The upper critical thermal limits for alevins of Arctic charr from a Norwegian lake north of the Arctic circle

Mean values ±95% CL of the upper incipient (T_IL) and ultimate (T_UL) lethal temperatures, determined at five acclimation temperatures ( T_A ), increased for T_IL from 19.2 ± 0.4° C ( T_A 0.5° C) to 21.0 ± 0.4° C ( T_A 20° C), and for T_UL from 22.6 ± 0.1° C ( T_A 0.5° C) to 26.6 ± 0.4° C ( T_A 20° C). Mean values were close to those obtained for Arctic charr alevins from Windermere (north-west England). These comparative data for alevins, and previous data for 0+ year parr, indicate negligible geographical variation in the thermal limits of Arctic charr.     

Relationships between home-range size, sex and season with reference to the mating system of the Houbara Bustard Chlamydotis undulata undulata

This paper presents observations of Houbara Bustard Chlamydotis undulata undulata home-range, in the semi-desert steppe of eastern Morocco. Home-ranges were calculated from radiotagged birds using the fixed kernel method (LSCV). The mean annual home-range of males (17 km²) was smaller than that of females (146 km²; P  < 0.001). The majority of male home-ranges had a unimodal distribution (86%), whereas 67% of female home-ranges were multimodal. Consequently, the amplitude of female movements was larger (mean: 44 km/13 km; P  < 0.002). In spring, male home-ranges decreased in size around display sites (8 km²) and many of them overlapped considerably. Display sites show an aggregative distribution ( P <  0.001) and a single female reproductive range may contain the display sites of several males. The data fulfil the definition of an exploded lek social structure. In our study, C. u. undulata appears to be sedentary with relatively limited home-ranges. Successive years of fidelity to home-ranges indicate that adults are not nomadic.     

Effects of development, temperature and salinity on metabolism in eggs and yolk-sac larvae of milkfish, Chanos chanos (Forsskål)

Oxygen uptake rates and yolk-inclusive dry weiGhts were measured during the egg and yolk-sac larval stages of milkfish, Chanos chanos (Forsskal). Oxygen uptake by eggs and yolk-sac larvae was measured to assess the effects of four salinities (20,25,30,35 ppt) at 28°C. The effects of three temperatures (23,28,33°C) on oxygen uptake by yolk-sac larvae were determined at a salinity of 35 ppt. Dry weights were measured throughout embryonic development at 28°C and the yolk-sac stage at 23.28 and 33°C.
Oxygen uptake rates of eggs increased more than fivefold during embryogenesis (0.07±0.03 to 0.40 ± 03 μl O₂ egg ⁻¹ h ⁻¹;blastula to prehatch stage). Larval oxygen uptake did not change with age but was affected by rearing temperature (0.33 ± 0.08, 0.44 ± 0.07 and 0.63 ± 0.13 μl O₂ larva ⁻¹ h⁻¹ at 23, 28 and 33°C, respectively; Q₁₀= 1.93). Acute temperature changes from 28 to 33°C caused significant increases in oxygen uptake by embryos (Q ₁₀= 1.69–3.58) and yolk-sac larvae (Q ₁₀=2.55). Salinity did not affect metabolic rates.
Dry weight of eggs incubated at 28°C decreased 13% from fertilization to hatching. Incubation temperatures from 23–33°C did not affect dry weights at hatching. Rearing temperatures significantly affected the rate of larval yolk absorption (Q ₁₀= 2.25).     

Wintering site fidelity and movement patterns of Western Sandpipers Calidris mauri in the San Francisco Bay estuary

Western Sandpipers Calidris mauri are the most numerous shorebird species in the San Francisco Bay estuary during winter. A sample of 106 Western Sandpipers was captured in mist nets and radio-marked with 1-g transmitters to examine their wintering site fidelity and movements. Differences in distances moved, home range extent and core area size were examined by age, sex, season, site, time of day and tide. All birds remained in the south San Francisco Bay region during winter and exhibited strong site fidelity, with a mean home range of 22.0 km² or only 8% of the study area. First-year birds had larger home ranges (26.6 ± 3.6 km²) than adults (17.2 ± 2.5 km²) in winter, but home range sizes of males and females were not significantly different in any period. Home range sizes were similar between seasons, but core areas were smaller in spring (6.3 ± 1.2 km²) than in early (9.6 ± 4.0 km²) or late (11.6 ± 1.6 km²) winter. Movements and home range size were similar for radio-marked birds located during day and night. The high degree of regional and local site fidelity demonstrated that the mixture of natural mud fiats and artificial salt ponds in southern San Francisco Bay provided sufficient resources for large wintering populations of Western Sandpipers.     

The affect of temperature on the metabolism and behaviour of an endemic amphipod, Hyalella montezuma, from Montezuma Well, Arizona, U.S.A.

1. Hyalella montezuma is endemic to Montezuma Well, Arizona, and is exposed to minimal diel and seasonal temperature fluctuations in the pelagic zone (21 ± 4 °C). Juvenile H . montezuma feed in the pelagic zone during the day and migrate into the littoral vegetation at night, while adults remain primarily in the littoral vegetation.
2. Oxygen consumption ( V O₂) of adult and juvenile H . montezuma was measured at 20, 25 and 30 °C. The V O₂ of both adult and juvenile H . montezuma increased with temperature. However, the V O₂ of juveniles was significantly greater than that of adults at all temperatures, with greatest divergence at 30 °C where mean juvenile V O₂ (6.31 μl mg^–1 dry weight (DW) h^–1) was almost twice that of adults (3.60 μl mg^–1 DW h^–1).
3. Survivorship of juveniles was significantly lower (54%) at 30 °C than at 27.5 °C (95%) after 4 h, whereas adults showed at least a 93% survivorship at both temperatures.
4. Our data suggest that temperature may have been the proximate cue that elicited the diel horizontal migration of juvenile H . montezuma in Montezuma Well, with the behaviour maintained and enhanced by intensive invertebrate predation in the pelagic and littoral zones.     

The affect of temperature on the metabolism and behaviour of an endemic amphipod, Hyalella montezuma, from Montezuma Well, Arizona, U.S.A.

1. Hyalella montezuma is endemic to Montezuma Well, Arizona, and is exposed to minimal diel and seasonal temperature fluctuations in the pelagic zone (21 ± 4 °C). Juvenile H . montezuma feed in the pelagic zone during the day and migrate into the littoral vegetation at night, while adults remain primarily in the littoral vegetation.
2. Oxygen consumption ( V O₂) of adult and juvenile H . montezuma was measured at 20, 25 and 30 °C. The V O₂ of both adult and juvenile H . montezuma increased with temperature. However, the V O₂ of juveniles was significantly greater than that of adults at all temperatures, with greatest divergence at 30 °C where mean juvenile V O₂ (6.31 μl mg^–1 dry weight (DW) h^–1) was almost twice that of adults (3.60 μl mg^–1 DW h^–1).
3. Survivorship of juveniles was significantly lower (54%) at 30 °C than at 27.5 °C (95%) after 4 h, whereas adults showed at least a 93% survivorship at both temperatures.
4. Our data suggest that temperature may have been the proximate cue that elicited the diel horizontal migration of juvenile H . montezuma in Montezuma Well, with the behaviour maintained and enhanced by intensive invertebrate predation in the pelagic and littoral zones.     

Growth, diet and metabolism of common wolf–fish in the North Sea, a fast–growing population

The von Bertalanffy growth parameters for common wolf–fish Anarhichas lupus in the North Sea were: male: L ∞=111·2 cm, t ₀=–0·43 and K =0·12; and female: L ∞=115·1 cm, t ₀=–0·39 and K =0·11, making this the fastest growing stock reported. Resting metabolic rates (RMR±S.E.) and maximum metabolic rates (MMR±S.E.) for six adult common wolf–fish (mean weight, 1·39 kg) at 5° C were 12·18±1·6 mg O₂ kg^–1 h^–1 and 70·65±7·63 mg O₂ kg^–1 h^–1 respectively, and at 10° C were 25·43±1·31 mg O₂ kg^–1 h^–1 and 113·84±16·26 mg O₂ kg^–1 h^–1. Absolute metabolic scope was 53% greater at 10° C than at 5° C. The diet was dominated by Decapoda (39% overall by relative occurrence), Bivalvia (20%) and Gastropoda (12%). Sea urchins, typically of low energy value, occupied only 7% of the diet. The fast growth probably resulted from summer temperatures approximating to the optimum for food processing and growth, but may have been influenced by diet, and reduced competition following high fishing intensity.     

Gas exchange and carbon isotope composition of Ananas comosus in response to elevated CO2 and temperature

Ananas comosus L. (Merr.) (pineapple) was grown at three day/night temperatures and 350 (ambient) and 700 (elevated) μ mol mol^–1 CO₂ to examine the interactive effects of these factors on leaf gas exchange and stable carbon isotope discrimination ( Δ ,‰). All data were collected on the youngest mature leaf for 24 h every 6 weeks. CO₂ uptake (mmol m^–2 d^–1) at ambient and elevated CO₂, respectively, were 306 and 352 at 30/20 °C, 175 and 346 at 30/25 °C and 187 and 343 at 35/25 °C. CO₂ enrichment enhanced CO₂ uptake substantially in the day in all environments. Uptake at night at elevated CO₂, relative to that at ambient CO₂, was unchanged at 30/20 °C, but was 80% higher at 30/25 °C and 44% higher at 35/25 °C suggesting that phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase was not CO₂-saturated at ambient CO₂ levels and a 25 °C night temperature. Photosynthetic water use efficiency (WUE) was higher at elevated than at ambient CO₂. Leaf Δ -values were higher at elevated than at ambient CO₂ due to relatively higher assimilation in the light. Leaf Δ was significantly and linearly related to the fraction of total CO₂ assimilated at night. The data suggest that a simultaneous increase in CO₂ level and temperature associated with global warming would enhance carbon assimilation, increase WUE, and reduce the temperature dependence of CO₂ uptake by A. comosus .     

Intrinsic rate of population increase of Amitus fuscipennis MacGown and Nebeker (Hym., Platygasteridae) according to climatic conditions and bean cultivar

Data on adult longevity, reproduction and intrinsic rate of population increase of insect parasitoid Amitus fuscipennis MacGown and Nebeker (Hym., Platygasteridae) were obtained under different climatic conditions on two bean cultivars. The insect host was the greenhouse whitefly Trialeurodes vaporariorum (Westwood) (Hom., Aleyrodidae). On cv. Chocho, at 19°C, 75 ± 5% RH and at 22°C, 70 ± 5% RH, mean longevity of adult Amitus females on the host insect was 9.3 and 5.7 days; mean fertility was 64.1 eggs and 52.7 eggs; and r_m values were 0.102 day^–1 and 0.144 day^–1 for the respective conditions. On cv. ICA-Pijao, at 19°C, 75 ± 5% RH, mean longevity was 15.2 days; mean fertility was highest (162.8 eggs); and r_m value was 0.117 day^–1. The r_m values of Amitus were higher than those of its host under the same test conditions. This parasitoid may therefore be a suitable candidate for use in inoculative or seasonal inoculative control programs against T. vaporariorum .     

Home range and habitat use by the serotine bat, Eptesicus serotinus, in England

Serotine nursery roosts with less than 20 bats were found to have home ranges of at least 24 to 77 km² and core areas of activity from 13 to 33 km². The size of the range may have increased further if more individuals had been tracked, as three of the four colonies studied had not reached their asymptotes. The total home-range area covered by four serotine colonies was 127.36 km². Excluding non-breeding bats, a density of one bat per 120 ha was estimated. However, actual density was likely to be higher if there were additional non-breeding females and immatures that were not in nursery roosts. Colonial home ranges and core areas overlapped, with individuals from different colonies feeding at the same sites. Individual home ranges ( n = 32) varied from 0.16 to 47.58 km², but these were not used exclusively by one individual. Around the colonial core area and breeding roosts, home ranges were used by all individuals from a single colony. It is only further from the core area that ranges appeared to be used by individuals. The distance from roost to feeding areas varied by up to 7.4 km, but the bat usually commuted along lines of trees and hedges and over pastures. This resulted in greater distances being travelled than if they had flown by a direct route. On average, individuals commuted distances of 8 km each night between feeding areas, with a maximum distance of over 41 km. They visited between 0 and 10 feeding sites each night (mean = 2.89).     

Purification and biochemical characterization of a membrane-bound [NiFe]-hydrogenase from a hydrogen-oxidizing, lithotrophic bacterium, Hydrogenophaga sp. AH-24

Membrane-bound [NiFe]-hydrogenase from Hydrogenophaga sp. AH-24 was purified to homogeneity. The molecular weight was estimated as 100±10 kDa, consisting of two different subunits (62 and 37 kDa). The optimal pH values for H₂ oxidation and evolution were 8.0 and 4.0, respectively, and the activity ratio (H₂ oxidation/H₂ evolution) was 1.61 × 10² at pH 7.0. The optimal temperature was 75 °C. The enzyme was quite stable under air atmosphere (the half-life of activity was c . 48 h at 4 °C), which should be important to function in the aerobic habitat of the strain. The enzyme showed high thermal stability under anaerobic conditions, which retained full activity for over 5 h at 50 °C. The activity increased up to 2.5-fold during incubation at 50 °C under H₂. Using methylene blue as an electron acceptor, the kinetic constants of the purified membrane-bound homogenase (MBH) were V _max=336 U mg⁻¹, k _cat=560 s⁻¹, and k _cat/ K _m=2.24 × 10⁷ M⁻¹ s⁻¹. The MBH exhibited prominent electron paramagnetic resonance signals originating from [3Fe–4S]⁺ and [4Fe–4S]⁺ clusters. On the other hand, signals originating from Ni of the active center were very weak, as observed in other oxygen-stable hydrogenases from aerobic H₂-oxidizing bacteria. This is the first report of catalytic and biochemical characterization of the respiratory MBH from Hydrogenophaga .     

Oxygen consumption of East Siberian cod: no support for the metabolic cold adaptation theory

Standard metabolic rate ( R _s) at 2°C of eight East Siberian cod Arctogadus borisovi , caught in West Greenland, body mass of 601.5 ± 147.6 g (mean ± s.D.), was 40.9 ± 5.9 mg O₂ kg^-1 h^-1 and 59.0 ± 6.6mg O₂ kg^-1 h^-1 when extrapolated to a standardized 100 g fish. R _s was compared with three other Gadidae, to test the theory of metabolic cold adaptation (MCA). There was no evidence of MCA in the family.     

Effects of temperature, hypoxia and activity on the metabolism of juvenile Atlantic cod

Standard metabolic rate (SMR), active metabolic rate (AMR) and critical oxygen saturation ( S_crit ) were measured in Atlantic cod Gadus morhua at 5, 10 and 15° C. The SMR was 35.5, 57.0 and 78.2 mg O₂ kg⁻¹ h⁻¹ and S_crit was 16.5, 23.2 and 30.3%, at 5, 10 and 15° C, respectively. Previously reported SMR for Atlantic cod from arctic waters at 4° C was twice that measured at 5° C in the present study. A possible intraspecific latitudinal difference in the SMR is discussed. The AMR was 146.6, 197.9 and 200.4 mg O₂ kg⁻¹ h⁻¹ and the critical swimming speed ( U_crit ) was 1 6, 1.7 and 1.9 at 5, 10 and 15° C, respectively. The maximum oxygen consumption was found to be associated with exercise, rather than recovery from exercise as previously reported in another Study of Cod metabolism.     

Sequence of gonadal events and oestradiol levels in Sparus aurata (L.) under two photoperiod regimes

Individually tagged Sparus aurata were kept in tanks with running sea water (21°± 2°C) during their second and third years of life. Gonads were biopsied and blood was sampled at monthly intervals. Thirteen of 50 fish in the second year and 24 of 35 fish in the third year were phenotypically females. Fish kept under 16L/8D photoperiod from July 1981 to August 1982 did not reach maturation; waves of initial ovarian growth alternated with waves of atresia. When photoperiod was shortened as from August 1982, gonadal development commenced within a month and proceeded at a rate higher than that of the control fish reared under natural photoperiod. Under natural photoperiod oestradiol serum levels (E₂) were relatively low during the resting phase, May-October (108 ± 11 pg ml⁻¹), and during the late vitellogenic phase (502 ± 76 pg ml⁻¹). High levels (1669 ± 312 and 1240 ± 172pg ml⁻¹) occurred during the early vitellogenic and the maturational phases. The high level of E₂ during the spawning season of S. aurata is explained by earlier reports indicating a prolonged breeding season with daily release of eggs, and alternating daily surges of E₂ and 17α, 20β, dihydroxy-4-pregnen-3-one, possibly a 'maturational progestin' in this fish. In phenotypic males, E₂ was highest during early spermatogenic phases (745 ± 142pg ml⁻¹) but was low (155 ± 11 pg ml⁻¹) in males with running sperm.     

Home range and habitat use of wolverines Gulo gulo in Yukon, Canada

Home ranges and habitat use are described for three adult female, one adult male, and one subadult male wolverines in the Kluane Game Sanctuary, Yukon. When long distance excursions are not included, home ranges of wolverines in the Kluane Game Sanctuary were between 76 and 269 km² for females and 209 and 269 km² for males. Habitat use of females was similar to habitat availability. Males used subalpine coniferous habitats more frequently than other habitat types during winter. Although individual variation in the use of forest cover types, aspects, slopes and elevations was apparent, seasonal use did not differ from availability for each sex. Within the 1590 km² study area, three adult males and six adult females were present, corresponding to a density of one resident wolverine 177 km^-2.     

Ecology and behaviour of the Jaguar (Panthers onca) in Belize, Central America

Five adult male Jaguars and a translocated subadult female Jaguar were captured and followed by radio-telemetry in Cockscomb Basin, Belize. One adult male Jaguar, two resident female Jaguars, and a Puma were followed only by their tracks. Radio-collared males maintained overlapping ranges of 28–40 km², while resident females moved in minimum areas of 10 km² within the ranges of individual males. Despite range overlap, evidence of aggression or sign of more than one large cat in the same area simultaneously was uncommon. Such avoidance behaviour suggested some means of communication. Visual marking in the form of faeces and scrapes were found uncovered along roads and trails in areas of overlap between the cats; such marking could have helped in boundary delineation as well as spatial and temporal positioning. Males often remained in small areas of 2·5 km² for up to two weeks, a behaviour made possible by abundant prey. This behaviour may have facilitated avoidance with other Jaguars. Faecal analysis indicated opportunistic feeding on 17 prey species. Armadillo, Paca and brocket deer accounted for 94% of the available terrestrial prey and comprised 70% of the identified prey in the faeces. All Jaguars were primarily nocturnal, though activity varied between animals. The translocated female showed changes in activity patterns when feeding upon cattle. At least one Puma travelled within the ranges of several male Jaguars and appeared to be feeding on smaller prey items. The behavioural and ecological plasticity exhibited by the Jaguars in this study is beneficial for an animal whose habitat is rapidly diminishing.     

Effect of long-term and rapid cold hardening on the cold torpor temperature of an aphid

Abstract.  The effect of long-term (seasonal) acclimation and rapid cold hardening is investigated on the cold torpor temperature ( CT _min) of adult grain aphids, Sitobion avenae, reared at 20 or 10 °C for more than 6 months before experimentation. Rapid cold hardening is induced by exposing aphids reared at 20 to 0 °C for 3 h and aphids reared at 10 to 0 °C for 30 min (acclimation regimes previously found to induce maximum rapid cold hardening). The effect of cooling aphids from the same rearing regimes from 10 to −10 °C at 1, 0.5 and 0.1 °C min⁻¹ is also investigated. In the 20 °C acclimated population, rapid cold hardening and cooling at 0.1 °C min⁻¹ both produce a significant decrease in CT _min from 1.5 ± 0.3 to –0.9 ± 0.3 and –1.3 ± 0.3 °C, respectively. Rapid cold hardening also results in a significant reduction in CT _min of the population reared at 10 °C from 0.8 ± 0.1 to –0.9 ± 0.2 °C. However, none of the cooling regimes tested reduces the CT _min of the winter-acclimated (10 °C) population. The present study demonstrates that rapid cold-hardening induced during the cooling phase of natural diurnal temperature cycles could lower the movement threshold of S. avenae , allowing insects to move and continue feeding at lower temperatures than would otherwise be possible.     

Seasonal differences in routine oxygen consumption rates of the bonnethead shark

Routine oxygen consumption rates of bonnethead sharks, Sphyrna tiburo , increased from 141·3±29·7 mg O₂ kg⁻¹ h⁻¹ during autumn to 218·6±64·2 mg O₂ kg⁻¹ h⁻¹ during spring, and 329·7±38·3 mg O₂ kg⁻¹ h⁻¹ during summer. The rate of routine oxygen consumption increased over the entire seasonal temperature range (20–30° C) at a Q ₁₀=2·34.     

Oxygen requirements of larvae of the smallmouth bass, Micropterus dolomieui Lacépède

Smallmouth bass larvae became highly sensitive to oxygen deficiency on the second day after hatching and continued so to the 10th day. During this period they could not survive exposure to 1 mg O₂ l^–1 for 3 h at 20° C, and many were killed within 1 h. At 2 mg O₂ l^–1 half the larvae survived 3 h at 20° C; at 2.5 mg l^–1 most survived, and at 3.5 mg l^–1 all survived. Resistance to oxygen deficiency was regained by the 11th day, the majority of the larvae withstanding a 3-h exposure at 1 mg O₂ l^–1. At 25° C the effects of low oxygen concentration were intensified. At 3 and 4 mg O₂ l^–1 and 20° C the normally quiescent larvae became very active, even swimming to the surface 5 or 6 cm above the substrate. Increasing the temperature increased this response. Smallmouth larvae were more sensitive than large-mouth bass larvae to oxygen deficiency.     

Reaction of Muscimol with 4-Aminobutyrate Aminotransferase

Abstract: The reaction of muscimol as amino donor substrate for GABA transaminase (GABA-T) has been studied using enzyme purified from rabbit brain. Enzyme activity was assayed by measuring the glutamate produced using glutamate dehydrogenase. Kinetic parameters determined at 37°C were for GABA, K _m (app) = 1.92 ± 0.24 m M , specific activity = 7.33 ± 0.27 μmol/min/mg ( k _cat= 13.7s⁻¹), and for muscimol, K _m (app) = 1.27 ± 0.15 m M , specific activity = 0.101 ± 0.009 μmol/min/mg ( k _cat= 0.19s⁻¹). Addition of muscimol to the enzyme caused the spectral changes associated with conversion of the pyridoxaldimine form to the pyridoxamine form, and the first-order rate constant for the reaction showed a dependence on muscimol concentration that followed saturation kinetics, with a K = 1.1 ±0.18 m M and k _max= 0.065 ± 0.004 s⁻¹ (19°C). The rate of spectral change observed on addition of muscimol to ornithine transaminase was extremely slow—at least an order of magnitude slower than that seen with GABA-T.