Molecular cloning and tissue distribution of a short form chicken leptin receptor mRNA

In mammals, alternative splicing of the leptin receptor (LEPR) produces several C-terminal truncated isoforms that are believed to play a role in the transport, cellular internalisation and degradation of the hormone leptin. The chicken leptin receptor (chLEPR) is similar to its mammalian counterparts in terms of its intron/exon structure and conserved motifs. However, it is unknown whether the chLEPR also undergoes alternative splicing. To test this, structural analysis of intron 19 of the chLEPR, equivalent to the intron in which alternative splicing occurs in mammals, was combined with 3'-rapid amplification of cDNA ends (3'-RACE) to search for chLEPR splice variants. A 44-amino acid alternative exon 20 was identified that is spliced to generate a short isoform of the chLEPR (chLEPR-SF). Comparative sequence analysis of intron 19 identified two regions that are highly conserved between the chicken and mammals, indicating their possible importance as intronic elements in the regulation of alternative splicing of the LEPR in vertebrates. Tissue expression of the chLEPR-SF was lower and more restricted than that of the chLEPR long isoform. Collectively these data demonstrate that the chLEPR is alternatively spliced to produce at least one short isoform, as is the case in mammals.     

21世纪头十年徐州市鸟类种群变化

对徐州市1999年和2012年间鸟的种类和数量变化进行了分析.两次调查结果表明,总的种数变化不大,但种的组成变化较大,两次调查中均出现的种仅占总种数的50％左右.     

成都港两侧秋季鸟类资源调查

2013年9月至2013年11月,采用样线法对乐山市五通桥区冠英镇和牛华镇的鸟类资源进行了调查.共记录到冠英镇鸟类28种,隶属5目17科.牛华镇共记录到鸟类35种,隶属6目19科.多样性分析表明,冠英镇农田生境多样性指数最高（2.645）,牛华镇水域生境均匀度指数最高（0.949）,2个镇的水域生境之间的相似性最低（0.476）.冠英镇水域生境鸟类群落不稳定,对岷江河应采取一定的保护措施.     

鸟类的语言

正如人类的语言活动一样，发声是自然界中动物进行种群及个体识别，信息交流的重要工 具。它在动物生存竞争中具有极为重要的意义。鸟类利用发声进行种间的识别、求偶、觅食、报警、筑巢等活动。鸣声中包含有丰富的生物学信息，而被称为鸟类的语言，鸟类鸣叫是其种祖特征之一。鸟类的鸣叫和鸣唱依赖于发育完善的鸣管并接受脑各级发声中枢组成的机能控制系统的调控。在鸣禽脑中还存在着鸣唱学习通路。     

Responses of Chilean forest birds to anthropogenic habitat fragmentation across spatial scales

Although it is recognized that anthropogenic forest fragmentation affects habitat use by organisms across multiple spatial scales, there is uncertainty about these effects. We used a hierarchical sampling design spanning three spatial scales of habitat variability (landscape > patch > within-patch) and generalized mixed-effect models to assess the scale-dependent responses of bird species to fragmentation in temperate forests of southern Chile. The abundances of nine of 20 bird species were affected by interactions across spatial scales. These interactions resulted in a limited effect of within-patch habitat structure on the abundance of birds in landscapes with low forest cover, suggesting that suitable local habitats, such as sites with dense understory cover or large trees, are underutilized or remain unused in highly fragmented landscapes. Habitat specialists and cavity-nesters, such as tree-trunk foragers and tapaculos, were most likely to exhibit interactions across spatial scales. Because providing additional sites with dense understory vegetation or large habitat trees does not compensate the negative effect of the loss of forest area on bird species, conservation strategies should ensure the retention of native forest patches in the mixed-use landscapes.     

Seed removal by ants,birds and rodents in a woodland savanna habitat in Zimbabwe

Seed removal from bait stations was studied in miombo habitat in western Zimbabwe. Previous studies of seed predation in southern Africa have largely been conducted in desert ecosystems. However, this woodland-savanna habitat is more mesic and has relatively predictable rainfall patterns. The experiment was conducted in grassy and woody microhabitats in the hot, dry season and early wet season, and followed a year in which precipitation was 69 % of the long-term average. Birds removed the greatest quantity of seeds, followed by ants and then rodents. Previous studies in northern hemisphere mesic environments emphasize the importance of rodents and minor role of invertebrates in seed predation. Although our site appears to have more in common with southern hemisphere desert sites than with northern hemisphere mesic sites, we recognize that our results are likely to reflect a lower limit of consumption by rodents.     

2008年持续低温降雪冻雨对梁子湖流域鸟类的影响调查

2008年1月,梁子湖流域遭遇历时罕见的持续低温降雪冻雨极端天气,304km~2梁子湖冰冻封湖15 d。地面持续冰雪覆盖,导致鸟类生境结构破坏,生境资源不可利用,最终因长时间食物匮乏和冷害的双重影响出现严重灾害性死亡。涉及鸟类22科42种,流域内数量损失30万～40万只。     

Turloughs - Ireland’s unique wetland habitat

Turloughs are karst wetland ecosystems that are virtually unique to Ireland. Flooding annually in autumn through springs and fissures in the underlying limestone and draining in the springtime, often through the same fissures or swallow-holes, they have been described as ‘temporal ecotones’. Over 300 have been documented. They are priority habitats in the EU Habitats Directive and support a variety of wet grassland and fen type vegetation. Though the vegetation has been recorded and mapped for over 80 turloughs, records for invertebrates are more sporadic. Characteristic species include some aquatic species-often benefiting from the absence of fish-, and many wetland terrestrial species, including carabid beetles that are rare on a European scale. Due to their shallow nature and the full vegetation cover of the basin, turloughs can host internationally significant numbers of visiting winter wildfowl, particularly whooper swans. The variety of plant and invertebrate communities between turloughs is primarily due to different hydrogeomorphological characteristics, but also depends on the range of grazing practices on turloughs. Since these often vary within a turlough basin, this helps maintain within-turlough biodiversity. The main threat to turloughs in the past was drainage, but pollution by nutrients is also now potentially detrimental. However, a more recent and important threat may be the cessation of farming within turloughs. As potentially threatened wetlands of European importance, turloughs require a full inventory of their biodiversity and the factors affecting it. The collation here of all literature concerning turloughs will provide a basis for an integrated approach to future research on turloughs that is essential for a full understanding of these complex ecosystems.     

Small isolated aspen stands enrich bird communities in southwestern ponderosa pine forests

Small aspen stands are disappearing from the landscape in the Southwest, so it is important to understand their contribution to the avian community. We sampled birds in 53 small, isolated aspen stands and 53 paired plots within the ponderosa pine forest in northern Arizona, during the 1996 and 1997 breeding seasons. Bird species richness and abundance were higher in aspen than in pine. However, bird species richness and abundance did not vary with size of the aspen patch or isolation index. In addition, direct ordination of species distributions with habitat factors suggested no distinct avian communities. This suggests that aspen stands do not harbor separate populations, but rather are locations where the regional avifauna reaches high local density and richness and may be crucial to birds in years of resource scarcity. Thus it is important for avian conservation to maintain many aspen stands across the landscape, encompassing a diversity of vegetation structure and composition.     

Winter flocking behaviour of speckled warblers and the Allee effect

The aggregation of individuals into foraging flocks is one behavioural trait that, if disrupted, can cause the Allee effect, which is a slowing in population growth at low density or small population size, and this can greatly increase the risk of extinction. Here, I describe intraspecific flocking behaviour of a colour-banded population of speckled warblers, Chthonicola sagittata, a species that has declined across a large part of its range in the fragmented temperate woodlands of Australia. I make predictions about the context in which the Allee effect might be expressed and the consequences for the viability of populations living in small habitat remnants. Speckled warblers lived in discrete, stable social groups throughout winter, the nucleus of which was the residents from one or more adjacent breeding territories. The timing and mode of flock formation and the size of flocks varied between two winters, apparently in response to the severity of conditions; thus flocking probably facilitates increased foraging efficiency and predator detection, potentially leading to increased survival in harsh conditions. Because flock territories were up to 30 ha each, and larger territories are likely, birds living in remnants smaller than 40 ha may suffer increased mortality if there are too few birds available to form flocks of an appropriate size to facilitate the benefits of grouping when conditions are most extreme. Further, in small remnants where survival is reduced, dominance behaviour and male-male competition may act to compound the Allee effect by reducing reproductive success. Regardless of these predictions, speckled warbler populations may only be viable in remnants that are large enough to support multiple flocks, to enable rapid recruitment to breeding vacancies and thus provide adequate numbers of birds for flocking.