Current Zoology最新文献

{"title":"Body size and condition, not allochrony, affect temporal reproductive patterns in a prolonged breeding anuran.","authors":"Stephan Burgstaller, Andras Horvath, Marie-Luise Aiglsperger, Bernhard Kapeller, Magdalena Spießberger, Martina Staufer, Lukas Landler","doi":"10.1093/cz/zoae066","DOIUrl":"10.1093/cz/zoae066","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Individual phenological life-history variations in the context of seasonal conditions are well documented in fishes and birds. However, amphibians, a group heavily affected by habitat loss and fragmentation, have received relatively little attention regarding research on life-history adaptations. Here we present 3 years of data on the timing of reproductive activity in a suburban European green toad (<i>Bufotes viridis</i>) population. We found annually consistent patterns of reproductive activity and investigated whether these were caused by allochrony or individual attributes. Body size (a proxy for age), body condition, and sex significantly affected the timing of reproductive activity. However, most individuals showed considerable overlap in their reproductive timeframe, refuting the existence of allochronic subpopulations. Our findings may indicate life-history adaptations in the direction of a faster lifestyle in response to hazardous environments. We propose to focus further research efforts on phenological variations in the context of environmental conditions, and that phenological variations should be considered more strongly in amphibian conservation efforts.</p>","PeriodicalId":50599,"journal":{"name":"Current Zoology","volume":"71 4","pages":"482-491"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2024-10-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12376048/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144977312","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Duets convey information about pair and individual identities in a Neotropical bird.","authors":"Pedro Diniz, Edvaldo F Silva-Jr, Gianlucca S Rech, Pedro H L Ribeiro, André C Guaraldo, Regina H Macedo, Paulo S Amorim","doi":"10.1093/cz/zoae064","DOIUrl":"10.1093/cz/zoae064","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Vocal individuality is essential for social discrimination but has been poorly studied in animals that produce communal signals (duets or choruses). Song overlapping and temporal coordination make the assessment of individuality in communal signals more complex. In addition, selection may favor the accurate identification of pairs over individuals by receivers in year-round territorial species with duetting and long-term pair bonding. Here, we studied pair and individual vocal signatures in the polyphonal duets of rufous horneros <i>Furnarius rufus</i>, a Neotropical bird known for its long-term pair bonds. Hornero partners engage in duets to deter territorial intruders and protect their partnership year-round and can discern duets from neighbors versus strangers. Using a dataset of 471 duets from 43 pairs in 2 populations, we measured fine-scale acoustic features across different duet levels (e.g., complete duets to non-overlapping syllable parts) and analysis levels (pair or individual). Permuted linear discriminant function analyses classified pairs and individuals more accurately than expected by chance (means: 45% and 47% vs. 4 and 2%). Pair identity explained more variance in the multivariate acoustic features of duets than individual or population identities. The initial frequency of the duet showed strong potential for encoding pair identity. The acoustic traits contributing most to individual vocal signatures varied between sexes, which might facilitate the simultaneous assessment of duetters' identities by receivers. Our study indicates that vocal individuality may exist even in species with intricate and innate communal signals and elucidates the mechanisms employed by horneros in their social discrimination ability.</p>","PeriodicalId":50599,"journal":{"name":"Current Zoology","volume":"71 4","pages":"456-468"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2024-10-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12376049/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144977250","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Altitude and ground brightness explain interpopulation variation in dorsal coloration in a lizard.","authors":"José J Cuervo, María C Durán-García, Josabel Belliure","doi":"10.1093/cz/zoae065","DOIUrl":"10.1093/cz/zoae065","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Non-signaling functions of coloration include thermoregulation (thermal melanism hypothesis), protection against ultraviolet radiation (photoprotection hypothesis), and concealment from predators (crypsis hypothesis). We investigated whether dorsal coloration in 19 populations of spiny-footed lizards, <i>Acanthodactylus erythrurus</i>, across the Iberian Peninsula varies according to these functions. We captured adult males and females in each population and calculated standardized dorsum brightness estimates from photographs. We also calculated standardized ground luminosity estimates and gathered information on latitude, altitude, mean annual temperature, and mean annual solar radiation for each location. Males showed a higher percentage of black coloration and a more contrasted dorsum than females, suggesting different selection pressures on dorsal coloration in both sexes. Furthermore, males showed a darker dorsum and a higher percentage of black coloration at higher altitudes and when the ground was darker. In contrast, females exhibited a darker dorsum only when the ground was darker and a higher percentage of black coloration only at higher altitudes. We also observed that the variation of dorsum luminosity within males and the variation of dorsum luminosity among females within populations were both positively related to the variation of ground luminosity among different points within locations. Latitude, temperature, and solar radiation were not significantly related to dorsal coloration in either sex. Our results support the photoprotection and crypsis hypotheses in males and, to some extent, in females, whereas the thermal melanism hypothesis is weakly supported in both sexes. These findings suggest that there is local adaptation in the dorsal coloration of the spiny-footed lizard.</p>","PeriodicalId":50599,"journal":{"name":"Current Zoology","volume":"71 4","pages":"469-481"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2024-10-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12376043/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144977256","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Sparrowhawk imitation or convergent alarm signal? A new hypothesis for bubbling call of cuckoos with empirical testing.","authors":"Huisheng Wang, Xiangyang Chen, Jiaojiao Wang, Laikun Ma, Canchao Yang","doi":"10.1093/cz/zoae063","DOIUrl":"10.1093/cz/zoae063","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Alarm calls in bird vocalizations serve as acoustic signals announcing danger. Owing to the convergent evolution of alarm calls, some bird species can benefit from eavesdropping on certain parameters of alarm calls of other species. Vocal mimicry, displayed by many bird species, aids defense against predators and may help brood parasites during parasitism. In the coevolutionary dynamics between brood parasites, such as the common cuckoo (<i>Cuculus canorus</i>), and their hosts, female cuckoo vocalizations can induce hosts to leave the nest, increasing the probability of successful parasitism and reducing the risk of host attacks. Such cuckoo calls were thought to mimic those of the sparrowhawk. However, owing to their similarity to alarm calls, we propose a new hypothesis: Female cuckoos cheat their hosts by mimicking the parameters of the host alarm call. In this study, we tested this new hypothesis and the sparrowhawk mimicry hypothesis simultaneously by manipulating the syllable rate in male and female common cuckoo vocalizations and playing them in front of the host Oriental reed warbler (<i>Acrocephalus orientalis</i>) for examination. The results indicate that similar to a normal female cuckoo call, a female call with a reduced syllable rate prompted the hosts to leave their nests more frequently and rapidly than male cuckoo calls. Additionally, the male cuckoo calls with increased syllable rate did not prompt the host to leave their nests more frequently or quickly compared with the male cuckoo calls with a normal syllable rate. Our results further confirm that female common cuckoos mimic the vocalizations of Eurasian sparrowhawks (<i>Accipiter nisus</i>), reveal the function mechanisms underlying such mimicry, and support the theory of imperfect mimicry.</p>","PeriodicalId":50599,"journal":{"name":"Current Zoology","volume":"71 4","pages":"449-455"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2024-10-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12376045/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144977346","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Sperm depletion and mate choice of the crab spider, <i>Ebrechtella tricuspidata</i> (Fahricius).","authors":"Haobo Guo, Lelei Wen, Yue Yu, Chao Wang, Yancong Wang, Changchun Li, Xiaoguo Jiao","doi":"10.1093/cz/zoae059","DOIUrl":"10.1093/cz/zoae059","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Mounting evidence suggests that male sperm may be gradually depleted after consecutive matings, resulting in the decline of female reproductive output in insect species. It is predicted that females may employ adaptive strategies to avoid the sperm-depleted males, such as mating multiply with different males and/or discriminating against previously mated males (MMs). Similarly, males may exhibit adaptive behaviors toward females varying in mating status. However, in spiders with males lacking primary copulatory organs and their pedipalps modified to transfer sperm, there are few studies on male mating potential and previous mating experience on their subsequent mate choice. In this study, we used a polyandrous crab spider, <i>Ebrechtella tricuspidata</i>, a sit-and-wait predator with female-biased sex ratio as a model system to ascertain whether 1) male mating experiences influence female reproductive fitness; 2) females respond differently to males varying in mating status; and 3) males respond differently to females varying in mating status. Our results showed that female fecundity was independent of male mating experiences, but female fertility markedly declined with the increase of male previous mating experiences in the first eggsac. Counter to our predictions, females preferred to choose and mate with the larger males, regardless of their mating status. In contrast, male mating status influenced their mating preference toward females. Virgin males did not show any preference between virgin and mated females; however, MMs were more likely to prefer the virgin females over the mated ones. Overall, our results indicated that female choice depended primarily on male relative size rather than male mating status, whereas male choice depended on female mating status. Depending on the investigation of reproductive dynamics and mate choice in <i>E. tricuspidata</i>, the study will provide valuable insights into the adaptive behaviors of both males and females exhibiting toward mates varying in mating status.</p>","PeriodicalId":50599,"journal":{"name":"Current Zoology","volume":"71 3","pages":"390-399"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2024-10-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12227422/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144576868","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Costly calling: Marmots who alarm call at higher rates are less likely to survive the summer and live shorter lives.","authors":"Daniel T Blumstein, Katie A Adler, Jazmine Uy","doi":"10.1093/cz/zoae060","DOIUrl":"10.1093/cz/zoae060","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Emitting alarm calls may be costly, but few studies have asked whether calling increases a caller's risk of predation and survival. Since observing animals calling and being killed is relatively rare, we capitalized on over 24,000 h of observations of marmot colonies and asked whether variation in the rate that yellow-bellied marmots (<i>Marmota flaviventer</i>) alarm called was associated with the probability of summer mortality, a proxy for predation. Using a generalized mixed model that controlled for factors that influenced the likelihood of survival, we found that marmots who called at higher rates were substantially more likely to die over the summer. Because virtually all summer mortality is due to predation, these results suggest that calling is indeed costly for marmots. Additionally, the results from a Cox survival analysis showed that marmots that called more lived significantly shorter lives. Prior studies have shown that marmots reduce the risk by emitting calls only when close to their burrows, but this newly quantified survival cost suggests a constraint on eliminating risks. Quantifying the cost of alarm calling using a similar approach in other systems will help us better understand its true costs, which is an essential value for theoretical models of calling and social behavior.</p>","PeriodicalId":50599,"journal":{"name":"Current Zoology","volume":"71 4","pages":"425-431"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2024-10-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12376037/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144977315","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Bacterial microbiome and their assembly processing in two sympatric desert rodents (<i>Dipus sagitta</i> and <i>Meriones meridianus</i>) from different geographic sources.","authors":"Dilala Tuoliu, Jilong Cheng, Lin Xia, Zhixin Wen, Muyang Wang, Weikang Yang, Qisen Yang","doi":"10.1093/cz/zoae062","DOIUrl":"10.1093/cz/zoae062","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The microbiome of mammals has profound effects on host fitness, but the process, which drives the assembly and shift of mammalian microbiome remains poorly understood. To explore the patterns of small mammal microbial communities across host species and geographical sites and measure the relative contributions of different processes in driving assembly patterns, 2 sympatric desert rodent species (<i>Dipus sagitta</i> and <i>Meriones meridianus</i>) were sampled from 2 geographically distant regions, which differed in the environment, followed by 16S rRNA gene sequencing. The microbiomes differed significantly between <i>D. sagitta</i> and <i>M. meridianus</i>, and linear mixed modeling (LMM) analysis revealed that microbial diversity was mostly affected by species rather than the environment. For each rodent species, the microbiome diversity and structure differed across geographical regions, with individuals from lower rainfall environments exhibiting greater diversity. The null modeling results suggested dispersal limitation and ecological drift rather than differential selective pressures acting on the microbiome. In addition, each group had a different core genus, suggesting that the taxonomic composition of the microbiome was shaped most strongly by stochastic processes. Our results suggest that variation in the microbiome between hosts, both within and among geographic rodent populations, is driven by bacterial dispersal and ecological drift rather than by differential selective pressures. These results elucidated the diversity patterns and assembly processes of bacterial microbiomes in small desert mammals. Deciphering the processes shaping the assembly of the microbial community is a premise for better understanding how the environment-host-microbe interactions of mammals are established and maintained, particularly in the context of increased environmental disturbances and global changes.</p>","PeriodicalId":50599,"journal":{"name":"Current Zoology","volume":"71 4","pages":"440-448"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2024-10-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12376032/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144977297","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Artificial light at night alters foraging behavior of freshwater amphipods depending on the light spectrum and the presence of predation cues.","authors":"Wrya Hassan, Jarosław Kobak, Magdalena Czarnecka","doi":"10.1093/cz/zoae061","DOIUrl":"10.1093/cz/zoae061","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Artificial light at night (ALAN) is a common anthropogenic disturbance, which alters animal behavior. However, little is known about the impact of the spectral composition of ALAN and co-occurring predation risk on the behavior of aquatic organisms. We experimentally investigated how ALAN of different spectra (cool white LED and HPS light) affects the behavior and foraging of <i>Gammarus jazdzewskii</i> (Amphipoda) on chironomid prey, both as a single stressor and in combination with an olfactory predation cue. Gammarids exposed to ALAN in the absence of predation cues consumed less, compared with darkness, mainly due to their lower activity. Moreover, gammarids showed a stronger response to LED light, spending more time in the shelter and increasing prey handling time in this treatment. The addition of predation cues did not enhance the negative impact of ALAN on the foraging success. Gammarids maintained similar consumption levels as in the ALAN treatment without predation cues and in darkness with predation cues. However, gammarids in LED light altered their behavior in response to predation threat: they decreased prey handling time and consumed prey faster, which may have compensated for the higher food demand in stressful conditions. They also tended to exhibit risky behavior, leaving the shelter and moving towards the lit area, presumably to escape and avoid the combined effects of light and predation cues. Therefore, when assessing the effects of ALAN on organisms, light quality and co-occurring biotic factors should be considered, as predator pressure is common in natural environments.</p>","PeriodicalId":50599,"journal":{"name":"Current Zoology","volume":"71 4","pages":"432-439"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2024-10-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12376036/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144977343","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Climatic variation and risk assessment in a highly seasonal mammal.","authors":"McKenna Sanchez, Julien G A Martin, Daniel T Blumstein","doi":"10.1093/cz/zoae058","DOIUrl":"10.1093/cz/zoae058","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Climate change and its resulting effects on seasonality are known to alter a variety of animal behaviors including those related to foraging, phenology, and migration. Although many studies focus on the impacts of phenological changes on physiology or fitness enhancing behaviors, fewer have investigated the relationship between variation in weather and phenology on risk assessment. Fleeing from predators is an economic decision that incurs costs and benefits. As environmental conditions change, animals may face additional stressors that affect their decision to flee and influence their ability to effectively assess risk. Flight initiation distance (FID)-the distance at which animals move away from threats-is often used to study risk assessment. FID varies due to both internal and external biotic and physical factors as well as anthropogenic activities. We asked whether variation in weather and phenology is associated with risk-taking in a population of yellow-bellied marmots (<i>Marmota flaviventer</i>). As the air temperature increased marmots tolerated closer approaches, suggesting that they either perceived less risk or that their response to a threat was thermally compromised. The effect of temperature was relatively small and was largely dependent upon having a larger range in the full data set that permitted us to detect it. We found no effects of either the date that snow disappeared or July precipitation on marmot FID. As global temperatures continue to rise, rainfall varies more and drought becomes more common, understanding climate-related changes in how animals assess risk should be used to inform population viability models.</p>","PeriodicalId":50599,"journal":{"name":"Current Zoology","volume":"71 4","pages":"419-424"},"PeriodicalIF":2.0,"publicationDate":"2024-09-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12376033/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144977271","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Fortune may favor the flexible: environment-dependent behavioral shifts in invasive coquí frogs.","authors":"Katharina M Soto, Devin Edmonds, Andrea L Colton, Michael R Britton, Faith O Hardin, Eva K Fischer","doi":"10.1093/cz/zoae055","DOIUrl":"10.1093/cz/zoae055","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Biological invasions are a major driver of global biodiversity loss, impacting endemic species, ecosystems, and economies. Although the influence of life history traits on invasive success is well-established, the role of behavior in the invasive potential of animals is less studied. The common coquí frog, <i>Eleutherodactylus coqui</i>, is a highly successful invader in Hawai'i. We build on previous research characterizing changes in physiology and morphology to explore behavioral variation across the invasive range of coquí in Hawai'i. Coquí have expanded both outward and upward from their initial introduction site, and-by comparing frogs from different densities and elevations-we specifically asked how the physiological challenges of high-elevation living interact with the competitive challenge of high-densities at population centers. To investigate whether differences in the field represent local adaptation or behavioral plasticity, we additionally evaluated behavior following acclimation to a shared laboratory environment. Although we identified only subtle behavioral variation among populations in the field, we found that individuals from all populations became less bold, active, and exploratory in the laboratory, converging on a similar behavioral phenotype. Alongside previous work, our results suggest that coquí adjust their behavior to local environmental conditions across their invasive range and that behavioral flexibility may contribute to invasive success.</p>","PeriodicalId":50599,"journal":{"name":"Current Zoology","volume":"71 3","pages":"362-372"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2024-09-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12227419/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144576866","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}