Egg to adult survival of the bush fly, Musca vetustissima Walker (Diptera: Muscidae), in irrigated pastures when flood-caused mortality is prevented

1986 ◽  
Vol 76 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-62 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. N. Matthiessen ◽  
L. Hayles
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
Adult Survival ◽  
Cattle Dung ◽  
Irrigation Period ◽  
Western Australian ◽  
Australian Summer

AbstractSurvival of Musca vetustissima Walker from egg to adult in nutritious cattle dung from pasture irrigated during the dry south-western Australian summer was measured in the field. When drowning was prevented by placing dung on a low embankment, survival was high for only the first two months of the fly season, which included the first month of the five-month irrigation period. Substantial emergence of wild M. vetustissima adults from naturally- infested dung occurred only around that time. Survival was so low during the last four months of irrigation, even in the absence of mortality caused by drowning, that irrigated pasture areas in south-western Australia are unlikely to have significantly greater potential for breeding of M. vetustissima than non-irrigated pastures during most of the summer.

scholarly journals Preliminary survival and movement data for a declining population of Flesh-footed Shearwater Ardenna carneipes in Western Australia provides insights into marine threats

2018 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 327-337 ◽  
Author(s):  
JENNIFER L. LAVERS ◽  
SIMEON LISOVSKI ◽  
ALEXANDER L. BOND
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
Survival Rates ◽  
Adult Survival ◽  
Seabird Species ◽  
Movement Data ◽  
Central Indian Ocean ◽  
Breeding Grounds ◽  
Wintering Areas ◽  
Fisheries Bycatch ◽  
Western Australian

SummarySeabirds face diverse threats on their breeding islands and while at sea. Human activities have been linked to the decline of seabird populations, yet over-wintering areas typically receive little or no protection. Adult survival rates, a crucial parameter for population persistence in long-lived species, tend to be spatially or temporally restricted for many seabird species, limiting our understanding of factors driving population trends at some sites. We used bio-loggers to study the migration of Western Australian Flesh-footed Shearwaters Ardenna carneipes carneipes and estimated adult survival over five years. Western Australia is home to around 35% of the world’s breeding Flesh-footed Shearwaters, a population which was up-listed to Vulnerable in 2015. During the austral winter, shearwaters migrated across the central Indian Ocean to their non-breeding grounds off western Sri Lanka. Low site fidelity on breeding islands, mortality of adult birds at sea (e.g. fisheries bycatch), and low annual breeding frequency likely contributed to the low estimated annual adult survival (2011–2015: ϕ = 0.634-0.835).

Bush fly, Musca vetustissima Walker (Diptera: Muscidae), control in relation to seasonal abundance of scarabaeine dung beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) in south-western Australia

1988 ◽  
Vol 78 (4) ◽  
pp. 633-639 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. J. Ridsdill-Smith ◽  
J. N. Matthiessen
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
Dry Weight ◽  
Dung Beetle ◽  
Early Summer ◽  
Dung Beetles ◽  
Seasonal Abundance ◽  
Adult Survival ◽  
Cattle Dung ◽  
Beetle Species ◽  
Additional Species

AbstractSeasonal patterns of abundance of Musca vetustissima Walker and scarabaeine dung beetles were measured at Busselton in south-western Australia for two years before and three years after, the introduction and establishment of two species of summer-active dung beetles, Oniticellus pallipes (F.) and Onthophagus binodis (Thunberg). Previously, only a single winter-active native dung beetle species, O. ferox Harold, occurred in this area. The mean dry weight of dung beetles trapped in December (early summer) was unaffected by the establishment of the additional species, and fly populations remained high. In January, however, dung beetle dry weight increased more than 60-fold and M. vetustissima abundance fell to 12% of its previous value, essentially halving the duration of major fly problems in the area. Virtually no flies emerged from cattle dung after December, when dung beetle activity reduced egg-adult survival of M. vetustissima to only 0·5%. It is proposed that better M. vetustissima control could be achieved in much of south-western Australia by introducing additional dung beetle species that are abundant in November and December.

Persistence of giants: population dynamics of the limpet Scutellastra laticostata on rocky shores in Western Australia

2020 ◽  
Vol 646 ◽  
pp. 79-92
Author(s):  
RE Scheibling ◽  
R Black
Keyword(s):  
Population Dynamics ◽  
Western Australia ◽  
Size Structure ◽  
Survival Rates ◽  
Maximum Size ◽  
High Rate ◽  
Adult Survival ◽  
Rocky Shores ◽  
Adult Size ◽  
Decadal Time Scale

Population dynamics and life history traits of the ‘giant’ limpet Scutellastra laticostata on intertidal limestone platforms at Rottnest Island, Western Australia, were recorded by interannual (January/February) monitoring of limpet density and size structure, and relocation of marked individuals, at 3 locations over periods of 13-16 yr between 1993 and 2020. Limpet densities ranged from 4 to 9 ind. m-2 on wave-swept seaward margins of platforms at 2 locations and on a rocky notch at the landward margin of the platform at a third. Juvenile recruits (25-55 mm shell length) were present each year, usually at low densities (<1 m-2), but localized pulses of recruitment occurred in some years. Annual survival rates of marked limpets varied among sites and cohorts, ranging from 0.42 yr-1 at the notch to 0.79 and 0.87 yr-1 on the platforms. A mass mortality of limpets on the platforms occurred in 2003, likely mediated by thermal stress during daytime low tides, coincident with high air temperatures and calm seas. Juveniles grew rapidly to adult size within 2 yr. Asymptotic size (L∞, von Bertalanffy growth model) ranged from 89 to 97 mm, and maximum size from 100 to 113 mm, on platforms. Growth rate and maximum size were lower on the notch. Our empirical observations and simulation models suggest that these populations are relatively stable on a decadal time scale. The frequency and magnitude of recruitment pulses and high rate of adult survival provide considerable inertia, enabling persistence of these populations in the face of sporadic climatic extremes.

Factors that contribute to urban–rural gradients in risk of schizophrenia: Comparing Danish and Western Australian registers

2021 ◽  
pp. 000486742110096
Author(s):  
Oleguer Plana-Ripoll ◽  
Patsy Di Prinzio ◽  
John J McGrath ◽  
Preben B Mortensen ◽  
Vera A Morgan
Keyword(s):  
Confidence Interval ◽  
Western Australia ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Proportional Hazards ◽  
Cox Proportional Hazards ◽  
Hazard Ratio ◽  
Indigenous Status ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Western Australian

Introduction: An association between schizophrenia and urbanicity has long been observed, with studies in many countries, including several from Denmark, reporting that individuals born/raised in densely populated urban settings have an increased risk of developing schizophrenia compared to those born/raised in rural settings. However, these findings have not been replicated in all studies. In particular, a Western Australian study showed a gradient in the opposite direction which disappeared after adjustment for covariates. Given the different findings for Denmark and Western Australia, our aim was to investigate the relationship between schizophrenia and urbanicity in these two regions to determine which factors may be influencing the relationship. Methods: We used population-based cohorts of children born alive between 1980 and 2001 in Western Australia ( N = 428,784) and Denmark ( N = 1,357,874). Children were categorised according to the level of urbanicity of their mother’s residence at time of birth and followed-up through to 30 June 2015. Linkage to State-based registers provided information on schizophrenia diagnosis and a range of covariates. Rates of being diagnosed with schizophrenia for each category of urbanicity were estimated using Cox proportional hazards models adjusted for covariates. Results: During follow-up, 1618 (0.4%) children in Western Australia and 11,875 (0.9%) children in Denmark were diagnosed with schizophrenia. In Western Australia, those born in the most remote areas did not experience lower rates of schizophrenia than those born in the most urban areas (hazard ratio = 1.02 [95% confidence interval: 0.81, 1.29]), unlike their Danish counterparts (hazard ratio = 0.62 [95% confidence interval: 0.58, 0.66]). However, when the Western Australian cohort was restricted to children of non-Aboriginal Indigenous status, results were consistent with Danish findings (hazard ratio = 0.46 [95% confidence interval: 0.29, 0.72]). Discussion: Our study highlights the potential for disadvantaged subgroups to mask the contribution of urban-related risk factors to risk of schizophrenia and the importance of stratified analysis in such cases.

Life cycle of the western school prawn, Metapenaeus dalli Racek, in a Western Australian estuary

1986 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 95 ◽  
Author(s):  
IC Potter ◽  
JW Penn ◽  
KS Brooker
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Western Australia ◽  
Sexual Maturity ◽  
Second Year Of Life ◽  
Second Year ◽  
Australian Estuary ◽  
Western Australian

The absence of marine records for M. dalli below latitude 31�S., together with data on gonadal stages and spermatophore deposition on females of this species in the Swan estuary, provide very strong indications that the western school prawn typically breeds in estuarine environments in south-western Australia. The 0 + recruits, which first appeared in samples in February, remained in the estuary during the following months and by November had reached a size suitable for exploitation. At this time they were approaching sexual maturity and were starting to move from the shallows to the deeper waters of the estuary where they remained for their second year of life. In contrast to Australian Penaeus species, M. dalli mates during the intermoult period when the shell is hard rather than immediately after moulting.

Aspects of reproduction, and morphology of the penis, of Pseudantechinus woolleyae (Marsupialia : Dasyuridae)

2017 ◽  
Vol 65 (6) ◽  
pp. 357 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. A. Woolley
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
Arid Regions ◽  
Wide Distribution ◽  
Erectile Tissue ◽  
Australian Museum ◽  
Seasonal Breeder ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
One Year ◽  
Western Australian

Woolley’s Pseudantechinus, P. woolleyae, has remained virtually unstudied in the 30 years since its recognition in 1988 as a species distinct from P. macdonnellensis. It has a wide distribution in arid regions of Western Australia. What little is known of its biology comes largely from studies carried out over the years 1988–91 on one wild-caught female and her offspring, and a few specimens held in the collection of the Western Australian Museum. P. woolleyae is a seasonal breeder and young are born from late July to early October. They mature when ~7 months old. Both males and females are potentially capable of breeding in more than one year. Males have accessory erectile tissue that does not form an appendage on the penis.

The Distribution of Phytophthora cinnamomi Rands at Two Sites in Southern Western Australia and at Durras in South-Eastern New South Wales.

1982 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 139 ◽  
Author(s):  
WM Blowes ◽  
WA Heather ◽  
N Malajczuk ◽  
SR Shea
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
Phytophthora Cinnamomi ◽  
New South ◽  
New South Wales ◽  
Native Forest ◽  
Prevention Strategies ◽  
South Eastern ◽  
Isolation Techniques ◽  
South Wales ◽  
Western Australian

Native forest at Durras in south-eastern New South Wales and Jarrahdale in south-western Western Australia was examined for the presence of Phytophthora cinnamomi by two sampling and isolation techniques. With the lupin seeding baiting technique, randomly selected samples of soil and fine roots collected from the New South Wales site yielded P. cinnamomi when baited, while similar baiting of comparable samples from Western Australia failed. Direct plating of samples of upper roots and root collars of recently dead Banksia grandis from Western Australian sites yielded P. cinnamomi, while this organism was not isolated from comparable samples of chlorotic Macrozamia communis collected at the New South Wales site. The results suggest that the form of occurrence of P. cinnamomi and its association with disease in Australia vary in different situations. Viewing each situation independently might ensure the adoption of control/prevention strategies appropriate to all.

scholarly journals Attributes for effective nurse management within the health services of Western Australia, Singapore and Tanzania

2013 ◽  
Vol 37 (2) ◽  
pp. 268 ◽  
Author(s):  
Duncan Boldy ◽  
Phillip Della ◽  
Rene Michael ◽  
Mark Jones ◽  
Shelley Gower
Keyword(s):  
Health Services ◽  
Transactional Leadership ◽  
Western Australia ◽  
Nurse Managers ◽  
Healthcare Management ◽  
Personality Characteristics ◽  
Management Effectiveness ◽  
Cultural Backgrounds ◽  
Beliefs And Values ◽  
Western Australian

Objective. To identify the perceptions of nurse managers in Western Australia, Singapore and Tanzania regarding desirable attributes for effective management of their health services, and to identify and discuss the implications for health-management education provided by Australian universities. Methods. Nurse managers completed a questionnaire covering four key dimensions: personality characteristics, knowledge and learning, skills, and beliefs and values. Each of 75 items were rated as to their effect on management effectiveness, according to a 5-point Likert scale. Results. Skills were considered the most important for management effectiveness by each group. Tanzanian respondents rated knowledge and learning almost as highly, and significantly higher than Western Australian respondents. They also rated personality characteristics and beliefs and values significantly higher than Western Australian respondents. No significant differences were found between Singapore and Western Australia. Conclusions. Participants desired a different relative mix of attributes in their nurse managers, with Western Australian respondents most likely to indicate that transformational leadership contributed most to managerial effectiveness. Tanzanian nurse managers were most likely to advocate transactional leadership, whereas Singaporean nurse managers’ views were located somewhere between. Given that these perceptions are valid, the content and curricula of management-development courses need to be cognisant of the cultural backgrounds of participants. What is known about the topic? Views differ as to the extent to which the criteria for management effectiveness are broadly universal or contingent on culture. This applies to the area of nurse management as it does to healthcare management in general. What does this paper add? It is demonstrated that each of the three quite different countries or states considered identified a distinctive combination of attributes as desirable, with the nurse managers of Western Australia most likely to favour a transformational style of leadership, those from Tanzania a transactional leadership style and those from Singapore somewhere in between. What are the implications for practitioners? Given the country- or state-specific desire for a different relative mix of attributes in their nurse managers, management educators in Australia need to ensure that the content and curricula of their courses are cognisant of the cultural backgrounds of their students. There are also important lessons to be taken on board regarding recruitment of nurses into management positions in terms of each of the four dimensions considered, particularly in terms of desirable personality characteristics and beliefs and values.

Cryptic speciation in a biodiversity hotspot: multilocus molecular data reveal new velvet worm species from Western Australia (Onychophora : Peripatopsidae : Kumbadjena)

2018 ◽  
Vol 32 (6) ◽  
pp. 1249 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shoyo Sato ◽  
Rebecca S. Buckman-Young ◽  
Mark S. Harvey ◽  
Gonzalo Giribet
Keyword(s):  
Western Australia ◽  
18S Rrna ◽  
Mitochondrial Protein ◽  
Molecular Data ◽  
12S Rrna ◽  
Protein Coding ◽  
Complex Morphology ◽  
Velvet Worm ◽  
Three New Species ◽  
Western Australian

There is a yet uncovered multitude of species to be found among Western Australian Onychophora. Kumbadjena, one of the two genera that reside in this region, has been previously suggested to house an extensive species complex. Morphology alone has not been able to elucidate the diversity in this genus and has instead muddled species delineations. Topologies and species delimitation analyses resulting from the sequences of two mitochondrial ribosomal markers (12S rRNA and 16S rRNA), one nuclear ribosomal marker (18S rRNA), and one mitochondrial protein-coding gene (cytochrome c oxidase subunit I) are indicative of several undescribed species. Fixed diagnostic nucleotide changes in the highly conserved sequences of 18S rRNA warrant distinction of three new species of Kumbadjena: K. toolbrunupensis, sp. nov., K. karricola, sp. nov., and K. extrema, sp. nov. The geographic distributions of the proposed species suggest that Kumbadjena is another example of short-range endemism, a common occurrence in the flora and fauna of the region. The extensive biodiversity and endemism in the region necessitates conservation to preserve the species and processes that promote speciation harboured by Western Australia.

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