Vertical structure of bacterial communities in peats of the Yakhroma river floodplain
The abundance and taxonomic structure of soil bacterial communities have been studied in different geomorphological parts of the Yakhroma floodplain. It has been found that the numbers of bacteria reach a peak in calcareous peat soil under forest near the floodplain terrace, decreasing to a minimum in soddy alluvial soil near the riverbed. All soils are characterized by the presence of different ecological-trophic bacterial groups capable of peat destruction. Seasonal dynamics of the structure of bacterial communities and, in some soil types, its spatial dynamics accounted for by changes in the botanical structure of peat across its profile have been revealed. All peat soils in the floodplain have high contents of organic matter and neutral pH and, therefore, are favorable biotopes for the development of saprotrophic bacteria. This, in turn, largely accounts for high productivity and stability of this agroecosystem as a whole.
Number, viability, and diversity of the filterable forms of prokaryotes in sphagnous high-moor peat
The number, potential viability, and taxonomic diversity (at the level of phylum) of the filterable forms of prokaryotes (FFP) are estimated in the main genetic horizons of high-moor peat. It was shown that the number of FFP reached 500 million cells in 1 g, i.e., up to 5% of the general size bacteria. The portion of viable cells among FFP (93–98%) was higher than that for the general size bacteria (60–68%). FISH-analysis (fluorescence in situ hybridization) showed that FFP contained the same phylogenetic groups as the population of general size bacteria (domain Archea and phylum Actinobacteria, Cytophaga, and Proteobacteria of the domain Bacteria).
Drivers of Live Cattle Price in the Livestock Trading System of Central Cameroon
Livestock production and trade are critical for the food security and welfare of rural households in sub-Saharan Africa. In Cameroon, animal trade consists mainly of live cattle commercialized through livestock markets. Identifying the factors contributing to cattle price formation is critical for designing effective policies for sustainable production and for increasing food availability. In this study, we evaluated the influence of a range of individual- and market-level factors on the price of cattle that were sold in all transactions (n = 118,017) recorded over a 12-month period from 31 livestock markets in the main cattle production area of the country. An information-theoretic approach using a generalized additive mixed-effect model was implemented to select the best explanatory model as well as evaluate the robustness of the identified drivers and the predictive ability of the model. The age and gender of the cattle traded were consistently found to be important drivers of the price (p < 0.01). Also, strong, but complex, relationships were found between cattle prices and both local human and bovine population densities. Finally, the model highlighted a positive association between the number of incoming trading connections of a livestock market and the price of the traded live cattle (p < 0.01). Although our analysis did not account for factors informing on specific phenotypic traits nor breed characteristics of cattle traded, nearly 50% of the observed variation in live cattle prices was explained by the final model. Ultimately, our model gives a large scale overview of drivers of cattle price formation in Cameroon and to our knowledge is the first study of this scale in Central Africa. Our findings represent an important milestone in designing efficient and sustainable animal health management programme in Cameroon and ensure livelihood sustainability for rural households.