#Sex determiner gene of honey bee more complicated than thoughtbee colonies consist of a queen bee lots of female worker bees and some male drones.
The queen bee who in the course of their mating flight mate with different drones multiple times passes on to fertilized eggs a random combinations of two csd copies so-called alleles.
These are eaten however by worker bees after they hatch. Up until now it was assumed that there were up to 20 csd alleles.
PD Dr. Martin Hasselmann has been the director of the research group Population Genetics of Social Insects at the University of Cologne as a DFG Heisenberg stipendiary since May 2012.
His research foci include the social insects honey bees bumble bees and stingless bees the unique biology
As well as helping to feed these birds YPC could partially replace the fish meal used on commercial fish farms.
#Green flame moths: Scientists discover two new Limacodidae species from China and Taiwanthe representatives of the Limacodidae moth family are widely known as slug moths due to the resemblance of their stunningly colored caterpillars to slug species. Within this popular family the Parasa undulata group is perhaps one of the most intriguing due to the beautiful
green wing pattern typical for those species. In a recent revision published in the open access journal Zookeys scientists describe two new species from the group
and provide a first record of a conifer-feeding caterpillar. The two new species Parasa viridiflamma and Parasa minwangi described from China
The scientists provide the first record of a caterpillar from the group feeding exclusively on pine trees Picea morrisonicola in Taiwan.
This case represents the first record of conifer-feeding behavior in this family as well as the first specialist herbivore in the genus. Meanwhile the background match between Picea leaves
and larval colouration is shared with other Picea-feeding insects. This phenomenon is worth further investigation in the aspect of convergent evolution of crypsis
#Earthworms invade New Englandbeavers reshape landscapes with their dams. Wolves control elk populations. Sea otters protect kelp forests by eating sea urchins.
These are what ecologists call keystone species: critters that control an ecosystem and have a disproportionate impact on other species. And in the forests of New england
what are the keystone species? Put earthworms on the list. Kudzu vines grow madly covering power lines.
Zebra mussels muscle-out native mussels in Lake Champlain. Burmese pythons devastate local wildlife in the Everglades.
These are invasive species: nonnative animals and plants carried by people into new locations that take hold disrupting
and reshaping local ecosystems. And in the forests of New england what are the invasive species?
Put earthworms on that list too. None of the earthworms in New england's forests are native.
There are sixteen earthworm species reported in Vermont --and they're all exotic; fourteen are European
and two are Asian. And many of these worms are invaders spreading silently underground. Perhaps ten or eleven are invasive says Josef Gorres a professor at the University of Vermont.
He's an earthwormologist says Don Ross with a wry smile. But the research project Ross is leading is no joke.
Also a professor at UVM Ross a soil chemist wants to better understand the effects of all these earthworms on the soils of New england's Northern Forest.
He and Gorres know the worms are upsetting forest ecosystems --and they also think the worms have a role to play in global climate change.
But what that role is--good guy or villain? --they're not sure. Earthworm excretawhich is why on a gentle hillside in the town forest of Hinesburg Vt.
Ross Gorres three other scientists and five students dig a hole in the ground. Surrounding them a stand of youngish trees--paper birch sugar maple white ash--forms a pleasing green glow.
And that's where the earthworms come in. Graduate student Meghan Knowles holds up a clump of soil.
Most of this is earthworm poop because this is such a highly invaded site she says. Most of this soil has been processed by earthworms.
Then she teases apart the clump. We're sifting through the litter to try to find earthworms
and then we're going to look for middens--mounds--that are an indication of deep burrowing species she says.
In a forest like this without worms there would first be a duff layer which is a spongy bouncy layer above the deeper mineral soils
The worms have eaten literally it. Carbon on balancethis efficient decomposition is why home gardeners love earthworms:
they break down organic matter releasing nutrients. But in a New england forest they're not so benign
The worms also release carbon dioxide as they eat adding to the forest's carbon emissions.
It might seem that earthworms are all villain in the drama that is the global carbon cycle.
When the earthworms first invade they change things dramatically and there is a big carbon loss
As these earthworms move through the soil they're ingesting mineral particles along with organic particles glomming them together inside their digestive track.
So the question is Gorres asks over the long run do earthworms create a negative balance or positive balance on carbon?
Earthworms create these stable aggregate structures says Knowles who is doing a lot of the digging and lab work to get to the bottom of this question.
And so I'm trying to quantitatively distinguish between what earthworms are creating and what is already here to figure out
if earthworms are increasing that physical protection of carbon. Land use historyrecent studies in the Northern Forest have shown that land use changes--like agricultural abandonment
And how much does the current earthworm invasion threaten these gains? It's hard to say.
The presumption is that the first agricultural immigrants brought earthworms with them says historical ecologist Charlie Cogbill one of the scientists on this project
but we don't know where the baseline is without worms. In any case both Cogbill and Don Ross say land use history had a huge effect on the current status of the forest
and also probably on whether an area has earthworms today. The eighteen plots the team is studying intensively have widely varying amounts of belowground carbon
--and preliminary data show about half of them appear to have earthworms in them. That variability likely reflects differing land use histories.
Many of the forests here developed in the presence of earthworms when ag land was abandoned Gorres says.
and did not have any earthworms. There are many variables of soil type specific type and intensity of land use practice microclimate and others that make each site different.
In Vermont and New england the earthworm distribution is very patchy says Gorres. In some places earthworms are abundant.
Then step three meters in another direction and there is a complete forest floor and no earthworms.
Why is that? Nobody has really been able to answer that. This project may not be able to answer that question
either but it does seek to broadly survey the extent of the worm invasion across Vermont
--and to better understand how the interaction between earthworm activity and land use history influences the amount of carbon in the soil.
They may also have an effect on the likelihood of earthworm invasion. Human-generated carbon
I've been brought in to this earthworm project to try to figure out: is there a carbon market connection?
of an invasive earthworm. Story Source: The above story is provided based on materials by University of Vermont.
#Americans would pay to help monarch butterfliesamericans place high value on butterfly royalty. A recent study suggests they are willing to support monarch butterfly conservation at high levels up to about 6 billion dollars
if extrapolated to all U s. households. If even a small percentage of the population acted upon this reported willingness the cumulative effort would likely translate into a large untapped potential for conservation of the iconic butterfly.
Monarch butterfly populations have been declining across Mexico California and other areas of the United states since 1999.
A 2012 survey at the wintering grounds of monarchs in Mexico showed the lowest colony size ever recorded.
The multigenerational migration of the monarch butterfly is considered one of the world's most spectacular natural events said Jay Diffendorfer a USGS scientist and the study's lead author.
Much of the decline in monarch numbers has been blamed on the loss of milkweed the native plants on which monarch caterpillars feed.
This is the first nationwide published economic valuation survey of the general public for an insect.
The study indicates that economic values of monarch butterflies are potentially large enough to mobilize people for conservation planting
Unfortunately many plants purchased by gardeners have been treated with systemic insecticides that can kill both pollinators that consume the nectar
and caterpillars like monarchs that eat the leaves. This study shows that not only might consumers pay more for monarch-friendly milkweeds grown without systemic insecticides in the potting soil
Miners also hunt wild game depleting the rainforest fauna around mining areas and disrupting the ecological balance for centuries to come.
The region's incredible flora and fauna is being lost to gold fever. Story Source: The above story is provided based on materials by Carnegie Institution.
At the same time it is less vulnerable to pests. And finally it does not require a subtropical climate
and sunlight may not be the only contributors to a plant's success. Ants in their role as seed dispersers may play an equally important part in determining
-or warm-adapted ants impacts early-blooming spring plants. In Mutualism fails when climate response differs between interacting species the authors assert Timing is everything
In previous research Warren showed that a cold-tolerant ant species Aphaenogaster picea has been displaced in northern Georgia by a warm-adapted ant species Aphaenogaster rudis during three decades of rising
Phenology is the study of seasonal life cycle events such as bird and butterfly migrations seed-setting by plants and the emergence of animals--including ants--from winter dormancy.
Seasonal cues include daylight and temperature. Successful species interactions require that the species involved share the same cue said Warren. The cold-adapted A. picea ant species shares temperature cues with Anemone americana a common early spring wildflower that drops
and the ants pick up and disperse the seeds. However A. americana drops its seeds weeks before A. rudis begins foraging
A total of eleven ant species and 3066 individuals were observed at the foraging stations. At both sites the later-blooming A. arifolium offspring were dispersed in a manner that suggested that ants picked up its seeds.
However the early blooming A. americana offspring south of the A. picea/A. rudis boundary (where only A. rudis occurs) clustered around the parent plant indicating no dispersal.
#The most widespread ant and its new relative: A revision of the genus Paratrechinalong considered to be one of the most species-rich ant genera latest research has stripped the ant genus Paratrechina down to a single species-Paratrechina longicornis.
This particular ant is one of the most widely distributed found in nearly every tropical and subtropical location on the planet due to accidental human transport
and is considered one of the world's worst invasive ant species. A recent review of the genus in the open access Journal of Hymenoptera Research announces the discovery of a second species P. zanjensis which presents a step forward into determining the native
The remarkable ability of this ant to survive even in extremely human changed environment also makes it a well-known pest in tropical climates commonly called crazy ant due to its erratic movements.
A recent study published in the open access Journal of Hymenoptera Research aimed to obtain empirical data on the activity
The paper suggests that the invasive creeping daisy could in fact have a positive influence on a wild bee pollinator species
A recent survey by Mr Abhineshwar Prasad of The University of the South Pacific reported over 100 species of arthropods associated with road side patches of S. trilobata including Hymenoptera such as parasitoid wasps
In the future we may rely on other insect species to perform crop pollination services including naturally-occurring native
Pollination success of generalist plants tends to be positively related to pollinator diversity so any habitat modifications that increase the number of pollinating species present at a site would tend to be of some inherent value.
Outside of agro-ecological systems many studies have indicated that even flowering plants considered as invasive may have positive effects on insects especially on nectar
and augmenting local populations of pollinating insects explains Dr Hodge. Story Source: The above story is provided based on materials by Pensoft Publishers.
#King of beasts losing ground in Ugandas paradiseconservationists from the Wildlife Conservation Society and the University of St andrews warn that Uganda's African lions--a mainstay of the country's tourism industry
and a symbol of Africa--are on the verge of disappearing from the country's national parks. According to the results of a recent survey African lions in Uganda have decreased by more than 30 percent over the past 10 years in some areas of the country mostly the result of poisoning by local cattle
The downward trend in lion numbers has concerned conservationists about the species'long-term chances in the country often described as the Pearl of Africa for its natural wonders.
Edward Okot Omoya Tutilo Mudumba Paul Mulondo and Andrew J. Plumptre from WCS and Stephen T. Buckland of the University of St andrews. African lions are a vital component
and buffalo by killing the sick animals. The paper describes the results of a lure count analysis survey to estimate the density
and population distribution of lions and spotted hyenas in Uganda's three major conservation areas conducted by researchers between November 2008 and November 2009.
and large carnivores to the call stations as a means of calculating a current population estimate for the study locations.
Previous survey methods used to count lions have included counting roars identifying individual cats and mark-recapture methods
Overall the call station surveys attracted a total of 66 lions 176 spotted hyenas and seven leopards.
The broadcasts also attracted a host of smaller predators including side-striped jackals black-backed jackals white-tailed mongooses and large spotted genets.
Using the data of animals observed the analysis generated an estimated lion population of 408 animals in the three main strongholds for lions in Uganda nearly two hundred fewer lions than estimates made in 2000-2002 (a statistical
) In Queen Elizabeth Conservation Area estimated lion numbers have decreased from 206 to 144 over the past decade (a 30 percent drop.
In Murchison Falls Conservation Area the team estimates a nearly 60 percent drop (from 324 to 132 lions in the past decade.
Only in Kidepo Valley National park did the researchers detect an increase in estimated lion numbers (climbing from 58 to 132.
Lions are the species tourists most want to see in Uganda's savannas according to research by WCS.
if they couldn't see lions and if they did visit they would want to pay less for the experience.
The study also represents the first survey of hyena numbers from these areas generating a population estimate of 324 hyenas (the researchers suspect
--but cannot prove--hyenas to be in decline as well). Conservation areas such as Queen Elizabeth and Murchison Falls which formerly contained the highest biomass of mammals On earth depend on the delicate balance between predators
and prey said Dr. James Deutsch Executive director of WCS's Africa Program. Their loss would permanently alter two of Africa's great ecosystems.
The crisis in lion conservation in Uganda reflects the status of the species across Africa where lion populations have dropped by 30 percent over the past two decades as a result of illegal killing and the loss of both habitat and prey.
The most recent estimate of Africa's total lion population is approximately 32000 animals. A group study led by WCS estimated that 42 percent of major lion populations are in decline.
The species is nearly extinct in West and Central africa. The species is listed as Vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature
They experience anaphylactic shock including a drop in blood pressure itchy hives and breathing problems and may die if not promptly treated.
In a paper to be published online Oct 24 in Immunity the researchers show that mice injected with a small dose of bee venom were later resistant to a potentially lethal dose of the same venom.
The study builds on earlier work by the researchers characterizing the innate immune response to snake venom and honeybee venom.
In a previous study the researchers found that mast cells produce enzymes that can detoxify components of snake venom
and that mast cells can also enhance innate resistance to honeybee venom. Such innate immune responses do not require prior immunization or the development of specific antibodies.
To find out whether adaptive immune responses could help mice resist bee venom Marichal and Starkl first injected mice with a low dose of venom equivalent to one or two stings.
The mice developed more venom-specific immune cells and higher levels of Ige antibodies against the venom than control mice injected with a salt solution.
Three weeks later they injected both groups of mice with a potentially lethal dose of venom similar to five bee stings.
The immunized mice had less hypothermia and were three times more likely to survive than the control mice.
Moreover they did not develop the anaphylactic reactions characteristic of severe allergies. To determine whether Ige antibodies were required for this protection the team tested mice with three types of mutations:
mice without Ige mice without functional Ige receptors on their mast cells and mice without mast cells.
The Ige-deficient mutant mice were developed previously by Hans Oettgen MD Phd associate professor of pediatric immunology at Harvard Medical school
and a co-author of the study. In all three groups of mutant mice pre-immunization with a low dose of bee venom did not confer protection against a lethal dose suggesting that the protection depends on Ige signaling and mast cell activation.
That was pretty exciting for us said Marichal. It was the first time we could see a beneficial function for these Ige antibodies.
Pre-immunization with a low dose of venom from the Russell's viper also protected mice from a higher dose of venom from this snake which is one of the big four species responsible for most snakebite
deaths in India. So the researchers believe the response could be generalized to different types of toxic venoms.
Our findings support the hypothesis that this kind of venom-specific Ige-associated adaptive immune response developed at least in evolutionary terms to protect the host against potentially toxic amounts of venom such as would happen
if the animal encountered a whole nest of bees or in the event of a snakebite said Stephen Galli MD professor and chair of pathology and the co-senior author of the study.
whether Ige responses also protect humans from the toxic effects of arthropod or reptile venom but it would be unthinkable to test lethal doses of venom in humans.
Reptile and arthropod venoms are complex chemical cocktails. Some venom components have evolved to mimic chemicals made by the human body such as endothelin-1
which causes blood vessels to constrict during bacterial infections. At the same time mammals have evolved immune responses to venom which in some cases escalate into maladaptive allergic reactions.
We experience allergies in a much cleaner world where we don't have the same threats of venomous creatures
and Remko Leys at the South australia Museum to model a mass extinction in bee group Xylocopinae or carpenter bees at the end of the Cretaceous and beginning of the Paleogene eras known as the K-T boundary.
Analyzing DNA sequences of four tribes of 230 species of carpenter bees from every continent except Antarctica for insight into evolutionary relationships the researchers began to see patterns consistent with a mass extinction.
Understanding extinctions and the effects of declines in the past can help us understand the pollinator decline
and the global crisis in pollinators today Rehan says. The article First evidence for a massive extinction event affecting bees close to the K-T boundary was published in the Oct 23 2013 edition of PLOS ONE.
Single cell plants called phytoplankton feed off the increased nutrients and in doing so start a cascade of events that leads to low oxygen levels in the water bodies.
Lowering the veil A curious finding that arose from work with social insects some our work
although social insects are pretty good at recognizing foreigners from a different colony they seem almost universally bad at distinguishing among different degrees of relatedness within their own colony Queller said.
because all of the insects are the progeny of a single mother so they're all full sisters.
But in others such as honeybee colonies the queen mates with multiple males and so there are 17 or 20 sets of paternal genes
The insects are half sibs; they all share the same mother but they have different fathers he said.
It works to the advantage of the colony because if the bees can't tell half and full sisters they'll be out foraging rather than loitering near the queen cells to make sure a full sister becomes the next queen he said.
The bees apparently recognize one another by means of distinctive hydrocarbons in their cuticles or exoskeleton.
If a worker bee is isolated it will develop a distinctive hydrocarbon profile and be rejected if it is reintroduced into a colony.
and on nest material as the bees feed groom and move about so that the hydrocarbons get mixed together creating a general colony odor.
The red fire ant for example has a gene that worker offspring can recognize and workers with this gene kill all queens that don't have it.
Genes like this one are called greenbeards because they confer an externally visible label that allows them to spot copies of themselves
A mouse for example can mate with more than one male and have a litter with two or more fathers.
Slave-making ants he said have lost the ability to care for their young and themselves. To survive they raid the nests of other ants and steal the pupae.
Once the pupae emerge they imprint on the colony odor and work as if they were members of that colony.
what's happening below the surface without the need to drill. It's a more targeted way of searching for minerals that reduces costs and impact on the environment.
#Long-term memory helps chimpanzees in their search for foodwhere do you go when the fruits in your favourite food tree are gone
whether chimpanzees aim their travel to particular rainforest trees to check for fruit and how they increase their chances of discovering bountiful fruit crops.
The scientists found that chimpanzees use long-term memory of the size and location of fruit trees and remember feeding experiences from previous seasons using a memory window
For their study the researchers recorded the behaviour of five chimpanzee females for continuous periods of four to eight weeks totalling 275 complete days throughout multiple fruiting seasons in the Taã National park CÃ
They found that chimpanzees fed on significantly larger trees than other reproductively mature trees of the same species especially
The researchers found that chimpanzees checked most trees along the way during travel but 13%were approached in a goal-directed manner.
which of nearly 16000 potential food trees with different crown sizes were approached actually by the chimpanzees.
and hence the minimal memory window of chimpanzees required for effective monitoring activities could vary from two months to three years.
The present study on chimpanzees is the first to show that our close relatives use long-term memory during their search for newly produced tropical fruit
For a long time people claimed that animals contrary to humans cannot remember the past. This study helps us to understand why chimpanzees
and other primates should remember events over long periods in time. And guess what? It also shows they do!
says Christophe Boesch of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology. Story Source: The above story is provided based on materials by Max-Planck-Gesellschaft.
#Camera traps reveal Andean bears hate paparazzia series of camera-trap images released by the Wildlife Conservation Society today shows rare Andean bears acting like angry Hollywood celebrities--at least
The stop-action images reveals adult bears and cubs repeatedly surrounding and attempting to dismantle the Reconyx camera traps secured to trees.
One series of images shows a particularly determined bear attacking a camera and leaving it torn open and dangling.
Another series shows a mother and two cubs converging on a camera then playfully scratching
The remote cameras were set by WCS scientists studying Andean bears and other wildlife in Apolobamba National Natural Area of Integrated Management--a Bolivian protected area that borders Madidi National park and Natural Area of Integrated Management considered one of the world
so that different angles of the same animal can be photographed. This allowed images from one camera to take images of the marauding bears
while they attacked the other cameras. Andean bears are very curious animals says Dr. Lilian Painter WCS's Bolivia Country Director.
But they are also very strong and the cameras are like big flashing toys. Still we were able to record important images that will allow us to better understand their distribution abundance and behavior and conserve these delightful bears into the future.
Andean bears are Latin america's only bear species. Also known as a spectacled bear they often have light fur resembling glasses around their eyes.
The species inhabits the mountainous regions of western Venezuela Colombia Ecuador Peru and Bolivia. The Andean bear's preferred habitat are high-altitude pã¡
ramo grasslands and especially the adjoining dense cloud forests in steep remote regions where the bears are seen rarely.
The wide-ranging Andean bears once had a safe haven in the undeveloped habitat of Andean cloud forests
but land is increasingly being fragmented for agriculture grazing lands and human settlements. The future of this wondrous but vulnerable species depends on the creation
and effective management of a network of protected areas that can sustain the bears in the wild.
Fortunately for the photographed bears and thanks to the Bolivian government they live in one of largest continuous protected patches of cloud forest across three national protected areas:
Madidi National park alone contains 11 percent of the world's birds more than 200 species of mammals 300 types of fish and 12000 plant varieties.
and wildlife including Andean bears including road construction logging unsustainable natural resource use and agricultural expansion. In addition WCS conserves the Andean bear across its range from Ecuador to Venezuela.
WCS aims to develop local capacity to conserve the habitat of the species and mitigate a variety of threats to them including human-wildlife conflict
Foundation the Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo and Cleveland Zoological Society the Andean Bear Conservation Alliance Woodland Park Zoo and other generous
WCS's Queens Zoo exhibits Andean bears as part of a Species Survival Plan a cooperative breeding program that helps to maintain healthy populations of the animals in zoos throughout the U s. Video:
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