AGE AND LENGTH AT WEANING AND DEVELOPMENT OF DIET OF PANTROPICAL SPOTTED DOLPHINS, STENELLA ATTENUATA, FROM THE EASTERN TROPICAL PACIFIC

Using stomach contents from 203 spotted dolphins ( Stenella attenuata ) killed in the yellowfin tuna fishery, we modeled the weaning process of calves. Spotted dolphins began to take solid food at approximately 6 mo of age, or 115 cm, but continued to suckle until they were nearly 2 yr old. Calves tended to feed more frequently on squid as they got older, which suggested there was a shift in diet during weaning. The average age and total body length at weaning was estimated to be 0.8 yr (approximately 9 mo) and 122 cm. The oldest suckling calf was almost 2 yr old, which suggests that some calves continued to suckle for more than a year after they could have been weaned. A better understanding of the weaning process, especially quantifying the period of time when calves are nutritionally dependent on their mothers may lead to a better evaluation of their potential vulnerability to the disturbance caused by the yellowfin tuna purse-seine fishery.     

UNOBSERVED KILL OF NURSING DOLPHIN CALVES IN A TUNA PURSE-SEINE FISHERY

The kill of dolphins ( Stenella attenuata and S. longirostris ) in the eastern tropical Pacific tuna purse-seine fishery has been underestimated because of unobserved deaths of nursing calves due to separation from their mothers during fishing. Based on an analysis of dolphins killed from 1973 to 1990, and depending on the length at which calves are assumed to become independent, there was a deficit of calves relative to the number of lactating females killed in 24%–32% of 1,847 spotted-dolphin sets and in 13%–19% of 563 spinner-dolphin sets. We found a deficit of 0.31–0.45 spotted dolphin and 0.15–0.26 spinner dolphin calves per set. If these missing calves were added to the observed kill, it would represent an increase in the kill of 10%–15% for spotted dolphins and 6%–10% for spinner dolphins in the sets we examined. We did not attempt to estimate the actual number of unobserved calf deaths due to purse-seine fishing on dolphins, either in the sets we examined or in all dolphin sets. The actual number of unobserved calf deaths is likely to be higher than the calf deficit we found. Separation of dolphin mothers from calves could occur at any of several points in the fishing process, but most of these would be invisible to us and not produce a calf deficit. Estimation of the actual number of unobserved calf deaths would require further information on how frequently permanent mother-calf separations occur, the fraction of calves that survive after separation, the fraction of lactating females set upon that are carrying calves, and the fraction of calves killed that are actually related to lactating females killed in the same set. In any case, the observation of a calf deficit indicates that the reported dolphin kill fails to measure the full impact of purse-seine fishing on spotted and spinner dolphin populations.     

Aboveground herbivory induced jasmonates disproportionately reduce plant reproductive potential by facilitating root nematode infestation

Different plant feeders, including insects and parasitic nematodes, can influence each other by triggering systemic changes in their shared host plants. In most cases, however, the underlying mechanisms are unclear, and the consequences for plant fitness are not well understood. We studied the interaction between leaf feeding Manduca sexta caterpillars and root parasitic nematodes in Nicotiana attenuata. Simulated M. sexta attack increased the abundance of root parasitic nematodes in the field and facilitated Meloidogyne incognita reproduction in the glasshouse. Intact jasmonate biosynthesis was found to be required for both effects. Flower counts revealed that the jasmonate‐dependent facilitation of nematode infestation following simulated leaf attack reduces the plant's reproductive potential to a greater degree than would be expected from the additive effects of the individual stresses. This work reveals that jasmonates mediate the interaction between a leaf herbivore and root parasitic nematodes and illustrates how plant‐mediated interactions can alter plant's reproductive potential. The selection pressure resulting from the demonstrated fitness effects is likely to influence the evolution of plant defense traits in nature.     

THE EVOLUTION OF PARASITISM IN THE RED ALGAE: MOLECULAR COMPARISONS OF ADELPHOPARASITES AND THEIR HOSTS1

In several groups of parasites including insect, flowering plant, fungal, and red algal parasites, morphological similarities of the parasites and their specific hosts have led to hypotheses that these parasites evolved from their hosts. But these conclusions have been criticized because the morphological features shared by parasite and host may be the result of convergent evolution. In this study, we examine the hypothesis, originally put forth by Setchell, that adelphoparasitic red algae, that is, parasitic red algae that are morphologically very similar to their hosts, evolved from their specific red algal hosts. Rather than comparing morphological features of parasites and hosts, small-subunit 18S nuclear ribosomal DNA and the internal transcribed spacer regions (ITSs) of the nuclear ribosomal repeat are compared for five parasites, their hosts, and related nonhosts from four red algal orders. These comparisons reveal that each of these adelphoparasites has evolved either directly from the host on which it is currently found, or it evolved from some other taxon that is closely related to the modern host. The parasites Gardneriella tuberifera, Rhodymeniocolax botryoides, and probably Gracilariophila oryzoides evolved from their respective hosts Sarcodiotheca gaudichaudii, Rhodymenia pacifica, and Gracilariopsis lemaneiformis, respectively. The parasite Faucheocolax attenuata evolved from either Fauchea laciniata or Fauchea fryeana and subsequently radiated onto the other host species. Presently this parasite is found on both hosts. Lastly, some parasitic genera such as Plocamiocolax are polyphyletic in their origins. A species of Plocamiocolax from an Antarctic Plocamium cartilagineum appears to have evolved from its host whereas the common Plocamiocolax pulvinata that occurs along the west coast of North America likely evolved from Plocamium violaceum and radiated secondarily onto its present day host, Plocamium cartilagineum.     

车桑子小孢子发生与雄配子体发育

为了解干热河谷区车桑子(Dodonaea viscosa)胚胎学特征及其结籽率低的原因,采用常规石蜡切片法和电镜扫描技术对车桑子小孢子发生、雄配子体发育和花粉的形态特征进行了观察。结果表明,车桑子花药具有4个花粉囊。完整的花药壁从外到内依次为表皮、药室内壁、2～3层中层细胞和绒毡层;绒毡层类型是腺质绒毡层。花药成熟期,中层、绒毡层均退化消失。小孢子母细胞进行同时型胞质分裂;四分体为四面体型结构。成熟的花粉为二细胞型。花粉近球形,外壁密布颗粒状纹饰,具有3条不构成合沟的萌发沟。雄性生殖发育过程出现的异常现象可能是干热河谷地区车桑子结籽率低的原因之一。     

Nonsense-mediated mRNA decay (NMD) silences the accumulation of aberrant trypsin proteinase inhibitor mRNA in Nicotiana attenuata

In eukaryotes, genes carrying premature termination codons (PTCs) are often associated with decreased mRNA levels compared with their counterparts without PTCs. PTC-harboring mRNA is rapidly degraded through the nonsense-mediated mRNA decay (NMD) pathway to prevent the accumulation of potentially detrimental truncated proteins. In a native ecotype of Nicotiana attenuata collected from Arizona (AZ), the mRNA levels of a trypsin proteinase inhibitor ( TPI ) gene are substantially lower than in plants collected from Utah (UT). Cloning the AZ TPI gene revealed a 6 bp deletion mutation in exon 2 resulting in a PTC and decreased mRNA levels through NMD. Silencing UPF1 , 2 and 3 in N. attenuata AZ plants by virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) enhanced the levels of PTC-harboring TPI mRNA, demonstrating a conserved role for UPF genes in plants. Furthermore, using cell suspension cultures that express variants of the TPI construct, we demonstrate that both intron-containing and intronless genes are subject to NMD in plants; unlike PTCs in mammals, PTCs downstream of introns activate NMD in plants. However, when a PTC is only 4 bp upstream of an intron, the NMD surveillance mechanism is abrogated. We also demonstrate that, in an intronless TPI gene, a PTC located at the beginning or the end of the coding sequence triggers NMD less efficiently than do PTCs located at the middle of the coding sequence. Taken together, these results highlight the complexity of the NMD activation mechanisms in plants.     

Leaf trait associations with environmental variation in the wide‐ranging shrub Dodonaea viscosa subsp. angustissima (Sapindaceae)

Intra‐species variation in specific leaf area (SLA) and leaf area (LA) provides mechanistic insight into the persistence and function of plants, including their likely success under climate change and their suitability for revegetation. We measured SLA and LA in 101 Australian populations of the perennial shrub Dodonaea viscosa (L.) Jacq. subsp. angustissima (narrow‐leaf hop‐bush) (Sapindaceae). Populations were located across about a 1000 km north–south gradient, with climate grading from arid desert to mesic Mediterranean. We also measured leaves from 11 populations across an elevational gradient (300–800 m asl), where aridity and temperature decrease with elevation. We used regression and principal component analyses to relate leaf traits to the abiotic environment. SLA displayed clinal variation, increasing from north to south and correlated with latitude and the first principal component of joint environmental variables. Both SLA and LA correlated positively with most climatic and edaphic variables. Across latitude, LA showed more variability than SLA. Changes in leaf density and thickness may have caused the relative stability of SLA. Only LA decreased with elevation. The absence of a SLA response to elevation could be a consequence of abiotic conditions that favour low SLA at both ends of the elevational gradient. We demonstrated that the widely distributed narrow‐leaf hop‐bush shows considerable variability in LA and SLA, which allows it to persist in a broad environmental envelope. As this shrub is widely used for revegetation in Australia, South America and the Asia‐Pacific region, our results are consistent with the notion that seed used to revegetate mesic environments could be sourced from more arid areas to increase seed suitability to future climate change.     

How to tell them apart? Discriminating tropical blackfish species using fin and body measurements from photographs taken at sea

The misidentification of species and populations is a hindrance to effective cetacean management. We devised a method of species identification using 10 fin and body measurements obtainable from at‐sea photographs, and demonstrated its ability to distinguish four species of Hawaiian “blackfish”: pygmy killer, melon‐headed, short‐finned pilot, and false killer whales. Measurements from photos of 382 known individuals were converted into 14 ratios and reduced using nonmetric multidimensional scaling and principal component analysis. The first three components of the PCA explained 81% of variance among species. Ratios indicated by PCA and NMDS were tested using analysis of variance, and results identified three fin ratios that had distinct means across all four species: height/base, depth (from anterior insertion) at trailing edge apex/depth at topmost point, and width (from leading edge) at posterior point/base. Dual analysis of adults and all age classes showed near‐identical sources of variance, 90% similarity in interspecies ratio relationships, and overlapping ratio means and ranges. Results suggest similar ontogenetic growth across these four species, and confirm the efficacy of this discrimination technique for all age classes. This study established a reliable means of distinguishing these cetacean species, which will improve the efficacy of management in areas with sympatric distributions.