Earthbytes

Researchers think use of a common soil bacteria may protect bat colonies from white-nose syndrome

A little brown bat with White Nose Syndrome hangs in the Greeley Mine in Vermont. U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service/Bloomberg

 

Maybe some good news for bats? Chris Cornelison, a wildlife researcher at Georgia State University wonders if Rhodococcus rhodochrous -- a common bacteria found in soil and known to inhibit mold growth on some fruits and crops -- can be used to limit the spread of white-nose syndrome (WNS) in bat communities.

So far, wildlife researchers have tried a lot of different interventions for WNS, but nothing has worked. Cornelison says that bat researchers and wildlife ecologists have been willing to "try anything" out of desperation.

Neel V. Patel writes about this in his recent article at Wired:

Some have used artificial heaters in caves to prevent the fungus from growing. Others tried closing caves off to humans to prevent people from introducing or spreading stowaway spores. They’ve even sprayed fungicides in caves or introduced other fungi that could outcompete P. destructans. The most prevalent intervention, says Indiana State University bat researcher Joy O’Keefe, has been decontamination—spraying anti-fungal solutions on spelunkers and cave tourists, as well as any equipment they are bringing in and out.

O’Keefe, who was not involved with the trials, thinks one of the biggest advantages to using R. rhodochrous is that it negates the need to physically handle bats to treat them. “A lot of bat deaths result from these kind of WNS experiments,” she says. “All that handling can be adverse to bat health by decreasing the energy and disrupting their hibernation even more.”

At this point, says the article, researchers don't necessarily see R. rhodochrous as a "cure" for WNS. The data that's been collected needs more analysis before wildlife researchers can accurately interpret and apply knowledge gained from results. As with treatment of any wildlife disease, researchers will also need to make sure that introduction of R. rhodochrous into bat habitats won’t harm other cave-dwelling plants and animals.

Read more at www.wired.com

I'll be following this research for sure. WNS has been documented in Tennessee bat populations, including (in 2012) the endangered Gray Bat species. I know the area I live in has both natural caves and man-made caves from the coal mining era.

This spring I've seen more bats than I have in the past five years or so. When I moved to Tennessee in 2000, I commonly saw two or three different species of bats clearing the air of insects on spring and summer evenings.

I hope R. rhodochrous proves to be useful for bats and safe for other species. I really need all the help I can get with the bugs up here!

Related articles

finally! - some good news

Bats Treated for Deadly White-Nose Syndrome Released by US Forest Service

Hope for bats with white-nose syndrome

Experimental treatment being used to help save bats in Missouri

US forest service research team releases bats treated for WNS

USGS: Dam Removal Study Reveals River Resiliency

Klamath Basin Tribes and allies from the commercial fishing and conservation organizations stage a rally at the bi-annual meeting of the international hydropower industry- Hydrovision 2006. [Photo credit: Patrick McCulley]

 

Good news for rivers: dam removal works pretty well. A paper published yesterday in Science reports findings that rivers recover relatively quickly from negative consequences of dams once they are removed:

Dam removal and the resulting river ecosystem restoration is being studied by scientists from several universities and government agencies, including the USGS and U.S. Forest Service, as part of a national effort to document the effects of removing dams. Studies show that most river channels stabilize within months or years, not decades, particularly when dams are removed rapidly.

“In many cases, fish and other biological aspects of river ecosystems also respond quickly to dam removal,” said co-author of the study Jeff Duda, an ecologist with USGS. “When given the chance, salmon and other migratory fish will move upstream and utilize newly opened habitat.”

via www.usgs.gov

 

Also see:

Interesting project undertaken by American Rivers: an interactive map inventory showing dam removals between 1936 and 2014.

Article on the Klamath dam removal project: Oregon’s Klamath River Basin One Step Closer to Historic Dam Removal (April 2014)

USGS: 30-Year Scientific Record Examines the Recovery of Mining-Damaged Idaho Stream

A Rainbow Trout Rests Among Cobble Substrate in Panther Creek. Photo credit: Christopher Mebane/USGS

Okay, here’s a pre-Earth Day success story from Idaho!

Panther Creek, a tributary of the Salmon River, “has mostly recovered” from severe damage caused by toxic runoff from the former Blackbird Mine, an inactive mine west of Salmon, Lemhi County, Idaho. The recovery was documented in a long term study recently published by USGS scientitsts in the journal Elementa.

Underground and open pit mining of cobalt, silver and copper caused contaminated discharges from the flow of storm water and snowmelt through soil, sediments and tailings at the mine. It was so bad that from the 1960s through the 1980s, scientists found no fish and very few aquatic insects in Panther Creek. Serious cleanup began at this mine in 1995 by collecting runoff and treating the water for copper and cobalt pollution. Waste-rock pile at the mine were also stabilized.

According to the study, full recovery of salmonid populations occurred within about 12 years. Panther Creek now supports diverse species including Chinook salmon, steelhead, rainbow trout and bull trout.

“I was involved in studies in the early 1990s that documented the extent of the environmental damage,” said USGS biologist Christopher Mebane. “So it’s gratifying to also document the speed and extent to which the ecosystem recovered after cleanup measures started taking hold.”

Mebane is lead author on the paper and collaborated with scientists from EcoMetrix, an environmental consulting group, and Rio Tinto, one of the companies participating in the Blackbird Mine Site Group, which cooperatively manages cleanup activities. 

“Among other things, this study demonstrates the value of long-term monitoring,” said Mebane. “A tremendous amount of money is spent each year on river restoration, but it’s rare to find examples where data were systematically collected, year after year, to learn if cleanup activities really translated into tangible improvements in fish populations and other parts of an ecosystem.”

The complete study, “Recovery of a Mining-Damaged Stream Ecosystem” is available to read or download free from the online journal issue of Elementa: Science of the Anthropocene.

Streamflow Alteration Impacts Fish Diversity in Tennessee River Basin

A new USGS study quantifies how the diversity of fish changes when stream flow is altered in the Tennessee River basin:

The USGS study highlights the importance of the timing, magnitude, and variability of low streamflows and the frequency and magnitude of high streamflows as key characteristics critical to assessing how fish communities change in response to streamflow alteration. This study was completed using fish community data collected by the Tennessee Valley Authority, and predictions of streamflow characteristics at more than 600 locations.

The Tennessee River basin is one of the richest areas of aquatic diversity in the country, if not the world.  However, expanding urban development, more than 600 privately held small dams on medium to small streams, and withdrawal of more than 700 million gallons of water each day threaten this diversity.  Understanding the effect of streamflow alteration on aquatic ecology is increasingly important as change in land use and human population are projected.

Read more in the USGS press release and at USGS Tennessee Project: Environmental Flow Research.

Insectivorous fishes, such as Percinidae darters, Cyprinidae minnows, and Noturus madtoms, are among the most jeopardized fish in the Tennessee River Valley. Insectivorous fish represent a middle ground in the trophic structure of a stream, feeding on invertebrates while being prey for predator species. For their eggs to hatch insectivorous fish must lay them in gravel beds that are relatively clear of sediment. Insectivorous fish are sight-feeding and need clear water for feeding.

See more:

Streamflow influences fish health and abundance in Tennessee

USGS: Tiny Grazers Play Key Role in Marine Ecosystem Health

Tiny sea creatures no bigger than a thumbtack are being credited for playing a key role in helping provide healthy habitats for many kinds of seafood...

Gammarus mucronatus, an amphipod grazer that can promote healthy eelgrass beds. Copyrighted photo courtesy of Matthew Whalen/UC Davis. (High resolution image)

According to a recently published study by the Virginia Institute of Marine Science and U.S. Geological Survey, tiny crustaceans like Gammarus mucronatus (see photo above) play a critical role to protect seagrasses from overgrowth by algae. By eating algae on seagrass, these small animals keep ocean environments healthy for native and economically important species.

“Inconspicuous creatures often play big roles in supporting productive ecosystems,” said the study'd lead author, Matt Whalen. “Think of how vital honeybees are for pollinating tree crops or what our soils would look like if we did not have earthworms. In seagrass systems, tiny grazers promote healthy seagrasses by ensuring algae is quickly consumed rather than overgrowing the seagrass. And by providing additional refuge from predators, fleshy seaweeds that drift in and out of seagrass beds can maintain larger grazer populations and enhance their positive impact on seagrass.”  

 USGS scientist Jim Grace, a study coauthor, says that seagrass habitats are also beneficial to people.

“Not only do these areas serve as nurseries for commercially important fish and shellfish, such as blue crabs, red drum, and some Pacific rockfish, but they also help clean our water and buffer our coastal communities by providing shoreline protection from storms,” Grace said. “These tiny animals, by going about their daily business of grazing, are integral to keeping healthy seagrass beds healthy.”

Comparison of algae fouling on eelgrass with and without grazers. Copyrighted photo courtesy of Matthew Whalen/UC Davis. Copyrighted photo courtesy of Matthew Whalen/UC Davis. (High resolution image)

Without these algae grazers, say the authors, algae could accumulate in a thick enough layer to block sunlight and prevent the seagrasses from photosynthesizing, which would kill them.  The decline of seagrass in some areas is partly the result of excess nutrients in water that stimulates excessive algal growth on seagrasses. 

J. Emmett Duffy of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, another coauathor of the study, says that coastal managers have been concerned for years about excess fertilizer and sediment loads that hurt seagrasses. Duffy sees study results as convincing field evidence that tiny animals that graze on algae can be just as important as good water quality to prevent algal blooms and keep seagrass beds healthy.

The study, “Temporal shifts in top-down versus bottom-up control of epiphytic algae in a seagrass ecosystem,” was published in the recent issue of Ecology, a journal by the Ecological Society of America.

Read more about seagrass:

Related articles

Kaipara is 'last harbour standing'

Tohoku coast faces man-made perils in wake of tsunami

Need to Read: Wales' secret underwater habitats captured by new video project

DamCam: Lowhead Dam Removal on the Harpeth River to Start This Week

via www.harpethriver.org

From the US Fish and Wildlife Service: the City of Franklin and the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation will begin demolition of the City’s Harpeth River Lowhead Dam on Wednesday, July 25, at 11:00p.m.

The project will take out the only barrier on the Harpeth River, a lowhead dam, and improve fish habitat and water quality. The project will also improve public access and enhance recreational opportunities on the Harpeth for fishing and paddling.

Earlier this year the National Fish Habitat Partnership named this project
in their “2012 Ten Waters to Watch list.”  The Department of Interior also
named this project as a model of America’s Great Outdoors River Initiative
to conserve and restore key rivers across the nation, expand outdoor
recreational opportunities and support jobs in local communities.

The total cost of the project is $870,000, with $350,000 in federal grants
to the Harpeth River Watershed Association from collaborative funding
programs of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Southeast Aquatic Resources Partnership, and the National Fish Habitat Partnership for projects to improve fish habitat.The project is expected to be complete in fall of 2012. The Harpeth River Watershed Association is installing a Dam Cam thatwill tape the entire demolition process.To see the Dam Cam go www.harpethriver.org/damcam. This will enable the public to view this project while the area is off limits as a construction site. Water
recreation and canoe/kayak launch is temporarily prohibited during
construction.

 

Glad somebody has a use for all of that dog hair...

While photographing a nesting phoebe, I saw this tufted titmouse collecting hair and fuzz from my dogs' blanket on the porch:

 

 

White-Nose Bat Deaths: Fungus Behind Mysterious Deaths In U.S. And Canada Came From Europe

New info on WNS:

Experts had suspected that an invasive species was to blame for the die-off from "white nose syndrome." Now there's direct evidence the culprit was not native to North America.

The fungal illness has not caused widespread deaths among European bats unlike in the U.S. and Canada. In North America more than 5.7 million bats have died since 2006 when white nose syndrome was first detected in a cave in upstate New York. The disease does not pose a threat to humans, but people can carry fungal spores.

It's unclear exactly how the fungus crossed the Atlantic, but one possibility is that it was accidentally introduced by tourists. Spores are known to stick to people's clothes, boots and caving gear.

Read the rest of the story at www.huffingtonpost.ca

PLoS ONE: Elevated Mortality among Birds in Chernobyl as Judged from Skewed Age and Sex Ratios

ABSTRACT

Background

Radiation has negative effects on survival of animals including humans, although the generality of this claim is poorly documented under low-dose field conditions. Because females may suffer disproportionately from the effects of radiation on survival due to differences in sex roles during reproduction, radiation-induced mortality may result in male-skewed adult sex ratios.

Methodology/Principal Finding

We estimated the effects of low-dose radiation on adult survival rates in birds by determining age ratios of adults captured in mist nets during the breeding season in relation to background radiation levels around Chernobyl and in nearby uncontaminated control areas. Age ratios were skewed towards yearlings, especially in the most contaminated areas, implying that adult survival rates were reduced in contaminated areas, and that populations in such areas could only be maintained through immigration from nearby uncontaminated areas. Differential mortality in females resulted in a strongly male-skewed sex ratio in the most contaminated areas. In addition, males sang disproportionately commonly in the most contaminated areas where the sex ratio was male skewed presumably because males had difficulty finding and acquiring mates when females were rare. The results were not caused by permanent emigration by females from the most contaminated areas because none of the recaptured birds had changed breeding site, and the proportion of individuals with morphological abnormalities did not differ significantly between the sexes for areas with normal and higher levels of contamination.

Conclusions/Significance

These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that the adult survival rate of female birds is particularly susceptible to the effects of low-dose radiation, resulting in male skewed sex ratios at high levels of radiation. Such skewed age ratios towards yearlings in contaminated areas are consistent with the hypothesis that an area exceeding 30,000 km² in Chernobyl’s surroundings constitutes an ecological trap that causes dramatic excess mortality.

via www.plosone.org

More Damning Evidence Points to Pesticide as Cause of Mass Bee Deaths | Common Dreams

Continuing saga of the bees...interesting article:

Bayer-produced imidacloprid harmful to bees even at very low levels

- Common Dreams staff

A new study published in Naturwissenschaften - The Science of Nature by a leading bee expert provides damning evidence that a widely used pesticide, even at low levels, is harmful to bees.

The pesticide that the study (pdf) looked at was imidacloprid, one of the most widely used pesticides worldwide. It is neonicotinoid insecticide produced by Bayer CropScience.

via www.commondreams.org