Audiovisuals Reviews

Book reviewed in this article:
LITHIC TECHNOLOGY FILMS: A Tale of Two Rivers . Produced by CLYDE B. SMITH.
LITHIC TECHNOLOGY FILMS: Lascaux: Cradle of Man's Art . Directed by WILLIAM C. CHAPMAN.
LITHIC TECHNOLOGY FILMS: Prehistoric Images . 1955. Directed by THOMAS L. ROWE     

Canarian land snail diversity: conflict between anatomical and molecular data on the phylogenetic placement of five new species of Napaeus (Gastropoda, Pulmonata, Enidae)

Five new species of land snail (family Enidae) are described from La Gomera (Canary Islands) of which the majority, on the basis of anatomy alone, could be incorporated within a new supraspecific taxon. In addition to the morphological study of these new species, a region of the 16S mitochondrial gene is sequenced from three of the new species and a range of species of Napaeus from within its two subgenera ( Napaeinus and Napaeus ) . There is a disparity between the morphological and preliminary molecular phylogenetic data. Possible explanations for this conflict are discussed, as well as the evolutionary relationships among these different taxa, and it is suggested that this group may be an excellent model for further studies of adaptation and diversification.  © 2006 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society , 2006, 89 , 169–187.     

The allocation of foragers in red wood ants

Abstract. 1. We studied how colonies of the red wood ant, Formica polyctena , adjust the numbers of foragers allocated to different foraging trails. In a series of field experiments, foragers were marked and transferred from one nest to another, related nest, where they joined the foraging force. Transferred workers acted as a reserve of uncommitted, available foragers.
2. Previous work shows that each individual forager habitually uses one trail. We found that for an uncommitted forager, the influence of recruitment initially is stronger than that of directional fidelity. Transferred workers were likely to use trails leading to new food sources. When transferred to a new nest, foragers were not likely to use a trail in the same direction as their original trail in the donor nest.
3. After a week, transferred foragers tended to develop route fidelity. Even after bait was no longer present, they continued to use the trail that had formerly led to a bait source.
4. We examined how colonies adjust numbers on a trail by experimentally depleting some trails. Colonies usually did not compensate for depletion: foragers were not recruited to depleted trails.
5. In general, the dynamics of foraging in this species facilitate a consistent foraging effort rather than rapid adjustments of forager allocation.     

Untersuchungen zur Taxonomie der Gattung Araniella (Araneae, Araneidae)

Morphological and ethological criteria were used in studying the taxonomic relations between different forms within the genus Araniella . Criteria for a diagnosis of all species and subspecies of the genus are given. A. opisthographa (Kulczyski, 1905), A. cucurbitina (Clerck, 1757), A. proxima (Kulczyski, 1885) and A. maderiana (Kulczyski, 1905) form one group of sibling species in the narrowest sense, A. alpica (L. Koch, 1869) and A. inconspicua (Simon, 1874) a second distinct one. A. displicata (Hentz, 1847) seems to occupy a relatively isolated position. A. cossoni (Simon, 1885) is regarded as a synonym for A. cucurbitina . It is impossible to make a statement about the status of A. silesiaca (Fickert, 1876) and A. croatica (Kulczyski, 1905) because of the lack of sufficient material. A. silesiaca is not a synonym for Araneus crispulus Tullgren, 1952, a species which does not belong to the genus Araniella .     

Leaf‐cutting ants as ecosystem engineers: topsoil and litter perturbations around Atta cephalotes nests reduce nutrient availability

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The effect of ozone on the emission of carbonyls from leaves of adult Fagus sylvatica

Under the site conditions of a temperate forest, the exchange of short-chained oxygenated carbonyls (aldehydes, ketones) was assessed from leaves of adult European beech trees. The crowns of the trees were either exposed to an elevated O₃ regime as released by a free-air fumigation system (2 × O₃) or to the unchanged O₃ regime at the site (1 × O₃, ‘control’). Daily fluctuations of oxygenated carbonyls were quantified in relation to environmental and physiological factors. In particular, the effect of O₃ on carbonyl exchange was studied. Measurements of leaf gas exchange were performed with a dynamic cuvette system, and carbonyl fluxes were determined using 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine (DNPH)-coated silica gel cartridges. Leaves mainly emitted acetaldehyde, formaldehyde and acetone. Acetaldehyde dominated the emissions, amounting up to 100 nmol m⁻² min⁻¹, followed by formaldehyde (approximately 80 nmol m⁻² min⁻¹) and acetone (approximately 60 nmol m⁻² min⁻¹). Carbonyl emissions were highest during midday and significantly lowered at night, irrespective of the O₃ exposure regime. Trees exposed to 2 × O₃ emitted acetaldehyde and acetone at enhanced rates. The findings are of particular significance for future climate change scenarios that assume increased O₃ levels.     

Crustacean Hyperglycemic Neuropeptides

The neurosecretory structures in the crustacean eyestalk areconsidered to be the source of factors regulating a considerablevariety of physiological processes. Although many hormonal "factors"have been postulated, only a few have been characterized indetail. Two pigmentary effector regulating neuropeptides havebeen completely characterized. A third substance, the hyperglycemichormone, has been isolated and characterized in terms of aminoacid composition. It is larger than the pigmentary effectorhormones (mol wt 6,000–7,000) and it is the first of theheretofore described invertebrate neurohormones that containsdisulfide bridges. Unlike the pigmentary effector hormones,the hyperglycemic neuropeptide exhibits species or systematicgroup specificity, recognizable by differences in amino acidcompositions and also expressed by lack of interspecific (orintergroup) biological activity. An antiserum permitted thedevelopment of a radioimmunoassay and immunocytochemical demonstrationof the hormone producing perikarya in decapods and in an isopod.Large immunopositive perikarya form a distinct group in themedulla terminalis ganglionic X-organ. This group sends a conspicuoustract of axons to the neurohemal organ, the sinus gland, wherethe hormone is stored in large quantities. It is believed tobe necessary for the regulation of resting levels of blood sugarand for elevation of blood sugar in situations of physiologicalneed. In general, however, the physiological mode of actionof the hormone is largely unknown.     

Reproduction and adult longevity of five species of planktonic cyclopoid copepods reared on different diets: a comparative study

1. The nutritional value of a pure algal food, the phytoflagellate Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, and a mixed diet was tested for five planktonic cyclopoid copepods (Acanthocyclops robustus, Cyclops vicinus, Cyclops abyssorum, Mesocyclops leuckarti and Thermocyclops crassus). The algae were offered at high density (4.5 × 10⁵ cells ml^–1; 22.5 mg C l^–1) in a flow-through system. The mixed diet consisted of concentrated natural plankton (rotifers, copepod nauplii, small copepodites and large phytoplankton forms) in the size range 50–150 μm and with a dry mass > 20 mg l^–1. Reproductive parameters (clutch size, interclutch periods, number of clutches produced) and adult longevity were monitored as indicators of nutritive value. 2. All species had a significantly lower reproductive output and a shorter or unchanged adult lifespan on the algal compared with the mixed diet. 3. The species differed considerably in their ability to use algae. Mesocyclops leuckarti produced no clutches with algae, and females died earlier than with the mixed food. Acanthocyclops robustus and C. vicinus produced smaller and fewer clutches, displayed a longer interclutch period and shorter (A. robustus) or similar (C. vicinus) lifespan on the algal food than on the mixed food. Thermocyclops crassus and C. abyssorum produced smaller clutches with the algal food, but interclutch period was shorter with the algal than with the mixed diet (T. crassus) or of the same length with both diets (C. abyssorum). Adult lifespan was the same under both food regimes. Unfed females produced no eggs. 4. The ability to utilize algae, the reproductive output and the reproductive allocation were not related to body size. Acanthocyclops robustus, a species of intermediate size, produced by far the largest clutches and the most eggs per lifetime under both food regimes and invested more in reproduction than the other species. 5. Reproduction was costly. Unfed and non-reproducing females of C. vicinus and C. abyssorum reached the same age or lived longer than fed and reproducing ones. 6. The adult cyclopoids tested are primarily omnivorous, but utilize algae which are frequently sufficient for egg production.