Kinship, Contract, Community, and State: Anthropological Perspectives on China

Kinship, Contract, Community, and State: Anthropological Perspectives on China. Myron L. Cohen. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2005. 359 pp.     

A new genus of monstrilloid copepods (Crustacea) with anteriorly pointing ovigerous spines and related adaptations for subthoracic brooding

Maemonstrilla gen. nov. , known exclusively from females, is proposed for Monstrilla longipes A. Scott, 1909, M. turgida A. Scott, 1909, and five new species from coral reef plankton in the Ryukyu Islands, Japan: Maemonstrilla hyottoko sp. nov. (type species), M. polka sp. nov. , M. spinicoxa sp. nov. , M. simplex sp. nov. and M. okame sp. nov. A syntype of M. turgida was examined, but the holotype of M. longipes is lost; the latter species, being similar to several of the new species, is regarded as unidentifiable, and the identity of specimens assigned to it by several authors is put in doubt. Until now, all known female monstrilloids have had posteriorly trailing ovigerous spines, but in Maemonstrilla gen. nov. these spines point anteriorly and hold the egg mass between the legs beneath the thorax. This is the first known instance of subthoracic brooding in a planktonic copepod; its functional significance is discussed, and brooding habits of non‐planktonic copepods are briefly reviewed. The intercoxal sclerites of legs 1–4 in Maemonstrilla gen. nov. are very wide, making room for the eggs. In all species except M. turgida comb. nov. , the inner seta of the proximal segment of each leg ramus is either absent or reduced to a nub; this may lessen interference of the egg mass with leg movement. All species have a uniramous leg 5 with two setae, except M. turgida comb. nov. (biramous with setae on both rami); M. turgida comb. nov. is evidently the sister‐group of its congeners, each sister‐group in the genus being defined by additional autapomorphies. Scanning electron micrographs of all the Ryukyuan species except M. simplex sp. nov. are provided; these constitute a preliminary survey of monstrilloid integumental organs and cuticular ornamentation. Among the unusual features are two lobes at the base of the coxa in legs 1–4 of M. polka sp. nov. and M. spinicoxa sp. nov. and two pairs of posterodorsal spine‐like scales on the first and second free pedigers of M. turgida comb. nov. Newly hatched nauplii of M. okame sp. nov. , examined by scanning electron microscopy, are generally similar to those of Monstrilla hamatapex Grygier & Ohtsuka, 1995, but with a different mandibular structure in which the distal hook and seta clearly represent the endopod, not enditic armament of the basis. © 2008 The Linnean Society of London, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2008, 152 , 459–506.     

The effects of habitat structure on predation risk of birds in agricultural landscapes

It has been suggested that increased predation rates may rival habitat alteration as a causal agent in farmland bird population declines. Such a view may be over-simplistic, however, as changes in habitat structure may influence habitat selection and foraging efficiency through their influence on perceived and actual predation risk. We review evidence from the literature on the effects of habitat structure on predation risk of foraging and nesting birds and apply these principles to investigate the likely effects on the 20 species that comprise the UK Government's 'Farmland Bird Index'. Shorter vegetation is likely to enhance foraging efficiency and reduce predation risk (when ground foraging) for 15 of the 20 species. However, within grassland systems longer vegetation is known to enhance food supplies (e.g. Tipulid larvae and voles) of several farmland bird species and so mosaics of short and long vegetation may provide the optimum conditions for most species (e.g. Lapwing Vanellus vanellus , Starling Sturnus vulgaris , Barn Owl Tyto alba ). Agricultural intensification has encouraged uniform dense swards, thus reducing habitat diversity, and agri-environment schemes that provide heterogeneous sward structure may thus facilitate farmland bird conservation. Intensification has also resulted in less dense hedgerows; although a reversal of this trend may improve foraging efficiency for many species, it may be detrimental to a smaller number of species that prefer shorter, less dense hedges for nesting. Before these tentative conclusions can be confirmed, more research is required that considers how the effects of habitat structure on individuals is likely to translate into population-level impacts.     

Seed caching by woylies Bettongia penicillata can increase sandalwood Santalum spicatum regeneration in Western Australia

Abstract The role a small marsupial, the woylie Bettongia penicillata, might play in the recruitment and regeneration of Western Australian sandalwood Santalum spicatum through its seed caching behaviour was investigated in this study. To determine the fate of the seeds, cotton thread was attached to the seeds and the trail followed. A total of 25 seed caches were located. All of the seeds were found in separate caches, which was consistent with scatter‐hoarding behaviour. The average distance from the source of the seeds to the cache was 43.1 m ± 5.8 m at Dryandra woodland and 29.1 m ± 3.8 m at Karakamia sanctuary. The mean cache depth was 4.3 cm ± 0.2 cm at Dryandra woodland compared with 4.6 cm ± 0.3 cm at Karakamia sanctuary. Significantly more seedlings and saplings grew away from sandalwood trees at sites where woylies were present than at sites with no woylies. In contrast, significantly more seedlings and saplings grew under adult sandalwood trees at the site without woylies than where they were present, although there were significantly lower rates of recruitment and sandalwood regeneration at these sites. In addition, significantly more whole, undisturbed sandalwood seeds were found under the parent trees at the woylie‐free site than at the site with woylies. These findings strongly suggest that little seed dispersal or regeneration of sandalwood occurs in the absence of woylies. Through scatter‐hoarding, woylies have the potential to disperse and cache sandalwood seeds away from the source and significantly alter the subsequent regeneration of sandalwood. Furthermore, by caching seeds large distances away from a source, woylies could modify the distribution of sandalwood in an area.     

Cougar Kill Rate and Prey Composition in a Multiprey System

Abstract: Assessing the impact of large carnivores on ungulate prey has been challenging in part because even basic components of predation are difficult to measure. For cougars (Puma concolor), limited field data are available concerning fundamental aspects of predation, such as kill rate, or the influence of season, cougar demography, or prey vulnerability on predation, leading to uncertainty over how best to predict or interpret cougar-ungulate dynamics. Global Positioning System (GPS) telemetry used to locate predation events in the field is an efficient way to monitor large numbers of cougars over long periods in all seasons. We applied GPS telemetry techniques combined with occasional snow-tracking to locate 1,509 predation events for 53 marked and an unknown number of unmarked cougars and amassed 9,543 days of continuous predation monitoring for a subset of 42 GPS-collared cougars in west-central Alberta, Canada. Cougars killed ungulates at rates near the upper end of the previously recorded range, and demography substantially influenced annual kill rate in terms of both number of ungulates (subad F [SAF] = 24, subad M [SAM] = 31, ad M = 35, ad F = 42, ad F with kittens <6 months = 47, ad F with kittens <6 months = 67) and kg of prey (SAF = 1,441, SAM = 2,051, ad M = 4,708, ad F = 2,423, ad F with kittens <6 months = 2,794, ad F with kittens >6 months = 4,280). Demography also influenced prey composition; adult females subsisted primarily on deer (Odocoileus spp.), whereas adult males killed more large ungulates (e.g., moose [Alces alces]), and subadults incorporated the highest proportion of nonungulate prey. Predation patterns varied by season and cougars killed ungulates 1.5 times more frequently in summer when juveniles dominated the diet. Higher kill rate in summer appeared to be driven primarily by greater vulnerability of juvenile prey and secondarily by reduced handling time for smaller prey. Moreover, in accordance with predictions of the reproductive vulnerability hypothesis, female ungulates made up a higher proportion of cougar diet in spring just prior to and during the birthing period, whereas the proportion of males increased dramatically in autumn during the rut, supporting the notion that prey vulnerability influences cougar predation. Our results have implications for the impact cougars have on ungulate populations and have application for using cougar harvest to manage ungulates.     

Using Protistan Examples to Dispel the Myths of Intelligent Design

ABSTRACT. In recent years the teaching of the religiously based philosophy of intelligent design (ID) has been proposed as an alternative to modern evolutionary theory. Advocates of ID are largely motivated by their opposition to naturalistic explanations of biological diversity, in accordance with their goal of challenging the philosophy of scientific materialism. Intelligent design has been embraced by a wide variety of creationists who promote highly questionable claims that purport to show the inadequacy of evolutionary theory, which they consider to be a threat to a theistic worldview. We find that examples from protistan biology are well suited for providing evidence of many key evolutionary concepts, and have often been misrepresented or roundly ignored by ID advocates. These include examples of adaptations and radiations that are said to be statistically impossible, as well as examples of speciation both in the laboratory and as documented in the fossil record. Because many biologists may not be familiar with the richness of the protist evolution dataset or with ID‐based criticisms of evolution, we provide examples of current ID arguments and specific protistan counter‐examples.     

Adjustment of growth, starch turnover, protein content and central metabolism to a decrease of the carbon supply when Arabidopsis is grown in very short photoperiods

Arabidopsis was grown in a 12, 8, 4 or 3 h photoperiod to investigate how metabolism and growth adjust to a decreased carbon supply. There was a progressive increase in the rate of starch synthesis, decrease in the rate of starch degradation, decrease of malate and fumarate, decrease of the protein content and decrease of the relative growth rate. Carbohydrate and amino acids levels at the end of the night did not change. Activities of enzymes involved in photosynthesis, starch and sucrose synthesis and inorganic nitrogen assimilation remained high, whereas five of eight enzymes from glycolysis and organic acid metabolism showed a significant decrease of activity on a protein basis. Glutamate dehydrogenase activity increased. In a 2 h photoperiod, the total protein content and most enzyme activities decreased strongly, starch synthesis was inhibited, and sugars and amino acids levels rose at the end of the night and growth was completely inhibited. The rate of starch degradation correlated with the protein content and the relative growth rate across all the photoperiod treatments. It is discussed how a close coordination of starch turnover, the protein content and growth allows Arabidopsis to avoid carbon starvation, even in very short photoperiods.     

Hydrogenosomes and Mitosomes: Conservation and Evolution of Functions1

ABSTRACT. The field studying unusual mitochondria in microbial eukaryotes has come full circle. Some 10–15 years ago it had the evangelical task of informing the wider scientific community that not all eukaryotes had mitochondria. Advances in the field indicated that although some protists might not have mitochondria, the presence of genes of mitochondrial ancestry suggested their lineage once had. The subsequent discovery of mitochondrial compartments in all supposedly amitochondriate protists studied so far indicates that all eukaryotes do have mitochondria indeed. This assertion has fuelled novel eukaryotic origin theories and weakened others. But what do we know about these unusual mitochondria from anaerobic protists? Have they all converged onto similar roles? Iron–sulphur cluster assembly is often hailed as the unifying feature of these organelles. However, the iron–sulphur protein that is so important that a complete organelle is being maintained has not been identified. Is it to be expected that all unusual mitochondria perform the same physiological role? These organelles have been found in numerous protists occupying different ecological niches. Different selection pressures operate on different organisms so there is no reason to suspect that their mitochondria should all be the same.     

Long-term patterns of mass loss during the decomposition of leaf and fine root litter: an intersite comparison

Decomposition is a critical process in global carbon cycling. During decomposition, leaf and fine root litter may undergo a later, relatively slow phase; past long-term experiments indicate this phase occurs, but whether it is a general phenomenon has not been examined. Data from Long-term Intersite Decomposition Experiment Team, representing 27 sites and nine litter types (for a total of 234 cases) was used to test the frequency of this later, slow phase of decomposition. Litter mass remaining after up to 10 years of decomposition was fit to models that included (dual exponential and asymptotic) or excluded (single exponential) a slow phase. The resultant regression equations were evaluated for goodness of fit as well as biological realism. Regression analysis indicated that while the dual exponential and asymptotic models statistically and biologically fit more of the litter type–site combinations than the single exponential model, the latter was biologically reasonable for 27–65% of the cases depending on the test used. This implies that a slow phase is common, but not universal. Moreover, estimates of the decomposition rate of the slowly decomposing component averaged 0.139–0.221 year⁻¹ (depending on method), higher than generally observed for mineral soil organic matter, but one-third of the faster phase of litter decomposition. Thus, this material may be slower than the earlier phases of litter decomposition, but not as slow as mineral soil organic matter. Comparison of the long-term integrated decomposition rate (which included all phases of decomposition) to that for the first year of decomposition indicated the former was on average 75% that of the latter, consistent with the presence of a slow phase of decomposition. These results indicate that the global store of litter estimated using short-term decomposition rates would be underestimated by at least one-third.