British Isles Research Articles

The seasonal characteristics of English Channel storminess have changed since the 19th Century

Information from a variety of sources has suggested that increased storminess was experienced across the British Isles in the late eighteenth/early nineteenth century. However, it is not clear how stormy that period was relative to current conditions. Using newly recovered barometric pressure data that extend back to 1748 we have constructed a measure of geostrophic wind speed for the English Channel region using a pressure-triangle approach. We show that the 1790−1820s was a period of increased storminess across the region. This storminess extended throughout the year, which is different to comparable increases observed since the 1990s, which were confined to the winter season. While a strengthened North Atlantic jet stream is implicated in both periods, in the earlier period it is likely that the storm track shifted slightly to a more southerly location. We discuss the potential forcing mechanisms responsible for the changes in storminess over this multi-century timeframe.

Sequences Related to Chimay Rhabdovirus Are Widely Distributed in Ixodes ricinus Ticks across England and Wales

Ticks are the main arthropod vector of pathogens to humans and livestock in the British Isles. Despite their role as a vector of disease, many aspects of tick biology, ecology, and microbial association are poorly understood. To address this, we investigated the composition of the microbiome of adult and nymphal Ixodes ricinus ticks. The ticks were collected on a dairy farm in Southwest England and RNA extracted for whole genome sequencing. Sequences were detected from a range of microorganisms, particularly tick-associated viruses, bacteria, and nematodes. A majority of the viruses were attributed to phlebo-like and nairo-like virus groups, demonstrating a high degree of homology with the sequences present in I. ricinus from mainland Europe. A virus sharing a high sequence identity with Chimay rhabdovirus, previously identified in ticks from Belgium, was detected. Further investigations of I. ricinus ticks collected from additional sites in England and Wales also identified Chimay rhabdovirus viral RNA with varying prevalence in all tick populations. This suggests that Chimay rhabdovirus has a wide distribution and highlights the need for an extended exploration of the tick microbiome in the United Kingdom (UK).

Cory's shearwater as a key bioindicator for monitoring floating plastics

The potential of using organisms as bioindicators of marine litter has been an area of general interest in multiple scientific and monitoring programs across the globe. Procellariiformes seabirds are particularly vulnerable to plastic contamination, which makes them a research focus group. This study investigated plastic ingestion in deceased fledglings and adults Cory’s shearwaters (Calonectris borealis) collected over eight years (2015 to 2022) at two Atlantic archipelagos: the Azores and the Canaries. Necropsies were carried out in a total of 1,238 individuals showing a high prevalence of plastic ingestion (90%), with approximately 80% of items recovered from the gizzard. Fledglings carried greater plastic loads compared to adults, yet plastic morphologies were similar between both age classes. The temporal analyses conducted with generalised additive mixed-effect models revealed a distinct temporal trend in plastic numbers, but not in terms of plastic mass. In addition, the spatial analyses showed that Cory’s shearwaters from the Canary Islands ingest a higher quantity of plastic and a greater proportion of threadlike items than the Azorean birds. These results suggest higher contamination at the NW Africa foraging grounds next to the Canaries and highlight fisheries as a potential source of marine litter in that region. On the other hand, the information gathered from the Azorean birds suggests they would be able to monitor changes in the composition of the plastic items floating in the North Atlantic Subtropical Gyre. Overall, our outcomes support the use of Cory’s shearwater fledglings that are victims of light pollution as a key bioindicator of plastic contamination in the North Atlantic. For its policy application, the presented threshold value in combination with the assessment method will enable effective tracking of floating plastic litter in the framework of the MSFD and OSPAR.

Modeling of Soil Water Distribution in a Small Mid-Latitude Watershed on the British Isle for Short Term Landslide and Flood Risk Assessment

The R-TopModel hydrological model coupled with two landslide and flood probability distribution models was applied to simulate the daily hydrological conditions of a small catchment in the Midlands of the British Isles, throughout 2017. Originally, the methodology was applied to a risk area in the tropical region. In this work, the application was extended to mid-latitude watersheds. The hydrographic basin around the Carsington Water dam (located in the Midlands of the Great Britain) is chosen because it presents risks. The model Nash-Sutcliffe Efficiency for the upstream discharge from the Carsington Water dam reached 50% with a correlation coefficient of the order of 70%, an acceptable value considering the seasonal effects of the dam on evapotranspiration and higher soil permeability. Modeling the distribution of soil moisture and excess surface water allowed obtaining the spatial distribution of the maximum conditional probability of landslides and floods in the Carsington Water catchment. These probability maps obtained are consistent with long-term susceptibility maps for Great Britain.

The German naval strategy for the Atlantic islands between 1940 and 1943

Although the strategic value of the Spanish and Portuguese Atlantic islands for the Third Reich during the Second World War has been the subject of several studies, certain issues remain unknown. One is the link between the strategic re-evaluation of these islands and Spain and Portugal's neutrality. The other is the role of the different Atlantic archipelagos in the German strategy after 1940. To respond to these questions, the author consulted primary sources in the Bundesarchiv-Militärarchiv and other archives elsewhere, as well as the most relevant bibliographical references. Worth highlighting among the conclusions is that the Spanish policy of non-belligerence significantly influenced German interests concerning the Atlantic islands during both the summer and autumn of 1940, as well as in later periods during the conflict.

Evidence of extensive multispecies macrofouling in Eckström's topknot Zeugopterus regius (Bonnaterre, 1788), Pleuronectiformes, Scophthalmidae.

Diverse and extensive macrofouling of the left-hand (eyed) side has been observed in multiple films and photographs of different specimens of Eckström's topknot Zeugopterus regius. Identified foulers include macroalgae and tunicates. Photographs of unfouled specimens and preserved juveniles have also been inspected. Macrofouling is not universal in this species; unfouled fish were observed around the strongly tidal British Isles, whereas the worst-fouled topknots were seen in the eutrophic, microtidal northern Adriatic.

Virus-like particles of louping ill virus elicit potent neutralizing antibodies targeting multimers of viral envelope protein

Louping ill virus (LIV) is a tick-borne flavivirus that predominantly causes disease in livestock, especially sheep in the British Isles. A preventive vaccine, previously approved for veterinary use but now discontinued, was based on an inactivated whole virion that likely provided protection by induction of neutralizing antibodies recognizing the viral envelope (E) protein. A major disadvantage of the inactivated vaccine was the need for high containment facilities for the propagation of infectious virus, as mandated by the hazard group 3 status of the virus. This study aimed to develop high-efficacy non-infectious protein-based vaccine candidates. Specifically, soluble envelope protein (sE), and virus-like particles (VLPs), comprised of the precursor of membrane and envelope proteins, were generated, characterized, and studied for their immunogenicity in mice. Results showed that the VLPs induced more potent virus neutralizing response compared to sE, even though the total anti-envelope IgG content induced by the two antigens was similar. Depletion of anti-monomeric E protein antibodies from mouse immune sera suggested that the neutralizing antibodies elicited by the VLPs targeted epitopes spanning the highly organized structure of multimer of the E protein, whereas the antibody response induced by sE focused on E monomers. Thus, our results indicate that VLPs represent a promising LIV vaccine candidate.

‘A Pope Shut out of Heaven Gates (Thrice)’: Erasmus’ Julius as a tool of anti-Catholic propaganda in early modern England

The present article follows the editorial vicissitudes of Erasmus of Rotterdam's Julius within England's boundaries, where it was translated in 1533–34, in 1673, and in 1719. By interweaving the publishing history of these three English editions with their cultural milieu, it will appear evident that they were ideologically motivated products whose circulation directly coincided with an upheaval in Catholic matters in the country. The final purpose of this article is to demonstrate how Erasmus’ Julius, with its negative protagonist, was too compelling a weapon not to be used to stigmatise Catholicism and to prevent it from returning to the British Isles.

Talus rock glaciers in the Cairngorm Mountains

ABSTRACT Although several relict talus rock glaciers (TRGs) of Lateglacial age have been identified in the British Isles, all have been refuted by some authors and their absence attributed to the lack of permafrost. The evidence provided by palaeoclimatic reconstructions and periglacial features, however, implies that Lateglacial permafrost was present throughout Scotland during the Loch Lomond Stade (LLS; ∼12.9–11.7 ka). Across much of the Scottish Highlands, the absence of Lateglacial TRGs is attributable to occupation of potential sites by glaciers during the LLS. In the Cairngorms, however, where limited snowfall at that time left some corries glacier-free, there is convincing evidence for TRG formation. Three examples illustrating different degrees of TRG development are described; all occur at high-level (>840 m) sites that remained glacier-free during the LLS, and all lack plausible alternative explanations. The apparent scarcity of relict TRGs even in the Cairngorms may reflect the development of ‘cold’ permafrost and/or a lengthy time lag between permafrost development and the accumulation of a sufficient volume and thickness of ground ice to permit permafrost creep and deformation of an overlying mantle of bouldery debris. In consequence, relict TRGs may occur only at favourable high-level sites where permafrost developed earliest.

An African American Anthropologist in Wales: St. Clair Drake and the Transatlantic Ecologies of Race Relations

Abstract In summer 1947, African American anthropologist John Gibbs St. Clair Drake arrived in Tiger Bay, the port neighborhood of Cardiff in South Wales, to begin field work for his doctoral thesis, “Race Relations in the British Isles.” Drake's academic reputation had already been established by the publication of Black Metropolis (1945), a seminal study of Chicago's so-called Black Belt that Drake co-authored with researcher Horace Cayton. What attracted him to Tiger Bay for his next project was a scandal that erupted on both sides of the Atlantic around Britain's growing population of what were referred to as brown babies. These children were the product of sexual encounters that sometimes took place between local white women and some of the 200,000 African American GIs who were at different points stationed across the United Kingdom during the later part of the Second World War. Using the extensive field notes Drake kept during his sojourn in Cardiff, this article reconstructs the nature and feel of a neighborhood where, by the 1940s, half of all residents were from ethnic minority backgrounds. Drake's work serves as a window onto the nature of racism and ideas about race in late-imperial Britain, alongside the parallel presence of metropolitan community life in Tiger Bay, one of Britain's oldest multicultural communities.

Forever Conquered: The Changing Role of Vikings in Modern and Contemporary Anglo-American Culture

Ever since their disruption and subsequent invasion of the British Isles in the early Middle Ages, the Scandinavian raiders known as 'Vikings' have had a significant presence in English culture and its self-perceived past. Anglo-American popular culture has become the primary home of the subject in the centuries since, with the Vikings appearing as everything from lecherous, bloodthirsty pirates to proud Christian heroes in the media of the English West. A timeline of this evolution can be drawn between Victorian era England and modern-day America, with works such as Walter Scott's The Pirate, Richard Fleischer's formative The Vikings, John McTiernan's turn-of-the-century The 13th Warrior, and DreamWorks Animation's highly successful How to Train Your Dragon presenting compelling examples of the conceptual transformation that the Viking image has undergone. The popularity of Vikings in media and the form in which they have been used also reflects the way that literary and visual symbols have contributed to the spread and impact of major sociocultural and political movements throughout this period. As a result, the study of the Vikings' presence in Victorian and post-Victorian popular media is also the study of the Vikings' importance in the Anglo-American zeitgeist, enabling us to see the degree to which differing national climates have both shaped and platformed the Viking image across the last two hundred years.

Bollspelen i Johannes Schefferus Lappland. Fragment av nordiskt tidigmodernt idrottsliv med utblickar mot Island och de brittiska öarna

Sports historians have argued that the type of ball games commonin the British Isles, which were practiced by two teams andin which the ball was driven with sticks towards predeterminedgoals – i.e., hurling, shinty, bandy and hockey – were never playedin early modern Sweden. By highlighting descriptions of ballgames in Johannes Schefferus’s The History of Lapland (1674), asource previously ignored by sports historians, this article challengessuch a claim. One of the games described by Schefferus hassome similarities with the violent stick-and-ball game known inIcelandic sagas as knattleikr. Even greater similarities (such as thestart of the game with a face-off and the goals consisting of lineson the short edges) emerge when the game is compared with theScottish game of shinty. Thus, pre-modern Scandinavia does notappear to have been as isolated in terms of sports and games ashas been suggested by Swedish sports historians.

The impact of the British Civil Wars on the meanings and uses of the urban topography of Colchester in the long nineteenth century

Abstract Although many towns repaired, restored or destroyed the ruins of Civil War sieges, there are a number of towns, villages and hamlets which still clearly bear marks of the conflict. By focusing on Colchester, this article will highlight how sites affected by the wars remained and survived in the local consciousness throughout the following centuries. This article traces the uses of such sites in the urban landscape in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries to assess the long-term impact of the war on towns in the British Isles. By examining Colchester in 1648, the article will show how political parties, parishes, tourists and businesses all derived value from the sites of the siege centuries after it had ended.

High-density genetic linkage mapping in Sitka spruce advances the integration of genomic resources in conifers.

In species with large and complex genomes such as conifers, dense linkage maps are a useful resource for supporting genome assembly and laying the genomic groundwork at the structural, populational, and functional levels. However, most of the 600+ extant conifer species still lack extensive genotyping resources, which hampers the development of high-density linkage maps. In this study, we developed a linkage map relying on 21,570 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers in Sitka spruce (Picea sitchensis [Bong.] Carr.), a long-lived conifer from western North America that is widely planted for productive forestry in the British Isles. We used a single-step mapping approach to efficiently combine RAD-seq and genotyping array SNP data for 528 individuals from 2 full-sib families. As expected for spruce taxa, the saturated map contained 12 linkages groups with a total length of 2,142 cM. The positioning of 5,414 unique gene coding sequences allowed us to compare our map with that of other Pinaceae species, which provided evidence for high levels of synteny and gene order conservation in this family. We then developed an integrated map for P. sitchensis and Picea glauca based on 27,052 markers and 11,609 gene sequences. Altogether, these 2 linkage maps, the accompanying catalog of 286,159 SNPs and the genotyping chip developed, herein, open new perspectives for a variety of fundamental and more applied research objectives, such as for the improvement of spruce genome assemblies, or for marker-assisted sustainable management of genetic resources in Sitka spruce and related species.

Ancient and modern DNA track temporal and spatial population dynamics in the European fallow deer since the Eemian interglacial

Anthropogenic factors have impacted the diversity and evolutionary trajectory of various species. This can be through factors such as pressure on population size or range, habitat fragmentation, or extensive manipulation and translocation. Here we use time-calibrated data to better understand the pattern and processes of evolution in the heavily manipulated European fallow deer (Dama dama). During the Pleistocene, fallow deer had a broad distribution across Europe and were found as far north as Britain during the Eemian interglacial. The last glacial period saw fallow deer retreat to southern refugia and they did not disperse north afterwards. Their recolonisation was mediated by people and, from northern Europe and the British Isles, fallow deer were transported around the world. We use ancient and modern mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and mitogenomic data from Eemian Britain to assess the pattern of change in distribution and lineage structure across Europe over time. We find founder effects and mixed lineages in the northern populations, and stability over time for populations in southern Europe. The Eemian sample was most similar to a lineage currently in Italy, suggesting an early establishment of the relevant refuge. We consider the implications for the integration of anthropogenic and natural processes towards a better understanding of the evolution of fallow deer in Europe.

Pollen morphology of Norwegian hybrids of Sorbus

The genus Sorbus s.l. consists of small to medium‐sized trees primarily found in coastal areas, with three European hotspots of diversification: Fennoscandia, south‐east Europe and the British Isles. Taxonomic classification of Sorbus s.l. in Europe is still unresolved, and this study aims to address this issue by examining the pollen morphology of various Sorbus hybrids. Pollen morphology of 16 specimens from 13 species of Sorbus s.str., Aria and Hedlundia, some of them common, others are endemic and listed as threatened species, were studied. Measurements of the polar and equatorial axis of all pollen grains show that there are variations in pollen size and shape among different hybrids, with a correlation between ploidy levels and the equatorial diameter of the pollen. Surface structures of the pollen were observed using SEM. Principal component analysis (PCA) was performed to analyze the pollen characters, and the results show that it is possible to separate Aria from Sorbus and Hedlundia based on the length of the polar axis of the pollen grain, while the number of perforations is important for classification within Hedlundia. The study concludes that pollen morphology can be a useful tool for distinguishing between different Sorbus hybrids and can thus aid in understanding their past distributions.

Frederick Douglass in the British Isles (1845–1847): A Reassessment of Approach, Achievement, and Legacy

Frederick Douglass’s first tour of the British Isles (1845–1847) proved a pivotal episode in the life of the legendary campaigner and the broader fight against slavery. Douglass made over three-hundred speaking appearances during his nineteen-month stay—sparking public debate, generating hundreds of newspaper articles, and reinvigorating an antislavery movement that had largely stalled in Britain since the 1830s. Douglass’s campaigning revealed early glimpses of his rhetorical skills and political instincts, including his successful navigation of the “white slavery” controversy and an impressive publicity blitz on the nation’s newspapers. However, Douglass’s time in Britain was not an unmitigated success. This paper examines the limitations of his work—including the failure to successfully pressurize the Free Church of Scotland into returning donations linked to slavery, and the strategic decisions that limited Douglass’s ability to deliver tangible results. In so doing, the paper attempts a more nuanced and dispassionate assessment of Douglass’s tour—evaluating his visit as a political campaign (not an oratory showcase) with successes and failures that shaped the most influential Black American of the nineteenth century.

INFLUENCE OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE

English is a West Germanic language that originated from Anglo-Frisian dialects brought to Britain in the mid 5th to 7th centuries AD by Anglo-Saxon migrants from what is now northwest Germany, west Denmark and the Netherlands. The language has undergone major changes and developments in its pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and orthography throughout its over 1500 year history. This article provides an overview of the key influences and developments that have shaped the English language into its present global form. It examines the linguistic influences of Celtic, Norse, French, Latin, Greek and other languages on English. It also explores the impact of historical events, the growth of literacy, the invention of the printing press, dictionary compilation and standardized spelling on the development of English. The analysis shows that English has an unparalleled capacity to absorb, adapt and incorporate words and features from other languages. Through the early spread of English around the British Isles, and later via 19th and 20th century colonization and globalization, English has become the most widely spoken language worldwide with over 1.35 billion speakers.

Evaluation of RNase therapy in systemic lupus erythematosus: a randomised phase 2a clinical trial of RSLV-132

BackgroundCirculating, extracellular RNA is the primary trigger of type I interferon in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and interferon is known to play a central pathogenic role in the disease. RSLV-132...

The Dominicans in the British Isles and Beyond: A New History of the English Province of the Friars Preachers Edited by Richard Finn, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2023, pp. xix + 387, £90.00, hbk

The Dominicans in the British Isles and Beyond: A New History of the English Province of the Friars Preachers Edited by Richard Finn, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2023, pp. xix + 387, £90.00, hbk