Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Functional Organization of Stream Fish Assemblages in Relation to Hydrological Variability

Stream fish assmemblage data for 34 sites in Wisconsin and Minnesota were obtained from archived sources and were used in conjunction with long—term hydrological data to test the hypothesis that functional organization of fish communities is related to hydrological variability. For each of the 106 species present in the data set, six categories of species traits were derived to describe habitat, trophic, morphologica, and tolerance characteristics. A hierarchical clustering routine was used to identify two functionally similar groups of assemblages defined in terms of species presence/absence. Hydrological factors describing streamflow variability and predictability, as well as frequency and predictability of high flow and low flow extremes, were derived for each of the 34 sites and employed to explain differences among the functionally defined groups. Canonical discriminant analysis revealed that the hydrological data could clearly separate the two ecologically defined groups of assemblages, which were associated with either hydrologically variable streams (high coefficient of variation of daily flows, moderate frequency of spates) or hydrologically stable streams (high predictability of daily flows, stable baseflow conditions). Discriminant functions based on hydrological information classified the 34 fish assemblages into the correct ecological group with 85% accuracy. Assemblages from hydrologically variable sites had generalized feeding strategies, were associated with silt and general substrata, were characterized by slow—velocity species with headwater affinities, and were tolerant to silt. Proportions of species traits present at the 34 sites were regressed against an index of hydrological stability derived from a principal components analysis to test the hypothesis that functional organization of assemblages varied across a gradient of hydrological stability. Results were complementary with the discriminant analysis. Findings were in general agreement with theoretical predictions that variable should support resource generalists while stable habitats should be characterized by a higher proportion of specialist species. Several species of fish were identified as indicative of the variable—stable hydrological gradient among stream sites. A taxonomic analysis showed strong geographic patterns in species composition of the 34 assemblages. However, zoogeographic constraints did not explain the observed relationship between stream hydrology and functional organization of fish assemblages. The strong hydrological—assemblage relations found in the 34 midwestern sites suggest that hydrological factors are significant environmental variables influencing fish assemblage structure, and that hydrological alterations induced by climate change (or other anthropogenic disturbances) could modify stream fish assemblages structure in this region.
Quantification of sponge/coral interactions in physically stressed reef community, NE Colombia

Coral reef sponges are considered as important space competitors. Competitive interactions between sponges and corals often result in overgrowth of the coral. It is assumed that sponges are even more successful in environments sub-optimal for corals. In order to test the hypothesis that coral overgrowth by reef sponges increases when corals are under stress, the frequency of sponge/coral interactions was quantified along a gradient of physical stress. At fifteen stations, encompassing five localities and three depths (5, 10 and 20 m) along the coast of Santa Marta (NE Colombia), the number and categories of interactions were scored in belt transects ( 1 0 x 1 m). Four categories of interactions were distinguished. Physical factors such as sedimentation and visibility were measured. 21 coral species and 95 sponge species were encountered in a total of 3866 sponge/coral interactions. Only 2,5% (96 interactions) consisted of overgrowth of corals by sponges. The frequency of such overgrowth depended on the presence of particular sponge species, which appeared to be more aggressive towards corals in localities with high coral cover, relatively low sedimentation and high visibility. Thus, we reject the hypothesis that coral overgrowth by sponges occurs more frequently in localities under physical stress. Overgrowth was related to the presence of aggressive sponge species, rather than to characteristics of the corals. It is concluded that reef sponges differ notably in their competitive abilities. By influencing the sponge community composition on the reef, the physical environment may indirectly determine the extent of overgrowth of corals by sponges.
Sexual Dimorphism of Head Size in Podarcis Hispanica Atrata: Testing the Dietary Divergence Hypothesis By Bite Force Analysis

Sexual dimorphism of relative head size is a widespread phenomenon in lizards, males having larger head/trunk ratios than females. In an attempt to explain this sexual dimorphism several hypotheses have been formulated. The two most frequently cited ones are: 1) sexual selection acting on those structures important in intrasexual competition and 2) natural selection for reduction of food competition between the sexes. In the insular subspecies of Podarcis hispanica (P h. atrata) males tend to have significantly larger heads than similarly sized females. We here test an implicit assumption of the dietary divergence hypothesis, namely that an increase in head size results in an increase in gape width and/or bite force, thereby allowing the larger headed sex to exploit larger prey classes. Using a static bite force model, we calculated the magnitude of bite forces for given directions at given positions on the jaws and for different head sizes. We experimentally determined the hardness of three different prey items and compared the data to the maximal bite force produced by both sexes. Our results suggest an important difference in male and female bite capacity, which may bear significant ecological relevance, and are in agreement with the implicit assumption of the dietary divergence theory.
Importance of abscisic acid for chilling tolerance of maize seedlings

Summary A hypothesis developed in two earlier papers (Capell and Dorffling 1993, Janowiak and Dorffling 1996), but critically reinvestigated recently by Ristic et al. 1998 was tested again with new material and methods. According to the hypothesis, chilling tolerant maize genotypes accumulate abscisic acid (ABA) faster and in higher amounts than chilling sensitive genotypes when exposed to chilling stress. This relationship is in accordance with a suggested protective role of ABA against chilling injury. The hypothesis was tested in two ways: first by investigating 20 new maize genotypes with defined differences in chilling tolerance, second by manipulating the endogenous level of ABA during a low temperature treatment by applying the ABA biosynthesis inhibitor norflurazon and measuring the resulting chilling tolerance. Results of the first approach showed that the accumulation of ABA in the third leaves determined by an indirect ELISA after two days of chilling at 4 °C was significantly correlated with chilling tolerance as measured by necrotic injury and by ϕ PSII of the 20 tested genotypes. Accumulation of ABA induced by low temperature was significantly higher in the group of chilling tolerant genotypes than in that of chilling sensitive ones. It was inversely related to chilling-induced water loss. Results of the second experiment showed that norflurazon-treated seedlings were less chilling tolerant and accumulated less ABA than untreated ones. Application of ABA compensated the reduction in chilling tolerance by norflurazon. It is concluded that the results support the above mentioned hypothesis that chilling tolerance in maize is related to the ability to accumulate ABA as a protective agent against chilling injury.
Biochemical Composition of the Wild and Cultured Yellow Croaker (Larimichthys polyactis) in Korea

The biochemical composition of wild and cultured yellow croaker, Larimichthys polyactis, was analyzed in this study. The moisture contents in wild and cultured yellow croaker was high: and , respectively. The crude lipid contents of wild and cultured yellow croaker were low; moreover, the crude protein and ash contents did nol differ significantly (P>0.05). The total amino acid content of wild and cultured yellow croaker did not differ significantly; however, the cystine content of wild yellow croaker was higher than than of cultured yellow croaker. The essential /nonessential amino acid (E/NE) ratio in wild and cultured yellow croaker was and , respectively. The free amino acid and extractive nitrogen contents of cultured yellow croaker were high and differed significantly. The water soluble vitamin (, , , , C and folate) and fat-soluble vitamin (A and E) contents did not differ significantly. expect for niacin. The niacin content of cultured yellow croaker was higher than that of wild yellow croaker. The fatty acid composition of wild and cultured yellow croaker did not differ significantly The sodium, magnesium, and copper contents in wild yellow croaker were relatively low. In comparison, the calcium, phosphorus and iron contents in cultured yellow croaker were relatively high. Overall, the biochemical composition of wild and cultured yellow croaker did not differ significantly.
Net Biome Productivity of Irrigated and Rainfed Maize-Soybean Rotations : Modeling vs. Measurements

Estimates of agricultural C sequestration require an understanding of how net ecosystem productivity (NEP) and net biome productivity (NBP) are affected by land use. Such estimates will most likely be made using mathematical models that have undergone well-constrained tests against field measurements of CO 2 exchange as affected by management. We tested a hydraulically driven soil-plant-atmosphere C and water transfer scheme in ecosys against CO 2 and energy exchange measured by eddy covariance (EC) over irrigated and rainfed no-till maize-soybean rotations at Mead, NE. Correlations between modeled and measured fluxes (R 2 > 0.8) indicated that <20% of variation in EC fluxes could not be explained by the model. Annual aggregations of modeled fluxes indicated that NEP of irrigated and rainfed soybean in 2002 was -30 and -9 g C m -2 yr -1 (net C source) while NEP of irrigated and rainfed maize in 2003 was 615 and 397 g C m -2 yr -1 (net C sink). These NEPs were within the range of uncertainty in annual NEP estimated from gap-filled EC fluxes. When grain harvests were subtracted from NEP to calculate NBP, both the modeled and measured maize-soybean rotations became net C sources of 40 to 80 g C m -2 yr -1 during 2002 and 2003. Long-term model runs (100 yr) under repeated 2001-2004 weather sequences indicated that a rainfed no-till maize-soybean rotation at Mead would lose about 30 g C m -2 yr -1 Irrigating this rotation would raise SOC by an average of 6 g Cm -2 yr -1 over rainfed values. Modeled and measured results indicated only limited opportunity for long-term soil C storage in irrigated or rainfed maize-soybean rotations under the soil, climate, and management typical of intensive crop production in the U.S. Midwest.
Dynamic model of the response of a vegetative grass crop to light, temperature and nitrogen

Abstract A previously described growth model of the vegetative grass crop is extended to include a simple representation of the root system, uptake of nitrogen from a soil nitrogen pool, and response to fertilizer application. The model simulates the processes of light interception, photosynthesis, partitioning of new growth, leaf area expansion, growth and maintenance respiration, ageing of plant tissues, senescence, recycling of substrates from senescing tissues, nitrogen uptake by the plant, leaching, mineralization, and fertilizer application. A principal component of the model, nitrogen uptake, is assumed to depend positively on plant carbon substrate concentration and soil nitrogen concentration, and to be inhibited by plant nitrogen substrate concentration. The dynamic responses to different levels of soil nitrogen, of shoot and root growth, nitrogen uptake and root activity, carbon and nitrogen plant substrate concentrations, and the fraction of substrate carbon used by the shoots, are examined; realistic behaviour is observed. The model predicts nitrogen fertilizer responses of yield and plant nitrogen content, which are compared directly with experimental data; good agreement is obtained.
The genetic variation in the timing of heteroblastic transition in Eucalyptus globulus is stable across environments

Eucalyptus globulus is one of the best known examples of a heteroblastic plant. It exhibits a dramatic phase change from distinctive juvenile to adult leaves, but the timing of this transition varies markedly. We examined the genetic variation in the timing of heteroblastic transition using five large open-pollinated progeny trials established in north-western Tasmania. We used univariate and multi-variate mixed models to analyse data on the presence/absence of adult or intermediate foliage at age 2 years from a total of 14 860 trees across five trials, as well as height to heteroblastic phase change from one trial. Up to 566 families and 15 geographic subraces of E. globulus were represented in the trials. The timing of the heteroblastic transition was genetically variable and under strong genetic control at the subrace and within-subrace level, with single-trial narrow-sense heritability estimates for the binary trait averaging 0.50 (range 0.44–0.65). The degree of quantitative trait differentiation in the timing of heteroblastic transition among subraces, as measured by QST, exceeded the published level of neutral molecular marker (FST) differentiation in all cases, arguing that diversifying selection has contributed to shaping broad-scale patterns of genetic differentiation. Most inter-trial genetic correlations were close to one at the subrace and additive genetic levels, indicating that the genetic variation in this important developmental change is expressed in a stable manner and that genotype-by-environment interaction is minimal across the environments studied.
Autofluorescence Detection in Analytical Chemistry and Biochemistry

Abstract Label-free detection of molecules and particles based on native fluorescence excited at the ultraviolet (UV) region of the electromagnetic spectrum shows great potential for molecular analysis in life sciences. It offers simple, low-cost, and fast methods for sensitive detection of important biological analytes in nature forms. This article reviews the most significant research on label-free native fluorescence detection in analytical chemistry and biochemistry, with particular focus on the instrumental requirements and applications that cover papers published to the beginning of 2009. Future development directions for label-free optical biosensors based on native fluorescence are discussed.
Eradicating the invasive topmouth gudgeon, Pseudorasbora parva, from a recreational fishery in northern England.

Abstract An established population of the invasive topmouth gudgeon, Pseudorasbora parva (Temminck & Schlegel), was discovered in a recreational fishery in Northwest England in 2002. As the lake was seasonally connected to a river catchment, providing potential for dispersal, a containment and eradication programme was initiated. Containment involved screening of outfalls and preventing fish movements off site. Eradication involved the fishery being treated twice with a rotenone-based piscicide, in March and April 2005. The mean P. parva density prior to rotenone application was 6.1 m−2; following the application, none were recorded. Non-target species in the fishery were removed prior to the application; following rotenone degradation, they were re-introduced and subsequently spawned, with recording of young-of-the-year. This contrasts with 2004 when only young-of-the-year of P. parva were recorded. As the eradication appeared to be successful, the method is considered suitable for use on other populations posing a similar threat of dispersal of the species into rivers and on other invasive fish populations in undesirable locations.
State-dependent Bayesian foraging on spatially autocorrelated food distributions

When prey are cryptic and are distributed in discrete clumps (patches), Bayesian foragers revise their prior expectation about a patch's prey density by using their foraging success in the patch as a source of information. Prey densities are often spatially autocorrelated, meaning that rich patches are often surrounded by other rich patches, while poor patches are often in the midst of other poor patches. In that case, foraging success is informative about prey densities in the current patch and in the surrounding patches. In a spatially explicit environment where prey are cryptic and their densities autocorrelated, I modelled two types of Bayesian foragers that aim to maximize their survival rate: (1) the spatially ignorant forager which does not take account of the spatial structure in its food supply and (2) the spatially informed forager which does take this into account. Not surprisingly, the spatially informed forager has a higher survivorship than the spatially ignorant forager, simply because it is able to obtain more reliable prey density estimates than the spatially ignorant forager. Surprisingly though, the emerging policy used by the spatially informed forager is to leave patches at a lower (expected) giving-up density (GUD) the further away from its latest prey capture. This is because this forager is willing to wait for good news: a prey capture far from the latest prey capture drastically changes the forager's expectations about prey densities in the patches that it will exploit in the near future, whereas a prey capture near its latest prey capture hardly affects these expectations. Thus, by sacrificing current intake rate for information gain, the spatially informed forager ultimately maximizes its long-term pay-off. Finally, as the value of food is less the more energy is stored, both types make state-dependent giving-up decisions: the higher their energy store levels, the higher their GUDs.
Long and Girdle Bone Histology of Stegosaurus: Implications for Growth and Life History

ABSTRACT Long bone histology has often been used to study growth, life history, and physiology of several dinosaurs but only little is known about life and growth parameters of Stegosaurus. This work provides the first extensive study of the long bone histology of Stegosaurus. We sampled several long bones and scapulae of four almost complete skeletons of Stegosaurus from the Late Jurassic Morrison Formation in Wyoming/USA, which are housed in the Sauriermuseum Aathal near Zurich in Switzerland. Long bone histology of Stegosaurus contains longitudinal primary osteons in a matrix that consists of a combination of both woven bone and parallel-fibered bone in varying proportions. In the inner cortex, fibrolamellar bone dominates, indicating fast growth. Toward the outer cortex, parallel-fibered bone dominates the tissue, indicating a gradual slow-down in growth. Three histologic ontogenetic stages were established. In the subadult stage, growth is still fast, whereas it decreases in adult stage I, and ceases in adult stage II. Comparing the ontogenetic stages to the body size of the specimens, two groups were recognized. This grouping may reflect intraspecific variability, sexual dimorphism, or taxonomic differences. Among dinosaurs, mainly showing true fibrolamellar bone, the long bone histology of Stegosaurus is most similar to that of the small basal thyreophoran Scutellosaurus. Accelerated growth led to the larger body size of the derived thyreophoran Stegosaurus compared to the small Scutellosaurus. Differences to the bone histology of other dinosaurs suggest that Stegosaurus grew more slowly and possibly had a lower metabolic rate than other dinosaurs of its size.
Effect of Epidemiological Factors on the Impact of the Fungus Plectosporium tabacinum on False Cleavers ( Galium spurium )

The fungus Plectosporium tabacinum has been evaluated as a bioherbicide for control of false cleavers ( Galium spurium ), but the limiting factors and optimal conditions for successful control using this pathogen are not known. False cleavers mortality and dry weight reductions caused by P. tabacinum were assessed under single or combined factors, including pathogen inoculum concentration, plant growth stage, dew period (duration, frequency, and timing), and dew period temperature. The minimum inoculum concentration required to kill false cleavers seedlings was 1 2 10 7 conidia mL -1 at an application rate of 150 mL m -2 . False cleavers seedlings in the cotyledon or 1-whorl growth stage were the most susceptible. Increasing inoculum concentration increased weed control efficacy on older false cleavers seedlings. When an adequate dew period was provided, 100% mortality and dry weight reduction occurred. The minimum dew period to achieve 100% mortality was 16 h. Delaying the initiation of the dew period by 24 h significantly reduced disease development. Short, repetitive dew periods only improved false cleavers control to a limited extend and the length of initial dew is a critical factor influencing false cleavers mortality due to P. tabacinum . The optimal dew period temperature for disease development was above 15°C.
The biology of a landlocked form of the normally catadromous salmoniform fish Galaxias maculatus (Jenyns). II. Morphology and systematic relationships

Following a brief outline of the systematic relationships of a number of species comprising the Galaxias maculatus species complex, the morphology of the "landlocked jollytail", a lacustrine galaxiid from Lake Modewarre (south-western Victoria), is described and compared with that of the normally catadromous stream dwelling species G. maculatus and a number of other closely related forms belonging to this complex. The probable systematic status of the landlocked jollytail and its relationship to the other forms included in the G. maculatus species complex are then discussed in the light of both the above morphological evidence, and ecological and behavioural evidence from a previous study of the life cycle and discussion of the probable origin of this lacustrine form. The conclusion is drawn that the landlocked jollytail should probably be regarded as no more than an isolated "ecological race" of the normally catadromous stream-dwelling species, G. maculatus.