scholarly journals Serum biochemistry profile determination for wild loggerhead sea turtles nesting in Campos dos Goytacazes, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

2011 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 143-148 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daphne Wrobel Goldberg ◽  
Juçara Wanderlinde ◽  
Isabel Maria Alexandre Freire ◽  
Luiz Cesar Pereira da Silva ◽  
Nadia Regina Pereira Almosny
Keyword(s):  
Sea Turtles ◽  
Serum Biochemistry ◽  
Average Concentration ◽  
Reproductive Period ◽  
Small Sample ◽  
Egg Laying ◽  
Loggerhead Sea Turtles ◽  
Hepatic Volume ◽  
Calcium Phosphorus ◽  
Small Sample Sizes

Sea turtles are threatened to the point of extinction. The major goal of rehabilitating sick individuals is to eventually reintroduce them back into their habitat. In this way, they contribute to species preservation, as well as maintaining equilibrium of the ecosystems. Biochemical analysis is a commonly used test to detect illness and evaluate the general health of the animals. However, the data in the literature on sea turtles are scarce and the majority of studies used small sample sizes, being the majority of animals in captivity. The aim of the present study is to establish baseline biochemical profile values for free-ranging, nesting, female loggerhead turtles (Caretta caretta). The baseline values can then be used for comparison in the overall evaluation, physiologic status and disease diagnostics of diverse populations of sea turtles. Twenty-eight females in their reproductive period were used from Farol de São Thomé (21°45'15"S - 41°19'28"W), city of Campos dos Goytacazes, north-fluminense region. The samples were collected without anticoagulant through venapuncture of the dorsal, cervical sinus. The average values determined were calcium, phosphorus, cholesterol and triglycerides, demonstrating a correlation with vitellogenesis and egg formation. The fact that females reduce feeding in the period preceding egg laying, influenced the average concentration of urea (35.25mg dL-1), sodium (147mEq L-1), potassium (28mEq L-1), uric acid (0.6mg dL-1) and lipids. Carapace length and width, and the weight of the turtles showed a positive correlation with liver enzymes ALT and AST, suggesting that animals with larger hepatic volume have greater enzymatic activity.

scholarly journals Malleefowl Leipoa ocellata breeding behaviour: Insights from citizen science camera surveillance

2021 ◽  
Vol 38 ◽  
pp. 87-98
Author(s):  
Heather Neilly ◽  
◽  
David Wells ◽  
Tim Pascoe ◽  
Peter Cale ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Citizen Science ◽  
Direct Observation ◽  
Small Sample ◽  
Egg Laying ◽  
Camera Traps ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Breeding Behaviour ◽  
Small Sample Sizes ◽  
Breeding Seasons ◽  
Camera Surveillance

Observations on natural history are a useful but often overlooked branch of ecology. With the use of camera-traps, collection of data e.g. on breeding behaviour and success has never been easier, particularly when studying cryptic species. Additionally, camera-traps are well suited to citizen science because of their ease of operation and the ability to store and verify data. Malleefowl Leipoa ocellata breeding behaviour has previously been studied through direct observation or timelapse photography, resulting in small sample sizes and potentially biased observations. Using camera-trap data collected by citizen scientists, we examined the breeding behaviour of this species. We quantified the timing and duration of mound-tending activities at 20 mounds using camera surveillance for >30,000 hours (1250 days) over six breeding seasons. Time spent at the mound during five mound stages and visit frequencies by the male and female during each stage are reported. Femaleinvolvement at the mound was consistent, although males spent three times as long at the mound compared with females during egg-laying. On egg-laying days, females spent longer uncovering the mound, compared with covering the mound post egg-laying. Our findings confirm that both male and female Malleefowl spend a substantial amount of time constructing and maintaining their mound throughout the year and, most notably, that the female consistently participates in mound-tending.These insights are particularly valuable as our surveillance was over markedly longer time spans than previous studies that relied upon direct observation.

scholarly journals Movements and Habitat-Use of Loggerhead Sea Turtles in the Northern Gulf of Mexico during the Reproductive Period

PLoS ONE ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 8 (7) ◽  
pp. e66921 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristen M. Hart ◽  
Margaret M. Lamont ◽  
Autumn R. Sartain ◽  
Ikuko Fujisaki ◽  
Brail S. Stephens
Keyword(s):  
Gulf Of Mexico ◽  
Habitat Use ◽  
Sea Turtles ◽  
Reproductive Period ◽  
Loggerhead Sea Turtles ◽  
Northern Gulf Of Mexico

scholarly journals Ontogeny of a sexually selected structure in an extant archosaur Gavialis gangeticus (Pseudosuchia: Crocodylia) with implications for sexual dimorphism in dinosaurs

PeerJ ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. e9134 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Hone ◽  
Jordan C. Mallon ◽  
Patrick Hennessey ◽  
Lawrence M. Witmer
Keyword(s):  
Sexual Dimorphism ◽  
A Priori ◽  
Small Sample ◽  
Egg Laying ◽  
Sexually Dimorphic ◽  
Large Dataset ◽  
Unique Model ◽  
Small Sample Sizes ◽  
Gavialis Gangeticus ◽  
Slow Growing

Despite strong evidence for sexual selection in various display traits and other exaggerated structures in large extinct reptiles, such as dinosaurs, detecting sexual dimorphism in them remains difficult. Their relatively small sample sizes, long growth periods, and difficulties distinguishing the sexes of fossil specimens mean that there are little compelling data on dimorphism in these animals. The extant gharial (Gavialis gangeticus) is a large and endangered crocodylian that is sexually dimorphic in size, but males also possesses a sexually selected structure, the ghara, which has an osteological correlate in the presence of a fossa associated with the nares. This makes the species a unique model for potentially assessing dimorphism in fossil lineages, such as dinosaurs and pterosaurs, because it is a large, slow-growing, egg-laying archosaur. Here we assess the dimorphism of G. gangeticus across 106 specimens and show that the presence of a narial fossa diagnoses adult male gharials. Males are larger than females, but the level of size dimorphism, and that of other cranial features, is low and difficult to detect without a priori knowledge of the sexes, even with this large dataset. By extension, dimorphism in extinct reptiles is very difficult to detect in the absence of sex specific characters, such as the narial fossa.

Integrating Visual and Bayesian Statistical Analyses in Single Case Experimental Research to Evaluate the Effectiveness and Magnitude of a Comprehensive Behavioral Intervention

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Prathiba Natesan ◽  
Smita Mehta
Keyword(s):  
Behavioral Intervention ◽  
Effect Size ◽  
Rate Ratio ◽  
Visual Analysis ◽  
Single Case ◽  
Small Sample ◽  
Statistical Analyses ◽  
Data Types ◽  
Ratio Effect ◽  
Small Sample Sizes

Single case experimental designs (SCEDs) have become an indispensable methodology where randomized control trials may be impossible or even inappropriate. However, the nature of SCED data presents challenges for both visual and statistical analyses. Small sample sizes, autocorrelations, data types, and design types render many parametric statistical analyses and maximum likelihood approaches ineffective. The presence of autocorrelation decreases interrater reliability in visual analysis. The purpose of the present study is to demonstrate a newly developed model called the Bayesian unknown change-point (BUCP) model which overcomes all the above-mentioned data analytic challenges. This is the first study to formulate and demonstrate rate ratio effect size for autocorrelated data, which has remained an open question in SCED research until now. This expository study also compares and contrasts the results from BUCP model with visual analysis, and rate ratio effect size with nonoverlap of all pairs (NAP) effect size. Data from a comprehensive behavioral intervention are used for the demonstration.

No Evidence that Experiencing Physical Warmth Promotes Interpersonal Warmth: Two Failures to Replicate Williams and Bargh (2008)

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Chabris ◽  
Patrick Ryan Heck ◽  
Jaclyn Mandart ◽  
Daniel Jacob Benjamin ◽  
Daniel J. Simons
Keyword(s):  
Null Hypothesis ◽  
Small Sample ◽  
Sample Sizes ◽  
Double Blind ◽  
Bayesian Analyses ◽  
Physical Warmth ◽  
Small Sample Sizes ◽  
Interpersonal Warmth

Williams and Bargh (2008) reported that holding a hot cup of coffee caused participants to judge a person’s personality as warmer, and that holding a therapeutic heat pad caused participants to choose rewards for other people rather than for themselves. These experiments featured large effects (r = .28 and .31), small sample sizes (41 and 53 participants), and barely statistically significant results. We attempted to replicate both experiments in field settings with more than triple the sample sizes (128 and 177) and double-blind procedures, but found near-zero effects (r = –.03 and .02). In both cases, Bayesian analyses suggest there is substantially more evidence for the null hypothesis of no effect than for the original physical warmth priming hypothesis.

scholarly journals Non-Invasive Monitoring of Adrenocortical Activity in Three Sympatric Desert Gerbil Species

Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 75
Author(s):  
Álvaro Navarro-Castilla ◽  
Mario Garrido ◽  
Hadas Hawlena ◽  
Isabel Barja
Keyword(s):  
Small Sample ◽  
Post Injection ◽  
Control Groups ◽  
Treatment Groups ◽  
Adrenocortical Activity ◽  
Non Invasive ◽  
Endocrine Status ◽  
Corticosterone Metabolites ◽  
Small Sample Sizes ◽  
Fecal Corticosterone Metabolites

The study of the endocrine status can be useful to understand wildlife responses to the changing environment. Here, we validated an enzyme immunoassay (EIA) to non-invasively monitor adrenocortical activity by measuring fecal corticosterone metabolites (FCM) in three sympatric gerbil species (Gerbillus andersoni, G. gerbillus and G. pyramidum) from the Northwestern Negev Desert’s sands (Israel). Animals included into treatment groups were injected with adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) to stimulate adrenocortical activity, while control groups received a saline solution. Feces were collected at different intervals and FCM were quantified by an EIA. Basal FCM levels were similar in the three species. The ACTH effect was evidenced, but the time of FCM peak concentrations appearance differed between the species (6–24 h post-injection). Furthermore, FCM peak values were observed sooner in G. andersoni females than in males (6 h and 18 h post-injection, respectively). G. andersoni and G. gerbillus males in control groups also increased FCM levels (18 h and 48 h post-injection, respectively). Despite the small sample sizes, our results confirmed the EIA suitability for analyzing FCM in these species as a reliable indicator of the adrenocortical activity. This study also revealed that close species, and individuals within a species, can respond differently to the same stressor.

scholarly journals Use of Antiplatelet Agents Decreases the Positive Predictive Value of Fecal Immunochemical Tests for Colorectal Cancer but Does Not Affect Their Sensitivity

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 497
Author(s):  
Yoonsuk Jung ◽  
Eui Im ◽  
Jinhee Lee ◽  
Hyeah Lee ◽  
Changmo Moon
Keyword(s):  
Colorectal Cancer ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Screening Program ◽  
Antiplatelet Agents ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Small Sample ◽  
Antithrombotic Agents ◽  
Predictive Values ◽  
Prescription Rates ◽  
Small Sample Sizes

Previous studies have evaluated the effects of antithrombotic agents on the performance of fecal immunochemical tests (FITs) for the detection of colorectal cancer (CRC), but the results were inconsistent and based on small sample sizes. We studied this topic using a large-scale population-based database. Using the Korean National Cancer Screening Program Database, we compared the performance of FITs for CRC detection between users and non-users of antiplatelet agents and warfarin. Non-users were matched according to age and sex. Among 5,426,469 eligible participants, 768,733 used antiplatelet agents (mono/dual/triple therapy, n = 701,683/63,211/3839), and 19,569 used warfarin, while 4,638,167 were non-users. Among antiplatelet agents, aspirin, clopidogrel, and cilostazol ranked first, second, and third, respectively, in terms of prescription rates. Users of antiplatelet agents (3.62% vs. 4.45%; relative risk (RR): 0.83; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.78–0.88), aspirin (3.66% vs. 4.13%; RR: 0.90; 95% CI: 0.83–0.97), and clopidogrel (3.48% vs. 4.88%; RR: 0.72; 95% CI: 0.61–0.86) had lower positive predictive values (PPVs) for CRC detection than non-users. However, there were no significant differences in PPV between cilostazol vs. non-users and warfarin users vs. non-users. For PPV, the RR (users vs. non-users) for antiplatelet monotherapy was 0.86, while the RRs for dual and triple antiplatelet therapies (excluding cilostazol) were 0.67 and 0.22, respectively. For all antithrombotic agents, the sensitivity for CRC detection was not different between users and non-users. Use of antiplatelet agents, except cilostazol, may increase the false positives without improving the sensitivity of FITs for CRC detection.

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