Search results for " Competition"
showing 10 items of 819 documents
A stochastic interspecific competition model to predict the behaviour of Listeria monocytogenes in the fermentation process of a traditional Sicilian…
2008
The present paper discusses the use of modified Lotka-Volterra equations in order to stochastically simulate the behaviour of Listeria monocytogenes and Lactic Acid Bacteria (LAB) during the fermentation period (168 h) of a typical Sicilian salami. For this purpose, the differential equation system is set considering T, pH and aw as stochastic variables. Each of them is governed by dynamics that involve a deterministic linear decrease as a function of the time t and an "additive noise" term which instantaneously mimics the fluctuations of T, pH and aw. The choice of a suitable parameter accounting for the interaction of LAB on L. monocytogenes as well as the introduction of appropriate nois…
Spatio-temporal behaviour of the deep chlorophyll maximum in Mediterranean Sea: Development of a stochastic model for picophytoplankton dynamics
2013
In this paper, by using a stochastic reaction-diffusion-taxis model, we analyze the picophytoplankton dynamics in the basin of the Mediterranean Sea, characterized by poorly mixed waters. The model includes intraspecific competition of picophytoplankton for light and nutrients. The multiplicative noise sources present in the model account for random fluctuations of environmental variables. Phytoplankton distributions obtained from the model show a good agreement with experimental data sampled in two different sites of the Sicily Channel. The results could be extended to analyze data collected in different sites of the Mediterranean Sea and to devise predictive models for phytoplankton dynam…
Union structure and incentives for innovation
2002
Abstract In this paper, we consider the effect of union structure on the adoption of innovation in the context of Cournot duopoly. With a market size large enough, we show that the incentive to innovate is higher under a decentralized union structure (with each firm facing its own independent union) than under an industry-wide union. However, for a small market size (or, equivalently, for sufficiently drastic potential innovation), the new technology is more likely to be adopted in the presence of a centralized union. This result goes against the conventional view that unionization harms the incentive to innovate.
Impact of Engineer Personality on Sustainable Environment
2019
Engineers are the ones who design the anthropic space and apply the principles of sustainable development. The way they feel and see reality is projected on their work and finished products. The purpose of this research is to identify sensory stimuli that produce pleasure and comfort in the socio-professional category of engineers. The questionnaire survey revealed that engineers prefer materials that promote a sustainable economy, as well as the organization of the anthropological environment by the model of nature, practicing in the unconscious psyche a mimicry of the natural environment.
Male coloration and species recognition in sympatric flycatchers
1994
Currently favoured views for explaining ornaments in males emphasize female preference such that females benefit from increased offspring production, good genes of the offspring, or the attractiveness of sons. Results from long-term studies in the pied flycatcher Ficedula hypoleuca suggest that factors associated with species recognition may also be important for male coloration. In sympatry the collared flycatcher F. albicollis is dominant in competition for nesting sites over the pied flycatcher. Bright pied flycatcher males resemble collared flycatcher males and suffer from interspecific interference, whereas dull and female-like males can acquire nesting sites close to those of the coll…
Species-specific song convergence in a moving hybrid zone between two passerines
2003
Moving hybrid zones are receiving increasing attention. However, so far little is known about the proximate mechanisms underlying these movements. Signalling behaviour, by individuals engaged in interspecific sexual and aggressive interactions, may play a crucial role. In this study, we investigated song variation within a moving hybrid zone between two warblers, Hippolais polyglotta and H. icterina. In these species, song is involved in interspecific territoriality and, probably, in mixed pairings. We showed that allopatric populations of the two species are clearly acoustically differentiated. However, interspecific differences faded out in sympatry as a result of an overall pattern of co…
Interspecific aggression and character displacement in the damselfly Calopteryx splendens
2004
Problems in species recognition are thought to affect the evolution of secondary sexual characters mainly through avoidance of maladaptive hybridization. Another, but much less studied avenue for the evolution of sexual characters due to species recognition problems is through interspecific aggression. In the damselfly, Calopteryx splendens, males have pigmented wing spots as a sexual character. Large-spotted males resemble males of another species, Calopteryx virgo, causing potential problems in species recognition. In this study, we investigate whether there is character displacement in wing spot size and whether interspecific aggression could cause this pattern. We found first that wing …
Maintenance of male reaction to the congeneric song in the Hippolais warbler hybrid zone
1999
Both hybridization and competition may induce character shift on communication systems in hybrid zones, leading either to convergence or divergence. Melodious warblers Hippolais polyglotta and Icterine warblers H. icterina are interspecifically territorial and hybridize along a narrow contact zone. This spatial distribution is favoured by a reaction to the congeneric song. A character displacement, e.g. a decrease of the reaction, was expected within the hybrid zone because of reproduction costs lower than in allopatry. We investigated the pattern of variation of the interspecific reaction by comparing allopatric and sympatric populations. However, our data did not support the hypothesis ch…
Selection on size and secondary sexual characters of the damselfly Calopteryx splendens when sympatric with the congener Calopteryx virgo
2011
Male mating success is often determined by body size or secondary sexual characters because of female mate choice or competition for females. In addition to intraspecific interactions, interspecific interactions may interfere with intraspecific selection. In this study, we investigated sexual selection on size and sexual characters of male banded demoiselle ( Calopteryx splendens (Harris, 1780)) in wild populations sympatric with the beautiful demoiselle ( Calopteryx virgo (L., 1758)). As secondary sexual characters, male C. splendens have pigmented wing spots whose size appears to be under positive selection. Male C. virgo resemble male C. splendens that have the largest wing spots, leadi…
The enigmatic case of the genus Argyresthia in the Azores Islands (Lepidoptera Argyresthiidae)
2020
The species composition of the genus Argyresthia Hübner, 1825 in the Azores is examined. Argyresthia brumella, sp. nov., is described and illustrated from Terceira and Flores Islands. Argyresthia minusculella Rebel, 1940, syn. nov. and Tinea poecilella Rebel, 1940, syn. nov. are synonymized with Argyresthia atlanticella Rebel, 1940. The high variability of A. atlanticella is revealed through the polymorphic wing pattern and the intraspecific genetic divergence of the DNA barcode COI in the specimens examined.