Regional populations of lesser prairie‐chickens (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus) have been declining irregularly since the early 1900s (Jensen et al. 2000). Populations in the Sand Sagebrush Prairie Ecoregion of Kansas and Colorado, USA, have been experiencing declines during the last 2 decades. Ecoregion‐wide declines included the Cimarron and Comanche National Grasslands in southwestern Kansas and southeastern Colorado, respectively, from which lesser prairie‐chickens were nearly extirpated by 2016. In 2014, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)–Forest Service created a vegetation management plan to restore lesser prairie‐chicken nesting habitat on the National Grasslands. We used management plan recommendations to evaluate available nesting habitat on National Grasslands and surrounding areas for 394 transmitter‐marked lesser prairie‐chickens translocated to the Sand Sagebrush Prairie Ecoregion during 2016–2019. We found that a small proportion of vegetation measurements met the USDA–Forest Service's 100% visual obstruction guidelines of 25.4 to 38.1 cm (Cimarron: 5.3–21.8% of observations among cover types; Comanche: 1.5–3.0%), and grass species with a high value for nesting were rare (Cimarron: 0.5–20.1% of observations within each cover type; Comanche: 1.5–3.0%). Lesser prairie‐chickens selected for 2 of the 10 National Grasslands' cover types (shrubland state and warm season shortgrass state) during breeding season movements, but only shrubland state was selected for during nesting. Our results indicate that nesting habitat for lesser prairie‐chickens is limited on Cimarron and Comanche National Grasslands. As private grassland was also avoided during nesting, lesser prairie‐chickens in Baca and Morton counties are currently primarily relying on Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) grasslands to meet nesting habitat thresholds (Morton, KS: 17.7% CRP; Baca, CO: 16.6% CRP), which may be insufficient to sustain a viable population. Due to the impermanence of CRP, efforts to sustain local populations are likely to depend on increased improved lesser prairie‐chicken nesting habitat on National Grasslands. Grazing strategies such as rest‐rotation and year‐long deferments may provide opportunities to restore lesser prairie‐chicken habitat on sand sagebrush prairie.

Background There are conflicting data concerning the impact of antenatal influenza vaccination on birth outcomes including low birthweight (LBW), preterm birth, small for gestational age (SGA), and stillbirth. Methods We conducted a retrospective observational cohort study of infants born to women residing in Mitchells Plain, Cape Town. Infants were born at 4 health facilities during May 28 – December 31, 2015 and April 15 – December 31, 2016. We performed crude and multivariable logistic regression, propensity score (PS) matching logistic regression, and inverse probability of treatment weighted (IPTW) regression to assess vaccine effectiveness (VE) against LBW, preterm birth, SGA, and stillbirth adjusting for measured confounders. Results Maternal vaccination status, antenatal history, and ≥1 birth outcome(s) were available for 4084/5333 (76.6%) pregnancies, 2109 (51.6%) vaccinated, and 1975 (48.4%) unvaccinated. The proportion LBW was lower in vaccinated (6.9%) vs. unvaccinated (12.5%) in multivariable [VE 0.27 (95% CI 0.07‐0.42)], PS [VE 0.30 (95% CI 0.09‐0.51)], and IPTW [VE 0.24 (95% CI 0.04‐0.45)]. Preterm birth was less frequent in vaccinated (8.6%) than unvaccinated (16.4%) in multivariable [VE 0.26 (0.09‐0.40)], PS [VE 0.25 (95% CI 0.09‐0.41)], and IPTW [VE 0.34 (95% CI 0.18‐0.51)]. The proportion SGA was lower in vaccinated (6.0%) than unvaccinated (8.8%) but not in adjusted models. There were few stillbirths in our study population, 30/4084 (0.7%). Conclusions Using multiple analytic approaches, we found that influenza vaccination was associated with lower prevalence of LBW (24‐30%) and preterm birth (25‐34%) in Cape Town during 2015‐2016.

Introduction Despite prioritization, routine antenatal influenza vaccine coverage is < 16% in South Africa. We aimed to describe maternal influenza vaccine coverage in 27 antenatal clinics (ANCs) in Gauteng and Western Cape (WC) Provinces, where in collaboration with the Department of Health (DoH), we augmented the annual influenza vaccination programme among pregnant women. Methods From 2015 through 2018, 40,230 additional doses of influenza vaccine were added to the available stock and administered as part of routine antenatal care. Educational talks were given daily and data were collected on women attending ANCs. We compared characteristics of vaccinated and unvaccinated women using multivariable logistic regression. Results We screened 62,979 pregnant women during the period when Southern Hemisphere influenza vaccines were available (27,068 in Gauteng and 35,911 in WC). Vaccine coverage at the targeted clinics was 78.7% (49,355/62682), although pregnant women in WC were more likely to be vaccinated compared to those in the Gauteng (Odds ratio (OR) =3.7 p < 0.001). Women aged 25—29 and > 35 years were less likely to be vaccinated than women aged 18—24 years (OR = 0.9 p = 0.053; OR = 0.9 p < 0.001). HIV positive status was not associated with vaccination (OR = 1.0 p = 0.266). Reasons for not vaccinating included: vaccine stock-outs where ANCs depleted available stock of vaccines and/or were awaiting delivery of vaccines (54.6%, 6949/12723), refusal/indecision (25.8%, 3285), and current illness that contraindicated vaccination (19.6%, 2489). Conclusion Antenatal vaccination uptake was likely improved by the increased vaccine supply and vaccine education offered during our campaign.

Fragmentation of the sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) ecosystem has led to concern about a variety of sagebrush obligates including the greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus). Given the increase of energy development within greater sage-grouse habitats, mapping seasonal habitats in pre-development populations is critical. The North Park population in Colorado is one of the largest and most stable in the state and provides a unique case study for investigating resource selection at a relatively low level of energy development compared to other populations both within and outside the state. We used locations from 117 radio-marked female greater sage-grouse in North Park, Colorado to develop seasonal resource selection models. We then added energy development variables to the base models at both a landscape and local scale to determine if energy variables improved the fit of the seasonal models. The base models for breeding and winter resource selection predicted greater use in large expanses of sagebrush whereas the base summer model predicted greater use along the edge of riparian areas. Energy development variables did not improve the winter or the summer models at either scale of analysis, but distance to oil/gas roads slightly improved model fit at both scales in the breeding season, albeit in opposite ways. At the landscape scale, greater sage-grouse were closer to oil/gas roads whereas they were further from oil/gas roads at the local scale during the breeding season. Although we found limited effects from low level energy development in the breeding season, the scale of analysis can influence the interpretation of effects. The lack of strong effects from energy development may be indicative that energy development at current levels are not impacting greater sage-grouse in North Park. Our baseline seasonal resource selection maps can be used for conservation to help identify ways of minimizing the effects of energy development.

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