Recent research has shown that risk and reward are positively correlated in many environments, and that people have internalized this association as a “risk-reward heuristic”: when making choices based on incomplete information, people infer probabilities from payoffs and vice-versa, and these inferences shape their decisions. We extend this work by examining people’s expectations about another fundamental trade-off — that between monetary reward and delay. In 2 experiments (total N = 670), we adapted a paradigm previously used to demonstrate the risk-reward heuristic. We presented participants with intertemporal choice tasks in which either the delayed reward or the length of the delay was obscured. Participants inferred larger rewards for longer stated delays, and longer delays for larger stated rewards; these inferences also predicted people’s willingness to take the delayed option. In exploratory analyses, we found that older participants inferred longer delays and smaller rewards than did younger ones. All of these results replicated in 2 large-scale pre-registered studies with participants from a different population (total N = 2138). Our results suggest that people expect intertemporal choice tasks to offer a trade-off between delay and reward, and differ in their expectations about this trade-off. This “delay-reward heuristic” offers a new perspective on existing models of intertemporal choice and provides new insights into unexplained and systematic individual differences in the willingness to delay gratification.

Timely euthanasia on swine farms can help to reduce the incidence of poor welfare outcomes for compromised pigs (Sus scrofa) when recovery is prolonged or impossible. Timely euthanasia relies upon caretakers’ abilities to identify compromised pigs and administer euthanasia in various environments. To determine appropriate timelines and most common reasons for on-farm euthanasia, an online survey was conducted with members of the United States National Pork Board. Additionally, two focus groups were conducted to investigate barriers and possible solutions associated with timely euthanasia. Clinical signs related to poor locomotion (57.6%), prolapses (47.2%), and hernias (43.5%) were identified by the greatest percentage of respondents who believed immediate euthanasia was warranted, while a greater percentage of respondents believed euthanasia was not warranted for clinical signs related to the integumentary (90.3%), reproductive (75.8%), and respiratory (67.5%) systems. The most common reason for euthanasia was poor body condition in pre-weaned piglets and non-ambulatory or severely weak for both breeding and non-breeding pigs. In the focus groups, two themes were identified when evaluating barriers to euthanasia on-farm, and participants agreed that making timely decisions relies upon several dimensions of risk analysis. An unsupportive farm culture was identified as a critical barrier to timely euthanasia decision-making, suggesting that caretaker characteristics may play a role in the success of any timely euthanasia programme. This present study has highlighted areas for future research and demonstrated the need to extend educational efforts both to swine industry leaders and producers to improve overall animal welfare by ensuring timely euthanasia in swine.

The poultry red mite (Dermanyssus gallinae) causes severe welfare concerns for laying hens arising from anaemia and disease transmission, and has been identified as an associated risk factor in cannibalistic feather pecking. Previous work suggests that essential oils may offer an alternative to synthetic acaricides to control D. gallinae. Such alternatives are needed due to the limitations of synthetic acaricides (eg availability, resistance, environmental concerns and product residues). The aim of the current study was to ensure that selected essential oils have no negative impact on either hen welfare or egg production. To achieve this aim, small groups of laying hens were confined in poultry huts for a period of eight weeks during which time the interior of the huts was sprayed at weekly intervals with one of four different treatments: i) Thyme essential oil at 5× the LC90 level (the concentration of oil previously found to kill 90% of D. gallinae under laboratory conditions) for D. gallinae in 500 ml of water, ii) Pennyroyal essential oil at 5× the LC90 level for D. gallinae in 500 ml of water, iii) Solvent-only (huts treated with 500 ml of water); and iv) Pseudo-spray where huts were not treated with any product, but subjected to sham-spraying. The results suggest that pennyroyal essential oil would not be suitable for further development as an acaricide for D. gallinae, since this treatment had to be terminated early in the study period as a result of concerns about the welfare of hens exposed to this oil. Conversely, there were few differences in feather condition, hen weight, feed intake, feeding efficiency, egg production or egg weight between thyme-treated huts and huts that were either pseudo-sprayed or sprayed with solvent-only (water). It is concluded that thyme essential oil is a promising candidate for further development as an acaricide for D. gallinae to help safeguard the welfare of laying hens in commercial poultry systems.

The paper describes the first report of Kandelia candel (Rhizophoraceae), a rare mangrove from Bhavanapadu, a coastal village in Srikakulam district in Andhra Pradesh, India. This species is relatively less abundant along the east coast of India. During our study covering all the 41 mangrove patches in the state of Andhra Pradesh, 16 mangrove species were observed throughout the state and the Kandelia candel was seen only in Bhavanapadu (patch 2). The plant sighted was identified using taxonomic keys and confirmed using DNA barcoding. The identified specimen is deposited in the museum repository at ICAR-Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI), Kochi (accession no. MB.1.1.1.1) and its gene sequence is deposited in National Center for Biotechnological Information (NCBI) (accession no. MH243746). Patch 2 where K. candel was observed is separated away from the other clusters in the principal component one, with the patch showing an average dissimilarity of about 71.79% from the other patches. K. candel is a mangrove highly sensitive to changes in salinity. The presence of a lone member of a rare species in the state at the sampling location raises questions on its endurance in the region. The study underlines the relevance of monitoring the mangroves and advocate adequate conservation measures for proper protection, proliferation and management of this globally dwindling resource.

The new mineral pohlite (IMA2022–043), Pb7(IO3)(OH)4Cl9, was found at La Compania mine, Sierra Gorda, Antofagasta Province, Antofagasta, Chile, where it occurs in cavities in an oxidised portion of a quartz vein in association with massive aragonite and anhydrite. Pohlite crystals are transparent, colourless to pale grey blades, up to 4 mm in length. The mineral has a white streak, adamantine lustre and is nonfluorescent. It is brittle with irregular, conchoidal fracture. The Mohs hardness is ~2½ and it has no cleavage. The calculated density is 5.838(2) g cm–3. Optically, the mineral is biaxial (+) with α < 2.01(est.), β = 2.02 (calc.), γ = 2.05 (calc.); 2V = 60(5)°; moderate r > v dispersion; orientation: Y ∧ a ≈ 20°, Z ∧ b ≈ 30°; and is nonpleochroic. The Raman spectrum exhibits bands consistent with IO3– and O–H. Electron microprobe analysis provided the empirical formula Pb6.74I1.00Cl9.29O6.71H4.23. The five strongest powder X-ray diffraction lines are [dobs Å(I)(hkl)]: 3.818(91)(023, 122, 1$\bar{2}$1), 3.674(85)($\bar{1}\bar{2}$1, $\bar{1}$22, 200, 104), 3.399(47)($\bar{2}$10, 210, $\bar{1}$04), 2.378(100)(302, 041, $\bar{2}$24) and 1.9943(45)(multiple). Pohlite is triclinic, P$\bar{1}$, a = 7.3366(5), b = 9.5130(9), c = 16.2434(15) Å, α = 81.592(7), β = 84.955(7), γ = 89.565(6)°, V = 1117.13(17) Å3 and Z = 2. The structure of pohlite (R1 = 0.0328 for 3394 I > 2σI) contains two types of clusters, a [Pb4(OH)3]5+ cluster formed by short Pb–O bonds and a [Pb3(OH)(IO3)]28+ ‘double cluster’ formed by short I–O bonds and short- to medium-length Pb–O bonds. Long Pb–Cl and I–Cl bonds link the clusters together in three dimensions.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has placed significant burden on healthcare systems. We compared Clostridioides difficile infection (CDI) epidemiology before and during the pandemic across 71 hospitals participating in the Canadian Nosocomial Infection Surveillance Program. Using an interrupted time series analysis, we showed that CDI rates significantly increased during the COVID-19 pandemic.