Carter T Atkinson

Polyethylene Particle Detection (counts) during Environmental Sampler Comparison

We designed two new samplers for monitoring airborne particulates, including fungal and fern spores and plant pollen, that rely on natural wind currents (Passive Environmental Sampler) or a battery operated fan (Active Environmental Sampler). Both samplers are modeled after commercial devices such as the Rotorod® and the Burkard samplers, but are more economical and require less maintenance than commercial devices. We conducted wind tunnel comparisons of our two new samplers to Rotorod® samplers using synthetic polyethylene spheres (12 - 160 µm in diameter) to compare numbers and size range of particulates that are captured by the samplers. This dataset contains raw numbers of polyethylene spheres that were captured...

Categories: Data; Tags: Environmental DNA, Environmental Sampler, Hawaiii, Spore Traps, environment

Orchidlands Estates Ceratocystis DNA Detection 2016

Rapid ʽŌhiʽa Death (ROD) currently threatens ōhiʽa lehua (Metrosideros polymorpha) on Hawaiʽi Island. First identified in Puna in 2014, the disease has now spread island wide. Besides direct sampling of trees, environmental sampling could serve as an easier and broader strategy to detect Ceratocystis spp., the fungi causing ROD. Environmental sampling could also help monitor the effect of felling ROD infected trees. We developed Passive and Active Environmental Samplers and deployed them at a property in Puna, where both C. lukuohia, and C. huliohia had been detected, and where the land owner practiced the management method of felling infected trees. We set up 2 Active Environmental Samplers (modified mosquito traps...

Categories: Data; Tags: Ceratocystis, Environmental DNA, Environmental Sampler, Hawaiii, Management, All tags... Metrosideros polymorpha, Ohia lehua, ROD, Rapid Ohia Death, Spore Traps, environment, Fewer tags

Effect of SDS and Proteinase K on whole blood preserved in lysis buffer for Hawaiian Island avian malaria detection, 2005-2006

It is unclear whether DNA lysis buffers used for preservation of whole blood samples from Hawaiian forest birds cause denaturation and loss of antigen binding capability of antibody molecules. If their antigen binding capability is not affected, then the samples can be used in serological assays to provide an independent assessment of the accuracy of PCR (polymerase chain reaction) diagnostic tests for avian malaria. This data set reports raw absorbance measurements that were collected with a BioRad Model 3550 ELISA plate reader at a wavelength setting of 405 nm for different dilutions of blood from an infected Hawaii Amakihi that were preserved in PBS (phosphate buffered saline), TEN (Tris-Ethylenediaminetetraacetic...

Categories: Data; Tags: Chlorodrepanis virens, ELISA, Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge, Hawaii, Hawaii Amakihi, All tags... Hawaiian Islands, Lysis Buffer, PCR, Plasmodium relictum, Western blot, avian malaria, enzyme linked immunosorbant assay, farming, immunoblot, polymerase chain reaction, Fewer tags

Will a warmer and wetter future cause extinction of native Hawaiian forest birds?

Abstract (from http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/gcb.13005/abstract): Isolation of the Hawaiian archipelago produced a highly endemic and unique avifauna. Avian malaria ( Plasmodium relictum), an introduced mosquito-borne pathogen, is a primary cause of extinctions and declines of these endemic honeycreepers. Our research assesses how global climate change will affect future malaria risk and native bird populations. We used an epidemiological model to evaluate future bird–mosquito–malaria dynamics in response to alternative climate projections from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project. Climate changes during the second half of the century accelerate malaria transmission and cause a dramatic decline...

Categories: Publication; Types: Citation; Tags: Avian, Birds, Forests, Malaria, Pacific Islands CASC, All tags... Wildlife and Plants, Fewer tags

Ceratocystis lukuohia spore dilution for probit analysis

Environmental DNA (eDNA) detection tools are becoming increasingly popular for documenting occurrence and distribution of native and invasive species. These tools can allow early detection of new diseases and invasive species and provide critical information for land management. We designed two new samplers for monitoring airborne particulates, including fungal and fern spores and plant pollen, that rely on natural wind currents (Passive Environmental Sampler) or a battery operated fan (Active Environmental Sampler). This dataset contains results of an experiment that was designed to determine probability of detecting known numbers of Ceratocystis lukuohia spores on individual slides in these samplers.

Categories: Data; Tags: Ceratocystis, Environmental DNA, Environmental Sampler, Hawaiii, Metrosideros polymorpha, All tags... Ohia lehua, ROD, Rapid Ohia Death, Spore Traps, environment, Fewer tags