Hunting of straight-tusked elephants was widespread among Neanderthals 125.000 years ago

Finds uncovered in the east of Germany show that Neanderthals stored vast amounts of meat and fat or temporarily aggregated in larger groups to consume these

Peer-Reviewed Publication

JOHANNES GUTENBERG UNIVERSITAET MAINZ

 

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PELVIC BONE OF A PALAEOLOXODON ANTIQUUS FOUND IN GRÖBERN

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CREDIT: PHOTO/©: LUTZ KINDLER, LEIZA

Hunting the now extinct straight-tusked elephant (Palaeoloxodon antiquus) was widespread among Neanderthals. This is the conclusion reached by a research team consisting of members of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU), the Leibniz-Zentrum für Archäologie (LEIZA), also based in Mainz, and Leiden University in the Netherlands. The study has recently been published in the journal PNAS. The researchers closely examined the bones of elephants that are approximately 125,000 years old and that were discovered in Gröbern in Saxony-Anhalt and Taubach in Thuringia, Germany, decades ago. They were able to identify cut marks made by stone tools used by the Neanderthals that indicate that the animals must have been hunted before they were extensively butchered.

It was two years ago that the same team during the analysis of bones found at the Neumark-Nord site, in a former lignite mine in Saxony-Anhalt, discovered the very first evidence that Neanderthals actively hunted straight-tusked elephants, the largest terrestrial mammals of the Pleistocene. This study was published in Science Advances in early 2023 (see https://press.uni-mainz.de/neanderthals-hunted-elephants-earliest-evidence-found-of-humans-killing-elephants-for-food/). "The results of the more recent examination of the bones from Gröbern and Taubach now show that the hunting of these elephants by Neanderthals was not an isolated phenomenon but must have been a more regular activity," emphasized Sabine Gaudzinski-Windheuser, Professor of Prehistoric and Protohistoric Archaeology at JGU and Director of the Archaeological Research Center and Museum of Human Behavioral Evolution MONREPOS in Neuwied, an institute run under the aegis of LEIZA. Gaudzinski-Windheuser was extensively involved in the investigation of the bones from Gröbern and Taubach as well as the previous study of the bones from the Neumark-Nord site.

The yield of a straight-tusked elephant bull would have been sufficient to cover the daily calorie requirements of 2,500 Neanderthals

Palaeoloxodon antiquus roamed the landscapes of Europe and Western Asia 800,000 to 100,000 years ago. With shoulder heights of up to four meters and body masses of up to 13 tons, the European straight-tusked elephant was the largest land-living animal at the time, significantly larger than today's African and Asian elephants and even bigger than the extinct woolly mammoth. "We have estimated that the meat and fat supplied by the body of an adult Palaeoloxodon antiquus bull would have been sufficient to satisfy the daily calorie intake of at least 2,500 adult Neanderthals," explained Gaudzinski-Windheuser. "This is a significant number because it furnishes us with new insights into the behavior of Neanderthals." So far, for instance, research had generally assumed that Neanderthals associated in groups of no more than 20 individuals. However, the information now obtained in relation to the systematic exploitation of straight-tusked elephants indicates that Neanderthals must have gathered, at least temporarily, in larger groups or mastered techniques that allowed them to preserve and store large quantities of foodstuffs – or both. In a follow-up project, the researchers hope to learn more about how Neanderthals hunted these massive elephants and how their hunting activities impacted these and other prey animals as well as their environments.

 

Incisions some 5 millimeters in length made by Neanderthals on the Palaeoloxodon antiquus pelvic bone from Gröbern

CREDIT

photo/©: Lutz Kindler, LEIZA

Dr. Lutz Kindler documenting fragments of Palaeoloxodon antiquus teeth discovered in Taubach

CREDIT

photo/©: Wil Roebroeks, Leiden University

JOURNAL

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

DOI

10.1038/s41598-023-46956-6 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Case study

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Animals

ARTICLE TITLE

Widespread evidence for elephant exploitation by Last Interglacial Neanderthals on the North European plain

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

4-Dec-2023

 

More than a meteorite: New clues about the demise of dinosaurs

McGill researchers challenge current understanding of dinosaur extinction by unearthing link between volcanic eruptions and climate change

Peer-Reviewed Publication

MCGILL UNIVERSITY

What wiped out the dinosaurs? A meteorite plummeting to Earth is only part of the story, a new study suggests. Climate change triggered by massive volcanic eruptions may have ultimately set the stage for the dinosaur extinction, challenging the traditional narrative that a meteorite alone delivered the final blow to the ancient giants.

That’s according to a study published in Science Advances, co-authored by Don Baker, a professor in McGill University’s Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences.

The research team delved into volcanic eruptions of the Deccan Traps—a vast and rugged plateau in Western India formed by molten lava. Erupting a staggering one million cubic kilometres of rock, it may have played a key role in cooling the global climate around 65 million years ago.

The work took researchers around the world, from hammering out rocks in the Deccan Traps to analyzing the samples in England and Sweden.

A new season?: ‘Volcanic winters’

In the lab, the scientists estimated how much sulfur and fluorine was injected into the atmosphere by massive volcanic eruptions in the 200,000 years before the dinosaur extinction.

Remarkably, they found the sulfur release could have triggered a global drop in temperature around the world—a phenomenon known as a volcanic winter.

“Our research demonstrates that climatic conditions were almost certainly unstable, with repeated volcanic winters that could have lasted decades, prior to the extinction of the dinosaurs. This instability would have made life difficult for all plants and animals and set the stage for the dinosaur extinction event. Thus our work helps explain this significant extinction event that led to the rise of mammals and the evolution of our species,” said Prof. Don Baker.

New technique developed at McGill

Uncovering clues within ancient rock samples was no small feat. In fact, a new technique developed at McGill helped decode the volcanic history.

The technique for estimating sulfur and fluorine releases–a complex combination of chemistry and experiments–is a bit like cooking pasta.

“Imagine making pasta at home. You boil the water, add salt, and then the pasta.  Some of the salt from the water goes into the pasta, but not much of it,” explains Baker.

Similarly, some elements become trapped in minerals as they cool following a volcanic eruption. Just as you could calculate salt concentrations in the water that cooked the pasta from analyzing salt in the pasta itself, the new technique allowed scientists to measure sulfur and fluorine in rock samples. With this information, the scientists could calculate the amount of these gases released during the eruptions.

The study involved researchers from Italy, Norway, Sweden, the UK, the United States and Canada.

Their findings mark a step forward in piecing together Earth’s ancient secrets and pave the way for a more informed approach to our own changing climate.

About the study

Recurring volcanic winters during the latest Cretaceous: Sulfur and fluorine budgets of Deccan Traps lavas by Callegaro et al. was published in Science Advances.

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JOURNAL

Science Advances

DOI

10.1126/sciadv.adg8284 

ARTICLE TITLE

Recurring volcanic winters during the latest Cretaceous: Sulfur and fluorine budgets of Deccan Traps lavas

ARTICLE PUBLICATION

 

Q&A: Kenya’s trailblazing women runners chart course to success in new book

Book Announcement

PENN STATE

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Watch almost any women’s distance running competition today and you will likely see a Kenyan near the front of the pack. Kenyan women won three of the six major international marathons in 2023, as well as 29 Olympic medals since Pauline Konga became the first woman runner to medal at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. Former professional runner Michelle Sikes, assistant professor of kinesiology, of African studies and of history at Penn State, lived and trained with these women in Kenya for several months. While there, she spoke with the trailblazing athletes who set the course for the country’s current generation of women runners.

Sikes detailed what she learned in her new book, “Kenya’s Running Women: A History,” in which she examines how Kenya’s women runners overcame challenges to become some of the fastest distance runners in the world today.

Penn State News spoke with Sikes about her book and its implications for understanding sport and women’s roles in society.

Q: You lived and trained in Kenya while conducting your research for this book. What’s a typical day like training in Kenya?

Sikes: You wake up around 6 a.m. and do your first run of the day, typically in a large group. You gather at a meeting point in the village, the sun is just coming up, and you’ll shuffle off down the road, not at a fast pace, just to get your legs moving and get some mileage under your feet.

Then there’s a second run at 10 a.m. That’s the key workout of the day. It could be a Fartlek — varying your pacing or difficulty during the run — a steady run or intervals. Then some people return for a third run around 4 p.m. The length of the training sessions depends on your event. If you’re a marathoner, you could be out there a long time. If you’re a track athlete like me, it’s a shorter distance. It varies based on your needs.

Q: Where did the idea for the book come from?

Sikes: I have been a runner for most of my life. I was an athlete in high school and in my senior year of college won the NCAA Division I championship in the 5,000 meters. In graduate school, I wanted to study the societal aspects of sport and how sport can be a lens to understand society and people. With running being my particular passion, I also always wanted to go to Kenya. I pursued my doctoral degree at Oxford University, where they have a vibrant African Studies Centre, and from there, it was easier to go to Kenya because the United Kingdom has deep ties to the African continent due to the legacy of colonial rule.

I was interested in understanding the journeys of the first generation of female athletes from Kenya, the pathbreakers, the ones who were the first to compete at the Olympics and the Commonwealth Games, the first to leave the country and the continent. There’s some documentation on the topic, but there’s a need for more work on the history of African sport and in particular women and the obstacles they managed to overcome.

This book sheds light on a culture and a community that is regarded as the fastest in the world. It helps us to understand how sport can change ideas about identity and community, in particular women and women’s place in society.

Q: Can you walk us through the main themes of the book?

Sikes: The title, “Kenya’s Running Women: A History,” really sums it up. It takes us chronologically through the 20th century and the state of women’s running from the colonial era, the 1920s and ‘30s when organized sport starts to take root in Kenya, to the professionalization of running in the late ‘80s and ‘90s when we see the first large-scale presence of Kenyan women competing internationally.

By the time Kenya gains independence in 1963, we have Kenyan men representing the nation at major events and competitions, but we don’t have any women traveling outside the country. It’s not until the mid- to late ‘60s that for the first time Kenya’s running women make their debut at the Commonwealth Games, the East African Athletics Championships and the 1986 Mexico City Olympic Games. The latter was the Olympics where the Kenyan men made their enormously successful debut as world record beaters — they won gold, silver and bronze across all the major distance events and shocked the world — but I would argue that the three women representing Kenya for the first time in track and field events should have received more attention even though they didn’t make the finals. They were there, and that’s exciting.

In the 1970s and ‘80s, the men continued to gain attention, win medals and set records. We didn’t see much on the women’s side, and the number of women able to compete at the international level remained fairly low. We see the first large-scale presence of Kenyan women competing internationally in the late 1980s and the ‘90s. That comes, I argue, with the sport shedding its amateur rules, when running becomes an acceptable and legitimate profession. Women were able to race for money and earn a living. New opportunities opened to them during this era.

So, in the book I explore the tension between men’s and women’s running and look at the obstacles and challenges that prevented the women from emerging at the same pace as the men. I also look at the strategies that the women who did succeed used and what allowed them to get to that point.

Q: What were some of the obstacles that the women had to overcome?

Sikes: All Kenyan runners were challenged by the environment in terms of scarcity of resources when it comes to fast tracks and opportunities to record the times needed to race at major international events. When it rained, the dirt tracks that they used could become heavy, making it difficult to record fast times. This hindered the women more than the men, because the men had the opportunity to come to the United States and compete as student athletes. Certain universities around the U.S. recruited them, and once here, they did very well.

The women, on the other hand, were affected because Title IX had yet to be enforced, so there wasn’t the equivalent number of scholarships available for women — American or international — as there were for men. So, the women remained in Kenya and competed in domestic competitions, but there weren’t that many competitions and the weather was an obstacle.

There’s also the altitude issue. Kenya’s main races take place at altitude where you can’t run as fast. You need to be at sea level to record quick times.

And there were cultural issues. When push came to shove, resources in a family were more likely to go towards educating a son rather than a daughter. Once women got married, it was a challenge to maintain an athletic career when there are expectations that come with being a wife and a mother.

Q: How did they overcome these challenges?

Sikes: In many ways, they followed the mold that the men had established before them. If a young girl demonstrated talent and was able to continue her interest in running, she first had to have the resources in her family to go to primary and secondary school.

There were opportunities for women in the major institutions in Kenya, which stemmed from the massive legacy of sport left by the British in the form of schools and institutions that promoted sport and competition. Both the military and police reserved spots for women, and there were parastatal institutions like the post and telecommunications. Athletics could be a criterion for employment in these state and government positions. These entities would send teams to competitions in Kenya, and they wanted the best athletes. This environment gave women a protected space where they could earn a living wage while being coached in running. Once Title IX became more enforced in the U.S., scholarships started to open up for women, and Kenyan women were able to leverage these opportunities, travel outside Kenya, earn college degrees and really be at the cutting edge of education and sport.

Q: What do you hope this book accomplishes?

Sikes: I hope that the trailblazing women whom I interviewed live on in this book. And I hope that readers come away realizing that sport is a great way to understand society more broadly.

 

Bird feeding may give humans something to chirp about

A team of researchers at Virginia Tech and beyond is working to develop a deeper understanding of the relationship between bird feeding and human well-being

Peer-Reviewed Publication

VIRGINIA TECH

 

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IN THE UNITED STATES, IT'S ESTIMATED THAT ABOUT 57 MILLION ENGAGE IN BIRD FEEDING, EACH YEAR.

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CREDIT: PHOTO COURTESY OF RICHARD HALL.

Ashley Dayer hopes to peck away at the notion that bird feeding is simply for the birds.

Associate professor in the Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation at Virginia Tech, Dayer is the lead author of an article published in People and Nature that argues not only for the acknowledgment of the activity’s benefit to humans, but that it should play a role in public guidance and policy.

“Wildlife agencies and others making decisions on managing bird feeding need to be considering not only what the science is behind what’s going on with birds, but also the science behind what’s going on with people,” Dayer said.

The article also encourages additional research to better understand how human well-being is impacted by regularly feeding birds, and Dayer and a team of researchers both in and outside of Virginia Tech are leading the way. The group is conducting what is perhaps the first large-scale bird feeding research that also incorporates observing humans.

“People are not only reporting what they see at their bird feeders, but also their emotional responses to it,” Dayer said. “It’s pretty fun because most citizen science projects focus just on the natural or physical science, but we’re now able to look at the human piece of it.”

Funded recently as part of a more than $1.5 million National Science Foundation grant led by Dayer and Dana Hawley, professor of biological sciences, the four-year project aims to engage more than 10,000 bird feeders across the United States.

Other collaborators on the article and project include

• Christy Pototsky, a graduate student studying fish and wildlife conservation at Virginia Tech
• Richard Hall, associate professor at the University of Georgia
• Alia Dietsch, associate professor at Ohio State University
• Tina Phillips, David Bonter, Emma Greig, and Wesley Hochachka of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Dayer said interest in the topic began in 2021, when the researchers began to notice state agencies advising people to stop feeding birds in response to various avian disease outbreaks. After looking into it, they found that 23 states had made such recommendations without evidence it would decrease disease spread, with varying levels of pushback, and with no real method of gauging compliance, much less its impact on people.

The new project is an extension of the work Dayer and Hawley began about six years ago with the help of a joint seed grant from the Global Change Center of the Fralin Life Sciences Institute and the Institute for Society, Culture, and the Environment.

Hawley said the lack of information about humans related to bird feeing was something she’d not previously considered, and she found it a strong motivator for this project.

“In all my years of studying how bird feeding impacts wild birds, I didn’t give much thought to how it can also impact the people that spend their time and money feeding and watching birds,” Hawley said. “I get calls every year from people who see a sick bird at their feeder and want to know how they can help prevent disease spread. All in all, this made me wonder about how policy decisions that aim to minimize disease spread can inadvertently impact the people who feed the birds.”

To help find those answers, the research team will utilize Project FeederWatch’s existing network of bird enthusiasts. Operated by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and Birds Canada, FeederWatch has tasked people with asks participants to observe and report what they see at their feeders from November to April for the past 37 years.

“FeederWatch is such a versatile data set even though, at its core, it is based on simple bird counts,” said Emma Greig, co-author and project leader for FeederWatch. “When you overlay information about behavior, disease, habitat, and climate change with those bird counts, we can get amazing insights into ecology and evolution.”

During this project, FeederWatch participants also will be asked to observe their own well-being. Dayer said about 8,000 submissions came in in from the first week of this season alone.

Such passion for birds is something Dayer understands very well. She said her mother always made sure they had bird feeders outside their family’s home, and when she became an “empty nester,” the birds became almost like children.

“She’ll go on vacation and cut the vacation short because she needs to go home and feed her birds,” Dayer said. “So I’ve lived with someone who was really into bird feeding and have seen how important it can be to them.”

But Dayer believes the positive impact of bird feeding isn’t limited to enthusiasts and is important in proving one of the most widely accessible connection to wildlife.

“People in urban areas can feed birds. People with just a deck can feed birds. People with a wide range of physical abilities can feed birds. So it’s just a great way to keep that human connection to wildlife,” Dayer said.

Hawley agreed with that sentiment, and said she hopes their work helps advance policies that will foster both health and healthy relationships.

“In a world where so many of us live in cities or suburbs, having birds visit feeders in our yards or on our balconies is one of the only ways we get to connect daily with wildlife. But people want to be able to feed birds in ways that keep wild bird populations healthy and thriving,” Hawley said. “Our work will ideally help us develop guidelines for bird feeding that minimize risk to wild birds and maximize the benefits to the people that feed them.”

The Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation is in the College of Natural Resources and Environment. The Department of Biological Sciences is in the College of Science.
 

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JOURNAL

People and Nature

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

5-Dec-2023

 

Mental health crisis highlights access challenges

Poll finds many psychologists face capacity strains as patients present with increasingly severe symptoms

Reports and Proceedings

AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION

The ongoing mental health crisis is causing significant challenges for many psychologists as they grapple with demand fueled by patients presenting with increasingly severe symptoms year after year, according to APA’s 2023 Practitioner Pulse Survey.

The survey, which was completed by 561 licensed practicing psychologists between Aug. 30 and Sept. 29, 2023, found that not only did more than half of psychologists (52%) say that they were seeing an increase in severity of symptoms among their patients, but 41% said that they were seeing an increase in the number of sessions spent treating each patient, which may reduce their capacity to accept new patients.

Similarly, more than half (56%) said that they had no openings for new patients. And more than two-thirds (69%) of psychologists who maintained a waitlist said that the average wait was up to three months for a first appointment, while 31% said average wait times were longer than three months. Psychologists reported increasing demand for treatment of certain mental health conditions, including anxiety disorders (68%) and trauma- and stressor-related disorders (50%), among those who treat those disorders.

"As the mental health crisis continues, psychologists are under pressure,” said APA CEO Arthur C. Evans Jr., PhD. "These findings underscore the sustained demand for care, led by increased severity of symptoms and extended treatment courses, compounded by increases year after year. This paints a clear picture of psychologists operating at the brink of their capacity. To better meet demand, it is essential that we develop comprehensive public health strategies that reach people throughout their lifespan and robustly address behavioral health alongside physical health.”

The survey found that the psychologist workforce is already adapting to meet the changing needs of the population -- for example, as part of integrated care teams or in medical settings. More than 4 in 5 psychologists (86%) said they have worked alongside other health care providers, with 59% saying they do so frequently or very frequently. Collaborating providers included psychiatrists (76% of psychologists said they worked with them, with 38% doing so frequently); other physicians (45%, with 17% doing so frequently); occupational therapists (30%, with 6% doing so frequently); physician assistants (41%, with 11% doing so frequently); community health workers (30%, with 4% doing so frequently); and speech language pathologists (28%, with 5% frequent collaborators). Alongside mental health concerns, psychologists reported treating patients with physical conditions, including 50% treating patients with chronic pain, 42% treating obesity or weight conditions, 27% some symptoms of cancer, and 25% high blood pressure.

“Integrated care, where psychologists work on health care teams with other providers, is one way that we can expand access to care, prioritize preventive care and find ways to better meet the biological, psychological and social needs of the patients,” said Evans. “We must also support and expand the mental health workforce, foster innovation and technology, and support psychologists in extending their reach in the communities in which they live and work.”

Psychologists have shown themselves to be adaptable, changing their work habits during the pandemic to include fully remote or hybrid practices. Only 21% are now offering fully remote practices (down from a peak of 64% in 2020), according to the poll, yet more than two-thirds (67%) are now working in hybrid practices seeing some patients in person and others remotely.

More than one-third (36%) of psychologists reported experiencing burnout and 1 in 5 psychologists (21%) said that they were planning to reduce their practice hours in the next 12 months. Yet nearly three-quarters (73%) said that they were able to practice self-care and nearly two-thirds (63%) said that they were able to maintain a positive work-life balance.

METHODOLOGY

APA’s 2023 Practitioner Pulse Survey is one in a series of surveys conducted annually since 2020. This year’s survey was distributed via email to a random sample of 16,557 licensed psychologists in the United States from Aug. 30 to Sept. 29, 2023. A total of 561 responded to the survey.

A full methodology is available.

 

'Shocking' discovery: Electricity from electric eels may transfer genetic material to nearby animals

Peer-Reviewed Publication

NAGOYA UNIVERSITY

 

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RESEARCHERS DISCOVERED THAT ELECTRIC EELS, THE BIGGEST POWER-MAKING CREATURE ON EARTH, CAN RELEASE ENOUGH ELECTRICITY TO GENETICALLY MODIFY SMALL FISH LARVAE.

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CREDIT: SHINTARO SAKAKI

The electric eel is the biggest power-making creature on Earth. It can release up to 860 volts, which is enough to run a machine. In a recent study, a research group from Nagoya University in Japan found electric eels can release enough electricity to genetically modify small fish larvae. They published their findings in PeerJ - Life and Environment. 

The researchers' findings add to what we know about electroporation, a gene delivery technique. Electroporation uses an electric field to create temporary pores in the cell membrane. This lets molecules, like DNA or proteins, enter the target cell.  

The research group was led by Professor Eiichi Hondo and Assistant Professor Atsuo Iida from Nagoya University. They thought that if electricity flows in a river, it might affect the cells of nearby organisms. Cells can incorporate DNA fragments in water, known as environmental DNA. To test this, they exposed the young fish in their laboratory to a DNA solution with a marker that glowed in the light to see if the zebrafish had taken the DNA. Then, they introduced an electric eel and prompted it to bite a feeder to discharge electricity.  

According to Iida, electroporation is commonly viewed as a process only found in the laboratory, but he was not convinced. "I thought electroporation might happen in nature," he said. "I realized that electric eels in the Amazon River could well act as a power source, organisms living in the surrounding area could act as recipient cells, and environmental DNA fragments released into the water would become foreign genes, causing genetic recombination in the surrounding organisms because of electric discharge.”  

The researchers discovered that 5% of the larvae had markers showing gene transfer. “This indicates that the discharge from the electric eel promoted gene transfer to the cells, even though eels have different shapes of pulse and unstable voltage compared to machines usually used in electroporation,” said Iida. "Electric eels and other organisms that generate electricity could affect genetic modification in nature.".  

Other studies have observed a similar phenomenon occurring with naturally occurring fields, such as lightning, affecting nematodes and soil bacteria. Iida is very excited about the possibilities of electric field research in living organisms. He believes these effects are beyond what conventional wisdom can understand. He said, “I believe that attempts to discover new biological phenomena based on such "unexpected" and "outside-the-box" ideas will enlighten the world about the complexities of living organisms and trigger breakthroughs in the future.”

Video 1 [VIDEO] | EurekAlert! Science News Releases

The zebrafish larvae and a DNA solution were put into a small container and placed inside the tank where the electric eel produces electric pulses when it is fed by the experimenter.

CREDIT    Shintaro Sakaki

DNA of zebrafish larvae have been modified (shown in green) by the electricity from the eel. (Zebrafish and highlighted GFP images are overlayed)

CREDIT

Shintaro Sakaki

JOURNAL

PeerJ

DOI

10.7717/peerj.16596 

 

Establishment of Oyster Aquaculture Alliance for One Health: Amplifying the impact of Hong Kong oyster hatchery and breeding technology in China

Meeting Announcement

THE UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG

 

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UPPER IMAGE: THE PARTICIPANTS OF ‘THE WORLD IS OUR OYSTER’ SYMPOSIUM GATHERED FOR A GROUP PHOTO, CREATIVELY MIMICKING OYSTER SHELLS WITH THEIR HANDS.
LOWER IMAGE: THE PARTICIPANTS OF WOO-2023 ENGAGED IN DISCUSSION AND BRAINSTORMED IDEAS FOR PROMOTING ONE HEALTH OYSTER AQUACULTURE WHILE STANDING ON THE HKU’S OYSTER CULTURE RAFT IN LAU FAU SHAN. 
 

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CREDIT: THE UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG

On October 27-29, the Hong Kong Oyster Hatchery and Innovation Research Unit (HKO-HIRU) at The University of Hong Kong (HKU) successfully hosted the ‘The World is Our Oyster (WOO) Symposium 2023’. During the event, the Oyster Aquaculture Alliance for One Health (OAA) was officially established. The event brought together a diverse group of over 50 stakeholders, including scientists, policymakers, government officials, oyster growers, industrial partners, and research students, sharing their groundbreaking research findings and fostering discussions on the future of ONE HEALTH oyster aquaculture in Hong Kong, as well as the rebranding of Hong Kong Oysters. The symposium exemplified the spirit of partnership between HKU School of Biological Sciences, the Swire Institute of Marine Science (SWIMS), and the local oyster industry in nurturing the growth of HKO-HIRU.

The call for modernising oyster aquaculture and knowledge exchange
Cultivation of Hong Kong (HK) oyster species in southern China contributes to a quarter of global edible oyster production. HK oysters are a nutritious delicacy rich in Omega-3 and are primarily consumed by the rising middle-class populations. Hence, sustained expansion of this sector is essential for seafood security. However, this sector faces unprecedented challenges due to reclamation, overcrowding and climate change. These human impacts not only directly deteriorate oyster food safety and security but also seriously affect wild seed production. The few wild seeds that are collected often suffer from mass mortality during the harvesting period in winter, and once these seeds are planted or used, their performance is often unpredictable. Thus, sustainable aquaculture in the region now heavily depends on hatchery-produced seeds from stress-tolerant and disease-resilient populations, especially their triploid version; and on how quickly we adapt the one health approach in aquaculture. As part of the effort, the HKSAR government has funded HKU via the Sustainable Fisheries Development Fund (SFDF) to establish a research-based hatchery HKO-HIRU, for developing novel technology to modernise the sector with knowledge exchange — the project has developed impactful technologies in collaboration with growers in South China and Lee Kum Kee Co. Ltd. 

Breakthroughs and teamwork for a thriving oyster farming industry
The hatchery at HKU has successfully produced and delivered over 5,000 strings of seeds to the local oyster growers in Lau Fau Shan (LFS). The hatchery has also achieved a milestone by producing its first batch of triploid oyster seeds this season. The performance of these triploid seeds is currently being monitored.

Triploid oysters, containing three sets of chromosomes instead of two, exhibits resilience to environmental stressors such as climate change, pH fluctuations and salinity. Local production of triploid oyster seeds in Hong Kong has the potential to enhance local oyster aquaculture. Other than this, the hatchery has also completed the first trial batch of single oyster spat production using in-house upwelling and downwelling systems in collaboration with the Department of Architecture at HKU. The hatchery has also co-developed innovative material with HKU’s Civil Engineering Department to improve oyster spat recruitment. Additionally, the research unit is currently working on the development of a Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) chip for broodstock management at the hatchery.

WOO Symposium 2023: Unleashing Innovation and Celebrating Collaborative Power
In the Grand Opening of the 3-day event, Professor Alice WONG, Associate Vice-President (Research) of HKU and the interim Director of the School of Biological Sciences, delivered an opening address emphasising the significance of innovative technologies for modernising oyster aquaculture. She also highlighted the importance of collaboration among researchers, government, growers and industry for effective knowledge exchange in this aquaculture sector. During the logo unveiling of the alliance, Dean of HKU Science Professor Qiang ZHOU expressed appreciation for the initiative and efforts made by OAA. Additionally, we were honoured to have the presence of Mr Yinghua LI, Deputy Mayor of the Rushan City Government.

Mr Patrick LAI, Assistant Director (Fisheries & Marine Conservation) of Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD), expressed appreciation for the progress made by HKO-HIRU in setting up the hatchery at HKU and the on-time delivery of oyster seeds to the growers in Lau Fau Shan. He mentioned that more support could be provided through SFDF in the coming years. Mr Benjamin LEE, President of Hong Kong Oyster Culture Association and Chairman of STK Rural committee, showed his interest in learning about hatchery technology from HKU to incorporate oyster aquaculture potentially in Sha Tau Kok area. Echoing with all the leaders and experts, Professor Qi LI, President of Oyster Aquaculture Association of China, stressed the importance of gathering professionals from the industry and establishing the alliance at HKU. The opening was concluded by the visit of the state-of-the-art oyster hatchery facility at the campus.

A full-day symposium was hosted at HKU’s off-campus research facility, the Swire Institute of Marine Science (SWIMS), on the second day, where scientists and policymakers discussed the sustainable future of Oyster aquaculture. The participants explored the possibility of making an SNP chip for multiple oyster species to aid in broodstock management at the hatchery. They were also provided with the research findings presented by researchers of HKU on the winter mortality of oysters in Hong Kong, along with very valuable insights shared by Rushan city Deputy Mayor and his delegation on the possibility of adapting science-based planning in the oyster aquaculture industry in Hong Kong and mainland, including considerations for respective rebranding. Striving to ‘improve oyster aquaculture environment, species and culturing protocols with one health practices as an innovative solution to enhance the commercial value of Chinese oyster products’, the participants reaffirmed their commitment to the mission of OAA.

On the final day of the symposium, the group visited the HKU-AFCD oyster rafts in LFS where the HKO-HIRU-produced seeds are currently deployed and being monitored. The visit provided a unique opportunity for oyster growers to voice their concerns, while representatives from the Deep Bay Oyster Cultivator Association engaged in a collaborative discussion with AFCD representatives and scientists on how to improve the quality and market value of Hong Kong oysters. This engaging exchange of ideas and perspectives was a testament to the symposium's success in fostering a comprehensive and inclusive dialogue among all stakeholders within the ONE HEALTH oyster aquaculture industry.

Dr Thiyagarajan VENGATESEN from HKU School of Biological Sciences and The Swire Institute of Marine Science, who is also the Director of HKO-HIRU and the organiser of WOO-2023 Symposium, expressed his satisfaction with the outcome of this meeting. ‘The meeting has demonstrated the breeding technologies that have been developed in the HKO-HIRU to various stakeholders, identifying ways through which those technologies could be integrated with national efforts to develop sustainable oyster aquaculture for one health with global perspective; and finalising the objectives and deliverables of the just launched ‘Oyster Aquaculture Alliance for One Health’, said Dr Vengatesen.

For more information, please visit the website of HKO-HIRU: https://www.hkuoyster.com/

Images download and captions: https://www.scifac.hku.hk/press

For media enquiries, please contact Ms Casey To, External Relations Officer (tel: 3917 4948; email: caseyto@hku.hk / Ms Cindy Chan, Assistant Director of Communications of HKU, Faculty of Science (tel: 39175286; email: cindycst@hku.hk).

 

HKU establishes Centre on Contemporary China and the World to address critical governance challenges

Business Announcement

THE UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG

 

IMAGE: 

PROFESSOR LI CHENG, FOUNDING DIRECTOR OF THE CENTRE ON CONTEMPORARY CHINA AND THE WORLD, HKU

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CREDIT: THE UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG

The University of Hong Kong (HKU) is launching a new interdisciplinary think tank, the Centre on Contemporary China and the World (CCCW). Its aim is to foster international collaboration to study China and global governance in a world facing economic turbulence, environmental degradation, technological transformation, and geopolitical challenges. 

Professor LI Cheng, an internationally renowned political scientist, and a seasoned think tank scholar, will serve as CCCW’s founding director. Prior to joining HKU, Professor Li served as director of the Brookings Institution’s John L. Thornton China Center, where he remains a nonresident senior fellow. Professor Li is also a director of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations, a Distinguished Fellow of the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy at University of Toronto, a nonresident fellow at Yale University’s Paul Tsai China Center, and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

CCCW’s inception arrives at a critical moment amidst escalating geopolitical tensions worldwide. CCCW builds on the robust foundation of HKU’s internationally renowned faculty, diverse student body, and exceptional academic tradition. By assembling a large pool of researchers from around the world—including affiliated HKU faculties, post-doctoral fellows, distinguished visiting fellows, and young global China scholars, CCCW will promote interdisciplinary and international collaboration to address pressing governance challenges. 

“Hong Kong, uniquely positioned as a cosmopolitan city, cultural crossroads, and bridge to the Greater Bay Area, is the ideal location for our new global think tank. Hong Kong’s influence on international discourse makes it a crucial enabler of global integrations. At HKU, we’re committed to nurturing meaningful interdisciplinary and international collaborations to facilitate these vital developments.” said Professor Xiang Zhang, President and Vice-chancellor of HKU. 

CCCW’s initial research directions encompass five areas: science and technology transformation; climate change and alternative energy; economic and financial reforms; political leadership and generational transition; and geopolitical landscape change, with an emphasis on the Sino-U.S. relationship.  

CCCW will be officially launched on December 15 (Friday), at a high-profile conference themed “A Renewed Hub and a New Horizon” (新樞紐、新格局). The launch will include a full day of dynamic programming including keynote speeches, fireside conversations, and panel discussions featuring prominent scholars, diplomats, and practitioners from Hong Kong, mainland China, and around the world. Further details on the programme and speakers will be provided later.

Through publications, public forums, private roundtables, and media commentaries, CCCW scholars will strive to produce comprehensive, original, accessible, high-quality, and creative research. The Centre aims to become a leading voice of reason, a bridge for mutual understanding, and a constructive force for peace across the Pacific and around the world.