Does reduced heterozygosity influence dispersal? A test using spatially structured populations in an alpine ungulate.

abstract：:Mutualisms affect the biodiversity, distribution and abundance of biological communities. However, ecological processes that drive mutualism-related shifts in population structure are often unclear and must be examined to elucidate how complex, multi-species mutualistic networks are formed and structured. In this stud...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Sun D,Cheney KL,Werminghausen J,Meekan MG,McCormick MI,Cribb TH,Grutter AS

更新日期：2015-08-01 00:00:00

abstract：:Impulsivity, the widespread preference for a smaller and more immediate reward over a larger and more delayed reward, is known to vary across species, and the metabolic and social hypotheses present contrasting explanations for this variation. However, this presents a paradox for an animal such as the honeybee, which ...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Mayack C,Naug D

更新日期：2015-01-01 00:00:00

abstract：:To make sensible decisions, both humans and other animals must compare the available options against a reference point-either other options or previous experience. Options of higher quality than the reference are considered good value. However, many perceptible attributes of options are value-neutral, such as flower s...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Oberhauser FB,Czaczkes TJ

更新日期：2018-09-01 00:00:00

abstract：:The movement and dietary history of individuals can be studied using stable isotope records in archival keratinous tissues. Here, we present a chronology of temporally fine-scale data on the trophic niche of otariid seals by measuring the isotopic signature of serially sampled whiskers. Whiskers of male Antarctic fur ...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Cherel Y,Kernaléguen L,Richard P,Guinet C

更新日期：2009-12-23 00:00:00

abstract：:Primate groups vary considerably in size across species. Nonetheless, the distribution of mean species group size has a regular scaling pattern with preferred sizes approximating 2.5, 5, 15, 30 and 50 individuals (although strepsirrhines lack the latter two), with a scaling ratio of approximately 2.5 similar to that o...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Dunbar RIM,Mac Carron P,Shultz S

更新日期：2018-01-01 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：:The evolution of fluorescence is largely unexplored, despite the newfound occurrence of this phenomenon in a variety of organisms. We document that spiders fluoresce under ultraviolet illumination, and find that the expression of this trait varies greatly among taxa in this species-rich group. All spiders we examined ...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Andrews K,Reed SM,Masta SE

更新日期：2007-06-22 00:00:00

abstract：:Evenness is a key measure of community structure. Here, we examine the relationship between evenness and size-abundance distributions for both individuals and species using data gathered from Amazonian fish assemblages. We show that evenness increases as the fraction of numerically abundant species in larger body-size...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Magurran AE,Queiroz HL,Hercos AP

更新日期：2013-12-11 00:00:00

abstract：:Inbreeding may lead to morphological malformations in a wide variety of taxa. We used genetic markers to evaluate whether malformed urodeles were more inbred and/or had less genetic diversity than normal salamanders. We captured 687 adult and 1,259 larval tiger salamanders (Ambystoma tigrinum tigrinum), assessed each ...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Williams RN,Bos DH,Gopurenko D,Dewoody JA

更新日期：2008-10-23 00:00:00

abstract：:Parasite-mediated competition can shape community structure and host distribution. If two species compete for resources, parasites may indirectly change the outcome of competition. We tested the role of a trematode parasite in mediating microhabitat use by congeneric isopods Austridotea annectens and Austridotea lacus...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Friesen OC,Poulin R,Lagrue C

更新日期：2018-02-01 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：:The temporal stability of plant reproductive features on islands has rarely been tested. Using flowers, fruits/cones and seeds from a well-dated (23 Ma) Miocene Lagerstätte in New Zealand, we show that across 23 families and 30 genera of forest angiosperms and conifers, reproductive features have remained constant for...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Conran JG,Lee WG,Lee DE,Bannister JM,Kaulfuss U

更新日期：2014-10-01 00:00:00

abstract：:Most songbirds learn their songs from adult tutors, who can be their father or other male conspecifics. However, the variables that control song learning in a natural social context are largely unknown. We investigated whether the time of hatching of male domesticated canaries has an impact on their song development a...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Leitner S,Teichel J,Ter Maat A,Voigt C

更新日期：2015-08-01 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：:Mosquitoes, which evade contact with long-lasting insecticidal nets and indoor residual sprays, by feeding outdoors or upon animals, are primary malaria vectors in many tropical countries. They can also dominate residual transmission where high coverage of these front-line vector control measures is achieved. Compleme...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Kiware SS,Chitnis N,Devine GJ,Moore SJ,Majambere S,Killeen GF

更新日期：2012-10-23 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：:The comb jelly Mertensia ovum, widely distributed in Arctic regions, has recently been discovered in the northern Baltic Sea. We show that M. ovum also exists in the central Baltic but that the population consists solely of small-sized larvae (less than 1.6 mm). Despite the absence of adults, eggs were abundant. Exper...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Jaspers C,Haraldsson M,Bolte S,Reusch TB,Thygesen UH,Kiørboe T

更新日期：2012-10-23 00:00:00

abstract：:Anti-predator benefits associated with living in groups are multiple and taxonomically widespread. In fish shoals, individuals can exploit the confusion effect, whereby predators struggle to target a single individual among several individuals. Theory predicts that the confusion effect could be aided by homogeneity in...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Cattelan S,Griggio M

更新日期：2018-08-01 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：:Male insects rarely collaborate with each other, but pollinator fig wasps (Hymenoptera: Agaonidae) are said to be an exception. Immature fig wasps feed on galled ovules located inside figs, the inflorescences of Ficus species (Moraceae). After mating, adult pollinator males chew communal exit-holes that allow mated fe...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Suleman N,Raja S,Compton SG

更新日期：2012-06-23 00:00:00

abstract：:Marsupial frogs have a unique reproductive mode in which females carry eggs enclosed in a sealed dorsal brood pouch. While most anurans are considered to be oviparous with lecithotrophic eggs, the extensively vascularized membrane of the brood pouch in marsupial frogs suggests potential opportunities for nutrient tran...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Warne RW,Catenazzi A

更新日期：2016-10-01 00:00:00

abstract：:Unmanned aerial vehicles, commonly called drones, are being increasingly used in ecological research, in particular to approach sensitive wildlife in inaccessible areas. Impact studies leading to recommendations for best practices are urgently needed. We tested the impact of drone colour, speed and flight angle on the...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Vas E,Lescroël A,Duriez O,Boguszewski G,Grémillet D

更新日期：2015-02-01 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：:Lateralization is a well-described phenomenon in humans and other vertebrates and there are interesting parallels across a variety of different vertebrate species. However, there are only a few studies of lateralization in invertebrates. In a recent report, we showed lateralization of olfactory learning in the honeybe...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Letzkus P,Boeddeker N,Wood JT,Zhang SW,Srinivasan MV

更新日期：2008-02-23 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：:Placoderms are a diverse group of armoured fishes that dominated the aquatic ecosystems of the Devonian Period, 415-360 million years ago. The bladed jaws of predators such as Dunkleosteus suggest that these animals were the first vertebrates to use rapid mouth opening and a powerful bite to capture and fragment evasi...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Anderson PS,Westneat MW

更新日期：2007-02-22 00:00:00

abstract：:The existence of consistent individual differences in behaviour ('animal personality') has been well documented in recent years. However, how such individual variation in behaviour is maintained over evolutionary time is an ongoing conundrum. A well-studied axis of animal personality is individual variation along a bo...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Ahlgren J,Chapman BB,Nilsson PA,Brönmark C

更新日期：2015-04-01 00:00:00

abstract：:The outcomes of agonistic interactions modulate access to resources and thereby affect fitness. Success in agonistic encounters may depend on intrinsic physical and physiological performance, and on social experience. Here we test the hypothesis that previous experience will override physical strength in determining t...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Seebacher F,Wilson RS

更新日期：2007-10-22 00:00:00

abstract：:Domesticated animals have been shown to recognize basic phonemic information from human speech sounds and to recognize familiar speakers from their voices. However, whether animals can spontaneously identify words across unfamiliar speakers (speaker normalization) or spontaneously discriminate between unfamiliar speak...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Root-Gutteridge H,Ratcliffe VF,Korzeniowska AT,Reby D

更新日期：2019-12-24 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