pinecone/core-2020-05-10-deduplication huggingface dataset:
Morphological divergence between three Arctic charr morphs - the significance of the deep-water environment.

Morphological divergence was evident among three sympatric morphs of Arctic  charr (Salvelinus alpinus (L.)) that are ecologically diverged along the shallow-,  deep-water resource axis in a subarctic postglacial lake (Norway). The two  deep-water (profundal) spawning morphs, a benthivore (PB-morph) and a  piscivore (PP-morph), have evolved under identical abiotic conditions with  constant low light and temperature levels in their deep-water habitat, and were  morphologically most similar. However, they differed in important head traits  (e.g., eye and mouth size) related to their different diet specializations. The  small-sized PB-morph had a paedomorphic appearance with a blunt head  shape, large eyes, and a deep body shape adapted to their profundal lifestyle  feeding on submerged benthos from soft, deep-water sediments. The PP-morph  had a robust head, large mouth with numerous teeth, and an elongated body  shape strongly related to their piscivorous behavior. The littoral spawning  omnivore morph (LO-morph) predominantly utilizes the shallow benthic–  pelagic habitat and food resources. Compared to the deep-water morphs, the  LO-morph had smaller head relative to body size. The LO-morph exhibited  traits typical for both shallow-water benthic feeding (e.g., large body depths  and small eyes) and planktivorous feeding in the pelagic habitat (e.g., streamlined  body shape and small mouth). The development of morphological differences  within the same deep-water habitat for the PB- and PP-morphs  highlights the potential of biotic factors and ecological interactions to promote  further divergence in the evolution of polymorphism in a tentative incipient  speciation process. The diversity of deep-water charr in this study represents a  novelty in the Arctic charr polymorphism as a truly deep-water piscivore  morph has to our knowledge not been described elsewhere.  Geometric morphometrics, incipient  speciation, phenotypic diversity, profundal  piscivore, resource polymorphism, salmoni
Single nucleotide polymorphism-based dispersal estimates using noninvasive sampling

Quantifying dispersal within wild populations is an important but challenging task. Here we present a method to estimate contemporary, individual-based dispersal distance from noninvasively collected samples using a specialized panel of 96 SNPs (single nucleotide polymorphisms). One main issue in conducting dispersal studies is the requirement for a high sampling resolution at a geographic scale appropriate for capturing the majority of dispersal events. In this study, fecal samples of brown bear (Ursus arctos) were collected by volunteer citizens, resulting in a high sampling resolution spanning over 45,000km(2) in Gavleborg and Dalarna counties in Sweden. SNP genotypes were obtained for unique individuals sampled (n=433) and subsequently used to reconstruct pedigrees. A Mantel test for isolation by distance suggests that the sampling scale was appropriate for females but not for males, which are known to disperse long distances. Euclidean distance was estimated between mother and offspring pairs identified through the reconstructed pedigrees. The mean dispersal distance was 12.9km (SE 3.2) and 33.8km (SE 6.8) for females and males, respectively. These results were significantly different (Wilcoxon's rank-sum test: P-value=0.02) and are in agreement with the previously identified pattern of male-biased dispersal. Our results illustrate the potential of using a combination of noninvasively collected samples at high resolution and specialized SNPs for pedigree-based dispersal models
Early subtropical forest growth is driven by community mean trait values and functional diversity rather than the abiotic environment

While functional diversity (FD) has been shown to be positively related to a number of ecosystem functions including biomass production, it may have a much less pronounced effect than that of environmental factors or  species specific properties. Leaf and wood traits can be considered particularly relevant to tree growth, as they reflect a trade-off between resources invested into growth and persistence. Our study focussed on the degree to which early forest growth was driven by FD, the environment (11 variables characterizing abiotic habitat conditions), and community-weighted mean (CWM) values of species traits in the context of a large-scale tree diversity experiment (BEF-China). Growth rates of trees with respect to crown diameter were aggregated across 231 plots (hosting between one and 23 tree species) and related to environmental variables, FD, and CWM, the latter two of which were based on 41 plant functional traits. The effects of each of the three predictor groups were analyzed separately by mixed model optimization and jointly by variance partitioning.\ud
Numerous single traits predicted plot-level tree growth, both in the models based on CWMs and FD, but none of the environmental variables was able to predict tree growth. In the best models, environment and FD explained only 4 and 31% of variation in crown growth rates, respectively, while CWM trait values explained 42%. In total, the best models accounted for 51% of crown growth. The marginal role of the selected environmental variables was unexpected, given the high topographic heterogeneity and large size of the experiment, as was the significant impact of FD, demonstrating that positive diversity effects already occur during the early stages in tree plantations
Spatio-temporal variation in European starling reproductive success at multiple small spatial scales

Funding Information This work received funding from the Natural Environment Research Council, Fair Isle Bird Observatory Trust and the Royal Society. Acknowledgments We thank Jessica Walkup, Jeroen Minderman, and many volunteers for help with data collection; Deryk and Hollie Shaw and Fair Isle Bird Observatory staff for help and support; Xavier Lambin and Justin Travis for comments on the manuscript and NERC (DB); and Fair Isle Bird Observatory Trust (DB) and the Royal Society (JMR) for funding.Peer reviewedPublisher PD
Population structure of the Indonesian giant tiger shrimp Penaeus monodon: a window into evolutionary similarities between paralogous mitochondrial DNA sequences and their genomes

Here we used both microsatellites and mtCR (mitochondrial DNA control region) sequences as genetic markers to examine the genetic diversity and population structure of Penaeus monodon shrimp from six Indonesian regions. The microsatellite data showed that shrimp from the Indian and the Pacific Ocean were genetically distinct from each other. It has been reported previously that P. monodon mtCR sequences from the Indo-Pacific group into two major paralogous clades of unclear origin. Here we show that the population structure inferred from mtCR sequences matches the microsatellite-based population structure for one of these clades. This is consistent with the notion that this mtCR clade shares evolutionary history with nuclear DNA and may thus represent nuclear mitochondrial pseudogenes (Numts).Muslihudeen A. Abdul-Aziz, Gerhard Schöfl, Grit Mrotzek, Haryanti Haryanti, Ketut Sugama, Hans Peter Salu
Limited catching bias in a wild population of birds with near-complete census information.

Animal research often relies on catching wild animals; however, individuals may have different trappability, and this can generate bias. We studied bias in mist netting, the main method for catching wild birds. The unusually high resighting rate in our study population-house sparrows (Passer domesticus) on Lundy Island (England)-allowed us to obtain accurate estimates of the population size. This unique situation enabled us to test for catching bias in mist netting using deviations from the expected Poisson distribution. There was no evidence that a fraction of the birds in the population consistently remained uncaught. However, we detected a different bias: More birds than expected were captured only once within a year. This bias probably resulted from a mixture of fieldworkers sometimes ignoring rapid recaptures and birds becoming net shy after their first capture. We had sufficient statistical power with the available data to detect a substantial uncaught fraction. Therefore, our data are probably unbiased toward catching specific individuals from our population. Our analyses demonstrate that intensively monitored natural insular populations, in which population size can be estimated precisely, provide the potential to address important unanswered questions without concerns about a fraction of the population remaining uncaught. Our approach can help researchers to test for catching bias in closely monitored wild populations for which reliable estimates of population size and dispersal are available
Conspicuous male coloration impairs survival against avian predators in Aegean wall lizards, Podarcis erhardii

This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from Wiley via http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ece3.1650Animal coloration is strikingly diverse in nature. Within-species colour variation can arise through local adaptation for camouflage, sexual dimorphism, and conspicuous sexual signals, which often have conflicting effects on survival. Here, we tested whether colour variation between two island populations of Aegean wall lizards (Podarcis erhardii) is due to sexual dimorphism and differential survival of individuals varying in appearance. On both islands, we measured attack rates by wild avian predators on clay models matching the coloration of real male and female P. erhardii from each island population, modelled to avian predator vision. Avian predator attack rates differed among model treatments, although only on one island. Male-coloured models, which were more conspicuous against their experimental backgrounds to avian predators, were accordingly detected and attacked more frequently by birds than less conspicuous female-coloured models. This suggests that female coloration has evolved primarily under selection for camouflage, whereas sexually competing males exhibit costly conspicuous coloration. Unexpectedly, there was no difference in avian attack frequency between local and non-local model types. This may have arisen if our models did not resemble lizard coloration sufficiently precisely, or if real lizards behaviourally choose backgrounds that improve camouflage. Overall, these results show that sexually dimorphic coloration can affect the risk of predator attacks, indicating that colour variation within a species can be caused by interactions between natural and sexual selection. However, more work is needed to determine how these findings depend on the island environment that each population inhabits.This work was supported by a Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council studentship, Magdalene College, Cambridge and the British Herpetological Society (K.L.A.M), and a Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council and David Philips Research Fellowship (grant number BB/G022887/1) to M.S
Interrelated effects of mycorrhiza and free-living nitrogen ﬁxers cascade up to abovegr ound herbivores

Aboveground plant performance is strongly influenced by belowground microorganisms, some of which are pathogenic and have negative effects, while others, such as nitrogen-fixing bacteria and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, usually have positive effects. Recent research revealed that belowground interactions between plants and functionally distinct groups of microorganisms cascade up to aboveground plant associates such as herbivores and their natural enemies. However, while functionally distinct belowground microorganisms commonly co-occur in the rhizosphere, their combined effects, and relative contributions, respectively, on performance of aboveground plant-associated organisms are virtually unexplored. Here, we scrutinized and disentangled the effects of free-living nitrogen-fixing (diazotrophic) bacteria Azotobacter chroococcum (DB) and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi Glomus mosseae (AMF) on host plant choice and reproduction of the herbivorous two-spotted spider mite Tetranychus urticae on common bean plants Phaseolus vulgaris. Additionally, we assessed plant growth, and AMF and DB occurrence and density as affected by each other. Both AMF alone and DB alone increased spider mite reproduction to similar levels, as compared to the control, and exerted additive effects under co-occurrence. These effects were similarly apparent in host plant choice, that is, the mites preferred leaves from plants with both AMF and DB to plants with AMF or DB to plants grown without AMF and DB. DB, which also act as AMF helper bacteria, enhanced root colonization by AMF, whereas AMF did not affect DB abundance. AMF but not DB increased growth of reproductive plant tissue and seed production, respectively. Both AMF and DB increased the biomass of vegetative aboveground plant tissue. Our study breaks new ground in multitrophic belowground–aboveground research by providing first insights into the fitness implications of plant-mediated interactions between interrelated belowground fungi–bacteria and aboveground herbivores.BK's stay and work in Vienna was financially supported by an Erasmus Mundus CASIA grant awarded to BK and a grant from Eurasia Pacific Uninet (EPU 26/2013) awarded to PS. TP's stay and work in Vienna was supported by Universitat Jaume I (UJI Research Mobility Grant, E-2013-05). We thank C. Gangl (Agrotrader Agrarhandel, Austria) for providing Azotobacter sp. and I.C. Christiansen, A. Walzer, and M. Seiter for comments on a previous version of the manuscript
Ageing in personal and social immunity: do immune traits senesce at the same rate?

1)	How much should an individual invest in immunity as it grows older?  Immunity is costly and its value is likely to change across an organism’s lifespan.  A limited number of studies have focused on how personal immune investment changes with age in insects, but we do not know how social immunity, immune responses that protect kin, changes across lifespan, or how resources are divided between these two arms of the immune response.   \ud
2)	In this study both personal and social immune function are considered in the burying beetle, Nicrophorus vespilloides.  We show that personal immune function declines (phenoloxidase levels) or is maintained (defensin expression) across lifespan in non-breeding beetles but is maintained (phenoloxidase levels) or even upregulated (defensin expression) in breeding individuals.  In contrast, social immunity increases in breeding burying beetles up to middle age, before decreasing in old age.  Social immunity is not affected by a wounding challenge across lifespan, whereas personal immunity, through PO, is upregulated following wounding to a similar extent across lifespan.  \ud
3)	Personal immune function may be prioritised in younger individuals in order to ensure survival until reproductive maturity.  If not breeding, this may then drop off in later life as state declines.  As burying beetles are ephemeral breeders, breeding opportunities in later life may be rare.  When allowed to breed beetles may therefore invest heavily in ‘staying alive’ in order to complete what could potentially be their final reproductive opportunity.  As parental care is important for the survival and growth of offspring in this genus, staying alive to provide care behaviours will clearly have fitness payoffs.  \ud
4)	This study shows that all immune traits do not senesce at the same rate. In fact, the patterns observed depend upon the immune traits measured and the breeding status of the individual
Signatures of selection in the three-spined stickleback along a small-scale brackish water-freshwater transition zone

Local adaptation is often obvious when gene flow is impeded, such as observed at large spatial scales and across strong ecological contrasts. However, it becomes less certain at small scales such as between adjacent populations or across weak ecological contrasts, when gene flow is strong. While studies on genomic adaptation tend to focus on the former, less is known about the genomic targets of natural selection in the latter situation. In this study, we investigate genomic adaptation in populations of the three-spined stickleback Gasterosteus aculeatus L. across a small-scale ecological transition with salinities ranging from brackish to fresh. Adaptation to salinity has been repeatedly demonstrated in this species. A genome scan based on 87 microsatellite markers revealed only few signatures of selection, likely owing to the constraints that homogenizing gene flow puts on adaptive divergence. However, the detected loci appear repeatedly as targets of selection in similar studies of genomic adaptation in the three-spined stickleback. We conclude that the signature of genomic selection in the face of strong gene flow is weak, yet detectable. We argue that the range of studies of genomic divergence should be extended to include more systems characterized by limited geographical and ecological isolation, which is often a realistic setting in nature
Effects of landscape matrix on population connectivity of an arboreal mammal, Petaurus breviceps

Article first published online: 25 AUG 2015Ongoing habitat loss and fragmentation is considered a threat to biodiversity as it can create small, isolated populations that are at increased risk of extinction. Tree-dependent species are predicted to be highly sensitive to forest and woodland loss and fragmentation, but few studies have tested the influence of different types of landscape matrix on gene flow and population structure of arboreal species. Here, we examine the effects of landscape matrix on population structure of the sugar glider (Petaurus breviceps) in a fragmented landscape in southeastern South Australia. We collected 250 individuals across 12 native Eucalyptus forest remnants surrounded by cleared agricultural land or exotic Pinus radiata plantations and a large continuous eucalypt forest. Fifteen microsatellite loci were genotyped and analyzed to infer levels of population differentiation and dispersal. Genetic differentiation among most forest patches was evident. We found evidence for female philopatry and restricted dispersal distances for females relative to males, suggesting there is male-biased dispersal. Among the environmental variables, spatial variables including geographic location, minimum distance to neighboring patch, and degree of isolation were the most important in explaining genetic variation. The permeability of a cleared agricultural matrix to dispersing gliders was significantly higher than that of a pine matrix, with the gliders dispersing shorter distances across the latter. Our results added to previous findings for other species of restricted dispersal and connectivity due to habitat fragmentation in the same region, providing valuable information for the development of strategies to improve the connectivity of populations in the future.Mansoureh Malekian, Steven J. B. Cooper, Kathleen M. Saint, Melanie L. Lancaster, Andrea C. Taylor and Susan M. Carthe
The more pieces, the better the puzzle: sperm concentration increases gametic compatibility

The genetic benefits individuals receive from mate choice have been the focus of numerous studies, with several showing support for both intrinsic genetic benefits and compatibility effects on fertilization success and offspring viability. However, the robustness of these effects have rarely been tested across an ecologically relevant environmental gradient. In particular, sperm environment is a crucial factor determining fertilization success in many species, especially those with external fertilization. Here, we test the importance of sperm environment in mediating compatibility-based selection on fertilization using a factorial breeding design. We detected a significant intrinsic male effect on fertilization success at only one of four sperm concentrations. Compatibility effects were significant at the two highest sperm concentrations and, interestingly, the magnitude of the compatibility effect consistently increased with sperm concentration. This suggests that females are able to modify the probability of sperm-egg fusion as the amount of sperm available increases
Multiple introductions from multiple sources : invasion patterns for an important Eucalyptus leaf pathogen

Many population studies on invasive plant pathogens are undertaken without knowing the center of origin of the pathogen. Most leaf pathogens of Eucalyptus originate in Australia and consequently with indigenous populations available, and it is possible to study the pathways of invasion. Teratosphaeria suttonii is a commonly occurring leaf pathogen of Eucalyptus species, naturally distributed in tropical and subtropical regions of eastern Australia where it is regarded as a minor pathogen infecting older leaves; however, repeated infections, especially in exotic plantations, can result in severe defoliation and tree deaths. Nine polymorphic microsatellite markers were used to assess the genetic structure of 11 populations of T. suttonii of which four where from within its native range in eastern Australia and the remaining seven from exotic Eucalyptus plantations. Indigenous populations exhibited high allele and haplotype diversity, predominantly clonal reproduction, high population differentiation, and low gene flow. The diversity of the invasive populations varied widely, but in general, the younger the plantation industry in a country or region, the lower the diversity of T. suttonii. Historical gene flow was from Australia, and while self-recruitment was dominant in all populations, there was evidence for contemporary gene flow, with South Africa being the most common source and Uruguay the most common sink population. This points distinctly to human activities underlying long-distance spread of this pathogen, and it highlights lessons to be learned regarding quarantine.Members of the Tree Protection Co-operative Programme (TPCP) and the THRIP initiative of the Department of Trade and Industry, South Africa, and the CRC Forestry through Murdoch University in Australia.http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/(ISSN)2045-7758hb201