The Influence of Migration Timing and Local Conditions on Reproductive Timing in Arctic-Breeding Birds.

For birds breeding in the Arctic, nest success is affected by the timing of nest initiation, which is partially determined by local conditions such as snow cover. However, conditions during the non-breeding season can carry over to affect the timing of breeding. We used tracking and breeding data from 248 individuals of 8 species and subspecies of Arctic-breeding shorebirds to estimate how the timing of nest initiation is related to local conditions like snowmelt phenology versus prior conditions, measured by the timing and speed of migration.

The forensic educational outreach initiative - Bridging the gap between education and workplace.

Skills and knowledge gaps frequently exist between forensic educational programs and practical forensic laboratory needs. An educational outreach project involving three post-secondary academic institutions and a large multidisciplinary forensic laboratory was created to provide lectures to students, enable mentorship with forensic scientists, and provide an interactive experience within the forensic laboratory. Mentorship mixer exercises encouraged meaningful interactions between students and scientists, creating opportunities for practical discussion on employment requirements, optimal class selections based on students' interests and forensic science requirements, and better understanding of the daily tasks and duties of operational forensic scientists.

Some metals and metalloids in the blood of three species of shorebirds increase while foraging during two-week migratory stopover in Delaware Bay, New Jersey.

Most migratory shorebird species are declining, some are endangered, and some may be vulnerable to contaminants on long distance travel between wintering grounds and high latitude breeding grounds. We examined whether shorebirds accumulated trace elements at the Delaware Bay (New Jersey) stopover by testing the null hypothesis that there was no difference in the levels of arsenic, cadmium, chromium, lead, mercury, and selenium in blood of three species of shorebirds collected early in their stopover compared to levels in blood collected about two weeks later near the end of the stopover, before departing for breeding grounds. There were significantly higher levels of all metals and metalloids in the blood of ruddy turnstone (Arenaria interpres) later in May than earlier.