Herbivory and plant competition reduce mountain beech seedling growth and establishment in New Zealand

The effect of herbivory and resource availability on the competitive ability of different plant species has been an area of intense debate amongst plant ecologists for at least two decades, but the interactive effects of herbivory and plant competition between woody and herbaceous plants are rarely studied and theory is poorly developed. This study used experimental manipulations on transplanted and naturally occurring mountain beech (Nothofagus solandri var. cliffortioides) seedlings to show the effects of deer browsing and competition from deer-induced, herbaceous turf communities on mountain beech regeneration in New Zealand. Differences in the species composition of these turfs had little effect on mountain beech seedling establishment, but turf removal increased seedling growth and survivorship, showing that competition with other plants had direct effects on mountain beech regeneration. Deer browsing reduced the establishment and growth of seedlings, but the size of this effect did not vary with light and nutrient availability. There was no immediate compositional response of turf communities following the removal of deer browsing. The addition of nutrients appeared to reduce the intensity of belowground competition (stem growth increased relative to root growth) and increase seedling mortality, but there was no effect of changing levels of light. These results showed simple and direct negative effects of deer browsing on mountain beech regeneration. Indirect negative effects on regeneration were caused by deer-induced turf communities. We found little evidence for interactive effects between herbivory, plant competition and the availability of light or nutrients on seedling regeneration, which suggests that these factors acted independently. Nomenclature: Beever et al. (1992); Parsons et al. (1995); Edgar and Connor (2000); and Brownsey and Smith-Dodsworth (2000). Raukaua simplex is described by Mitchell et al. (1997). Coprosma “taylorae” is referred to by Eagle (1986) and Halocarpus biformis, Phyllocladus alpinus, Podocarpus hallii and Podocarpus nivalis by Wilson and Galloway (1993).     

Age-dependent characterization of pendrin gene expression in various tissues of deer mice

Pendrin is a membrane transport protein which functions as the transporter of chloride, bicarbonate, formate, and iodide. In this study, we characterized pendrin gene expression in various tissues of deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus), a sentinel wildlife species. Deer mice were euthanized at post-natal day (PND) 21 (day of weaning) and PND 45 (24 days post-weaning) for tissue collection. A deer mouse-specific partial pendrin cDNA sequence was generated, from which Taqman-specific probe and primers were designed for quantification of mRNA equivalents of pendrin gene expression using real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The expression profile was standardized to glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH). Results indicate that the pendrin gene was expressed at different levels in the different tissues of developing deer mice relative to GAPDH expression. Expression in the tissues was determined to be age-dependent. Pendrin gene was highly expressed in the kidney, lungs and reproductive tissues. PND 21 expression in the kidney and testes was significantly lower than PND 45. This study represents the first identification of differential expression of pendrin gene in various deer mouse tissues.     

Xenobiotic conjugation systems in deer compared with cattle and rat

The ability of cattle and deer liver to catalyse xenobiotic conjugation reactions was investigated and compared with that of the rat. Marked differences in the activity of these enzymes were noted between the domestic animals and rats. Hepatic microsomal epoxide hydrolase activity in cattle and deer, determined using benzo[a]pyrene 4,5-oxide as substrate, was nearly twice that of the rat. In contrast, glutathione S-transferase activity in hepatic cytosol, determined with 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene as substrate, was significantly lower in the cattle and deer. When 1,2-dichloro-4-nitrobenzene served as the accepting substrate, no activity was detectable in the cattle and deer. Similarly, glutathione reductase activity and total glutathione levels were markedly lower in the cattle and deer compared with the rat. Cytosolic sulfotransferase activity, monitored using 2-naphthol as substrate, was higher in cattle compared with the rat. Finally, microsomal UDP-glucuronosyl transferase activity, determined using 1-napththol as substrate, did not differ significantly among the three species.     

甘肃兴隆山保护区野生马麝的冬季卧息地生境特征

生境是野生动物的栖息基底,卧息地是野生动物重要的功能性生境。为深入了解野生马麝（Moschus chrysogaster）冬季卧息地生境的特征及选择利用,于2021年12月至2022年1月对甘肃兴隆山国家级自然保护区的野生马麝的功能性生境开展了基于生境取样的研究。通过样线调查法获取马麝卧息痕迹位点,采用主成分分析和资源选择函数法进行其卧息生境选择的研究。结果表明,野生马麝冬季卧息地生境的海拔较低[（2 488.5±26.6）m]、灌木较高[（1.3±0.3）m]、灌木盖度（31.08%±3.14%）和地表植被盖度（38.36%±3.27%）较大、倒木较多[（0.5±0.1）个]且积雪较浅[（1.0±0.3）cm];马麝冬季卧息地多选择位于南坡的下坡位灌丛生境,而且距水源较近、隐蔽度较好。主成分分析表明,乔木因子、食物因子、安全因子和地形因子的累计贡献率达67%;马麝的卧息生境资源选择函数为：Logit(x)=﹣4.967+0.001×海拔﹣0.02×坡度+0.03×乔木郁闭度+0.104×乔木高度+0.17×灌木盖度﹣0.466×雪被深度﹣1.015×坡向,模型预测正确率为91.1%。...     

The influence of pheromones produced by freely growing laboratory populations on the reproductive maturation of prairie deermice following prenatal and postnatal exposure

Significantly more females reared on bedding soiled by different populations reproduced by 100 days of age than those reared on bedding soiled by the same populations (P<.1) or on clean bedding (P<.025) whereas the latter two groups did not differ significantly. Significantly greater percentages of females reproduced in both treatments maintained on soiled bedding than was true in the populations from which the bedding came. There were no significant differences between treatments in the weights of the reproductive organs (testes, seminal vesicles, ovaries, uteri) or in the numbers of corpora lutea or mature follicles in the ovaries of nulliparous females. The data suggest that if there were reproductively inhibiting pheromones influencing the population animals, they were altered or dissipated immediately after removal of the bedding from the population enclosures or that they were nonfunctional in the absence of the population animals. These data further suggest that the reproductive inhibition of population young is due to the presence of the populaton animals and that sociobiological factors within the populations act to prevent the reproductively stimulating influence of materials which may be present.     

A case study on the effects of a transmission-line corridor on Sika deer habitat use at the foothills of Mt Goyo,northern Honshu,Japan

Forage biomass and habitat use of Sika deer (Cervus nippon) at a transmission-line corridor were studied at the foothills of Mt Goyo, northern Japan. Summer forage biomass in the corridor was five times greater than in the adjacentBetula grossa forest. Among the plants that increased in the corridor,Sasa nipponica (a dwarf bamboo), an important forage plant for Sika deer, was predominant. Winter utilization ofS. nipponica by Sika deer was slightly heavier in the corridor, and estimated removal ofSasa leaves was twice as great there as in the forest. However fecal pellets were more prevalent in the adjacent forest in winter. Sika deer seemed to use the transmission-line corridor as a feeding site and the adjacent forest as cover as it reduces wind speed. A transmission-line corridor is more beneficial than a large clear-cut area because it provides more forest edges.     

Population genetic structure and the effect of founder events on the genetic variability of introduced sika deer, Cervus nippon, in Germany and Austria

The relationships among 214 wild-living sika deer from five locations in Germany and two in Lower Austria were examined using mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control region sequence. A total of 18 haplotypes are grouped consistently into two major divergent clades, A and B, which differ by a mean of 8.4% sequence divergence. Recently introduced sika deer showed a complex pattern of population structuring, which probably results from historical vicariance in at least two unknown source populations from southeastern Asia (as previously described by morphological and mtDNA findings), and subsequent population admixture as a result of human-mediated restocking. A strong genetic differentiation among populations was indicated by a global _ST value of 0.78 reflecting mainly the differential distribution of clades A and B haplotypes. There was no association between related haplotypes and their distribution among local populations. These indicate that genealogy is a better predictor of the genetic affinity among most sika deer populations than their present-day locations. The abundant mitochondrial divergence we observed, may reflect a subspecies differentiation and could be associated with phenotypic differences among the introduced sika deer.An erratum to this article can be found at     

Antlers as biomonitors of environmental pollution by lead and fluoride: A review

Antlers are periodically cast and re-grown cranial appendages of deer. Both endochondral and intramembranous ossification are involved in the formation of antler bone. After velvet shedding, antlers are completely bony structures which are referred to as hard antlers. Growing antlers accumulate substances with an affinity to mineralized tissues. Among these substances are lead and fluoride. Due to the seasonally limited life span of antlers, the concentrations of lead and fluoride in hard antlers reflect uptake by the forming bone during a defined, species-specific period of some months. Antlers can thus be viewed as naturally standardized environmental samples that are well suited as biomonitors of environmental pollution by bone-seeking contaminants. Because hard antlers are collected by hunters as trophies and kept in private or public collections, material for study can be obtained rather easily. So far, lead concentrations in hard antlers have been reported only from Europe, whereas data for fluoride are available from both Europe and North America. Some studies compared contaminant concentrations in antlers from different regions, while others analyzed time-trends in contaminant levels in antlers from a single region. Using the latter approach, a pronounced drop of lead concentrations during recent decades has been reported for antlers from various European countries. This indicates a marked decline of environmental lead levels that can be attributed mainly to the phase-out of leaded gasoline and, in addition, to a reduction of lead emissions also from stationary sources. In Germany, a corresponding drop has also been recorded for fluoride concentrations in antlers, which is attributed to a decline of fluoride emissions from stationary sources due to improved emission-control measures. There is some evidence that exposure to higher levels of fluoride may lead to an impaired antler mineralization. Using antlers as biomonitors has been shown to be an efficient method for assessing environmental pollution by lead and fluoride at low cost. Further studies using this now well established approach are therefore encouraged.This revised version was published online in May 2005. The following errors were eliminated:1. In the chapter Antler growth and mineralization in the last sentence of the first paragraph a slash was missing between the words reindeer and caribou; 2. In the second paragraph of the same chapter the word reiudees was corrected to reindeer; 3. In the chapter Accumulation of lead and fluoride in growing antlers the word lightest was corrected to highest.     

Investigations on the radiocaesium contamination of wild boar (Sus scrofa) meat in Rhineland-Palatinate: a stomach content analysis

To substantiate the pathways of radiocaesium contamination in wild boars in parts of Rhineland-Palatinate, we analysed radiocaesium-activityconcentration of 2,433 wild boars shot in an area covering 45,400 ha in the western part of the Palatinate Forest between January 2001 and February 2003. Also, for a fraction of 689 animals shot between May 2002 and February 2003, we collected their stomachs for the examination of content and Cs-activity concentration. Wild boar meat contamination followed a seasonal curve with maximum proportions exceeding accepted levels in the summer (21–26%) and minimum levels in winter (1–9.3%) indicating a higher consumption of a contaminating source during the vegetation period. The autumn decline is obviously attributed to the extensive consumption of low-contaminated beech nuts. An exact analysis of food composition in 18 stomachs with maximum Cs-activity concentrations [345–1,749 Bq/kg (fresh matter: fm)] and 18 with low Cs-activity concentrations (20–199 Bq/kg) was carried out in the summer of 2002. Deer truffles (Elaphomyces granulatus) were found in significantly higher proportions in stomachs with maximum contamination levels than in stomachs with lowcontamination levels. This fungus was found in the Palatinate Forest, by a trained dog, in average densities of 1 truffel/20 m² primarily in spruce stands, showing an average Cs-concentration of 6,030 Bq/kg (fm). On the basis of our findings we stress the hypothesis that deer truffles function as a main Cs-source for the wild boar in Rhineland-Palatinate.     

Differential reproductive response to short photoperiod in deer mice: role of melatonin

Summary Inhibitory photoperiod differentially effects reproduction in deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus nebrascensis). Pituitary-testicular function is arrested in about one-third of short-day exposed males (reproductively responsive mice), while an equal number remain fertile (reproductively nonresponsive mice). Both phenotypes are found in natural populations and their disparate reproductive responses have a genetic basis. To assess whether this difference is attributable to a prepineal/pineal or post-pineal mechanism, we compared spermatogenic responses of known and unknown phenotype to exogenous melatonin. Melatonin significantly reduced mean sperm number in long-day housed mice of unknown phenotype. But, individual responses ranged from azoospermia to normal spermatogenesis, and this range was not significantly different from that previously recorded for short-day exposed mice. Reproductively nonresponsive males were unaffected by melatonin administration when housed under long or short daylength. In contrast, melatonin significantly suppressed sperm production in reproductively responsive males housed under long photoperiod, but had no additional suppressive effect in short-day housed mice with regressed testes. These data demonstrate that melatonin is only effective in eliciting testicular regression in reproductively responsive males. Taken together, these results suggest that differential testicular response to photoperiod are caused by a post-pineal mechanism.Abbreviations LD long day - SD short day - 16L:8D 16 h light, 8 h dark - 8L:16D 8 h light, 16 h dark