Pub Date : 2023-01-19DOI: 10.1163/15707563-bja10098
Kubilay Duymaz, V. Aksoy
In the present study, we tested associative olfactory learning performance of the ant Formica clara in laboratory conditions based on their MaLER responses. Ants were harnessed with the help of a paper-made holder and conditioned in two groups by forward pairing either limonene or eugenol (conditioned stimuli – CS) with a reward (unconditioned stimulus – US). After conditioning, memory tests were performed for each CS 15, 60 and 90 minutes following the conditioning in the absence of US. A further test was performed for each group with the CS of the other group to see if the ants showed an odor generalization. The frequencies of MaLER-positive responses during tests were used as indication of learning performance. Ants learned the association between the CS and US during conditioning for both odors and showed initially significant and gradually decreasing MaLER-positive responses during tests. The results showed that conditioning to the odors was absolute and no generalization was observed. We conclude that associative learning is a universal strategy for ants to adjust their behaviors to environmental changes around them and the MaLER technique is a powerful and easy to apply technique to test learning and memory capacities in ants.
{"title":"A test of associative olfactory learning in the ant Formica clara (Hymenoptera: Formicidae); the power of a MaLER-based conditioning protocol","authors":"Kubilay Duymaz, V. Aksoy","doi":"10.1163/15707563-bja10098","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15707563-bja10098","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000In the present study, we tested associative olfactory learning performance of the ant Formica clara in laboratory conditions based on their MaLER responses. Ants were harnessed with the help of a paper-made holder and conditioned in two groups by forward pairing either limonene or eugenol (conditioned stimuli – CS) with a reward (unconditioned stimulus – US). After conditioning, memory tests were performed for each CS 15, 60 and 90 minutes following the conditioning in the absence of US. A further test was performed for each group with the CS of the other group to see if the ants showed an odor generalization. The frequencies of MaLER-positive responses during tests were used as indication of learning performance. Ants learned the association between the CS and US during conditioning for both odors and showed initially significant and gradually decreasing MaLER-positive responses during tests. The results showed that conditioning to the odors was absolute and no generalization was observed. We conclude that associative learning is a universal strategy for ants to adjust their behaviors to environmental changes around them and the MaLER technique is a powerful and easy to apply technique to test learning and memory capacities in ants.","PeriodicalId":7876,"journal":{"name":"Animal Biology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2023-01-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44692754","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-01-18DOI: 10.1163/15707563-bja10099
P. R. De los Ríos-Escalante, C. Esse, C. Stella, P. Adikesavan, O. Zúñiga
The intertidal invertebrate community on rocky shores in northern Chile is characterised by a high species richness resulting from the high productivity of this ecosystem. The present study aims to do the first characterisation of invertebrate communities on rocky shores in Antofagasta town and surroundings (23°S), using species co-occurrence and niche-sharing null models, analysis of similarities (ANOSIM) and nonmetric multidimensional scaling (NMDS). The null model results revealed that species associations are not structured, that the existing species do not have the same ecology, which would result in many repeated species by site, and that specificity in their ecological niches exists. The ANOSIM and NMDS revealed the absence of significant differences between sites with human intervention and without human intervention. The obtained results agree with the literature for northern and central Chilean and southern Peruvian rocky shores, and other coastal marine ecosystems with high productivity.
{"title":"Null and neutral models for explaining spatial variations in intertidal invertebrate species diversity on rocky shores in Antofagasta town (23°S, Chile)","authors":"P. R. De los Ríos-Escalante, C. Esse, C. Stella, P. Adikesavan, O. Zúñiga","doi":"10.1163/15707563-bja10099","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15707563-bja10099","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000The intertidal invertebrate community on rocky shores in northern Chile is characterised by a high species richness resulting from the high productivity of this ecosystem. The present study aims to do the first characterisation of invertebrate communities on rocky shores in Antofagasta town and surroundings (23°S), using species co-occurrence and niche-sharing null models, analysis of similarities (ANOSIM) and nonmetric multidimensional scaling (NMDS). The null model results revealed that species associations are not structured, that the existing species do not have the same ecology, which would result in many repeated species by site, and that specificity in their ecological niches exists. The ANOSIM and NMDS revealed the absence of significant differences between sites with human intervention and without human intervention. The obtained results agree with the literature for northern and central Chilean and southern Peruvian rocky shores, and other coastal marine ecosystems with high productivity.","PeriodicalId":7876,"journal":{"name":"Animal Biology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2023-01-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47335513","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-11-03DOI: 10.1163/15707563-bja10097
P. R. De los Ríos-Escalante, Á. Contreras, G. Lara, M. Latsague, C. Esse
The Chilean north Patagonian lakes are characterized by their marked oligotrophic or oligomesotrophic status and low abundance of zooplankton species; many of the lakes with oligomesotrophic status are associated with human intervention due to towns on their shores. The aim of the present study was to determine the relations between spectral properties (LANDSAT OLI), chlorophyll and plankton abundances in two north Patagonian lakes: Villarrica, which has two towns on its shores, and Lake Caburgua, which has native forest on its shores. The results revealed that Lake Villarrica has high reflectance in the near infrared, red and green bands, high concentrations of chlorophyll a, the absence of mixotrophic protozoa, and a high abundance of bacterial and plankton, mainly phytoplankton (Chlophyceae and diatoms) and zooplankton. Lake Caburgua, on the other hand, has low reflectance in the same bands, and low chlorophyll concentrations, low bacterial and zooplankton abundances, with the exception of high mixotrophic ciliates and small phytoplankton, and Volvox colonies. The obtained results agree with limnological observations on both lakes, and observations agrees with similar observations of the spectral properties of glacial north Patagonian lakes and of the zooplankton community, and in this scenario, the use of remote-sensing techniques would be a good tool to predict the plankton community in Patagonian lakes.
{"title":"Associations between spectral properties, bacteriological characteristics, chlorophyll and zooplankton communities in two north Patagonian lakes","authors":"P. R. De los Ríos-Escalante, Á. Contreras, G. Lara, M. Latsague, C. Esse","doi":"10.1163/15707563-bja10097","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15707563-bja10097","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000The Chilean north Patagonian lakes are characterized by their marked oligotrophic or oligomesotrophic status and low abundance of zooplankton species; many of the lakes with oligomesotrophic status are associated with human intervention due to towns on their shores. The aim of the present study was to determine the relations between spectral properties (LANDSAT OLI), chlorophyll and plankton abundances in two north Patagonian lakes: Villarrica, which has two towns on its shores, and Lake Caburgua, which has native forest on its shores. The results revealed that Lake Villarrica has high reflectance in the near infrared, red and green bands, high concentrations of chlorophyll a, the absence of mixotrophic protozoa, and a high abundance of bacterial and plankton, mainly phytoplankton (Chlophyceae and diatoms) and zooplankton. Lake Caburgua, on the other hand, has low reflectance in the same bands, and low chlorophyll concentrations, low bacterial and zooplankton abundances, with the exception of high mixotrophic ciliates and small phytoplankton, and Volvox colonies. The obtained results agree with limnological observations on both lakes, and observations agrees with similar observations of the spectral properties of glacial north Patagonian lakes and of the zooplankton community, and in this scenario, the use of remote-sensing techniques would be a good tool to predict the plankton community in Patagonian lakes.","PeriodicalId":7876,"journal":{"name":"Animal Biology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-11-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47303521","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-10-21DOI: 10.1163/15707563-bja10095
Madhu T N, Rishi Kumar, V. C. Naik, T. Prabhulinga, S. Santosh, N. Chandrashekar, P. Verma
Leaf hopper, Amrasca biguttula biguttula, and whitefly, Bemisia tabaci are the most economical sucking pests of cotton (Gossypium spp.) causing stunting, shortening of internodes and transmitting plant pathogenic viruses. The management of these pests is primarily based on application of synthetic pesticides, which not only triggers resistance to insecticide molecules but also contributes to environmental pollution. We aimed to study the attraction of A. biguttula and B. tabaci toward six natural essential oils (NEOs) viz., sandalwood, basil, grapefruit, rose, clove and mint oils using yellow sticky traps under field conditions. The results showed that traps treated with sandalwood and basil oils attract significant numbers of A. biguttula and B. tabaci as compared to the other traps during the seasons 2016-2017 and 2017-2018. Further, the Attractive Index (AI) of sandalwood and basil oils to these pests were significantly higher (i.e., >1). In addition, the traps treated with sandalwood and basil oils caught relatively lower numbers of natural enemies. The GC-MS analysis specified the presence of vital attractive volatile compounds, viz., santalene, funebrene and pentadecane in sandalwood; and linalool, β-farnesene, caryophyllene and methyl eugenol in basil oil. Based on the results obtained it can be concluded that application of sandalwood and basil oils increased the attracting efficacy of sticky traps for the management of A. biguttula and B. tabaci in cotton.
{"title":"Attraction of leaf hopper, Amrasca biguttulla biguttulla, and whitefly, Bemisia tabaci, toward natural essential oils in cotton","authors":"Madhu T N, Rishi Kumar, V. C. Naik, T. Prabhulinga, S. Santosh, N. Chandrashekar, P. Verma","doi":"10.1163/15707563-bja10095","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15707563-bja10095","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000 Leaf hopper, Amrasca biguttula biguttula, and whitefly, Bemisia tabaci are the most economical sucking pests of cotton (Gossypium spp.) causing stunting, shortening of internodes and transmitting plant pathogenic viruses. The management of these pests is primarily based on application of synthetic pesticides, which not only triggers resistance to insecticide molecules but also contributes to environmental pollution. We aimed to study the attraction of A. biguttula and B. tabaci toward six natural essential oils (NEOs) viz., sandalwood, basil, grapefruit, rose, clove and mint oils using yellow sticky traps under field conditions. The results showed that traps treated with sandalwood and basil oils attract significant numbers of A. biguttula and B. tabaci as compared to the other traps during the seasons 2016-2017 and 2017-2018. Further, the Attractive Index (AI) of sandalwood and basil oils to these pests were significantly higher (i.e., >1). In addition, the traps treated with sandalwood and basil oils caught relatively lower numbers of natural enemies. The GC-MS analysis specified the presence of vital attractive volatile compounds, viz., santalene, funebrene and pentadecane in sandalwood; and linalool, β-farnesene, caryophyllene and methyl eugenol in basil oil. Based on the results obtained it can be concluded that application of sandalwood and basil oils increased the attracting efficacy of sticky traps for the management of A. biguttula and B. tabaci in cotton.","PeriodicalId":7876,"journal":{"name":"Animal Biology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-10-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41837436","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-10-18DOI: 10.1163/15707563-bja10092
Rob Found, J. A. Baker, J. Fryxell, A. McLaren, A. Rodgers, J. Shuter, I. Thompson, B. Patterson
Understanding the impacts of disturbance on individual fitness is important for wildlife management, and critical for the conservation of species at risk. We compared the fitness and seasonal range use of 39 woodland caribou in Ontario study areas contrasted by their level of human disturbance. We previously showed that wolf density in the disturbed site was higher, likely due to human-modified landscapes favoring moose, the primary prey of wolves. In this paper we address three objectives. First, because the assimilation of dietary nitrogen is heavily influenced by metabolic processes related to stress, we hypothesized that ratios of nitrogen isotopes (N) may indicate changes in body condition in ungulates and be useful proxies for changes in fitness. Second, we predicted that increased predation risk from wolves in disturbed areas would result in measurable declines in caribou body condition. Third, we hypothesized that one mechanism for fitness declines among caribou in the disturbed area was increased wolf activity restricting caribou seasonal movements. We showed change in N in the tissues of caribou was correlated with body condition scoring using fat assessment. We used GPS collars to quantify seasonal range use and found that fitness was higher, and seasonal range overlap was lower, in caribou using the nondisturbed area. Winter fitness declines were significantly larger in the more disturbed area. Our study identifies another mechanism by which the cumulative effects of human-disturbed landscapes on caribou fitness could contribute to global declines in caribou populations.
{"title":"Stable isotopes indicate reduced body condition of caribou in disturbed areas","authors":"Rob Found, J. A. Baker, J. Fryxell, A. McLaren, A. Rodgers, J. Shuter, I. Thompson, B. Patterson","doi":"10.1163/15707563-bja10092","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15707563-bja10092","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000Understanding the impacts of disturbance on individual fitness is important for wildlife management, and critical for the conservation of species at risk. We compared the fitness and seasonal range use of 39 woodland caribou in Ontario study areas contrasted by their level of human disturbance. We previously showed that wolf density in the disturbed site was higher, likely due to human-modified landscapes favoring moose, the primary prey of wolves. In this paper we address three objectives. First, because the assimilation of dietary nitrogen is heavily influenced by metabolic processes related to stress, we hypothesized that ratios of nitrogen isotopes (N) may indicate changes in body condition in ungulates and be useful proxies for changes in fitness. Second, we predicted that increased predation risk from wolves in disturbed areas would result in measurable declines in caribou body condition. Third, we hypothesized that one mechanism for fitness declines among caribou in the disturbed area was increased wolf activity restricting caribou seasonal movements. We showed change in N in the tissues of caribou was correlated with body condition scoring using fat assessment. We used GPS collars to quantify seasonal range use and found that fitness was higher, and seasonal range overlap was lower, in caribou using the nondisturbed area. Winter fitness declines were significantly larger in the more disturbed area. Our study identifies another mechanism by which the cumulative effects of human-disturbed landscapes on caribou fitness could contribute to global declines in caribou populations.","PeriodicalId":7876,"journal":{"name":"Animal Biology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-10-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44082757","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-10-18DOI: 10.1163/15707563-bja10094
Rahul Kumar, B. K. Gupta, A. K. Sharma
We hereby report an isolated population of a rare morpho-variant of the ant-mimicking jumping spider Myrmaplata plataleoides (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1869) from Hazaribagh Wildlife Sanctuary, Hazaribagh, Jharkhand, India, which is also the first record of this species from the state of Jharkhand, India. Descriptions of both male and female spiders, the female’s exuviae, its eggs and habitat are presented. We have studied its moulting, feeding and sexual behaviour in detail, and have recorded various behavioural aspects that were never documented before, such as debris-rolling behaviour, photokinetic response, starvation response and oxygen deprivation response. We here report the occurrence of this spider near the colonies of the ground-nesting ant Camponotus compressus (Fabricius, 1787). This spider is known to mimic the Asian weaver ant Oecophylla smaragdina (Fabricius, 1775), which are greenish orange to red in colour. Specimens collected by us are dark brown to black in coloration whereas the commonly reported specimens are often greenish orange to red. We propose that the darker coloration would have been naturally selected in this isolated population of M. plataleoides as an adaptation to coexist with C. compressus, which is also black in coloration and abundant around the spiders. Study of the moulting behaviour of the morpho-variant further reveals the display of a novel mechanism of ant mimicry among these spiders which we have named as temporal myrmecomorphy. Temporal myrmecomorphy has been proposed to be a protective mechanism used by a harmless mimic against the attacks of the aggressive models so that it can co-exist with the models. Present study establishes the usefulness of a morpho-variant as an important model in understanding the evolution and behaviour of a species holistically.
{"title":"On the behavioural biology of a morpho-variant of Myrmaplata plataleoides (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1869) (Araneae: Salticidae) with taxonomic notes","authors":"Rahul Kumar, B. K. Gupta, A. K. Sharma","doi":"10.1163/15707563-bja10094","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15707563-bja10094","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000We hereby report an isolated population of a rare morpho-variant of the ant-mimicking jumping spider Myrmaplata plataleoides (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1869) from Hazaribagh Wildlife Sanctuary, Hazaribagh, Jharkhand, India, which is also the first record of this species from the state of Jharkhand, India. Descriptions of both male and female spiders, the female’s exuviae, its eggs and habitat are presented. We have studied its moulting, feeding and sexual behaviour in detail, and have recorded various behavioural aspects that were never documented before, such as debris-rolling behaviour, photokinetic response, starvation response and oxygen deprivation response. We here report the occurrence of this spider near the colonies of the ground-nesting ant Camponotus compressus (Fabricius, 1787). This spider is known to mimic the Asian weaver ant Oecophylla smaragdina (Fabricius, 1775), which are greenish orange to red in colour. Specimens collected by us are dark brown to black in coloration whereas the commonly reported specimens are often greenish orange to red. We propose that the darker coloration would have been naturally selected in this isolated population of M. plataleoides as an adaptation to coexist with C. compressus, which is also black in coloration and abundant around the spiders. Study of the moulting behaviour of the morpho-variant further reveals the display of a novel mechanism of ant mimicry among these spiders which we have named as temporal myrmecomorphy. Temporal myrmecomorphy has been proposed to be a protective mechanism used by a harmless mimic against the attacks of the aggressive models so that it can co-exist with the models. Present study establishes the usefulness of a morpho-variant as an important model in understanding the evolution and behaviour of a species holistically.","PeriodicalId":7876,"journal":{"name":"Animal Biology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-10-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44441220","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-10-18DOI: 10.1163/15707563-bja10096
Somya Jain, N. Singla, S. Kalra, A. Mahal
Crop raiding has been reported in many parts of Punjab as a result of an overabundance of nilgai antelopes (Boselaphus tragocamelus) and farmers are constantly battling to save their crops. In the present study, various management strategies such as physical deterrents (nylon rope, nylon net and garden net), visual repellents (scarecrow and reflective ribbon), chemical repellents (different concentrations of Neelbo and Ecodon (based on ricinoleic acid) applied by spraying, soaking jute rope, soaked in wood shavings packed in plastic bags and paper cups) and biological deterrents (bioacoustic device and different concentrations of faecal solution of horse, tiger and Himalayan black bear) were evaluated to minimize the damage caused by nilgai. Nylon net was the most promising method, providing complete protection against nilgai, which can be used for protecting crops at vulnerable stages with a one-time cost. The nylon rope and garden net provided partial protection from nilgai damage. The bioacoustic device and reflective ribbon were also effective for a short period of time. Neelbo was found more effective as chemical repellent against nilgai. The faecal solution of horse and Himalayan black bear remained effective as repellent for 10 days. It is thus concluded that while comprehensive damage prevention may be difficult, animal management devices can help reduce nilgai damage at vulnerable stages of the crop. The employment of a range of management devices at the proper time can be part of a cost-effective system to keep nilgai damage at acceptable levels.
{"title":"Effectiveness of different management strategies against Nilgai population (Boselaphus tragocamelus) in Punjab Province of India","authors":"Somya Jain, N. Singla, S. Kalra, A. Mahal","doi":"10.1163/15707563-bja10096","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15707563-bja10096","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000Crop raiding has been reported in many parts of Punjab as a result of an overabundance of nilgai antelopes (Boselaphus tragocamelus) and farmers are constantly battling to save their crops. In the present study, various management strategies such as physical deterrents (nylon rope, nylon net and garden net), visual repellents (scarecrow and reflective ribbon), chemical repellents (different concentrations of Neelbo and Ecodon (based on ricinoleic acid) applied by spraying, soaking jute rope, soaked in wood shavings packed in plastic bags and paper cups) and biological deterrents (bioacoustic device and different concentrations of faecal solution of horse, tiger and Himalayan black bear) were evaluated to minimize the damage caused by nilgai. Nylon net was the most promising method, providing complete protection against nilgai, which can be used for protecting crops at vulnerable stages with a one-time cost. The nylon rope and garden net provided partial protection from nilgai damage. The bioacoustic device and reflective ribbon were also effective for a short period of time. Neelbo was found more effective as chemical repellent against nilgai. The faecal solution of horse and Himalayan black bear remained effective as repellent for 10 days. It is thus concluded that while comprehensive damage prevention may be difficult, animal management devices can help reduce nilgai damage at vulnerable stages of the crop. The employment of a range of management devices at the proper time can be part of a cost-effective system to keep nilgai damage at acceptable levels.","PeriodicalId":7876,"journal":{"name":"Animal Biology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-10-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45463779","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-10-11DOI: 10.1163/15707563-bja10093
W. Dionisio-da-Silva, C. Albuquerque, A. Lira
Clonal lineages in similar environments may be influenced by non-Mendelian inheritance, such as maternal age effects and developmental instabilities. These mechanisms may affect the developmental fitness of parthenogenetic litters. In this study, the scorpion Tityus stigmurus (Thorell, 1876) was used to analyze the effects of non-Mendelian variation on parthenogenetic litters. A total of 75 juveniles from five females were reared under the same controlled conditions, while their development was observed and evaluated through differences in offspring fitness traits (litter size, prosoma size, developmental time, and mortality) between the litters. First and second litters had a similar litter size, although second litters exhibited longer developmental time in the early instar stages (second and third) than first litters. These results indicate that T. stigmurus females allocated nutrient resources to maximize litter size rather than developmental fitness in subsequent litters. Differences in developmental time found in early instars but not in late instars may have occurred as a result of stochastic developmental variations in young individuals. Such variation in duration of development has the potential to influence survival of juveniles in natural environments because individuals that grow faster may avoid large predators and consume larger prey, compared to those that do not.
{"title":"Fitness differences between parthenogenetic litters of the synanthropic scorpion Tityus stigmurus (Scorpiones: Buthidae)","authors":"W. Dionisio-da-Silva, C. Albuquerque, A. Lira","doi":"10.1163/15707563-bja10093","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15707563-bja10093","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000Clonal lineages in similar environments may be influenced by non-Mendelian inheritance, such as maternal age effects and developmental instabilities. These mechanisms may affect the developmental fitness of parthenogenetic litters. In this study, the scorpion Tityus stigmurus (Thorell, 1876) was used to analyze the effects of non-Mendelian variation on parthenogenetic litters. A total of 75 juveniles from five females were reared under the same controlled conditions, while their development was observed and evaluated through differences in offspring fitness traits (litter size, prosoma size, developmental time, and mortality) between the litters. First and second litters had a similar litter size, although second litters exhibited longer developmental time in the early instar stages (second and third) than first litters. These results indicate that T. stigmurus females allocated nutrient resources to maximize litter size rather than developmental fitness in subsequent litters. Differences in developmental time found in early instars but not in late instars may have occurred as a result of stochastic developmental variations in young individuals. Such variation in duration of development has the potential to influence survival of juveniles in natural environments because individuals that grow faster may avoid large predators and consume larger prey, compared to those that do not.","PeriodicalId":7876,"journal":{"name":"Animal Biology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-10-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46544624","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-10-03DOI: 10.1163/15707563-bja10089
K. Sudarshani, H. Wegiriya
Immature testicular sperm of mammals acquire the potential to move in a forward direction during their journey through excurrent ducts, efferent ductules and the epididymis. The present study aimed to determine the sperm storage time using the hamster cauda epididymis. Ligation of the left epididymal tubule at the junction between the distal corpus and the proximal cauda was carried out to determine the storage time. The right epididymis was left unaltered as the control. On days 3, 12, 15, 24, 28, 32, and 40 after ligation of the cauda, experiments were carried out and repeated five times. Sperm total count and mortality were determined using the haemocytometer counting method and sperm viability was assessed with the live/dead viability kit. The morphology of cauda sperm was observed by preparing sperm smears from each animal. Data were analyzed using SPSS and all values were expressed as mean ± SEM. On day 40, the total number of cauda sperms was reduced remarkably. In the experimental groups and in the control, 3–6% of sperm motility was maintained until day 40. By day 3, the percentage of live sperm was 50% and by the 40th day, it was decreased up to 10%. In the control group, the live sperm percentage was 24% by the 40th day (). By day 32, 76% of the cauda spermatozoa appeared abnormal with head defects, mid piece and neck defects and multiple defects. Findings of the present study indicate that cauda sperm storage time is more than 40 days. Motility, viability and morphology of these spermatozoa were decreased remarkably during this storage time.
{"title":"An investigation on cauda storage of sperm in hamster epididymis","authors":"K. Sudarshani, H. Wegiriya","doi":"10.1163/15707563-bja10089","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15707563-bja10089","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000Immature testicular sperm of mammals acquire the potential to move in a forward direction during their journey through excurrent ducts, efferent ductules and the epididymis. The present study aimed to determine the sperm storage time using the hamster cauda epididymis. Ligation of the left epididymal tubule at the junction between the distal corpus and the proximal cauda was carried out to determine the storage time. The right epididymis was left unaltered as the control. On days 3, 12, 15, 24, 28, 32, and 40 after ligation of the cauda, experiments were carried out and repeated five times. Sperm total count and mortality were determined using the haemocytometer counting method and sperm viability was assessed with the live/dead viability kit. The morphology of cauda sperm was observed by preparing sperm smears from each animal. Data were analyzed using SPSS and all values were expressed as mean ± SEM. On day 40, the total number of cauda sperms was reduced remarkably. In the experimental groups and in the control, 3–6% of sperm motility was maintained until day 40. By day 3, the percentage of live sperm was 50% and by the 40th day, it was decreased up to 10%. In the control group, the live sperm percentage was 24% by the 40th day (). By day 32, 76% of the cauda spermatozoa appeared abnormal with head defects, mid piece and neck defects and multiple defects. Findings of the present study indicate that cauda sperm storage time is more than 40 days. Motility, viability and morphology of these spermatozoa were decreased remarkably during this storage time.","PeriodicalId":7876,"journal":{"name":"Animal Biology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-10-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44105950","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-09-29DOI: 10.1163/15707563-bja10091
A. Csanády, Peter Krišovský
Sexual differences in the wildcat were evaluated on 15 variables in 49 pelvic and 38 sacral bones in wildcat from the Western Carpathians. Our data confirmed a male-biased sexual size dimorphism (SSD) in the pelvic and sacral bones. The effect size was very large for two pelvic (SB, smallest width of the shaft of the ilium; and LAR, length of the acetabulum) and two sacral traits (GB, greatest width across the wings; and BFcr, greatest width of the cranial articular surface). Our different allometric patterns in pelvic and sacral measures in both sexes may also be important in mode of locomotion. These findings highlight the need for morphometric analysis of species at the regional as well global level.
{"title":"Sex differences in pelvic and sacral size in wildcat from the Western Carpathians","authors":"A. Csanády, Peter Krišovský","doi":"10.1163/15707563-bja10091","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/15707563-bja10091","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000Sexual differences in the wildcat were evaluated on 15 variables in 49 pelvic and 38 sacral bones in wildcat from the Western Carpathians. Our data confirmed a male-biased sexual size dimorphism (SSD) in the pelvic and sacral bones. The effect size was very large for two pelvic (SB, smallest width of the shaft of the ilium; and LAR, length of the acetabulum) and two sacral traits (GB, greatest width across the wings; and BFcr, greatest width of the cranial articular surface). Our different allometric patterns in pelvic and sacral measures in both sexes may also be important in mode of locomotion. These findings highlight the need for morphometric analysis of species at the regional as well global level.","PeriodicalId":7876,"journal":{"name":"Animal Biology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2022-09-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48573987","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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