黑长臂猿的群体大小及组成

黑长臂猿（Ｈｙｌｏｂａｔｅｓｃｏｎｃｏｌｏｒ）是长臂猿科中较为原始的类群,对其野外行为生态习性近年来已有所报道,但意见不一。本文根据近两年的野外观察,认为黑长臂猿的群体大小为４．３±１．０只,（范围３—６,ｎ＝７）,群体组成为１成年雄性,１—２成年雌性,１—３后代个体,群体之大小除与其本身的特点有关外,还与其赖以生存的生境条件好坏有关。     

河南栾川老君山发现红胸啄花鸟

正2013年7月9日,在河南省洛阳市栾川县老君山主峰西侧追梦谷(33°45′26″N,111°38′33″E,海拔830 m),进行蜻蜓多样性专项调查时,偶遇当地村民手中抓着两只漂亮的小鸟。经过仔细观察和辨认,鉴定为红胸啄花鸟(Dicaeum ignipectus),一雌一雄。我们将其带回"河南省林业厅林业有害生物防控重点实验室"精心喂养。两只红胸啄花鸟标本现保存于河南林业职业学院野生动物标本馆。经过查阅《中国鸟类分类与分布名录(第二版)》(郑光美2011)、《中国鸟类分布名录》(郑作新1976)、《中     

西黑冠长臂猿雄性取代前后鸣叫行为的变化

本文通过长时间的野外监测,首次报道了西黑冠长臂猿的一次雄性取代行为。一个研究群体(G3)中的1 只亚成年雄性长臂猿在10 岁左右取代了相邻群体(G2)中的成年雄性。整个取代过程持续了15 d时间。雄性取代发生前,G2 中雌雄的配对关系已经不稳固,这为雄性取代提供了机会。而G2 与G3 群的一次长时间冲突可能消耗了G2 中成年雄性大量体能,这为G3 中的亚成年雄性打败并取代G2 中的成年雄性创造了机会。本研究在取代发生后,对新形成群体的鸣叫行为进行了连续4 个月的监测。结果表明与处于稳定时期的G2 群相比,新形成群体的鸣叫频次更高,但每次二重唱中雌性的平均激动鸣叫次数降低。这证明了Geissmann (1986)提出的假说,新配对的群体应该在尽量短的时间内多练习二重唱,这样导致新配对群体的鸣叫频率明显升高。虽然经历了4 个月的合唱练习,新形成群体的激动鸣叫次数仍然偏低,并且两只雌性同时激动鸣叫的频次也比较低。这说明新形成的配对之间配合依然不默契,或者说明配对之间的关系还不稳定。     

Proximity association in polygynous western black crested gibbons (Nomascus concolor jingdongensis): network structure and seasonality

We investigated the structure and seasonality of the proximity network in a group of polygynous western black crested gibbons (Nomascus concolor) using social network analysis. The spatial proximity changed seasonally and was affected by temperature and rainfall. Preferred proximity association was not distributed randomly among individuals. Kinship was one explanation for the social structure, as offspring preferred to maintain close proximity with their mothers. The proximity of infants to mothers decreased with age, and independent offspring had lower proximity to mothers than dependent ones. We found that the adult male had different proximity relationships with two different adult females. The frequency of proximity between the male and the infant-carrying female was significantly higher than that between the male and the female who had immigrated carrying one offspring of uncertain paternity into the group. Infanticide avoidance and/or predation protection for dependent infants might explain the proximity relationship differences. Temperature influenced group proximity association, with individual proximity increasing in the cold months and decreasing in the hot months. Group proximity decreased in months with higher anthropogenic disturbance.     

Singing behavior and singing functions of black‐crested gibbons (Nomascus concolor jingdongensis) at Mt. Wuliang,central Yunnan,China

We used data on loud duetted and solo songs collected from one habituated polygynous group of black‐crested gibbons (Nomascus concolor jingdongensis) on Mt. Wuliang, Yunnan, to test several hypotheses about the functions of these songs. The major functions proposed for loud gibbon songs include resource defense, mate defense, pairbonding, group cohesion and mate attraction. Duet bouts are generally initiated by adult males, who select the highest trees near to ridges or on steep slopes as singing trees. Such trees facilitate voice transmission and inter‐group communication. Singing trees tended to be located near important food patches and sleeping sites, which supports the resource defense hypothesis. The adult male and two adult females always sang interactively, alternating male phrases with the females' stereotyped great calls, to produce the duets, and females rarely produced great calls if they were more than 30 m from the male. The two females usually produced great calls synchronously during the duet, especially when they were close together. These features support both the mate defense and pairbonding hypotheses. The number of great calls and their degree of synchrony transmit information about spatial relationships and possibly pairbond strength to members to neighboring groups and floating animals. During or after the duet bouts, the adult females and juvenile moved toward to the adult male; and group members maintained a close spatial relationship, which supports the group cohesion hypothesis. Other incidents observed suggest a mate competition role for duets. The adult male always sang when the females started duetting with the subadult male. The subadult male sang solo bouts, but they were not more frequent or longer than bouts initiated by the adult male. Although mate attraction is the likely function of subadult solos, it was not convincingly demonstrated. In conclusion, all hypotheses concerning the function of singing are supported by at least some of the data, and none can be excluded. Am. J. Primatol. 71:539–547, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Traditional Versus Multivariate Methods for Identifying Jaguar,Puma, and Large Canid Tracks

ABSTRACT The jaguar (Panthera onca) and puma (Puma concolor) are the largest felids of the American Continent and live in sympatry along most of their distribution. Their tracks are frequently used for research and management purposes, but tracks are difficult to distinguish from each other and can be confused with those of big canids. We used tracks from pumas, jaguars, large dogs, and maned wolves (Chrysocyon brachyurus) to evaluate traditional qualitative and quantitative identification methods and to elaborate multivariate methods to differentiate big canids versus big felids and puma versus jaguar tracks (n = 167 tracks from 18 zoos). We tested accuracy of qualitative classification through an identification exercise with field-experienced volunteers. Qualitative methods were useful but there was high variability in accuracy of track identification. Most of the traditional quantitative methods showed an elevated percentage of misclassified tracks (≥20%). We used stepwise discriminant function analysis to develop 3 discriminant models: 1 for big canid versus big felid track identification and 2 alternative models for jaguar versus puma track differentiation using 1) best discriminant variables, and 2) size-independent variables. These models had high classification performance, with <10% of error in the validation procedures. We used simpler discriminant models in the elaboration of identification keys to facilitate track classification process. We developed an accurate method for track identification, capable of distinguishing between big felids (puma and jaguar) and large canids (dog and maned wolf) tracks and between jaguar and puma tracks. Application of our method will allow a more reliable use of tracks in puma and jaguar research and it will help managers using tracks as indicators of these felids' presence for conservation or management purposes.     

一夫一妻西黑冠长臂猿的群体活动及其影响因素

高海拔栖息地中灵长类动物的行为适应一直以来都是灵长类研究中的重点内容,同物种在不同栖息地的行为差异也成为近年的热点问题。西黑冠长臂猿(Nomascus concolor)是我国国家一级重点保护野生动物,也是我国长臂猿科动物中种群数量最大的物种,滇中哀牢山、无量山是该物种的集中分布区。哀牢山和无量山的西黑冠长臂猿栖息地存在显著差异,且其社会组织不同。本研究首次报道了在哀牢山高海拔栖息地中一个一夫一妻长臂猿群体的活动时间分配和食性季节性变化。2014—2015年,采用3 min间隔瞬时扫描法记录了长臂猿的行为和食性,468 h的行为数据结果表明,移动行为比例最高38.1%,其次是休息行为36.4%,取食行为23.3%,最少为鸣叫行为1.9%和其他行为1.3%。3 784次取食行为可辨识食物类型,总体上叶类食物占41.1%,其次是果实类食物33.3%,花类食物21.0%,附生植物3.9%,其他食物0.6%。长臂猿的时间分配和食性在雨季和旱季均具有显著差异,在低温旱季,长臂猿增加休息时间,减少移动时间,提高叶类和花类食物的取食比例;在高温雨季,长臂猿增加移动时间,减少休息时间和取食时间,取食更...     

Identification of source‐sink dynamics in mountain lions of the Great Basin

Natural and anthropogenic boundaries have been shown to affect population dynamics and population structure for many species with movement patterns at the landscape level. Understanding population boundaries and movement rates in the field for species that are cryptic and occur at low densities is often extremely difficult and logistically prohibitive; however genetic techniques may offer insights that have previously been unattainable. We analysed thirteen microsatellite loci for 739 mountain lions (Puma concolor) using muscle tissue samples from individuals in the Great Basin throughout Nevada and the Sierra Nevada mountain range to test the hypothesis that heterogeneous hunting pressure results in source‐sink dynamics at the landscape scale. We used a combination of non‐spatial and spatial model‐based Bayesian clustering methods to identify genetic populations. We then used a recently developed Bayesian multilocus genotyping method to estimate asymmetrical rates of contemporary movement between those subpopulations and to identify source and sink populations. We identified two populations at the highest level of genetic structuring with a total of five subpopulations in the Great Basin of Nevada and the Sierra Nevada range. Our results suggest that source‐sink dynamics occur at landscape scales for wide‐ranging species, such as mountain lions, and that source populations may be those that are under relatively less hunting pressure and that occupy refugia.     

Food Habits and Livestock Depredation of Sympatric Jaguars and Pumas in the Iguaçu National Park Area, South Brazil

Understanding coexistence between sympatric felines with similar body sizes, such as jaguars Panthera onca and pumas Puma concolor , requires knowledge of the way these predators consume and partition food resources. Yet the importance of livestock predation on jaguar and puma coexistence is poorly known. I investigated food habits and patterns of livestock depredation of jaguar and pumas in the Iguaçu National Park (INP) in southern Brazil. From 1997 to 2001, I collected scats opportunistically on trails and roads in INP and visited ranches on the border of INP. I found that jaguars relied mostly on large and medium-sized wild prey species, while pumas concentrated on medium-sized prey species. Livestock was the fifth most frequent prey found in jaguar scats but the most important one in terms of biomass consumed. Jaguar and puma diets differed significantly when all prey items were compared and also when livestock was excluded from the jaguar diet. Jaguar predation on livestock was considerably higher than predation by pumas. However, predation was not substantial relative to availability of livestock, and cattle likely constitute an alternative source of prey for jaguars. Degree of diet overlap between jaguar and puma in INP suggests that coexistence was likely driven by exploitative competition through some degree of food partitioning. My results highlight the importance of more actions toward increasing numbers of large ungulates to preserve the population of jaguars in INP.     

Virus-like particules in the poison glant of the parasitic wasp Opius concolor

Virus-like particles (VLP's) have been found in the poison glands of adult females of the parasitic wasp Opius concolor Szèpl. (Hymenoptera, Braconidae). These VLP's are found in the secretory cells either free in the cytoplasm or within cytoplasmic vesicles, sometimes associated to a secretory apparatus. Negative staining of these VLP's has revealed the occurrence of two different particles. The first type exhibits icosahedral symmetry (diameter around 70nm) and hollow surface spikes, this morphology being typical of the genus Cypovirus (Reoviridae). The other type is pleomorphic and presents an envelope with clubshaped projections (diameter ranging from 30 to 60nm), as classical textbook examples of Coronaviruses, but smaller. Function and full characterisation of these particles are not yet known.