activities.We asked whether variation in weather and phenology is associated with risk-taking in a population of yellow-bellied marmots(Marmota faviventer).As the air temperature increased marmots tolerated closer approaches,suggesting that they either perceived less risk or that their response to a threat was thermally compromised.The effect of temperature was relatively small and was largely dependent upon having a larger range in the full data set that permitted us to detect it.We found no effects of either the date that snow disappeared or July precipitation on marmot FID.As global temperatures continue to rise,rainfall varies more and drought becomes more common,understanding climate-related changes in how animals assess risk should be used to inform population viability models.
基金supported by the National Geographic Society,the University of California Los Angeles(Faculty Senate and Division of Life Sciences)an RMBL research fellowship and the U.S.National Science Foundation(NSF IDBR-0754247 and DEB-1119660 and 1557130 to D.T.B.,as well as DBI 0242960,07211346 and 1226713 to RMBL).
文摘The nonlinearity and fear hypothesis predicts that highly aroused vocal mammals and birds produce vocalizations(notably alarm calls and screams)which contain a variety of nonlinear phenomena(NLP).Such vocalizations often sound“noisy”because vocal production systems are over-blown when animals are highly aroused.While much is known about the conditions under which animals produce vocalizations containing NLP and how species respond to them,there is little research about the heritability of such behavioral traits.Using the quantitative genetic animal model,we estimated the genetic basis of“noise”in alarm calls produced by females and found significant heritability in call entropy-our measure of the noisiness.About 9%of the variance in noisiness can be accounted for by genetic differences.Taken together,these findings suggest that the degree to which marmots produce noisy calls is modestly heritable and can be thus subject to further evolution via natural selection.
基金supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.52202366)Taishan Scholar Project of Shandong Province(tstp20240515,tsqn202312217)+1 种基金Natural Science Foundation of Shandong Province(China,No.2025HWYQ-050,ZR2021QE011,ZR2022QH072,ZR2021QE284)the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology,the Center of Excellence for Renewable Energy and Storage Technologies.
文摘For emerging renewable and sustainable energy technologies,single crystal materials have become key materials to enhance electrocatalytic performance because of their atomic-level ordered structures and tailorable surface and interfacial properties.Various single crystal types,including metals,semiconductors,ceramics,organics,and nanocrystals,exhibit superior catalytic selectivity and stability in reactions such as water splitting and carbon/nitrogen cycles,benefiting from high electrical conductivity,tunable energy bands,and active sites with high surface energy.Through surface modification,interfacial atomic doping,and heterostructure construction,the distribution of active sites,electronic structure,and mass transport can be precisely regulated,significantly optimizing the catalytic kinetics of single crystal materials.In situ characterizations elucidate catalytic mechanisms at the atomic scale,while emerging methods like AI-assisted synthesis and bio-template directed growth offer pathways to overcome bottlenecks in the precision and cost of single crystal preparation.In addressing stability challenges in complex environments,strategies such as organic-inorganic hybridization and gradient interface design effectively mitigate interfacial instability.Future research should focus on cross-scale structural regulation and multidisciplinary integration to facilitate the transition of single crystal electrocatalysts from fundamental research to industrial applications,enabling efficient energy conversion.
基金supported by the City University of Hong Kong(9380107 and 7005943)King Abdullah University of Science and Technology,and Agency for Science,Technology and Research(C230415018 and C231218003).
文摘Solar-driven carbon dioxide reduction reaction(CO_(2)RR)provides an oppor tunity to produce value-added chemical feedstocks and fuels.However,achieving efficient and stable photoelectrochemical(PEC)CO_(2)RR into selec tive products is challenging owing to the difficulties associated with the optical and the electrical configuration of PEC devices and electrocatalyst properties.Herein,we construct an efficient,concentrated sunlight-driven CO_(2)RR setup consisting of InGaP/GaAs/Ge triple-junction cell as a photoanode and oxide-derived Au(Ox-Au)as a cathode to perform the unassisted PEC CO_(2)RR.Under one-sun illumination,a maximum operating current density of 11.5 mA cm^(-2) with an impressive Faradaic efficiency(FE)of~98%is achieved for carbon monoxide(CO)production,leading to a solar-to-fuel conversion efficiency of~15%.Under concentrated intensity of 10 sun,the photoanode records a maximum current density of~124 mAcm^(-2) and maintains~60%of FE for CO production.The results demonstrate crucial advancements in usingⅢ-Ⅴbased photoanodes for concentrated PEC CO_(2)RR.
