Lake County Forest Preserves

The timing of life-cycle events (phenology) is key to organism ecology and success. Climate change is shifting phenology to earlier dates globally, but generalizable trends of how phenological change impacts demography are still unknown. Therefore, we conducted a meta-analysis to quantify the effects of interannual phenological variation and phenological shifts on demographic vital rates (survival, growth, and reproduction). Our dataset includes 138 taxa from 83 studies, representing different study approaches (observational and experimental) for plants and animals. Using these data, we asked three primary questions: 1). How does phenological variation affect demographic vital rates? 2). Are directional shifts in phenology predictive of changes in demographic vital rates? 3.) Do relationships between phenology and demography depend on taxa, vital rate, and study type? For studies of phenological variation, earlier events conferred demographic benefits whereas later events were associated with demographic costs, with most of the evidence coming from bird and reproduction-focused studies. In contrast, directional phenological shifts were not predictive of demographic responses over time or in experiments. While there was evidence that phenological events shifted earlier through time, there was not significant change in demographic vital rates over those same time periods. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that organisms may be able to track environmental conditions to maintain demographic performance by shifting their phenology to earlier dates under climate change. Critically, our meta-analysis clarifies that while earlier phenological events tend to confer demographic benefits in the context of phenological variation, directional phenological shifts to earlier timing did not show demographic benefits.

Context Elevated mesopredator populations can pose a threat to species of conservation concern. Aims We sought to evaluate the effectiveness of raccoon removal on their abundance and on Blanding’s turtle nest success. Methods We used an index of raccoon abundance generated from camera-trap data and information on the success of Blanding’s turtle nests to compare adjacent control and raccoon-removal sites. Key results Raccoon detections were more frequent and abundance index values were higher at control sites than at the removal site. However, Blanding’s turtle nest success did not differ between control and removal sites, likely because of differences in nest location and camera proximity. Conclusions The efficacy of raccoon removal for Blanding’s turtle conservation may vary with nest habitat characteristics and can benefit from a priori knowledge of nesting areas. Implications Mesopredator removal can be beneficial to species of conservation concern, provided it occurs in areas of greatest impact.

Erythematous eroded plaque of the gluteal cleft. Eligible for 1 MOC SA Credit From the ABD This Dermatopathology Diagnosis in our print edition is eligible for 1 self-assessment credit for Maintenance of Certification from the American Board of Dermatology (ABD). After completing this activity, diplomates can visit the ABD website (http://www.abderm.org) to self-report the credits under the activity title "Cutis Dermatopathology Diagnosis." You may report the credit after each activity is completed or after accumulating multiple credits.

Blanding's Turtles (International Union for Conservation of Nature [IUCN] Endangered) are long-lived reptiles with delayed sexual maturity. Anthropogenic landscape changes have increased threats to juvenile turtles, resulting in unnaturally low recruitment. Head-starting has become a popular conservation strategy that aims to increase juvenile recruitment by avoiding the increased predation of the vulnerable nest and hatchling age class. However, there is still debate about whether or not it is an effective management tool. Assessments of head-starting are becoming more prevalent, but long-term studies are needed to critically evaluate the success of such interventions. In particular, information is needed on how head-starts fare compared to wild-hatched turtles. The Lake County Forest Preserve District (LCFPD) in northeastern Illinois initiated a long-term capture–mark–recapture project in 2004. As of 2018, 127 wild-hatched juvenile turtles had been captured (59 of which had been captured in multiple years) and 148 adult turtles had been captured (116 of which had been recaptured in multiple years). Since 2010, LCFPD has released 491 head-started turtles during the year following hatching, 138 of which have been recaptured during successive years. We used von Bertalanffy growth analysis to compare growth trajectories and Cormack-Jolly-Seber modeling techniques to compare survival rates of wild-hatched and head-started turtles. At release, head-started turtles were about the size of two-year-old wild-hatched turtles and grew in parallel to their wild-hatched counterparts. The top-ranked survival models demonstrated that survival increased with age for both wild-hatched (71–98%) and head-started turtles (63–90%), with overlapping confidence intervals. These results suggest that head-started juveniles perform similarly to like-aged wild-hatched juveniles despite head-starts having attained greater body size. We estimated adult survival to be 95% with an environmental variance of 0.0011 and stable or positive population growth (λ). Although the success of head-starting cannot be fully assessed until turtles are recruited into the adult population and successfully reproduce, patterns of head-start growth and survival provide positive intermediate measures of success. Our estimation of juvenile and adult survival, along with other demographic information from this population, will provide for more accurate population projections that will aid in evaluating conservation strategies for this population and potentially for Blanding's Turtles elsewhere.

Dionaea flowers are pollinated by insects, primarily bees, in both their native habitat in the Carolinas and in the population growing from seed scattered many years ago in the Florida panhandle, the location of this study. The green sweat bee (Augochlorella sp. is a major pollinator in both habitats, while various flower visiting beetles play a prominent role in the Carolinas and bumblebees (Bombus sp.) play a major role in the Florida population. Flowers open in late morning and pollen is on anthers arrayed directly above the center of the flower by 11:30 EST. Twenty-four hours later the stamens have bent so that the anthers are at the periphery of the flower and the stigma has expanded, presenting a papillate surface receptive to pollen. Insects visit the flower between 11:30 EST and 18:00 EST. Rewards for pollinators are pollen and nectar from glands at the base of the petals. Possible attractants include the bright white radially symmetrical corolla with radiating grey veins, and on the second day, the radially displayed stamens that may act as a 'nectar guide'. No markings on the petals are visible in the ultraviolet light but the pollen-laden anthers are UV-fluorescent and would stand out as a ring of dots to any UV-perceptive insect.

Abstract Multi‐species approaches provide valuable insight for conservation planning, yet most studies focus on only one species while generalizing across taxa. Here, we employed 5–14 microsatellite DNA loci to evaluate population genetic patterns and future vulnerability for a freshwater turtle assemblage distributed across north‐eastern Illinois. Focal species (Emydoidea blandingii, Clemmys guttata, Chrysemys picta and Chelydra serpentina) differ in conservation status as well as in ecological and life‐history traits, which modulate gene flow across heterogeneous landscapes. We hypothesized (1) common and more ubiquitous species (C. picta and C. serpentina) would exhibit higher levels of genetic connectivity compared to species more restricted in distributions and with an elevated conservation status (E. blandingii and C. guttata) and (2) endangered species exhibit a greater loss of future genetic diversity. We found that genetic patterns varied considerably among co‐distributed species. Endangered species had lower levels of genetic diversity and gene flow, more pronounced genetic structure and a higher risk of genetic drift compared to common species, thus supporting our hypotheses. The observed patterns are potentially attributable to life‐history and ecological traits and will affect the long‐term viability of the four species within a modified north‐eastern Illinois landscape. Our study is an important first step for understanding how landscape features and species‐specific traits interact to affect gene flow and population genetic structure within altered landscapes. It also underscores how multi‐species approaches can be informative for conservation actions.

Abstract Headstarting is a conservation technique for improving survival of species with high juvenile mortality by accelerating growth rate and increasing body size of captive‐born young. With reptiles, headstarts are often kept active year‐round to achieve body size goals and increase survival, omitting overwintering (brumation). As brumation is part of the life cycle of reptiles, there may be tradeoffs related to temperature response post‐release when reptiles are kept active. Upon release into habitats, reptiles are either soft released, where acclimation is provided with in situ enclosures, or hard released without acclimation, directly into habitat. Soft releases have resulted in greater survival and site fidelity than hard releases, but evaluations with snakes are rare. We used a comparative approach to examine effects of brumation versus year‐round activity on prerelease growth and survival of smooth green snake Opheodrys vernalis headstarts. We estimated short‐term post‐release daily survival rates of headstarts and compared movements of hard and soft released snakes. Despite decreases in body mass during brumation, prerelease body size, growth rate and survival did not differ among brumation treatments. Brumated headstarts exhibited rapid compensatory growth, attaining the size of active headstarts within 2 months of brumation. We observed qualitative evidence of reproductive potential in brumated snakes with the production of spermatozoa and unfertilized eggs, which was absent in active headstarts. The short‐term survival rate of all headstarts during post‐release tracking was 0.83 (±0.01), but we lacked power to examine differences in survival among release treatments. Daily movements did not differ among release treatments. Soft releases had slightly greater recaptures, facilitating monitoring. Although brumation comparisons produced equivalent prerelease growth and survival, as a precautionary measure for post‐release survival, we recommend incorporating brumation into headstarting efforts. While further study with other reptiles is warranted, we recommend a comparative framework in planning headstarting efforts with additional species.