BMC ZoologyPub Date : 2022-08-23DOI: 10.1186/s40850-022-00150-9
Blanca Fernández-Eslava, Alejandro Cantarero, Daniel Alonso, Carlos Alonso-Alvarez
{"title":"Wild common crossbills produce redder body feathers when their wings are clipped.","authors":"Blanca Fernández-Eslava, Alejandro Cantarero, Daniel Alonso, Carlos Alonso-Alvarez","doi":"10.1186/s40850-022-00150-9","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40850-022-00150-9","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The animal signaling theory posits that conspicuous colorations exhibited by many animals have evolved as reliable signals of individual quality. Red carotenoid-based ornaments may depend on enzymatic transformations (oxidation) of dietary yellow carotenoids, which could occur in the inner mitochondrial membrane (IMM). Thus, carotenoid ketolation and cell respiration could share the same biochemical pathways. Accordingly, the level of trait expression (redness) would directly reveal the efficiency of individuals' metabolism and, hence, the bearer quality in an unfalsifiable way. Different avian studies have described that the flying effort may induce oxidative stress. A redox metabolism modified during the flight could thus influence the carotenoid conversion rate and, ultimately, animal coloration. Here, we aimed to infer the link between red carotenoid-based ornament expression and flight metabolism by increasing flying effort in wild male common crossbills Loxia curvirostra (Linnaeus). In this order, 295 adult males were captured with mist nets in an Iberian population during winter. Approximately half of the birds were experimentally handicapped through wing feather clipping to increase their flying effort, the other half being used as a control group. To stimulate the plumage regrown of a small surface during a short time-lapse, we also plucked the rump feathers from all the birds.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A fraction of the birds with fully grown rump feathers (34 individuals) could be recaptured during the subsequent weeks. We did not detect any significant bias in recovery rates and morphological variables in this reduced subsample. However, among recaptured birds, individuals with experimentally impaired flying capacity showed body mass loss, whereas controls showed a trend to increase their weight. Moreover, clipped males showed redder feathers in the newly regrown rump area compared to controls.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The results suggest that wing-clipped individuals could have endured higher energy expenditure as they lost body mass. Despite the small sample size, the difference in plumage redness between the two experimental groups would support the hypothesis that the flying metabolism may influence the redox enzymatic reactions required for converting yellow dietary carotenoids to red ketocarotenoids.</p>","PeriodicalId":48590,"journal":{"name":"BMC Zoology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2022-08-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10127331/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9455181","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}
BMC ZoologyPub Date : 2022-08-11DOI: 10.1186/s40850-022-00149-2
Sara M M El-Desoky, Nada Abdellah
{"title":"The morphogenesis of the rabbit meibomian gland in relation to sex hormones: Immunohistochemical and transmission electron microscopy studies.","authors":"Sara M M El-Desoky, Nada Abdellah","doi":"10.1186/s40850-022-00149-2","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40850-022-00149-2","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Rabbits have been proposed as a model for the human meibomian gland (MG), a large specific sebaceous gland in the eyelid that consists of secretory acini arranged laterally and related to the central duct via short ductules, with the central duct continuing as an excretory duct to open at the free margin of the lid. First detected at embryonic day 18 as an aggregation of mesenchymal cells in the tarsal plate, it completes its development approximately 2 weeks postnatal when the separation of the eyelids is completed. The Transmission electron microscopy supports the meibocytes' gradient maturation to the meibum's synthesis. While the differentiating cells, their cytoplasm, are well packed with lipid droplets, the basal cells are characterized by a high nuclear to cytoplasm ratio. The androgen and estrogen receptor proteins are expressed in the basal cell and the meibocytes, and increase in age increases in the expression of these proteins. Additionally, the cytokeratin (CK14) is expressed in the basal and differentiating cells of the acini and the ductal epithelium. Therefore, the duct cells of the MG are common in all stem cells. These data concluded that the MG plays a major role in maintaining the health of the ocular surface and preservation of visual acuity. Any abnormalities in the structure of the MG lead to its dysfunction and changes in lipid secretion.</p>","PeriodicalId":48590,"journal":{"name":"BMC Zoology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2022-08-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10127434/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9823955","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":"Male reproductive cycle in a population of the endemic butterfly lizard, Leiolepis ocellata Peters, 1971 (Squamata: Agamidae) from northern Thailand.","authors":"Akkanee Pewhom, Thidaporn Supapakorn, Nopparat Srakaew","doi":"10.1186/s40850-022-00145-6","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40850-022-00145-6","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Fundamental knowledge on the seasonal reproductive microanatomy and endocrinology of reptiles has been collected from several studies of various species. The present study was to determine annual changes in hormonal profiles, and detailed histomorphometric and histochemical characteristics of the entire male reproductive system of the tropical agamid lizard, Leiolepis ocellata.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Male L. ocellata individuals (n = 75) collected from the territory of two provinces (Lampang and Tak) in northern Thailand exhibited annual variation in sex hormonal, histomorphometric, and histochemical characteristics of the male reproductive system. The reproductive cycle was subdivided into eight reproductive periods (early first active, first active, resting, second recrudescent, second active, regressive, quiescent, and first recrudescent), thus displaying a bimodal pattern with two actively reproductive periods. Circulating sex hormones (testosterone, estradiol, and progesterone) peaked in the first active (February) and the second active (June-July) periods. Likewise, gonadosomatic index (GSI) and histomorphometric variables of the testes and of the genital ducts (rete testis, ductuli efferentes, ductus epididymis, and ductus deferens) revealed their highest values in the first active period. Marked increase in protein and carbohydrate production was detectable in the ductuli efferentes during the active periods.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The male reproductive cycle of L. ocellata showed a biannual pattern of the hormonal profile, and detailed histomorphometric and histochemical characteristics of the entire reproductive system. Hence, the present study provides improved basic knowledge on the reptilian reproductive biology with comparative viewpoints to other reptiles.</p>","PeriodicalId":48590,"journal":{"name":"BMC Zoology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2022-08-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10127433/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9806964","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}
BMC ZoologyPub Date : 2022-07-29DOI: 10.1186/s40850-022-00147-4
Fatma A Madkour, Mohammed Abdelsabour-Khalaf
{"title":"Morphological and ultrastructural features of the laryngeal mound of Egyptian Cattle Egret (Bubulcus ibis, Linnaeus, 1758).","authors":"Fatma A Madkour, Mohammed Abdelsabour-Khalaf","doi":"10.1186/s40850-022-00147-4","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40850-022-00147-4","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>According to our acknowledgment this is the first full anatomical description of the studied laryngeal mound of the Egyptian Cattle Egret (Bubulcus ibis, Linnaeus, 1758). This study was obtained with the aid of scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and histological techniques. Heads of ten healthy adult male Egyptian cattle egrets were used in this study.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The laryngeal mound (Mons laryngealis) was a pear-shaped musculoskeletal elevation. It represented 20.55 and 67.87% of the total length of the oropharyngeal floor and the pharyngeal floor, respectively. By SEM view, the lateral aspect of the caudal third of the laryngeal mound had a serrated mucosal appearance, forming of 6-7 finger-like projections. Furthermore, the terminal part of the laryngeal mound (except the middle part) was bordered a transverse row of pyramidal-shaped papillae, which demarcated from the esophagus. Histologically, laryngeal salivary glands termed (cricoarytenoid salivary glands) of the laryngeal mound were simple tubular type and were arranged in one row within the lamina propria connective tissue close to the lamina epithelialis. Those glands were surrounded by abundant aggregation of lymphocytes, extended overlying the surface lining epithelium. The glottis within the laryngeal mound was supported by hyaline cartilages; dorsally by paired arytenoid cartilages, ventrolaterally by cricoid cartilage, and caudodorsally by procricoid cartilage. Two groups of intrinsic laryngeal skeletal muscles have connected the cartilages. The glandular epithelium of the laryngeal salivary glands and chondrocytes of the laryngeal cartilages showed strongly positive alcian blue reaction.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The laryngeal mound shows certain features that are unique as an adaptation to lifestyles and bird's habitat.</p>","PeriodicalId":48590,"journal":{"name":"BMC Zoology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2022-07-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10127301/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9806960","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}
BMC ZoologyPub Date : 2022-07-27DOI: 10.1186/s40850-022-00141-w
S Hernandis, I Ibarrola, J Tena-Medialdea, M Vázquez-Luis, J R García-March, P Prado, M Albentosa
{"title":"Scope for growth and dietary needs of Mediteranean Pinnids maintained in captivity.","authors":"S Hernandis, I Ibarrola, J Tena-Medialdea, M Vázquez-Luis, J R García-March, P Prado, M Albentosa","doi":"10.1186/s40850-022-00141-w","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40850-022-00141-w","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The measurement of the energy available for growth (scope of growth, SFG) can be used in bivalves to make a long-term prediction in a short-term experiment of the condition of the individual. In order to tackle the best conditions for captive maintenance of Mediterranean Pinnids, a SFG study was conducted using Pinna rudis as a model species. Three diets were examined to test the viability of live microalgae and commercial products: i) a control diet using 100% of live microalgae based on the species Isochrysis galbana (t-ISO), ii) a 100% of commercial microalgae diet based on the product Shellfish Diet 1800®, and iii) a 50/50% mix diet of I. galbana (t-ISO) and Shellfish Diet 1800®.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>SFG results showed significant differences among diets in the physiological functions measured and suggested lower acceptability and digestibility of the commercial product. Negative SFG values were obtained for the commercial diet which indicates that it should be rejected for both Pinnid maintenance. The mixed diet showed improved physiological performance compared to the commercial diet, resulting in a higher SFG that had no significant differences with the control diet. However, in the long-term, the lower digestibility of the mixed diet compared to the control diet could lead to a deterioration of individuals' conditions and should be considered cautiously.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>This work represents the first case study of SFG in Pinna spp. and provides fundamental data on dietary needs for the critically endangered species, P. nobilis.</p>","PeriodicalId":48590,"journal":{"name":"BMC Zoology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2022-07-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10127381/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9823957","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}
BMC ZoologyPub Date : 2022-07-25DOI: 10.1186/s40850-022-00144-7
Yan-Hui Xia, Jin Li, Fei-Fei Xu, Bin Lei, Hong-Lian Li, Ke Wang, Yu Li
{"title":"Identification and a culture method for a Helicotylenchus microlobus from tomato in China.","authors":"Yan-Hui Xia, Jin Li, Fei-Fei Xu, Bin Lei, Hong-Lian Li, Ke Wang, Yu Li","doi":"10.1186/s40850-022-00144-7","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40850-022-00144-7","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The nematodes of the genus Helicotylenchus are root parasites of a wide variety of plants, and certain species can cause serious damage to their hosts. During a survey of the plant-parasitic nematode associated with tomato, a population of Helicotylenchus was collected from tomato roots and soil samples. Thus, one of the objectives of the study was to confirm the specie of Helicotylenchus obtained from the tomato samples based on morphological and molecular characteristics. In addition, a mass pure culture of plant-parasitic nematodes is key to pathogenicity studies and many other biological studies. However, a successful mass rearing method for Helicotylenchus has not been reported. Thus, the other objective of the study was to establish a method of culturing Helicotylenchus.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Based on both the morphological characteristics and molecular analysis of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) and D2-D3 expansion region of 28S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) sequences the specimens were identified as Helicotylenchus microlobus. Phylogenetic analysis with the rRNA sequences of the ITS and 28S D2-D3 regions was consistent with molecular identification, suggesting this population formed a highly supported clade with other H. microlobus populations. Additionally, a method for culture of H. microlobus on carrot disks was established, and the effect of temperature on the reproduction rate (Rr) of H. microlobus was investigated. The optimum temperature for culturing H. microlobus on carrot disks was 27.5 °C and, after inoculation with 30 females of H. microlobus at 27.5 °C for 90 days, Rr reached 406.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>To our knowledge, this is the first detailed description of H. microlobus from tomato in China. This study also demonstrated that the carrot disk method is suitable for the culture of H. microlobus. This study lays a foundation for other related research on H. microlobus, and has significance for the study of Helicotylenchus.</p>","PeriodicalId":48590,"journal":{"name":"BMC Zoology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2022-07-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10127385/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9823969","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}
BMC ZoologyPub Date : 2022-07-22DOI: 10.1186/s40850-022-00142-9
Maria Mastrodonato, Giovanni Scillitani, Roberta Trani, Frine Cardone, Giuseppe Corriero, Carlotta Nonnis Marzano
{"title":"Sexual and asexual reproduction in a Mediterranean Tethya (Porifera, Demospongiae) species.","authors":"Maria Mastrodonato, Giovanni Scillitani, Roberta Trani, Frine Cardone, Giuseppe Corriero, Carlotta Nonnis Marzano","doi":"10.1186/s40850-022-00142-9","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40850-022-00142-9","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The reproductive cycle of the recently described sponge Tethya meloni was investigated for a period of 15 months (September 2018 - November 2019) in the Mar Piccolo of Taranto (Southern Italy) and was compared with data previously collected for the other two sympatric species of the same genus known for Mediterranean Sea, T. citrina and T. aurantium.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>T. meloni is a gonochoric species with a sex ratio strongly shifted towards females. Asexual budding was a seasonal process, limited to few specimens. In a specimen collected in September 2018 both oocytes and buds occurred, suggesting that in T. meloni the sexual and asexual phases may coexist both at the population and individual levels.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The data obtained from this research compared with the available literature confirm the high temporal variability of the reproductive cycles in the Mediterranean species of Tethya, but with common general characteristics. In sexual reproduction, the oocyte production period lasts several months, with a peak between summer and autumn while spermatogenesis, shorter but with greater reproductive effort, follows the onset of oogenesis. The asexual reproduction phase of T. meloni, on the other hand, occurs in a short period and seems to have less importance in the overall reproductive process.</p>","PeriodicalId":48590,"journal":{"name":"BMC Zoology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2022-07-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10127410/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9446621","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}
BMC ZoologyPub Date : 2022-07-22DOI: 10.1186/s40850-022-00140-x
Ngon T Truong, Gieo H Phan, Tran T H Lam, Ton H D Nguyen, Do T Khang, Men T Tran, Nam S Tran, Quang M Dinh
{"title":"Correction: The mismatch between morphological and molecular attribution of three Glossogobius species in the Mekong Delta.","authors":"Ngon T Truong, Gieo H Phan, Tran T H Lam, Ton H D Nguyen, Do T Khang, Men T Tran, Nam S Tran, Quang M Dinh","doi":"10.1186/s40850-022-00140-x","DOIUrl":"10.1186/s40850-022-00140-x","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":48590,"journal":{"name":"BMC Zoology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.4,"publicationDate":"2022-07-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10127309/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9829208","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}
BMC ZoologyPub Date : 2022-07-11DOI: 10.1186/s40850-022-00139-4
Song Tan, Juan Li, Qiao Yang, Jinzhong Fu, Jingfeng Chen
{"title":"Light/dark phase influences intra-individual plasticity in maintenance metabolic rate and exploratory behavior independently in the Asiatic toad.","authors":"Song Tan, Juan Li, Qiao Yang, Jinzhong Fu, Jingfeng Chen","doi":"10.1186/s40850-022-00139-4","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40850-022-00139-4","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>It is well-known that light/dark phase can affect energy expenditure and behaviors of most organisms; however, its influences on individuality (inter-individual variance) and plasticity (intra-individual variance), as well as their associations remain unclear. To approach this question, we repeatedly measured maintenance metabolic rate (MR), exploratory and risk-taking behaviors across light/dark phase four times using wild-caught female Asiatic toads (Bufo gargarizans), and partitioned their variance components with univariate and bivariate mixed-effects models.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The group means of maintenance MR and risk-taking behavior increased at night, while the group mean of exploratory behavior remained constant throughout the day. At night, the intra-individual variances were elevated in maintenance MR but reduced in exploration, suggesting that phenotypic plasticity was enhanced in the former but constrained in the latter. In addition, maintenance MR was not coupled with exploratory or risk-taking behaviors in daytime or at night, neither at the inter-individual nor intra-individual levels.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Our findings suggest that these traits are independently modulated by the light/dark phase, and an allocation energy management model may be applicable in this species. This study sheds new insights into how amphibians adapt nocturnal lifestyle across multiple hierarchy levels via metabolic and behavioral adjustments.</p>","PeriodicalId":48590,"journal":{"name":"BMC Zoology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2022-07-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10127016/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9806966","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}
BMC ZoologyPub Date : 2022-07-06DOI: 10.1186/s40850-022-00131-y
Eric W Hammerschmith, Gavin C Woodruff, Kimberly A Moser, Erik Johnson, Patrick C Phillips
{"title":"Opposing directions of stage-specific body shape change in a close relative of C. elegans.","authors":"Eric W Hammerschmith, Gavin C Woodruff, Kimberly A Moser, Erik Johnson, Patrick C Phillips","doi":"10.1186/s40850-022-00131-y","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1186/s40850-022-00131-y","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Body size is a fundamental organismal trait. However, as body size and ecological contexts change across developmental time, evolutionary divergence may cause unexpected patterns of body size diversity among developmental stages. This may be particularly evident in polyphenic developmental stages specialized for dispersal. The dauer larva is such a stage in nematodes, and Caenorhabditis species disperse by traveling on invertebrate carriers. Here, we describe the morphology of a stress-resistant, dauer-like larval stage of the nematode Caenorhabditis inopinata, whose adults can grow to be nearly twice as long as its close relative, the model organism C. elegans.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>We find that a dauer-like, stress-resistant larval stage in two isolates of C. inopinata is on average 13% shorter and 30% wider than the dauer larvae of C. elegans, despite its much longer adult stage. Additionally, many C. inopinata dauer-like larvae were ensheathed, a possible novelty in this lineage reminiscent of the infective juveniles of parasitic nematodes. Variation in dauer-like larva formation frequency among twenty-four wild isolates of C. inopinata was also observed, although frequencies were low across all isolates (< 2%), with many isolates unable to produce dauer-like larvae under conventional laboratory conditions.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Most Caenorhabditis species thrive on rotting plants and disperse on snails, slugs, or isopods (among others) whereas C. inopinata is ecologically divergent and thrives in fresh Ficus septica figs and disperses on their pollinating wasps. While there is some unknown factor of the fig environment that promotes elongated body size in C. inopinata adults, the small size or unique life history of its fig wasp carrier may be driving the divergent morphology of its stress-resistant larval stages. Further characterization of the behavior, development, and morphology of this stage will refine connections to homologous developmental stages in other species and determine whether ecological divergence across multiple developmental stages can promote unexpected and opposing changes in body size dimensions within a single species.</p>","PeriodicalId":48590,"journal":{"name":"BMC Zoology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2022-07-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10127021/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10009475","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}