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showing 10 items of 25013 documents
Prospects of herbivore egg-killing plant defenses for sustainable crop protection
2016
Abstract Due to a growing demand of food production worldwide, new strategies are suggested to allow for sustainable production of food with minimal effects on natural resources. A promising alternative to the application of chemical pesticides is the implementation of crops resistant to insect pests. Plants produce compounds that are harmful to a wide range of attackers, including insect pests; thus, exploitation of their natural defense system can be the key for the development of pest‐resistant crops. Interestingly, some plants possess a unique first line of defense that eliminates the enemy before it becomes destructive: egg‐killing. Insect eggs can trigger (1) direct defenses, mostly i…
Experimental Introgression To Evaluate the Impact of Sex Specific Traits on Drosophila melanogaster Incipient Speciation
2019
AbstractSex specific traits are involved in speciation but it is difficult to determine whether their variation initiates or reinforces sexual isolation. In some insects, speciation depends of the rapid change of expression in desaturase genes coding for sex pheromones. Two closely related desaturase genes are involved in Drosophila melanogaster pheromonal communication: desat1 affects both the production and the reception of sex pheromones while desat2 is involved in their production in flies of Zimbabwe populations. There is a strong asymmetric sexual isolation between Zimbabwe populations and all other “Cosmopolitan” populations: Zimbabwe females rarely copulate with Cosmopolitan males w…
Boldness-exploration behavioral syndrome: interfamily variability and repeatability of personality traits in the young of the convict cichlid (Amatit…
2015
9 pages; International audience; In recent years, considerable research interest in behavioral ecology has focused on characterizing and understanding individual differences in behavior that are consistent over time and across contexts, termed animal “personalities,” and correlations between various behaviors across contexts, termed behavioral syndromes. Although there is some evidence that differences in personality among individuals within populations can be genetically based and adaptive, when and how individual personality differences emerge in a population is not well understood, but of considerable general interest. Here, using juveniles of the convict cichlid (Amatitlania siquia) as …
Assortative pairing for boldness and consequences for reproductive success in Montagu’s harrier
2021
Abstract Behavioural combination within pairs depending on personality and plasticity might influence reproductive success. However, studies testing this hypothesis are rare, especially in the case of monogamous species with bi-parental care in which the sexes exhibit different behavioural roles. In this study, we investigated the pairing patterns for both boldness and boldness plasticity in Montagu’s harriers (Circus pygargus), a species with sex-specific care, and the consequences for their reproductive success. We measured individual boldness and plasticity for both sexes, and we assessed the pairing pattern in the Montagu’s harrier population for these two traits. We calculated four ind…
Decomposition of nest material in tree holes and nest-boxes occupied by European Starlings Sturnus vulgaris: an experimental study
2017
Numerous bird species depend on the availability of tree cavities, and most non-excavators fill their cavities with considerable amounts of nest material. If not removed, this material can accumulate and render cavities unusable, as recorded in some nest-box studies. Data from earlier studies of tree cavities, however, showed that nest material can decrease mostly due to in situ decomposition, but the relative difference between nest decomposition in tree holes and nest-boxes is still unknown. We undertook parallel studies of decay in tree holes and nest-boxes used by European Starlings Sturnus vulgaris in oak-hornbeam stands (SW Poland). We inserted into its tree holes and nest-boxes litte…
Modes, mechanisms and evidence of bet hedging in rotifer diapause traits
2016
In this contribution, we review our knowledge on bet-hedging strategies associated with rotifer diapause. First, we describe the ecological scenario under which bet hedging is likely to have evolved in three diapause-related traits in monogonont rotifer populations: (1) the timing of sex (because diapausing eggs are produced via sexual reproduction), (2) the sexual reproduction ratio (i.e. the fraction of sexually reproducing females) and (3) the timing of diapausing egg hatching. Then, we describe how to discriminate among bet-hedging modes and discuss which modes and mechanisms better fit the variability observed in these traits in rotifers. Finally, we evaluate the strength of the empiri…
Predation risk and reproduction in the bank vole
2012
Context Life-history strategies are the means that organisms use to achieve successful reproduction in environments that vary in time and space. Individual animals maximise life-time reproductive success (LRS) through optimal timing of reproduction and investment in offspring. A crucial factor affecting LRS is predation risk in a highly seasonal environment. According to the breeding-suppression hypothesis (BSH), females should delay breeding under short periods of high predation risk. Delayed breeding under risk is suggested to have substantial consequences for females’ fitness. Aims We tested the BSH in an iteroparous boreal small rodent, the bank vole, Myodes glareolus. Methods We used …
Consumer preferences for fig fruit (Ficus carica L.) quality attributes and postharvest storage at low temperature by in-store survey and focus group
2017
Fig (Ficus carica L.) is cultivated mainly in southern Italy and in several countries of the Mediterranean area. According to official statistics the quantities of fresh fig placed on domestic market are low, though the home consumption is known to be relatively high in summer. The objective of this study was to discover consumers’ preferences for sensory, quality attributes of fresh fig and primary drivers of liking, in order to enhance fruit marketing value. An in-store consumer test and two focus groups were carried out to assess preferences in regards to fresh figs after 3 and 7 days of storage at low temperature: the selected sensory, intrinsic and extrinsic attributes were ranked by c…
Postharvest quality and sensory attributes of Ficus carica L
2017
The aim of this research was to evaluate the relationship between some physical and chemical characteristics and sensory descriptors of fig fruits ‘Dottato’ and ‘Melanzana’, belonging to the national germplasm bank of fig trees and cultivated in Southern Italy. The sensory principal descriptors used are external appearance, skin color, pulp color, odor, sweetness, stickiness, bitterness, juiciness, firmness, tannic taste and presence of achenes. Fresh weight, total soluble solids (TSS), titratable acidity (TA), TSS:TA, firmness, and sensory properties changed with cultivar. SSC was more correlated with sensory attributes than TA, but other factors may also be important in controlling this r…
Human-Bat Interactions in Rural Southwestern Madagascar through a Biocultural Lens
2021
Human-bat interactions are common in rural areas across the tropics. Over 40 bat species occur in Madagascar, most of which are endemic. Forest loss is changing the distribution of bats throughout the island, with potential increases in both the abundance of synanthropic species and human-bat interactions. We set out to study knowledge of, interactions with, and attitudes towards bats in rural Madagascar, including reports of food and ethnomedicinal uses of bats, their cultural representations in folklore, and the existence of culturally enforced taboos in relation to them. We administered 108 surveys with open- and closed-ended questions with adults from the Tanala and Betsileo ethnic grou…