Phylogeny can make the mid-domain effect an inappropriate null model.

abstract：:The dung beetle subfamily Scarabaeinae is a cosmopolitan group of insects that feed primarily on dung. We describe the first case of an obligate predatory dung beetle and contrast its behaviour and morphology with those of its coprophagous sympatric congeners. Deltochilum valgum Burmeister killed and consumed milliped...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Larsen TH,Lopera A,Forsyth A,Génier F

更新日期：2009-04-23 00:00:00

abstract：:Honeybees maintain their colony throughout the cold winters, a strategy that enables them to make the most of early spring flowers. During this period, their activity is mostly limited to thermoregulation, while foraging and brood rearing are stopped. Less is known about seasonal changes to the essential task of defen...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Nouvian M,Deisig N,Reinhard J,Giurfa M

更新日期：2018-08-01 00:00:00

abstract：:The harlequin ladybird, Harmonia axyridis, has emerged as a model species for invasion biology, reflecting its remarkable capacity to outcompete native ladybird species when introduced into new habitats. This ability may be associated with its prominent resistance to pathogens and intraguild predation. We recently sho...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Schmidtberg H,Röhrich C,Vogel H,Vilcinskas A

更新日期：2013-03-06 00:00:00

abstract：:Near Eastern Neolithic farmers introduced several species of domestic plants and animals as they dispersed into Europe. Dogs were the only domestic species present in both Europe and the Near East prior to the Neolithic. Here, we assessed whether early Near Eastern dogs possessed a unique mitochondrial lineage that di...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Ollivier M,Tresset A,Frantz LAF,Bréhard S,Bălăşescu A,Mashkour M,Boroneanţ A,Pionnier-Capitan M,Lebrasseur O,Arbogast RM,Bartosiewicz L,Debue K,Rabinovich R,Sablin MV,Larson G,Hänni C,Hitte C,Vigne JD

更新日期：2018-10-17 00:00:00

abstract：:Since its discovery in the winter of 2005-2006, white-nose syndrome (WNS) has killed over one million little brown bats (Myotis lucifugus) in the American northeast. Although many studies have reported die-offs of bats at winter hibernacula, it is important to understand how bat mortality linked to WNS at winter hiber...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Dzal Y,McGuire LP,Veselka N,Fenton MB

更新日期：2011-06-23 00:00:00

abstract：:Two non-coding DNA classes, introns and intergenic regions, of Drosophila melanogaster exhibit contrasting evolutionary patterns. GC content is significantly higher in intergenic regions and affects their degree of nucleotide variability. Divergence is positively correlated with recombination rate in intergenic region...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Ometto L,De Lorenzo D,Stephan W

更新日期：2006-12-22 00:00:00

abstract：:Inbreeding causes increases in homozygosity and is commonly associated with reductions in fertility and embryogenesis. Although the mechanisms underlying such effects are unknown, recent work has suggested that inbred males may suffer impaired ejaculate quality, thus providing a functional explanation for reductions i...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Fitzpatrick JL,Evans JP

更新日期：2009-06-23 00:00:00

abstract：:Group choruses of marine animals can produce extraordinarily loud sounds that markedly elevate levels of the ambient soundscape. We investigated sound production in the Gulf corvina (Cynoscion othonopterus), a soniferous marine fish with a unique reproductive behaviour threatened by overfishing, to compare with sounds...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Erisman BE,Rowell TJ

更新日期：2017-12-01 00:00:00

abstract：:Trace metals produced by anthropogenic activities are of major importance in urban areas and might constitute a new evolutionary force selecting for the ability to cope with their deleterious effects. Interestingly, melanin pigments are known to bind metal ions, thereby potentially sequestering them in inert body part...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Chatelain M,Gasparini J,Jacquin L,Frantz A

更新日期：2014-03-26 00:00:00

abstract：:Ecosystem dynamics are driven by both biotic and abiotic processes, and perturbations can push ecosystems into novel dynamical regimes. Plant-plant, plant-soil and mycorrhizal associations all affect plant ecosystem dynamics; however, the direction and magnitude of these effects vary by context and their contribution ...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Bonsall MB,Froyd CA,Jeffers ES

更新日期：2020-01-01 00:00:00

abstract：:Mountainous areas contain a substantial part of the world species richness, but the evolutionary origins and diversification of this biodiversity remain elusive. Diversification may result from differences in clade age (longer time to diversify), net diversification rates (faster speciation rate) or carrying capacitie...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Condamine FL

更新日期：2018-03-01 00:00:00

abstract：:The phenotypic effect of mutations can depend on their genetic background, a phenomenon known as epistasis. Many experimental studies have found that epistasis is pervasive, and some indicate that it may follow a general pattern dependent on the fitness effect of the interacting mutations. These studies have, however,...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Wang Y,Arenas CD,Stoebel DM,Cooper TF

更新日期：2013-02-23 00:00:00

abstract：:The lesser kestrel (Falco naumanni) suffered a sharp population decline over much of its European distribution range in the middle of the twentieth century. Still declining in some areas, the species has recently experienced a notable population recovery in certain regions. We examined the genetic diversity variation ...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Ortego J,Aparicio JM,Calabuig G,Cordero PJ

更新日期：2007-10-22 00:00:00

abstract：:Tropical forests are experiencing structural changes that may reduce carbon storage potential. The recent increase in liana abundance and biomass is one such potential change. Lianas account for approximately 25 per cent of woody stems and may have a strong impact on tree dynamics because severe liana infestation redu...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Durán SM,Gianoli E

更新日期：2013-06-19 00:00:00

abstract：:Reciprocity constitutes the prevalent mating mechanism among simultaneous hermaphrodites. Yet, when copulations in the female role confer fitness costs through male manipulation, it becomes advantageous sometimes to mate unilaterally in the male role only. In the sea slug Siphopteron quadrispinosum, acting males stab ...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Anthes N,Michiels NK

更新日期：2007-04-22 00:00:00

abstract：:The dynamics of leaf nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) have been intensively explored in short-term experiments, but rarely at longer timescales. Here, we investigated leaf N : P stoichiometry over a 27-year interval in an Inner Mongolia grassland by comparing leaf N : P concentration of 2006 with that of 1979. Across 8...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Mi Z,Huang Y,Gan H,Zhou W,Flynn DF,He JS

更新日期：2015-01-01 00:00:00

abstract：:Malpighian tubules play an essential role in excretion, osmoregulation and immunity of most insects. Exceptionally, aphids lack Malpighian tubules, providing the opportunity to investigate the fate of genes expressed in an organ that has undergone evolutionary reduction and loss. Making use of the sequenced genomes of...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Jing X,White TA,Yang X,Douglas AE

更新日期：2015-05-01 00:00:00

abstract：:Since the modern evolutionary synthesis was first proposed early in the twentieth century, attention has focused on assessing the relative contribution of mutation versus natural selection on protein evolution. Here we test a model that yields general quantitative predictions on rates of protein evolution by combining...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Gillooly JF,McCoy MW,Allen AP

更新日期：2007-12-22 00:00:00

abstract：:Long-term memory can be critically important for animals in a variety of contexts, and yet the extreme reduction in body temperature in hibernating animals alters neurochemistry and may therefore impair brain function. Behavioural studies on memory impairment associated with hibernation have been almost exclusively co...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Ruczynski I,Siemers BM

更新日期：2011-02-23 00:00:00

abstract：:Many geckos use adhesive toe pads on the bottom of their digits to attach to surfaces with remarkable strength. Although gecko adhesion has been studied for hundreds of years, gaps exist in our understanding at the whole-animal level. It remains unclear whether the strength and maintenance of adhesion are determined b...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Stewart WJ,Higham TE

更新日期：2014-12-01 00:00:00

abstract：:Seamounts may influence the distribution of marine mammals through a combination of increased ocean mixing, enhanced local productivity and greater prey availability. To study the effects of seamounts on the presence and acoustic behaviour of cetaceans, we deployed a high-frequency acoustic recording package on the su...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Johnston DW,McDonald M,Polovina J,Domokos R,Wiggins S,Hildebrand J

更新日期：2008-04-23 00:00:00

abstract：:Domestic dogs have been recognized for their social sensitivity and aptitude in human-guided tasks. For example, prior studies have demonstrated that dogs look to humans when confronted with an unsolvable task; an action often interpreted as soliciting necessary help. Conversely, wolves persist on such tasks. While do...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Udell MA

更新日期：2015-09-01 00:00:00

abstract：:Pectinodontid limpets are important members of deep-sea hot vents and cold seeps as can be seen by their conspicuous presence in both extant and extinct systems. They have traditionally been classified into different genera and species based on shell and radula characteristics; the reliability of these characters has ...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Chen C,Watanabe HK,Nagai Y,Toyofuku T,Xu T,Sun J,Qiu JW,Sasaki T

更新日期：2019-10-31 00:00:00

abstract：:The Himalayas are assumed to be undergoing rapid climate change, with serious environmental, social and economic consequences for more than two billion people. However, data on the extent of climate change or its impact on the region are meagre. Based on local knowledge, we report perceived changes in climate and cons...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Chaudhary P,Bawa KS

更新日期：2011-10-23 00:00:00

abstract：:The perception of emotional expressions allows animals to evaluate the social intentions and motivations of each other. This usually takes place within species; however, in the case of domestic dogs, it might be advantageous to recognize the emotions of humans as well as other dogs. In this sense, the combination of v...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Albuquerque N,Guo K,Wilkinson A,Savalli C,Otta E,Mills D

更新日期：2016-01-01 00:00:00

abstract：:It is increasingly recognized that hormetic environmental priming of stress responses can improve resilience to later life stress exposure. However, such phenotypic adjustments may be costly, particularly if the subsequent environment does not match that to which the adjustment was made. Here, we show that hormetic pr...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Costantini D,Monaghan P,Metcalfe NB

更新日期：2014-02-12 00:00:00

abstract：:Telomeres are regarded as markers of biological or cellular ageing because they shorten with the degree of stress exposure. Accordingly, telomere lengths should show different rates of change when animals are faced with different intensities of environmental challenges. However, a relationship between telomere length ...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Mizutani Y,Tomita N,Niizuma Y,Yoda K

更新日期：2013-08-14 00:00:00

abstract：:Spatial and temporal heterogeneity in relative fitness of competing species is a key factor affecting the structure of communities. However, it is not intuitive why species that are ecologically similar should differ in their response to environmental changes. Here we show that two sympatric flycatchers differ in repr...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Qvarnström A,Svedin N,Wiley C,Veen T,Gustafsson L

更新日期：2005-03-22 00:00:00

abstract：:The loss of environmental heterogeneity threatens biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. It is therefore important to understand the relationship between environmental heterogeneity and spatial resilience as the capacity of ecological communities embedded in a landscape matrix to reorganize following disturbance. We ...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Dzubakova K,Peter H,Bertuzzo E,Juez C,Franca MJ,Rinaldo A,Battin TJ

更新日期：2018-10-10 00:00:00

abstract：:In group-living vertebrates, reliable social allies play a decisive role in dealing with stressors. For example, support by social allies is known to dampen glucocorticoid responses. It remains unknown, however, how social embedding affects the sympatho-adrenergic axis as indicated by heart rate (HR) in non-human anim...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Wascher CA,Weiß BM,Arnold W,Kotrschal K

更新日期：2012-06-23 00:00:00