European Zoological Journal最新文献

{"title":"Critical thermal maxima of three small-bodied fish species (Cypriniformes) of different origin and protection status","authors":"G. Radtke, J. Wolnicki, A. Kapusta, M. Przybylski, Z. Kaczkowski","doi":"10.1080/24750263.2022.2148763","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/24750263.2022.2148763","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Environmental changes related to global warming are both a threat to cold-water fishes and simultaneously create favourable conditions for the spread of eurythermic or warm-water species. In both cases, it is necessary to develop conservation strategies supported by precise ecological data, including thermal requirements. In this study, we determined the upper thermal tolerance thresholds and the critical maxima for three small, non-commercial Eurasian freshwater fish species; i.e. lake minnow Eupallasella (=Rhynchocypris) percnurus, sunbleak Leucaspius delineatus and topmouth gudgeon Pseudorasbora parva using the Critical Thermal Method at different acclimation temperatures, i.e. 18, 23, 28, and 33°C (highest treatment for topmouth gudgeon only). We hypothesized that lake minnow would have the lowest thermal tolerance and the topmouth gudgeon the highest. The response to temperature rise and the upper thermal limits were species-specific and correlated with the acclimation temperature, but not with fish length. Sunbleak showed the lowest thermal tolerance, though at 28°C both E. percnurus and L. delineatus reached a similar critical thermal limit. Topmouth gudgeon showed distinctly higher upper thresholds of thermal tolerance and at the highest acclimation temperature the critical upper limit for the species was close to 42°C. The results obtained for L. delineatus were surprising as we predicted that this leuciscid fish would be more tolerant of high temperatures than E. percnurus. We discuss the results in relation to the threat of extinction and the risk of species spreading beyond their natural range in the context of a warming environment.","PeriodicalId":56040,"journal":{"name":"European Zoological Journal","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2022-12-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43421004","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Transcriptome analysis of Mesobuthus martensii revealed the differences of their toxins between females and males","authors":"Y. Yang, Y. Zhu, Y. Luo, Q. Liu, X. Hua, J. Li, F. Gao, J. Höfer, X. Gao, L. Xiao, X. Song, S. Gao, R. Hao","doi":"10.1080/24750263.2022.2143584","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/24750263.2022.2143584","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Scorpion venom plays an important role in scorpion predation, competition, communication, and defense. In this study, the species identification of Shandong scorpion and the analysis of venom extracted from male and female scorpion at the transcriptome level and their activity were compared. Whole de novo transcriptomes were performed on male and female scorpions and the sequences of cytochrome c oxidase subunit I were screened to identify the species. The scorpions collected were identified as Mesobuthus martensii and we have successfully annotated 16,726 (37.47%), 10,076 (22.57%), 10,878 (24.37%), and 10,187 (22.82%) unigenes with NR, Swissport, GO and KEGG database. A total of 17 kinds of toxins and 181 toxin-related unigenes were screened. There is no accurate identification of the differences between male and female scorpions at the molecular level and these need to be further explored. The difference ratio in toxins was 6.08%, and this number in unigenes was 0.78%. There are seventeen toxins and other toxins related genes were analyzed in male and female scorpions, among which the representative phospholipase, makatoxin toxin, and plancitoxin toxin were all related to the biological functions of scorpion martensii. EF chiral domain in phospholipase: helix turn helix is related to calcium channel toxin; The QWAKYGN base sequence contained in makatoxin toxin is α-toxin specific domain; It was found in plancitoxin I toxin that it contains two deoxyribonuclease II active sites, HEK, and DHSK. Since calcium channel toxins are associated with α- toxins belong to neurotoxins. Therefore, phospholipase and makatoxin are both toxins that act on the nervous system, while plancitoxin I toxin has deoxyribonucleotidase II activity and can degrade DNA in mammals. We constructed structure analysis including sequence alignment, 3D modeling, and phylogenetic analysis in phospholipase, makatoxin, and plancitoxin. There was little difference showed in GO and KEGG analysis and the differences ratio in unigenes annotated as toxins was much higher than that in all unigenes. What’s more, the evaluation of toxin activity showed that the toxicity of female scorpion was likely to be higher than that of male scorpion. The method can be used as a useful tool to evaluate the difference between male and female animals.","PeriodicalId":56040,"journal":{"name":"European Zoological Journal","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2022-11-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49135985","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Visual prey categorization by a generalist jumping spider","authors":"Maciej Bartos","doi":"10.1080/24750263.2022.2143583","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/24750263.2022.2143583","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract The majority of jumping spiders are visual hunters that capture a wide range of prey. While they are known to use specific predatory techniques against different prey, their prey identification mechanisms are poorly understood. A generalist jumping spider, Yllenus arenarius, employs different predatory techniques to capture prey with two different escape potentials. The aim of the present study was to identify the characteristics used by the spider to classify prey into one of these categories. Freshly-emerged spiderlings were used in the experiments to analyse pre-programmed visual predatory preferences. The spiders were presented with: a) their natural prey with different escape potentials (flies, thrips, caterpillars) and b) video images constructed from different combinations of features of their natural prey. The images varied with regard to five characteristics: body length (short vs long images), the presence or absence of details (0 or 4 details, including head spot, antennae, legs, wings), the local motion of legs (moving vs still), the type of global motion (crawling vs non-crawling) and the direction of global motion (horizontal motion vs vertical small scale jumps). Prey-specific behaviours indicated which characteristics were used by the spider to ascertain the prey’s escape potentials. Our findings indicate that during visual prey categorization, Y. arenarius can rely solely on general prey characteristics, such as body proportions and the type of prey motion, while ignoring other stimuli, such as the presence of details and the local motion of legs. This mechanism of prey identification, based on these two easily-recognizable prey characteristics, enables fairly quick and precise categorization of a wide range of prey according to their escape potentials. The study shows how generalist jumping spiders can categorize their diverse prey into a limited number of groups and discusses the presence of the mechanism in other jumping spiders and other animals.","PeriodicalId":56040,"journal":{"name":"European Zoological Journal","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2022-11-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41466286","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Biogenic silica in the Posidonia oceanica “matte”, a tool to discover past dynamics of the sponge community","authors":"G. Costa, A. Oprandi, G. Bavestrello, M. Castellano, M. Bertolino","doi":"10.1080/24750263.2022.2140851","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/24750263.2022.2140851","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract The skeleton of most Porifera species consists of siliceous spicules that, after the sponge death, persist for a long time in the sediment. The reduced suspension occurring within the meadows of the seagrass Posidonia oceanica makes these habitats a stable deposit for sponge spicules. Spicules trapped into the network of rhizomes progressively buried, named “matte”, represent a sedimentary sequence interpretable on a temporal scale. By means of a vertical corer we collected samples of sediment at 0.5, 1, 1.5 and 2 m depth along the matte profile in order to quantify the amount of biogenic silica used to assess past dynamics of the sponge community in four P. oceanica meadows of the Ligurian sea. The content in biogenic silica was determined by spectrophotometric analysis of the sediments. While at Prelo Bay the values are constant in the core sample, a general decreasing trend with depth was observed in the meadows of Punta Pedale, while in the site of Punta Manara the major amount of silica was found deeper in the matte. The temporal variations of sponge abundance were probably due to historical anthropogenic factors. In the meadow of Bergeggi, BSi concentrations, significantly lower compared to all other sites, were likely caused from inputs from the close Savona harbor and strong bottom currents avoiding spicule deposition.","PeriodicalId":56040,"journal":{"name":"European Zoological Journal","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2022-11-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47000393","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Future effects of small hive beetle, Aethina tumida, on honey bee colony in Turkey based on temperature factor using a mathematical model","authors":"H. Tutun, Y. Sekerci, S. Sevіn","doi":"10.1080/24750263.2022.2134477","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/24750263.2022.2134477","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Biological invasions are becoming the most serious global environmental threats under changing climate. Beekeeping has faced such invasions with the changing climatic. One of these invaders is the small hive beetle (SHB), which has not yet been encountered in some countries and is currently at a preventable level. SHB can be a highly destructive pest for honey bee colonies, as it damages honey bee comb and larvae, as well as honey and pollen. Although SHB threatens honey bee populations, the impact of climate change on the severity of infestation and its growth rate are still unknown. This apicultural issue is theoretically addressed by using a coupled honey bee–SHB mathematical model in which the rate of SHB growth varies with time to account for changing climate. When the temperature rises, honey bee colonies collapse due to an increase in SHB growth rate, and the severity of the infestation also plays a role in the colony’s survival. This study suggests that in the future, global warming will increase colony losses from SHB and may increase the risk of SHBs spreading to regions where it is currently absent, and precautions should be taken to prevent transmission.","PeriodicalId":56040,"journal":{"name":"European Zoological Journal","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2022-11-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41672506","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Environmental features drive lineage diversification in the Aricidea assimilis species complex (Annelida, Paraonidae) in the Mediterranean Sea","authors":"J. Langeneck, C. Fourreau, M. Rousou, M. Barbieri, F. Maltagliati, L. Musco, A. Castelli","doi":"10.1080/24750263.2022.2138588","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/24750263.2022.2138588","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Individuals identified as Aricidea assimilis Tebble, 1959 were collected from ten localities across the Mediterranean Sea from 0.5 to 225 m depth in order to have a wide coverage of the species habitats and geographic range and to assess the effects of environmental factors and biogeographical barriers on molecular and morphological diversity. Two mitochondrial and one nuclear markers were used to reconstruct phylogenetic relationships and test the occurrence of cryptic species. We observed two highly divergent lineages, one including all individuals from shallow, sandy environments (<10 m depth) and the other with the individuals from deeper muddy bottoms (30–225 m depth). Less pronounced divergence was detected between morphologically distinct brackish-water individuals and the remaining shallow-water individuals. The divergence observed between deep-water and shallow-water lineages is consistent with the hypothesis of distinct species. The ambiguous results of species delimitation tests applied to the two shallow-water sub-lineages might instead suggest a process of incipient speciation, even if this hypothesis needs additional evidence. These results suggest that sediment represents the main factor driving genetic divergence and ultimately cryptic speciation in A. assimilis, while other depth-associated factors and geographical barriers do not seem to significantly contribute to the genetic architecture of this species, suggesting the occurrence of wide-range larval dispersal.","PeriodicalId":56040,"journal":{"name":"European Zoological Journal","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2022-11-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49099914","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Black kites wintering in Europe: estimated number, subspecies status, and behaviour of a bird wintering on Crete and Turkey","authors":"I. Literák, V. Řeháková, S. Xirouchakis, J. Škrábal, V. Starenko","doi":"10.1080/24750263.2022.2137253","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/24750263.2022.2137253","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Black kites of the nominal subspecies Milvus migrans migrans breed in Europe and winter regularly in sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East. As a new phenomenon, black kites with morphological characteristics of the subspecies Milvus migrans lineatus are observed in Europe. Based on observations of black kites in winter 2020/2021 summarized in this paper, based on other recent reports about wintering black kites in Europe and based on juvenile black kite tagged on Crete and tracked for two years, we conclude that hundreds to thousands of black kites are now regularly wintering in south of Europe, and in smaller numbers in other parts of Europe as well as in northern Africa. The growing number of wintering black kites in Europe is apparently caused by members of the population from a hybrid zone between M. m. migrans and M. m. lineatus breeding east of the Urals, i.e. from the area of the European part of Russia. This is consistent with the hypothesis of the spreading of M. m. lineatus and a subsequent hybridization zone between M. m. migrans and M. m. lineatus in a westerly direction from Siberia across continental Europe. Moreover, two black kites found dead on Crete were attributed to M. m. lineatus and M. m. migrans by cytochrome B gene sequence analyses. The juvenile black kite with lineatus features tagged on Crete and telemetrically tracked during the next two years moved to the south-western part of Russia during the next two summers, but did not breed. It spent the following two winters at the same landfill in south-western Turkey. It seems that an adaptation to food sources provided by municipal waste landfills is important for black kites wintering in Europe, the Middle East and Morocco. Highlights • Hundreds to thousands of black kites are now regularly wintering in Europe. • The growing number of wintering black kites is caused by birds from a hybrid zone between Milvus migrans migrans and M. m. lineatus in eastern Europe. • Municipal waste landfills are important as food sources for black kites wintering in Europe.","PeriodicalId":56040,"journal":{"name":"European Zoological Journal","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2022-11-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47111550","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The avoidance of living in the vicinity of a top predator: the coexistence of the black stork and the white-tailed eagle in NE Poland","authors":"G. Zawadzki, J. Zawadzki, S. Drozdowski, D. Zawadzka","doi":"10.1080/24750263.2022.2134478","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/24750263.2022.2134478","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract The black stork Ciconia nigra is a rare species of bird that inhabits old forests near wetlands. The early 21st century has brought a regress of its population in north-eastern Poland. We verified the assumption that an important reason for the observed changes was the colonization of the study area by white-tailed eagle Haliaeetus albicilla, because we observed a correlation between decreasing numbers of the black stork and increasing numbers of the eagle. Based on the long-term monitoring, we analyzed changes in the numbers and distribution of the black storks’ nests and compared the colonization of the study area by the white-tailed eagle in the most extensive forest complex in Poland. We found 42 occupied territories of storks and no eagles in 1989 within the study area. In 2019, there were just 23 stork pairs, but the population of eagles increased to 13. We found a correlation between the rate of decline of the black storks population and the increase in the white-tailed eagles. In the first half of study period, storks’ nests have been distributed randomly, after which they became clustered. The pattern of nests distribution was influenced by the increase in the population of the eagle over time, with this ensuring the aggregation of the nests of storks in places more distant from the nests of eagles. Similarly, the nearest neighbor distance of storks’ nests was dependent on distances from the nests of eagles and the shares of territory accounted for by forests. We surmise that changes in the population size of storks were induced mainly by the growth of population of eagles. Storks avoided occupying nests less than 4.6 km from the eagles’ nests. Our study suggests that the determining role can be played by fear of the predator. Overall, it must be concluded that the protection of top predators can affect other co-occurring species in unexpected ways. Higlights In the Augustów Forest (north-eastern Poland), the number of the black stork Ciconia nigra over 30 years has strongly declined and the distribution of its occupied nests has changed from almost solitary to clustered. The colonization of the study area by the white-tailed eagle Haliaeetus albicilla was a plausible reason for the observed changes. Storks avoided occupying nests less than 4.6 km from the white-tailed eagles’ nests, which can be defined as a safety distance. The determining role can be played by the fear of the predator more than by direct predation.","PeriodicalId":56040,"journal":{"name":"European Zoological Journal","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2022-11-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42621444","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Distribution of Cheyletus mites in dust samples","authors":"Y. Zhou, X. Zhu, Y. Ren, Y. Hui","doi":"10.1080/24750263.2022.2126533","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/24750263.2022.2126533","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Cheyletus, including Cheyletus malaccensis and Cheyletus eruditus and other species, is a predatory mite at genus level. Some studies have reported distribution rates of Cheyletus in dust samples, but their results are inconsistent. The aim of this meta analysis was to comprehensively evaluate the distribution rates of Cheyletus in dust samples. Articles concerning the distribution rates of Cheyletus species in dust samples were searched and screened in electronic databases. The pooled distribution rate with 95% confidence interval (95% CI) were calculated. Thirteen articles were included in this meta-analysis. A total of 15 studies reported the rates of Cheyletus in all mites from dust and the pooled rate was 2.62% (95% CI: 2.32%–2.92%). A total of three studies reported the rates of dust samples with Cheyletus in all dust samples and their pooled rate was 19.82% (95% CI: 5.10%–34.54%). Heterogeneities existed within included studies and source of heterogeneities could not be found though subgroup analyses by species, publication year, sample size of all mites were conducted. There is a low rate of Cheyletus in all mites from dust and a low rate of dust samples with Cheyletus in all dust samples.","PeriodicalId":56040,"journal":{"name":"European Zoological Journal","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2022-11-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44013327","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Apiculture in Hittite cuneiform texts","authors":"Serkan Demirel","doi":"10.1080/24750263.2022.2135782","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/24750263.2022.2135782","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract The Hittite cuneiform texts dated to the 2nd millennium BCE contain some of the earliest information about the production of honey as an economic product and its consumption in daily life, as well as the theological perception of honey bees. Thanks to the information obtained from the texts, the material and spiritual role of apiculture have been tried to be revealed in this paper. According to laws, honey is a commercial product and is traded at a value. In addition, apiculture is a profession made with expert knowledge and the right of ownership of the honey bee colony and hive associated with this profession is legally protected. In the texts giving information about culinary knowledge, honey is added to bread as a sweetening product and used in the production of various sauces and some beverages. The aromatic properties of honey are also known. In this context, it is included in the mixtures used for incense in rituals. Also in rituals, some of its qualities were used in analogical spells. In mythological/religious texts, the honey bee is a creature that brings abundance and fertility in spring. In this context, it plays an important role in myths of finding the Disappearing Gods, the symbol of fertility. At the same time, it represents fertility, peace, and reconciliation as a creature associated with the Sun Goddess of the Earth, another symbol of fertility.","PeriodicalId":56040,"journal":{"name":"European Zoological Journal","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.8,"publicationDate":"2022-11-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45006470","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}