The Twice-Killed: Imagining Protest Suicide

The inspiration I take from J. M. Coetzee's book Elizabeth Costello (2003) is his advocacy of imagining as an alternative to rational thought. Imagining, as I understand him, is mindwork that engages the body as an experiential and metaphorical site. I apply this notion of imagining to suicides conducted in the service of political protest: The fatal hunger strike of ten prisoners in Northern Ireland in 1981 and Jan Palach's self-immolation in Prague in 1969. Three questions direct the exploration of their trajectories: What feeds the hope for the effectiveness of protest suicides? How do they use the body as a performance site? Do such suicides call for an ethics of attentiveness?     

Diet of the King Penguin Aptenodytes patagonicus during three summers at South Georgia

King Penguins Aptenodytes patagonicus which were rearing chicks were studied during three summers from November 1991 to March 1994 at South Georgia. Stomach samples ( n =115) collected by flushing had a mean mass of 1308 g. Fish mass was allocated to each species based on the relationship between fish mass and otolith length. Three mesopelagic lanternfishes (Myctophidae), Krefftichthys anderssoni, Electrona carlsbergi and Protomyctophum choriodon , dominated the diet both by numbers and mass. They were small fish with mean mass of 3–7 g. Overall, K. anderssoni dominated the diet in terms of numbers and mass. Although Barracudina Notolepis coatsi occurred in <3% of the diet by numbers, it was large (106 g) and was second most important in terms of mass. Squid represented <3% of the diet by mass. Although the chick-rearing success was poor in the 1993–1994 summer, meal size was not reduced but foraging trips were longer. In the 1993–1994 summer, a larger proportion of the otoliths were not identifiable because they were more completely digested. Fewer otoliths were identified as being those of K. anderssoni , but we argue that about 90% of the unidentified otoliths were K. anderssoni. There was also more squid and N. coatsi in the diet during the poor summer. A consistent trend was that P. choriodon was rare or absent in early summer but more important later in the year, and at the end of 1992–1993, it was the dominant prey. We conclude that myctophid fish, especially K. anderssoni , are the main summer prey of King Penguins rearing chicks at South Georgia, as found in other recent studies in the Southern Ocean.     

Scanning electron microscope study of the palar pegs of three species of Corixidae (Hemiptera)

Scanning electron microscope studies were performed on the palar pegs of male forelegs of Trichocorixa sexcincta, Sigara alternata and Hesperocorixa interrupta. The studies showed the pegs to be basically conical and chevron-ridged, with a wide base that tapered of to a narrow apex. Clear species differences were apparent with respect to the size of the peg, the number of ridges on an individual peg, and the number and arrangement of the pegs on the pala. The possible behavioural and evolutionary significance of the palar pegs is discussed in relation to mating.     

Tiefsee-Aktinien der Familie Actinoscyphiidae aus dem IMordatlantik (Actiniaria, Mesomyaria)

Actinoscyphia saginata (Verrill, 1882; type species) and Actinoscyphia aurelia (Stephenson, 1918) are redescribed with special reference to characters of diagnostic significance in order to differentiate the two species both inhabiting the 2000 m slope region of the North Atlantic. In situ photograph of A. aurelia off the North West African coast shows it to display a novel life form type in expanding its bi-lobed tentacular disc like a Venus-fly-trap and standing on the muddy sediment with a small, non-adhesive base penetrating just below the surface of the sediment. The peculiar nematocyst equipment found in both species makes it necessary to rehabilitate the family Actinoscyphiidae Stephenson, 1920. The systematic position of the family is discussed and eventually the Actinoscyphiidae is considered as sister group (sensu Hennig) of the Hormathiidae. Because of the loss of acontia in the Actinoscyphiidae, this taxon is considered to be the more advanced one. Chondrodactis japonica Wassilieff, 1908, is found to belong to the genus Actinoscyphia.     

Morphological, vocal and genetic divergence in the Cettia acanthizoides complex (Aves: Cettiidae)

We used morphological, vocal and molecular (one mitochondrial and two nuclear loci) data to re-evaluate the taxonomic status of the taxa acanthizoides , concolor , and brunnescens in the Cettia acanthizoides (J. Verreaux, 1871) complex. We conclude that all three are valid taxa, and that acanthizoides of China and concolor of Taiwan are best treated as conspecific, whereas brunnescens of the Himalayas is better considered as a separate species. The degree of morphological, vocal, and genetic differentiation is variably congruent among all taxa; the recently separated acanthizoides and concolor differ slightly in plumage and structure but are indistinguishable in vocalizations, whereas the earlier diverged brunnescens and acanthizoides/concolor differ only slightly more in morphology but to a much greater degree in vocalizations. We stress the essential nature of taxonomic revisions as a prerequisite for the biodiversity estimates required for conservation planning.  © 2007 The Linnean Society of London, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society , 2007, 149 , 437–452.     

Giving offspring a head start in life: field and experimental evidence for selection on maternal basking behaviour in lizards

The timing of birth is often correlated with offspring fitness in animals, but experimental studies that disentangle direct effects of parturition date and indirect effects mediated via variation in female traits are rare. In viviparous ectotherms, parturition date is largely driven by female thermal conditions, particularly maternal basking strategies. Our field and laboratory studies of a viviparous lizard (Niveoscincus ocellatus) show that earlier‐born offspring are more likely to survive through their first winter and are larger following that winter, than are later‐born conspecifics. Thus, the association between parturition date and offspring fitness is causal, rather than reflecting an underlying correlation between parturition date and maternal attributes. Survival selection on offspring confers a significant advantage for increased maternal basking in this species, mediated through fitness advantages of earlier parturition. We discuss the roles of environmentally imposed constraints and parent–offspring conflict in the evolution of maternal effects on parturition date.     

Description of a new species of Phylloscopus warbler from Vietnam and Laos

A new species of Phylloscopus warbler, which we name Phylloscopus calciatilis Limestone Leaf Warbler, is described from central and northern Vietnam and central and northern Laos; it probably also breeds in southernmost China. In morphology, the new species is very similar to Sulphur-breasted Warbler Phylloscopus ricketti , but it is smaller with a proportionately larger bill and rounder wing. Its song and calls are diagnostic. Based on mitochondrial and nuclear DNA, the new species is most closely related to P. ricketti and Yellow-vented Warbler Phylloscopus cantator , and it is inferred to be sister to the latter. The mitochondrial divergences between these three species are at the low end of the variation found in other species of Phylloscopus and Seicercus warblers, but greater than in other taxa generally treated as subspecies. Possible introgressive hybridization between the new species and P. ricketti is discussed, but more data are needed to establish whether it does occur and, if it does, to what extent. The new species appears to have a restricted breeding range in limestone karst environments, where it is locally common and therefore not under any immediate threat. In view of the recognition of the new species, all previous records of P. ricketti sensu lato need to be re-evaluated.