Journal of Zoology最新文献

{"title":"Quantifying the predation impact of an expanding mesocarnivore on declining small-game species","authors":"E. Descalzo,&nbsp;J. Jiménez,&nbsp;R. Villafuerte,&nbsp;M. Delibes-Mateos,&nbsp;F. Díaz-Ruiz,&nbsp;P. Ferreras","doi":"10.1111/jzo.13231","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jzo.13231","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Human-wildlife conflicts have increased and are particularly acute when predators are involved. A frequent source of conflict is some people's misbeliefs related to the alleged impact of predators on game species and livestock. In this context, quantifying the impact of expanding predators on their prey can be useful in designing conflict mitigation strategies. We estimated the predation impact of the Egyptian mongoose (<i>Herpestes ichneumon</i>), an expanding mesocarnivore in southwestern Europe, on European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) and red-legged partridge (<i>Alectoris rufa</i>) populations, two declining prey species highly valued by hunters. We estimated mongoose densities in three areas of central Spain through live capture, GPS/VHF tagging, camera-trapping and spatial mark-resight models. Rabbit and partridge densities were estimated through transect counts and distance sampling. We quantified the mongoose diet by scat analysis. Finally, we compared the number of individuals consumed by the predator population with the estimated total prey populations. European rabbits were the most important mongoose food in two of the study areas, whereas red-legged partridges were rarely consumed in all the areas. Rabbit density varied widely among study areas (14.0–881.4 rabbits/km²), while partridge density was low in all the areas (2.3–6.9 partridges/km2). The predation impact on rabbits was low in the area with the highest rabbit density (1.9–3.8% of estimated population) and higher (5.6–29%) in the other areas. In contrast, the predation impact on partridge populations was low (&lt;9%) in all the study areas. This is the first study that estimates the Egyptian mongoose impact on small-game species, a necessary step to deal with the conflicts over the management of this expanding species. The study of predation impact may contribute to the effective management of human-wildlife conflicts involving predators, by improving the understanding of where additional management may take place to protect prey species or deter predator populations.</p>","PeriodicalId":17600,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Zoology","volume":"325 1","pages":"80-91"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-11-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jzo.13231","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143118760","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Review of osteoderm function and future research directions","authors":"R. Ebel,&nbsp;A. Herrel,&nbsp;T. M. Scheyer,&nbsp;J. S. Keogh","doi":"10.1111/jzo.13224","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jzo.13224","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Osteoderms, bone plates in the skin, are widely but discontinuously distributed across the phylogeny of tetrapods. This and their pronounced morphological disparity has inspired many hypotheses on possible osteoderm functions. Most of these have not been systematically studied or summarised based on the published disparate literature. We provide here a comprehensive overview of the current state of knowledge in this field with a focus on extant non-avian reptiles. We also discuss functions in other extant osteoderm-bearing taxa and those inferred from the fossil record. The hypotheses are categorised into protection, lifestyle and locomotion, physiology, and visual functions. A comprehensive overview of future directions in this field is provided. With this review, we hope to encourage future research to investigate the functional aspect of osteoderms. This might inspire biomimetics and shed light on the role that osteoderm expression may have played in shaping present-day biodiversity.</p>","PeriodicalId":17600,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Zoology","volume":"325 1","pages":"1-24"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-11-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jzo.13224","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143113289","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Long-term monitoring reveals sex- and age-related survival patterns in griffon vultures","authors":"G. Gómez-López,&nbsp;F. Martínez,&nbsp;A. Sanz-Aguilar,&nbsp;M. Carrete,&nbsp;G. Blanco","doi":"10.1111/jzo.13232","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jzo.13232","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Survival is a key demographic parameter for long-lived bird species as it strongly influences their population dynamics and persistence. In recent decades, several studies have focused on unravelling differential patterns of survival by sex or age in bird populations, as each group may be affected by different ecological and anthropogenic pressures. Vultures are a highly threatened group of birds where age- and especially sex-dependent survival patterns have been understudied, and therefore, obtaining robust estimates and understanding which factors modulate them is crucial for developing management and conservation strategies. Here, we used a long-term dataset (1990–2023) from a wild colony of griffon vultures <i>Gyps fulvus</i> in central Spain and a capture-mark-recapture framework to address potential sex- and age-mediated patterns of apparent survival and resighting. Resighting probabilities were lower for individuals in their first year of life than for older individuals. Apparent survival probabilities increased with age and were generally higher for males than for females, particularly in subadults. Disentangling whether an unequal survival between sexes is due to female-biased dispersal or to true mortality is necessary to understand population dynamics and to be able to implement adequate conservation management actions. Our research underlines the importance of considering sex and age interactions in demographic analyses of long-lived, usually threatened species.</p>","PeriodicalId":17600,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Zoology","volume":"325 1","pages":"49-60"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-11-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jzo.13232","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143112897","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Temporal relationships between the red fox and the European badger in a Mediterranean protected area","authors":"R. Oliveira,&nbsp;L. Lazzeri,&nbsp;R. Mouton,&nbsp;V. Gomez,&nbsp;F. Ferretti","doi":"10.1111/jzo.13229","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jzo.13229","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Niche partitioning according to time, space, or resources is the key to interspecific coexistence. Interactions among carnivore species are complex: interference is common, although positive relationships may develop through trophic facilitation. In turn, different behavioral responses to coexistence may be reported, ranging from avoidance to attraction, the outcome of which is highly dependent on the local environmental context. Here, we evaluated the temporal partitioning by analyzing spatiotemporal relationships between the red fox <i>Vulpes vulpes</i> and the European badger <i>Meles meles</i> in a Mediterranean?protected area for three full years, using intensive camera trapping. The two species showed similar temporal activity patterns, with a nocturnal activity and peaks at dawn and dusk. We found a substantial temporal overlap between red fox and badger (Δ &gt; 0.78, on a 0-1 scale). However, we detected some differences in temporal activity patterns across these species and no evidence of interspecific spatiotemporal avoidance. Previous work provided no evidence supporting spatial avoidance among the study species. Our results suggest a role of temporal partitioning at a finer scale during the night to facilitate interspecific coexistence.</p>","PeriodicalId":17600,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Zoology","volume":"325 1","pages":"71-79"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-11-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143112756","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Cascading effects driven by population recovery of sika deer on habitat use of sympatric mammals under heavy snow conditions","authors":"J. Yamashita,&nbsp;M. Akamatsu,&nbsp;H. S. Enari,&nbsp;Y. Sembongi,&nbsp;H. Enari","doi":"10.1111/jzo.13233","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jzo.13233","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Unlike the top-down cascading effects driven by apex predators, the bottom-up effects on biological interactions originating from herbivory by large mammals, especially within mammalian assemblages, have received less attention. This study aimed to identify the multifaceted impacts driven by sika deer (<i>Cervus nippon</i>) during midwinters, when their herbivory impacts were expected to be strong due to deficient dietary resources. We focused on interference and exploitative competition caused by deer on the habitat use of four sympatric mammal species, namely two herbivores (Japanese serow, <i>Capricornis crispus</i>, and Japanese hare, <i>Lepus brachyurus angustidens</i>) and two mesocarnivores (red fox, <i>Vulpes vulpes</i>, and Japanese marten, <i>Martes melampus melampus</i>). To estimate the wintering behaviors of these mammals and deer herbivory pressure, we performed snow tracking and counted the fresh feeding marks of deer during midwinter in 2022 and 2023. We conducted surveys on 201-km transects with different stages of deer population recovery (i.e., different deer population densities) in heavy snowfall regions of Japan. We then systematically quantified the deer-driven effects on sympatric mammals using piecewise structural equation modeling (SEM). We recorded 1700 tracks of target mammals and 1327 trees with deer feeding marks. Based on these records, we constructed an SEM with acceptable performance (Fisher's <i>C</i> = 27.1, <i>P</i> = 0.30). The SEM suggested some possibilities that exploitative competition mediated by deer herbivory constrained the habitat use of mammals with dietary habits similar to that of deer, i.e., serow (effect size, −0.13) and hares (−0.14). In addition, through constricting the habitat use of hares, the deer-driven cascading effects reduced the occurrence of their key predators, i.e., foxes (−0.12) and martens (−0.10). Thus, our observations provide novel evidence that food webs are regulated by herbivore-driven bottom-up cascading effects in cases where plant primary productivity is limited by heavy snowfall.</p>","PeriodicalId":17600,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Zoology","volume":"325 1","pages":"92-99"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-11-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143112335","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Exploring the protective role of jelly capsules in jelly-nest tree frog eggs based on proteomic and peptidomic studies","authors":"S. Wang,&nbsp;Y. Gao,&nbsp;S. Wei,&nbsp;J. Ben,&nbsp;F. Yan","doi":"10.1111/jzo.13230","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jzo.13230","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Typically, frog eggs are aquatic, being deposited and undergoing development within freshwater habitats. However, certain species within the Rhacophoridae have evolved reproductive modes that are non-aquatic. The jelly-nest tree frog (<i>Feihyla palpebralis</i>) has terrestrial eggs that are enclosed in gel, with embryos detaching from the aquatic milieu during the embryonic phase. The jelly enveloping these embryos performs a critical role in defense against biotic and abiotic threats in the terrestrial environment. To investigate the protective function of the jelly, we characterized its proteome and peptidome. In total, 83 proteins were identified and categorized into eight main groups: protease inhibitors, glycoproteins, cytoskeleton proteins, nucleotide-binding proteins, regulatory proteins, metabolic enzyme, glycoprotein hormones, and oxidative stress-related proteins. These proteins are believed to play a role in protecting the eggs by creating biochemical and physical barriers, maintaining moisture and structural integrity, and preventing oxidative damage. In addition, 1642 peptides were isolated from tree frog jelly envelopes. Among these, RPPGFSPFR showed predator deterrent properties, LPF and AVPYPQ performed anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities, and IYSP functioned as a proteinase inhibitor. These findings help to clarify the protective mechanisms involved in the egg development process of the jelly-nest tree frog.</p>","PeriodicalId":17600,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Zoology","volume":"324 4","pages":"363-370"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-11-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142867834","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Influence of captive breeding environment on the locomotor performance and metabolism of the threatened Alcatraz Snouted Treefrog, Ololygon alcatraz","authors":"C. S. Lisboa,&nbsp;J. E. de Carvalho,&nbsp;F. C. de Barros,&nbsp;J. B. da Cruz,&nbsp;C. A. Brasileiro","doi":"10.1111/jzo.13228","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jzo.13228","url":null,"abstract":"<p><i>Ex situ</i> conservation is a complementary strategy to <i>in situ</i> efforts and is vital for safeguarding endangered species through maintenance and breeding in captivity with potential for reintroductions into natural environments. However, it is crucial to recognize that prolonged captivity can lead to diminished abilities of organisms over generations. Factors linked to the impact of phenotypic plasticity during development, such as restricted movement, may affect organism performance during <i>ex situ</i> conservation efforts, potentially making reintroduction into the wild unfeasible. Consequently, it is imperative to analyze physiological differences between captive-bred and wild individuals. Therefore, this study investigates how captivity influences locomotor performance, morphology, and metabolic capacities of adults and juveniles of the threatened treefrog <i>Ololygon alcatraz,</i> in comparison to natural populations. We obtained proportional measurements of individuals and assessed their locomotor performance through jumping exercise. We also measured the metabolic capacities of the frogs by examining the activity of enzymes involved in energetic metabolic pathways in their skeletal muscle fibers. We found that wild adult frogs had larger limbs, greater jumping abilities, and a more glycolytic profile, while captive adult frogs had smaller limbs and increased aerobic enzyme activity compared to their wild counterparts. These differences probably arise from phenotypic plasticity in ontogenetic development that differs between captive and natural environments, as juveniles do not show such differences. These results highlight the need for innovative strategies in managing captive <i>O. alcatraz</i> populations, which will aid in their successful translocation to the wild and strengthen <i>ex situ</i> conservation efforts.</p>","PeriodicalId":17600,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Zoology","volume":"325 1","pages":"61-70"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-11-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143112336","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Variation in white-tailed and mule deer dental metrics is associated with precipitation gradients in the Americas","authors":"J. Dagher,&nbsp;E. Greiner","doi":"10.1111/jzo.13220","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jzo.13220","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Investigating the relationship between the physical environment and organismal adaptation is crucial to understanding the selective pressures that drive mammalian evolution. Of the varied approaches to exploring this relationship, macroscopic tooth wear analyses have become widely used due to their economic and simple methodologies. However, more work is needed to understand how assessments of wear patterns operate within finer levels of dietary and environmental contexts. It is specifically unclear if and how tooth wear differs inter- and intraspecifically between geographically widespread, large-bodied mammalian populations. This project characterizes molar hypsodonty indices and mesowear scores of white-tailed deer (<i>Odocoileus virginianus</i>) and mule deer (<i>Odocoileus hemionus</i>) populations across North and Central America, investigating if and how molar wear and morphology vary over the deer's large and ecologically variable geographic distribution. While mesowear scores generally do not strongly track environmental signals within and between <i>Odocoileus</i> species, hypsodonty indices reveal a strong correlation between crown height and aridity, which likely represents an adaptive response to abrasive diets in areas with low precipitation.</p>","PeriodicalId":17600,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Zoology","volume":"324 4","pages":"325-338"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-10-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jzo.13220","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142862302","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Mammal coloration as a social signal—the debate is still open: a comment on Howell and Caro (2024)","authors":"V. Penteriani","doi":"10.1111/jzo.13210","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jzo.13210","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":17600,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Zoology","volume":"324 2","pages":"97-100"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-10-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142555309","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Further thoughts on comparative analyses of coloration","authors":"Tim Caro,&nbsp;Natasha Howell","doi":"10.1111/jzo.13227","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jzo.13227","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;p&gt;Responding to our recent publication (Howell &amp; Caro, &lt;span&gt;2024&lt;/span&gt;), Penteriani (&lt;span&gt;2024&lt;/span&gt;) raises some important issues about independent measures used to tease out predictions about the social significance of coloration, the taxonomic level at which to conduct comparative analyses, and how to score colour patterns. For example, across terrestrial non-volant mammals, we found little evidence of social signalling involving coloration or colour patterns based on coarse social and ecological associations. Our independent measures were activity cycle, where we expected diurnal mammals to be more colourful; social group size, where we expected more social mammals to be more colourful; sexual dimorphism, with dimorphic species (showing evidence of sexual selection) expected to be more colourful; mating system, with polygynous species expected to be more colourful owing to the possible use of colour patches in male–male competition over mates; and congener overlap, where we expected species in danger of hybridization to be more colourful in order to signal species identity. Using these coarse measures, we found rather few significant associations, raising questions as to whether our independent measures were sufficiently sensitive to uncover signatures of social communication involving colour patterns. In part, our variables were dictated by the large breadth of species we examined. These were, in effect, ‘lowest common denominators’ that are documented for every species; they were not nuanced. Whether a solitary lifestyle means that individuals are less likely to signal socially is difficult to answer – we appreciate that these are not necessarily correlated.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The second issue is the taxonomic levels over which we analysed data. Findings at the Class level may not be reflected at the Order level; Order-level results may not be replicated at the Family level, and so on (Martins, &lt;span&gt;1996&lt;/span&gt;). Using comparative phylogenetic methods, many of our predictions did not hold up across the Class, or some Order levels for which we had sufficient data, even though we often based our hypotheses on associations already uncovered by others at Genus or Family levels. Thus for bears, conspicuous faces and chest bibs do seem to signal individual identity (Penteriani et al., &lt;span&gt;2020&lt;/span&gt;, &lt;span&gt;2023&lt;/span&gt;; although not tested phylogenetically owing to small sample size), but this association is washed out at the level of carnivores when other non-ursid species are included. What to do? Unfortunately, there is no clear solution. Higher taxonomic levels with greater numbers of species allow more statistical power and enable general conclusions to be formulated; lower taxonomic levels generate specific conclusions for certain groups, but species numbers can be so low for some groups that statistical tests are questionable. In our recent paper (Howell &amp; Caro, &lt;span&gt;2024&lt;/span&gt;), we opted for the higher-level analyses; in others we ha","PeriodicalId":17600,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Zoology","volume":"324 2","pages":"101-102"},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2024-10-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jzo.13227","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142555310","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}