Search results for "zoology"
showing 10 items of 4160 documents
Relationship between inbreeding and milk production traits in two Italian dairy sheep breeds.
2022
The effects of inbreeding in livestock species breeds have been well documented and they have a negative impact on profitability. The objective of this study was to evaluate the levels of inbreeding in Sarda (SAR, n = 785) and Valle del Belice (VdB, n = 473) dairy sheep breeds and their impact on milk production traits. Two inbreeding coefficients (F) were estimated: using pedigree (FPED), or runs of homozygosity (ROH; FROH) at different minimum ROH lengths and different ROH classes. After the quality control, 38,779 single nucleotide polymorphisms remained for further analyses. A mixed-linear model was used to evaluate the impact of inbreeding coefficients on production traits within each …
Analysis of runs of homozygosity of cattle living in different climate zones
2023
Abstract Aim of this study was to analyze the distribution and characteristics of runs of homozygosity in Bos taurus taurus and Bos taurus indicus breeds, as well as their crosses, farmed all around the world. With this aim in view, we used single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) genotypes for 3,263 cattle belonging to 204 different breeds. After quality control, 23,311 SNPs were retained for the analysis. Animals were divided into seven different groups: 1) continental taurus, 2) temperate taurus, 3) temperate indicus, 4) temperate composite, 5) tropical taurus, 6) tropical indicus, and 7) tropical composite. The climatic zones were created according to the latitude of the breeds’ country of…
Primi dati zooarcheologici dal santuario della Malophoros a Selinunte (TP). Firts Results from the Archaeozoological Study at the Sanctuary of Maloph…
2015
Gli aspetti religiosi ricoprivano un ruolo essenziale nella vita degli antichi greci. Tale ritualità si esprimeva attra- verso un’articolazione multiforme e diversif icata, spesso di diff icile lettura per gli archeologi. Tuttavia, è possibile identif icare all’interno di queste pratiche religiose un denominatore comune nella presenza degli animali come principale offerta sacrif icale. Il presente lavoro riguarda i primi dati zooarcheologici provenienti dalle recenti ricerche che hanno interessato l’area del santuario della Malophoros a Selinunte. La nostra indagine si pone come obiettivo principale l’esplora- zione delle modalità sacrif icali utilizzate dagli antichi frequentatori del sant…
Bean goose migration shows a long-term temporal shift to earlier spring, but not to later autumn migration in Finland
2023
Ilmastonmuutos vaatii eliöitä mukauttamaan perinnöllisiä tai opittuja käyttäytymismallejaan muuttuviin ympäristöolosuhteisiin. Erityisen alttiita muutoksille voi olla erilaisten habitaattien välillä muuttavat linnut, joiden selviytyminen on yhteydessä muuton onnistuneeseen ajoittamiseen. Tässä tutkimuksessa käytimme metsähanhesta (Anser fabalis) avoimeen lintutietopalveluun, Tiiraan (tiira.fi – BirdLife Suomi), kerättyjä havaintoja selvittääksemme, onko lajin muuton ajoituksessa tapahtunut muutosta viimeisten 40 vuoden aikana. Lisäksi selvitimme ajoituksen yhteyttä muuton aikaiseen suursäätilaan käyttämällä Pohjois-Atlantin suursäätilaa kuvaavaa NAO-indeksiä. Tutkitulla ajanjaksolla 1978–20…
Sexual selection on song and cuticular hydrocarbons in two distinct populations of Drosophila montana
2011
Sexual selection has the potential to contribute to population divergence and speciation. Most studies of sexual selection in Drosophila have concentrated on a single signaling modality, usually either courtship song or cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs), which can act as contact pheromones. We have examined the relationship between both signal types and reproductive success using F1–3 offspring of wild- collected flies, raised in the lab. We used two populations of the Holarctic species Drosophila montana that represent different phylogeographic clades that have been separate for ca. 0.5 million years (MY), and differ to some extent in both traits. Here, we characterize the nature and identify …
Sex Allocation Theory for Facultatively Sexual Organisms Inhabiting Seasonal Environments: The Importance of Bet Hedging
2018
Adaptive explanations for dormancy often invoke bet hedging, where reduced mean fitness can be adaptive if it associates with reduced fitness variance. Sex allocation theory typically ignores variance effects and focuses on mean fitness. For many cyclical parthenogens, these themes become linked, as only sexually produced eggs undergo the dormancy needed to survive harsh conditions. We ask how sex allocation and the timing of sex evolve when this constraint exists in the form of a trade-off between asexual reproduction and sexual production of dormant eggs—the former being crucial for within-season success and the latter for survival across seasons. We show that male production can be tempo…
New Gynandromorph Records for Chirocephalus diaphanus (Branchiopoda, Anostraca, Chirocephalidae)
2021
We report and describe new Chirocephalus diaphanus Prévost, 1803 gynandromorphs from Tunisia and review the literature of anostracan gynandromorphy and other, possibly associated, somatic aberrations, with comments on their evolutionary significance. Our material has three specimens that are specifically deformed on the left side of the head.
How Geography and Climate Shaped the Genomic Diversity of Italian Local Cattle and Sheep Breeds
2022
International audience; Understanding the relationships among geography, climate, and genetics is increasingly important for animal farming and breeding. In this study, we examine these inter-relationships in the context of local cattle and sheep breeds distributed along the Italian territory. To this aim, we used redundancy analysis on genomic data from previous projects combined with geographical coordinates and corresponding climatic data. The effect of geographic factors (latitude and longitude) was more important in sheep (26.4%) than that in cattle (13.8%). Once geography had been partialled out of analysis, 10.1% of cattle genomic diversity and 13.3% of that of sheep could be ascribe…
Genomic Tools for the Characterization of Local Animal Genetic Resources: Application in Mascaruna Goat
2022
Italy contains a large number of local goat populations, some of which do not have a recognized genetic structure. The “Mascaruna” is a goat population reared for milk production in Sicily. In this study, a total of 72 individuals were genotyped with the Illumina Goat_IGGC_65K_v2 BeadChip with the aim to characterize the genetic diversity, population structure and relatedness with another 31 Italian goat populations. The results displayed a moderate level of genetic variability for Mascaruna, in concordance with the estimated values for Italian goats. Runs of homozygosity islands are linked to genes involved in milk production, immune response and local adaptation. Population structure anal…
Partially disarticulated new Miocene burrower bug (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Cydnidae) from Cerová (Slovakia) documents occasional preservation of terr…
2015
The state of preservation of the bug Sehirus carpathiensis J.A. Lis, Vršanský & Schlögl, sp. n. (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Cydnidae) from the Lakšárska Nová Ves Formation at Cerová (Slovakia) supports extremely rapid sinking and burial in upper bathyal Early Miocene sediments. The specimen originated from land at most a few kilometers away, but transport via a river can be excluded as the head and wings are still attached. Its most likely source based on fossil flora and the habitat of several living representatives of the genus is a riparian habitat in an adjacent area of land. Phylogenetically the new species is closely related to both Oligocene and living representatives of the genus, thus…