Biology LettersPub Date : 2024-10-01Epub Date: 2024-10-23DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2024.0360
Natsuko Rivera-Yoshida, Alejandro V Arzola, Mariana Benítez
{"title":"Unravelling a diversity of cellular structures and aggregation dynamics during the early development of <i>Myxococcus xanthus</i>.","authors":"Natsuko Rivera-Yoshida, Alejandro V Arzola, Mariana Benítez","doi":"10.1098/rsbl.2024.0360","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2024.0360","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Aggregation underlies the collective dynamics of a diversity of organisms, enabling the formation of complex structures and emergent behaviours on interaction with the environment. Cellular aggregation constitutes one of the routes to collective motility and multicellular development. <i>Myxococcus xanthus</i>, a social bacterium, is a valuable model for studying the aggregative path to multicellularity, a major transition in the evolutionary history of life. While the collective developmental behaviour of <i>M. xanthus</i> has been largely studied in high cellular densities, there is a lack of understanding at low-density conditions that can be ecologically relevant. In this work, we study the early stages of emergent collective behaviour of <i>M. xanthus</i> under nutrient-poor and low-density conditions, uncovering the formation of diverse cellular structures with different shapes and sizes, ranging from individual cells to networks comprising thousands of cells. We study their motility patterns and their prevalence along development and discuss their cross-scale role on the population's exploratory dynamics. This work contributes to understanding key, yet largely understudied, aspects in the early stages of multicellular development in myxobacteria, shedding light on the dynamics underlying aggregative processes in this and other taxa and study systems.</p>","PeriodicalId":9005,"journal":{"name":"Biology Letters","volume":"20 10","pages":"20240360"},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11496945/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142494601","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}
Biology LettersPub Date : 2024-10-01Epub Date: 2024-10-02DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2024.0295
Jake M Robinson, Amy Annells, Christian Cando-Dumancela, Martin F Breed
{"title":"Sonic restoration: acoustic stimulation enhances plant growth-promoting fungi activity.","authors":"Jake M Robinson, Amy Annells, Christian Cando-Dumancela, Martin F Breed","doi":"10.1098/rsbl.2024.0295","DOIUrl":"10.1098/rsbl.2024.0295","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Ecosystem restoration interventions often utilize visible elements to restore an ecosystem (e.g. replanting native plant communities and reintroducing lost species). However, using acoustic stimulation to help restore ecosystems and promote plant growth has received little attention. Our study aimed to assess the effect of acoustic stimulation on the growth rate and sporulation of the plant growth-promoting fungus <i>Trichoderma harzianum</i> Rifai, 1969. We played a monotone acoustic stimulus (80 dB sound pressure level (SPL) at a peak frequency of 8 kHz and a bandwidth at -10 dB from the peak of 6819 Hz-parameters determined via review and pilot research) over 5 days to <i>T. harzianum</i> to assess whether acoustic stimulation affected the growth rate and sporulation of this fungus (control samples received only ambient sound stimulation less than 30 dB). We show that the acoustic stimulation treatments resulted in increased fungal biomass and enhanced <i>T. harzianum</i> conidia (spore) activity compared to controls. These results indicate that acoustic stimulation influences plant growth-promoting fungal growth and potentially facilitates their functioning (e.g. stimulating sporulation). The mechanism responsible for this phenomenon may be fungal mechanoreceptor stimulation and/or potentially a piezoelectric effect; however, further research is required to confirm this hypothesis. Our novel study highlights the potential of acoustic stimulation to alter important fungal attributes, which could, with further development, be harnessed to aid ecosystem restoration and sustainable agriculture.</p>","PeriodicalId":9005,"journal":{"name":"Biology Letters","volume":"20 10","pages":"20240295"},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11444772/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142364297","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}
Biology LettersPub Date : 2024-10-01Epub Date: 2024-10-09DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2024.0357
Xiaoyu Yang, M Teresa Aguado, Jie Yang, Christoph Bleidorn
{"title":"A burrowing annelid from the early Cambrian.","authors":"Xiaoyu Yang, M Teresa Aguado, Jie Yang, Christoph Bleidorn","doi":"10.1098/rsbl.2024.0357","DOIUrl":"10.1098/rsbl.2024.0357","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Soft-bodied fossils of annelids from the Cambrian are relatively rare but provide vital insights into the early evolution and diversification of annelids. Here we describe a new annelid, <i>Xiaoshibachaeta biodiversa</i> gen. et sp. nov., from the early Cambrian (Stage 3) Xiaoshiba biota of Kunming, Yunnan Provence, China. This worm is obliquely oriented in the sediment, and is characteristic of a cephalic cage-like structure formed by the anteriorly directed parapodia and long chaetae of chaetiger 1, strongly suggesting an endobenthic lifestyle. This first report of an annelid worm from the Xiaoshiba biota provides the earliest known plausible evidence of burrowing behaviour in Annelida. Phylogenetic analyses recover <i>X. biodiversa</i> in the polytomy with other crown-group Annelida, indicating that the evolution of cephalic cage in Annelida is most likely convergent.</p>","PeriodicalId":9005,"journal":{"name":"Biology Letters","volume":"20 10","pages":"20240357"},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11461068/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142387710","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}
Biology LettersPub Date : 2024-10-01Epub Date: 2024-10-23DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2024.0415
Jody-Carynn Oliver, Peter Shum, Stefano Mariani, Kerry Jennifer Sink, Ryan Palmer, Gwynneth Felicity Matcher
{"title":"Enhancing African coelacanth monitoring using environmental DNA.","authors":"Jody-Carynn Oliver, Peter Shum, Stefano Mariani, Kerry Jennifer Sink, Ryan Palmer, Gwynneth Felicity Matcher","doi":"10.1098/rsbl.2024.0415","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2024.0415","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Coelacanths are rare, elusive, ancient lobe-finned fish species, residing in poorly accessible tropical marine caves and requiring close monitoring and protection. Environmental DNA (eDNA) approaches are being increasingly applied in the detection of rare and threatened species. Here we devise an eDNA approach to detect the presence of African coelacanths (<i>Latimeria chalumnae</i>) off the eastern coast of South Africa. Novel coelacanth-specific primers were designed to avoid cross-amplification with other fish lineages and validated for specificity. These primers were tested on field samples in conjunction with remotely operated vehicle (ROV) visual surveys. Samples were collected from a known coelacanth habitat and two adjacent slope habitats a few kilometres apart. Coelacanth DNA was detected from three of 15 samples collected. Two of these positive eDNA detections occurred in the presence of coelacanths, as evidenced by ROV footage, while the third positive detection was at a station where coelacanths had not been previously observed. eDNA detections are discussed in relation to the species' metabolic rate, movement patterns and population size, as well as the local oceanographic features. We demonstrate that eDNA can provide a non-invasive method to extend the knowledge of coelacanth distribution ranges and boost research efforts around these iconic fishes.</p>","PeriodicalId":9005,"journal":{"name":"Biology Letters","volume":"20 10","pages":"20240415"},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11496946/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142494653","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}
Biology LettersPub Date : 2024-10-01Epub Date: 2024-10-09DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2024.0228
Sarah E Giancola-Detmering, Robyn J Crook
{"title":"Stress produces negative judgement bias in cuttlefish.","authors":"Sarah E Giancola-Detmering, Robyn J Crook","doi":"10.1098/rsbl.2024.0228","DOIUrl":"10.1098/rsbl.2024.0228","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Judgement bias tasks (JBTs) are used to assess the emotional state and welfare of animals in zoos, farms and laboratories, based on the interpretation of an ambiguous or intermediate cue. Animals in positive affective states are more likely to interpret the ambiguous cue positively, whereas animals experiencing negative affect are more likely to interpret ambiguous cues pessimistically. Here, we developed a modified JBT assay for the stumpy-spined cuttlefish, <i>Sepia bandensis</i>, to determine whether cuttlefish exhibit negative affective states resulting from external stressors. Positive and neutral visual cues were presented twice daily until animals learned to associate food with the reinforced visual cue. After training, one treatment group was exposed to combined exposure and handling stress produced by 6 days of impoverished housing and simulated net capture. Our control group received no stress experience. In test trials performed after the stress experience, stressed animals showed higher latencies to approach ambiguous cues, spent significantly less time in rooms with ambiguous cues once they entered, and were less likely to enter first into the ambiguous cue-paired room compared with controls. These behaviours suggest that stress induces pessimistic judgement bias in cuttlefish, the first indication of this capacity in cephalopods.</p>","PeriodicalId":9005,"journal":{"name":"Biology Letters","volume":"20 10","pages":"20240228"},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11461914/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142387712","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}
Biology LettersPub Date : 2024-10-01Epub Date: 2024-10-02DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2024.0384
Patrick Grof-Tisza, Ted C J Turlings, Carlos Bustos-Segura, Betty Benrey
{"title":"Field evidence for the role of plant volatiles induced by caterpillar oral secretion in prey localization by predatory social wasps.","authors":"Patrick Grof-Tisza, Ted C J Turlings, Carlos Bustos-Segura, Betty Benrey","doi":"10.1098/rsbl.2024.0384","DOIUrl":"10.1098/rsbl.2024.0384","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>One assumed function of herbivore-induced plant volatiles (HIPVs) is to attract natural enemies of the inducing herbivores. Field evidence for this is scarce. In addition, the assumption that elicitors in oral secretions that trigger the volatile emissions are essential for the attraction of natural enemies has not yet been demonstrated under field conditions. After observing predatory social wasps removing caterpillars from maize plants, we hypothesized that these wasps use HIPVs to locate their prey. To test this, we conducted an experiment that simultaneously explored the importance of caterpillar oral secretions in the interaction. <i>Spodoptera</i> caterpillars pinned onto mechanically damaged plants treated with oral secretion were more likely to be attacked by wasps compared with caterpillars on plants that were only mechanically wounded. Both of the latter treatments were considerably more attractive than plants only treated with oral secretion or left untreated. Subsequent analyses of headspace volatiles confirmed differences in emitted volatiles that likely account for the differential predation across treatments. These findings highlight the importance of HIPVs in prey localization by social wasps, hitherto underappreciated potential biocontrol agents and provide evidence for the role that elicitors play in inducing attractive odour blends.</p>","PeriodicalId":9005,"journal":{"name":"Biology Letters","volume":"20 10","pages":"20240384"},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11444782/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142364295","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}
Biology LettersPub Date : 2024-10-01Epub Date: 2024-10-16DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2024.0166
Tatiana Ferrer, Peter Boveng, Donna D W Hauser, David Withrow, Vladimir Burkanov, Thomas P Quinn, Greg O'Corry-Crowe
{"title":"Genetic and evolutionary divergence of harbour seals (<i>Phoca vitulina</i>) in Iliamna Lake, Alaska.","authors":"Tatiana Ferrer, Peter Boveng, Donna D W Hauser, David Withrow, Vladimir Burkanov, Thomas P Quinn, Greg O'Corry-Crowe","doi":"10.1098/rsbl.2024.0166","DOIUrl":"10.1098/rsbl.2024.0166","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Freshwater populations of typically marine species present unique opportunities to investigate biodiversity, evolutionary divergence, and the adaptive potential and niche width of species. A few pinniped species have populations that reside solely in freshwater. The harbour seals inhabiting Iliamna Lake, Alaska constitute one such population. Their remoteness, however, has long hindered scientific inquiry. We used DNA from seal scat and tissue samples provided by Indigenous hunters to screen for mitochondrial DNA and microsatellite variation within Iliamna Lake and eight regions across the Pacific Ocean. The Iliamna seals (i) were substantially and significantly discrete from all other populations ( <i>[Formula: see text]F</i> <sub>st-mtDNA</sub> = 0.544, <i>[Formula: see text]Φ</i> <sub>st</sub> <i><sub>-</sub></i> <sub>mtDNA</sub> = 0.541, <i>[Formula: see text]F</i> <sub>st-microsatellites</sub> = 0.308), (ii) formed a discrete genetic cluster separate from all marine populations (modal ∆<i>k</i> = 2, PC1 = 14.8%), had (iii) less genetic diversity (Hd, <i>π</i>, <i>H</i> <sub>exp</sub>), and (iv) higher inbreeding (<i>F</i>) than marine populations. These findings are both striking and unexpected revealing that Iliamna seals have likely been on a separate evolutionary trajectory for some time and may represent a unique evolutionary legacy for the species. Attention must now be given to the selective processes driving evolutionary divergence from harbour seals in marine habitats and to ensuring the future of the Iliamna seal.</p>","PeriodicalId":9005,"journal":{"name":"Biology Letters","volume":"20 10","pages":"20240166"},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11523099/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142457342","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}
Biology LettersPub Date : 2024-10-01Epub Date: 2024-10-30DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2024.0378
Chedhawat Chokechaipaisarn, Andy Gardner
{"title":"Density-dependent dispersal reduces conflict over the sex ratio.","authors":"Chedhawat Chokechaipaisarn, Andy Gardner","doi":"10.1098/rsbl.2024.0378","DOIUrl":"10.1098/rsbl.2024.0378","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Haplodiploids-in particular, wasps-are the workhorses of sex-allocation research. This is owing to their unusual system of sex determination, which provides a ready means of sex ratio adjustment. Notably, their sexually asymmetrical mode of genetic inheritance leads mothers and fathers to come into conflict over the sex ratio of their offspring. In the simplest outbreeding scenario, a mother is favoured to employ an even sex ratio while a father prefers that all his mate's offspring are female. An important modulator of evolutionary conflict between mating partners is genetic relatedness, raising the possibility that this sex ratio conflict is reduced in low-dispersal settings with mating occurring between relatives. However, the impact of population viscosity on sex ratio conflict in haplodiploids remains unknown. Here, we develop and analyse a kin-selection model to investigate how the rate of dispersal modulates sex ratio conflict in a haplodiploid, viscous population setting. We find that population viscosity is associated with a reduction in the extent of sex ratio conflict-the effect being very weak under density-independent dispersal and much stronger under density-dependent dispersal.</p>","PeriodicalId":9005,"journal":{"name":"Biology Letters","volume":"20 10","pages":"20240378"},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11521607/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142543471","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}
Biology LettersPub Date : 2024-10-01Epub Date: 2024-10-16DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2024.0335
Phoebe A Koenig, Corrie S Moreau
{"title":"Acorn ant exhibits age-dependent induced defence in response to parasitic raids.","authors":"Phoebe A Koenig, Corrie S Moreau","doi":"10.1098/rsbl.2024.0335","DOIUrl":"10.1098/rsbl.2024.0335","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>When risk is unpredictable, organisms may evolve induced defenses, which are activated after an indication of increased risk. In colonies with behavioural specialization, investment in defence may not be uniformly beneficial among group members. Instead, it should depend on the individual's likelihood of participating in defence. The ant <i>Temnothorax longispinosus</i> uses venom to defend against raids by the social parasite <i>Temnothorax americanus</i>. We tested whether <i>T. longispinosus</i> upregulate investment in venom after experiencing a raid, investigating the relationship between venom volume and worker behavioural caste. Overall, raided colonies had more venom per capita than unraided colonies. When divided into behavioural castes, foragers had more venom after experiencing a raid, while nurses did not. These results demonstrate that <i>T. longispinosus</i> have an induced chemical defence against parasitic raids. However, instead of this defence being deployed uniformly among all workers, the induction of the defence depends on the behavioural caste, and therefore age, of the worker, implying that plasticity in venom production increases with age. Since older social insect workers tend to perform riskier tasks, inducibility may align with an increase in expected risk of death, especially if foragers are more likely to defend the colony against parasites than younger workers.</p>","PeriodicalId":9005,"journal":{"name":"Biology Letters","volume":"20 10","pages":"20240335"},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11523098/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142457341","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}
Biology LettersPub Date : 2024-10-01Epub Date: 2024-10-30DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2024.0429
Paul Upchurch, Alfio Alessandro Chiarenza
{"title":"A brief review of non-avian dinosaur biogeography: state-of-the-art and prospectus.","authors":"Paul Upchurch, Alfio Alessandro Chiarenza","doi":"10.1098/rsbl.2024.0429","DOIUrl":"10.1098/rsbl.2024.0429","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Dinosaurs potentially originated in the mid-palaeolatitudes of Gondwana 245-235 million years ago (Ma) and may have been restricted to cooler, humid areas by low-latitude arid zones until climatic amelioration made northern dispersals feasible <i>ca</i> 215 Ma. However, this scenario is challenged by new Carnian Laurasian fossils and evidence that even the earliest dinosaurs had adaptations for arid conditions. After becoming globally distributed in the Early-Middle Jurassic (200-160 Ma), dinosaurs experienced vicariance driven by Pangaean fragmentation. Regional extinctions and trans-oceanic dispersals also played a role, and the formation of ephemeral land connections meant that older vicariance patterns were repeatedly overprinted by younger ones, creating a reticulate biogeographic history. Palaeoclimates shaped dispersal barriers and corridors, including filters that had differential effects on different types of dinosaurs. Dinosaurian biogeographic research faces many challenges, not the least of which is the patchiness of the fossil record. However, new fossils, extensive databasing and improved analytical methods help distinguish signal from noise and generate fresh perspectives. In the future, developing techniques for quantifying and ameliorating sampling biases and modelling the dispersal capacities of dinosaurs are likely to be two of the key components in our modern research programme.</p>","PeriodicalId":9005,"journal":{"name":"Biology Letters","volume":"20 10","pages":"20240429"},"PeriodicalIF":2.8,"publicationDate":"2024-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11529633/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142543470","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}