Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Food limitation increases aggression in juvenile meerkats

Both the rate and severity of sibling aggression are predicted to be higher when food availability is low. Although there is now good evidence that food availability influences sibling aggression in facultatively siblicidal species, where aggression commonly results in the death of a competitor, little is known about the proximate causes of aggression in nonsiblicidal species, where aggression rarely results in serious injury. Here, we investigated patterns of aggression between juvenile meerkats (Suricata suricatta), a species where littermate aggression is common, but never lethal. We show that the frequency of aggression between littermates increased when rainfall and helper number, both predictors of the amount of food available to pups, were low. Short-term feeding experiments demonstrated that reducing pup hunger by provisioning them before a foraging session significantly reduced their frequency of aggression in comparison to unfed controls. There was no evidence that offspring sex or weight influenced either the rate at which pups were aggressive, or which littermates they were aggressive to. These results suggest that food availability is an important factor affecting the severity of aggressive competition between offspring, even in the absence of lethal aggressive attacks. Copyright 2009, Oxford University Press.
Effect of Temperature on the Rate of Development of Lygus Lineolaris (Hemiptera: Miridae)

Using green legumes of the common bean, Phaseolus vulgaris L. , as a source of food and as an oviposition site, the tarnished plant bug Lygus lineolaris (P. de B.) was reared in the laboratory. The incubation periods of the egg stage at constant temperatures of 15°, 20°, 25°, 30°, and 35°C. were 42.08, 14.66, 7.62, 6.65, and 6.04 days, respectively. The rate of development of each instar was determined at 20°, 25°, and 30°, at which temperatures the mean total lengths of all instars combined were 31.47, 19.68, and 14.91 days, respectively. First-instar nymphs failed to survive at 35°. Preliminary investigations indicated a preoviposition period of 7 days at 30° and 35°, and slightly over 8 days at 25°. Some observations on the preoviposition period were also made at lower temperatures.
Newly Discovered Populations of the “Terrible Hairy Fly”, Mormotomyia hirsuta Austen (Diptera: Mormotomyiidae) in Kenya, with Further Observations on Natural History

ABSTRACT This paper presents the results of investigations conducted between 2011 and 2013 to discover additional populations of Mormotomyia hirsuta Austen. These investigations were conducted primarily in the relatively dry savanna of eastern Kenya, focusing on small hills and rocky outcrops resembling that of Ukasi Hill, the type locality of the “terrible hairy fly”. Investigations were conducted at 144 caves and at ground level, directly below 104 above-ground, narrow, horizontally-oriented fissures, often on near-vertical rock faces. Evidence of Mormotomyia was not found in any of the caves investigated. During the dry season, however, desiccated corpses of Mormotomyia were discovered embedded in a matrix of dried bat guano adhering to the rock face directly below fissures at Ngauluka and Makilu Hills, also located in the Ukasi area. Later, rainy season visits to these two hills revealed populations of living Mormotomyia while, contemporaneously, flies were absent from the type locality. Like the type locality, the rock face directly below the fissures on Ngauluka and Makilu was discolored with pink and purple vertical streaking, presumably stained by bat urine and guano. Using the characteristically stained rock face as a search image, expeditions were expanded to include areas further afield and living flies were found at a third site 187 km to the south. Formerly considered “the rarest fly in the world”, the conservation status of Mormotomyia appears robust. Mormotomyia was actively preyed upon in the field by two species of lizards and remains of the fly were found in a jumping-spider nest. During laboratory observations of five live flies, the single male exhibited lengthy periods of female-guarding, with females being enclosed within the span of the much longer and setulose legs of males for more than 10 minutes.
Thermostability of hen egg yolk granules : Contribution of native structure of granules

To understand why protein granules resist heat treatment, we measured denaturation, viscosity, and solubility of heated native and disrupted granules and estimated the effect on their emulsifying ability. Granule disruption by sodium chloride caused protein solubility to drop dramatically and viscosity to rise sharply above 72 °C. Solubility of native granules was unaffected by heat, and viscosity increased slightly. Electrophoresis revealed that, whatever the granules structure, low-density lipoproteins (LDL) and -high-density lipoproteins (-HDL) were denatured, whereas phosvitin and -HDL were resistant to heat. Disrupted granules provided weaker emulsifying ability than native granules. The structure of native granules cannot prevent protein denaturation but can avoid aggregation of LDL and -HDL from different granules.
Yield and postharvest quality of winter growing crisphead lettuce as affected by doses of nitrogen and molybdenum

The trial was carried out at Tres Pontas, Minas Gerais State, Brazil, from April to July 2003, to evaluate the influence of nitrogen and molybdenum rates on productive characteristics and postharvest quality of crisphead lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.). A randomized complete block design with three replications was used. Treatments were a factorial combination of four nitrogen rates (0.0; 60.0; 120.0 and 180.0 kg ha -1 ) applied in additional the dose commonly used by growers (60 kg ha -1 of N) and five foliar molybdenum rates (0.0; 35.1; 70.2; 105.3 and 140.4 g ha -1 ). The total and commercial fresh weight and head circumference showed significant effects for doses of nitrogen and of molybdenum, as well as for their interaction. No significant effects of the treatments for stem length were observed. There was a linear effect of N and Mo doses for postharvest conservation at 28 days, and the rate of 150.0 kg ha -1 of N showed the best conservation at 35 days after the harvest. The percentage of dry matter showed quadratic effects, and the doses of 95.9 kg ha -1 of N and 75.3 kg ha -1 of Mo showed the highest return.
Bioeconomic Production Function in Fisheries: Theoretical and Empirical Analysis

The traditional "fishing effort" approach to fisheries economics implies the existence of a production function with fishing effort and fish abundance as independent variables. It is shown how the existence of bionomic equilibrium depends on the shape of this production function, as well as the demand and effort cost functions. The analysis is related to the recent discussion of collapses in fisheries occurring as a result of fish availability being inversely related to fish abundance. A Cobb–Douglas production function, with effort and fish biomass as independent variables, is estimated for the Lofoten fishery. This indicates that the availability coefficient increases as the fish stock is depleted. Finally, the fishing effort approach is integrated with neoclassical production analysis. Fishing effort is regarded as being produced by labor and capital, and an effort frontier production function is estimated for selected Norwegian fisheries. This makes it possible to estimate optimal vessel size and capi.
USH2A variants in Chinese patients with Usher syndrome type II and non-syndromic retinitis pigmentosa

Aims To reveal the Usher syndrome type IIA (USH2A) gene variant profile in a large cohort of Chinese patients with non-syndromic retinitis pigmentosa (RP) or Usher syndrome type II (USH2) and to explore the genotype–phenotype correlation. Methods Targeted exome capture plus next-generation sequencing confirmed that 284 patients from 260 unrelated Chinese families carried USH2A disease-associated variants. Both personal medical history and family histories were reviewed. Ocular examinations were performed and audiograms were recorded if hearing loss was suspected. The genotype–phenotype correlation was evaluated by statistical analyses. Results A total of 230 variants in the USH2A gene were identified, of which 90 (39.13%) were novel. The most common variants in the RP and USH2 probands were p.Cys934Trp and p.Tyr2854_2894del, respectively, and 26.42% and 63.64% of the alleles in the RP and USH2 groups were truncating, respectively. Patients harbouring biallelic truncating variants had a younger age at the initial clinical visit and symptom onset than patients with missense variants; furthermore, the patients with USH2 had a younger age at the initial clinical visit and nyctalopia onset compared with the patients with RP (p<0.001). For the patients with USH2, the age of nyctalopia onset was positively correlated with that of hearing loss (p<0.05, r=0.219). In addition, three pseudo-dominant pedigrees were identified carrying biallelic USH2A variants. Conclusions This study enrolled the largest cohort of Chinese patients with USH2A and identified the most prevalent USH2A variants in USH2 and RP. We found that the patients with USH2 had more truncating variants and experienced an earlier decline in visual function. The findings enhance the current knowledge of USH2A heterogeneity and provide valuable information for future therapies.
Contributions towards a revised infrageneric classification of Crepis (Cichorieae, Compositae)

Abstract Enke N. : Contributions towards a revised infrageneric classification of Crepis (Cichorieae, Compositae). — Willdenowia 39: 229–245 — Online ISSN 1868-6397; © 2009 BGBM Berlin-Dahlem. doi:10.3372/wi.39. 39202 (available via http://dx.doi.org/) A recent molecular analysis of Crepis by Enke & Gemeinholzer based on ITS and matK sequences proved the genus to be polyphyletic and split into three statistically well supported clades. The first clade comprises the majority of the sampled species as Crepis s.str. , the second clade species of five Crepis sections (Intybellia, Lagoseris, Phaecasium, Microcephalum and Pterotheca) as well as the genera Lapsana and Rhagadiolus, the third clade C. sect. Ixeridopsis as part of the Youngia group. The present paper summarises and discusses the available molecular, morphological (additional micromorphological data of pollen, achenes and pappus presented in the present paper) and karyological findings, makes suggestions towards delimitation and infrageneric classification of Crepis and specifies problems to be solved by future studies. It is concluded that (1) the recent resurrection of Askellia as a separate genus is well advised, (2) the genera Lapsana and Rhagadiolus should, for the time being, be maintained in their current generic circumscription and (3) Crepis, consequently, be treated as a paraphyletic taxon. A revised infrageneric classification of Crepis, maintaining 21 of Babcock's 27 sections, some in a revised circumscription, is provided; in addition, C. sect. Calliopea is re-established and C. sect. Neglectoides is described as new to science. For several species or species groups the findings are ambiguous or contradicting and their placement questionable. Approximately 55 % of the species were not included in a molecular analysis yet and their sectional placement based on morphological data only is thus tentative.
Some effects of seed size and spacing on the yield and grading of two maincrop potato varieties: I. Final yield and its relationship to plant population

SUMMARY Two experiments, which investigated the effect of three seed sizes and three withinrow spacings on the graded yield of the two early maincrop varieties Pentland Crown and Maris Piper, are described and the results discussed. Relationships were established between yields in various grades and stem population, and are used to explain the response of yield to changes in seed size and spacing. Comparisons between any two levels of the same treatment were affected by the size grade in which they were made. In addition, the tendency towards interactions between variety and seed size and between variety and spacing suggests that comparisons between varieties are affected by the populations at which these comparisons are made.
Diffuse Axonal Injury: An Important Form of Traumatic Brain Damage

Diffuse axonal injury (DAI) is a frequent form of traumatic brain injury in which a clinical spectrum of in creasing injury severity is paralleled by progressively increasing amounts of axonal damage in the brain. When less severe, DAI is associated with concussive syndromes; when most severe, it causes prolonged traumatic coma that is not related to mass lesions, increased intracranial pressure, or ischemia. Pathological investigations of DAI demonstrate widespread but heterogeneous microscopic damage to axons throughout the white matter of the cerebral and cerebellar hemispheres and brainstem. There is a propensity for injury to occur in the central third of the brain, and the corpus callosum and brain stem are especially prone to injury. In these locations, traumatic axonal damage can occur in several degrees of severity, ranging from transient disturbances of ionic homeostasis to swelling, impairment of axoplasmic transport with secondary (delayed) axotomy and primary axotomy (tearing). A more detailed understanding of the processes involved in axonal damage is crucial to the development of effective treatment for the clinical syndromes of DAI. NEUROSCIENTIST 4:202-215, 1998
Biological identifications through DNA barcodes: the case of the Crustacea

The ability of a 650 base pair section of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase I (COI) gene to provide species-level identifications has been demonstrated for large taxonomic assemblages of animals such as insects, birds, and fishes, but not for the subphylum Crustacea, one of the most diverse groups of arthropods. In this study, we test the ability of COI to provide identifications in this group, examining two disparate levels in the taxonomic hierarchy — orders and species. The first phase of our study involved the development of a sequence profile for 23 dominant crustacean orders, based upon the analysis of 150 species, each belonging to a different family. The COI amino acid data placed these taxa into cohesive assemblages whose membership coincided with currently accepted boundaries at the order, superorder, and subclass levels. Species-level resolution was subsequently exam- ined in an assemblage of Decapoda and in representatives of the genera Daphnia (Cladocera) and Gammarus (Amphipoda). These studies revealed that levels of nucleotide sequence divergence were from 19 to 48 times greater between congeneric species than between individuals of a species. We conclude that sequence variation in the COI barcode region will be very effective for discriminating species of Crustacea. Resume : Il a ete demontre que l'utilisation d'une section de 650 paires de bases du gene mitochondrial de la cyto- chrome c oxydase I (COI) permet de faire des identifications au niveau specifique de grands ensembles taxonomiques d'animaux tels que les insectes, les oiseaux et les poissons, mais pas encore dans le sous-phylum des crustaces, l'un des groupes les plus diversifies d'arthropodes. Nous testons dans notre etude le potentiel de l'utilisation de COI pour faire des identifications dans ce groupe en examinant deux niveaux disparates de la hierarchie taxonomique — les ordres et les especes. La premiere phase de notre recherche consiste en l'etablissement de profils de sequences pour 23 des ordres principaux de crustaces, d'apres l'analyse de 150 especes, appartenant chacune a une famille differente. Les donnees sur les acides amines de COI permettent de placer ces taxons en ensembles cohesifs dont la composition coincide avec les frontieres couramment acceptees aux niveaux de l'ordre, du super-ordre et de la sous-classe. Nous avons ensuite etudie la determination au niveau specifique chez un ensemble de decapodes et chez des representants des genres Daphnia (Cladocera) et Gammarus (Amphipoda). Ces etudes revelent que les niveaux de divergence des sequences de nucleotides sont de 19 a 48 fois plus importants entre les especes d'un meme genre qu'entre les indivi- dus d'une meme espece. Nous concluons que la variation des sequences dans la region du code-barre de COI devrait permettre de separer de facon tres efficace les especes de crustaces.
The genus Saussurea (Compositae, Cardueae) in China: taxonomic and nomenclatural notes

Abstract Raab-Straube E. von: The genus Saussurea (Compositae, Cardueae) in China: taxonomic and nomenclatural notes. —Willdenowia 41: 83–95. — Online ISSN 1868-6397; © 2011 BGBM Berlin-Dahlem. doi:10.3372/wi.41. 41109 (available via http://dx.doi.org/) Investigation of type material of Chinese taxa of Saussurea revealed that the names S. erubescens, S. globosa, S. hypsipeta and S. polycolea var. acutisquama are frequently misapplied in the literature. As a consequence, S. acutisquama is described here as a species new to science, S. obvallata var. gymnocephala is lectotypified and raised to specific rank as S. gymnocephala, S. sorocephala var. glabrata is lectotypified and raised to specific rank as S. inversa and the concept of S. erubescens is amended. All four species are described and illustrated. S. nigrescens var. acutisquama, S. hypsipeta and S. quercifolia var. major are lectotypified. Earlier neotypifications of S. hypsipeta and S. paxiana are superseded by the rediscovery of original material.
New Rumen Ciliates from Turkish Domestic Cattle ( Bos taurus L.): 2. Epidinium graini n. sp. (Ophryoscolecidae, Entodiniomorphida)

In the course of examining rumen contents obtained from 30 domestic cattle (Bos taurus L.) in the vicinity of ‹zmir, Turkey, somewhat similar but unusual forms of epidinia were observed. These ciliated protozoa were observed in six of the animals with a frequency of 20.00%, and this study is concerned with their classification into a species, Epidinium graini n. sp. All the protozoa identified as belonging to this species were divided into three formae, E. graini f. graini n. f. , E. graini f. caudatricoronatum n. f. and E. graini f. caudaquadricoronatum n. f. These species have 2-4 transversally periplasmic pellicle foldings resembling coronets or skirts in shape and 4-5 longitudinal groovelets extending posteriorly from the mid-level of the body on the left surface. These or similar characteristics had been described not in the genus Epidinium but in the genus Ophryoscolex. This fact may stem from some of the characteristics showing the phylogenetic relationship between these two genera.
Limited use of stored energy reserves for reproduction by the tropical loliginid squid Photololigo sp.

This study sought to determine if the tropical loliginid squid Photololigo sp. stores energy in the form of lipid, carbohydrate or protein for reproductive investment. Individuals were examined for changes in morphometry, mantle muscle structure and concentrations of water, lipid, carbohydrate and protein in muscle tissue and the digestive gland, associated with the stage of reproductive maturation. Muscle mass was affected by reproductive maturation in females. Mature individuals were lighter for their length compared with females in the early stages of maturation. Concentrations of lipid and carbohydrate in the muscle tissue were very low, and female Photololigo sp. showed equivocal evidence of declining lipid and carbohydrate levels with egg production. There was no evidence of dramatic changes in protein concentration in the mantle muscle with reproductive maturation. Male Photololigo sp. showed a change in the digestive gland with maturation, with water content increasing and protein concentrations decreasing. The digestive gland of both male and female Photololigo sp. increased in size and contained less water with growth. There was little evidence that the storage and transfer of energy for reproduction occurred in Photololigo sp. Instead, it is probable that energy for reproduction is predominantly sourced directly from consumed food.
Danish and other European experiences in managing shallow lakes

Abstract For a century eutrophication has been the most serious environmental threat to lakes in the densely populated or agricultural areas of Europe. During the last decades, however, major efforts have been used to reduce the external nutrient loading, not least from point sources. Despite these comprehensive efforts, lake eutrophication remains a major problem. Today, the highest pollution input is derived from diffuse sources mainly from agricultural land in lake catchments. We describe the actions taken to reduce the external nutrient loading and the lake responses to these actions as well as the use of additional methods to reinforce recovery, such as biomanipulation. We further discuss resilience and short and long-term responses. We highlight the Danish experiences, but add several examples from restoration measures taken elsewhere in Europe. We also briefly discuss how a potential change in climate may affect lake responses to diminished nutrient loading.
Scale‐dependent climate signals drive breeding phenology of three seabird species

Breeding at the right time is essential for animals in seasonal climates in order to ensure that the energy demands of reproduction, particularly the nutritional requirements of growing young, coincide with peak food availability. Global climate change is likely to cause shifts in the timing of peak food availability, and in order to adapt successfully to current and future climate change, animals need to be able to adjust the time at which they initiate breeding. Many animals use environmental cues available before the breeding season to predict the seasonal peak in food availability and adjust their phenology accordingly. We tested the hypothesis that regulation of breeding onset should reflect the scale at which organisms perceive their environment by comparing phenology of three seabird species at a North Sea colony. As predicted, the phenology of two dispersive species, black‐legged kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla) and common guillemot (Uria aalge), correlated with a large‐scale environmental cue (the North Atlantic Oscillation), whereas a resident species, European shag (Phalacrocorax aristotelis), was more affected by local conditions (sea surface temperature) around the colony. Annual mean breeding success was lower in late years for European shags, but not for the other two species. Since correlations among climate patterns at different scales are likely to change in the future, these findings have important implications for how migratory animals can respond to future climate change.