Influence of Meloidogyne incognita on Resistant and Susceptible Sweet Potato Cultivars

Effects of several population densities ofMeloidogyne incognita on the sweet potato cultivars Centennial (susceptible) and Jasper (moderately resistant) were studied. Field plots were infested with initial levels (Pi) of 0, 10, 100, 1,000, 5,000, and 10,000 eggs and juveniles/500 cm³ soil in 1980 and 0, 100, 1,000, 2,000, 3,000, 4,000, and 5,000 in 1981. M. incognita population development trends were similar on both cultivars; however, at high Pi, more eggs and juveniles were recovered from Centennial than from Jasper. The highest Pi did not result in the highest mid-season (Pm) counts. Pi was negatively correlated with the number of marketable roots and root weight but positively correlated with total cracked roots, percentage of cracked roots, and cracking severity. Jasper tolerated higher Pi with greater yields and better root quality than Centennial. Cracking of fleshy roots occurred with both cultivars at low Pi.     

Ecology of nematophagous fungi: vertical distribution in a deciduous woodland

Summary The distribution of nematophagous fungi in soil collected from a deciduous woodland is compared to various biotic and abiotic soil factors. The microfungi are isolated at all depths down to a maximum of 35 cm. Predators forming constricting rings, adhesive branches and adhesive knobs are restricted to the upper litter and humus layers. The net forming predators and endoparasites are isolated at all depths, although they are significantly more abundant in the lower mineral rich soils. A much greater species diversity of nematophagous fungi is recorded in the upper organic zones.Preliminary soil analysis indicates thatCephalosporium balanoides is independent of all soil variables, while predators able to form traps spontaneously are restricted to the organic soils which are rich in nematodes. Non-spontaneous trap forming predators, which are excellent saprophytes, are isolated from the deeper soils which are low in nutrients. The ecological significance of these results is discussed.     

The distribution and food habits of the dwarf African cichlid,Pelvicachromis pulcher in the River Sombreiro,Nigeria

In the River Sombreiro, Nigeria, the dwarf cichlid, Pelvicachromis pulcher was restricted to an upstream zone of cold, soft, acid freshwater. The sites nearest the source had smaller fish. Sex ratio (M:F) was 1:1 except in the most upstream site. Benthic algae, higher plant remains, detritus and copepods were the main food items.     

Embryonic development times of entomostracan zooplankton from Lake le Roux (Orange River,South Africa), and their possible relationships to seasonal succession

Embryonic development times of the principal entomostracan zooplankton of Lake le Roux, Orange River, South Africa, are described. Durations decreased monotonically with temperature over the thermal tolerance range and are described using Blehrádek's equation. The present data are compared with other observations on rate-temperature responses of warm-water and temperate zooplankton. Small, but ecologically significant, differences are discerned. The possible significance of species-specific rate-temperature responses to the phenomenon of seasonal succession is explored.     

Temporal dynamics of estuarine phytoplankton: A case study of San Francisco Bay

Detailed surveys throughout San Francisco Bay over an annual cycle (1980) show that seasonal variations of phytoplankton biomass, community composition, and productivity can differ markedly among estuarine habitat types. For example, in the river-dominated northern reach (Suisun Bay) phytoplankton seasonality is characterized by a prolonged summer bloom of netplanktonic diatoms that results from the accumulation of suspended particulates at the convergence of nontidal currents (i.e. where residence time is long). Here turbidity is persistently high such that phytoplankton growth and productivity are severely limited by light availability, the phytoplankton population turns over slowly, and biological processes appear to be less important mechanisms of temporal change than physical processes associated with freshwater inflow and turbulent mixing. The South Bay, in contrast, is a lagoon-type estuary less directly coupled to the influence of river discharge. Residence time is long (months) in this estuary, turbidity is lower and estimated rates of population growth are high (up to 1–2 doublings d^–1), but the rapid production of phytoplankton biomass is presumably balanced by grazing losses to benthic herbivores. Exceptions occur for brief intervals (days to weeks) during spring when the water column stratifies so that algae retained in the surface layer are uncoupled from benthic grazing, and phytoplankton blooms develop. The degree of stratification varies over the neap-spring tidal cycle, so the South Bay represents an estuary where (1) biological processes (growth, grazing) and a physical process (vertical mixing) interact to cause temporal variability of phytoplankton biomass, and (2) temporal variability is highly dynamic because of the short-term variability of tides. Other mechanisms of temporal variability in estuarine phytoplankton include: zooplankton grazing, exchanges of microalgae between the sediment and water column, and horizontal dispersion which transports phytoplankton from regions of high productivity (shallows) to regions of low productivity (deep channels).Multi-year records of phytoplankton biomass show that large deviations from the typical annual cycles observed in 1980 can occur, and that interannual variability is driven by variability of annual precipitation and river discharge. Here, too, the nature of this variability differs among estuary types. Blooms occur only in the northern reach when river discharge falls within a narrow range, and the summer biomass increase was absent during years of extreme drought (1977) or years of exceptionally high discharge (1982). In South Bay, however, there is a direct relationship between phytoplankton biomass and river discharge. As discharge increases so does the buoyancy input required for density stratification, and wet years are characterized by persistent and intense spring blooms.     

Population Dynamics of Heterodera glycines Life Stages on Soybean

Population fluctuations of Heterodera glycines differ in fields with high and low initial population densities. In a field with low initial numbers of nematodes, the numbers of cysts and eggs in soil remained low through 100 days from planting then increased during the remainder of the growing season. In a field with high initial nematode populations, numbers increased at 30 days, decreased to low numbers at 100 days, and then resurged to maximum populations at harvest. Numbers of juveniles were greatest at 100 days in the low initial population density field and at planting in the high initial population density field. The initial numbers of eggs in the soil gave the best correlation to soil and root nematode populations 15 and 30 days later. Juveniles in the soil at planting gave the largest correlation coefficients with nematode populations in the roots at 15 days in the field with the low initial population density. Eggs and juveniles in the soil at harvest were poorly related to numbers that overwintered.     

Feeding ecology of mandrills (Mandrillus sphinx) in campo animal reserve,Cameroon

A field study on the ecology of mandrills (Mandrillus sphinx) was carried out for 28 months in Cameroon. Fresh food remnants and large quantities of fresh feces were collected by following the groups. Analyses of these products indicated that fruit (including seeds), monocotyledonous plant leaves and insects (especially ants and termites), were frequently eaten. Mandrills mostly ate the plant and animal foods in the lower forest stratum and on the ground. Fallen seeds and monocotyledonous plant leaves were eaten more frequently in the minor fruiting season than in the major fruiting season presumably to compensate for the shortage of fresh fruit during the former. Daily travel distances were shorter during the minor fruiting season than during the major fruiting season, because in the minor fruiting season mandrills forage for small food items, such as the new leaves and piths of monocotyledons and fallen seeds which are sparsely distributed on the ground, while in the major fruiting season they search for widely distributed food such as fruit. The daily pattern of group movement and a food intake experiment suggest that mandrills move and feed continuously throughout the day. Use of fallen seeds and monocotyledonous plant leaves appears to enable mandrills to maintain a terrestrial life in the tropical rain forest. The feeding and ranging characteristics of mandrills are basically similar to those of other baboon species in open land, though their environments differ extremely.     

Thermophilic anaerobic spirochetes in New Zealand hot springs

Abstract Electron and light microscopy revealed the presence of spirochetes in New Zealand thermal springs. The spirochete population in one spring studied (Kuirau Lake) was affected by fluctuations in temperature and/or pool level. A pure culture of the strictly anaerobic bacterium revealed that it grew optimally at a temperature of 45–50°C, with no growth occurring above 60°C, and a pH of 7.0–7.5 with no growth occurring at pH 5.5 or 8.5. Growth was inhibited by chloramphenicol, penicillin, streptomycin, tetracycline and neomycin but not by d -cycloserine, novobiocin or phosphomycin at 10 μg/ml. A wide range of carbohydrates were utilized but not organic acids. Acetate was the major end product of glucose fermentation with substantial amounts of ethanol and traces of lactate being produced.