Background: Water clarity may negatively influence rate of plunge diving and prey capture success of piscivorous plunge-diving birds, and therefore has implications for their conservation in polluted urban wetlands. W...Background: Water clarity may negatively influence rate of plunge diving and prey capture success of piscivorous plunge-diving birds, and therefore has implications for their conservation in polluted urban wetlands. We studied the relationship between water clarity and the abundance and prey capture success of Pied Kingfishers(Ceryle rudis) and Common Terns(Sterna hirundo) in two polluted coastal waters of south-east Ghana—the Weija Lake and Densu Delta Ramsar Site.Methods: On each wetland, data on abundance and prey capture success of plunge-divers were collected in four spatio-temporal quadrats of 100 m × 100 m and analysed with concurrent measurements of water quality parameters using GLM regression with Pearson's correlation coefficients.Results: Mean prey capture success of Pied Kingfishers(34.7 e two species responded differently to water clarity. The± 13.1%) and Common Terns(35.3 abundance of Common Terns was± 11.0%) were similar but th significantly higher in less transparent/more turbid water while that of Pied Kingfishers showed no significant relationship with turbidity and transparency. In contrast, the prey capture success of Common Terns was neither related to transparency nor turbidity, as opposed to that of Pied Kingfishers which was significantly higher in more turbid/less transparent waters. Correlations between capture success and bird abundance, as well as capture attempts were insignificant, suggesting that increased fish abundance associated with cloudy water may not necessarily promote higher abundance and capture success of foraging birds. Thus, when foraging in less transparent water, capture success may depend more on predator avoidance by fish prey than lower prey detectability of foraging birds.Conclusion: Within a gradient of 15–51 cm transparency studied, lower water clarity did not constrain prey capture success of Common Terns and Pied Kingfishers. Further studies on the foraging ecology of plunge-divers in coastal Ghana are however required to make firm conclusions on the relationship between water clarity and foraging birds and fish prey abundances, as well as capture success.展开更多
We experimentally studied droplet impact dynamics onto wing feathers of kingfishers. Distilled water droplets with a fixed diameter of 2.06 mm were used as drop liquid and the initial impact velocities of droplets var...We experimentally studied droplet impact dynamics onto wing feathers of kingfishers. Distilled water droplets with a fixed diameter of 2.06 mm were used as drop liquid and the initial impact velocities of droplets varied from 0.28 m· s^-1 to 1.60 m·s^-1. Two high-speed cameras were utilized to capture the impact process of water droplets onto the wing feather surface from both horizontal and vertical directions. Two states of the feathers （elastic and inelastic） were considered to study the influence of elasticity. At the entire impact ve- locity range we studied, regular rebound, bubble trapping and jetting, partial pinning and partial rebound of droplets on inelastic wing feather surface were observed as the initial impact velocity increased. However, only one dynamic behavior （regular rebound） was found on the elastic wing feather surface. The elasticity plays a more important role in the direction difference of droplet spreading than wing feather microstructure. The contact time of water droplets on the elastic wing feather surface was less than that on the inelastic surface within the range of Web numbers from 1.06 to 36 under test conditions.展开更多
The dietary selenium (Se) requirement of yellowtail kingfish (Seriola lalandi) in normal and infected conditions was investigated. The fish were fed one of five experimental diets;a control un-supplemented diet (3.35 ...The dietary selenium (Se) requirement of yellowtail kingfish (Seriola lalandi) in normal and infected conditions was investigated. The fish were fed one of five experimental diets;a control un-supplemented diet (3.35 mg/kg Se) or diets supplemented with Se to provide 4.86, 5.38, 5.85 or 6.38 mg/kg Se. After feeding for 6 weeks, the fish were challenged by Vibrio anguillarum immersion and then observed for 4 weeks. Supplementation of Se had no effect on feed intake, feed conversion ratio and survival over 6 weeks of feeding;however, it significantly increased growth and Se content in muscle tissues. The optimal Se level for maximal growth of yellowtail kingfish estimated by second order regression was 5.56 mg/kg. Following the bacterial challenge, the immune-stimulating effects of Se were demonstrated in lysozyme and bactericidal activities, and there was a corresponding increase in survival and antibody response by supplementation of Se at ≥2 mg/kg (measured Se of ≥5.38 mg/kg). Under normal and infectious conditions, antioxidant capacity of fish measured as glutathione peroxidase activity increased by supplementation of Se. During post-challenge period, haematocrits were higher in the fish fed Se supplemented diets than the fish fed the control diet, while more macrophage aggregates were seen in the control group than in the others. Furthermore, there was evidence of myopathy in fish fed the diet without Se supplementation. Therefore, the results indicated that the optimal dietary Se requirement of yellowtail kingfish is 5.56 mg/kg.展开更多
This paper exemplifies a primary step towards eliciting primary and secondary stakeholders’ views on management issues pertaining to kingfish fishery in Oman, and potential options for effective management of the fis...This paper exemplifies a primary step towards eliciting primary and secondary stakeholders’ views on management issues pertaining to kingfish fishery in Oman, and potential options for effective management of the fishery using questionnaire surveys and focus group interviews. There was consensus from stakeholder groups which included fishers, fishery managers, and fishery scientists that the current stock condition is not biologically sustainable. It is found that fishing effort control and technical measures are preferred to catch control by both groups. The role of mass media and the traditional institution in communicating fisheries issues are found to be relatively minor. Although the overall rating on the comprehensiveness of the proposed plan is promising, there are significant differences between the two groups with regard to legislative arrangements (χ<sup>2</sup> = 24.793, p-value = 0.000), management goals (χ<sup>2</sup> = 16.206, p-value = 0.001), operational objectives (χ<sup>2</sup> = 19.884, p-value = 0.000), performance indicators (χ<sup>2</sup> = 15.524, p-value = 0.001), and measures (χ<sup>2</sup> = 13.483, p-value = 0.004). Policy implications of the key findings are discussed in both national and regional contexts. Management authorities can use these findings to design an appropriate plan of actions for achieving sustainability in this fishery.展开更多
文摘Background: Water clarity may negatively influence rate of plunge diving and prey capture success of piscivorous plunge-diving birds, and therefore has implications for their conservation in polluted urban wetlands. We studied the relationship between water clarity and the abundance and prey capture success of Pied Kingfishers(Ceryle rudis) and Common Terns(Sterna hirundo) in two polluted coastal waters of south-east Ghana—the Weija Lake and Densu Delta Ramsar Site.Methods: On each wetland, data on abundance and prey capture success of plunge-divers were collected in four spatio-temporal quadrats of 100 m × 100 m and analysed with concurrent measurements of water quality parameters using GLM regression with Pearson's correlation coefficients.Results: Mean prey capture success of Pied Kingfishers(34.7 e two species responded differently to water clarity. The± 13.1%) and Common Terns(35.3 abundance of Common Terns was± 11.0%) were similar but th significantly higher in less transparent/more turbid water while that of Pied Kingfishers showed no significant relationship with turbidity and transparency. In contrast, the prey capture success of Common Terns was neither related to transparency nor turbidity, as opposed to that of Pied Kingfishers which was significantly higher in more turbid/less transparent waters. Correlations between capture success and bird abundance, as well as capture attempts were insignificant, suggesting that increased fish abundance associated with cloudy water may not necessarily promote higher abundance and capture success of foraging birds. Thus, when foraging in less transparent water, capture success may depend more on predator avoidance by fish prey than lower prey detectability of foraging birds.Conclusion: Within a gradient of 15–51 cm transparency studied, lower water clarity did not constrain prey capture success of Common Terns and Pied Kingfishers. Further studies on the foraging ecology of plunge-divers in coastal Ghana are however required to make firm conclusions on the relationship between water clarity and foraging birds and fish prey abundances, as well as capture success.
基金This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China （Grant Nos. 51575227 and 51706084）, the National Key Research and Develop- ment Program of China （Grant No. 2016YFE0132900）, the Science and Technology Project of Jilin Provincial Education Department （Grant No. JJKH20170795K2）, and the Science and Technology Development Program of Jilin Province （Grant No. 172411GG010040701）.
文摘We experimentally studied droplet impact dynamics onto wing feathers of kingfishers. Distilled water droplets with a fixed diameter of 2.06 mm were used as drop liquid and the initial impact velocities of droplets varied from 0.28 m· s^-1 to 1.60 m·s^-1. Two high-speed cameras were utilized to capture the impact process of water droplets onto the wing feather surface from both horizontal and vertical directions. Two states of the feathers （elastic and inelastic） were considered to study the influence of elasticity. At the entire impact ve- locity range we studied, regular rebound, bubble trapping and jetting, partial pinning and partial rebound of droplets on inelastic wing feather surface were observed as the initial impact velocity increased. However, only one dynamic behavior （regular rebound） was found on the elastic wing feather surface. The elasticity plays a more important role in the direction difference of droplet spreading than wing feather microstructure. The contact time of water droplets on the elastic wing feather surface was less than that on the inelastic surface within the range of Web numbers from 1.06 to 36 under test conditions.
文摘The dietary selenium (Se) requirement of yellowtail kingfish (Seriola lalandi) in normal and infected conditions was investigated. The fish were fed one of five experimental diets;a control un-supplemented diet (3.35 mg/kg Se) or diets supplemented with Se to provide 4.86, 5.38, 5.85 or 6.38 mg/kg Se. After feeding for 6 weeks, the fish were challenged by Vibrio anguillarum immersion and then observed for 4 weeks. Supplementation of Se had no effect on feed intake, feed conversion ratio and survival over 6 weeks of feeding;however, it significantly increased growth and Se content in muscle tissues. The optimal Se level for maximal growth of yellowtail kingfish estimated by second order regression was 5.56 mg/kg. Following the bacterial challenge, the immune-stimulating effects of Se were demonstrated in lysozyme and bactericidal activities, and there was a corresponding increase in survival and antibody response by supplementation of Se at ≥2 mg/kg (measured Se of ≥5.38 mg/kg). Under normal and infectious conditions, antioxidant capacity of fish measured as glutathione peroxidase activity increased by supplementation of Se. During post-challenge period, haematocrits were higher in the fish fed Se supplemented diets than the fish fed the control diet, while more macrophage aggregates were seen in the control group than in the others. Furthermore, there was evidence of myopathy in fish fed the diet without Se supplementation. Therefore, the results indicated that the optimal dietary Se requirement of yellowtail kingfish is 5.56 mg/kg.
文摘This paper exemplifies a primary step towards eliciting primary and secondary stakeholders’ views on management issues pertaining to kingfish fishery in Oman, and potential options for effective management of the fishery using questionnaire surveys and focus group interviews. There was consensus from stakeholder groups which included fishers, fishery managers, and fishery scientists that the current stock condition is not biologically sustainable. It is found that fishing effort control and technical measures are preferred to catch control by both groups. The role of mass media and the traditional institution in communicating fisheries issues are found to be relatively minor. Although the overall rating on the comprehensiveness of the proposed plan is promising, there are significant differences between the two groups with regard to legislative arrangements (χ<sup>2</sup> = 24.793, p-value = 0.000), management goals (χ<sup>2</sup> = 16.206, p-value = 0.001), operational objectives (χ<sup>2</sup> = 19.884, p-value = 0.000), performance indicators (χ<sup>2</sup> = 15.524, p-value = 0.001), and measures (χ<sup>2</sup> = 13.483, p-value = 0.004). Policy implications of the key findings are discussed in both national and regional contexts. Management authorities can use these findings to design an appropriate plan of actions for achieving sustainability in this fishery.
