Social Tolerance in Wild Female Crested Macaques (Macaca nigra) in Tangkoko‐Batuangus Nature Reserve,Sulawesi, Indonesia

In primates, females typically drive the evolution of the social system and present a wide diversity of social structures. To understand this diversity, it is necessary to document the consistency and/or flexibility of female social structures across and within species, contexts, and environments. Macaques (Macaca sp.) are an ideal taxon for such comparative study, showing both consistency and variation in their social relations. Their social styles, constituting robust sets of social traits, can be classified in four grades, from despotic to tolerant. However, tolerant species are still understudied, especially in the wild. To foster our understanding of tolerant societies and to assess the validity of the concept of social style, we studied female crested macaques, Macaca nigra, under entirely natural conditions. We assessed their degree of social tolerance by analyzing the frequency, intensity, and distribution of agonistic and affiliative behaviors, their dominance gradient, their bared‐teeth display, and their level of conciliatory tendency. We also analyzed previously undocumented behavioral patterns in grade 4 macaques: reaction upon approach and distribution of affiliative behavior across partners. We compared the observed patterns to data from other populations of grade 4 macaques and from species of other grades. Overall, female crested macaques expressed a tolerant social style, with low intensity, frequently bidirectional, and reconciled conflicts. Dominance asymmetry was moderate, associated with an affiliative bared‐teeth display. Females greatly tolerated one another in close proximity. The observed patterns matched the profile of other tolerant macaques and were outside the range of patterns of more despotic species. This study is the first comprehensive analysis of females’ social behavior in a tolerant macaque species under natural conditions and as such, contributes to a better understanding of macaque societies. It also highlights the relevance of the social style concept in the assessment of the degree of tolerance/despotism in social systems. Am. J. Primatol. 75:361‐375, 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

中国水仙NtMYB7基因的克隆及功能初步研究

为研究中国水仙类黄酮代谢调控网络,从中国水仙(Narcissus tazetta var.chinensis)中克隆得到一个R2R3-MYB基因,命名为NtMYB7(GenBank登录号:MF522208)。序列分析表明,NtMYB7基因cDNA开放阅读框(ORF)为753bp,编码250个氨基酸。氨基酸多重序列比对分析发现,NtMYB7含有R2和R3保守结构域,属于R2R3-MYB家族;系统进化树分析结果显示,NtMYB7与花青素合成抑制因子聚为一类。实时荧光定量PCR分析发现,NtMYB7基因在中国水仙不同时期花瓣和副冠以及不同器官中均有表达,且NtMYB7基因在鳞茎盘中表达量最高。瞬时表达分析发现,NtMYB7使花青素合成激活因子StMYB诱导产生的红色变浅;定量PCR分析表明,NtMYB7基因显著抑制烟草黄酮醇代谢分支FLS基因的表达,同时抑制StMYB激活的花青素和原花青素合成结构基因的表达。研究结果初步判断,NtMYB7基因是中国水仙类黄酮代谢途径的抑制因子。     

Fertility Control in Free-Ranging Elk Using Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone Agonist Leuprolide: Effects on Reproduction,Behavior, and Body Condition

ABSTRACT Overabundant elk (Cervus elaphus) populations have become a significant problem in many areas of North America. This is particularly true for protected areas where high densities of elk can cause long-term ecological degradation. When lethal control is not acceptable in these environments, resource managers must often consider alternative methods for reducing the size of resident elk populations. A potential management alternative is controlling the fertility of female elk. A promising new approach to wildlife contraception involves the use of biodegradable implants containing the gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) agonist leuprolide. During fall 2002-spring 2004, we compared pregnancy rates, reproductive behavior, daily activity patterns, and body condition of 17 free-ranging female elk treated with a leuprolide formulation with 17 untreated females, in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado, USA. After treatment, the pregnancy rate of treated elk was 0%, whereas 79% of control elk became pregnant. The effects of treatment were reversed the subsequent year with the pregnancy rate of treated females 100% compared with 91% for controls. Reproductive behaviors were similar for treated and control elk during the breeding and postbreeding seasons; treated elk did not exhibit postrut reproductive behaviors. Moreover, we found no differences in daily activity patterns of experimental groups during the breeding or postbreeding seasons. Treated elk did not show improved body condition over pregnant females. Instead, treated females catabolized proportionately more body fat during winter after treatment and at a higher rate than pregnant control elk. However, this effect was reversed the next spring with no difference in body fat between treated and control elk. We conclude from this experiment that leuprolide, administered as a controlled release formulation, offers a safe and effective method of controlling fertility in free-ranging female elk. However, practical application is limited by treatment duration and the need to treat females before the breeding season.     

Structure of the vascular cambium of varying age and its derivative tissues in the stem of Ficus rumphii Blume

AJMAL, S. & IQBAL, M., 1992. Structure of the vascular cambium of varying age and its derivative tissues in the stem of Ficus rumphii Blume. The cambial cells of Ficus rumphii and their derivatives vary in size and number with the age of the tree. The fusiform initials, vessel elements, sieve-tube members, xylem fibres and phloem fibres are relatively short in the terminal part of the stem axis, consistently longer down the stem reaching a maximum, and short again in the main trunk. The width of the respective cells shows a similar variation. The ray cell initials increase both in number and size, and form rays of varying dimensions. Uniseriate and biseriate cambial rays are abundant, while multiseriate rays are especially sparse in the young shoot. The proportion of uni- and biseriate rays falls in the lower part of the stem whereas that of multiseriate rays increases. Likewise, short cambial rays are abundant in young branches but their frequency decreases in the trunk region, leading to a rise of the tall ray population. The rays in the phloem and xylem regions reflect a similar variation pattern with certain fluctuations. The overall proportion of the rays increases in the older part of the axis, reaching a maximum tangential area in the trunk. The transectional area of vessel elements remains more or less constant down to the base after an initial increase in the terminal region, while the sieve-tube proportion tends to be constant in the basal region after a consistent gain from the tree top basewards.     

Statistical power analysis of a 2-year field study and design of experiments to evaluate non-target effects of genetically modified Bacillius thuringiensis corn

Abstract 1. A 2‐year field study was conducted in 2000 and 2001 at a farm in Monmouth, Illinois to evaluate the effect of MON 863, a transgenic corn event that expresses the Cry3Bb1 protein for control of corn rootworms, on diverse groups of arthropod populations in a corn ecosystem. 2. The field study employed a split‐plot design with MON 863 and conventional corn as the main plots and several insecticide treatments as subplots; each main plot was replicated four times (i.e. n = 4 block replications for each corn variety). A large number of arthropod taxa were trapped, taxonomically characterised, and counted in all plots. A mixed linear repeated‐measures model was used for analysis of each taxon collected to determine if there was an effect of MON 863 or insecticide regime on that taxonomic group. 3. This report describes the results of a power analysis to determine the ability of the study design to detect an effect of MON 863 corn on the abundance of different groups of arthropods. A 50% difference in average taxon abundance between MON 863 and conventional corn plots was the criterion used in assessing the power. 4. A statistical power analysis of the taxonomic group comparisons made in the 2‐year field study (with independent assignment of treatments each year) showed that only about 28% (22 of 56) of the statistical comparisons made with single years of data achieved ≥80% power to detect a 50% difference in population density. When data from both years of the study were analysed jointly, this level of power was obtained for 86% (24 of 28) the comparisons made. 5. Graphical examination of the mean abundance and coefficient of variation (CV) for different taxa indicated that high abundance (> 5 trap captures per plot per sampling period) and low CV (< 100%) contributed to high statistical power (> 80%). Taxa with extremely low abundance (mean trap captures < 1 individual per plot per sampling period) generally had high CV (> 100%), and statistical comparisons for those taxa had lower power (< 80%). 6. The relevance of these findings for designing field studies on the effects of genetically modified crops on non‐target arthropods with desired levels of power is discussed.     

Effects of selected insecticides on Diadegma semiclausum（Hymenoptera： Ichneumonidae） and Oomyzus sokolowskii （Hymenoptera： Eulophidae）, parasitoids of Plutella xylostella （Lepidoptera： Plutellidae）

Abstract Field doses of six selected insecticides were tested against the immature (pupae) and mature (adult) stages of Diadegma semiclausum (Hellén) and Oomyzus sokolowskii (Kurdjumov), parasitoids of the diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella (L.). Effects of contact toxicity (direct spraying) of the six insecticides on emergence of parasitoids were found negligible on both species except permethrin which caused 37.5% mortality. All adults of both parasitoid species died 24 hours after exposure to chlorfenapyr, emamectin benzoate and permethrin. In contrast, the three insect growth regulators (IGRs), chlorfluazuron, flufenoxuron and teflubenzuron, were found harmless to both species, and adult mortality of both parasitoid species was 0–16.7%. However, parasitism by the females of both parasitoid species was severely impaired when the females were offered the three IGR diluted solutions for 24 hours. Effects of oral toxicities of the IGRs on longevity of both parasitoids after 12 hours exposure were found to be significantly different between males and females. Compatibility of tested insecticides with D. semiclausum and O. sokolowskii and integration of compatible insecticides with these parasitoids in integrated pest management programs of crucifers are discussed.     

Mechanisms of inducible resistance against Bacillus thuringiensis endotoxins in invertebrates

Resistance in insect pests against the endotoxin of Bacillus thuringiensis （Berliner） （Bt） is a major threat to the usefulness of this biopesticide, both used as traditional formulations and in transgenic crops. A crucial requirement for the development of successful resistance management strategies is a molecular understanding of the nature and inheritance of resistance mechanisms. This information can be used to design management strategies that will delay or counteract Bt resistance. The best known Bt resistance mechanism is inactivation of brush border membrane receptors. This type of resistance has a largely recessive mode of inheritance, which has enabled the design of resistance management approaches involving high dose and refuge strategies. Recent observations suggest that other resistance mechanisms are possible, including a mechanism that sequesters the toxin in the gut lumen through inducible immune reactions. The elevated immune status associated with tolerance to the toxin can be transmitted to subsequent generations by a maternal effect, which has implications for resistance management in the field. The high dose/refuge strategy may not be appropriate for the management of these alternative resistance mechanisms and other strategies have to be developed if inducible dominant resistance or tolerance mechanisms occur frequently in the field.