Grooming in Barbary macaques: better to give than to receive?

abstract：:The Halecomorphi are a major subdivision of the ray-finned fishes. Although living halecomorphs are represented solely by the freshwater bowfin, Amia calva, this clade has a rich fossil history, and the resolution of interrelationships among extinct members is central to the problem of understanding the origin of the ...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Xu GH,Zhao LJ,Coates MI

更新日期：2014-05-01 00:00:00

abstract：:If a mother's nutritional status predicts the nutritional environment of the offspring, it would be adaptive for mothers experiencing nutritional stress to prime their offspring for a better tolerance to poor nutrition. We report that in Drosophila melanogaster, parents raised on poor larval food laid 3-6% heavier egg...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Vijendravarma RK,Narasimha S,Kawecki TJ

更新日期：2010-04-23 00:00:00

abstract：:Prolific polyembryony is reported in few major taxa, but its occurrence has generated theoretical debate on potential conflict between sexual and asexual reproduction. It is, therefore, important to genetically confirm a widely cited inference, based on microscopy, that polyembryony characterizes marine bryozoans of t...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Hughes RN,D'Amato ME,Bishop JD,Carvalho GR,Craig SF,Hansson LJ,Harley MA,Pemberton AJ

更新日期：2005-06-22 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：:Twenty years ago, the field of ancient DNA was launched with the publication of two short mitochondrial (mt) DNA sequences from a single quagga (Equus quagga) museum skin, an extinct South African equid (Higuchi et al. 1984 Nature312, 282-284). This was the first extinct species from which genetic information was retr...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Leonard JA,Rohland N,Glaberman S,Fleischer RC,Caccone A,Hofreiter M

更新日期：2005-09-22 00:00:00

abstract：:Research on reproductive isolation in African cichlid fishes has largely focused on the role of nuptial colours, but other sensory modes may play an important role in mate choice. Here, we compare the relative importance of visual and olfactory cues in mate recognition by females of a Lake Malawi cichlid species. Fema...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Plenderleith M,van Oosterhout C,Robinson RL,Turner GF

更新日期：2005-12-22 00:00:00

abstract：:Theories of extreme lifespan evolution in vertebrates commonly implicate large size and predator-free environments together with physiological characteristics like low metabolism and high protection against oxidative damages. Here, we show that the 'human fish' (olm, Proteus anguinus), a small cave salamander (weighin...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Voituron Y,de Fraipont M,Issartel J,Guillaume O,Clobert J

更新日期：2011-02-23 00:00:00

abstract：:The carboxy-terminal domain (CTD) of the largest subunit of RNA polymerase II (Pol II) consists of 26 and 52 heptad-repeats in yeast and mammals, respectively. Studies in yeast showed that the strong periodicity of the YSPTSPS heptads is dispensable for cell growth and that di-heptads interspersed by spacers can act a...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Shah N,Decker TM,Eick D

更新日期：2019-05-31 00:00:00

abstract：:Worldwide, many plant species are experiencing an earlier onset of spring phenophases due to climate warming. Rapid recent temperature increases on the Tibetan Plateau (TP) have triggered changes in the spring phenology of the local vegetation. However, remote sensing studies of the land surface phenology have reached...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Zhou HK,Yao BQ,Xu WX,Ye X,Fu JJ,Jin YX,Zhao XQ

更新日期：2014-08-01 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：:Avian predators learn to avoid defended insects on the basis of their conspicuous warning coloration. In many aposematic species, the level of chemical defence varies, with some individuals being more defended than others. Sequestration and production of defence chemicals is often costly and therefore less defended in...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Skelhorn J,Rowe C

更新日期：2006-09-22 00:00:00

abstract：:Heritable bacterial endosymbionts play an important role in aphid ecology. Sequence-based evidence suggests that facultative symbionts such as Hamiltonella defensa or Regiella insecticola also undergo horizontal transmission. Other than through male-to-female transfer during the sexual generation in autumn, the routes...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Gehrer L,Vorburger C

更新日期：2012-08-23 00:00:00

abstract：:Lack of information is a constraint but ignorance can sometimes assist the evolution of cooperation by constraining selfishness. We discuss examples involving both ignorance of role or pay-off and ignorance of relatedness. Ignorance can favour cooperative traits like grouping and warning coloration and reduce conflict...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Queller DC,Strassmann JE

更新日期：2013-10-16 00:00:00

abstract：:Here, we use 30 long-term, high-resolution palaeoecological records from Mexico, Central and South America to address two hypotheses regarding possible drivers of resilience in tropical forests as measured in terms of recovery rates from previous disturbances. First, we hypothesize that faster recovery rates are assoc...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Adolf C,Tovar C,Kühn N,Behling H,Berrío JC,Dominguez-Vázquez G,Figueroa-Rangel B,Gonzalez-Carranza Z,Islebe GA,Hooghiemstra H,Neff H,Olvera-Vargas M,Whitney B,Wooller MJ,Willis KJ

更新日期：2020-04-01 00:00:00

abstract：:Due to the costs of antipredator behaviour, prey have the ability to finely modulate their response according to the risk they have experienced, and adjust it over different scales of ecological time. Information on which to base their responses can be obtained from direct experience, but also indirectly from nearby c...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Lucon-Xiccato T,Chivers DP,Mitchell MD,Ferrari MC

更新日期：2016-08-01 00:00:00

abstract：:The majority of the world's population now lives in towns and cities, and urban areas are expanding faster than any other land-use type. In response to this phenomenon, two opposing arguments have emerged: whether cities should 'sprawl' into the wider countryside, or 'densify' through the development of existing urban...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Dallimer M,Tang Z,Bibby PR,Brindley P,Gaston KJ,Davies ZG

更新日期：2011-10-23 00:00:00

abstract：:While learning to avoid toxic food is common in mammals and occurs in some insects, learning to avoid cues associated with infectious pathogens has received little attention. We demonstrate that Drosophila melanogaster show olfactory learning in response to infection with their virulent intestinal pathogen Pseudomonas...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Babin A,Kolly S,Schneider F,Dolivo V,Zini M,Kawecki TJ

更新日期：2014-03-05 00:00:00

abstract：:Agricultural intensification is a leading cause of global biodiversity loss, especially for threatened and near-threatened species. One widely implemented response is 'wildlife-friendly farming', involving the close integration of conservation and extensive farming practices within agricultural landscapes. However, th...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Pywell RF,Heard MS,Bradbury RB,Hinsley S,Nowakowski M,Walker KJ,Bullock JM

更新日期：2012-10-23 00:00:00

abstract：:Studies of animal populations suggest that low genetic heterozygosity is an important risk factor for infection by a diverse range of pathogens, but relatively little research has looked to see whether similar patterns exist in humans. We have used microsatellite genome screen data for tuberculosis (TB), hepatitis and...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Lyons EJ,Frodsham AJ,Zhang L,Hill AV,Amos W

更新日期：2009-08-23 00:00:00

abstract：:Climate change leads to species range shifts and consequently to changes in diversity. For many systems, increases in diversity capacity have been forecast, with spare capacity to be taken up by a pool of weedy species moved around by humans. Few tests of this hypothesis have been undertaken, and in many temperate sys...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Chown SL,le Roux PC,Ramaswiela T,Kalwij JM,Shaw JD,McGeoch MA

更新日期：2013-02-23 00:00:00

abstract：:Interference coloration, in which the perceived colour varies predictably with the angle of illumination or observation, is extremely widespread across animal groups. However, despite considerable advances in our understanding of the mechanistic basis of interference coloration in animals, we still have a poor underst...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Pike TW

更新日期：2015-04-01 00:00:00

abstract：:Increased investment in immunity is expected to be beneficial under crowded conditions because of the greater risk of pathogen and parasite transmission, but the evolution of this facultative response relies on the ability to accurately assess social cues in the environment and adjust immune defences accordingly. Beca...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Bailey NW,Gray B,Zuk M

更新日期：2011-04-23 00:00:00

abstract：:The brilliant red, orange and yellow colours of parrot feathers are the product of psittacofulvins, which are synthetic pigments known only from parrots. Recent evidence suggests that some pigments in bird feathers function not just as colour generators, but also preserve plumage integrity by increasing the resistance...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Burtt EH Jr,Schroeder MR,Smith LA,Sroka JE,McGraw KJ

更新日期：2011-04-23 00:00:00

abstract：:To cope with the post-fire challenges of decreased availability of food and shelter, brown antechinus (Antechinus stuartii), a small marsupial mammal, increase the use of energy-conserving torpor and reduce activity. However, it is not known how long it takes for animals to resume pre-fire torpor and activity patterns...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Stawski C,Hume T,Körtner G,Currie SE,Nowack J,Geiser F

更新日期：2017-05-01 00:00:00

abstract：:In this study, we focused on the exceptionally large mammals inhabiting the Americas during the Quaternary period and the paramount role of body size in species ecology. We evaluated two main features of Pleistocene food webs: the relationship between body size and (i) trophic position and (ii) vulnerability to predat...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Segura AM,Fariña RA,Arim M

更新日期：2016-05-01 00:00:00

abstract：:Many studies during the past 50 years have found an association between father absence and earlier menarche. In connection with these findings, several evolutionary theories assume that father absence is a causal factor accelerating reproductive development. However, a recent study analysing data from the Avon Longitu...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Lenárt P,Zlámal F,Kukla L,Jarkovský J,Bienertová-Vašků J

更新日期：2019-06-28 00:00:00

abstract：:In many host populations, one of the most striking differences among hosts is their age. While parasite prevalence differences in relation to host age are well known, little is known on how host age impacts ecological and evolutionary dynamics of diseases. Using two clones of the water flea Daphnia magna and two clone...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Izhar R,Routtu J,Ben-Ami F

更新日期：2015-05-01 00:00:00

abstract：:Prior to the 1920s, the northeast Arctic (NA) cod were caught at spawning grounds ranging from the southernmost to the northernmost parts of the Norwegian coast, but have for the last 50 yr mainly been caught around the Lofoten archipelago and northwards. The NA cod have their feeding and nursery grounds in the Barent...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Opdal AF

更新日期：2010-04-23 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：:Fire is the most frequent disturbance in the Ericaceous Belt (ca 3000-4300 m.a.s.l.), one of the most important plant communities of tropical African mountains. Through resprouting after fire, Erica establishes a positive fire feedback under certain burning regimes. However, present-day human activity in the Bale Moun...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Gil-Romera G,Adolf C,Benito BM,Bittner L,Johansson MU,Grady DA,Lamb HF,Lemma B,Fekadu M,Glaser B,Mekonnen B,Sevilla-Callejo M,Zech M,Zech W,Miehe G

更新日期：2019-07-26 00:00:00