Can we predict the distribution of heathland butterflies with heathland bird data?

2009 ◽  
Vol 59 (3) ◽  
pp. 335-349
Author(s):  
Luc De Bruyn ◽  
Henk Sierdsema ◽  
Hans Van Dyck ◽  
Chris van Swaay ◽  
Glenn Vermeersch ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Conservation Strategies ◽  
Distribution Data ◽  
Focal Region ◽  
Operating Characteristics ◽  
Distribution Maps ◽  
Model Sets ◽  
Combined Models ◽  
Taxonomic Groups ◽  
Better Than

AbstractNational or regional conservation strategies are usually based on available species distribution maps. However, very few taxonomic groups achieve a full coverage of the focal region. Distribution data of well-mapped taxonomic groups could help predict the distribution of less well-mapped groups and thus fill gaps in distribution maps. Here, we predict the distribution of five heathland butterflies in Flanders (north Belgium) using typical heathland bird distribution data as predictor variables. We compare predictions with those using only biotope or a combination of both biotope and bird data as variables. In addition, we test the transferability of 'bird', biotope and combined models to the Netherlands, an ecologically similar region. Transferability was tested in three separate sandy regions in the Netherlands at different distances from the region in which the models were built. For each of the five heathland butterflies, we applied logistic regressions on ten random model sets and tested the models on ten random evaluation sets within Flanders. We used the area under the curve (AUC) of the receiver-operating characteristics (ROC) plots to estimate model accuracy. Overall, bird models performed significantly better than biotope models but were not significantly different from the combined models in Flanders. In the Netherlands, the transferred biotope and the combined models performed better than the transferred 'bird models'. We conclude that on a local scale, birds can, to some extent, serve as proxies for biotope quality, but that biotope models are more robust when transferred to another region.

scholarly journals Diversity of EU habitat types is correlated with geography more than climate and human pressure

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marco Cervellini ◽  
Michele Di Musciano ◽  
Piero Zannini ◽  
Simone Fattorini ◽  
Borja Jiménez-Alfaro ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Additive Models ◽  
Boosted Regression Trees ◽  
Conservation Strategies ◽  
Distribution Data ◽  
Human Pressure ◽  
Habitat Types ◽  
Distribution Maps ◽  
Continental Scale ◽  
European Environmental Agency ◽  
Bioclimatic Variables

Aims: Habitat richness, i.e. the diversity of ecosystem types, is a complex, spatially explicit aspect of biodiversity, which is affected by bioclimatic, geographic and anthropogenic variables. The distribution of habitat types is a key component for understanding broad-scale biodiversity and for developing conservation strategies. To test which factors are related with habitat richness we used EU habitat distribution data to answer the following questions: i) how do bioclimatic, geographic, and anthropogenic variables affect habitat richness? ii) which category is the most important? iii) how do interactions among these variables influence habitat richness and which combinations produce the strongest interactions? Study area: European Union (excluding Greece) plus the United Kingdom. Methods: We used the distribution maps of 233 terrestrial habitat types defined by the European Environmental Agency, to calculate habitat richness for the EU 10 km x 10 km grid map. We then investigated how environmental variables affect habitat richness, using generalized linear models, generalized additive models and boosted regression trees. Results: The main factors associated with habitat richness were geographic variables, with negative relationships observed for both latitude and longitude, and a positive relationship for terrain ruggedness. Bioclimatic variables played a secondary role, with habitat richness increasing slightly with annual mean temperature and overall annual precipitation. An interaction between anthropogenic variables was important: the combination of increased landscape fragmentation and increased population density strongly decreased habitat richness. Main conclusions: This is the first attempt to disentangle spatial patterns of habitat richness at the continental scale, as a key tool for protecting biodiversity. The diversity of European habitats is correlated withgeography more than climate and human pressure, reflecting a major component of biogeographical patterns similar to the drivers observed at the species level. The interaction between anthropogenic variables highlights the need for coordinated, continental-scale management plans for biodiversity conservation.

scholarly journals DeepIsoFun: a deep domain adaptation approach to predict isoform functions

2018 ◽  
Vol 35 (15) ◽  
pp. 2535-2544 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dipan Shaw ◽  
Hao Chen ◽  
Tao Jiang
Keyword(s):  
Network Architecture ◽  
Domain Adaptation ◽  
Multiple Instance Learning ◽  
Training Data ◽  
Supplementary Information ◽  
Operating Characteristics ◽  
Neural Network Architecture ◽  
Receiver Operating Characteristics Curve ◽  
Gene Functions ◽  
Better Than

AbstractMotivationIsoforms are mRNAs produced from the same gene locus by alternative splicing and may have different functions. Although gene functions have been studied extensively, little is known about the specific functions of isoforms. Recently, some computational approaches based on multiple instance learning have been proposed to predict isoform functions from annotated gene functions and expression data, but their performance is far from being desirable primarily due to the lack of labeled training data. To improve the performance on this problem, we propose a novel deep learning method, DeepIsoFun, that combines multiple instance learning with domain adaptation. The latter technique helps to transfer the knowledge of gene functions to the prediction of isoform functions and provides additional labeled training data. Our model is trained on a deep neural network architecture so that it can adapt to different expression distributions associated with different gene ontology terms.ResultsWe evaluated the performance of DeepIsoFun on three expression datasets of human and mouse collected from SRA studies at different times. On each dataset, DeepIsoFun performed significantly better than the existing methods. In terms of area under the receiver operating characteristics curve, our method acquired at least 26% improvement and in terms of area under the precision-recall curve, it acquired at least 10% improvement over the state-of-the-art methods. In addition, we also study the divergence of the functions predicted by our method for isoforms from the same gene and the overall correlation between expression similarity and the similarity of predicted functions.Availability and implementationhttps://github.com/dls03/DeepIsoFun/Supplementary informationSupplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.

scholarly journals Co-occurring cryptic species pose challenges for conservation: a case study of the African dwarf crocodile (Osteolaemusspp.) in Cameroon

Oryx ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 49 (4) ◽  
pp. 584-590 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicole L. Smolensky
Keyword(s):  
Cryptic Species ◽  
Conservation Status ◽  
Taxonomic Revision ◽  
Single Species ◽  
Conservation Strategies ◽  
Encounter Rates ◽  
Distribution Maps ◽  
Species Complexes ◽  
Threatened Taxa ◽  
Population Structures

AbstractThe conservation status of threatened taxa may be obfuscated by the detection of cryptic species complexes, in both vertebrate and invertebrate species. African dwarf crocodiles (Osteolaemusspp.) are hunted throughout their range but their conservation status is unknown. Few population assessments have been carried out and there has been a taxonomic revision of the number of species in the genus. The similar morphologies ofOsteolaemus tetraspisandOsteolaemus osbornipose a challenge for conservation in Cameroon, where they are still managed as a single species. Nocturnal spotlight surveys were conducted in three regions during August–November 2010 and December 2011–February 2012 to provide population assessments ofO. tetraspisandO. osborniand raise awareness of the two species in Cameroon. The mean encounter rates ofO. tetraspisandO. osborniwere 1.02 ± SD 1.34 (65 individuals in 39 surveys) and 0.61 ± SD 0.38 (three in four surveys) crocodiles per km, respectively. TheO. tetraspispopulation comprised juveniles predominantly and had a male-biased sex ratio. The fewO. osbornidetected comprised both adults and juveniles. Both species are threatened in Cameroon, based on low encounter rates, young population structures and the threats of habitat loss and hunting pressure. This study provides distribution maps and serves as a baseline to quantify population trends and inform conservation strategies.

Diversity and distribution of Phanaeini (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Scarabaeinae) in Mexico

Zootaxa ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 4358 (2) ◽  
pp. 271 ◽  
Author(s):  
VIRIDIANA LIZARDO ◽  
FEDERICO ESCOBAR ◽  
OCTAVIO ROJAS-SOTO
Keyword(s):  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Volcanic Belt ◽  
Field Studies ◽  
Distribution Data ◽  
Biological Databases ◽  
Distribution Models ◽  
Distribution Maps ◽  
Distribution Ranges ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Sierra Madre

In this study, we systematized available distribution data, obtained from biological databases and relevant literature, for Mexican species belonging to the tribe Phanaeini. The main objectives were to provide an overall description of the distribution records in biological collections, to detect potential sampling biases, to describe the seasonality of collections and to obtain species distribution models using the Desktop GARP algorithm. A total of 5,562 records, corresponding to 32 species in Mexico, were compiled, including the recently described Phanaeus zoque Moctezuma & Halffter, 2017. This compilation includes 784 unique collection records at 325 localities. These records were mainly distributed along the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt, the Sierra Madre Oriental and Sierra Madre Occidental mountain ranges and throughout the states of Chiapas and Veracruz. The Mexican High Plateau, the state of Tlaxcala and the Yucatan Peninsula are lacking in records. Distribution maps were created for species of three genera (Phanaeus MacLeay, 1819, Coprophanaeus Olsoufieff, 1924, and Sulcophanaeus Olsoufieff, 1924) and for 29 species present in Mexico. These species distributions are largely delimited by geomorphological features and vegetation types and coincide with expert descriptions of this tribe; some species show expanded distribution ranges. These maps provide a starting point for further analyses, the planning of future field studies, and the verification of possible new species in the Mexican territory. 

scholarly journals The persistence in time of distributional patterns in marine megafauna impacts zonal conservation strategies

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Lambert ◽  
G. Dorémus ◽  
V. Ridoux
Keyword(s):  
Species Distribution ◽  
Habitat Model ◽  
Spatial Extent ◽  
Conservation Strategies ◽  
Distribution Data ◽  
Bay Of Biscay ◽  
Mobile Species ◽  
Distributional Patterns ◽  
Marine Megafauna ◽  
Mpa Network

AbstractThe main type of zonal conservation approach corresponds to Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), which are spatially defined and generally static entities aiming at the protection of some target populations by the implementation of a management plan. For highly mobile species the relevance of an MPA over time might be hampered by temporal variations in distributions or home ranges. In the present work, we used habitat model-based predicted distributions of cetaceans and seabirds within the Bay of Biscay from 2004 to 2017 to characterise the aggregation and persistence of mobile species distributional patterns and the relevance of the existing MPA network. We explored the relationship between population abundance and spatial extent of distribution to assess the aggregation level of species distribution. We used the smallest spatial extent including 75% of the population present in the Bay of Biscay to define specific core areas of distributions, and calculated their persistence over the 14 studied years. We inspected the relevance of the MPA network with respect to aggregation and persistence. We found that aggregation and persistence are two independent features of marine megafauna distributions. Indeed, strong persistence was shown in both aggregated (bottlenose dolphins, auks) and loosely distributed species (northern gannets), while some species with aggregated distributions also showed limited year-to-year persistence in their patterns (black-legged kittiwakes). We thus have demonstrated that both aggregation and persistence have potential impact on the amount of spatio-temporal distributional variability encompassed within static MPAs. Our results exemplified the need to have access to a minimal temporal depth in the species distribution data when aiming to designate new site boundaries for the conservation of mobile species.

scholarly journals Lymphocyte Count and Serum PCT L ev els  Improve the Sensitivity of CURB-65 in Prediction of 30-day Mortality of Patients with Community-acquired Pneumonia

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jin Zhang ◽  
Rui Tao ◽  
Pengcheng Liu ◽  
Dahai Zhao ◽  
Jiegou Xu
Keyword(s):  
Logistic Regression ◽  
Lymphocyte Count ◽  
Scoring System ◽  
Community Acquired Pneumonia ◽  
Hospitalized Patients ◽  
Diagnostic Model ◽  
High Morbidity ◽  
Operating Characteristics ◽  
Blood Biomarkers ◽  
Combined Models

Abstract Background Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is an infectious disease with high morbidity and mortality worldwide. The CURB-65 score and other blood biomarkers were used to evaluate prognosis of hospitalized patients with CAP. The aim of our study is t o evaluate the prognostic values of other blood biomarkers and the CURB-65 score in hospitalized patients with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). Methods A retrospective study of clinical data of in-hospitalized adult CAP patients who fulfilled the CAP criteria and were admitted to the Second Affiliated Hospital of Anhui medical university between January 2015 and December 2018 was conducted. The CURB-65 score was calculated, and other biomarkers including blood lymphocyte countat and serum PCT (a propeptide of calcitonin) level were collected at enrolment. Logistic regression analysis was performed to develop combined models to predict 30-day mortality in overall hospitalized and/or the ICU admission of CAP patients. Then, receiver operating characteristics curve (ROC) analysis was conducted to measure and compare the prognostic values of the CURB-65 score and biomarkers in the combined models.Results The ROC curve analysis using logistic regression of the new combined models showed that the CURB-65 score combined with lymphocyte count and serum PCT level (designated as CURB-65L P) improved the predictive value and was sensitive diagnostic model in predicting the 30-day mortality of CAP patients.Conclusion Serum level of lymphocytes or PCT alone is a strong prognostic factor for evaluation of 30-day mortality of CAP patients. Incorporation of both factors improves the sensitivity of the CURB-65 scoring system in the prediction of the 30-day mortality. This new CURB-65LP scoring system is simple, but more accurate for evaluating the severity of CAP with higher sensitivity and specificity than the current CURB-65 scoring system.

Webcare als online reputatiemanagement

2014 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Judith Huibers ◽  
Joost Verhoeven
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Corporate Reputation ◽  
Organizational Legitimacy ◽  
Reputation Management ◽  
Defensive Strategies ◽  
Human Voice ◽  
Online Reputation ◽  
Stakeholder Needs ◽  
Scenario Study ◽  
Better Than

Webcare as online reputation management: the use of webcare strategies and conversational human voice in the Netherlands, and its effects on the corporate reputation Webcare as online reputation management: the use of webcare strategies and conversational human voice in the Netherlands, and its effects on the corporate reputation While Twitter offers organizations chances to improve their reputations, tweets can also threaten reputations by attacking the organizational legitimacy. In this article, we studied (1) what webcare strategies Dutch organizations use to preventing reputational damage, (2) how effective these strategies are, and (3) how conversational human voice influences the effectiveness of these strategies. A content analysis of online dialogues (Study 1) shows that we should distinguish three rather than two types of webcare strategies: Organizations use webcare to accommodate (1) their own needs (through denial or justification), (2) individual stakeholder needs (through information, sympathy and compensation), or (3) collective stakeholder needs (through apologies and corrective action). In the Netherlands, stakeholder focused strategies are used more for web care than defensive strategies. A scenario study revealed that accommodating individual needs protects reputation better than defensive strategies, and marginally better than collective accommodative strategies.

Ready for school? Ready for learning? An empirical contribution to a perennial debate

2001 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-80 ◽  
Author(s):  
Trevor G. Bond
Keyword(s):  
Rasch Model ◽  
Developmental Psychology ◽  
Analytical Techniques ◽  
Rasch Measurement ◽  
Research Data ◽  
Model Sets ◽  
Unit Value ◽  
Australian Council ◽  
The Rasch Model ◽  
Better Than

The Rasch measurement principles espoused in the Bond & Fox (2001) volume reviewed elsewhere in this journal are routinely adopted by Australia's major educational measurement projects (e.g., by Australian Council for Educational Research, Educational Testing Centre). Yet those ideas are yet to have their full impact in smaller research projects in educational and developmental psychology. A number of quantitative analytical techniques used in our disciplines are able to help us to draw conclusions like “Betty is better than or more developed than Bob”, but Rasch measurement is uniquely placed to help us conclude that “Betty is this much better than or more developed than Bob.” In educational and psychological statistics, we regularly presume the “interval” nature of our research data, but only the Rasch model sets about to ensure that the units of measurement maintain their unit value across the whole achievement or development scale.

scholarly journals Evaluation of antibody detection against the NDO-BSA, LID-1 and NDO-LID antigens as confirmatory tests to support the diagnosis of leprosy in Yunnan province, southwest China

2019 ◽  
Vol 114 (3) ◽  
pp. 193-199
Author(s):  
Liu Jian ◽  
Shang Xiujian ◽  
You Yuangang ◽  
Xing Yan ◽  
Yuan Lianchao ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Yunnan Province ◽  
Southwest China ◽  
Professional Staff ◽  
Health Concern ◽  
Antibody Detection ◽  
Diagnostic Tools ◽  
Local Health ◽  
Operating Characteristics ◽  
Leprosy Patients ◽  
Better Than

Abstract Although multidrug therapy (MDT) has been widely used for the treatment of leprosy for nearly 40 y, the disease remains a public health concern in some areas. The early detection of leprosy cases is vital to interrupt Mycobacterium leprae transmission, but currently diagnosis is typically achieved during the recognition of clinical symptoms by professional staff performing physical examinations in conjunction with microbiological assessment of slit skin smears (SSSs) and histopathology. In the last 10 y, serum antibody detection tests have emerged to aid leprosy diagnosis. Here we evaluated the ability of antigens NDO-BSA and LID-1 (ML0405 and ML2331) and the conjugate of these, NDO-LID, to detect antibodies in the sera of 113 leprosy patients and 166 control individuals in Yunnan province in southwest China. We found that each antigen was readily detected by sera from multibacillary (MB) patients, with sensitivities of 97.3%, 97.3% and 98.6% for NDO-BSA, LID-1 and NDO-LID, respectively. Even among paucibacillary (PB) patients the antigens detected antibodies in 74.4%, 56.4% and 69.2% of serum samples, respectively. Receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve analysis indicated that, irrespective of the leprosy case classification as MB or PB, the detection efficiency obtained with NDO-LID was better than that obtained with the other two antigens (with LID-1 being a slightly better than NDO-BSA). Our results indicate the utility of NDO-LID in assisting in the diagnosis of PB and MB leprosy patients and that these antibody detection assays represent powerful diagnostic tools. We suggest that could be implemented into the procedures of local health centres in leprosy-endemic regions to assist in earlier diagnosis.

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