Ten polymorphic microsatellite loci for the endangered Buena Vista Lake shrew (Sorex ornatus relictus)

The ornate shrew (Sorex ornatus) is restricted to the vanishing wetlands of California, USA and Baja California, Mexico. Several subspecies of ornate shrews are considered ‘mammal species of special concern’ in California by the Department of Fish and Game, and one (Sorex ornatus relictus) has recently been listed as endangered. Populations of shrews around Buena Vista Lake have been diminished or extirpated due to habitat deterioration and human development. In order to study the patterns of genetic variation in isolated populations of Buena Vista Lake shrews, we developed 10 polymorphic microsatellite loci. There were 6–27 alleles per locus, and the loci had heterozygosity values that ranged from 20 to 80%. In addition, we screened 20 different populations of S. ornatus, eight species within two subfamilies of shrews (Soricinae and Crocidurinae), as well as in a mole (Talpidae, Neurotrichus gibbsii), to determine if these loci could be informative in other species as well.     

First record of male drumming call of the genus Capnioneura Ris, 1905 (Plecoptera,Capniidae)

The male call of Capnioneura mitis, produced by drumming, is recorded and analyzed for the first time. It also represents the first known signal for the genus. It consists of a highly variable number of beats (2–32) with inter‐beat duration approximately constant along the call, but inter‐beat duration is temperature dependent. Thus, at 13°C the mean inter‐beat duration is 1.397 s (SD = 0.050) while at 21°C it is 1.139 s (SD = 0.093). The call pattern exhibited by this species, as those of the majority of previously studied Capniidae species, can be catalogued as an ancestral or near‐ancestral percussive monophasic signal.     

Conservation and ecological implications of the use of space by chilla foxes and free‐ranging dogs in a human‐dominated landscape in southern Chile

We investigated whether domestic dogs (Canis lupus familiaris) influenced the use of space by chilla foxes (Lycalopex griseus) in southern Chile and tested the hypothesis that dogs interfere with chillas. We used scent stations and occurrence of scats within systematically placed plots to assess habitat use by both species and to test whether dogs were associated to the use of space by chillas. Activity data were obtained from captures for both species, and telemetry for foxes. Diet of both species was analysed in order to tease out the potential existence of exploitation competition. We found that, when active, chillas used prairies more and native forest less than expected according to availability, whereas inactive chillas (during the day) preferred native forest, the only habitat type that dogs did not use. The odds of dog occurrence increased at shorter distance to human houses, whereas the inverse pattern was observed for chillas. Poisson models showed that the number of chilla visits to scent stations was negatively correlated with the number of dog visits. We observed dogs persecuting and/or killing chillas which was also corroborated by local people that used dogs to prevent chilla‐related poultry losses, supporting the idea that dogs harass foxes actively. The analysis of scats showed that dogs fed mainly on house food and domestic ruminant carcasses whereas foxes fed on hare, hens, mice and wild birds, thus suggesting that exploitation competition is not a strong alternative hypothesis as a proximate cause for the patterns observed. We conclude that dogs seem to constrain the use of space by wild carnivores via interference.     

Floral and reproductive biology of Drosophyllum lusitanicum (L.) Link (Droseraceae)

We studied the floral and reproductive biology of Drosophyllym lusitanicum (Droseraceae), a species endemic to the western Iberian Peninsula and northwest Morocco. Flowering lasted from March to August, peaking in April. The species is clearly homogamous, with pollen germination and stigma receptivity occurring even in preanthesis. This was reflected in the high rates of fruit set and seed set in bagged inflorescences. Fructification did not differ significantly between different pollination treatments, although we did find differences between some treatments in the numbers of viable seeds per flower and fruit. However, seed weight did not differ significantly. The importance of self-pollination over cross-pollination was also supported by the low percentages of fructification (24.67%) after emasculation and open pollination. Metameric deviations were seen in flowers, although this abnormality was not translated as any reproductive benefit or disadvantage (fructification, number or weight of seeds) in comparison with normal flowers.     

A new ichthyodectiform (Actinopterygii,Teleostei) from the Lower Cretaceous Marizal Formation,north‐east Brazil

Abstract: A new genus and species, Ogunichthys triangularis, from the Early Cretaceous Marizal Formation in the Tucano Basin, Bahia State, Brazil, can be assigned to the teleost order Ichthyodectiformes and to the suborder Ichthyodectoidei by the presence of ten synapomorphies of these clades. Ogunichthys gen. nov. cannot be placed into any of the currently recognized families within Ichthyodectoidei and differs from all other ichthyodectoid genera in the ratio between the depth of the dentary symphysis and the depth of the coronoid process, the relationships between the length of the coronoid process and the alveolar border of the dentary, and a supraoccipital crest with posterior border fringed. The new taxon occurs in Early Cretaceous (Aptian) strata of the Marizal Formation, which are related to periods during epicontinental seas extended from the Caribbean Tethys into the South American continent. Rather than representing a single continuous widespread seaway, these epicontinental seas reflect local tectonic events, sometimes including locally distinctive faunas.     

Faba bean forisomes can function in defence against generalist aphids

Phloem sieve elements have shut‐off mechanisms that prevent loss of nutrient‐rich phloem sap when the phloem is damaged. Some phloem proteins such as the proteins that form forisomes in legume sieve elements are one such mechanism and in response to damage, they instantly form occlusions that stop the flow of sap. It has long been hypothesized that one function of phloem proteins is defence against phloem sap‐feeding insects such as aphids. This study provides the first experimental evidence that aphid feeding can induce phloem protein occlusion and that the aphid‐induced occlusions inhibit phloem sap ingestion. The great majority of phloem penetrations in Vicia faba by the generalist aphids Myzus persicae and Macrosiphum euphorbiae triggered forisome occlusion and the aphids eventually withdrew their stylets without ingesting phloem sap. This contrasts starkly with a previous study on the legume‐specialist aphid, Acyrthosiphon pisum, where penetration of faba bean sieve elements did not trigger forisome occlusion and the aphids readily ingested phloem sap. Next, forisome occlusion was demonstrated to be the cause of failed phloem ingestion attempts by M. persicae: when occlusion was inhibited by the calcium channel blocker lanthanum, M. persicae readily ingested faba bean phloem sap.     

Enzymatic, isoelectric, and molecular-weight characterization of water-soluble maize-pollen proteins

Maize (Zea mays L. cv. Kansas Drought Synthetic) pollen proteins were fractionated via a continuous tandem cascade ultrafiltration system into three molecular-weight classes. Proteins from the whole extract and each fraction were further separated by polyacrylamide gel electrofocusing in the pH 5 to 9 range and characterized by their enzymatic activity and isoelectric point. Twenty-one protein bands were detected with Fast Green FCF staining. Esterase, peroxidase, leucine aminopeptidase, catalase, and amylase activities were located in 16 bands. Five bands remained unclassified. All the enzymes assayed, except amylase, were polymorphic. The extractions, fractionations and zymograms were reproducible and indicated that several protein bands contained at least two different enzymes with very similar molecular weight class and isoelectric point for each enzyme and protein band