Historical changes in land use influence current habitat preferences of large herbivores

Landscape Ecology - Predicting habitat use patterns is a key issue in the management of large herbivore populations. Particularly, indicators providing a model of the spatial distribution of a...     

水产养殖鱼类生长性状研究进展

生长性状是水产养殖鱼类最重要的经济性状之一,对水产养殖业的发展意义重大。通过以不同的养殖鱼类为对象,大量的研究结果表明,鱼类生长主要受环境、基因,以及基因与环境相互作用的影响,具体为:(1)环境是生长性状调控的外因,其对生长的影响一般呈现出剂量效应的规律。温度、光照、营养等主要环境因子的过量和不足均可能对鱼类生长产生不利影响,因此,寻求最优条件是制定最佳养殖环境的终极目标,人为调控多种环境因子在现代水产养殖业中具有重大的应用潜力。(2)基因是生长性状调控的内因,其对生长的影响很大程度上表现出因果效应的关系。某些基因的单碱基核苷酸多样性、基因结构变异、染色体倍性变化,以及转基因等都表现出对鱼类生长产生统计显著性的影响。鉴于生长是多基因控制的复杂数量性状,寻找主效基因并在选育中加以利用是改良生长性状的重要基础。高通量测序技术在生长相关候选基因的筛选以及辅助分子育种方面展现出强大的优势。(3)基因与环境相互作用的影响主要来自基因型对不同环境条件的适应性,具有特异性和复杂性的特点,因此目前对其量化研究非常有限。但在制定大规模商业育种计划之前,考虑基因与环境相互作用具有重要意义。综上所述,充分理解环境、基因,以及基因与环境相互作用对水产养殖鱼类生长的影响能更好地对其生长性状加以利用,从而最大限度地节约养殖成本和发挥生态效益。     

Achyranthes aspera (Prickly chaff flower) leaves- and seeds-supplemented diets regulate growth,innate immunity,and oxidative stress in Aeromonas hydrophila-challenged Labeo rohita

ABSTRACT

The immunostimulatory and disease-resistance properties of Achyranthes aspera were evaluated in rohu (Labeo rohita) challenged with Aeromonas hydrophila. Experimental diets were enriched with leaves at 0.25% (D1) and 0.5% (D2) and seeds at 0.5% (D3); the control diet (D4) was without any enrichment. Rohu (2.02 ± 0.23 g) were cultured for 75 days and then challenged with bacteria. The highest average weight was observed in the D3 diet-fed fish. The cumulative mortality rates were 70%, 60%, 40%, and 30% in the D4, D1, D2, and D3 diets fed to rohu respectively. Enriched diets significantly increased myeloperoxidase, nitric oxide synthase, and serum lysozyme levels and decreased malondialdehyde and carbonyl protein content. Expressions of lysozyme C and lysozyme G were significantly (P < .05) higher in the D3 diet-fed fish. In the kidney, IL-1β and TLR 4 were up-regulated in enriched-diet-fed fish. Supplementation of seeds and leaves at 0.5% showed a positive impact in fish.     

Conservation needs for the endangered New Zealand sea lion,Phocarctos hookeri

1. Understanding population size and trend is critical information in species management and conservation. To enable accurate population trend estimates, consistent robust monitoring of a species is essential, particularly for a species such as the New Zealand (NZ) sea lion, Phocarctos hookeri , which has experienced an almost continuous decline in pup production since the late 1990s.
2. This research examines the pup production estimates for all known breeding sites for this species, and using a stage‐structured matrix population model, estimates population size and trend between 1995 and 2015.
3. Overall, it is estimated that 2,316 pups were born in 2015, a decrease of 13% since 1995 and a 27% decline since the highest pup production estimate in 1998. This decline has been driven by the significant decline of 48% at the main breeding area, the Auckland Islands since 1998.
4. Using the stage‐structured matrix population model a total species population size of 11,767 sea lions (95% CrI: 10,790–12,923) was estimated. This is the lowest population size of any sea lion species. Trend data for the Auckland Islands indicated that pup and population numbers have decreased at 1.9% yr^?1 in the last 20 yr, while total species population decline is 0.6% yr^?1.
5. Estimates of population trends for this species have been hindered by inconsistent monitoring at most breeding sites. This study strengthens the growing field of research highlighting the need for consistent long‐term monitoring for the conservation management of endangered species.

     

Variation in prey selection and foraging success associated with early‐life ontogeny and habitat use of American paddlefish (Polyodon spathula)

Many fishes are planktivorous during early life and switch to piscivory or consume larger food items as ontogeny progresses. In contrast, paddlefish start as particulate feeders and later become filter feeders. Few studies have identified food items essential for paddlefish growth, survival and recruitment surrounding this ontogenetic diet shift. The objectives of this study were to investigate (i) prey types consumed by paddlefish, (ii) variability in prey selection surrounding an ontogenetic diet shift and (iii) whether habitat affected paddlefish prey selection or foraging success. We analysed gut contents of 189 wild age‐0 paddlefish from the middle Mississippi River (MMR) and also conducted a laboratory experiment to address these objectives. We found that paddlefish primarily foraged on benthic macroinvertebrates in the MMR, which differed from previous studies in lentic systems, suggesting young paddlefish prey selection may be labile depending on habitat (i.e., lotic versus lentic). Dominant prey of wild‐caught and experimental age‐0 paddlefish were caddisfly larvae (Trichoptera), followed by hemipterans and amphipods. We found little evidence that habitat attributes affected foraging success, but the most common prey items consumed were associated with wing dike habitat and the upstream and downstream tips of alluvial islands. Our experimental study revealed that if provided a mixture of organisms, age‐0 paddlefish will primarily consume macroinvertebrates while age‐1 paddlefish will mainly filter zooplankton. Overall results suggest young paddlefish prey selection can be highly variable, but also heavily reliant on a narrow group of prey resources.     

亚洲玉米螟幼虫膜结合海藻糖酶基因RNAi效应

海藻糖是昆虫的血糖，为昆虫提供能量；海藻糖酶催化海藻糖分解为葡萄糖，是几丁质生物合成的原料。围食膜（peritrophic membranes，PMs）是昆虫消化道特有结构，对昆虫消化食物、保护肠道表皮细胞具有重要作用；几丁质是PMs的重要组分。海藻糖酶（trehalase，Tre）和几丁质合成酶（chitin synthase，CHS）是几丁质合成途径的第1个和最后1个酶。本研究通过饲喂亚洲玉米螟（Orstrinia furnacalis，Asian corn borer，ACB）膜结合海藻糖酶（OfMT）基因特异的干扰dsRNA，研究RNAi对ACB幼虫中肠CHSB（OfCHSB）基因表达及幼虫发育的影响。发现处理48 h后，OfMT基因和OfCHSB基因表达量分别下降了52%和53%，幼虫发育迟缓。通过对处理及对照ACB幼虫中肠石蜡切片进行苏木精-伊红染色（hematoxylin-ethanol，HE染色）和几丁质标记，发现血腔内脂肪体组织减小、中肠围食膜组织中几丁质含量减少。推测OfMT基因有可能成为ACB的生物防治的靶标基因。     

Rodent abundance triggered switch between the relative mutualism and predation in a rodent–seed system of the subtropical island forest

Density-dependent non-monotonic species interactions are important in maintaining ecosystem stability and function, but empirical evidences are still rare. Rodents, as both seed dispersers and seed predators, have dual effects on plant regeneration and may result in non-monotonic rodent-plant interactions. According to the non-monotonic models, the relative positive or negative effects of rodents on seedling establishment can be measured based on the positive or negative association of seedling recruitment rate and rodent abundance. In this study, we investigated the fates of acorns of Quercus serrata by tracking tagged seeds on 21 fragmented subtropical islands in the Thousand Island Lake, China. We found that the proportion of germinated seeds of all released seeds showed a dome-shaped association with rodent abundance per seed. The proportion of removed seeds and cached seeds showed a saturated- and a weak dome-shaped association with rodent abundance per seed, respectively. Our results demonstrated a clear empirical evidence that rodent abundance per seed triggered a switch between the relative mutualism and predation in a rodent–seed system. Our study implied that the observed non-monotonic interactions between plants and animals may play a significant role in maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem function. We appeal for more investigations of the complex non-monotonic interactions in various ecosystems.     

Major ascaroside pheromone component asc-C5 influences reproductive plasticity among isolates of the invasive species pinewood nematode

Pheromones are communication chemicals and regulatory signals used by animals and represent unique tools for organisms to mediate behaviors and make “decisions” to maximize their fitness. Phenotypic plasticity refers to the innate capacity of a species to tolerate a greater breadth of environmental conditions across which it adapts to improve its survival, reproduction, and fitness. The pinewood nematode, Bursaphelenchus xylophilus, an invasive nematode species, was accidentally introduced from North America into Japan, China, and Europe; however, few studies have investigated its pheromones and phenotypic plasticity as a natural model. Here, we demonstrated a novel phenomenon, in which nematodes under the condition of pheromone presence triggered increased reproduction in invasive strains (JP1, JP2, CN1, CN2, EU1, and EU2), while it simultaneously decreased reproduction in native strains (US1 and US2). The bidirectional effect on fecundity, mediated by presence/absence of pheromones, is henceforth termed pheromone-regulative reproductive plasticity (PRRP). We further found that synthetic ascaroside asc-C5 (ascr#9), the major pheromone component, plays a leading role in PRRP and identified 2 candidate receptor genes, Bxydaf-38 and Bxysrd-10, involved in perceiving asc-C5. These results suggest that plasticity of reproductive responses to pheromones in pinewood nematode may increase its fitness in novel environments following introduction. This opens up a new perspective for invasion biology and presents a novel strategy of invasion, suggesting that pheromones, in addition to their traditional roles in chemical signaling, can influence the reproductive phenotype among native and invasive isolates. In addition, this novel mechanism could broadly explain, through comparative studies of native and invasive populations of animals, a potential underlying factor behind of the success of other biological invasions.     

Two Complete Mitochondrial Genomes From Leuctridae (Plecoptera: Nemouroidea): Implications for the Phylogenetic Relationships Among Stoneflies

The family-level relationships within Plecoptera have been a focused area of research for a long time. Its higher classification remains unstable, and the phylogenetic relationships within Plecoptera should be re-examined. Here, we sequenced and analyzed two complete mitochondrial genomes (mitogenomes) of Paraleuctra cercia and Perlomyia isobeae of the family Leuctridae. We reconstructed the phylogeny of Plecoptera based on 13 protein-coding genes (PCGs) from published stoneflies. Our results showed that the Bayesian inference and maximum-likelihood tree had similar topological structures except for the positions of two families, Peltoperlidae and Scopuridae. The Plecoptera is divided into two clades, the suborder Antarctoperlaria and the suborder Arctoperlaria. The two suborders subsequently formed two groups, Eusthenioidea and Gripopterygoidea, and Euholognatha and Systellognatha, which is consistent with the results of morphological studies. In addition, the Leuctridae is the earliest branch within the superfamily Nemouroidea. But the monophyly of Perloidea and Pteronarcyoidea are still not well supported.