Mesolithic Hunter-Gatherer Adaptations to Small Mediterranean Island Ecosystems

Insular animals often display broader dietary niches than their mainland counterparts, driven by ecological release, as well as unpredictable or limited resource availability on islands. For instance, insular lizards are known to consume atypical prey, varying from fruits and seeds to dangerous prey, such as scorpions and centipedes. However, systematic comparisons of mainland and insular lizards’ feeding habits and preferences are scarce. In this study, we experimentally tested mainland, island, and islet Aegean wall lizards’ dietary flexibility and preferences. In two setups-sequential feeding and a simultaneous ‘cafeteria’ choice test-we offered lizards typical prey (mealworms, crickets), animal-based (eggs, fish) and plant-based (fruits, leaves, capers) foods, and dangerous arthropods (scorpions). We recorded their willingness to inspect and consume each item, along with their neophilic (latency to inspect) and stress-related behaviors (tail waving, foot shakes, and startles) upon encounter. As predicted, island and islet lizards incorporated a wider variety of food items in their diet but maintained the same preference for typical prey as the mainland ones. Nevertheless, island and islet lizards also showed an increased inclination toward fruit consumption, especially watermelon, probably due to its high water content. Interestingly, mainland lizards exhibited stronger stress responses, particularly when encountering dangerous prey (scorpions). These findings highlight how insularity shapes dietary flexibility and behavioral responses in lizards.

Understanding Police Work in the Remote Northern isles of Scotland: The Extraordinary Ordinariness of Island Policing

From 3200 to 2850 cal BP (1250–900 BCE), the Lapita people of the Bismarck Archipelago (Papua New Guinea) undertook voyages eastward that led to their colonization of the eastern outer Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, Fiji, Tonga and Samoa. The earliest (Lapita) settlements in Fiji were along the Rove Peninsula in southwest Viti Levu Island. At the time of colonization, sea level was 1.5 m higher than today. The Rove Peninsula was then a smaller island off the coast of larger Viti Levu, with a broad, fringing reef along its windward coasts, which was probably the main attraction for Lapita colonizers. As elsewhere during Lapita times in the western tropical Pacific Islands, settlement choice for the initial colonizers of the Fiji Islands was at one level driven by site access, at another by the presence of broad, fringing coral reefs suitable for marine foraging.The earliest settlement along the Rove Peninsula was at Bourewa, occupied first in 3050 cal BP (1100 BCE), where people lived in houses on stilt platforms built along the axis of a subtidal sand barrier; on one side was a broad coral reef, on the other a partly‐enclosed tidal inlet. There is no evidence that the Bourewa settlers practised horticulture or agriculture at this time, their subsistence being predominantly marine foraging. After some 300 years of following this subsistence strategy, the inhabitants of Bourewa responded to sea‐level fall and the arrival of cultivars (of taro and yam) by including horticulture. As sea level fell further, a total of 550 mm during the Lapita era, the tidal inlet dried up and marine‐food resources diminished to a point where the natural environment of the Rove Peninsula could no longer sustain its Lapita inhabitants. All Lapita sites in the area were abandoned about 2500 cal BP (550 BCE), at the same time as the Lapita culture, marked by the end of dentate‐pottery manufacture, came to an end in Fiji.

From Awashimadai to Star Carr: A Japanese Jomon perspective on the subsistence strategies and settlement patterns of Early Mesolithic hunter–gatherers in the Vale of Pickering, UK

Feed is a crucial factor in enhancing quail (Coturnix-coturnix Japonica) productivity. A Frequently used protein source in quail feed is Meat Bone Meal (MBM). However, MBM is an imported product, making it relatively expensive. An alternative to MBM is utilizing locally sourced feed ingredients, such as black soldier fly maggot. This study aims to evaluate the characteristics of quail carcasses and non-carcass components from quails fed a diet containing black soldier fly maggot meal. The observed variables include slaughter weight, carcass weight, and its percentage, non-carcass weight and its percentage, commercial cut weight, and carcass percentage, as well as the weight and proportion of both edible and non-edible carcass components. The quail hens used in this study were aged 44-50 weeks and in their laying period. The research process included producing and managing black soldier fly maggot meal, preparing feed, setting up and maintaining cages, slaughtering, as well as cutting and deboning the carcasses. The treatment applied was R0 (feed with the primary protein source being MBM) and R1 (feed with the primary protein source of black soldier fly maggot). The collected data were analyzed using a two-sample t-test. The result showed that quail fed with black soldier fly meal as the primary protein source had no significant impact on slaughter weight, carcass and non-carcass percentage, commercial cut percentage, or the proportion of edible and non-edible parts. The conclusion of this study is that maggot can be used as an alternative protein source in feed as a substitute for MBM because quails fed with black soldier fly maggot flour as th eprimary protein source produced carcass and non carcass characteristics similar to those of quails fed with MBM as the main protein source.

Maluku Province is an archipelagic province consist of 1,340 islands mostly classified as small island and has the total area of 712,479.69 km2 of which 658,331.52 km2 (92.4%) are marine and only 54.15 km2 (7.6%) are terrestrial. This geographic condition causes high insularity and approximately 34% of villages in Maluku are without electricity and it is highly impossible to provide every remote small island with the power supply. Solar and wind penetration into existing diesel systems can be considered as a breakthrough to meet the need for power supply for these remote islands. A techno-economic analysis is applied to perform a design of an optimal hybrid solar-wind-diesel power plant to serve the load of the villages at these remote islands. The hybrid plant can reduce cost about 20% as well decrease of greenhouse gas emissions of diesel generator alone. Based on the result obtained, the villages in Maluku Province particularly those at the remote area are the potential candidate for deployment of the proposed hybrid solar wind-diesel power plant for electricity generation.

In this article, the definition of sustainability is discussed, particularly in relation to the use of marine feed resources. The current review gives an overview of the development of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) aquaculture and how it has evolved due to changes in legal and management framework conditions. Atlantic salmon production is characterized with high utilization of nutrients, a high yield of production, and a large demand for rendered by-products. All of these factors compare favorably to production of most terrestrial farm animals. Historically, salmon feed has contained fishmeal and fish oil as the primary protein and fat source. Rising demand for feed ingredients has not increased pressure on forage fish resources. Rather, there has been an increased use of plant protein and fat sources. Increased utilization of plant ingredients may not be as sustainable as often claimed. Provided that marine harvest is carried out within legal frames, harvesting the marine ecosystem is a sustainable operation, and at present, the only significant source of long chain n-3 fatty acids. It is concluded that Atlantic salmon farming can be compared to raising a marine “super chicken” being among the most sustainable meat products in the world food market.

Remote coral islands are not always the idyllic concept people have of them. Some are paradise on earth, with golden sandy beaches, palms swaying in the breeze, surrounded by clear blue water. Others are barren featureless places, de void of any kind of life, or so it may seem on first encountering them. Many remote tropical islands are formed by volcanic activity when molten rock wells up through fissures in the ocean floor. The molten rock cools and solidifies. With further volcanic activity the rock builds up and eventually breaks through the ocean surface, creating a new island. Remote coral islands can be formed by accu mulation of coral in shallow water or on sub

Can diet be inferred from the biomechanical response to simulated biting in modern and pre-historic human mandibles?

This study quantified the physical activity of older residents of two small remote Japanese islands and identified associated factors. A questionnaire survey and accelerometer measurements collected data from 79 participants aged ≥ 65 years on Kabashima and Hisakajima Islands in May-June 2024. The median daily step count was 4555, similar to or higher than national averages. Significant associations were found between physical activity levels and age, living alone, car ownership, frequency of going out, and self-rated health. The smallest community had the highest median step count. There was substantial day-to-day variation in individual activity levels. Despite lacking environmental factors that earlier studies have identified as promoting physical activity, the residents' activity levels were higher than mainland averages, suggesting that relationships between neighborhood environment and physical activity are dependent on the context of populations. Possible explanations for the physical activity of our study participants include health-conscious behaviors of older islanders, unique environmental factors on small islands promoting activity, self-selection to live in an environment that requires physical activity, selection bias toward more active individuals, or the possibility that only those who are able to maintain island residence currently live there. Further longer-term research should examine intra-individual variation and elucidate factors influencing physical activity on small remote islands.

A New Look at Culture and Trade on the Azanian Coast

The utilization of maggot as larvae from black soldier fly is an alternative substitution of fish meal as the primary protein source in fish feed. Maggot is cultivated in 3 different cultivation, the medium used is organic waste, tofu waste, and wheat pollard. The method that used in this research is Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with 3 treatments and 3 replication. This study aims to determine the effect of various types of maggot growth media, 1) with maggot biomass parameters, containers, and growing media conditions maggot, 2) then, exact proximate composition, total amino acids content of the prepupae samples were determined. Based on the results of the analysis, each dose of treatment (media) has an influence on the different maggot biomass. The best media treatment results are pollard flour. The proximate analysis showed that BSF larvae had a protein content of 50,88% and also fat content of 15%.

Two experiments were conducted to determine the crude protein requirement and the effect of dietary protein on body composition of fingerling walleyes. In the first experiment, quadruplicate lots of 55 fish (x = 8 g) were housed in 130-liter flow-through tanks and fed one of six isocaloric (3720 kcal/kg ME) diets ranging from 37 to 57% protein. In the second experiment, quadruplicate lots of four fish (x = 50 g) housed in 18-liter cylindrical tanks were fed one of six isocaloric diets (3470 kcal/kg ME) ranging from 32 to 52% protein. Anchovy meal was the primary protein source, and synthetic amino acids were supplemented to match the amino acid profile of the unfertilized walleye egg. Tanks were supplied with 3 liters of 21 C water per minute. Photoperiod was automatically controlled providing 12 hours of light and simulated dawndusk periods. Fish were collected at the beginning and end of each experiment for body composition analysis. Three mathematical models were fit to the data. The best fitting model, as determined by the lowest residual sum of squares, was used to estimate the protein requirement. Weight gain increased quadratically with increasing dietary protein to a breakpoint at 50% protein (p<.05) in the first experiment and 42% (p<.10) in the second experiment. The grams of carcass protein, ash and moisture gained increased linearly and carcass fat quadratically with increased dietary protein in both experiments. Maximum fat gain was predicted to occur at 48 and 42% protein in experiments one and two, respectively. Carcass condition factor was optimized at 43% protein (p<.05) in

Plant-based feed is the primary protein source in poultry nutrition.It includes legume seeds, cakes and meals.White lupine is of particular interest, as its seeds contain up to 35% protein, but its use as feed is limited by the presence of alkaloids.This study evaluated the effects of white lupine protein concentrate as a dietary replacement for soybean meal in quail feed.Three groups of quail chicks at the age of 10 days were formed.The experiment lasted 38 days.Double-decker cages were used to keep birds in accordance with zootechnical standards.All the birds had free access to drinking bowl and feeder.Quails of all groups received factory-prepared compound feed (PK).Birds of the first group were fed compound feed (95%) and extruded soybeans (5%) (Positive control).Instead of soybeans, the diet of quails from the second group consisted of extruded seeds of the white lupine equivalent in protein.The third group of quails was fed lupine concentrate obtained by enzymolysis of extruded seeds of the white lupine.Observations of the survivability, physiological state, live weight dynamical changes in quails, and feed consumption were made in the course of the experiment.A positive effect on the growth dynamics, live weight ga in and meat productivity of quails was observed after replacing extruded soybeans with white lupine processing products in the compound feed.Quail receiving compound feed with lupine protein concentrate had carcasses with breast and leg muscle weight higher by 19.63% and 10.63%, respectively (P0.05).The use of lupine feed additives did not have a negative effect on the physiological status and blood composition of quails.Compared with the control, the blood of quails that received lupine additives had hemoglobin and hematocrit levels higher by 9.8% and 3.7%, 21.8% and 7.6%, and decreased level of creatinine and bilirubin, urea, uric acid, liver enzymes, such as gamma -glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT).The feasibility and economic efficiency of using lupine additives is confirmed by the fact that the consumption of compound feed per unit of live weight gain of quails in the second and third groups was reduced by 3. 5% and 8.5%, respectively.Feed additives based on extruded and fermented white lupine seeds can be an alternative to soy products in feeding poultry, in particular quails.

Aquaculture has witnessed remarkable growth in recent decades, driven by increasing demand for fish as a source of protein and the depletion of wild fish stocks. Fish feeds constitutes 40-60% of total cost of aquaculture production, which has made the production of fish highly expensive. Fish meal and soy bean meal have been the primary protein sources in aquaculture feeds due to their excellent nutritional profiles, including well- balanced amino acid composition and high digestibility. However, the competitive nature and rising costs of theses major protein sources have prompted researchers to explore alternative plant-based protein sources. Plant-based proteins offer several advantages such as lower cost, greater availability and potential sustainability for fish feed production. Therefore, attempts are made to cut down the cost of production without actually compromising in the nutritional quality and bioavailability of feed ingredients for fish culture. The first approach towards the research was by gathering the seeds together, and subjecting them into fermentation process technique that lasted for 5 days. This was done to detoxify the A. muricata seeds of some anti- nutritional factors to enhance the nutrient value of the plant seed. The fermented seeds were brought out and air-dried at room temperature of 20-25℃ for 4 days. The air-dried seeds were grounded into powdery form and subjected to Amino Acid Analysis, using the High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) equipped with a binary pump and UV/Vis detectors. This was followed with a fluorescence detector to separate them into columns for individual amino acid separation and identification. The results revealed a total a total of 18 Amino Acids identified, with Total Amino Acid content of 106.13g/100g Crude Protein, 45.929/100g Total Essential Amino Acids (TEAA) and 60.21 Non-Essential Amino-Acid (TNAA). Among the Essential Amino Acids identified, arginine exhibited the mean value of 8.12±0.19g/100g Crude Protein, followed by Leucine (6.55±0.16)g/100g and Phenylalanine (6.45±0.19)g/100 Protein respectively. However, Lysine content of 4.61±0.08g/100g. Protein was lower than the recommended level of 5.50g/100g Protein. The Predicted Protein Efficiency Ratio (P-PER) of 1.45 suggests a good protein quality and digestibility. The Total Sulfur Amino Acid content of 4.50g/100g Crude Protein was within the recommended range. Compared to the conventional plant- protein sources,sour sop. Seeds exhibited a higher Total Essential Amino Acid content than soy bean meal (39.60g/100g), but lower than fish meal (57.60g/100g) Crude Protein. The Amino Acid profile of A. muricata (Sour Sop) seeds indicates their potential as a valuable protein sources for fish feed formulation, particularly when combine with other protein sources to complement the Amino Acid composition.