scholarly journals Utilization of Natural History Information in Evidence based Herpetoculture: A Proposed Protocol and Case Study with Hydrodynastes gigas (False Water Cobra)

Animals ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 2021
Author(s):  
Zachary J. Loughman
Keyword(s):  
Natural History ◽  
Captive Breeding ◽  
Scientific Literature ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Scientific Inference ◽  
New Information ◽  
History Information ◽  
History Of ◽  
Available Information

Herpetocultural practices are based on norms driven by economy of space and time for keepers, with little scientific inference backing their practice. In recent years, a subset of herpetoculturalists have promoted evidence-based husbandry that relies on science and experimental design to generate husbandry practice. A theoretical framework and protocol are proposed herein that enables any individual who has access to the internet the ability to use various outlets of natural history information (scientific literature databases, social media sources, and weather websites) and previously published husbandry reports as evidence to drive the creation of novel herpetocultural practice. A case study is provided which compares readily available information on the care of Hydrodynastes gigas (false water cobra), such as online care sheets for the species, with the proposed evidence based herpetocultural protocol founded on natural history information and published care and captive breeding reports. Results were assessed for protocol efficacy and determined that the natural history informed evidence-based approach increased animal welfare and generated new information specific to the natural history of H. gigas.

Taxonomy, natural history, and conservation of the Great-billed Seed-Finch Sporophila maximiliani (Cabanis, 1851) (Thraupidae, Sporophilinae)

Zootaxa ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 4442 (4) ◽  
pp. 551 ◽  
Author(s):  
FLÁVIO KULAIF UBAID ◽  
LUÍS FABIO SILVEIRA ◽  
CESAR A. B. MEDOLAGO ◽  
THIAGO V. V. COSTA ◽  
MERCIVAL ROBERTO FRANCISCO ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Natural History ◽  
South America ◽  
Captive Breeding ◽  
Conservation Status ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Principal Component ◽  
Taxonomic Status ◽  
Morphological Characters ◽  
Morphometric Characters ◽  
History Of

Seed-finches are small-sized Neotropical granivorous birds characterized by extremely strong and thick beaks. Among these birds, the Great-billed Seed-Finch Sporophila maximiliani has been selectively and intensively trapped to the extent that has become one of the most endangered bird species in South America, yet its taxonomy remains complex and controversial. Two subspecies have been recognized: S. m. maximiliani (Cabanis, 1851), mainly from the Cerrado of central South America, and S. m. parkesi Olson (= Oryzoborus m. magnirostris), from northeastern South America. Originally, S. m. parkesi was diagnosed as being larger than the Large-billed Seed-Finch, S. c. crassirostris (Gmelin, 1789), but proper comparisons with S. m. maximiliani, which is larger than S. c. crassirostris, were never performed. Here we provide a review of the taxonomic and nomenclatural history of S. maximiliani, reevaluate the validity and taxonomic status of the subspecies based on morphological characters, and significantly revise its geographic distribution. Analyses based on plumage patterns and a Principal Component Analysis of morphometric characters indicated that S. m. parkesi is most appropriately treated as a synonym of the nominate taxon, which results in a monotypic S. maximiliani comprising two disjunct populations. Further, we conducted systematic searches for S. maximiliani in Brazil, in an attempt to obtain natural history information. After more than 6,000 hours of fieldwork in 45 areas of potential and historical occurrence, S. maximiliani was located only in two sites, in marshy environments called veredas, confirming the critical conservation status of this species, at least in Brazil. We discuss the conservation potential for, and the problems involved with, captive breeding of S. maximiliani for reintroduction into the wild. 

Optimal scheduling of post-therapeutic follow-up of patients treated for cancer for early detection of relapses

2016 ◽  
Vol 25 (6) ◽  
pp. 2457-2471 ◽  
Author(s):  
Serge MA Somda ◽  
Eve Leconte ◽  
Jean-Marie Boher ◽  
Bernard Asselain ◽  
Andrew Kramar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Natural History ◽  
Early Detection ◽  
Clinical Stage ◽  
Optimal Schedule ◽  
Optimal Scheduling ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Scientific Societies ◽  
Different Types ◽  
History Of

Post-therapeutic surveillance is one important component of cancer care. However, there still is no evidence-based strategies to schedule patients’ follow-up examinations. Our approach is based on the modeling of the probability of the onset of relapse at an early asymptotic or preclinical stage and its transition to a clinical stage. For that we consider a multistate homogeneous Markov model, which includes the natural history of relapse. The model also handles separately the different types of possible relapses. The optimal schedule is provided by the calendar visit that maximizes a utility function. The methodology has been applied to laryngeal cancer. The different follow-up strategies revealed to be more efficient than those proposed by different scientific societies.

Tracking changes in natural history collections utilization: A case study at the Museum of Southwestern Biology at the University of New Mexico

2015 ◽  
Vol 29 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 1-21 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bethany L. Abrahamson
Keyword(s):  
Natural History ◽  
University Of New Mexico ◽  
Research Fields ◽  
Fields Of Study ◽  
Natural History Collections ◽  
History Of ◽  
Data Source ◽  
History Of Use ◽  
The University

AbstractNatural history collections (NHCs) are used in many fields of study, but general knowledge regarding their uses is poor. Because of this, funding and support for NHCs frequently fluctuate. One way in which collections professionals can illustrate a collection’s contribution to a variety of fields is based on the collection’s history of use. Tracking NHC utilization through time can increase NHC value to others outside of the collection, allow for the analysis of changes in specimen-based research trends, and assist in effective collection management. This case study focuses on NHC usage records held by the Museum of Southwestern Biology (MSB), a currently growing university collection used in many research fields, and presents methods for quantifying collections utilization through time. Through an exploration of these data, this paper illustrates MSB’s growth and changes in research produced over time and offers explanations for the changes observed. Last, this study provides suggestions for how collections professionals can most greatly benefit from considering NHC records as a data source. Understanding NHC usage from “the collection’s perspective” provides a new way for NHC professionals to understand NHCs’ value in the context of the research it supports and demonstrates the importance of this key infrastructure to a broader audience.

Evidence-based review on the natural history of the epilepsies

2012 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 159-163 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dieter Schmidt ◽  
Matti Sillanpää
Keyword(s):  
Natural History ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
History Of

scholarly journals Notes on the Life Cycle and Natural History of Dismorphia Virgo (Lepidoptera Pieridae: Dismorphiinae) in Costa Rica

1972 ◽  
Vol 79 (3) ◽  
pp. 165-178 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allen M. Young
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Costa Rica ◽  
Natural History ◽  
Taxonomic Status ◽  
Central American ◽  
South American ◽  
Species Status ◽  
New Information ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Common

This paper summarizes the life cycle and some aspects of natural history of the tropical pierid, Dismorphia virgo (Dismorphiinae) in Costa Rica. The precise taxonomic status of the butterfly in Central America has not been established, and it may represent a variable northern isolate of the common South American D. critomedia. Therefore, independent of whether the Central American form discussed in this paper has achieved full species status as the more northern virgo or is a subspecies or variety of critomedia evolving towards species status, this paper provides new information on the biology of the butterfly in Costa Rica. The establishment of precise taxonomic position awaits further study, and for the present purpose, I refer to the butterfly as D. virgo.

Richard Bradley's Relationship With Sir Hans Sloane

1970 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-77 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Natural History ◽  
Royal Society ◽  
Scientific Literature ◽  
British Museum ◽  
Prolific Author ◽  
Good Picture ◽  
Adverse Conditions ◽  
University Of Cambridge ◽  
History Of ◽  
The University

Sir Hans Sloane (1660-1753) is remembered more for his activities in the spheres of science and medicine than for his original contributions to these fields. His large treatise on the natural history of Jamaica (2 vols., 1707- 1725) and other writings were useful additions to the scientific literature, but they were overshadowed by his activities as President of both the Royal Society (1727-1741) and the Royal College of Physicians (1719-1735) and by his having provided the collections which became the foundation of the British Museum. There is no definitive study on him, but the two recent biographies by De Beer and Brooks provide a good picture of his life and work (1). Sloane carried on a voluminous correspondence, and most of the letters written to him are preserved in the British Museum—largely unpublished (2). Among them are a dozen letters from Richard Bradley (1688?—5 November 1732), which throw somewhat more light on Bradley than on Sloane. They also illustrate the adverse conditions under which men without wealth have sometimes worked when pursuing scientific activities. Bradley was a prolific author of books on agriculture, horticulture, biology, and medicine. As will appear from his letters, he was often the pawn of booksellers, and John Martyn (1699-1768), his malicious rival, commented shortly after his death that ‘The booksellers have lost a good easy pad’ (3). Bradley was at times only a popularizer or a hack, but he also produced writings having scientific merit (4). Furthermore, he was a Fellow of the Royal Society and the first Professor of Botany at the University of Cambridge. His correspondence with Sloane is therefore of interest for adding to our knowledge of both men and the scientific activities of their time.

scholarly journals Predation of Hemidactylus mabouia (Sauria: Gekkonidae) by a vine snake Oxybelis aeneus  (Serpentes: Colubridae) in an Atlantic Forest fragment, Northeastern Brazil

2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lissa Dellefrate Franzini ◽  
Carmem Karime Bacalháo Pedro ◽  
Lucas Barbosa De Queiroga Cavalcanti ◽  
Daniel Oliveira Mesquita
Keyword(s):  
Natural History ◽  
Alien Species ◽  
Scientific Literature ◽  
Northeastern Brazil ◽  
Forest Fragment ◽  
American Continent ◽  
Lizard Species ◽  
History Of ◽  
Historia Natural ◽  
Hemidactylus Mabouia

<p style="text-align: justify;"><em>Oxybelis aeneus</em> (Wagler, 1824) é uma espécie de serpente arborícola de ampla distribuição no continente americano cuja dieta é composta principalmente por vertebrados, como lagartos. Diversas espécies de lagartos já foram reportadas como presas desta serpente, incluindo a espécie exótica <em>Hemidactylus mabouia</em> (Moreau de Jonnèes, 1818). Aqui descrevemos em detalhes um evento de predação de <em>H. mabouia</em> por <em>O. aeneus</em>,  ampliando o conhecimento acerca da história natural  de ambas as espécies à literatura científica.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Palavras chave</strong>: Dieta, ecologia alimentar, lagarto, presa, serpente.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Abstract</strong>: <em>Oxybelis aeneus</em> (Wagler, 1824) is an arboreal snake species that is widely distributed in the American continent whose diet is composed mainly by vertebrates, such as lizards. Several lizard species have already been reported as prey of this snake, including the alien species <em>Hemidactylus mabouia</em> (Moreau de Jones, 1818). Herein we describe in details a predation event of <em>H. mabouia</em> by <em>O. aeneus</em>, widening our knowledge regarding the natural history of both species to scientific literature.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Key words</strong>: Diet, feed ecology, lizard, prey, snake.</p>

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document