Freshwater fish invasions are major drivers of global ecological change, disrupting native biodiversity and ecosystem functions. However, many invasive fish hold significant socioeconomic value, resulting in conflict over their management. Centrarchidae, which are globally distributed and are important for sportfishing and aquaculture, are now potentially becoming a global threat. Yet, no comprehensive appraisal exists across taxa and regions integrating taxonomy, pathways, impacts and risk analysis for Centrarchidae. To address these gaps, we compiled published literature and leveraged publicly available databases to critically evaluate the current global status of non-native Centrarchidae, finding 30 species established outside their native ranges with 17 being outside of North America. Largemouth bass (Micropterus nigricans) and pumpkinseed (Lepomis gibbosus) are the most widely introduced centrarchids. Reported impacts of Centrarchidae introduction are mostly ecological, with predation, competition, hybridisation, and disease transmission as major mechanisms. Conversely, socio-economic and cultural effects are underreported. Currently, only ten species have undergone rapid risk screening, with 90% flagged as high risk. However, risk analyses remain sparse, confounded by taxonomic uncertainties (including hybridisation) and context dependence of impacts. With the changing climate and other anthropogenic disturbances in freshwaters, habitat suitability is expanding for centrarchids. Although concerning, Centrarchidae form a highly human-mediated invasion complex with predictable pathways and tractable leverage points, so limiting propagule pressure and standardizing assessments can curb their future spread while informing balanced and evidence-based fisheries policy that reconciles socioeconomic benefits with environmental costs.
Famous face recognition tasks have traditionally been used to diagnose prosopagnosia, offering striking examples of the inability to recognise highly familiar faces. Yet, their popularity has dwindled with the development of standardised unfamiliar face recognition tasks that are less cumbersome to administer and can readily be implemented online. Here, we argue that there is a danger of omitting measures of familiar face recognition from prosopagnosia screening: not only may this challenge the very definition of the condition, but, with some adjustments, famous face recognition tasks can continue to offer highly sensitive measures of everyday face recognition ability. Thus, we developed and evaluated an online, automated famous face recognition paradigm that can readily be implemented into large-scale screening programmes. This task improves on previous designs by (a) eliminating extrinsic cues to identity by including distractor as well as familiar faces, (b) supporting the use of unseen rather than “iconic” images of celebrities, and (c) offering a method for automated scoring. Multiple versions of the task were found to have high sensitivity in the detection of developmental prosopagnosia. When required, sub-scores collected from the same paradigm can be used to assess performance at different stages of recognition and identification, helping to probe more precise loci of impairment. The latter is important to guide the diagnosis of more complex cases and, potentially, their remediation.
To explore how non-geriatric specialists across UEMS bodies who care for older adults understand and approach frailty in order to guide future interspecialty educational initiatives. An online survey was conducted to capture their perspectives, practices and training needs regarding frailty. Non-geriatric specialists recognise the importance of frailty but report limited confidence and training, indicating a clear need for accessible and standardised education. Frailty in older adults is associated with increased vulnerability, poorer outcomes, and greater healthcare utilisation. To inform future inter-specialty educational initiatives, a survey across UEMS bodies was conducted. An online survey was disseminated between July and November 2025 via the UEMS Coordination team to all sections, divisions, multidisciplinary joint committees, and thematic federations. Eligible respondents were specialists not certified in Geriatric Medicine who provide care to older adults (≥ 65 years). Of 416 respondents, 283 were non-geriatric specialists caring for older people. They encompassed 40 specialties (40
Social media can foster community but also enable harmful interactions that violate Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) values. This study explores how individuals respond to such violations by examining four strategies: resistance (challenging the offender), internalization (self-blame), education/advocacy (raising awareness), and detachment (withdrawing). We investigated how these strategies relate to users’ sense of inclusion/exclusion, self-esteem, and self-efficacy. Using clustering techniques, we analyzed survey data from 322 UK and 312 Arab Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) participants, all active social media users aligned with GESI principles. Two main clusters emerged in both regions. In the UK sample, detached observers showed low self-esteem, low self-efficacy, and high exclusion, while engaged advocates showed the opposite. In the Arab sample, silent bystanders exhibited emotional withdrawal, low self-esteem, and low self-efficacy, whereas empowered educators actively promoted inclusivity. The study highlights how these clusters and personas can support efforts to promote GESI on social media.
Size-assortative mating is a well-documented pattern in a wide diversity of animals, including marine gastropods. In most cases, positive assortative mating by size is due to males mating with larger, more fecund females, which is often mediated by males following female mucus trails in gastropods. Fecundity selection has been invoked to explain not only size-assortative mating but also sexual size dimorphism in most taxa studied to date. To widen the generality of these hypotheses, we tested for these patterns in the intertidal, dioecious gastropod Nerita yoldii across sites and years in Hong Kong. In N. yoldii, females were larger than males in most mating pairs, and size was generally a predictor of fecundity in females. There was, however, no evidence of size-assortative mating or sex-dependent mucus trail following. There was also no clear pattern of sexual selection, measured using sexual selection intensity, which varied between sites and years. Overall, the reproductive behaviour of N. yoldii was dependent on site and year and did not conform to the common patterns found in other marine gastropods. Evidence from this tropical nerite, therefore, suggests sexual selection should be considered as only one of several potential mechanisms underlying these common patterns.
