There are still many problems in the conductive adhesive, such as particle size and particle dispersion in the matrix, which can affect the stability of the electrical conductivity. In order to ...resolve the particle dispersion issue in the anisotropic conductive films (ACFs) during the bonding process, we need to increase capture rate of conductive balls between the top and the bottom metal electrodes. In this paper, the methods of increasing capture rates were studied. The capture rates of the conventional 20- and 10-Formula Omitted polymer ball ACFs were compared. In addition, the capture rates of the conventional polymer ball ACF and polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) nanofiber incorporated a polymer ball ACF were compared. As a result, the capture rates of 20-Formula Omitted polymer ball ACFs were Formula Omitted% higher than 10-Formula Omitted polymer ball ACFs. And the capture rate of PVDF nanofiber incorporated polymer ball ACF was 21% higher than the conventional polymer ball ACF. By using nanofiber and larger size of conductive balls, the capture rates can be increased.
Soybean (Glycine max) is among the most important field crops in the world, and the USA is a top global producer, but USA soybean losses have increased because of multitude of factors, including ...wildlife damage. Although small, terrestrial rodents (Order: Rodentia) are capable of causing substantial damage to soybean and other field crops. Consequently, methods need to be developed that can provide agricultural producers and wildlife managers with accurate information about rodent populations at the field-level. We conducted a multi-site, before-after-intervention study in the midwestern USA to evaluate the effectiveness of varying treatment timings for cover crop reduction/removal prior to soybean planting, which was previously posited as an effective non-lethal approach for reducing rodents in soybean fields and mitigating crop damage. We chemically treated cover crops immediately (control), at two-weeks, and at four-weeks in four fields prior to soybean planting and used hierarchical, spatially explicit models to examine the effects of treatment timing on rodent density from pre-treatment through post-emergence. The control, two-weeks, and four-weeks treatment timings resulted in 81%, 125%, and 189% average increases in rodent densities post-treatment. The number of unique individuals of each detected species also increased post-treatment for all three treatment timings. Thus, varying chemical treatment timing for reducing/removing cover crops prior to soybean planting may be an ineffective non-lethal approach for rodent population management in agroecosystems. Nonetheless, our study provides an illustrative example of an effective, multi-site methodlogy that could be used to reliably evaluate the status of rodent populations and the potential effectiveness of other rodent management methods.
•Conservation practices like cover crops can inadvertently create negative human-wildlife interactions.•Spatial capture-recapture is effective at evaluating rodent densities in agricultural environments.•Rodent populations drastically increase in agricultural fields during spring despite non-lethal management practices.•Herbicide timing may be ineffective management strategy for rodents.
•Incidence and abundance-based multiple diversity metrics were compared.•Incidence-based functional and phylogenetic diversity are higher in the rice paddy.•Abundance-based indices are higher in the ...reserve.
To understand how certain types of agroecosystem management provide resources for biodiversity and conservation opportunities beyond protected areas, it is necessary to consider the cumulative effects on a local scale. Our study focuses on a rice-Pantanal wetland agricultural system within Brazil, where our goals were: i) to quantify the impact of rice paddies on taxonomic, functional, and phylogenetic diversity metrics of small mammals as biodiversity indicators, ii) to compare diversity indices based on incidence and abundance data. We carried out a thorough assessment to sample small mammal species in both the rice paddy and the adjacent legal reserve by employing a multiple diversity metrics approach. We captured the small mammals until reaching saturation on the species accumulation curve over 12,774 trap nights, resulting in 447 individuals, 10 species, including seven rodents and three marsupial species. Abundance-based beta-diversity between rice-paddy and forest reserve were higher (0.95) than incidence-based estimate (0.33). The species composition differed between the legal reserve (8 spp.) and the rice paddy (7 spp.), with the reserve exhibiting higher taxonomic diversity values compared to the rice paddy. In terms of functional and phylogenetic diversity, overall, the rice paddy exhibited higher values for the incidence-based metrics and the abundance-based metrics indicated that the reserve was more diverse. We conclude that Neotropical Pantanal rice fields retain substantial functional and phylogenetic diversities, providing suitable habitats for species thriving in open and semi-aquatic environments. Simultaneously, the legal reserve retains an essential aspect of functional diversity, when considering abundance, needed to maintain ecosystem resilience and stability. Proper abundance estimation is thus a key parameter for accurately evaluating the role of agricultural landscapes as biodiversity conservation opportunities beyond protected areas. Abundance-based indices should be used to correctly evaluate the contribution of each habitat to agroecosystem sustainability, especially in seasonal or extreme event-prone environments.
ABSTRACT
Vertical stratification (VS) is a widespread phenomenon in plant and animal communities in forests and a key factor for structuring their species richness and biodiversity, particularly in ...tropical forests. The organisms composing forest communities adjust and shape the complex three‐dimensional structure of their environment and inhabit a large variety of niches along the vertical gradient of the forest. Even though the degree of VS varies among different vertebrate groups, patterns of compositional stratification can be observed across taxa. Communities of birds, bats, primates, and non‐flying small mammals are vertically stratified in terms of abundance, species richness, diversity, and community composition. Frugivorous members of these taxa play important roles as seed dispersers and forage on fruit resources that, in turn, vary in quantity and nutritional value along the vertical gradient. As a consequence, plant–seed disperser interaction networks differ among strata, which is manifested in differences in interaction frequencies and the degree of mutual specialization. In general, the canopy stratum is composed of strong links and generalized associations, while the lower strata comprise weaker links and more specialized interactions. Investigating the VS of communities can provide us with a better understanding of species habitat restrictions, resource use, spatial movement, and species interactions. Especially in the face of global change, this knowledge will be important as these characteristics can imply different responses of species and taxa at a fine spatial scale.
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