bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
When can we measure stress noninvasively? Postdeposition effects on a fecal stress metric confound a multiregional assessment
Authors: Wilkening Jennifer L. , Ray Chris , Varner Johanna 
Published: January 2016

AbstractMeasurement of stress hormone metabolites in fecal samples has become a common method to assess physiological stress in wildlife populations. Glucocorticoid metabolite (GCM) measurements can be collected noninvasively, and studies relating this stress metric to anthropogenic disturbance are increasing. However, environmental characteristics (e.g., temperature) can alter measured GCM concentration when fecal samples cannot be collected immediately after defecation. This effect can confound efforts to separate environmental factors causing predeposition physiological stress in an individual from those acting on a fecal sample postdeposition. We used fecal samples from American pikas (Ochotona princeps) to examine the influence of environmental conditions on GCM concentration by (1) comparing GCM concentration measured in freshly collected control samples to those placed in natural habitats for timed exposure, and (2) relating GCM concentration in samples collected noninvasively throughout the western United States to local environmental characteristics measured before and after deposition. Our timed‐exposure trials clarified the spatial scale at which exposure to environmental factors postdeposition influences GCM concentration in pika feces. Also, fecal samples collected from occupied pika habitats throughout the species' range revealed significant relationships between GCM and metrics of climate during the postdeposition period (maximum temperature, minimum temperature, and precipitation during the month of sample collection). Conversely, we found no such relationships between GCM and metrics of climate during the predeposition period (prior to the month of sample collection). Together, these results indicate that noninvasive measurement of physiological stress in pikas across the western US may be confounded by climatic conditions in the postdeposition environment when samples cannot be collected immediately after defecation. Our results reiterate the importance of considering postdeposition environmental influences on this stress metric, especially in multiregional comparisons. However, measurements of fecal GCM concentration should prove useful for population monitoring within an eco‐region or when postdeposition exposure can be minimized.
Inter‐assemblage facilitation: the functional diversity of cavity‐producing beetles drives the size diversity of cavity‐nesting bees
Authors: Sydenham Markus A. K. , Häusler Lise D. , Moe Stein R. , Eldegard Katrine 
Published: January 2016

AbstractInter‐specific interactions are important drivers and maintainers of biodiversity. Compared to trophic and competitive interactions, the role of non‐trophic facilitation among species has received less attention. Cavity‐nesting bees nest in old beetle borings in dead wood, with restricted diameters corresponding to the body size of the bee species. The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that the functional diversity of cavity‐producing wood boring beetles ‐ in terms of cavity diameters ‐ drives the size diversity of cavity‐nesting bees. The invertebrate communities were sampled in 30 sites, located in forested landscapes along an elevational gradient. We regressed the species richness and abundance of cavity nesting bees against the species richness and abundance of wood boring beetles, non‐wood boring beetles and elevation. The proportion of cavity nesting bees in bee species assemblage was regressed against the species richness and abundance of wood boring beetles. We also tested the relationships between the size diversity of cavity nesting bees and wood boring beetles. The species richness and abundance of cavity nesting bees increased with the species richness and abundance of wood boring beetles. No such relationship was found for non‐wood boring beetles. The abundance of wood boring beetles was also related to an increased proportion of cavity nesting bee individuals. Moreover, the size diversity of cavity‐nesting bees increased with the functional diversity of wood boring beetles. Specifically, the mean and dispersion of bee body sizes increased with the functional dispersion of large wood boring beetles. The positive relationships between cavity producing bees and cavity nesting bees suggest that non‐trophic facilitative interactions between species assemblages play important roles in organizing bee species assemblages. Considering a community‐wide approach may therefore be required if we are to successfully understand and conserve wild bee species assemblages in forested landscapes.
Genetic variation and population structure in a threatened species, the Utah prairie dog Cynomys parvidens: the use of genetic data to inform conservation actions
Authors: Brown Nathanael L. , Peacock Mary M. , Ritchie Mark E. 
Published: January 2016

AbstractThe Utah prairie dog (Cynomys parvidens), listed as threatened under the United States Endangered Species Act, was the subject of an extensive eradication program throughout its range during the 20th century. Eradication campaigns, habitat destruction/fragmentation/conversion, and epizootic outbreaks (e.g., sylvatic plague) have reduced prairie dog numbers from an estimated 95,000 individuals in the 1920s to approximately 14,000 (estimated adult spring count) today. As a result of these anthropogenic actions, the species is now found in small isolated sets of subpopulations. We characterized the levels of genetic diversity and population genetic structure using 10 neutral nuclear microsatellite loci for twelve populations (native and transplanted) representative of the three management designated “recovery units,” found in three distinct biogeographic regions, sampled across the species' range. The results indicate (1) low levels of genetic diversity within colonies (He = 0.109–0.357; Ho = 0.106‐ 0.313), (2) high levels of genetic differentiation among colonies (global FST = 0.296), (3) very small genetic effective population sizes, and (4) evidence of genetic bottlenecks. The genetic data reveal additional subdivision such that colonies within recovery units do not form single genotype clusters consistent with recovery unit boundaries. Genotype cluster membership support historical gene flow among colonies in the easternmost West Desert Recovery Unit with the westernmost Pausaugunt colonies and among the eastern Pausaugunt colonies and the Awapa Recovery unit to the north. In order to maintain the long‐term viability of the species, there needs to be an increased focus on maintaining suitable habitat between groups of existing populations that can act as connective corridors. The location of future translocation sites should be located in areas that will maximize connectivity, leading to maintenance of genetic variation and evolutionary potential.
Pine invasions in treeless environments: dispersal overruns microsite heterogeneity
Authors: Pauchard Aníbal , Escudero Adrián , García Rafael A. , de la Cruz Marcelino , Langdon Bárbara , Cavieres Lohengrin A. , Esquivel Jocelyn 
Published: January 2016

AbstractUnderstanding biological invasions patterns and mechanisms is highly needed for forecasting and managing these processes and their negative impacts. At small scales, ecological processes driving plant invasions are expected to produce a spatially explicit pattern driven by propagule pressure and local ground heterogeneity. Our aim was to determine the interplay between the intensity of seed rain, using distance to a mature plantation as a proxy, and microsite heterogeneity in the spreading of Pinus contorta in the treeless Patagonian steppe. Three one‐hectare plots were located under different degrees of P. contorta invasion (Coyhaique Alto, 45° 30′S and 71° 42′W). We fitted three types of inhomogeneous Poisson models to each pine plot in an attempt for describing the observed pattern as accurately as possible: the “dispersal” models, “local ground heterogeneity” models, and “combined” models, using both types of covariates. To include the temporal axis in the invasion process, we analyzed both the pattern of young and old recruits and also of all recruits together. As hypothesized, the spatial patterns of recruited pines showed coarse scale heterogeneity. Early pine invasion spatial patterns in our Patagonian steppe site is not different from expectations of inhomogeneous Poisson processes taking into consideration a linear and negative dependency of pine recruit intensity on the distance to afforestations. Models including ground‐cover predictors were able to describe the point pattern process only in a couple of cases but never better than dispersal models. This finding concurs with the idea that early invasions depend more on seed pressure than on the biotic and abiotic relationships seed and seedlings establish at the microsite scale. Our results show that without a timely and active management, P. contorta will invade the Patagonian steppe independently of the local ground‐cover conditions.
Influence of geography and environment on patterns of genetic differentiation in a widespread submerged macrophyte, Eurasian watermilfoil (Myriophyllum spicatum L., Haloragaceae)
Authors: Wu Zhigang , Yu Dan , Li Xing , Xu Xinwei 
Published: January 2016

AbstractThe effects of geographic and environmental variables on the pattern of genetic differentiation have been thoroughly studied, whereas empirical studies on aquatic plants are rare. We examined the spatial genetic differentiation of 58 Myriophyllum spicatum populations distributed throughout China with 12 microsatellite loci, and we analyzed its association with geographic distance, geographic barriers, and environmental dissimilarity using causal modeling and multiple matrix regression with randomization (MMRR) analysis. Two genetic clusters were identified, and their geographic distribution suggested mountain ranges as a barrier to gene flow. The causal modeling revealed that both climate and geographic barriers significantly influenced genetic divergence among M. spicatum populations and that climate had the highest regression coefficient according to the MMRR analysis. This study showed that geography and environment together played roles in shaping the genetic structure of M. spicatum and that the influence of environment was greater. Our findings emphasized the potential importance of the environment in producing population genetic differentiation in aquatic plants at a large geographic scale.
Effects of food variability on growth and reproduction of Aedes aegypti
Authors: Zeller Michael , Koella Jacob C. 
Published: January 2016

AbstractDespite a large body of knowledge about the evolution of life histories, we know little about how variable food availability during an individual's development affects its life history. We measured the effects of manipulating food levels during early and late larval development of the mosquito Aedes aegypti on its growth rate, life history and reproductive success. Switching from low to high food led to compensatory growth: individuals grew more rapidly during late larval development and emerged at a size close to that of mosquitoes consistently reared at high food. However, switching to high food had very little effect on longevity, and fecundity and reproductive success were considerably lower than in consistently well‐fed mosquitoes. Changing from high to low food led to adults with similar size as in consistently badly nourished mosquitoes, but even lower fecundity and reproductive success. A rapid response of growth to changing resources can thus have unexpected effects in later life and in lifetime reproductive success. More generally, our study emphasizes the importance of varying developmental conditions for the evolutionary pressures underlying life‐history evolution.
Symbiodinium clades A and D differentially predispose Acropora cytherea to disease and Vibrio spp. colonization
Authors: Rouzé Héloïse , Lecellier Gaël , Saulnier Denis , Berteaux‐Lecellier Véronique 
Published: January 2016

AbstractCoral disease outbreaks have increased over the last three decades, but their causal agents remain mostly unclear (e.g., bacteria, viruses, fungi, protists). This study details a 14‐month‐long survey of coral colonies in which observations of the development of disease was observed in nearly half of the sampled colonies. A bimonthly qPCR method was used to quantitatively and qualitatively evaluate Symbiodinium assemblages of tagged colonies, and to detect the presence of Vibrio spp. Firstly, our data showed that predisposition to disease development in general, and, more specifically, infection by Vibrio spp. in Acropora cytherea depended on which clades of Symbiodinium were harbored. In both cases, harboring clade D rather than A was beneficial to the coral host. Secondly, the detection of Vibrio spp. in only colonies that developed disease strongly suggests opportunistic traits of the bacteria. Finally, even if sporadic cases of switching and probably shuffling were observed, this long‐term survey does not suggest specific‐clade recruitment in response to stressors. Altogether, our results demonstrate that the fitness of the coral holobiont depends on its initial consortium of Symbiodinium, which is distinct among colonies, rather than a temporary adaptation achieved through acquiring different Symbiodinium clades.
How fast is fast? Eco‐evolutionary dynamics and rates of change in populations and phenotypes
Authors: DeLong John P. , Forbes Valery E. , Galic Nika , Gibert Jean P. , Laport Robert G. , Phillips Joseph S. , Vavra Janna M. 
Published: January 2016

AbstractIt is increasingly recognized that evolution may occur in ecological time. It is not clear, however, how fast evolution – or phenotypic change more generally – may be in comparison with the associated ecology, or whether systems with fast ecological dynamics generally have relatively fast rates of phenotypic change. We developed a new dataset on standardized rates of change in population size and phenotypic traits for a wide range of species and taxonomic groups. We show that rates of change in phenotypes are generally no more than 2/3, and on average about 1/4, the concurrent rates of change in population size. There was no relationship between rates of population change and rates of phenotypic change across systems. We also found that the variance of both phenotypic and ecological rates increased with the mean across studies following a power law with an exponent of two, while temporal variation in phenotypic rates was lower than in ecological rates. Our results are consistent with the view that ecology and evolution may occur at similar time scales, but clarify that only rarely do populations change as fast in traits as they do in abundance.
Utility of internally transcribed spacer region ofrDNA(ITS) andβ‐tubulin gene sequences to infer genetic diversity and migration patterns ofColletotrichum truncatuminfectingCapsicumspp.
Authors: Rampersad Kandyce , Ramdial Hema , Rampersad Sephra N. 
Published: January 2016

AbstractAnthracnose is among the most economically important diseases affecting pepper (Capsicumspp.) production in the tropics and subtropics. Of the three species ofColletotrichumimplicated as causal agents of pepper anthracnose,C. truncatumis considered to be the most destructive in agro‐ecosystems worldwide. However, the genetic variation and the migration potential ofC. truncatuminfecting pepper are not known. Five populations were selected for study and a two‐locus (internally transcribed spacer region,ITS1‐5.8S‐ITS2, andβ‐tubulin,β‐TUB) sequence data set was generated and used in the analyses. Sequences of theITSregion were less informative thanβ‐tubulin gene sequences based on comparisons ofDNApolymorphism indices. Trinidad had the highest genetic diversity and also had the largest effective population size in pairwise comparisons with the other populations. The Trinidad population also demonstrated significant genetic differentiation from the other populations.AMOVAandSTRUCTUREanalyses both suggested significant genetic variation within populations more so than among populations. A consensus Maximum Likelihood tree based onβ‐TUBgene sequences revealed very little intraspecific diversity for all isolates except for Trinidad. Two clades consisting solely of Trinidad isolates may have diverged earlier than the other isolates. There was also evidence of directional migration among the five populations. These findings may have a direct impact on the development of integrated disease management strategies to controlC. truncatuminfection in pepper.
Extremely high proportions of male flowers and geographic variation in floral ratios within male figs of Ficus tikoua despite pollinators displaying active pollen collection
Authors: Deng Jun‐Yin , Fu Rong‐Hua , Compton Stephen G. , Hu Dai‐Mei , Zhang Lu‐Shui , Yang Fan , Chen Yan , Kjellberg Finn 
Published: January 2016

AbstractMost plants are pollinated passively, but active pollination has evolved among insects that depend on ovule fertilization for larval development. Anther‐to‐ovule ratios (A/O ratios, a coarse indicator of pollen‐to‐ovule ratios) are strong indicators of pollination mode in fig trees and are consistent within most species. However, unusually high values and high variation of A/O ratios (0.096–10.0) were detected among male plants from 41 natural populations of Ficus tikoua in China. Higher proportions of male (staminate) flowers were associated with a change in their distribution within the figs, from circum‐ostiolar to scattered. Plants bearing figs with ostiolar or scattered male flowers were geographically separated, with scattered male flowers found mainly on the Yungui Plateau in the southwest of our sample area. The A/O ratios of most F. tikoua figs were indicative of passive pollination, but its Ceratosolen fig wasp pollinator actively loads pollen into its pollen pockets. Additional pollen was also carried on their body surface and pollinators emerging from scattered‐flower figs had more surface pollen. Large amounts of pollen grains on the insects' body surface are usually indicative of a passive pollinator. This is the first recorded case of an actively pollinated Ficus species producing large amounts of pollen. Overall high A/O ratios, particularly in some populations, in combination with actively pollinating pollinators, may reflect a response by the plant to insufficient quantities of pollen transported in the wasps’ pollen pockets, together with geographic variation in this pollen limitation. This suggests an unstable scenario that could lead to eventual loss of wasp active pollination behavior.
Effect of Magnesium Hydroxide on Voltage Lifetime of Epoxy Composites
Authors: OHTA TSUKASA , IIDA KAZUO 
Published: January 2016

SUMMARYIn general, a polymer insulator subjected to high voltage reaches breakdown as a result of the development of electrical trees. Magnesium hydroxide, a metal hydroxide, has the property of releasing water of crystallization at high temperatures. If the energy of a partial discharge is used by the decomposition of magnesium hydroxide, the growth of electrical trees will be inhibited and the lifetime of the polymer insulator can be expected to improve. Therefore, we have studied the effects of magnesium hydroxide on treeing. We confirmed that the electrical breakdown time of epoxy resin with 30 parts per hundred (resin) of magnesium hydroxide was 100 times longer than that of epoxy resin without it. Magnesia was detected through electron beam diffraction analysis of the filler particles located near the electrical tree, and it was found that a dehydration reaction took place in the magnesium hydroxide. In other words, as an explanation of the effect of inhibiting an electrical tree, the effect of the energy dispersion of a partial discharge is suggested along with the barrier effect of the fillers.
Business Process Modeling Method with Hierarchical Business Variation Analysis
Authors: KUMAGAI KIYOSHI , ARAKI MASATAKA , ONO TOSHIYUKI 
Published: January 2016

SUMMARYBusiness Process Modeling (BPMod) is attracting attention as a technology that improves the quality of information system development. It can increase integrity between business operations and information systems by visualizing specifications of business requirements in the upstream process. But there are problems with development costs caused by large variations of business functions, in the application BPMod to complicated business processes. In this paper, we propose a business process design method with hierarchical business variation analysis in order to improve the productivity of model development. This makes it possible to extract the variations of business functions and to consolidate similar business functions. We applied it to an actual system development project and confirmed its effect.
Encapsulation of Single Cells into Fixed Droplets Using Triangular Microwells
Authors: HATTORI ATSUSHI , YAGI TOHRU , TSAO CHIA‐WEN 
Published: January 2016

SUMMARYMicrofluidic devices using droplets make it possible to perform high‐throughput screening of single‐cell samples through encapsulating cells into droplets. In conventional encapsulation methods, devices have T‐junction and flow‐focusing geometry for droplet generation. Using those techniques, it is difficult to achieve uniform distribution of cells, or to place single cells in droplets. Moreover, in screening samples, it is necessary to have a mechanism to hold the droplets at one place for a long time. However, it is somewhat difficult to add such a function to conventional devices. Thus, we propose a new single‐cell encapsulation method using triangular microwells. In this approach, each single cell is isolated, encapsulated, and held in one place by triangular microwells. This approach has the benefit that the droplet size can be regulated by the size of the microwells. In addition, optimization of encapsulation is easier than in conventional methods because the flow rate of the oil phase does not affect the encapsulation.