Characterization of Zymoseptoria tritici populations in Belarus by morphologic and cultural features

Septoria leaf blotch caused by Zymoseptoria tritici is one of the most harmful diseases in Belarus. Isolates of the pathogen were obtained from northern, central and southern populations: in 2018–2019, whichvaried significantly among in the structure of colonies. The rate of fungal isolates forming yeast-like colonies decreased from 55.0 % in the North of Belarus to 6.7 % in the South, whereas incidence of filamentous isolates increased from 31.3 % to 80.0 %, respectively. In the northern population, phenotypic diversity was high, while in the southern population it was the lowest (Shannon’s index was 1.53 and 1.14, respectively).

Occurrence and abundance of young mullet Mugil liza (Teleostei: Mugilidae) in the surf zone along the southern coast of Brazil

The southern population of Mugil liza is distributed from Argentina (47°S) to the state of São Paulo, Brazil (23°S). Young mullets use the estuaries as nursery grounds, and prior to recruitment into estuaries they use the surf zone as a temporary habitat. Based on 12 consecutive months of sampling, this study used generalized linear models (GLM) to analyse the relationships between environmental variables and the presence and relative abundance of young mullets in the surf zone adjacent to six major estuaries in southern Brazil (between 29°S and 33°S). Young mullets were present in all seasons over the sampling period, but the probability of occurrence was higher in winter and was associated with low temperatures. The water temperature alone explained more than half of the total deviance of the GLM models for presence (23%) and abundance (21%) of young mullets in the surf zone. Site 2 (Rio Grande) had lower temperatures in the colder months, the highest probability of occurrence of all collection sites and the greatest abundance (n=3402) of young M. liza, which represented 52% of the total of individuals (n=6493) caught among the six sites sampled.

The influence of night length: Activity of the northern bat Eptesicus nilssonii under conditions of continuous light in midnight sun compared to a southern population

Background Nearly all insectivorous bats (Chiroptera) are strictly nocturnal, flying and feeding only between sunset and sunrise despite lower insect availability than by day, most likely to avoid predation by diurnal birds. This may represent a great challenge to bats living north of the Arctic Circle, which are exposed to bright nights in the period of the midnight sun. The northern bat Eptesicus nilssonii was studied at different latitudes in Norway (69, 66 and 58°N) by three techniques; visual counts of exits from and returns to roosts, infrared detection with a datalogger and an ultrasound data recorder, to reveal how their activity varied across latitude, season, and night, as well as across light levels. How does a nocturnal bat adjust to perpetual light and what light levels are tolerated? Results In the north the bats’ active season lasted 2.5 months, 1.5 months shorter than in the south. The bats only flew in 3-4 weeks of midnight sun, and hardly ever left the roost until the sun went behind a hill in the evening. In addition, the timing of their nightly hunting was highly influenced by the darkness of the sky, and they very rarely flew in light levels above 200 foot-candles (FC). As the night became darker than twilight from early August, the bats restricted their activity to between sunset and sunrise. This was the normal situation in southern Norway, where the bats tracked sunset and sunrise throughout the entire season. Those bats appeared to prefer light levels below 100-50 FC and hence, also did fly in twilight conditions. Conclusions The willingness to fly in twilight by the southern population may be a prerequisite to the northern bat’s survival in the land of the midnight sun. These bats must accept short nights in the first part of their summer season and must be willing to fly in light levels 2-4 times higher than in the south. Most likely, this depends on a reduced predation risk and good abundance of insects at night.

“COMPARATIVE STUDY OF VARIOUS NASAL PARAMETERS AMONG NORTHERN AND SOUTHERN POPULATION OF INDIA”.

Background: The shape of the nose is a signature indicating the ethnicity ,race, age, and sex. Anthropometric parameters vary with age, sex, and ethnic background, and several authors have attempted to document normative values which may serve as references. Materials and Methods: This study includes measurement of different parameters of nose among 14 North Indian(9 males;5 females) and 61 South Indian medical students (27 males;34 females) using vernier calliper and was statistically analysed. Results: The means of various parameters were- 1)Nasal Breadth -2.8cm (North Indians) and 2.7 cm(South Indians).2)Nasal height5.2cm(North Indians) and 4.9cm(South Indians).3)The nasofacial angle-39.4 degree(North Indians) and 37.2 degree(South Indians).4)The nasolabial angle is 118.2 degree(North Indians) and 115.9 degree(South Indians).5)The nasofrontal angle 129.3 degree(North Indians) and 131.3degree(South Indians).6).The most common type of nose is leptorrhine in both North and South Indians. Conclusion: All the measurements can be used for evaluation of nasal deformity, treatment planning and post surgical evaluation of the correction achieved during rhinoplasty.

Testing alternative phylogenetic hypotheses for the tent tortoise species complex (Reptilia, Testudinidae) using multiple data types and methods

We examined genetic differentiation in the highly polymorphic and taxonomically confusing tent tortoise (Psammobates tentorius) species complex in southern Africa, using three types of molecular markers (nDNA, mtDNA and microsatellite DNA) and morphological data. The Approximate Bayesian Computation based simulation analyses advocated an alternative phylogenetic hypothesis for the tent tortoise species complex, which was better and more inclusive in explaining its genealogical history. Based on the evidence derived from the sequence, microsatellite and morphology data, a four species scheme (among the seven mtDNA clades) appears to be the best taxonomic solution for the systematic puzzle of the P. tentorius species complex, namely, “C1+C4+C5+C7”, “C3”, “C2” and “C6”. The microsatellite datasets yielded similar genetic structure and gene flow patterns among the seven mtDNA clades in comparison to the sequence DNA. Evidence was found of possible hybridization between C1 and C2 in their intergradation zone, but not between C2 and C4. Results of the inbreeding analyses provided strong evidence of inbreeding in the eastern population of C1 and southern population of C2, which may be indicative of a bottleneck effect.

Policing History

This chapter examines a handbook produced for military officers stationed in the South, relating some of its central notions to an imperial construction of history in the modern Thai state formation that simultaneously erases the state's conquest of the Islamic sultanate while marking Patani as its Muslim feminized Other. The epistemological grounds on which the handbook rests are central to the whole military project of building understanding. In this narrative, Patani emerges as an ancient Buddhist land incorporated into Siam by mere administrative reform, Siam's crushing of the legal and political power of the former Islamic sultanate is elided, and the Patani population is characterized as adhering to a private Muslim culture. Based on this narrative, the handbook constructs state officers as paternal protectors of the southern population. The military aligning itself with objectivity is especially noteworthy in a conflict region where claims to knowledge — about history, in particular — are among the stated reasons for violence, and in a country where the government restricts open discussions about Patani's history.

Checkpoints

This chapter discusses how checkpoints were the most obvious signs of the militarization of southern Thailand. In general terms, the installation of road blocks from the beginning of the conflict has marked Patani as a different country within Thailand. More specifically, in day-to-day encounters between soldiers and those crossing, racialized ideas have emerged as a key marker to differentiate peaceful from dangerous subjects. The chapter outlines how the racialization of the southern population has historically extended itself to include certain ideas of dress and language, and it details how these differentiations are drawn in contemporary checkpoint interactions. It also shows the gendering of ideas of the Malay khaek, which entails attributing Orientalized and often sexualized beauty to young local girls.

Uneasy Military Encounters

This book presents a historically and theoretically grounded political ethnography of the Thai military's counterinsurgency practices in the southern borderland, home to the greater part of the Malay-Muslim minority. The book argues that counterinsurgency practices mark the southern population as the racialized, religious, and gendered other of the Thai, which contributes to producing Thailand as an imperial formation: a state formation based on essentialized difference between the Thai and their others. Through a genealogical approach, the book addresses broad conceptual questions of imperial politics in a non-Western context: How can we understand imperial policing in a country that was never colonized? How is “Islam” constructed in a state that is officially secular and promotes Buddhist tolerance? What are the (historical) dynamics of imperial patriarchy in a context internationally known for its gender pluralism? The resulting ethnography excavates the imperial politics of concrete encounters between the military and the southern population in the ongoing conflict in southern Thailand.