Search results for "ICT"
showing 10 items of 7961 documents
The ecology of sexual conflict: Temperature variation in the social environment can drastically modulate male harm to females
2019
Sexual conflict is a fundamental driver of male/female adaptations, an engine of biodiversity and a crucial determinant of population viability. Sexual conflict frequently leads to behavioural adaptations that allow males to displace their rivals, but in doing so harm those same females they are competing to access, which can decrease population viability and facilitate extinction. We are far from understanding what factors modulate the intensity of sexual conflict and particularly the role of ecology in mediating underlying behavioural adaptations. In this study, we show that, in Drosophila melanogaster, variations in environmental temperature of ±4°C decrease male harm impact on female fi…
Identification of Two Carbonic Anhydrases in the Mantle of the European Abalone Haliotis tuberculata (Gastropoda, Haliotidae): Phylogenetic Implicati…
2012
Carbonic anhydrases (CAs) represent a diversified family of metalloenzymes that reversibly catalyze the hydration of carbon dioxide. They are involved in a wide range of functions, among which is the formation of CaCO(3) skeletons in metazoans. In the shell-forming mantle tissues of mollusks, the location of the CA catalytic activity is elusive and gives birth to contradicting views. In the present paper, using the European abalone Haliotis tuberculata, a key model gastropod in biomineralization studies, we identified and characterized two CAs (htCA1 and htCA2) that are specific of the shell-forming mantle tissue. We analyzed them in a phylogenetic context. Combining various approaches, inc…
Assessing coastal habitats with Juniperus sp. pl. in the Iberian Peninsula and on the Balearic Islands
2021
Coastal habitats with Juniperus sp. pl. represent the mature stage in the ecological succession of dune ecosystems. Maritime junipers (Juniperus macrocarpa), prickly junipers (J. navicularis) and c...
Characteristics, Main Impacts, and Stewardship of Natural and Artificial Freshwater Environments: Consequences for Biodiversity Conservation
2020
International audience; In this overview (introductory article to a special issue including 14 papers), we consider all main types of natural and artificial inland freshwater habitas (fwh). For each type, we identify the main biodiversity patterns and ecological features, human impacts on the system and environmental issues, and discuss ways to use this information to improve stewardship. Examples of selected key biodiversity/ecological features (habitat type): narrow endemics, sensitive (groundwater and GDEs); crenobionts, LIHRes (springs); unidirectional flow, nutrient spiraling (streams); naturally turbid, floodplains, large-bodied species (large rivers); depth-variation in benthic commu…
A multi-site study to classify semi-natural grassland types
2009
International audience; Calibration and validation of simulation models describing herbage growth or feed quality of seminatural grasslands is a complex task for agronomists without investing effort into botanical surveys. To facilitate such modelling efforts, a limited number of grassland types were identified using a functional classification of species. These grassland types were characterized by three descriptors required to model herbage growth or feed quality: the abundance-weighted mean leaf dry matter content across grass species, the relative abundance of grasses, and an estimate of species richness. We conducted a multi-site analysis over 749 grasslands from eight temperate region…
Could male tergal secretions be considered as a nuptial gift in the Madeira cockroach?
2008
International audience; Many male insects provide somatic nuptial gifts that may strongly influence reproductive fitness, ensuring effective copulation or mediating paternal resource benefits in offspring. Although the courtship feeding behaviour on tergal gland secretions has been described in numerous cockroaches, studies on the function of these so-called nuptial gifts are lacking in this group. In this study, we examined, in the Madeira cockroach, Leucophaea maderae, the functional significance of tergal secretions by manipulating their availability on the back of males. We tested whether male tergal secretions function as a form of mating effort, and/or as a form of paternal investment…
Multispecies tracking reveals a major seabird hotspot in the North Atlantic
2021
The conservation of migratory marine species, including pelagic seabirds, is challenging because their movements span vast distances frequently beyond national jurisdictions. Here, we aim to identify important aggregations of seabirds in the North Atlantic to inform ongoing regional conservation efforts. Using tracking, phenology, and population data, we mapped the abundance and diversity of 21 seabird species. This revealed a major hotspot associated with a discrete area of the subpolar frontal zone, used annually by 2.9–5 million seabirds from ≥56 colonies in the Atlantic: the first time this magnitude of seabird concentrations has been documented in the high seas. The hotspot is temporal…
Calling behaviour of female Periplaneta americana: Behavioural analysis and identification of the pheromone source
1993
Abstract The site for the production of Periplanone B, one of the components of the female sex pheromone of Periplaneta americana , was localized in glands situated in the genital atrium, and we have called these structures atrial glands. While emitting the sex pheromone, females adopt a characteristic calling posture during which time the atrial glands are exposed. Behavioural assays of males utilizing pentane extracts of various female body parts revealed that atrial gland extracts are highly attractive, and induced more wing-raising behaviour, than any other female body part. GC-MS analyses support these results by revealing that Periplanone B is only present in the atrial glands. We est…
Long-term fitness consequences of high yolk androgen levels: sons pay the costs
2012
Summary 1. Early growth conditions, for example hormonal environment during embryonic development, may have long-lasting effects on behaviour and phenotype, with subsequent fitness consequences. Yolk androgens have been shown to affect various offspring traits in the short-term, but fitness consequences for either offspring or parents, a prerequisite for studying the adaptiveness of this maternal effect, are poorly known in the wild. 2. We experimentally elevated yolk androgen levels of whole clutches in a wild population of collared flycatchers (Ficedula albicollis) and investigated the long-term effects of yolk androgens on offspring local recruitment, parental return rate, and timing and…
Optimization of Synthetic Media Composition for Kluyveromyces marxianus Fed-Batch Cultivation
2021
The Kluyveromyces marxianus yeast recently has gained considerable attention due to its applicability in high-value-added product manufacturing. In order to intensify the biosynthesis rate of a target product, reaching high biomass concentrations in the reaction medium is mandatory. Fed-batch processes are an attractive and efficient way how to achieve high cell densities. However, depending on the physiology of the particular microbial strain, an optimal media composition should be used to avoid by-product synthesis and, subsequently, a decrease in overall process effi-ciency. Thus, the aim of the present study was to optimise the synthetic growth medium and feeding solution compositions (…