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dryad28/100

Data from: Reduced genetic variance among high fitness individuals: inferring stabilizing selection on male sexual displays in D. serrata

Directional selection is prevalent in nature yet phenotypes tend to remain relatively constant, suggesting a limit to trait evolution. However, the genetic basis of this limit is unresolved. Given widespread pleiotropy, opposing selection on a trait may arise from the effects of the underlying alleles on other traits under selection, generating net stabilizing selection on trait genetic variance. These pleiotropic costs of trait exaggeration may arise through any number of other traits, making them hard to detect in phenotypic analyses. Stabilizing selection can be inferred, however, if genetic variance is greater among low compared to high fitness individuals. We extend a recently suggested approach to provide a direct test of a difference in genetic variance for a suite of cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) in Drosophila serrata. Despite strong directional sexual selection on these traits, genetic variance differed between high and low fitness individuals and was greater among the low fitness males for seven of eight CHCs, significantly more than expected by chance. Univariate tests of a difference in genetic variance were non-significant but likely have low power. Our results suggest that further CHC exaggeration in D. serrata in response to sexual selection is limited by pleiotropic costs mediated through other traits.

opencc-zeroDec 2011View details →
dryad28/100

Data from: Heritable variation in colour patterns mediating individual recognition

Understanding the developmental and evolutionary processes that generate and maintain variation in natural populations remains a major challenge for modern biology. Populations of Polistes fuscatus paper wasps have highly variable colour patterns that mediate individual recognition. Previous experimental and comparative studies have provided evidence that colour pattern diversity is the result of selection for individuals to advertise their identity. Distinctive identity-signalling phenotypes facilitate recognition, which reduces aggression between familiar individuals in P. fuscatus wasps. Selection for identity signals may increase phenotypic diversity via two distinct modes of selection that have different effects on genetic diversity. Directional selection for increased plasticity would greatly increase phenotypic diversity but decrease genetic diversity at associated loci. Alternatively, heritable identity signals under balancing selection would maintain genetic diversity at associated loci. Here, we assess whether there is heritable variation underlying colour pattern diversity used for facial recognition in a wild population of P. fuscatus wasps. We find that colour patterns are heritable and not Mendelian, suggesting that multiple loci are involved. Additionally, patterns of genetic correlations among traits indicated that many of the loci underlying colour pattern variation are unlinked and independently segregating. Our results support a model where the benefits of being recognizable maintain genetic variation at multiple unlinked loci that code for phenotypic diversity used for recognition.

opencc-zeroDec 2016View details →
dryad28/100

Data from: Combining animal personalities with transcriptomics resolves individual variation within a wild-type zebrafish population and identifies underpinning molecular differences in brain function

Resolving phenotype variation within a population in response to environmental perturbation is central to understanding biological adaptation. Relating meaningful adaptive changes at the level of the transcriptome requires the identification of processes that have a functional significance for the individual. This remains a major objective towards understanding the complex interactions between environmental demand and an individual's capacity to respond to such demands. The interpretation of such interactions and the significance of biological variation between individuals from the same or different populations remain a difficult and under-addressed question. Here, we provide evidence that variation in gene expression between individuals in a zebrafish population can be partially resolved by a priori screening for animal personality and accounts for >9% of observed variation in the brain transcriptome. Proactive and reactive individuals within a wild-type population exhibit consistent behavioural responses over time and context that relates to underlying differences in regulated gene networks and predicted protein–protein interactions. These differences can be mapped to distinct regions of the brain and provide a foundation towards understanding the coordination of underpinning adaptive molecular events within populations.

opencc-zeroDec 2013View details →
dryad28/100

Data from: Individual variation in the oxidative costs of personality traits

1.'Personality traits' are behavioural differences between individuals that are stable within individuals. Different combinations of personality traits can correlate with fitness variation but the mechanisms remain unclear. There is the suggestion that personality reflects variation in physiology. For example, 'fast' (bold, active, fast exploring) individuals are predicted to maintain a higher metabolic rate than 'slow' animals. A raised metabolic rate can result in a proliferation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) which, if unchecked, cause oxidative stress. Thus, the 'extended pace of life theory' predicts that 'fast' individuals will pay higher oxidative costs than 'slow' ones. Alternatively, stress hormones, which are often relatively high in 'slow' individuals, can also cause proliferation of ROS and subsequent oxidative damage. Here, we assessed co-variation between personality and oxidative profile in wild blue tits. 2.The personality traits neophobia (latency to approach food near novel objects), activity level in a novel environment and exploratory tendency (controlling for differences in activity) assayed in captivity were repeatable within individuals but were uncorrelated with each other. Reactive oxygen metabolites (ROMs an index of pro-oxidant status) and OXY (antioxidant capacity) were also uncorrelated with each other and did not vary with age or sex. Blood sampling birds within three minutes of capture from their familiar cage versus after 15 minutes of exposure to a standardised stressor did not affect ROMs or OXY. 3.Wintering blue tits that were both highly neophobic and exploratory had low OXY defences and individuals that showed low neophobia and low exploration had high OXY defences. Variation in ROMs was not explained by any personality trait. High exploratory tendency also correlated with a reduction in body condition in captivity, but body condition did not predict ROMs or OXY. Activity level in the exploration trial did not vary with oxidative profile or change in body condition. 4.Personality types differed in antioxidant defences, and it was the combination of an individual's personality traits that proved important. ROS production and antioxidant defences will vary due to many processes e.g. resource allocation, not just metabolic rate and stress responsiveness. Consequently, the costs of personality traits and thus the predictions regarding fitness are complex. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

opencc-zeroDec 2013View details →
dryad28/100

Data from: Tracking individuals shows spatial fidelity is a key regulator of ant social organization

Ants live in organized societies with a marked division of labor among workers, but little is known about how this is generated. We use a tracking system to continuously monitor individually-tagged workers in six colonies of the ant Camponotus fellah over 41 days. Network analyses of over 9 million interactions revealed three distinct groups that differ in behavioral repertoires. Each group represents a functional behavioral unit with workers moving from one group to the next as they age. The rate of interactions was much higher within- than between groups. The precise information on spatial and temporal distribution of all individuals permitted calculation of the expected rates of within- and between-group interactions. These values suggest that the network of interaction within colonies is primarily mediated by age-induced changes in the spatial location of workers.

opencc-zeroDec 2012View details →
dryad28/100

Data from: Birdsong signals individual diversity at the major histocompatibility complex

The major histocompatibility complex (MHC) plays a key role in vertebrate immunity, and pathogen-mediated selection often favours certain allelic combinations. Assessing potential mates' MHC profiles may provide receivers with genetic benefits (identifying MHC-compatible mates and producing optimally diverse offspring) and/or material benefits (identifying optimally diverse mates capable of high parental investment). Oscine songbirds learn songs during early life, such that song repertoire content can reflect population of origin while song complexity can reflect early life condition. Thus birdsong may advertise the singer's genetic dissimilarity to others in the population (and, presumably, compatibility with potential mates), or individual genetic diversity (and thus condition-dependent material benefits). We tested whether song repertoire content and/or complexity signal MHC class IIβ dissimilarity and/or diversity in male song sparrows (Melospiza melodia). Pairwise dissimilarity in repertoire content did not predict MHC dissimilarity between males, suggesting that locally rare songs do not signal rare MHC profiles. Thus, geographical variation in song may not facilitate MHC-mediated inbreeding or outbreeding. Larger repertoires were associated with intermediate MHC diversity, suggesting intermediate rather than maximal MHC diversity is optimal. This could reflect trade-offs between resisting infection and autoimmune disorders. Song complexity may advertise optimal MHC diversity, a trait affecting disease resistance and capacity for parental care.

opencc-zeroDec 2016View details →
dryad28/100

Data from: Individual dispersal decisions in a cooperative breeder: ecological constraints, the benefits of philopatry, and the social queue for dominance

1. Delayed dispersal is a key step in the evolution of familial animal societies and cooperative breeding. However, no consensus has been reached on the ecological and social circumstances driving delayed dispersal. 2. Here we test predictions from the ecological constraints and benefits of philopatry hypotheses as well as the recently-proposed dual benefits hypothesis to better understand the evolution of group-living and cooperative breeding. Furthermore, we consider how individual social circumstances within groups affect dispersal decisions. 3. We examine 11 years of life-history information on a wild population of cooperatively breeding southern pied babblers (Turdoides bicolor). We investigate the effects of ecological conditions, natal-group membership and individual social context on male and female dispersal delays, disperser survival and acquisition of dominance. 4. Female dispersal decisions are generally unconstrained by ecological or social circumstances. In contrast, males disperse in response to relaxed ecological constraints, decreases in nepotistic tolerance, or when low social rank in the queue for dominance decreases their likelihood of gaining a dominant breeding position. Early dispersal by end-of-queue males often leads to a head-of-queue subordinate position in a non-natal group, thereby increasing access to dominant breeding positions. However, males and females remaining in natal groups gain benefits of philopatry via increased survival and, for head-of-queue males, very high likelihood of acquisition of a breeding position. 5. Overall, predictions from the dual benefits hypothesis best describe these results, while some predictions from each of the ecological constraints and benefits of philopatry hypotheses were supported. The benefits of living and working together (collective action benefits) in large stable groups are of central importance in shaping dispersal delays in southern pied babbler societies. In addition, position in the subordinate social queue for dominance is key in determining access to reproduction, particularly for males. This research highlights the importance of considering the costs and benefits of individual social circumstances in dispersal decisions and illustrates how the dual benefits hypothesis offers new perspectives in understanding delayed dispersal.

opencc-zeroDec 2017View details →
dryad28/100

Data from: Orientation-invariance of individual differences in three face processing tasks

Numerous studies have reported impairments in perception and recognition, and, particularly, in part-integration of faces following picture-plane inversion. Whether these findings support the notion that inversion changes face processing qualitatively remains a topic of debate. To examine whether associations and dissociations of the human face processing ability depend on stimulus orientation, we measured face recognition with the Cambridge Face Memory Test (CFMT), along with experimental tests of face perception and selective attention to faces and non-face objects in a sample of 314 participants. Results showed strong inversion effects for all face-related tasks, and modest ones for non-face objects. Individual differences analysis revealed that the CFMT shared common variance with face perception and face-selective attention, however, independent of orientation. Regardless of whether predictor and criterion had same or different orientation, face recognition was best predicted by the same test battery. Principal component decomposition revealed a common factor for face recognition and face perception, a second common factor for face recognition and face-selective attention, and two unique factors. The patterns of factor loadings were nearly identical for upright and inverted presentation. These results indicate orientation-invariance of common variance in three domains of face processing. Since inversion impaired performance, but did not affect domain-related associations and dissociations, the findings suggest process-specific but orientationgeneral mechanisms. Specific limitations by constraints of individual differences analysis and test selection are discussed.

opencc-zeroDec 2017View details →
dryad28/100

Metabolic rate interacts with resource availability to determine individual variation in microhabitat use in the wild

<p class="MsoNoSpacing">Ecological pressures such as competition can lead individuals within a population to partition resources or habitats, but the underlying intrinsic mechanisms that determine an individual's resource use are not well understood. Here we show that an individual's own energy demand and associated competitive ability influence its resource use, but only when food is more limiting. We tested whether intraspecific variation in metabolic rate leads to microhabitat partitioning among juvenile Atlantic salmon (<i>Salmo salar</i>) in natural streams subjected to manipulated nutrient levels and subsequent <i>per capita</i> food availability. We found that individual salmon from families with a higher baseline (standard) metabolic rate (which is associated with greater competitive ability) tended to occupy faster flowing water, but only in streams with lower <i>per capita</i> food availability. Faster flowing microhabitats yield more food, but high metabolic rate fish only benefited from faster growth in streams with high food levels, presumably because in low food environments the cost of a high metabolism offset the benefits of acquiring a productive microhabitat. The benefits of a given metabolic rate were thus context-dependent. These results demonstrate that intraspecific variation in metabolic rate can interact with resource availability to determine the spatial structuring of wild populations.</p>

opencc-zeroMar 2020View details →
dryad28/100

Data from: Asymmetry in pay-off predicts how familiar individuals respond to one another

Familiarity influences individual decision-making in many vertebrate species. Here, we propose that familiarity modulates behaviour to different extents depending on the social context of the interaction. Specifically, the more that one player stands to gain relative to the other, the less important familiarity will be in influencing their responses to one another. We test this prediction using pairs of male guppies (Poecilia reticulata) in three competitive scenarios of increasing asymmetry in outcome to the two players: schooling under potential threat (similar outcomes), competing for a defensible food source (some asymmetry) and competing for a receptive female (strongly asymmetrical outcomes). Males show a graded response as asymmetry increases, with familiarity producing marked behavioural differences under potential threat, minor changes when competing for food, but none at all in competition for mating opportunities. This suggests that mutualistic benefits can arise as a by-product of selfish behaviour, supporting the role of pseudo-reciprocity in the evolution of cooperation.

opencc-zeroDec 2012View details →
dryad28/100

Data from: Characterizing innovators: ecological and individual predictors of problem-solving performance

Behavioural innovation, the use of new behaviours or existing ones in novel contexts, can have important ecological and evolutionary consequences for animals. An understanding of these consequences would be incomplete without considering the traits that predispose certain individuals to exhibit innovative behaviour. Several individual and ecological variables are hypothesized to affect innovativeness, but empirical studies show mixed results. We examined the effects of dominance rank, exploratory personality, and urbanisation on the innovativeness of wild-caught black-capped chickadees using a survival analysis of their performance in two problem-solving tasks. Additionally, we provide one of the first investigations of the predictors of persistence in a problem-solving context. For lever pulling, we found a trend for dominants to outperform subordinates, particularly in rural birds, which did not align with predictions from the necessity drives innovation hypothesis. When examining possible explanations for this trend we found that older chickadees outperformed younger birds. This follow-up analysis also revealed a positive effect of exploratory personality on the lever-pulling performance of chickadees. Our results suggest that experience may foster innovation in certain circumstances, for instance via the application of previously-acquired information or skills to a novel problem. As we found different predictors for both tasks, this suggests that task characteristics influence the innovative propensity of individuals, and that their effects should be investigated experimentally.

opencc-zeroJun 2019View details →
dryad28/100

Data from: Risky business: linking Toxoplasma gondii infection and entrepreneurship behaviours across individuals and countries

Disciplines such as business and economics often rely on the assumption of rationality when explaining complex human behaviours. However, growing evidence suggests that behaviour may concurrently be influenced by infec- tious microorganisms. The protozoan, Toxoplasma gondii, infects an estimated 2 billion people worldwide and has been linked to behavioural alterations in humans and other vertebrates. Here we integrate primary data from college students and business professionals with national-level information on cultural attitudes toward business to test the hypothesis that T. gondii infection influences individual as well as societal-scale entre- preneurship activities. Using a saliva-based assay, we found that students (n 1⁄4 1495) who tested IgG positive for T. gondii exposure were 1.4 more likely to major in business and 1.70 more likely to have an emphasis in 'management and entrepreneurship' over other business-related emphases. Among professionals attending entrepreneurship events, T. gondii-positive individuals were 1.8 more likely to have started their own business com- pared with other attendees (n 1⁄4 197). Finally, after synthesizing and combining country-level databases on T. gondii infection from the past 25 years with the global entrepreneurship monitor of entrepreneurial activity, we found that infection prevalence was a consistent, positive predictor of entrepreneurial activity and intentions at the national scale, regardless of whether previously identified economic covariates were included. Nations with higher infection also had a lower fraction of respondents citing 'fear of failure' in inhibiting initiating new business ventures. While correlational, these results highlight the linkage between parasitic infection and complex human behaviours, including those relevant to business, entrepreneurship, and economic productivity.

opencc-zeroDec 2017View details →
dryad28/100

Data from: High level of extrapair fertilizations in individual Tibetan azure-winged magpies and their adaptive responses

Extrapair fertilizations (EPFs) occur widely in socially monogamous birds and result in mixed parentage in the brood. The response of an individual to these EPFs of its social mate remains poorly investigated in terms of parental care for the mixed brood. We addressed this question in a cooperatively-breeding corvid, the azure-winged magpie Cyanopica cyana. Parentage analysis indicated that 45% of females and 37% of males engaged in EPFs. There were 49% of cooperative groups and 36% of bi-parental nests with extrapair paternity (EPP) offspring, and 22% of cooperative groups and 19% of bi-parental nests with extrapair maternity (EPM) offspring. Based on the identity of offspring, we classified adults into four types: EPP offspring fathers/mothers, EPM offspring fathers/mothers, cuckolded males/females, and faithful males/females. A comparison of provisioning rates among all four types of breeders showed that 1) EPM offspring fathers had the highest provisioning rate; 2) cuckolded males did not reduce parental care, compared to faithful males and EPP offspring fathers; and 3) females of different types did not differ in their provisioning rates. Our findings suggest that a combination of frequent opportunities, low costs of cuckoldry, and the benefits of establishing a cooperative neighbourhood can explain why EPFs occur frequently in the Tibetan population of azure-winged magpie.

opencc-zeroDec 2017View details →
dryad28/100

Data from: Individual differences in selective attention predict speech identification at a cocktail party

Listeners with normal hearing show considerable individual differences in speech understanding when competing speakers are present, as in a crowded restaurant. Here, we show that one source of this variance are individual differences in the ability to focus selective attention on a target stimulus in the presence of distractors. In 50 young normal-hearing listeners, the performance in tasks measuring auditory and visual selective attention was associated with sentence identification in the presence of spatially separated competing speakers. Together, the measures of selective attention explained a similar proportion of variance as the binaural sensitivity for the acoustic temporal fine structure. Working memory span, age, and audiometric thresholds showed no significant association with speech understanding. These results suggest that a reduced ability to focus attention on a target is one reason why some listeners with normal hearing sensitivity have difficulty communicating in situations with background noise.

opencc-zeroDec 2015View details →
dryad28/100

Data from: Individual foraging variation drives social organization in bottlenose dolphins

Identifying foraging variation within a population and assessing its relationship with social structure is essential to increase knowledge about the evolution of social systems. Here, we investigated individual foraging variation in bottlenose dolphins and its potential influence on their social organization. We used generalized affiliation indices and applied social network analysis to data collected over 4 consecutive years of research in a coastal area subject to significant use and pressure by humans. Our findings revealed variation in foraging behavior among individual bottlenose dolphins, which in turn shapes their social organization. Our results indicated that individuals that frequently foraged within human-altered areas (i.e., shellfish farms) exhibited weaker Strength, Reach, and Affinity compared to others. These bottlenose dolphins profit from a reliable and easily located food source which may increase their energy intake and inter-individual competition. In contrast, individuals that foraged less frequently within the shellfish farms occupied a central position within the network and exhibited strong associations. These individuals may benefit from increased cooperation and reduced intragroup competition, thus increasing learning and information-sharing, as they may face a patchy and irregular distribution of prey. We also demonstrated that bottlenose dolphins preferred to affiliate with other individuals with similar foraging strategies (i.e., homophily), which could promote, through time, a segregation of the population into behaviorally distinct groups. These findings provide valuable insight into the evolution of bottlenose dolphin social systems and their response to human-induced changes in the marine environment.

opencc-zeroAug 2019View details →
dryad28/100

Data from: Sampling strategies for delimiting species: genes, individuals, and populations in the Liolaemus elongatus-kriegi complex (Squamata: Liolaemidae) in Andean-Patagonian South America

Recovery of evolutionary history and delimiting species boundaries in widely distributed, poorly-known groups requires extensive geographic sampling, but this is difficult to design a priori because evolutionary diversity is often "hidden" by an inadequate taxonomy. Large data sets are needed, and these provide unique challenges for analysis when they span intra and inter-specific levels of divergence. Protocols have been designed to combine methods of analysis for DNA sequences that exhibit both very shallow and relatively deeper divergences (Crandall and Fitzpatrick, 1996). In this study we combine several tree-based phylogeny reconstruction methods with nested clade analysis, to extract maximum historical signal at various levels, in the poorly-known Liolaemus elongatus-kriegi complex in temperate South America. We implement the basic protocol of Wiens and Penkrot (2002) to test for species boundaries, and propose modifications to accommodate large data sets and gene regions with heterogeneous substitution rates. Combining haplotype trees with nested-clade analyses allowed testing of species boundaries on the basis of a priori defined criteria, and this approach suggests that the number of putative species could be doubled. We discuss these findings in the context of the advantages and limitations of a combined approach for retrieval of maximum historical information in large data sets, in the context of the yet formidable unresolved issues of sampling strategies.

opencc-zeroDec 2008View details →
dryad28/100

Data from: Individual variation in the social plasticity of water dragons

Individuals should alter when they socially associate with conspecifics to avoid potentially costly interactions. Moreover, individuals may vary in their propensity to use information about conspecifics when making such social decisions. However, surprisingly little is known about either the determinants of, or individual variation in, such 'social plasticity'. We show here that eastern water dragons (Intellegama lesueurii lesueurii) may simultaneously use information from different components of their social environment when deciding whether or not to socially associate. In particular, we found that individuals altered when they socially associated according to levels of potential conflict and competition in their social environment; both sexes socially associated more at higher local density than would be expected under increased random encounters. Further, females were more likely to socially associate during the breeding season, and when there were more males and/or conspecifics whom they typically avoided in their social environment. This suggests that females may seek safety in numbers when the potential for intra-sexual conflict or sexual harassment is high. Using a behavioural reaction-norm framework, we also provide novel evidence to show that individuals vary in the extent and direction of their social plasticity, and that males varied more than females. Our study thus implies that individuals use multiple cues in their environment when deciding to socially associate, and that the resulting social plasticity varies between the sexes and between individuals.

opencc-zeroDec 2018View details →
dryad28/100

Data from: Conformity in the collective: differences in hunger affect individual and group behaviour in fish

Animal groups are often composed of individuals that vary according to behavioural, morphological and internal state parameters. Understanding the importance of such individual-level heterogeneity to the establishment and maintenance of coherent group responses is of fundamental interest in collective behaviour. We examined the influence of hunger on the individual and collective behaviour of groups of shoaling fish, x-ray tetras (Pristella maxillaris). Fish were assigned to one of two nutritional states, satiated or hungry, and then allocated to 5 treatments that represented different ratios of satiated to hungry individuals (8 hungry, 8 satiated, 4:4 hungry: satiated, 2:6 hungry: satiated, 6:2 hungry: satiated). Our data show that groups with a greater proportion of hungry fish swam faster and exhibited greater nearest-neighbour distances. Within groups, however, there was no difference in the swimming speeds of hungry versus well-fed fish, suggesting that group members conform and adapt their swimming speed according to the overall composition of the group. We also found significant differences in mean group transfer entropy, suggesting stronger patterns of information flow in groups comprising all, or a majority of, hungry individuals. In contrast, we did not observe differences in polarization, a measure of group coherence, within groups across treatments. Taken together these results demonstrate that the nutritional state of animals within social groups impacts both individual and group behaviour, and that members of heterogenous groups can adapt their behaviour to facilitate coherent collective motion.

opencc-zeroDec 2018View details →
dryad28/100

Data from: Within-individual canalization contributes to age-related increases in trait repeatability: a longitudinal experiment in red knots

Abstract: Age-related increases in the repeatable expression of labile phenotypic traits are often assumed to arise from an increase in among-individual variance due to differences in developmental plasticity or by means of state-behaviour feedbacks. However, age-related increases in repeatability could also arise from a decrease in within-individual variance as a result of stabilizing trait expression, i.e. canalization. Here we describe age-related changes in within- and among-individual variance components in two correlated traits, gizzard mass and exploration behavior, in a medium-sized shorebird, the red knot (Calidris canutus). Increased repeatability of gizzard mass came about due to an increase in among-individual variance, unrelated to differences in developmental plasticity, together with decreases in within-individual variance, consistent with canalization. We also found canalization of exploration, but no age-related increase in overall repeatability, which suggests that showing predictable expression of exploration behaviour may be advantageous from a very young age onward. Contrasts between juveniles and adults in the first year after their capture provide support for the idea that environmental conditions play a key role in generating among-individual variation in both gizzard mass and exploration behavior. Our study shows that stabilization of traits occurs under constant conditions: with increased exposure to predictable cues, individuals may become more certain in their assessment of the environment allowing traits to become canalized.

opencc-zeroDec 2018View details →
dryad28/100

Data from: Detecting copper toxicity in sediments: from the sub-individual level to the population level

1.Sediments accumulate chemicals that can be toxic to biota and often contribute to aquatic ecosystem decline. Measuring mortality in laboratory-bred organisms is a common way to assess sediment toxicity. However, mortality-based responses of resilient laboratory organisms may not reflect indigenous macroinvertebrate responses, which can be relatively more sensitive to sediment toxicants. A possible solution is to also measure responses at the sub-individual level. 2.Several organism responses to sediment copper toxicity were assessed in a field-based microcosm. Responses of laboratory-bred chironomids and snails deployed in microcosms were compared at sub-individual (metabolomic and gene expression), individual (survival and dry weight) and population (reproduction) levels, and contrasted to the abundance of colonizing macroinvertebrates in the microcosms. 3.Colonizing macroinvertebrate abundance showed a range of sensitivities based on EC50 (effect dose 50% change). Chironomidae made up 94.5% of the microcosm macroinvertebrates, with Paratanytarsus the most sensitive genus (EC50: 89 mg/kg copper) and Procladius the least sensitive (EC50: 681 mg/kg). 4.Survival of laboratory-bred organisms was the least sensitive response, comparable to decreased abundance of the least sensitive macroinvertebrate. Juvenile production in the snail, Potamopyrgus antipodarum, was the most sensitive population level response (EC50: 121 mg/kg), in contrast the snail Physella acuta was relatively more tolerant (EC50: 298 mg/kg). 5.Changes in sub-individual responses (gene expression and metabolite abundance) in laboratory-bred chironomid, Chironomus tepperi, were evident at 60 mg/kg. These changes likely reflect the direct effects of copper exposure and represent metal-specific responses. 6.Synthesis and applications. We showed that copper toxicity in sediments could be readily detected through changes in gene expression and metabolites in laboratory-bred chironomids exposed in field-based microcosms. These responses were more sensitive than mortality, and detected copper levels that caused microcosm chironomid populations to decline. These novel approaches will provide managers with new tools to better assess sediment toxicity.

opencc-zeroDec 2015View details →

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Allen Brain Atlas

Allen Brain Atlas is an Allen Institute collection of brain map atlases, datasets, APIs, and analysis tools covering mouse, human, and non-human primate brain resources.

allen-brain-atlas
neuroscienceopenDocumentation, web resources, and API references are available online.
Last verified 2026-04-30Open record

Annotated Behaviour and Observability Dataset (ABODe)

ABODe is a University of Edinburgh DataShare dataset for behavior classification in group-housed mice using home-cage video, identities, bounding boxes, ground-plate positions, and annotator labels.

abode-home-cage
behavioral-neuroscienceopenThe DataShare record exposes download links for annotations, documentation, license text, and the zipped per-snippet data directory.
Last verified 2026-04-30Open record

DANDI Archive for NWB datasets

DANDI is a BRAIN Initiative archive for publishing and sharing neurophysiology data, including electrophysiology, optophysiology, and behavioral data packaged as NWB and related standards.

dandi-nwb
electrophysiologyopenPublished Dandiset metadata and archive endpoints are available through the production DANDI API.
Last verified 2026-04-30Open record

International Brain Laboratory public data

The International Brain Laboratory public data releases expose standardized mouse decision-making experiments, including Neuropixels recordings, widefield calcium imaging, behavior, and session metadata accessed through the ONE API.

ibl
behavioral-neuroscienceopenPublic sessions can be searched and loaded from the IBL public data server through ONE.
Last verified 2026-04-29Open record

OpenNeuro

OpenNeuro is a free, open platform for sharing neuroimaging datasets, with public search, dataset pages, and download paths for web, S3, DataLad, and the OpenNeuro CLI.

openneuro
neuroscienceopenPublished datasets are available on demand over the internet.
Last verified 2026-04-29Open record

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