Successful conservation depends on an understanding of dispersal patterns for spatially complex s... more Successful conservation depends on an understanding of dispersal patterns for spatially complex species. Among seabirds there are opposing pressures to either disperse or return to natal colonies. We explored philopatry across 36 species, based on banding and census data. Philopatry correlated with foraging strategy, taxonomy, and region, suggesting that translocation will be more successful for Procellariiformes, those in tropical regions and with non-central foraging strategies, as they are more likely to return to translocation sites. Additionally, we compared genetic diversity between two orders of seabirds with differing philopatry and explored population genetics of a species in the order Procellariiformes, the Band-rumped Storm Petrel (BSTP; Oceanodroma castro). Findings indicated no difference in genetic diversity between orders and high genetic diversity within BSTP. Although this study suggests that BSTP are not at risk genetically, they remain vulnerable to threats. Manag...
International Journal for Parasitology: Drugs and Drug Resistance
Rat lungworm (Angiostrongylus cantonensis) is a neurotropic nematode, and the leading cause of eo... more Rat lungworm (Angiostrongylus cantonensis) is a neurotropic nematode, and the leading cause of eosinophilic meningitis worldwide. The parasite is usually contracted through ingestion of infected gastropods, often hidden in raw or partially cooked produce. Pharmaceutical grade pyrantel pamoate was evaluated as a post-exposure prophylactic against A. cantonensis. Pyrantel pamoate is readily available over-the-counter in most pharmacies in the USA and possesses anthelmintic activity exclusive to the gastrointestinal tract (GIT). Administering pyrantel pamoate immediately after exposure should theoretically paralyze the larvae in the GIT, causing the larvae to be expelled via peristalsis without entering the systemic circulation. In this study, pyrantel pamoate (11 mg/kg) was orally administered to experimentally infected rats at 0, 2-, 4-, 6-, or 8-h post-infection. The rats were euthanized six weeks post-infection, and worm burden was evaluated from the heart-lung complex. This is the first in vivo study to evaluate its efficacy against A. cantonensis. This study demonstrates that pyrantel pamoate can significantly reduce worm burden by 53–72% (P = 0.004), and thus likely reduce the severity of infection that is known to be associated with worm burden. This paralyzing effect of pyrantel pamoate on the parasite may also be beneficial for delaying the establishment of infection until a more suitable anthelmintic such as albendazole is made available to the patient.
ANTAKY, C.C., YOUNG, L., RINGMA, J. & PRICE, M.R. 2021. Dispersal under the seabird paradox: Prob... more ANTAKY, C.C., YOUNG, L., RINGMA, J. & PRICE, M.R. 2021. Dispersal under the seabird paradox: Probability, life history, or spatial attributes? Marine Ornithology 49: 1–8. Management of avian species threatened by land use and climate change requires a thorough understanding of their site fidelity and dispersive behaviors. Among long-lived colonial seabird species, the behavior of returning to the natal colony to breed, i.e., natal philopatry, may increase the likelihood that adequate resources and mates are available, but it may also increase the potential for inbreeding, competition, and ecological traps. Successful management of seabird populations—using chick translocation to encourage colony establishment to locations having minimal threats—must also be informed by the likelihood that birds will return to the new sites. However, the extent of philopatry, and the traits that dictate variation across seabirds, have yet to be fully summarized. We evaluated whether seabirds returned...
The Hawaiian Band-rumped Storm Petrel (<em>Oceanodroma castro</em>), listed in 2016 a... more The Hawaiian Band-rumped Storm Petrel (<em>Oceanodroma castro</em>), listed in 2016 as federally Endangered, nests in locations that are difficult to access and spends most of its life at sea. As such, very little is known about movement among islands and the potential for establishing new breeding colonies in managed areas with predator controls. As a first step in assessing connectivity, in this study we evaluated patterns in genetic diversity between populations on two islands known to host breeding populations. Blood or feather samples were collected from twelve birds on Kauai and six birds on Hawaii Island. Kauai and Hawaii Island represent the northern and southern extent of the main Hawaiian Islands, and are approximately 300 miles apart. We performed RADseq on pooled samples from each island. Structuring among populations may be due to high levels of site-fidelity in breeding colonies. Results from this study may be used to inform seabird conservation efforts and...
Seabirds in the order of Procellariiformes have one of the highest proportions of threatened spec... more Seabirds in the order of Procellariiformes have one of the highest proportions of threatened species of any avian order. Species undergoing recovery may be predicted to have a genetic signature of a bottleneck, low genetic diversity, or higher rates of inbreeding. The Hawaiian Band-rumped Storm Petrel (‘Akē‘akē; Hydrobates castro), a long-lived philopatric seabird, suffered massive population declines resulting in its listing under the Endangered Species Act in 2016 as federally Endangered. We used high-throughput sequencing to assess patterns of genetic diversity and potential for inbreeding in remaining populations in the Hawaiian Islands. We compared a total of 24 individuals, including both historical and modern samples, collected from breeding colonies or downed individuals found on the islands of Kaua‘i, O‘ahu, Maui, and the Big Island of Hawai‘i. Genetic analyses revealed little differentiation between breeding colonies on Kaua‘i and the Big Island colonies. Although small sa...
Plant-associated microbes are critical players in host health, fitness and productivity. Despite ... more Plant-associated microbes are critical players in host health, fitness and productivity. Despite microbes’ importance in plants, seeds are mostly sterile, and most plant microbes are recruited from an environmental pool. Surprisingly little is known about the processes that govern how environmental microbes assemble on plants in nature. In this study we examine how bacteria are distributed across plant parts, and how these distributions interact with spatial gradients. We sequenced amplicons of bacteria from six plant parts and adjacent soil of Scaevola taccada, a common beach shrub, along a 60 km transect spanning Oʻahu island’s windward coast, as well as within a single intensively-sampled site. Bacteria are more strongly partitioned by plant part as compared with location. Within S. taccada plants, microbial communities are highly nested: soil and rhizosphere communities contain much of the diversity found elsewhere, whereas reproductive parts fall at the bottom of the nestedness...
Successful conservation depends on an understanding of dispersal patterns for spatially complex s... more Successful conservation depends on an understanding of dispersal patterns for spatially complex species. Among seabirds there are opposing pressures to either disperse or return to natal colonies. We explored philopatry across 36 species, based on banding and census data. Philopatry correlated with foraging strategy, taxonomy, and region, suggesting that translocation will be more successful for Procellariiformes, those in tropical regions and with non-central foraging strategies, as they are more likely to return to translocation sites. Additionally, we compared genetic diversity between two orders of seabirds with differing philopatry and explored population genetics of a species in the order Procellariiformes, the Band-rumped Storm Petrel (BSTP; Oceanodroma castro). Findings indicated no difference in genetic diversity between orders and high genetic diversity within BSTP. Although this study suggests that BSTP are not at risk genetically, they remain vulnerable to threats. Manag...
International Journal for Parasitology: Drugs and Drug Resistance
Rat lungworm (Angiostrongylus cantonensis) is a neurotropic nematode, and the leading cause of eo... more Rat lungworm (Angiostrongylus cantonensis) is a neurotropic nematode, and the leading cause of eosinophilic meningitis worldwide. The parasite is usually contracted through ingestion of infected gastropods, often hidden in raw or partially cooked produce. Pharmaceutical grade pyrantel pamoate was evaluated as a post-exposure prophylactic against A. cantonensis. Pyrantel pamoate is readily available over-the-counter in most pharmacies in the USA and possesses anthelmintic activity exclusive to the gastrointestinal tract (GIT). Administering pyrantel pamoate immediately after exposure should theoretically paralyze the larvae in the GIT, causing the larvae to be expelled via peristalsis without entering the systemic circulation. In this study, pyrantel pamoate (11 mg/kg) was orally administered to experimentally infected rats at 0, 2-, 4-, 6-, or 8-h post-infection. The rats were euthanized six weeks post-infection, and worm burden was evaluated from the heart-lung complex. This is the first in vivo study to evaluate its efficacy against A. cantonensis. This study demonstrates that pyrantel pamoate can significantly reduce worm burden by 53–72% (P = 0.004), and thus likely reduce the severity of infection that is known to be associated with worm burden. This paralyzing effect of pyrantel pamoate on the parasite may also be beneficial for delaying the establishment of infection until a more suitable anthelmintic such as albendazole is made available to the patient.
ANTAKY, C.C., YOUNG, L., RINGMA, J. & PRICE, M.R. 2021. Dispersal under the seabird paradox: Prob... more ANTAKY, C.C., YOUNG, L., RINGMA, J. & PRICE, M.R. 2021. Dispersal under the seabird paradox: Probability, life history, or spatial attributes? Marine Ornithology 49: 1–8. Management of avian species threatened by land use and climate change requires a thorough understanding of their site fidelity and dispersive behaviors. Among long-lived colonial seabird species, the behavior of returning to the natal colony to breed, i.e., natal philopatry, may increase the likelihood that adequate resources and mates are available, but it may also increase the potential for inbreeding, competition, and ecological traps. Successful management of seabird populations—using chick translocation to encourage colony establishment to locations having minimal threats—must also be informed by the likelihood that birds will return to the new sites. However, the extent of philopatry, and the traits that dictate variation across seabirds, have yet to be fully summarized. We evaluated whether seabirds returned...
The Hawaiian Band-rumped Storm Petrel (<em>Oceanodroma castro</em>), listed in 2016 a... more The Hawaiian Band-rumped Storm Petrel (<em>Oceanodroma castro</em>), listed in 2016 as federally Endangered, nests in locations that are difficult to access and spends most of its life at sea. As such, very little is known about movement among islands and the potential for establishing new breeding colonies in managed areas with predator controls. As a first step in assessing connectivity, in this study we evaluated patterns in genetic diversity between populations on two islands known to host breeding populations. Blood or feather samples were collected from twelve birds on Kauai and six birds on Hawaii Island. Kauai and Hawaii Island represent the northern and southern extent of the main Hawaiian Islands, and are approximately 300 miles apart. We performed RADseq on pooled samples from each island. Structuring among populations may be due to high levels of site-fidelity in breeding colonies. Results from this study may be used to inform seabird conservation efforts and...
Seabirds in the order of Procellariiformes have one of the highest proportions of threatened spec... more Seabirds in the order of Procellariiformes have one of the highest proportions of threatened species of any avian order. Species undergoing recovery may be predicted to have a genetic signature of a bottleneck, low genetic diversity, or higher rates of inbreeding. The Hawaiian Band-rumped Storm Petrel (‘Akē‘akē; Hydrobates castro), a long-lived philopatric seabird, suffered massive population declines resulting in its listing under the Endangered Species Act in 2016 as federally Endangered. We used high-throughput sequencing to assess patterns of genetic diversity and potential for inbreeding in remaining populations in the Hawaiian Islands. We compared a total of 24 individuals, including both historical and modern samples, collected from breeding colonies or downed individuals found on the islands of Kaua‘i, O‘ahu, Maui, and the Big Island of Hawai‘i. Genetic analyses revealed little differentiation between breeding colonies on Kaua‘i and the Big Island colonies. Although small sa...
Plant-associated microbes are critical players in host health, fitness and productivity. Despite ... more Plant-associated microbes are critical players in host health, fitness and productivity. Despite microbes’ importance in plants, seeds are mostly sterile, and most plant microbes are recruited from an environmental pool. Surprisingly little is known about the processes that govern how environmental microbes assemble on plants in nature. In this study we examine how bacteria are distributed across plant parts, and how these distributions interact with spatial gradients. We sequenced amplicons of bacteria from six plant parts and adjacent soil of Scaevola taccada, a common beach shrub, along a 60 km transect spanning Oʻahu island’s windward coast, as well as within a single intensively-sampled site. Bacteria are more strongly partitioned by plant part as compared with location. Within S. taccada plants, microbial communities are highly nested: soil and rhizosphere communities contain much of the diversity found elsewhere, whereas reproductive parts fall at the bottom of the nestedness...
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Papers by Carmen Antaky