Lyme disease in the United States is caused by the bacterial spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi s.s. (Johnson, Schmid, Hyde, Steigerwalt, and Brenner), which is transmitted by tick vectors Ixodes scapularis (Say) and I. pacificus (Cooley and Kohls). Borrelia lonestari, transmitted by the tick Amblyomma americanum L., may be associated with a related syndrome, southern tick-associated rash illness (STARI). Borrelia lonestari sequences, reported primarily in the southeastern states, have also been detected in ticks in northern states. It has been suggested that migratory birds may have a role in the spread of Lyme disease spirochetes. This study evaluated both migratory waterfowl and nonmigratory wild turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo silvestris, Eastern wild turkey) for B. burgdorferi and B. lonestari DNA sequences. A total of 389 avian blood samples (163 migratory birds representing six species, 125 wild turkeys harvested in habitats shared with migratory birds, 101 wild turkeys residing more distant from migratory flyways) were extracted, amplified, and probed to determine Borrelia presence and species identity. Ninety-one samples were positive for Borrelia spp. Among migratory birds and turkeys collected near migration routes, B. burgdorferi predominated. Among turkeys residing further away from flyways, detection of B. lonestari was more common. All A. americanum ticks collected from these areas were negative for Borrelia DNA; no I. scapularis were found. To our knowledge, this represents the first documentation of B. lonestari among any birds.
Twenty-four new species of the caddisfly genus Polycentropus (Insecta: Trichoptera: Polycentropodidae) occurring in Brazil are diagnosed, described, and the male genitalia of each are illustrated. Eighteen of the new species are placed in the Polycentropus jorgenseni species complex of the Polycentropus gertschi group of New World Polycentropus sensu lato. Furthermore, 6 new species within the Polycentropus gertschi group (Polycentropus ancistrus sp. n., Polycentropus boraceia sp. n., Polycentropus carioca sp. n., Polycentropus froehlichi sp. n., Polycentropus galharada sp. n., and Polycentropus graciosa sp. n.) are placed in an informal diagnostic cluster of species with Polycentropus urubici Holzenthal and Almeida. Ten of the other Polycentropus gertschi group species form a second cluster of diagnostically similar species, the Polycentropus soniae cluster (Polycentropus caaete sp. n., Polycentropus carolae sp. n., Polycentropus cheliceratus sp. n., Polycentropus fluminensis sp. n., Polycentropus itatiaia sp. n., Polycentropus minero sp. n., Polycentropus santateresae sp. n., Polycentropus soniae sp. n., Polycentropus tripui sp. n., and Polycentropus virginiae sp. n.). Two of the remaining 8 new species are included in the Polycentropus jorgenseni species complex (Polycentropus cipoensis sp. n. and Polycentropus verruculus sp. n.), while the remaining 6 are unique and cannot be placed in one of the groups at this time (Polycentropus acinaciformis sp. n., Polycentropus amphirhamphus sp. n., Polycentropus cachoeira sp. n., Polycentropus inusitatus sp. n., Polycentropus paprockii sp. n. and Polycentropus rosalysae sp. n.).
The focus of within‐channel restoration is the placement and construction of instream habitat structures to enhance the capture of organic detritus and aufwuchs, as well as, colonization by macroinvertebrate and fish species. Structural design is based upon the assumption that these habitat requirements can be controlled through the design of structures that produce preferred physical and chemical conditions in relation to flow conditions. Restoration scientists are assuming that hydraulic conditions are one primary template that govern the distribution of lotic organisms. For benthic macroinvertebrates, substrate composition is the most easily manipulated habitat characteristic. The most common structures for fish habitat enhancement have been current deflectors, overpour structures (dams and weirs) and instream cover, especially for juveniles. These instream structures also modify local hydraulic conditions to present preferred habitat to benthic invertebrates. The physical habitat simulation (PHABSIM), a software package used in the instream flow incremental methodology, was used to evaluate stream enhancement activities on a low‐order stream, with the placement of a series of three‐log weirs on Brushy Branch, a second‐order stream in Tennessee, and compared with published results of a hydraulically similar concrete structure on a large‐order system used to re‐regulate flows downstream of peaking hydropower facility on the Cumberland River, Tennessee. On Brushy Branch, the simulation demonstrated that benthic macroinvertebrate habitat can be dramatically increased at low flows (up to five times higher) after placement of structures that improve hydraulic conditions to sustain maximum diversity of the benthic community. In this case, then, the structures acted to augment habitat under low flow conditions. Reregulation dams, on large rivers, modify the water surface elevation and dampen high velocities, which enhances habitat for juvenile and adult salmonids when subject to the high discharge surges of peaking generation. Thus, these low‐head structures augment habitat under high flow conditions. Hydraulic habitat models, then, can be a useful tool to evaluate the benefit of certain restoration activities and, in the case of weir‐like structures, indicate that similar structures impart similar benefit, regardless of scale of application.
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