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Papers by Luke Phillips

Universidad Santo Tomás, 2015

Individual-based field observations of breeding snowy plovers

This study is comprised of two parts. Part 1 focuses on ISIS, Boko Haram, and Al-Shabaab, examini... more This study is comprised of two parts. Part 1 focuses on ISIS, Boko Haram, and Al-Shabaab, examining the structures, tactics, and motivations of the groups. Each group seeks territory in its respective region. After losing territories, Boko Haram and Al-Shabaab both turned to guerilla attacks and suicide bombing, destabilizing the areas formerly under their control. Having lost much territory, ISIS is already showing signs of behaving more like an insurgency and employing tactics similar to Boko Haram and Al-Shabaab by resorting to attacks on soft targets as it continues to be deprived of territory. Part 2 focuses on the US policy response to ISIS, Boko Haram, and Al-Shabaab. After describing the Obama Administration’s objectives, polices, and results against these groups, this study concludes that while President Obama’s objectives were met fairly well and the groups were weakened in territorial capacity, the groups continue to thrive in certain capacities and the administration fai...

bioRxiv, 2020

Identifying age-dependent trade-offs between reproductive effort and survival in wild organisms i... more Identifying age-dependent trade-offs between reproductive effort and survival in wild organisms is central for understanding the evolutionary mechanisms of senescence. According to the disposable soma theory, early-life energy investments in reproduction compromise late-life investments in somatic maintenance – leading to senescence. Once thought to only be detectable in captive populations, senescence has recently been documented by several longitudinal studies of wild organisms. However, some reproductive traits that are used to quantify senescence may also be shaped by other age-dependent processes such as mating tactics. For instance, polygamy, which is often positively associated with age, may lead to reduced gamete size due to trade-offs between gamete quantity and quality. Here we investigate how mating behaviour and senescence are associated with reproductive trade-offs of female snowy plovers ( Charadrius nivosus ). Snowy plovers are long-lived shorebirds (longevity record:...

Company secretaries face an ongoing challenge to facilitate the exchange of timely and accurate i... more Company secretaries face an ongoing challenge to facilitate the exchange of timely and accurate information between management and the board. While many organisations rely on traditional methods to print and mail hardcopy board packs, the collation and distribution is costly and labour intensive. Electronic communication methods can remedy these issues, but only if the proper channel is utilised.

In their commentary, Székely et al. (SA) question our publication of a long-term dataset on threa... more In their commentary, Székely et al. (SA) question our publication of a long-term dataset on threatened Snowy Plovers Charadrius nivosus breeding at Bahía de Ceuta, Mexico. The commentary was submitted to Scientific Data but rejected by the editors, who based on the reports of two reviewers concluded that our data descriptor had reasonably acknowledged prior work and was written scientifically ethical and suitable given the limitations of the publication’s format. Most importantly, we note that SA do not raise any fault with the main content of the paper – the data and their accompanying description – providing further assurance that these data can be analysed or reanalysed with confidence. However, SA write that the data descriptor has “omissions and inaccurate statements, and fails to acknowledge key contributions to their project”. We reject these criticisms and maintain that i) we were within our full rights to publish these data and, ii) the data descriptor is accurate.

Shorebirds (partim members of order Charadriiformes) have a global distribution and exhibit remar... more Shorebirds (partim members of order Charadriiformes) have a global distribution and exhibit remarkable variation in ecological and behavioural traits that are pertinent to many core questions in the fields of evolutionary ecology and conservation biology. Shorebirds are also relatively convenient to study in the wild as they are ground nesting and often occupy open habitats that are tractable to monitor. Here we present a database documenting the reproductive ecology of 1,600 individually marked snowy plovers (Charadrius nivosus) monitored between 2006 and 2016 at Bahía de Ceuta (23°54 N, 106°57 W) – an important breeding site in north-western Mexico. The database encompasses various morphological, behavioural, and fitness-related traits of males and females along with spatial and temporal population dynamics. This open resource will serve as an important data repository for addressing overarching questions in avian ecology and wetland conservation during an era of big data and glob...

Scientific Reports

Recent developments in genomics are advancing our understanding of the processes shaping populati... more Recent developments in genomics are advancing our understanding of the processes shaping population structure in wild organisms. In particular, reduced representation sequencing has facilitated the generation of dense genetic marker datasets that provide greater power for resolving population structure, investigating the role of selection and reconstructing demographic histories. We therefore used RAD sequencing to study the great scallop Pecten maximus and its sister species P. jacobeus along a latitudinal cline in Europe. Analysis of 219 samples genotyped at 82,439 single nucleotide polymorphisms clearly resolved an Atlantic and a Norwegian group within P. maximus as well as P. jacobeus, in support of previous studies. Fine-scale structure was also detected, including pronounced differences involving Mulroy Bay in Ireland, where scallops are commercially cultured. Furthermore, we identified a suite of 279 environmentally associated loci that resolved a contrasting phylogenetic pattern to the remaining neutral loci, consistent with ecologically mediated divergence. Finally, demographic inference provided support for the two P. maximus groups having diverged during the last glacial maximum and subsequently expanded, whereas P. jacobeus diverged around 95,000 generations ago and experienced less pronounced expansion. our results provide an integrative perspective on the factors shaping genome-wide differentiation in a commercially important marine invertebrate. Over the last decade, the development of genotyping approaches based on reduced representation sequencing has led to a step change in our understanding of the population genetics of wild organisms 1. In particular, restriction site associated DNA (RAD) sequencing has increased in popularity due to its ability to generate large single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) datasets even for species lacking genomic resources 2. These datasets not only provide greater power to resolve genetic differences among populations, but also allow the underlying drivers of population structure and genetic diversity to be investigated 3. Of these drivers, neutral processes such as allopatric divergence and effective population size change are expected to play a prominent role, particularly in marine species that have experienced profound changes in habitat availability in relation to glacial cycles 4. However, the widespread discovery of environmentally associated loci 5 has also pointed towards an important contribution of non-neutral processes towards observed patterns of genome-wide divergence. Investigating the contributions of

SSRN Electronic Journal

This Article explores the meaning of the Declare War Clause of the Constitution and its interpret... more This Article explores the meaning of the Declare War Clause of the Constitution and its interpretation promulgated by the executive branch, specifically the Office of Legal Counsel (“OLC”). In recent years the OLC has applied a “national interests” test in evaluating whether unilateral presidential military actions are constitutionally valid. This analysis does not, however, adequately address the role of Congress as the branch entrusted with the power to declare war, and moreover it does not even confront what the Declare War Clause means. This Article concludes that the Declare War Clause grants Congress the power to initiate war and precludes that power from the President. This Article then turns to historical presidential actions and the government’s interpretation of war powers. In finding that the constitutional validity of unilateral military actions depends on how one defines war, this Article surveys how each of the separate branches of government have defined the term. Last, discerning no settled definition of war in the federal legal landscape, this Article proposes that Congress enact legislation which delineates the parameters of war. An established definition of war would, at long last, give Congress a mechanism to enforce its declare war power as well as offer to the OLC legitimate criteria for its analyses of executive actions.

Australasian Journal of Ultrasound in Medicine

E mergency and critical care physicians have pioneered the use of Point of Care Ultrasound (POCUS... more E mergency and critical care physicians have pioneered the use of Point of Care Ultrasound (POCUS) in the management of their patients. POCUS has the potential to expedite care and diagnosis as well as improve patient safety. Over the last 30 years, ultrasound machines have become more portable and less expensive, and the image processing and quality has improved to the point where some POCUS machines are comparable to some of their radiology counterparts. There has been a large uptake in ultrasound use among the critical care specialities and more recently among other medical and surgical colleagues. Training, credentialing, quality assurance, infection control and image storage are all challenges that departments implementing ultrasound will face as the scope of practice expands. What is POCUS? When compared with a full radiological examination, the POCUS exam is limited. It is focused on answering specific questions relating to the suspected pathology and area being imaged. 1 An example of this is the extended focused assessment with sonography in trauma (E-FAST) exam where the clinician aims to detect free fluid within the abdomen, pericardium and in the pleural spaces and evidence of pneumothorax. 2 In contrast, in a comprehensive examination of the abdomen, free fluid would be identified but the organs themselves would also be interrogated for potential injury. A formal examination is impractical in the unstable trauma patient where every minute counts for patient survival; identification of intraperitoneal fluid in this patient expedites their journey through the Emergency Department (ED) for definitive management in theatre. 3 Many clinicians prefer the terms originally proposed by the American Society of Echocardiography (ECHO), 'focused', 'limited' and 'comprehensive', as this reflects the aims of the scan and the level of training of the operator, rather than the geographical location where the scan is performed. 4

Northeastern Naturalist

Abstract Birds produce a variety of vocalizations ranging in function from attracting a mate to a... more Abstract Birds produce a variety of vocalizations ranging in function from attracting a mate to alerting others of danger. One vocalization of Tachycineta bicolor (Tree Swallow), the chatter call, is reported to serve as both a mate-attraction call and a nest-defense call. We used playback techniques to investigate the nest-defense behavior of Tree Swallows to calls of Toxostoma rufum (Brown Thrasher; control) and Sialia sialis (Eastern Bluebird; nest competitor), and Tree Swallow shriek (alarm call) and chatter calls. We measured time spent foraging, remaining in the nest box, and on nest defense. Tree Swallows spent 80% of their time on nest defense in response to the chatter call. The chatter-call and shriek-call nest-defense responses were nearly identical. Our data show that the chatter call functions as an alarm call and elicits nest-defense behavior.

Nature communications, Jan 25, 2018

The adult sex ratio (ASR) is a fundamental concept in population biology, sexual selection, and s... more The adult sex ratio (ASR) is a fundamental concept in population biology, sexual selection, and social evolution. However, it remains unclear which demographic processes generate ASR variation and how biases in ASR in turn affect social behaviour. Here, we evaluate the demographic mechanisms shaping ASR and their potential consequences for parental cooperation using detailed survival, fecundity, and behavioural data on 6119 individuals from six wild shorebird populations exhibiting flexible parental strategies. We show that these closely related populations express strikingly different ASRs, despite having similar ecologies and life histories, and that ASR variation is largely driven by sex differences in the apparent survival of juveniles. Furthermore, families in populations with biased ASRs were predominantly tended by a single parent, suggesting that parental cooperation breaks down with unbalanced sex ratios. Taken together, our results indicate that sex biases emerging during ...

Biological Conservation

Abstract Shorebird populations often rely on wetland habitats, for which they are considered impo... more Abstract Shorebird populations often rely on wetland habitats, for which they are considered important indicators of ecosystem health. Populations residing at low latitudes remain vastly understudied in comparison with populations from high latitudes. Here we use detailed behavioural and demographic observations during all life stages in combination with stage specific modelling to predict the population trajectory of a snowy plover (Charadrius nivosus) population at Bahia de Ceuta, Sinaloa, Mexico. In North America this shorebird is threatened, with many monitored populations declining. Our stochastic matrix model for the Ceuta population, which closely matched our field observations, suggests that the population is a sink with a 99.8% probability of going extinct within 25 years. Low apparent adult survival, which declined over time presumably because of poor reproductive success and/or permanent emigration in response to habitat degradation, had the largest impact on the population trajectory. We recommend urgent habitat management actions to address volatile water levels and hence increase reproductive success of this species at this important breeding site. Acknowledging the relative effects of flexible brood care on individual fitness and population dynamics presents an intriguing dilemma for conservation. We found that the flexible parental care system of snowy plovers affected chick survival: broods deserted by polyandrous females early after hatching had significantly lower survival than broods not deserted or those deserted late. Overall, deserting females raised fewer fledglings in this population than females that cared. Taken together, our study reveals unsustainable variation in local vital rate dynamics. To understand how this population contributes to regional source-sink dynamics, future research should evaluate the importance of immigration and emigration among neighbouring populations.

Journal of Nietzsche Studies

The demand for sublimation of one’s primitive and “evil” instincts plays a crucial role in Nietzs... more The demand for sublimation of one’s primitive and “evil” instincts plays a crucial role in Nietzsche’s ethics. But prominent misreadings of Nietzsche’s concept of sublimation have led to errors in interpreting his view of the highest type of man. I argue that Nietzsche’s view of sublimation is that it is the elevation of the objects of a drive through reinterpretation or reimagining them in such a way that the attainment of these new objects achieves a greater potency of expression for the drive while retaining its intrinsic aims. I also clarify the function of sublimation in his ethics.

Cellular & Molecular Immunology

The programmed cell death-1 (PD-1)/PD-ligand 1 (PD-L1) pathway is critical for normal pregnancy b... more The programmed cell death-1 (PD-1)/PD-ligand 1 (PD-L1) pathway is critical for normal pregnancy by promoting regulatory T (Treg) cell development and inhibiting the Th17 response. However, the relationship between the PD-1/PD-L1 pathway and the Treg/Th17 imbalance in pre-eclampsia (PE) is an enigma. In this study, decreased PD-1 and PD-L1 expression and a Treg/Th17 imbalance were observed at the maternal-fetal interface in PE. The regulatory effects of the PD-1/PD-L1 pathway on the Treg and Th17 cell quantities were determined in vitro by targeting T-cell proliferation, differentiation and transdifferentiation. First, decreased PD-1 expression might contribute to a higher Th17 cell frequency by promoting proliferation in PE. Second, the percentages of Treg but not Th17 cells differentiated from peripheral naive CD4 + T cells were increased by PD-L1 Fc administration. This effect was accompanied by decreased PI3K/AKT/m-TOR and increased PTEN mRNA expression and was completely reversed by PD-1 blockade. Finally, the percentage of IL-17-producing Treg cells increased and was positively associated with the Th17 cell frequency in PE. Increased RORγt and IL-17 but not Foxp3 and IL-10 mRNA expression by Treg cells was observed with PD-1 blockade. Similar findings occurred when Treg cells were exposed to IL-6/IL-23/IL-1β and were reversed by PD-L1 Fc. Taken together, our findings indicate that the PD-1/PD-L1 pathway contributes to the Treg/Th17 imbalance via 'one-two punch' approaches: (i) promoting Th17 cell proliferation, (ii) inhibiting Treg cell differentiation and (iii) enhancing Treg cell plasticity into Th17 cells in PE. The therapeutic value of PD-L1 Fc for PE treatment will be explored in the future.