Longhui Zhao, Ke Deng, Tongliang Wang, Rui Guo, Jianguo Cui, Jichao Wang
{"title":"Anuran communities increase aggregations of conspecific calls in response to aircraft noise","authors":"Longhui Zhao, Ke Deng, Tongliang Wang, Rui Guo, Jianguo Cui, Jichao Wang","doi":"10.1093/cz/zoae042","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/cz/zoae042","url":null,"abstract":"Noise pollution has been shown to affect wild animals in various ways, but little is known about its consequences at the community level. Investigating animals’ overall vocal responses to noise across multiple sympatric species can reveal the complex nature of noise impacts but is challenging. In this study, we employed social network analysis (SNA) to evaluate how anuran communities and populations vary their calling behaviours in response to aircraft noise. SNA of anuran communities revealed that conspecific individuals increase the aggregation of their spectral (i.e., minimum frequency, maximum frequency, and dominant frequency), temporal (call duration, call rate, and call effort), and overall spectral‒temporal features as an airplane passes through. SNA of populations also revealed that anurans could increase the interindividual similarity of multiple call characteristics in response to airplane noise. Furthermore, our network analysis of multiple species and multiple call traits revealed an effect of noise in species whose calling behaviour did not change in previous separate analyses of each species and single traits. This study suggests that noise pollution may change the pattern of combined acoustic properties at the community level. Our findings highlight the importance of integrated methods and theories for understanding the ecological consequences of noise pollution in future studies.","PeriodicalId":50599,"journal":{"name":"Current Zoology","volume":"58 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-08-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142186618","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Time and place affect the acoustic structure of frog advertisement calls","authors":"Logan S James, Michael J Ryan","doi":"10.1093/cz/zoae039","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/cz/zoae039","url":null,"abstract":"Acoustic communication signals are important for species recognition and mate attraction across numerous taxa. For instance, most of the thousands of species of frogs have a species-specific advertisement call that females use to localize and discriminate among potential mates. Thus, the acoustic structure of the advertisement call is critical for reproductive success. The acoustic structure of calls will generally diverge over evolutionary time and can be influenced by the calls of sympatric species. While many studies have shown the influence of geography on contemporary call variation in populations of frogs, no study has compared the acoustic structure of frog calls across many species to ask whether we can detect an influence of divergence time and overall geographic overlap on the differences in acoustic structure of species-typical calls that we observe now. To this end, we compared acoustic features of the calls of 225 species of frogs within 4 families. Furthermore, we used a behavioral assay from one species of frog to determine which acoustic features to prioritize in our large-scale analyses. We found evidence that both phylogeny (time) and geography (place) relate to advertisement call acoustics albeit with large variation in these relationships across the four families in the analysis. Overall, these results suggest that, despite the many ecological and evolutionary forces that influence call structure, the broad forces of time and place can shape aspects of advertisement call acoustics.","PeriodicalId":50599,"journal":{"name":"Current Zoology","volume":"13 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-07-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141772081","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Current ZoologyPub Date : 2024-07-18Epub Date: 2023-09-15DOI: 10.1093/cz/zoad042/7274628
Mélissa Peignier, Max Ringler, Eva Ringler
{"title":"Odor cues rather than personality affect tadpole deposition in a neotropical poison frog.","authors":"Mélissa Peignier, Max Ringler, Eva Ringler","doi":"10.1093/cz/zoad042/7274628","DOIUrl":"10.1093/cz/zoad042/7274628","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Animals constantly need to evaluate available external and internal information to make appropriate decisions. Identifying, assessing, and acting on relevant cues in contexts such as mate choice, intra-sexual competition, and parental care is particularly important for optimizing individual reproductive success. Several factors can influence decision-making, such as external environmental cues and the animal's own internal state, yet, we have limited knowledge on how animals integrate available information. Here, we used an entire island population (57 males, 53 females, and 1,109 tadpoles) of the neotropical brilliant-thighed poison frog <i>Allobates femoralis</i> to investigate how 2 factors (olfactory cues and personality traits) influence the ability of males to find and use new resources for tadpole deposition. We experimentally manipulated the location of tadpole deposition sites and their associated olfactory cues, and repeatedly measured exploration and boldness in adult males. We further reconstructed tadpole deposition choices via inferred parent-offspring relationships of adult frogs and tadpoles deposited in our experimental pools using molecular parentage analysis. We found that the discovery and use of new rearing sites were heavily influenced by olfactory cues; however, we did not find an effect of the measured behavioral traits on resource discovery and use. We conclude that in highly dynamic environments such as tropical rainforests, reliable external cues likely take priority over personality traits, helping individuals to discover and make use of reproductive resources.</p>","PeriodicalId":50599,"journal":{"name":"Current Zoology","volume":"70 3","pages":"332-342"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2024-07-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7616257/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141724974","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":"Spatial, social and environmental factors influencing natal dispersal in the colonial griffon vulture","authors":"Félix Martínez, Martina Carrete, Guillermo Blanco","doi":"10.1093/cz/zoae037","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/cz/zoae037","url":null,"abstract":"Natal dispersal is a critical trait for individual fitness and the viability, structure and genetic identity of populations. However, there is a pronounced information gap for large and long-lived species due to the difficulty of monitoring individuals at appropriate spatio-temporal scales. Here we study how individual traits and social and environmental characteristics influence natal dispersal decisions of griffon vultures (Gyps fulvus) using long-term (30 years) monitoring of a large number of individuals marked as nestlings in Spain. Our results show a strong philopatry in both sexes, with some individuals recruiting as breeders on the same cliffs, and even the same nests, where they were born. This philopatric tendency was modulated by the effect of conspecific density on individual parameters, and emphasize the importance of conspecific attraction and changes in food availability that may have influenced the increment in colony size and the colonization of new areas. Although further research is needed considering smaller colonies and more isolated population nuclei, our results highlight the importance of long-term studies on long-lived species to understand the factors that determine their population dynamics and their relationship with anthropogenic activities, whose effects should be predicted and managed using conservation criteria.","PeriodicalId":50599,"journal":{"name":"Current Zoology","volume":"10 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-07-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141570814","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Qin Zhu, Jian Guan, Tianya Lei, Xuan Kun, Sile Guo, Yumeng Zhao, Changjian Fu, Le Yang, Zhongqiu Li
{"title":"Sexually differentiated decision-making involves faster recruitment in the early stages for the Tibetan antelopes Pantholops hodgsonii","authors":"Qin Zhu, Jian Guan, Tianya Lei, Xuan Kun, Sile Guo, Yumeng Zhao, Changjian Fu, Le Yang, Zhongqiu Li","doi":"10.1093/cz/zoae036","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/cz/zoae036","url":null,"abstract":"Group-living is widespread across diverse taxa, the mechanisms underlying collective decision-making in contexts of variable role division are critical for understanding the dynamics of group stability. While studies on collective behaviour in small animals such as fish and insects are well-established, similar research on large wild animals remains challenging due to the limited availability of sufficient and systematic field data. Here, we aimed to explore the collective decision-making pattern and its sexual difference for the dimorphic Tibetan antelopes Pantholops hodgsonii (chiru) in Xizang Autonomous Region, China, by analysing individual leadership distribution, as well as the joining process, considering factors such as calving stages and joining ranks. The distinct correlations of decision participants’ ratio with group size and decision duration underscore the trade-off between accuracy and speed in decision-making. Male antelopes display a more democratic decision-making pattern, while females exhibit more prompt responses after calving at early stage. This study uncovers a partially shared decision-making strategy among Tibetan antelopes, suggesting flexible self-organization in group decision processes aligned with animal life cycle progression.","PeriodicalId":50599,"journal":{"name":"Current Zoology","volume":"15 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-06-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141552301","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Breno Mellado, Lucas de O Carneiro, Marcelo R Nogueira, L Gerardo Herrera M, Ariovaldo P Cruz-Neto, Leandro R Monteiro
{"title":"Developmental instability, body mass, and reproduction predict immunological response in short-tailed bats","authors":"Breno Mellado, Lucas de O Carneiro, Marcelo R Nogueira, L Gerardo Herrera M, Ariovaldo P Cruz-Neto, Leandro R Monteiro","doi":"10.1093/cz/zoae034","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/cz/zoae034","url":null,"abstract":"Developmental instability (DI) is a phenomenon whereby organisms are unable to buffer developmental disturbances, resulting in asymmetric variation of paired traits. Previous research has demonstrated a negative relationship between DI, measured as forearm asymmetry, and survival in the bat Carollia perspicillata. This study aims to test the hypothesis that individuals with higher DI exhibit a lower immune response. We measured a delayed-type hypersensitivity to the antigen phytohemagglutinin (PHA) on 74 males and 65 females of C. perspicillata before and after the breeding season. Linear models were used to predict the immunological response based on body mass, forearm asymmetry, sex, breeding season, and testicle length. The best-fitting model accounted for 29% of the variation in immune response and included asymmetry, body mass, sex, and breeding season as predictors. The immune response was negatively associated with asymmetry and testicle length in males, but positively related to asymmetry in females. Both sexes showed a reduced immune response in the late breeding season. Additionally, the association between immune response and body mass changed direction seasonally, with heavier individuals showing weaker responses early in the breeding season and stronger responses later. Individual variation in male immunity was predicted by individual attributes, whereas variation in immune response in females was mostly seasonal. Our results support the link between DI, survival, and immune response in short-tailed bats, and suggest that the immunological component measured by the PHA response may be under finer selection in males due to its stronger correlation with individual traits.","PeriodicalId":50599,"journal":{"name":"Current Zoology","volume":"87 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-06-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141552241","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Zackary A Graham, Jônatas de Jesus Florentino, Samuel P Smithers, João C T Menezes, José Eduardo de Carvalho, Alexandre V Palaoro
{"title":"Claw coloration in the fiddler crab Leptuca uruguayensis has no correlation with male quality","authors":"Zackary A Graham, Jônatas de Jesus Florentino, Samuel P Smithers, João C T Menezes, José Eduardo de Carvalho, Alexandre V Palaoro","doi":"10.1093/cz/zoae035","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/cz/zoae035","url":null,"abstract":"Sexual selection is thought to play a major role in the evolution of color due to the correlation between a signaler’s physiological state and the displayed color. As such, researchers often investigate how color correlates to the quality of the signaler, like size or body condition. However, research on the relationship between color and individual quality is often taxonomically limited and researchers typically investigate how color phenotypes relate to one index of quality, such as a linear measure of body size. Here, we investigated the relationship between body size, claw size, claw muscle mass, lipid content, and the color of the claw in male fiddler crabs (Leptuca uruguayensis) which wield an exaggerated claw that varies in color from brown to red. We hypothesized that if color was correlated to one or more indices of male quality, the color displayed on the claws of male L. uruguayensis could be under sexual selection. We found Leptuca uruguayensis claw color varies substantially among the individuals we photographed. However, we did not find a correlation between claw color and indices of quality; neither brightness nor hue correlated to the indices of quality we measured. Our findings suggest that claw color in L. uruguayensis is unlikely to have evolved to signal quality, but may instead function as a species identity or as a non-indicator sexual signal.","PeriodicalId":50599,"journal":{"name":"Current Zoology","volume":"130 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-06-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141552302","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Current ZoologyPub Date : 2024-06-19eCollection Date: 2024-12-01DOI: 10.1093/cz/zoae033
Bethany Williams, Lauren Pintor, Suzanne Gray
{"title":"Multiple stressors lead to complex responses in reproductive behaviors in an African cichlid.","authors":"Bethany Williams, Lauren Pintor, Suzanne Gray","doi":"10.1093/cz/zoae033","DOIUrl":"10.1093/cz/zoae033","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Exposure to multiple environmental stressors is a common occurrence that can affect organisms in predictable or unpredictable ways. Hypoxia and turbidity in aquatic environments are 2 stressors that can affect reproductive behaviors by altering energy availability and the visual environment, respectively. Here we examine the relative effects of population and the rearing environment (oxygen concentration and turbidity) on reproductive behaviors. We reared cichlid fish (the Egyptian mouthbrooder, <i>Pseudocrenilabrus multicolor</i>) from 2 populations (a swamp and river) until sexual maturity, in a full factorial design (hypoxic/normoxic × clear/turbid) and then quantified male competitive and courtship behaviors and female preference under their respective rearing conditions. Overall, we found that the rearing environment was more important than population for determining behavior, indicating there were few heritable differences in reproductive behavior between the 2 populations. Unexpectedly, males in the hypoxic rearing treatment performed more competitive and courtship behaviors. Under turbid conditions, males performed fewer competitive and courtship behaviors. We predicted that females would prefer males from their own population. However, under the hypoxic and turbid combination females from both populations preferred males from the other population. Our results suggest that reproductive behaviors are affected by interactions among male traits, female preferences, and environmental conditions.</p>","PeriodicalId":50599,"journal":{"name":"Current Zoology","volume":"70 6","pages":"821-832"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6,"publicationDate":"2024-06-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11634676/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142829997","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":"Influence of prey availability on the movement pattern of breeding saker falcons (Falco cherrug) in Mongolia","authors":"Batbayar Bold, Md Lutfor Rahman, Gankhuyag Purev-Ochir, Amarsaikhan Saruul, Xiangjiang Zhan, Andrew Dixon","doi":"10.1093/cz/zoae024","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/cz/zoae024","url":null,"abstract":"As an apex predator in arid steppe, saker falcon plays a crucial role in maintaining ecosystem balance. Understanding their movement patterns concerning conspecific competition and prey availability is important for their conservation. We aim to understand how movement pattern of breeding saker falcons relates to prey availability. Twelve adult sakers were tracked during the breeding seasons, using satellite transmitters. Throughout the breeding season, sakers exhibited territorial behaviour, with minimal overlap in range use among neighbouring conspecifics. Males occupied larger areas (mean = 2,397 ha, median = 1,221 ha), compared to females (mean = 1,241 ha, median = 554 ha), and it remained consistent throughout breeding season. Female home range size increased notably during late nestling stage and post-fledging dependence periods, indicating release from brooding constraints. Notably, we found a negative relationship between male home range size and prey availability. In high rodent density areas, males occupied smaller areas (mean = 1,135 ha, median = 1,034 ha), contrasting with low rodent density areas (mean = 6,815 ha, median = 6,516 ha). However, no significant relationship was observed between female home range size and prey availability. We also noted instances of nest abandonment and early dispersal behaviour in some females, potentially influenced by a handicapping effect of tagging. Our findings offer valuable insight into how prey availability shapes saker falcon space use and defines their spatial requirements for successful breeding. This knowledge is crucial for the conservation and management of globally endangered saker falcons, informing targeted habitat protection and resource management strategies.","PeriodicalId":50599,"journal":{"name":"Current Zoology","volume":"21 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-05-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140927588","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Martina Lazzaroni, Rudy Brogi, Valentina Napolitano, Marco Apollonio, Friederike Range, Sarah Marshall-Pescini
{"title":"Urbanization does not affect red foxes’ interest in anthropogenic food, but increases their initial cautiousness","authors":"Martina Lazzaroni, Rudy Brogi, Valentina Napolitano, Marco Apollonio, Friederike Range, Sarah Marshall-Pescini","doi":"10.1093/cz/zoae023","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/cz/zoae023","url":null,"abstract":"Human presence and activities have profoundly altered animals' habitats, exposing them to greater risks but also providing new opportunities and resources. The animals’ capacity to effectively navigate and strike a balance between risks and benefits is crucial for their survival in the Anthropocene era. Red foxes (Vulpes vulpes), adept urban dwellers, exhibit behavioral plasticity in human-altered environments. We investigated variations in detection frequency on trail cameras and the behavioral responses (explorative, bold and fearful) of wild red foxes living along an urbanization gradient when exposed to a metal bin initially presented clean and then filled with anthropogenic food. All fox populations displayed an increased interest and similar explorative behavioral responses towards the anthropogenic food source, irrespective of the urbanization gradient. Despite no impact on explorative behaviors, foxes in more urbanized areas initially showed heightened fear towards the empty bin, indicating increased apprehension toward novel objects. However, this fear diminished over time, and in the presence of food, urban foxes displayed slightly reduced fear compared to their less urban counterparts. Our results highlight foxes' potential for adaptability to human landscapes, additionally underscoring the nuanced interplay of fear and explorative behavioral response of populations living along the urbanization gradient.","PeriodicalId":50599,"journal":{"name":"Current Zoology","volume":"53 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2024-05-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140927519","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}