Increasingly, renewable energy comprises a larger share of global energy production. Across the western United States, public lands are being developed to support renewable energy production. Where there are conflicts with threatened or endangered species, translocation can be used in an attempt to mitigate negative effects. For the threatened Mojave desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii), we sought to compare habitat- and space-use patterns between short-distance translocated, resident, and control groups. We tested for differences in home range size based on utilization distributions and used linear mixed-effects models to compare space-use intensity, while controlling for demographic and environmental variables. In addition, we examined mean movement distances as well as home range overlap between years and for male and female tortoises in each study group. During the first active season post-translocation, home range size was greater and space-use intensity was lower for translocated tortoises than resident and control groups. These patterns were not present in the second season. In both years, there was no difference in home range size or space-use intensity between control and resident groups. Translocation typically resulted in one active season of questing followed by a second active season characterized by space-use patterns that were indistinguishable from control tortoises. Across both years, the number of times a tortoise was found in a burrow was positively related to greater space-use intensity. Minimizing the time required for translocated tortoises to exhibit patterns similar to non-translocated individuals may have strong implications for conservation by reducing exposure to adverse environmental conditions and predation. With ongoing development, our results can be used to guide future efforts aimed at understanding how translocation strategies influence patterns of animal space use.
The federally endangered Alabama red-bellied turtle (ARBT; Pseudemys alabamensis) occurs in an isolated range in southern Alabama and Mississippi. Several distinct nesting populations of ARBT exist within this range. Here we identify eight microsatellite markers to be used for a genetic comparison of members of these populations. Previously isolated microsatellite loci in the related species Pseudemys floridana amplified cleanly from DNA extracted from ARBT tissue samples. Alleles at all eight loci were polymorphic. Alleles ranged in size from 136 to 295 base pairs in length. The total number of alleles at each locus ranged from 2 to 11. Loci showed no evidence of linkage disequilibrium or variation from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium. Observed and expected heterozygosities ranged from 0.13 to 0.88 and 0.12 to 0.84 respectively. Some variation in alleles was observed among members of different nesting populations suggesting that these eight loci will be an important tool in further assessing population structure of Pseudemys alabamensis.
Sorption of a series of substituted azobenzenes from benzene on activated alumina has been studied, and evidence provided that hydrogen-bond formation is responsible for the sorption process. From the isotherm data, standard thermodynamic free-energy changes have been calculated, and it is apparent that hydroxyazobenzenes have a greater affinity for the alumina surface than p-aminoazobenzene. Sorption saturation values are explained in terms of size and orientation of the sorbate molecules, and it is suggested that hydroxyazobenzen& may be sorbed on different surface sites from aminoazobenzenes. The apparent dipole moments of the azo-compounds in benzene and dioxan have been determined from measurements on dilute solutions, but no correlation between A p and free-energy decrease on sorption is observed. That the dipole moments of 2-hydroxy-5-methylazobenzene in benzene and dioxan are almost the same is considered to be evidence of intramolecular hydrogen bonding in this compound. Dipole moments of the azo-compounds in benzene are compared with those of the corresponding benzene derivatives? and explained by the difference in the +M effect of the amino-and the hydroxy-group.(1) Sorption Stzdies.-(a) Materials.
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