Human-Wildlife Conflicts in the Southern Yungas: What Role do Raptors Play for Local Settlers?

Wildlife persecution due to human-wildlife conflict has become a serious concern for biodiversity conservation, especially for many endangered species. In this context, conservation approaches need to consider the socio-ecological dimensions of each particular situation. The aim of this study was to evaluate the existence, extent and social characteristics of Human-Raptor Conflicts (HRC) in the Southern Yungas region in northwestern Argentina.

The dynamic trophic niche of an island bird of prey.

Optimal foraging theory predicts an inverse relationship between the availability of preferred prey and niche width in animals. Moreover, when individuals within a population have identical prey preferences and preferred prey is scarce, a nested pattern of trophic niche is expected if opportunistic and selective individuals can be identified. Here, we examined intraspecific variation in the trophic niche of a resident population of striated caracara () on Isla de los Estados (Staten Island), Argentina, using pellet and stable isotope analyses.

Analysis of effects of the herbal preparation Circulat on gene expression levels in cultured human fibroblasts.

Circulat is a systemic standardized plant extract formulation that was developed for the prevention of severe manifestations of type 2 diabetes such as necrotic damage of the plantar foot. With the aim of revealing the molecular mechanisms underlying Circulat's biological activity, the effects of Circulat treatment on gene expression levels were examined in the cultured human fibroblast cell line MRC-5 using Affymetrix oligonucleotide microarrays. The analysis identified 187 genes, the expression levels of which underwent significant changes upon Circulat treatment.