Prevalence of Larval Breeding Sites and Seasonal Variations of Aedes aegypti Mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) in Makkah Al-Mokarramah, Saudi Arabia

Since 1994, dengue fever (DF) transmission rates have increased significantly in Saudi Arabia (KSA). Climatic, geographic, and demographic conditions make KSA especially suitable for DF’s spread. Still, there are insufficient strategies for controlling the Aedes species that transmit DF virus (DENV). To develop effective management strategies, it is necessary to identify Aedes species and the ecological habitat of larvae in Makkah Al-Mokarramah, KSA. We conducted a longitudinal survey of Aedes mosquitoes in 14 localities from January 2015 to December 2015. World Health Organization (WHO) inspection kits for larvae were used to detect and sample larvae, along with pictorial keys. A total of 42,981 potential Aedes larval breeding sites were surveyed. A total of 5403 (12.6%) sites had at least one water source positive for Aedes aegypti (Linnaeus) mosquitoes. Among the total of 15,133 water sources surveyed within the sampled sites, 1815 (12.0%) were positive for Aedes aegypti. Aedes aegypti was the only Aedes species identified in the course of the survey. The presence of such a large immature population may indicate an imminent outbreak of DF in the near future unless proper implementation of control and elimination of Aedes aegypti are undertaken. Additionally, the adaptation of Aedes aegypti to the arid climate of Makkah needs further investigation.

Prediction of hypericin content in Hypericum perforatum L. in different ecological habitat using artificial neural networks

Background Hypericum is an important genus in the family Hypericaceae, which includes 484 species. This genus has been grown in temperate regions and used for treating wounds, eczema and burns. The aim of this study was to predict the content of hypericin in Hypericum perforatum in varied ecological and phenological conditions of habitat using artificial neural network techniques [MLP (Multi-Layer Perceptron), RBF (Radial Basis Function) and SVM (Support Vector Machine)]. Results According to the results, the MLP model (R2 = 0.87) had an advantage over RBF (R2 = 0.8) and SVM (R2 = 0.54) models and it was relatively accurate in predicting hypericin content in H. perforatum based on the ecological conditions of site including soil types, its characteristics and plant phenological stages of habitat. The results of sensitivity analysis revealed that phenological stages, hill aspects, total nitrogen, altitude and organic carbon are the most influential factors that have an integral effect on the content of hypericin. Conclusions The designed graphical user interface will help pharmacognosist, manufacturers and producers of medicinal plants and so on to run the MLP model on new data to easily discover the content of hypericin in H. perforatum by entering ecological conditions of site, soil characteristics and plant phenological stages.

Nature in the Dark - Public Space for More-than-Human Encounters

Drawing on the continuing work of the Nature in the Dark (NITD) project, an art collaboration and publicity campaign between the Centre for Creative Arts (La Trobe University) and the Victorian National Parks Association (VNPA), this paper aims to explore some of the disciplinary crossovers between art, science and philosophy as encountered by this project and to think about their implications for an environmental ethics more generally. Showcasing animal life from Victoria, Australia, the NITD video series I and II invited international artists to create video works inspired by ecological habitat surveys from the Victorian National Parks land and water. Videos and photographs originally used to identify animals and population sizes are now creatively repurposed and presented to new audiences. NITD negotiate ‘the distribution of the sensible’ (Rancière), as they mark the domain of what is accessible to the public. This paper relates the discussion in the contemporary arts about the politics of aesthetics with the ethical conundrum of how we might care about something that is beyond our reach and we are not yet aware of, given our own perceptual blind spots. Drawing on a conversation between the philosopher Georgina Butterfield and myself as an artist and curator, this paper argues that we cannot justify setting arbitrary limits on our valuing, questioning or understanding of the non-human world, and as such it is a position both the philosopher and artist share. While it may be an ultimately unreachable goal, it is paradoxically an essential starting point for ecological ethics.

Conservation of biodiversity through scientifically validated and well participated people’s biodiversity registers (PBRS) in Goa, India

Traditional Knowledge possessed by indigenous communities is acquired through generations. Goa has 197 urban and rural local bodies and has constituted Biodiversity Management Committees as per guidance of Goa State Biodiversity Board. Documentation of native biodiversity and bioresources in PBRs involves local people and Technical Support Groups. Biodiversity Management Committee documents the resources of village, histo - socio- cultural and natural habitats that has rare, endangered plants, ecological habitat versatility likelakes, springs, management technology of regulating the Khazan lands, agro-pisci ecological systems, age old unique hydro-geological set up created by local techniques for surface water management.PBR’S are validated by three tier validation system i.e. Biodiversity Management Committee, Village Panchayats in Gram Sabhas and Thematic Expert Committee for PBR Validation constituted by Goa State Biodiversity Board. This is unique participative process in world that involves scientific validation of systematic documentation carried out by the owners of bioresources. The paper discusses a case study of Curtorim village of Goa where local people have documented the bioresources. The outcome of PBR validation process has resulted in declaration of flagship species in villages, promotion of traditionally grown rice varieties by giving brand name with the initiative of Goa State Biodiversity Board, reviving the age old cultures etc.

Description of Neoperla mindoroensis sp. nov., the first record of a stonefly from Mindoro, Philippines (Plecoptera, Perlidae), and identification of its life stages using COI barcodes

The new stonefly species, Neoperla mindoroensissp. nov. (Perlidae), from Mindoro island is described. The new species is assigned to the N. recta species complex of the N. montivaga group on account of its obvious T7 and T8 with pointed processes and the presence of basolateral lobes in the everted aedeagal sac. The male adult is distinguishable by its aedeagus with a slightly raised mediodorsal lobe, fully covered with fine spinules, while the female adult has comparably small eggs (240 × 220 μm) with a punctate, chorionic surface with punctae arranged in polygonal FCIs. The life stages and sexes were assigned using COI mtDNA barcodes (2.2% maximum intraspecific genetic distance), which were compared with available barcodes of congeners, which had interspecific genetic distances varying by at least 23.5%. Biogeographic aspects, ecological habitat requirements, and suitability as potential bioindicator of the species are also briefly discussed.