Restoring Fringing Tidal Marshes for Ecological Function and Ecosystem Resilience to Moderate Sea-level Rise in the Northern Gulf of Mexico.

Tidal marshes are increasingly vulnerable to degradation or loss from eutrophication, land-use changes, and accelerating sea-level rise, making restoration necessary to recover ecosystem services. To evaluate effects of restoration planting density and sea-level rise on ecosystem function (i.e.

Age-related reproductive performance of the Adélie penguin, a long-lived seabird exhibiting similar outcomes regardless of individual life-history strategy.

Age-related variation in reproductive performance in long-lived iteroparous vertebrate species is common, with performance being influenced by within-individual processes, such as improvement and senescence, in combination with among-individual processes, such as selective appearance and disappearance. Few studies of age-related reproductive performance have compared the role of these drivers within a metapopulation, subject to varying degrees of resource competition. We accounted for within- and among-individual changes among known-aged Adélie penguins Pygoscelis adeliae during 17 years (1997-2013), at three clustered colonies of disparate size, to understand patterns in age-related reproductive success during early and late adulthood.

Engaging online students by ecological knowledge.

The current COVID-19 pandemic has forced the global higher education community to rapidly adapt to partially or fully online course offerings. For field- or laboratory-based courses in ecological curricula, this presents unique challenges. Fortunately, a diverse set of active learning techniques exists, and these techniques translate well to online settings.

Movement patterns and habitat use of tiger sharks (Galeocerdo cuvier) across ontogeny in the Gulf of Mexico.

The tiger shark (Galeocerdo cuvier) is globally distributed with established coastal and open-ocean movement patterns in many portions of its range. While all life stages of tiger sharks are known to occur in the Gulf of Mexico (GoM), variability in habitat use and movement patterns over ontogeny have never been quantified in this large marine ecosystem. To address this data gap we fitted 56 tiger sharks with Smart Position and Temperature transmitting tags between 2010 and 2018 and examined seasonal and spatial distribution patterns across the GoM.

Effects of freeze-thaw cycles on the structure and emulsifying properties of peanut protein isolates.

This study investigated changes of the structure and emulsifying properties of peanut protein isolate (PPI) during multiple freeze-thaw (F-T) cycles. According to the Fourier transform infrared spectrum, the F-T treatment to PPI reduced the content of protein ordered structure significantly. The result of fluorescence spectrum revealed that the polarity of PPI surroundings first increased and then decreased.

The Improvement of Nanoemulsion Stability and Antioxidation via Protein-Chlorogenic Acid-Dextran Conjugates as Emulsifiers.

In this experiment, the peanut protein isolate (PPI), soybean protein isolate (SPI), rice bran protein isolate (RBPI), and whey protein isolate (WPI) were modified by linking chlorogenic acid covalently and linking dextran by Maillard reaction to prepare protein-chlorogenic acid-dextran (PCD) conjugates. As for structures, conformational changes of conjugates were determined by Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate-Polyacrylamide Gel Electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), and fluorescence measurements. The molecular weights of PCD conjugates became larger, the structure became disorder, and the amino acid residues inside the protein were exposed to the polar environment when compared to protein-chlorogenic acid (PC) and native proteins (NPs).

Discerning the dietary habits of the smooth butterfly ray Gymnura lessae using two distinct methods, otolith identification and metagenetics.

Two different methods, metagenetics and free-otolith identification, were used to identify prey in the stomach contents of 531 Gymnura lessae captured by trawling in Mobile Bay, Alabama 2016-2018. Both methods were found to produce analogous results and were therefore combined into a single complete dataset. All prey were teleosts; the families Sciaenidae and Engraulidae were the most important prey (prey specie index of relative importance 89.

Herbivory patterns along the intertidal gradient of Juncus roemerianus salt marshes.

Grasshopper herbivory can vary substantially among locations within a salt marsh or among marshes, but its variability along the marsh intertidal gradient (extending from the shoreline to the upland fringing forest) is not well reported. Previous papers have shown that grasshopper herbivory may affect nutrient processes in salt marsh ecosystems, but how such effects are tied up to the intensity of herbivory and how they vary spatially is poorly known. To help address these gaps, we evaluated whether grasshopper herbivory intensity and herbivore abundance together with other plant characteristics (such as total leaf length, plant live and dead biomass, plant nutrient content and plant nutrient standing stocks) varied along the intertidal gradient of two black needlerush marshes in the Northern Gulf of Mexico.

Unpaid work and access to science professions.

Unpaid work in the sciences is advocated as an entry route into scientific careers. We compared the success of UK science graduates who took paid or unpaid work six-months after graduation in obtaining a high salary or working in a STEM (Science, Technology Engineering and Mathematics) field 3.5 years later.

Site-selection bias and apparent population declines in long-term studies.

Detecting population declines is a critical task for conservation biology. Logistical difficulties and the spatiotemporal variability of populations make estimation of population declines difficult. For statistical reasons, estimates of population decline may be biased when study sites are chosen based on abundance of the focal species.

Population connectivity of pelagic megafauna in the Cuba-Mexico-United States triangle.

The timing and extent of international crossings by billfishes, tunas, and sharks in the Cuba-Mexico-United States (U.S.) triangle was investigated using electronic tagging data from eight species that resulted in >22,000 tracking days.

Economic costs of using tailwater recovery systems for maintaining water quality and irrigation.

Best management practices (BMPs) are conservation efforts implemented to address environmental challenges associated with agricultural production. One such BMP, a tailwater recovery (TWR) system, has a dual purpose aimed at mitigating solids and nutrient losses from agricultural landscapes and creating an additional surface water source for irrigation. This study analyzes the costs of using five TWR systems to reduce solids, nutrients, and retain water.

Comparative studies on ACE inhibition, degree of hydrolysis, antioxidant property and phenolic acid composition of hydrolysates derived from simulated in vitro gastrointestinal proteolysis of three thermally treated legumes.

Three phenolic-rich legume varieties underwent in vitro simulated gastrointestinal proteolytic digestion after a wide range of thermal treatments. Total phenolic content (TPC), DPPH free radical scavenging activity (DPPH), degree of hydrolysis (DH), angiotensin-I converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitory activity of hydrolysates showed significant differences among thermal treatments. TPC values of hydrolysates were significantly (p < 0.

Tropicalization of the barrier islands of the northern Gulf of Mexico: A comparison of herbivory and decomposition rates between smooth cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora) and black mangrove (Avicennia germinans).

The expansion of black mangrove Avicennia germinans into historically smooth cordgrass Spartina alterniflora-dominated marshes with warming temperatures heralds the migration of the marsh-mangrove ecotone northward in the northern Gulf of Mexico. With this shift, A. germinans is expected to outcompete S.

Long-Term Depuration of Crassostrea virginica Oysters at Different Salinities and Temperatures Changes Vibrio vulnificus Counts and Microbiological Profile.

Previous short-duration depuration studies with the eastern oyster ( Crassostrea virginica) demonstrated difficulty in achieving significant naturally incurred Vibrio vulnificus population count reductions. The present study used long-duration depuration (14 days) at controlled temperatures (10 or 22°C) and salinities (12, 16, or 20 mg/g). All depuration temperature-salinity combinations significantly reduced V.

In vitro hypoglycemic, cholesterol-lowering and fermentation capacities of fiber-rich orange pomace as affected by extrusion.

Our previous study suggested that extrusion can enhance the soluble dietary fiber (SDF) and improve the physicochemical properties of fiber-rich orange pomace (OP). The aim of this study was to determine the predictive indices for the hypoglycemic, hypocholesterolemic, and fermentation capacities of extruded orange pomace (EOP) with several in vitro assays. The results revealed that EOP could effectively retard glucose diffusion and inhibit α-amylase activity relative to OP.

Comparison of Whole Plant and Detached Leaf Screening Techniques for Identifying Anthracnose Resistance in Strawberry Plants.

Anthracnose is a destructive disease of strawberry caused by several Colletotrichum species including C. acutatum, C. fragariae, and C.

A multiscale natural community and species-level vulnerability assessment of the Gulf Coast, USA.

Vulnerability assessments combine quantitative and qualitative evaluations of the exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity of species or natural communities to current and future threats. When combined with the economic, ecological or evolutionary value of the species, vulnerability assessments quantify the relative risk to regional species and natural communities and can enable informed prioritization of conservation efforts. Vulnerability assessments are common practice in conservation biology, including the potential impacts of future climate scenarios.

Microsatellite markers for population studies of the salt marsh species (Juncaceae).

Premise Of The Study: (Juncaceae) is a foundational species and ecosystem engineer of salt marshes in the Gulf of Mexico. These ecosystems provide coastal flood attenuation, nurseries for important species, and other ecosystem services, but are experiencing significant decline. Nuclear microsatellite markers were developed for to study genetic diversity and population structure for conservation and restoration efforts.

Species and Media Effects on Soil Carbon Dynamics in the Landscape.

Three woody shrub species [cleyera (Ternstroemia gymnanthera Thunb. 'Conthery'), Indian hawthorn (Rhaphiolepis indica L.) and loropetalum (Loropetalum chinensis Oliv.

A Novel Ilarvirus Is Associated with Privet Necrotic Ringspot Disease in the Southern United States.

Necrotic ringspot disease (NRSD) is a graft-transmissible disorder of privet (synonym ligustrum), originally reported from Florida and Louisiana more than 50 years ago. In this communication we report an isometric virus isolated from Japanese privet (Ligustrum japonicum) collected in the southern United States displaying symptoms resembling those of NRSD. In mechanical transmission tests, the virus induced systemic infections in several herbaceous hosts.