Person: Remacha Sebastián, Carolina
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First Name
Carolina
Last Name
Remacha Sebastián
Affiliation
Universidad Complutense de Madrid
Faculty / Institute
Ciencias Biológicas
Department
Biodiversidad, Ecología y Evolución
Area
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5 results
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Item Reducing visitors’ group size increases the number of birds during educational activities: Implications for management of nature-based recreation(Journal of Environmental Management, 2011) Remacha Sebastián, Carolina; Pérez Tris, Javier; Delgado Sáez, Juan AntonioOrganized tours to watch wildlife are popular recreational and educational activities, in which the visitor expectative (to observe as many and as diverse animals as possible) runs parallel to conservation purposes. However, the presence of visitors may cause negative impacts on wildlife, which makes recreation difficult to manage. Thus, restricting visitor’s load to minimize impacts on fauna may be advisable, but too much restriction may end up disappointing the public. We analysed how visitors’ group size influences the number and variety of birds observed during an educational activity directed to scholars, in a forested area where public access is otherwise restricted.We observed fewer birds, but not fewer species, as the size of scholars’ groups increased. Such effect was apparently mediated by a few species demonstrating reduced tolerance to increased group size. Our results support the idea that reducing the size of visitors’ groups not only helps to minimize the negative impacts on wildlife derived from leisure activities, but also allows visitors to watch more wildlife. Therefore, organizing visitors in small numbers is recommended in the design of activities directed to groups of people visiting natural areas.Item Ecología del ocio efectos del uso recreativo de los espacios naturales sobre las aves reproductoras(2015) Remacha Sebastián, Carolina; Delgado Sáez, Juan Antonio; Pérez-Tris, JavierItem Trade‑off between tolerance and resistance to infections: an experimental approach with malaria parasites in a passerine bird(Oecologia, 2018) Arriero Higueras, Elena; Pérez Tris, Javier; Ramírez García, Álvaro; Remacha Sebastián, CarolinaAvian malaria parasites are known to have negative effects on their hosts, including consequences for reproductive success and survival. However, the outcome of disease may vary greatly among individuals, due to their particular genetic background, their past history of exposure to infections, or the way they respond to infections at the physiological level. We experimentally reduced parasitemia in naturally infected birds to examine individual-level variation in physiological parameters involved in anti-parasite defense, focusing specifically on disease resistance and tolerance. As a measure of disease resistance, we used circulating levels of IgY, and as a measure of disease tolerance, we estimated haptoglobin concentrations. Our results show individual consistency in the physiological parameters studied during the experiment, that was statistically significant for body condition, and marginally significant for IgY levels, and a trade-off between physiological mechanisms involved in resistance and tolerance that seem to be mediated by parasitemia. The medication experiment with primaquine was successful in reducing parasite intensity, but was not sufficient to clear the infection, and there was a generalized improvement in body condition in all birds maintained in captivity during the experiment. We suggest that the observed changes in the association between resistance and tolerance estimates may be due to the decrease in parasitemia attained through medication, to the improved nutritional status observed during the experiment or to the combined effect of both. Our study adds to the understanding of how wild animals cope with the diseases they are exposed to in their natural environment, and ultimately the consequences of parasitism at the individual level.Item Young male blackcaps with blood parasite coinfections cope with oxidative stress favouring anthocyanin-rich food during migratory fattening(Journal of Avian Biology, 2024) Jiménez Gallardo, Lucía Gloria; López Arrabe, Jimena; Pérez Tris, Javier; Remacha Sebastián, CarolinaParasites may alter host physiology, which may promote behavioural adaptations to counteract their effect. Adaptive feeding may help individuals to cope with infection, especially during physiologically demanding life stages. For instance, migrating birds need fuel for long-distance flights and repair oxidative damage caused by intense aerobic exercise, and parasites may influence on how individuals balance these needs. Infected birds may face increased oxidative challenges, which could induce them to favour anti-oxidant defences over other needs, such as fattening. We tested whether migrating birds can adaptively choose food according to their needs, favouring dietary antioxi-dants to cope with oxidative stress caused by haemosporidian blood parasites during migration. During autumn migration, we mist-netted young male Eurasian blackcaps Sylvia atricapilla stopping over in central Spain. We placed the birds in cages where they were offered fat and anthocyanin-enriched food alternatives. We measured prefer-ence for each food offer. We tested their infections with haemosporidian parasites by PCR techniques and their parasitaemia by blood smear inspection. We also measured physiological variables that account for nutritional and oxidative status in red blood cells and plasma. We found that birds with multiple infections favoured anthocyanin-enriched food controlling for an effect of body mass on food preference (lean blackcaps preferred anthocyanins, likely because they are urged to repair oxidative damage upon arrival on stopover with depleted energy reserves). Haemosporidian-infected birds had a lower antioxidant capacity of plasma, although no effect of infections on oxidative damage was detected, and individuals with more oxidative damage preferred anthocy-anin-enriched food. Our results suggest that haemosporidian infections may increase individual antioxidant needs, which could affect migratory performance if the urge to find dietary antioxidants reduces the rate of fuel consumption.- Project number: 123
Item Hacia una docencia universitaria bilingüe: Análisis y evaluación del interés de los estudiantes pregraduados en Biología por una enseñanza en inglés(2021) Pulido Delgado, Francisco; Agorreta Calvo, Ainhoa; Alonso López, Javier Antonio; Aragon Carrera, Pedro; Arriero Higueras, Elena; Barrientos Yuste, Rafael; Díaz González-Serrano, José Augusto; Dominguez Lozano, Felipe; Galván Arcones, Sofía; García Esteban, María Teresa; Gutiérrez Cañas, Irene; Jiménez Gallardo, Lucía Gloria; Lorente Martínez, Hector; Madrid González, Ricardo; Martín De La Calle, Carlos Alfonso; Martínez Galvez, David; Munar Delgado, Gabriel; Novo Rodríguez, Marta; Pérez García, Selene; Pérez Gomariz, Rosa María; Pérez Tris, Javier; Pias Couso, María Beatriz; Pineda Pampliega, Javier; Quiles Tundidor, Pablo; Ramírez García, Álvaro; Redondo González, Lara; Remacha Sebastián, Carolina; San Mauro Martín, Diego; Sánchez de Dios, Rut; Sánchez García, María CristinaEl objetivo de este proyecto era evaluar el interés de los estudiantes de Biología por un grado bilingüe. Mediante cuestionarios, seminarios informativos y clases en inglés se identificaron las variables que afectan a la demanda y la perspectiva de éxito. Demostramos que los estudiantes del Grado en Biología tienen buen nivel de inglés y están muy interesados en una docencia en inglés. Desearían cursos o clases en inglés a partir del primer curso. El interés se basa sobre todo en el deseo de poder trabajar y estudiar en el extranjero. Actividades en inglés y seminarios informativos incrementarían el interés y la demanda de docencia en inglés.