The expansion of commercial oil palm crop has modified much of the natural landscape, subsequently leading to biodiversity loss in Southeast Asia. Aside from large-scale oil palm monoculture plantations, self-managed oil palm smallholdings are also becoming common in palm oil producing countries, but less is known about how management of the smallholdings affects faunal biodiversity. We argue that it is critically important to understand the role of habitat complexity at the local and landscape scales for maintaining faunal biodiversity in oil palm smallholdings. We used passive sampling methods to survey understory birds, fruit bats, and butterflies in oil palm smallholdings on the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia. We quantified the diversity in each taxon and measured in situ habitat quality and landscape metrics. We found that oil palm smallholdings located near rice fields supported fewer bird species. Proximity to roads can give rise to bird and fruit bat richness. Bird and fruit bat richness declined at sites with high crop density. Fruit bat richness declined, but butterfly richness increased, with the height of oil palm stands. Butterfly richness declined with distance from riparian habitats. Decreased coverage and height of ground vegetation also negatively affected butterfly species richness. We also found that the number of farm houses is positively related to bird, fruit bat, and butterfly species richness. Of the three taxa, only butterfly richness was positively influenced by crop diversity. We found that habitat complexity enables smallholdings to support a diverse community of birds and butterflies, but not fruit bats. These findings imply that oil palm smallholdings can be managed in a conservation agricultural matrix, as the smallholdings were able to maintain farmland biodiversity.
The population and seasonal distribution of Procamallanus daccai (Nematoda: Procamallanidae) in Eutropiichthys vacha (Siluridae) from the Kaptai Lake were studied for a period of 20 months during 1986-1987. A total of 208 fish were necropsied and 5652 worms were recovered, of which 2392 were from 87 infected male fish and 3260 were from 89 infected female fish. Prevalence values varied from 50% to 95%. The intensity and abundance of nematodes fluctuated over the study period and are statistically significant (F=14.87, P<0.0001), and showed a seasonal preference for the summer period (F=33.39, P<0.05). The mean intensity was the highest in the smallest size group at 66.3+/-12.7 which gradually decreased to 4+/-1.89 in the largest size group. No significant differences were found between parasites from male and female hosts, except in the summer. Male parasites were less abundant in the population. Female worms were grouped into immature, maturing and gravid and all these stages were present throughout the year. The highest occurrence of both immature and gravid P. daccai was found during the months of February to April each year. Peak recruitment seems to occur during this period due to the presence of high quantities of immature worms.
Introduction
Children and adolescents living in families affected by mental illness are at elevated risk of developing mental health problems. A range of interventions have been designed to help these young people; however, the effectiveness of these programs is, in some cases, mixed. Our aim was to understand in detail the support needs and experiences of a group of Australian children and adolescents living in families with mental illness.
Methods
Our study is a qualitative in nature. In 2020−2021, we interviewed 25 Australian young people (Mage = 13.60, SD = 2.26, 20 females and 5 males) living with family members affected by mental illness to understand their (the young people's) experiences, and to identify the types of support that these young people considered important or effective. We conducted reflexive thematic analyses of interview data, underpinned by interpretivist assumptions.
Results
We identified seven themes within two higher‐order categories reflecting our aims to understand (1) lived experiences within families affected by mental illness (i.e., increased responsibilities, missing out, and stigmatization), and (2) support experiences, needs, and preferences (i.e., respite, shared experiences with like‐minded others, education, and flexibility).
Conclusions
Our findings hold substantial practical value by informing services, interventions, and conversations that better support young people living in families affected by mental illness.
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