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opencc-zeroDec 2015View details →

Data from: A generalizable energetics-based model of avian migration to facilitate continental-scale waterbird conservation

Conserving migratory birds is made especially difficult because of movement among spatially disparate locations across the annual cycle. In light of challenges presented by the scale and ecology of migratory birds, successful conservation requires integrating objectives, management, and monitoring across scales, from local management units to ecoregional and flyway administrative boundaries. We present an integrated approach using a spatially explicit energetic-based mechanistic bird migration model useful to conservation decision-making across disparate scales and locations. This model moves a Mallard-like bird (Anas platyrhynchos), through spring and fall migration as a function of caloric gains and losses across a continental-scale energy landscape. We predicted with this model that fall migration, where birds moved from breeding to wintering habitat, took a mean of 27.5 d of flight with a mean seasonal survivorship of 90.5% (95% CI = 89.2%, 91.9%), whereas spring migration took a mean of 23.5 d of flight with mean seasonal survivorship of 93.6% (95% CI = 92.5%, 94.7%). Sensitivity analyses suggested that survival during migration was sensitive to flight speed, flight cost, the amount of energy the animal could carry, and the spatial pattern of energy availability, but generally insensitive to total energy availability per se. Nevertheless, continental patterns in the bird-use days occurred principally in relation to wetland cover and agricultural habitat in the fall. Bird-use days were highest in both spring and fall in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley and along the coast and near-shore environments of South Carolina. Spatial sensitivity analyses suggested that locations nearer to migratory endpoints were less important to survivorship; for instance, removing energy from a 1036 km2 stopover site at a time from the Atlantic Flyway suggested coastal areas between New Jersey and North Carolina, including the Chesapeake Bay and the North Carolina piedmont, are essential locations for efficient migration and increasing survivorship during spring migration but not locations in Ontario and Massachusetts. This sort of spatially explicit information may allow decision-makers to prioritize their conservation actions toward locations most influential to migratory success. Thus, this mechanistic model of avian migration provides a decision-analytic medium integrating the potential consequences of local actions to flyway-scale phenomena.

opencc-zeroDec 2013View details →

Data from: A continental scale trophic cascade from wolves through coyotes to foxes

Top-down processes, via the direct and indirect effects of interspecific competitive killing (no consumption of the kill) or intraguild predation (consumption of the kill), can potentially influence the spatial distribution of terrestrial predators, but few studies have demonstrated the phenomenon at a continental scale. For example, in North America, grey wolves (Canis lupus) are known to kill coyotes (Canis latrans), and coyotes, in turn, may kill foxes (Vulpes spp.), but the spatial effects of these competitive interactions at large scales are unknown. Here, we analyse fur return data across eight jurisdictions in North America to test whether the presence or absence of wolves has caused a continent-wide shift in coyote and red fox (Vulpes vulpes) density. Our results support the existence of a continental scale cascade whereby coyotes outnumber red foxes in areas where wolves have been extirpated by humans, whereas red foxes outnumber coyotes in areas where wolves are present. However, for a distance of up to 200 km on the edge of wolf distribution, there is a transition zone where the effects of top-down control are weakened, possibly due to the rapid dispersal and reinvasion capabilities of coyotes into areas where wolves are sporadically distributed or at low densities. Our results have implications for understanding how the restoration of wolf populations across North America could potentially affect co-occurring predators and prey. We conclude that large carnivores may need to occupy large continuous areas to facilitate among-carnivore cascades and that studies of small areas may not be indicative of the effects of top-down mesopredator control.

opencc-zeroDec 2011View details →

Data from: Population genetic structure and its implications for adaptive variation in memory and the hippocampus on a continental scale in food-caching black-capped chickadees

Food-caching birds rely on stored food to survive the winter and spatial memory has been shown to be critical in successful cache recovery. Both spatial memory and the hippocampus, an area of the brain involved in spatial memory, exhibit significant geographic variation linked to climate-based environmental harshness and the potential reliance on food caches for survival. Such geographic variation has been suggested to have a heritable basis associated with differential selection. Here, we ask whether population genetic differentiation and potential isolation among multiple populations of food-caching black-capped chickadees is associated with differences in memory and hippocampal morphology by exploring population genetic structure within and among groups of populations that are divergent to different degrees in hippocampal morphology. Using mitochondrial DNA and 583 AFLP loci, we found that population divergence in hippocampal morphology is not significantly associated with neutral genetic divergence or geographic distance, but instead is significantly associated with differences in winter climate. These results are consistent with variation in a history of natural selection on memory and hippocampal morphology that creates and maintains differences in these traits regardless of population genetic structure and likely associated gene flow.

opencc-zeroDec 2010View details →

Data from: Citizen science reveals unexpected continental-scale evolutionary change in a model organism

Organisms provide some of the most sensitive indicators of climate change and evolutionary responses are becoming apparent in species with short generation times. Large datasets on genetic polymorphism that can provide an historical benchmark against which to test for recent evolutionary responses are very rare, but an exception is found in the brown-lipped banded snail (Cepaea nemoralis). This species is sensitive to its thermal environment and exhibits several polymorphisms of shell colour and banding pattern affecting shell albedo in the majority of populations within its native range in Europe. We tested for evolutionary changes in shell albedo that might have been driven by the warming of the climate in Europe over the last half century by compiling an historical dataset for 6,515 native populations of C. nemoralis and comparing this with new data on nearly 3,000 populations. The new data were sampled mainly in 2009 through the Evolution MegaLab, a citizen science project that engaged thousands of volunteers in 15 countries throughout Europe in the biggest such exercise ever undertaken. A known geographic cline in the frequency of the colour phenotype with the highest albedo (yellow) was shown to have persisted and a difference in colour frequency between woodland and more open habitats was confirmed, but there was no general increase in the frequency of yellow shells. This may have been because snails adapted to a warming climate through behavioural thermoregulation. By contrast, we detected an unexpected decrease in the frequency of Unbanded shells and an increase in the Mid-banded morph. Neither of these evolutionary changes appears to be a direct response to climate change, indicating that the influence of other selective agents, possibly related to changing predation pressure and habitat change with effects on micro-climate.

opencc-zeroFeb 2020View details →

Evolutionary constraints and adaptation shape the size and colour of rain forest fruits and flowers at continental scale

Aim: Large-scale patterns in flower and fruit traits provide critical insights into selection processes and the evolutionary history of plant lineages. To isolate and identify the role of selective pressures including different plant-animal interactions, and the factors driving trait evolution, we investigate convergence and divergence between flower and fruit traits in shared environments. Location: Australia to Southeast Asia. Time period: Eocene (~45 My) to Present. Major taxa studied: Woody angiosperm rainforest species (2248 species, 133 families). Methods: Using a continental scale data set for all woody angiosperm species in the Australian rainforest (1816 free-standing and 432 climbing species) we compare the colour and size of fleshy fruits and flowers in relation to life form (trees/shrubs and vines), species biogeographic histories and origins (Sunda vs. Sahul), and bio-regional distributions. Results: Fleshy fruits in the Australian rainforest are mostly small, with a diversity of colours (<30mm; 81%), while flowers are mostly small (<10mm; 65%) and whitish (~80%). Compared to trees and shrubs, climbing species showed a higher proportion of red fleshy fruits, and large coloured flowers. Small whitish flowers were dominant across lineages from different biogeographic origins (Sunda-Sahul) and geographical regions, while both small and large fleshy fruits retained a range of disperser attractant colours. Main conclusions: Continental scale size and colour characteristics of flowers and fleshy fruits differed despite sharing environments with similar abiotic selective pressures through time. Plant-animal interactions including pollination and dispersal likely mediate different evolutionary outcomes for plant traits, and reflect both adaptation and evolutionary constraints.

opencc-zeroDec 2015View details →

Data from: Continental-scale biogeographic variation: provinces versus gradients in the Upper Ordovician of Laurentia

Although provinces are widely used to delimit large-scale variations in biotic composition, it is unknown to what extent such variations simply reflect large-scale gradients, much as has been shown at smaller scales for communities. We examine here whether four previously described Middle and Late Ordovician provinces on Laurentia are best described as distinct provinces or as biotic gradients through a combination of the Paleobiology Database and new field data. Both data sets indicate considerable overlap in faunal composition, with spatial patterns in Jaccard similarity, quantified Jaccard similarity, and nonmetric multidimensional scaling ordination structure that correspond to variations in substrate type, specifically from carbonate-dominated strata in western Laurentia to mixed carbonate–siliciclastic strata in the midcontinent to siliciclastic-dominated rocks in easternmost Laurentia. Because sampling was limited to shallow-subtidal settings, this gradient cannot be attributed to variations in water depth. Likewise, geographic distance accounts for only a quarter of the variation in faunal composition. This cross-continent faunal gradient increases in strength into the early Late Ordovician, and appears to represent increased siliciclastic influx into eastern Laurentia during the Taconic orogeny. These results raise the question of whether biogeographic provinces may be in general better interpreted and analyzed as biotic gradients rather than as discrete entities.

opencc-zeroDec 2014View details →

Data from: Demographic and spatiotemporal patterns of avian influenza infection at the continental scale, and in relation to annual life cycle of a migratory host

Since the spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 in the eastern hemisphere, numerous surveillance programs and studies have been undertaken to detect the occurrence, distribution, or spread of avian influenza viruses (AIV) in wild bird populations worldwide. To identify demographic determinants and spatiotemporal patterns of AIV infection in long distance migratory waterfowl in North America, we fitted generalized linear models with binominal distribution to analyze results from 13,574 blue-winged teal (Anas discors, BWTE) sampled in 2007 to 2010 year round during AIV surveillance programs in Canada and the United States. Our analyses revealed that during late summer staging (July-August) and fall migration (September-October), hatch year (HY) birds were more likely to be infected than after hatch year (AHY) birds, however there was no difference between age categories for the remainder of the year (winter, spring migration, and breeding period), likely due to maturing immune systems and newly acquired immunity of HY birds. Probability of infection increased non-linearly with latitude, and was highest in late summer prior to fall migration when densities of birds and the proportion of susceptible HY birds in the population are highest. Birds in the Central and Mississippi flyways were more likely to be infected compared to those in the Atlantic flyway. Seasonal cycles and spatial variation of AIV infection were largely driven by the dynamics of AIV infection in HY birds, which had more prominent cycles and spatial variation in infection compared to AHY birds. Our results demonstrate demographic as well as seasonal, latitudinal and flyway trends across Canada and the US, while illustrating the importance of migratory host life cycle and age in driving cyclical patterns of prevalence.

opencc-zeroDec 2013View details →

Data from: Continental-scale patterns of pathogen prevalence: a case study on the corncrake

Pathogen infections can represent a substantial threat to wild populations, especially those already limited in size. To determine how much variation in the pathogens observed among fragmented populations is caused by ecological factors, one needs to examine systems where host genetic diversity is consistent among the populations, thus controlling for any potentially confounding genetic effects. Here, we report geographic variation in haemosporidian infection among European populations of corncrake. This species now occurs in fragmented populations, but there is little genetic structure and equally high levels of genetic diversity among these populations. We observed a longitudinal gradient of prevalence from western to Eastern Europe negatively correlated with national agricultural yield, but positively correlated with corncrake census population sizes when only the most widespread lineage is considered. This likely reveals a possible impact of local agriculture intensity, which reduced host population densities in Western Europe and, potentially, insect vector abundance, thus reducing the transmission of pathogens. We conclude that in the corncrake system, where metapopulation dynamics resulted in variations in local census population sizes, but not in the genetic impoverishment of these populations, anthropogenic activity has led to a reduction in host populations and pathogen prevalence.

opennotspecifiedDec 2001View details →

FIGURE 6. Bathytanais fragilis, female paratype scale bars AB 1 in A new tanaidacean subfamily, Bathytanaidinae (Crustacea: Paratanaididae), from the Australian continental shelf and slope

FIGURE 6. Bathytanais fragilis, female paratype scale bars AB 1 mm, EI 0.02 mm, J 0.5 mm. A) Antennule. B) Antenna. C) Labrum. D, Labium. E) Left mandible. F) Right mandible. G) Maxillule. H) Maxilla. I) Maxilliped. J) Cheliped. K) Cheliped propodus.

opencc-by-4.0Jun 2024View details →

An efficient 3D inversion scheme for continental scale Magnetotelluric data

These zipped file contain 3D magnetotelluric dataset (synthetic and SAMTEX field data) and corresponding inverted model obtained using AP3DMT(RB) code (Radiation Boundary version of the AP3DMT code) for the publications “3D inversion scheme for high-resolution analysis of continental scale Magnetotelluric data”.

FIGURE 31 in Towards identification of the scale insects (Hemiptera: Coccomorpha) of continental Africa: 2. Checklists and keys to six archaeococcoid families

FIGURE 31. Puto subericola (Vayssière), adult female, reproduced from Danzig & Gavrilov-Zimin (2014: 160, Fig. 2.1.1-8) with the authors' permissions. Note that each trochanter has three campaniform sensilla on each surface.

FIGURE 30 in Towards identification of the scale insects (Hemiptera: Coccomorpha) of continental Africa: 2. Checklists and keys to six archaeococcoid families

FIGURE 30. Ortheziolacoccus jermyi (Kozár & Miller), adult female, reproduced from Kozár & Miller (2000: 27, Fig. 8) with permission from John Wiley and Sons.

FIGURE 29 in Towards identification of the scale insects (Hemiptera: Coccomorpha) of continental Africa: 2. Checklists and keys to six archaeococcoid families

FIGURE 29. Matileortheziola angolaensis (Kozár & Foldi), adult female, reproduced from Kozár and Foldi (2000: 253, Fig. 1), rights reserved - with permission of Revue française d'Entomologie (N.S.).

FIGURE 27 in Towards identification of the scale insects (Hemiptera: Coccomorpha) of continental Africa: 2. Checklists and keys to six archaeococcoid families

FIGURE 27. Ortheziolamameti kosztarabi (Kozár & Miller), adult female, reproduced from Kozár & Miller (2000: 28, Fig. 9) with permission from John Wiley and Sons.

FIGURE 26 in Towards identification of the scale insects (Hemiptera: Coccomorpha) of continental Africa: 2. Checklists and keys to six archaeococcoid families

FIGURE 26. Orthezia urticae (Linnaeus), adult female, reproduced from Kozár (2004: 375, Fig. 158) with permission from Agrártudományi Kutatóközpont.

FIGURE 24 in Towards identification of the scale insects (Hemiptera: Coccomorpha) of continental Africa: 2. Checklists and keys to six archaeococcoid families

FIGURE 24. Newsteadia angustilinea Miller & Kozár, adult female, reproduced from Miller & Kozár (2002: 210, Fig. 2) with permission from D.R. Miller.

FIGURE 23 in Towards identification of the scale insects (Hemiptera: Coccomorpha) of continental Africa: 2. Checklists and keys to six archaeococcoid families

FIGURE 23. Insignorthezia insignis (Browne), adult female, modified from Kozár (2004: 307, Fig. 129) with permission from Agrártudományi Kutatóközpont. AS: abdominal spiracles; A: appearance in life from Green (1922: Plate CLXXIV, 2 and 4).

FIGURE 22 in Towards identification of the scale insects (Hemiptera: Coccomorpha) of continental Africa: 2. Checklists and keys to six archaeococcoid families

FIGURE 22. Gigantococcus and Icerya pores from Unruh & Gullan (2008: 16-18, parts of Table 2), © Magnolia Press, www. mapress.com/j/zt, reproduced with permission of the copyright holder.

FIGURE 9 in Towards identification of the scale insects (Hemiptera: Coccomorpha) of continental Africa: 2. Checklists and keys to six archaeococcoid families

FIGURE 9. Monophlebidae: Iceryini, adult female anatomy, from Unruh & Gullan (2007: 14, Fig. 1), © Magnolia Press, www. mapress.com/j/zt, reproduced with the copyright holder's permission.

FIGURE 18 in Towards identification of the scale insects (Hemiptera: Coccomorpha) of continental Africa: 2. Checklists and keys to six archaeococcoid families

FIGURE 18. Walkeriana floriger (Walker), adult female, developed from Morrison (1928: 142, Fig. 68). Note that this illustration shows the genotype, a species that does not occur in Africa.