Pollinator-friendly wildflower and native grass plantings are increasingly incentivized by state and federal agencies to improve ecosystem services provided by pollinating insects on farmland. However, the potential ecosystem service benefits, or even disservices, of pollinator-friendly plantings relative to wildlife, such as resident, migratory, and nesting birds (e.g., wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo)), resident and migratory bats, and white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) are of interest to both landowners and conservation managers. First, we studied bird species diversity, presence, density, and nesting on farms planted with and without pollinator-friendly plantings to evaluate the potential value of these plantings to bird-related values, such as cultural, recreational, and pest-regulating ecosystem services. Second, we quantified bat relative activity through recorded echolocation calls and explored how relative nightly activity varied across common cover types on a farm, by survey year, and by maternity (May-August) versus non-maternity season (September-April). Third, we determined whether white-tailed deer and wild turkey camera trap success and occupancy differed between farms with and without pollinator-friendly farmscaped plots, evaluated along with their relationships to percent cover of natural, developed, crop, and water habitats within 1 km of surveyed farms. We conducted bird point counts across 20 farms on the Eastern Shore of Virginia and Maryland and the city of Virginia Beach, VA during the Spring and Fall of 2017 and 2018. We searched for bird nests in pollinator-friendly plots during the summers of 2017 and 2018. There were no differences in alpha diversity, defined as the number of species per farm per survey period, between control and pollinator farms in either Spring or Fall. We did find differences in species evenness on farms during Spring surveys, as measured by Simpson's index, with pollinator farms having a higher mean Simpson's index. When examining factors relating to presence/absence of our 15 modeled bird species out of 110 species detected on farms, landscape-level cover types were influential in 14 species and presence of pollinator plots was influential for 5 species. After stratification of density estimates by control and pollinator farm study sites, we found that during Spring surveys, the blue jay (Cyanocitta cristata) and Carolina wren (Thryothorus ludovicianus) had lower density on pollinator farms. In the Fall, the blue grosbeak (Passerina caerulea) had higher density on pollinator farms. We found nesting in the pollinator-friendly plots by red-winged blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus; n=7). These nests were placed in locations within the pollinator plots with higher forb coverage than random points in the same plots without nests. We estimated the presence and relative activity of bats in 4 cover types, including forest trail, a forested pond edge, a crop field on forest edge, and a farmscaped wildflower plot, on the Eastern Shore Agricultural Research Extension Center in Painter, Virginia, from April 2017- November 2019 using acoustic detectors. Of total detections, 20.11% were identified as big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus), 17.97% evening bat (Nycticeius humeralis), 15.35% silver-haired bat (Lasionycteris noctivagans), 7.11% eastern red bats (Lasiurus borealis), 3.66% hoary bats (Lasiurus cinereus), 3.1% little brown bat (Myotis lucifugus), and 1.38% tricolored bat (Perimyotis subflavus). Relative activity measured by calls per night varied by cover type, with relative activity highest for all 7 species in the crop field-forest edge and water-forest edge cover types as compared to pollinator plot and forest trail cover types during the maternity season (May-August). All 7 bat species were recorded in the pollinator plot cover type; of the 8,877 calls in pollinator plots, 26.07% were silver-haired bat, 25.21% eastern red bats, 23.78% evening bat, 9.32% hoary bats, 9.11% little brown bat, 5.42% big brown bat, and 1.09% tricolored bat. We used camera trap surveys to measure white-tailed deer and wild turkey occupancy across 20 farms on the Eastern Shore of Virginia and in the city of Virginia Beach, Virginia during the Spring and Fall of 2017 and 2018. Of all wild species photographed, white-tailed deer were most abundant (TS, # captures/100 nights) each survey season, however this varied season to season (Spring 2017 = 98.44 TS, Fall 2017 = 106.01 TS, Spring 2018 = 80.52 TS, Fall 2018 = 99.71 TS). Wild turkey total survey camera trap success was low compared to deer and other wildlife (4.51 TS), and also varied seasonally (Spring 2017 = 1.73 TS, Fall 2017 = 1.50 TS, Spring 2018 = 7.63 TS, Fall 2018 = 5.95 TS). White-tailed deer were detected at all survey locations at least once, and the occupancy of deer decreased as the percentage of developed land within 1km of a farm increased in each survey season. The factors relating to wild turkey occupancy varied by season. In Spring 2017, wild turkey occupancy increased as the percent of natural cover within 1 km of a farm increased. In Spring 2018, wild turkey occupancy decreased as the percent of developed land within 1 km increased. However, landscape variables did not influence wild turkey occupancy in the Fall seasons; rather in Fall 2018 we found that wild turkey occupancy decreased as camera trap success of farm machinery being used increased. Overall, wild turkey had a fairly low presence on all survey sites with an occupancy ranging from 0.18-0.53%, and no clear relationship to explain the change in survey season to season or year to year. Based on these results, pollinator plot presence or absence was not found to influence detection or occupancy of either of these target game species. Rather, other factors, mainly landscape-scale features, were found to have the largest influence on both species' occupancy and presence. Our study is one of just a few in North America to demonstrate some potential benefits of pollinator-friendly plantings to multiple different wildlife species with cultural, recreational, and insect-regulating ecosystem service benefits to landowners. Generally, birds, bats, and our focal game species' presence relied on surrounding landscape variables and forest-edge configurations more than the presence of pollinator friendly plantings. This is probably in part due to the small size of our pollinator plots. We recommend that future work explore potentially increasing the size of pollinator plot plantings or placing pollinator plantings in locations on the landscape with the most surrounding natural area, and least development, to maximize the benefits of this resource to diverse wildlife species with home ranges that are often larger than any one farm. / Master of Science / Pollinator-friendly wildflower and native grass plantings are increasingly used by state and federal agencies to improve benefits from biodiversity such as increases in crop pollinating insects, but the potential benefits of such plantings for vertebrate wildlife are not well studied. We evaluated potential ecosystem services, or even disservices, of pollinator-friendly plantings related to vertebrate wildlife, such as resident, migratory, and nesting birds (e.g., wild turkey), resident and migratory bats, and white-tailed deer. Bird point counts were conducted across 20 farms on the Eastern Shore of Virginia and Maryland and the city of Virginia Beach, VA during the Spring and Fall of 2017 and 2018, and we searched for bird nests in pollinator-friendly plots during the summers of 2017 and 2018. Over the entire project, we saw 110 different species; 96 were identified as insectivorous, indicating the potential for insect regulating services from birds. The total number of bird species observed on farms with pollinator plots were higher than farms without (100 > 90). After division of density estimates between control and pollinator farm study sites, we found that during Spring surveys, the Carolina wren had lower density on pollinator farms while in the Fall the blue grosbeak had higher density on pollinator farms. We found 7 nests of red-winged blackbirds (n=7) in the pollinator-friendly plots and birds preferred nesting in locations within the pollinator plots with more dense flowering plants without woody stem coverage than random points without nests in the same plots. We examined the presence and relative activity of bats in 4 cover types, including forest trail, a forested pond edge, a crop field on forest edge, and a farmscaped wildflower plot on one of our farm sites at the Eastern Shore Agricultural Research Extension Center in Painter, Virginia, from April 2017- November 2019 using acoustic detectors that record bat echolocation. All 7 bat species were recorded in the pollinator plot cover type and of total farm detections, 20.11% were identified as big brown bat, 17.97% evening bat, 15.35% silver-haired bat, 7.11% eastern red bats, 3.66% hoary bats, 3.1% little brown bat, and 1.38% tricolored bat. As expected, relative activity varied by cover type, with relative activity highest for all 7 species in the crop field-forest edge and water-forest edge cover types as compared to pollinator plot and forest trail cover types during the maternity season (May-August). We used camera trap surveys to measure white-tailed deer and wild turkey camera trap success and occupancy across 20 farms on the Eastern Shore of Virginia and in the city of Virginia Beach, Virginia during the Spring and Fall of 2017 and 2018. Of all wild species photographed, white-tailed deer had the highest observations. Wild turkey detections were low compared to deer and other wildlife. White-tailed deer and wild turkey presence were not influenced by the presence of pollinator plots, but rather by other factors, mainly landscape features within 1 km. Our study is one of the first in North America to demonstrate some potential benefits of pollinator-friendly plantings to multiple different wildlife with cultural, recreational, and insect-regulating ecosystem service benefits to landowners. Generally, birds, bats, and our focal game specie's presence relied on surrounding landscape variables and forest-edge configurations than the presence of pollinator friendly plantings. This is probably in part due to the small size of our pollinator plots. We recommend that future work explore potentially increasing the size of pollinator plot plantings or placing pollinator plantings in locations on the landscape with the most surrounding natural area, and least development, to maximize the benefits of this resource to diverse wildlife species with home ranges that are often larger than any one farm.

MENVSC / Department of Ecology and Resource Management / See the attached abstract below

The large-scale use of artificial light throughout the night has occurred in the last 100 years and continues to increase globally. Artificial light impacts many animal and plant taxa. The effects of artificial light on bats is species specific. The Namib Desert in Namibia is still relatively dark but subject to the same drivers of increasing development and urbanization that have increased the spread of artificial light globally. This study investigated the effects of the introduction of ultraviolet, yellow and white artificial light on the activity of bats in a rural environment with minimal development in the Namib Desert. Four sites, 100 m apart, had one light and one bat detector each. The fourth light was a dark control. Each site was sampled four times by each light type. Bat activity was recorded by the bat detectors. Eight bat species were recorded during the experiment. Activity increased for open air and clutter-edge foraging species analysed. Broadband white light caused the highest increases in activity followed by yellow light when compared with the dark control site. Ultraviolet light caused the lowest increases in activity contrary to expectations. / Mengwaga ye 100 ya go feta go bile le koketšego ye kgolo ya tšhomišo ya seetša sa maitirelo bošego ka moka. Setlwaedi se se ata kudu lefaseng ka moka go feta pele, gomme se ama diphoofolo tše ntši le mehuta ya dimela. Leganata la Namib go la Namibia gabotse le sa ntše le swiswetše, eupša le ka fase ga dikgontšhi tša go oketša tlhabollo le toropofatšo tšeo di hlotšego koketšego tšhomišong ya seetša sa maitirelo lefaseng ka bophara. Dikhuetšo tša seetša sa maitirelo go memankgagane di fapana go ya ka mohuta. Nyakišišo ye e nyakišišitše dikhuetšo tša tsebagatšo ya seetša sa maitirelo sa go phadima, serolwane le se sešweu go modiro wa memankgagane ka tikologong ya nagaselegae ya go ba le tlhabollo ye nyane ka Leganateng la Namib. Seetša se setee le tithekethara e tee ya mankgagane di hlomilwe go le lengwe le le lengwe la mafelo a mane, a go arogantšhwa ka 100 m. Seetša sa bone se be se le taolo ya leswiswi. Lefelo le lengwe le le lengwe le dirilwe mohlala makga a mane ka mohuta wo mongwe le wo mongwe wa seetša. Modiro wa mankgagane e rekotilwe ka ditithekethara tša mankgagane. Mehuta ya mankgagane ye seswai e rekotilwe nakong ya eksperimente. Modiro wa mehuta ya sebakabakeng le ya go sela thobekgeng ye e sekasekilwego e oketšegile. Seetša se sešweu sa porotepente se hlotše dikoketšego tša modiro, sa latelwa ke seetša se se serolwane, ge se bapetšwa le lefelo la taolo ya leswiswi. Go fapana le ditetelo, seetša sa go phadima se hlotše dikoketšego tša fasefase modirong. / School of Environmental Sciences / M. Sc. (Nature Conservation)

Ebola virus (EBOV) is a re-emerging zoonotic virus (it is transmitted between animals and humans) that causes acute hemorrhagic fever and a high fatality rate in humans. First reported in 1976 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (formerly Zaire), the virus is transmitted between humans through direct contact with body fluids of an infected person, causing fever, weakness, diarrhea, abdominal pain, cramping, nausea and vomiting in those affected. There is neither a licensed vaccine nor an approved treatment for Ebola virus in human patients. The reservoir species for Ebola virus is similarly unknown, as many studies have attempted yet failed to isolate living virus from potential candidates. The widely accepted and circulated hypothesis based on preliminary findings of outbreaks past is that bat species, specifically the fruit bat species Hypsignathus monstrosus, Epomops franqueti and Myonycteris torquata are potential reservoirs. Recent reports, especially concerning findings from the 2014 Ebola outbreak, have determined that insectivorous bats could similarly be reservoir species. Successful isolation of a live virus from a bat species found through a widened sampling of a variety of bat species would confirm the hypothesis that bats, either fruit or insectivorous, are the reservoir species for Ebola virus.

Vírus da raiva provenientes de 23 morcegos de espécies hematófagas, frugívoras e insetívoras foram caracterizados geneticamente pelo seqüenciamento completo da região que codifica a nucleoproteína N. A análise filogenética das seqüências, incluindo lyssavirus e isolados de morcegos do Chile e Estados Unidos, mostrou que os diferentes isolados do vírus da raiva foram de modo geral segregados em quatro grupos genéticos distintas: morcegos hematófagos, morcegos insetívoros 1, 2 e 3. Os morcegos insetívoros 1 constituiram-se por isolados de Eptesicus furinalis: BR-EF1, BR-EF2, BREF3, BR-EF-4, BR-EA1 e BR-NL2; os morcegos insetívoros 2 consistiram de isolados de Molosssus spp: BR-MM1, BR-MM2 e BR- MA1 e os morcegos insetívoros 3 isolados de Nictinomops laticaudatus: BR-NL1 e BR-NL3. A homologia de nucleotídeos entre cada grupo de morcegos insetívoros 1, 2 e 3 foi maior que 99%, 97% e 99%, respectivamente. O grupo de morcegos hematófagos foi representado pelos isolados de: 3 morcegos hematófagos Desmodus rotundus (BR-DR1, BR-DR2 e BR-DR3); 5 morcegos frugívoros Artibeus lituratus BR-AL1, BR-AL2, BR-AL3, BR-AL4 e Artibeus planirostris BRAP1; 2 morcegos insetívoros (BR-MR1 e BR-EA2) e 2 de espécies não identificadas (BR-BAT1 e BR-BAT2). Entre as amostras seqüenciadas foram selecionadas cinco (BR-EF1, BR-NL1, BR-AL3, BR-MM1, BR-DR1) e um isolado de cão (BR-C) para os estudos de patogenicidade em camundongos albinos suíços inoculados pela vias intracerebral (IC) e intramuscular (IM). Todas as amostras quando inoculadas em camundongos pela via IC apresentaram-se patogênicas, provocando a morte dos mesmos num período de 4 a 14 dias pós-inoculação. No entanto, 500DLIC50 das mesmas amostras inoculadas pela via IM levaram a uma mortalidade de camundongos de: 60% (BR-DR1); 50% (BR-C, BR-NL); 40% (BR- AL3); 9,5% (BR-MM1); 5,2% (BR-EF10). As mesmas amostras foram utilizadas para a verificação de proteção cruzada, conferida por vacina comercial de uso animal, de camundongos que receberam uma ou duas doses de vacina pela via subcutânea (SC) e desafiados pelas vias IC e IM. Camundongos inoculados com duas doses de vacina foram protegidos quando desafiados pela via IC, com todas as amostras testadas. Quando os camundongos receberam uma dose da mesma vacina houve proteção parcial daqueles desafiados com as amostras de vírus PV e BR-C. Houve proteção de 100% dos camundongos desafiados pela via IM, com exceção daqueles vacinados com uma dose de vacina e desafiados com a amostra PV que apresentaram um índice de 66% de sobreviventes. Os resultados indicam a possibilidade de existir variantes do vírus da raiva espécies específicas circulando em morcegos. Sugerem ainda, que espécies de morcegos hematófagos, frugívoros e insetívoros compartilham o mesmo polimorfismo de vírus. A vacina comercial contra a raiva contendo vírus inativado e de uso veterinário protegeu os camundongos contra o desafio com as diferentes amostras testadas, sugerindo que as vacinas usualmente utilizadas são efetivas no tratamento profilático da raiva transmitida por morcegos, apesar da marcada diferença de neurovirulência dos diferentes isolados quando inoculados em camundongos pela via IM. / Twenty-three rabies viruses isolated from hematophagous, frugivorous and insectivorous bats were characterized genetically by complete sequencing of the region coding the nucleoprotein N. The phylogenetic analysis of the sequences, including the lyssavirus and the bat isolates from Chile and USA revealed that the isolates were segregated into four distinct genetic lineages: those related to the vampire bats and to the insectivorous bats 1, 2 and 3. The isolates related to the insectivorous bats 1 were from the Eptesicus furinalis: BR-EF1, BR- EF2, BREF3, BR-EF-4, BR-EA1 e BR-NL2; those of the insectivorous bats2 included the isolates from Molosssus spp: BR-MM1, BR-MM2 and BR-MA1 and the group 3, by the isolates from the Nictinomops laticaudatus: BR-NL1 and BR-NL3. The homology among each group of the insectivorous bats 1, 2 and 3 were greater than 99%, 97% and 99%, respectively. The lineage related to vampire bats was represented by three isolates from the D. rotundus (BR-DR1, BR-DR2 e BR-DR3); five from the fruit bats Artibeus lituratus (BR-AL1, BR-AL2, BR-AL3, BR-AL4) and Artibeus planirostris (BRAP1); two from insectivorous bats (BR-MR1 and BR-EA2) and two from unidentified species (BR-BAT1 and BR-BAT2). Among the sequenced amples, five bat isolates (BR-EF1, BR-NL1, BR-AL3, BR-MM1, BR- DR1) and one dog isolate (BR-C) were selected for the study of their pathogenicity in Swiss mice, inoculating through intracerebral (IC) and intramuscular (IM) routes. All the isolates, when inoculated via IC, were pathogenic, provoking death in 4 - 14 post inoculation days. However, mice inoculated with 500ICLD50 of the same isolates through IM route were found with different death rates: 60.0% (BR-DR1); 50.0% (BR-C, BR-NL); 40.0% (BR-AL3); 9.5% (BR-MM1) and 5.2% (BR-EF10). The same isolates were used for the assessment of cross protection conferred by a commercial vaccine of veterinary use. The mice were vaccinated subcutaneously, receiving either one or two shots of vaccine, and challenged through IC and IM routes. Mice receiving two shots were protected against all the isolates, when challenged intracerebrally. Mice receiving one shot were found only partially protected against the challenge with the fixed PV strain and BR-C isolate. Mice challenged intramuscularly showed 100.0% of protection, with the exception of those vaccinated with one dose and challenged with PV strain, which were found with 66.0% of survivors. These results indicate the possibility of the existence of rabies virus variants circulating in different species of bat population. The data also suggest that the vampires, frugivorous and insectivorous bats share the same lineage of rabies viruses. The commercial vaccine has protected the mice against the challenge with different rabies virus isolates, suggesting that the vaccines usually employed in the field are effective, although some marked difference in neurovirulence by IM inoculation was found among the isolates tested.

Dados da Organização Mundial da Saúde (OMS) mostram que a raiva é um problema de saúde pública podendo acarretar sérios prejuízos ambientais e econômicos, a despeito da existência de vacinas eficazes de uso humano e veterinário. Segundo seu último informe, estima-se que no mundo em torno de 55.000 pessoas por ano morrem de raiva. O cão permanece como principal transmissor da raiva para o homem e também como principal vítima da doença. Nos países que conseguiram controlar a raiva em animais domésticos, o vírus se mantém circulante na natureza por meio dos animais silvestres, sendo os morcegos apontados como a segunda espécie transmissora da raiva a humanos. Os Lyssavirus têm sido detectados em morcegos, em diversos continentes, sendo identificados como transmissor em dez das onze espécies de Lyssavirus. Fósseis de morcego mostram sua presença há 50 milhões de anos. Mas somente em 1911, Carini relacionou pela primeira vez a raiva aos morcegos, levantando a hipótese destes serem os transmissores da doença a outros animais. Há registros de que o vírus da raiva foi isolado em pelo menos 41 das 167 espécies de morcegos brasileiras, sendo que a maioria dessas espécies está relacionada a atividades humanas com a presença destes animais próximos ao local de trabalho e moradia das pessoas. Os morcegos hematófagos Desmodus rotundus são encontrados do norte do México até a costa norte do Chile, região central da Argentina e costa do Uruguai e com exceção do Chile. Esta espécie de morcego tem sido apontada como reservatório natural do vírus da raiva nesta região. Alguns pesquisadores observaram que a raiva em morcegos não hematófagos precede a raiva bovina e em animais de estimação, sugerindo que os morcegos não hematófagos podem ser o elo entre a raiva silvestre e a raiva urbana e o fato de se detectar a variante mantida por morcegos hematófagos Desmodus rotundus em cães e gatos mostra que o papel deste morcego no ciclo da raiva não está limitado à raiva silvestre. As características dos Lyssavirus adaptados a morcegos têm mostrado diferenças quando comparadas à raiva relacionada aos carnívoros, confirmando a necessidade do desenvolvimento de metodologias que permitam estudos complementares mais precisos a respeito da biologia e epidemiologia da raiva em quirópteros. A escassez de dados na literatura, até o momento, a respeito do genoma completo da variante do vírus da raiva mantida por populações de morcegos hematófagos Desmodus rotundus, deixa uma lacuna no entendimento da epidemiologia molecular deste vírus. A importância epidemiológica desta espécie na transmissão da raiva é inquestionável. Neste estudo foi sequenciado e analisado, o genoma da variante do vírus da raiva mantido por populações de morcego hematófago Desmodus rotundus isolado de um morcego hematófago Desmodus rotundus. A amostra, procedente de área endêmica no Estado de São Paulo, foi filogeneticamente comparada com o genoma da amostra padrão para a espécie viral 1 - Rabies virus e outras amostras pertencentes ao ciclo aéreo ou terrestre de transmissão, disponíveis no GenBank, identificando possíveis padrões de diferenciação, próprios do ciclo aéreo, e em alguns casos relacionados somente à variante estudada. / Data from the World Health Organization (WHO) show that rabies is a public health problem which can cause serious environmental and economic damage, despite the existence of effective vaccines for human and veterinary use. According to WHO latest report, estimated that worldwide around 55,000 people per year died of rabies. The dog remains the main transmitter of rabies to humans as well as the main victim of the disease. In countries that were successful in controlling rabies in domestic animals, the virus is still circulating in nature by wild animals and the bats are seen as the second species transmitting rabies to humans. The Lyssavirus have been detected in bats in several continents and is identified as a transmitter in ten of eleven species of Lyssavirus. Bat fossils show their presence for 50 million years. But only in 1911, in the first time Carini related to rabies at bats, raising the possibility of these being the transmitters of the disease to other animals. Reports show that the Rabies virus was isolated in at least 41 of the 167 species of bats in Brazil, with the majority of these species is related to human activities with the animals living near the local job and houses of people. The vampire bat Desmodus rotundus is found from northern Mexico to northern Chile coast, central coast of Argentina and Uruguay and with the exception of Chile. This bat species has been identified as a natural reservoir of the Rabies virus in this region. Some researchers observed that rabies into non-hematophagous bats precedes the bovine rabies and in pets, suggesting that the non-hematophagous bats may be the link between wildlife rabies and urban rabies and the fact that detect the variant maintained by vampire bats Desmodus rotundus in dogs and cats shows that the role of bat rabies in the cycle is not limited to wildlife rabies. The characteristics of Lyssavirus bat adapted have been shown differences when compared to rabies related to the carnivores, confirming the need to develop methods that enable more accurate follow-up studies about the biology and epidemiology of rabies in bats. The paucity of data in the literature to date about the complete genome of the Rabies virus variant maintained by populations of vampire bats Desmodus rotundus leaves a gap in understanding the molecular epidemiology of this virus and the epidemiological importance of this species in the transmission of Rabies virus is unquestionable. In this study we sequenced and analyzed the genome of the Rabies virus variant maintained by populations of bat Desmodus rotundus isolated from a bat Desmodus rotundus. The sample, coming from an endemic area in São Paulo, was phylogenetically compared with the genome of the standard sample for spcies 1 - Rabies virus and other samples belonging to the Terrestrial and Aerial cycles of transmission, available in GenBank, to identify possible patterns of differentiating themselves Aerial cycle and in some cases linked only to variant studied.

Les infrastructures linéaires de transports (ILT), dont les routes, sont une des principales causes du déclin de la biodiversité. Bien que les évaluations environnementales permettent de limiter ce déclin, la séquence "Eviter, Réduire et Compenser" les impacts peine à s'appliquer pleinement. En effet, la séquence ERC fait bien souvent appel à des données qualitatives en oubliant les processus biologiques et/ou écologiques et leur échelle spatio-temporelle. L'impact des routes est globalement bien documenté pour plusieurs groupes biologiques, hormis pour les chauves-souris, pourtant susceptibles d'être très fortement affectées. Par ailleurs, leur protection stricte nécessite leur prise en compte dans la séquence ERC. Pour étudier l’impact des routes, et notamment des autoroutes, je me suis concentré sur l’étude des chauves-souris afin de mesurer et quantifier leur magnitude. Pour cela, différentes méthodes développées et réutilisables par les différents acteurs de terrain seront présentées. Ainsi, dans un premier temps, je me suis intéressé à une méthode de traitement des données issues d'écoutes acoustiques et à une méthode de valorisation. Dans un second temps, nous avons appliqué ces méthodes afin (i) de connaitre quels étaient les impacts des routes sur les populations de chauves-souris et (ii) afin d'évaluer l'efficience des mesures de réductions engagées pour réduire ces impacts. Nos principaux résultats montrent que les autoroutes ont un impact négatif significatif sur l'activité de chasse et de transit pour plusieurs espèces de chauves-souris jusqu'à au moins cinq kilomètres de distance à une autoroute. De plus, l'effet des autoroutes semblerait également avoir des conséquences sur la génétique des populations. Enfin, nous avons étudié les chiroptéroducs, ouvrages dédiés aux chauves-souris visant à réduire ces impacts par l'amélioration des connectivités écologiques. Ce type d'ouvrage dédié semble être approprié lorsqu'il est situé dans des corridors écologiques fins tels que les haies. / Biodiversity is being lost at an increased rate as a result of human activities. One of the major threats to biodiversity is infrastructural development. Although the measures taken in environmental impact assessments can limit this loss, the mitigation hierarchy to "Avoid, Reduce and Offset" impacts on biodiversity is not fully functional. Indeed, the mitigation hierarchy often uses qualitative data and does not account for the biological and/or ecological processes and their different spatial and temporal scales. The impact of roads is well documented for several biological groups but not for bats whereas they are likely to be very strongly affected. Moreover, as they are strictly protected, they should be considered in the mitigation hierarchy. Therefore, through the study of bats, I investigated the effects of roads, especially major roads, and intended to measure and quantify the magnitude of their impacts. This thesis presents different methods developed to reach this objective and which may be used by stakeholders in the field. First, I intended to determine how to process data collected through passive acoustic monitoring and how to exploit these data. Then I determined what the impacts of roads on bat populations are and I proposed a method in order to assess the mitigation measures which presume to restore bat habitat connectivity. Our main results show a significant negative effect of roads on bats foraging and commuting behaviour for several species and up to at least five kilometres away from a major road. In addition, the effect of major roads also seems to have consequences on populations’ genetics. Finally, we studied bat overpasses which are structures specifically dedicated to bats and aiming at reducing the impacts of roads by improving bats’ habitat connectivity. These structures seem to be appropriate when located in narrow ecological corridors such as hedgerows.

<p>Analizirana je helmintofauna 127 primeraka slepih mi&scaron;eva na teritoriji Srbije.<br />Sakupljene jedinke su pripadnici 12 vrsta slepih mi&scaron;eva: veliki potkovičar (<em>Rhinolophusferrumequinum </em>Schreber, 1774); tamnoliki brkati večernjak <em>(Myotis mystacinus </em>Kuhl, 1817); mali brkati večernjak (<em>M. alcathoe </em>Helversen &amp; Heller, 2001); &scaron;umski brkati večernjak (<em>M. brandtii&nbsp; </em>Eversmann, 1845); južni veliki večernjak <em>(M</em>. <em>oxygnathus </em>Monticelli, 1885); evropski veliki večernjak (<em>M. myotis </em>Borkhausen, 1797); dugodlaki slepi mi&scaron;ić(<em>Hypsugo savii </em>Bonaparte, 1837); obični slepi mi&scaron;ić(<em>Pipistrellus pipistrellus</em> Schreber, 1774); &scaron;umski slepi mi&scaron;ić (<em>P. nathusii </em>Keyserling &amp; Blasius, 1839); evropski smeđi dugou&scaron;an (<em>Plecotus auritus </em>Linnaeus, 1758); evropski sivi dugou&scaron;an <em>(P.</em> <em>austriacus </em>Fischer, 1829) i obični noćnik (<em>Nyctalus noctula</em> Schreber, 1774). Jedinke slepih mi&scaron;eva su sakupljane sa 15 lokaliteta na teritoriji Srbije: Deliblatska pe&scaron;čara, Zasavica, Valjevo, Beograd, Paraćin, Đerdap, Bor, Beljanica, Kučevo, Boljevac, Zaječar, Zlot, Medveđa, planina Tara i Ivanjica u periodu od 2001. do 2009 godine.Izolovano je ukupno 1642 jedinki parazita (787 jedinki metilja, 4 pantljičara i 851 nematoda), razvrstanih u 2 razdela, 1 podrazdel, 3 klase, 3 podklase, 1 nadred, 6 reda, 1 podred, 7 nadfamilija, 11 familija, 9 podfamilija, 12 rodova i 14 vrsta. Identifikovane vrste parazita su:&nbsp;<em> Plagiorchis koreanus</em>(Ogata, 1937),&nbsp;<em>Mesotretes peregrinus </em>(Braun, 1900),&nbsp;<em>Lecithodendrium linstowi </em>(Dollfus, 1931),&nbsp;<em>Prosthodendrium longiforme</em> (Bhalerao, 1926),&nbsp;<em>P. chilostomum </em>(Mehlis, 1831),&nbsp;<em> P. parvouterus </em>(Bhalerao, 1926), <em>Milina grisea</em>(van Beneden, 1873),&nbsp;<em>Capillaria neopulchra </em>(Babos, 1954), <em>Molinostrongylus alatus</em>(Ortlepp, 1932),&nbsp;<em>Strongylacantha glycirrhiza&nbsp; </em>(van Beneden, 1873),&nbsp;<em>Physalopterasp</em>.,&nbsp;<em>Litomosa ottavianii&nbsp;</em>(Lagrange &amp; Bettini, 1948),&nbsp;<em>Rictularia bovieri&nbsp;</em>(Blanchard, 1886) i&nbsp;<em>Seuratum mucronatum </em>(Rudolphi, 1809). Kvalitativna i kvantitativna analiza helmintofaune slepih mi&scaron;eva je prvi put rađena na području Srbije, te se date vrste domaćina mogu smatrati novim za sve konstatovane vrste parazita na teritoriji na&scaron;e zemlje. U ukupnom uzorku 93 (73.23%) jedinki domaćina bilo je invadirano parazitima. Najbrojnije u ukupnom uzorkusu bile vrste&nbsp; P. koreanus,<em>&nbsp;L. linstowii&nbsp; M. alatus</em>, sa dominacijom poslednje. Konstatovano je da pol&nbsp; ne utiče na sastav helmintofaune domaćina. Međutim, konstatovane su promene u kvalitetu i kvantitetu helmintocenoze u pojedinim sezonama.</p> / <p>The helminth fauna of 127 individuals of bats on the territory of Serbia was analyzed. The host samples consisted of 12 bat species: Greater Horseshoe Bat(Rhinolophus &nbsp; ferrumequinumSchreber, 1774); Whiskered Bat (Myotis&nbsp; mystacinusKuhl, 1817); Alcathoe Whiskered Bat (M. alcathoeHelversen &amp; Heller, 2001); Brandt &rsquo;s Bat (M. brandtiiEversmann, 1845); Lesser Mouse-eared Bat (M. oxygnathusMonticelli, 1885); Greater Mouse-eared Bat (M. myotisBorkhausen, 1797); Savi &rsquo; s Pipistrelle Bat (Hypsugo saviiBonaparte, 1837); Common Pipistrelle Bat (Pipistrellus pipistrellus Schreber, 1774); Nathusius &rsquo; Pipistrelle Bat (P.&nbsp; BathusiiKeyserling &amp; Blasius, 1839); Brown Long-eared Bat (Plecotus auritusLinnaeus, 1758); Grey Long-eared Bat (P. austriacusFischer, 1829) and Noctule Bat (Nyctalus noctulaSchreber, 1774). Host semples were collected from fifteen localities throughout Serbia: Deliblato sands, Zasavica, Valjevo, Belgrade, Paraćin,&nbsp; Đerdap, Bor, Beljanica, Kučevo, Boljevac, Zaječar, Zlot, Medveđa, Tara mountain and Ivanjica in the period between2001 and 2009. A total of 1642 helminth individuals (787 individuals of digeneans, 4 cestodes and 851 nematodes) were collected from the hosts, classified into 2 phylas, 1 subphyla, 3 classes, 3 subclasses, 1 superorder, 6 orders, 1 suborder, 7 superfamilies, 11 families, 9 subfamilies, 12 generas and 14 species. Fourteen parasite species were identified: Plagiorchis koreanus(Ogata, 1937),&nbsp; Mesotretes peregrinus(Braun, 1900), Lecithodendrium linstowi(Dollfus, 1931),&nbsp; Prosthodendrium&nbsp; longiforme(Bhalerao, 1926), P. chilostomum(Mehlis, 1831),&nbsp; P. parvouterus(Bhalerao, 1926),&nbsp; Milina grisea (van Beneden, 1873),&nbsp; Capillaria neopulchra(Babos, 1954),&nbsp; Molinostrongylus alatus (Ortlepp, 1932),&nbsp; Strongylacantha glycirrhiza(van Beneden, 1873),&nbsp; Physalopterasp., Litomosa ottavianii(Lagrange &amp; Bettini, 1948),&nbsp; Rictularia bovieri(Blanchard, 1886)&nbsp; and&nbsp; Seuratum mucronatum(Rudolphi, 1809). The qualitative and&nbsp; quantitativeanalysis of the helminth fauna of bats were conducted in Serbia for the first time. Therefore all bat species can be considered new hosts for all recorded helminth species on the area of the country. Ninety-three (73.23%)&nbsp; individuals werefound to be infected with helminth parasites. The most numerous helminth species in total sample were&nbsp; P. koreanus,&nbsp; L. linstowiand&nbsp; M. alatus, which is also the most dominant. There is no evidence that the composition of helminth&nbsp; fauna depends on the sex ofthe host. However, some seasonal changes in quality and quantity of helminth community of the host are obvious.&nbsp;</p>

La forte croissance des populations humaines a engendré une intensification des milieux, surtout agricoles pour l’alimentation et l’élevage, résultant en une plus grande appropriation de la productivité primaire nette. La productivité primaire étant à la base des réseaux trophiques et écologiques, toute modification de ce processus essentiel est susceptible d’avoir de fortes conséquences sur la biodiversité. Par ailleurs, l’intensification est un processus complexe dont les trois dimensions – intrants, extrants et système – sont rarement étudiées de concert. Le cadre conceptuel et méthodologique HANPP (Human Appropriation of Net Primary Production) proposé par Helmut Haberl et collaborateurs en 2007, a pour objectif de quantifier différents paramètres de l’intensification. Dans un premier temps, les liens entre des composantes d’HANPP et d’autres indices d’intensification (i.e. HNV, IC/ha) ont été explorés afin de mieux interpréter la variabilité d’HANPP et ses composantes. HANPP semble lié à la fois aux dimensions « système » et « extrants » de l’intensité d’usage des sols et apparait comme complémentaire aux autres indicateurs testés. Dans un second temps, je me suis intéressée à la relation entre HANPP et biodiversité, à travers deux taxons complémentaires par leurs fonctions écosystémiques, i.e. les oiseaux et chiroptères. Grâce à l’utilisation de données issues de programmes de sciences participatives en France métropolitaine, j’ai pu montrer que l’intensification : i) diminuait la richesse spécifique, l’abondance et la masse moyenne des communautés de chiroptères, et ii) simplifiait la structure des communautés aviaires par l’abaissement du niveau trophique et de la régularité fonctionnelle, au bénéfice de spécialistes des milieux agricoles. Par ailleurs, j’ai pu observer que la réponse de la biodiversité pouvait grandement varier selon l’indicateur et/ou la facette (taxonomique ou fonctionnelle) étudiée. A travers mes analyses, j’ai pu clarifier les conditions d’utilisation du cadre méthodologique HANPP. J’ai également identifié des régions et types de paysage où l’intensité d’usage des sols peut coexister avec la biodiversité. L’ensemble de ces résultats forme le support à une discussion sur les opportunités pour concilier efforts de conservation et intensification. / The strong growth of Human populations has led to the intensification of land uses and land covers, especially in agricultural lands for food production and livestock, resulting in a higher appropriation of net primary productivity. As primary productivity is the root of food webs and ecological networks, any change in this essential process is likely to have a strong impact on biodiversity. Besides, intensification is a complex process whose three dimensions - inputs, outputs and system - are rarely studied together. The conceptual and methodological framework of HANPP (Human Appropriation of Net Primary Production) proposed by Helmut Haberl and collaborators in 2007, aims to quantify different parameters of intensification. First, I explored the variability of HANPP components and their relationships to other intensification indices (i.e. HNV, IC / ha) to better interpret the variability of HANPP and its components. HANPP seems to be linked to both the "system" and "output" dimensions of land use intensity and appears to complement the other indicators considered. Then, I investigated the relationship between HANPP and biodiversity, focusing on two taxa complementary in their ecosystem functions, i.e. birds and bats. Using data from citizen-science programs occurring in metropolitan France, I showed that intensification: i) decreased species richness, abundance and the average mass of bats, and ii) simplified the structure of avian communities by lowering the average trophic level and functional regularity, to the benefit of farmland specialists. In addition, I observed that the response of biodiversity could widely vary depending on the indicator and / or facet (taxonomic or functional) studied. Through my analyzes, I was able to clarify the conditions of use of the HANPP methodological framework. I also identified areas and types of landscape where land use intensity can coexist with biodiversity. All of these results form the basis for a discussion on opportunities to reconcile conservation efforts with intensification.

Rachel Corrie was a young American woman who died at the age of twenty-three in Gaza in 2003. She was killed when an Israeli Occupation Force bulldozer ran over her while she was defending a Palestinian house from demolition. Her martyr's death, combined with the force of her descriptions of her experiences as an activist in Palestine, not only provoked response from other activists; it became material for a number of theatrical projects, among them productions by the Royal Court Theatre in London, Bread and Puppet Theatre in the US, and in a production I recently wrote and directed here in New Zealand. This thesis considers the example of Rachel Corrie's activism in Palestine and the theatrical performances it engendered in order to examine the role of theatre in and as an activist project. The theatre is an important component of the ongoing movement for social change. It assembles temporary communities and it portrays issues in ways that are both accessible and open to debate. But theatricality is just as often a key component of activist actions outside the theatre building: in street performances and demonstrations, and also in the way some activists can be seen to pursue their political objectives on a daily basis. Finally, the theatre is a material act of production which can challenge the dominant model of production and thus has the potential to be become an activist project as itself. As a result of my analyses of this material, I hope to provide a framework of understanding both for myself and others, of the likely role of theatre in and as an activist project, and this understanding will be of assistance in the cultural task of shifting beliefs in the movement for social change. The key theorists used in this thesis are Walter Benjamin and Raymond Williams.