Replicated evolutionary inhibition of a complex ancestral behaviour in an adaptive radiation.

abstract：:Understanding the effects of parasites on host behaviour, of host behaviour on parasite infection, and the reciprocal interactions between these processes is vital to improving our understanding of animal behaviour and disease dynamics. However, behaviour and parasite infection are both highly variable within and betw...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Stephenson JF

更新日期：2019-11-29 00:00:00

abstract：:Plain-tailed wrens (Thryothorus euophrys) live in groups that sing synchronized choruses, the contributions of females and males alternating with each other in cycles, within which each sex sings two of the four parts, the whole achieving near perfect synchrony. As each bird has a repertoire of ca 20 phrases of each t...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Mann NI,Dingess KA,Slater PJ

更新日期：2006-03-22 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：:Animals use cues to find their food, in microhabitats within their physiological tolerances. Termites build and modify their microhabitat, to transform hostile environments into benign ones, which raises questions about the relative importance of cues. Termites are desiccation intolerant and foraging termites are attr...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Oberst S,Lenz M,Lai JCS,Evans TA

更新日期：2019-07-26 00:00:00

abstract：:Mycobacterium bovis is the causative agent of bovine tuberculosis (bTB) in cattle and wildlife. Direct aerosol contact is thought to be the primary route of infection between conspecifics, whereas indirect transmission via an environmental reservoir of M. bovis is generally perceived not to be a significant source for...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Courtenay O,Reilly LA,Sweeney FP,Hibberd V,Bryan S,Ul-Hassan A,Newman C,Macdonald DW,Delahay RJ,Wilson GJ,Wellington EM

更新日期：2006-09-22 00:00:00

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：:Understanding the relationship between disease transmission and host density is essential for predicting disease spread and control. Using long-term data on sarcoptic mange in a red fox Vulpes vulpes population, we tested long-held assumptions of density- and frequency-dependent direct disease transmission. We also as...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Devenish-Nelson ES,Richards SA,Harris S,Soulsbury C,Stephens PA

更新日期：2014-10-01 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：: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：: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：: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：: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：:Historically, bird song has been regarded as a sex-specific signalling trait; males sing to attract females and females drive the evolution of signal exaggeration by preferring males with ever more complex songs. This view provides no functional role for female song. Historic geographical research biases generalized p...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Riebel K,Odom KJ,Langmore NE,Hall ML

更新日期：2019-04-26 00:00:00

abstract：:We examined the impact of winner and loser effects on dominance hierarchy formation when individuals are capable of estimating their opponent's resource holding power (RHP). The accuracy of such estimates was a variable in our simulations, and we considered cases in which all individuals err within the same bounds, as...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Dugatkin LA,Dugatkin AD

更新日期：2007-12-22 00:00:00

abstract：:Vision of the body, even when non-informative about stimulation, affects somatosensory processing. We investigated whether seeing the body also modulates autonomic control in the periphery by measuring skin temperature while manipulating vision. Using a mirror box, the skin temperature was measured from left hand dors...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Sadibolova R,Longo MR

更新日期：2014-04-23 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：: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：:Despite major advances in the study of animal tool behaviour, researchers continue to debate how exactly certain behaviours are acquired. While specific mechanisms, such as genetic predispositions or action copying, are sometimes suspected to play a major role in behavioural acquisition, controlled experiments are req...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Bandini E,Motes-Rodrigo A,Steele MP,Rutz C,Tennie C

更新日期：2020-06-01 00:00:00

abstract：:Odours that accumulate from roosting can attract predators and increase predation risk. Consequently, selection should favour strategies that allow prey to evade detection by predators, including changing roosts. Insectivorous bats that roost in tree hollows regularly switch roosts and roost in different sized groups,...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Threlfall C,Law B,Banks PB

更新日期：2013-05-01 00:00:00

abstract：:Patterns of population genetic variation have frequently been understood as consequences of life history covariates such as dispersal ability and breeding systems (e.g. selfing). For example, marine invertebrates show enormous variation in life history traits that are correlated with the extent of gene flow between po...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Addison JA,Hart MW

更新日期：2005-12-22 00:00:00

abstract：:A number of widely grown varieties of Vitis vinifera ssp. sativa, the grape used for wine production, are known to have resulted from crosses between Pinot noir and Gouais blanc, although it is not known which was the maternal parent in these crosses. We have analysed microsatellites and a single nucleotide polymorphi...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Hunt HV,Lawes MC,Bower MA,Haeger JW,Howe CJ

更新日期：2010-06-23 00:00:00

abstract：:There is increasing evidence from non-human animals that males adjust their ejaculate expenditure according to the risk of sperm competition. In this study we show that, after controlling for lifestyle factors known to influence semen quality, human males viewing images depicting sperm competition had a higher percent...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Kilgallon SJ,Simmons LW

更新日期：2005-09-22 00:00:00

abstract：:We characterized fungal communities in dry and moist tundra and investigated the effect of long-term experimental summer warming on three aspects of functional groups of arctic fungi: richness, community composition and species abundance. Warming had profound effects on community composition, abundance, and, to a less...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Geml J,Semenova TA,Morgado LN,Welker JM

更新日期：2016-11-01 00:00:00

abstract：:Heterochrony, differences in the timing of developmental events between descendent species and their ancestors, is a pervasive evolutionary pattern. However, the origins of such timing changes are still not resolved. Here we show, using sequence analysis, that exposure to predator cues altered the timing of onset of s...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Rundle SD,Smirthwaite JJ,Colbert MW,Spicer JI

更新日期：2011-04-23 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：:The past population dynamics of four domestic and one wild species of bovine were estimated using Bayesian skyline plots, a coalescent Markov chain Monte Carlo method that does not require an assumed parametric model of demographic history. Four domestic species share a recent rapid population expansion not visible in...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Finlay EK,Gaillard C,Vahidi SM,Mirhoseini SZ,Jianlin H,Qi XB,El-Barody MA,Baird JF,Healy BC,Bradley DG

更新日期：2007-08-22 00:00:00

abstract：:Although over 50 twin and adoption studies have been performed on the genetic architecture of antisocial behaviour, far fewer studies have investigated prosocial behaviour, and none have done so on a non-western population. The present study examined mothers' ratings of prosocial behaviour in 514 pairs of 2- to 9-year...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Hur YM,Rushton JP

更新日期：2007-12-22 00:00:00

abstract：:Boreal forest ecosystems are important drivers of the global carbon (C) cycle by acting as both sinks and sources of atmospheric CO(2). While several factors have been proposed as determining the ability of boreal forest to function as C sinks, little is known about their relative importance. In this study, we applied...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Jonsson M,Wardle DA

更新日期：2010-02-23 00:00:00

abstract：:Environmental reservoirs of zooxanthellae are essential for coral larvae settlement; understanding where they occur and how they are maintained is important for coral reef ecology. This study investigated the dispersal of Symbiodinium spp. by the stoplight parrotfish Sparisoma viride, which had high mean densities of ...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Castro-Sanguino C,Sánchez JA

更新日期：2012-04-23 00:00:00

abstract：:In contrast to daily rhythms that are common in the presence of the geophysical light-dark cycle, organisms at polar latitudes exhibit many diel activity patterns during natural periods of continuous solar light or darkness (polar day and night, respectively), from 24 h rhythms to arrhythmicity. In Arctic Greenland (7...

journal_title：Biology letters

authors： Huffeldt NP,Merkel FR

更新日期：2016-09-01 00:00:00