Find research datasets worth reusing
Search datasets from major research repositories and use ShareScore to quickly assess how well each record supports discovery, access, and reuse.
10,735
datasets available to search
ShareScore release 0.9.0
Dataset results
10,735 results for “dependability”
Data from: Canine sense of quantity: evidence for numerical ratio-dependent activation in parietotemporal cortex
<p></p><p>The approximate number system (ANS), which supports the rapid estimation of quantity, emerges early in human development and is widespread across species. Neural evidence from both human and non-human primates suggests the parietal cortex as a primary locus of numerical estimation, but it is unclear whether the numerical competencies observed across non-primate species are subserved by similar neural mechanisms. Moreover, because studies with non-human animals typically involve extensive training, little is known about the spontaneous numerical capacities of non-human animals. To address these questions, we examined the neural underpinnings of number perception using awake canine functional magnetic resonance imaging. Dogs passively viewed dot arrays that varied in ratio and, critically, received no task-relevant training or exposure prior to testing. We found evidence of ratio-dependent activation, which is a key feature of the ANS, in canine parietotemporal cortex in the majority of dogs tested. This finding is suggestive of a neural mechanism for quantity perception that has been conserved across mammalian evolution.</p><p></p>
Data from: Context-dependent expression of the foraging gene in field colonies of ants: the interacting roles of age, environment and task
Task allocation among social insect workers is an ideal framework for studying the molecular mechanisms underlying behavioural plasticity because workers of similar genotype adopt different behavioural phenotypes. Elegant laboratory studies have pioneered this effort, but field studies involving the genetic regulation of task allocation are rare. Here, we investigate the expression of the foraging gene in harvester ant workers from five age- and task-related groups in a natural population, and we experimentally test how exposure to light affects foraging expression in brood workers and foragers. Results from our field study show that the regulation of the foraging gene in harvester ants occurs at two time scales: levels of foraging mRNA are associated with ontogenetic changes over weeks in worker age, location and task, and there are significant daily oscillations in foraging expression in foragers. The temporal dissection of foraging expression reveals that gene expression changes in foragers occur across a scale of hours and the level of expression is predicted by activity rhythms: foragers have high levels of foraging mRNA during daylight hours when they are most active outside the nests. In the experimental study, we find complex interactions in foraging expression between task behaviour and light exposure. Oscillations occur in foragers following experimental exposure to 13 L : 11 D (LD) conditions, but not in brood workers under similar conditions. No significant differences were seen in foraging expression over time in either task in 24 h dark (DD) conditions. Interestingly, the expression of foraging in both undisturbed field and experimentally treated foragers is also significantly correlated with the expression of the circadian clock gene, cycle. Our results provide evidence that the regulation of this gene is context-dependent and associated with both ontogenetic and daily behavioural plasticity in field colonies of harvester ants. Our results underscore the importance of assaying temporal patterns in behavioural gene expression and suggest that gene regulation is an integral mechanism associated with behavioural plasticity in harvester ants.
Spectral data presented in Hinrichs J L, Lucey P G. Temperature-dependent near-infrared spectral properties of minerals, meteorites, and lunar soil.
<p>In this dataset, we present the spectral data in paper: Hinrichs, J. L., & Lucey, P. G. (2002). Temperature-dependent near-infrared spectral properties of minerals, meteorites, and lunar soil. <em>Icarus</em>, <em>155</em>(1), 169-180.</p>
Data from: Scale‐dependent spatial patterns in benthic communities around a tropical island seascape
Understanding and predicting patterns of spatial organization across ecological communities is central to the field of landscape ecology, and a similar line of inquiry has begun to evolve sub‐tidally among seascape ecologists. Much of our current understanding of the processes driving marine community patterns, particularly in the tropics, has come from small‐scale, spatially‐discrete data that are often not representative of the broader seascape. Here we expand the spatial extent of seascape ecology studies and combine spatially‐expansive in situ digital imagery, oceanographic measurements, spatial statistics, and predictive modeling to test whether predictable patterns emerge between coral reef benthic competitors across scales in response to intra‐island gradients in physical drivers. We do this around the entire circumference of a remote, uninhabited island in the central Pacific (Jarvis Island) that lacks the confounding effects of direct human impacts. We show, for the first time, that competing benthic groups demonstrate predictable scaling patterns of organization, with positive autocorrelation in the cover of each group at scales < ~1 km. Moreover, we show how gradients in subsurface temperature and surface wave power drive spatially‐abrupt transition points in group dominance, explaining 48 – 84% of the overall variation in benthic cover around the island. Along the western coast, we documented ten times more sub‐surface cooling‐hours than any other part of the coastline, with events typically resulting in a drop of 1 – 4°C over a period of < 5 hr. These high frequency temperature fluctuations are indicative of upwelling induced by internal waves and here result in localized nitrogen enrichment (NO2 + NO3) that promotes hard coral dominance around 44% of the island's perimeter. Our findings show that, in the absence of confounding direct human impacts, the spatial organization of coral reef benthic competitors are predictable and somewhat bounded across the seascape by concurrent gradients in physical drivers.
Data from: Pattern and process in hominin brain size evolution are scale-dependent
A large brain is a defining feature of modern humans, yet there is no consensus regarding the patterns, rates, and processes involved in hominin brain size evolution. We use a reliable proxy for brain size in fossils, endocranial volume (ECV), to better understand how brain size evolved at both clade- and lineage-level scales. For the hominin clade overall, the dominant signal is consistent with a gradual increase in brain size. This gradual trend appears to have been generated primarily by processes operating within hypothesized lineages – 64% or 88% depending on whether one uses a more or less speciose taxonomy, respectively. These processes were supplemented by the appearance in the fossil record of larger-brained Homo species and the subsequent disappearance of smaller-brained Australopithecus and Paranthropus taxa. When the estimated rate of within-lineage ECV increase is compared to an exponential model that operationalizes generation-scale evolutionary processes, it suggests that the observed data were the result of episodes of directional selection interspersed with periods of stasis and/or drift; all of this occurs on too fine a time scale to be resolved by the current human fossil record, thus producing apparent gradual trends within lineages. Our findings provide a quantitative basis for developing and testing scale-explicit hypotheses about the factors that led brain size to increase during hominin evolution.
Data from: Form–function relationships in a marine foundation species depend on scale: a shoot to global perspective from a distributed ecological experiment
Form-function relationships in plants underlie their ecosystem roles in supporting higher trophic levels through primary production, detrital pathways, and habitat provision. For widespread, phenotypically-variable plants, productivity may differ not only across abiotic conditions, but also from distinct morphological or demographic traits. A single foundation species, eelgrass (Zostera marina), typically dominates north temperate seagrass meadows, which we studied across 14 sites spanning 32-61° N latitude and two ocean basins. Body size varied by nearly two orders of magnitude through this range, and was largest at mid-latitudes and in the Pacific Ocean. At the global scale, neither latitude, site-level environmental conditions, nor body size helped predict productivity (relative growth rate 1-2% d-1 at most sites), suggesting a remarkable capacity of Z. marina to achieve similar productivity in summer. Furthermore, among a suite of stressors applied within sites, only ambient leaf damage reduced productivity; grazer reduction and nutrient addition had no effect on eelgrass size or growth. Scale-dependence was evident in different allometric relationships within and across sites for productivity and for modules (leaf count) relative to size. Z. marina provides a range of ecosystem functions related to both body size (habitat provision, water flow) and growth rates (food, carbon dynamics). Our observed decoupling of body size and maximum production suggests that geographic variation in these ecosystem functions may be independent, with a future need to resolve how local adaptation or plasticity of body size might actually enable more consistent peak productivity across disparate environmental conditions.
Data from: Mycorrhizal feedbacks generate positive frequency dependence accelerating grassland succession
1. Plant mutualists including arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi have been postulated as being important drivers of plant community diversity and succession. Late successional plants have been shown to be more responsive to AM fungi and more sensitive to AM fungal species identity, which could generate positive feedback and potentially accelerate succession. 2. We test the effect of AM fungi on plant diversity and on frequency dependence predicted by positive plant‐AM fungi feedback across a successional gradient. We created prairie mesocosms comprised of a majority early‐successional, equal abundance and a majority late successional plant species. We inoculated these mesocosms and a field restoration experiment with 14 different communities of AM fungi from late successional prairies that varied in levels of species richness. 3. Overall, we found that AM fungi increased plant diversity and this was driven by the response of late successional plant species to mycorrhizae. Our results indicate that AM fungal composition is more important than AM fungal diversity per se. We found that the effect of inoculation with a single species or groups of AM fungi depended on whether those fungi benefited late successional plant species. Early successional plants consistently exhibited negative frequency dependent growth regardless of fungal composition, while late successional plants demonstrated positive frequency dependent growth in our mesocosms—but only in the presence of beneficial AM fungal species. These results are consistent with positive plant‐mycorrhizal feedbacks accelerating plant community successional trajectories once late successional plants establish. Mesocosm results were mirrored with field inoculation assays where we found that beneficial AM fungi facilitated late successional plant establishment. 4. Synthesis. Our results provide support for beneficial AM fungi being a primary mechanism for positive plant‐soil feedback driving plant community succession, as late successional seedlings grew faster and larger when their neighbors were also late successional plant species when they were associated with beneficial AM fungi. We found that this positive feedback thereby accelerated succession in mesocosms and in the field.
Protection offered by leaf fungal endophytes to an invasive species against native herbivores depends on soil nutrients
1. Natural grassland ecosystems are increasingly threatened by excessive loadings of nutrients and by the presence of species bred for high productivity. By manipulating grazing regimes and nutrient availability, agricultural practices facilitate the establishment and spread of certain forage plant species outside managed landscapes, challenging local biodiversity. The ecological success of some species in the invaded range sometimes seems to be associated with the symbiosis with foliar fungal endophytes. Symbiotic fungi may increase the competitiveness of host species, but also the resistance to herbivory through the production of toxic secondary compounds such as alkaloids. While progress has been made in understanding how soil nutrients modulate other benefits offered by fungal endophytes to plants (for example, stress tolerance, competitive ability, etc), the consequences for a higher trophic level (i.e. herbivores) and the potential feedbacks on plant invasion have not been explored yet. 2. We explored the relative and interactive importance of soil nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) in modulating the interaction of the invasive grass tall fescue -associated with fungal endophytes- and native herbivores in a natural grassland. We hypothesized that N and P nutrients modulate differentially leaf quality traits, namely nutritional value and fungal alkaloid contents, determining the level of damage by native insect herbivores on the exotic tall fescue. 3. We found that only P addition significantly increased native caterpillar density in the field, which corresponded to a concomitant increase in leaf damage. Contrary to expectations, the concentration of the alkaloid ergovaline in leaves was not strongly related to N. It was the level of soil P which dictated the concentration of the element (P) in the leaves and reduced the level of defence against herbivores in this endophyte-symbiotic species. Then, herbivore performance increased, and plants were more prone to be attacked. 4. Synthesis: Our study indicates a strong control of soil P fertility on the tritrophic interaction among plants, fungal endophytes and native herbivores. This highlights the potential role of increased soil nutrients on the invasion spread of endophyte-symbiotic forage plants in natural grasslands.
Data from: Context-dependent costs and benefits of a heterospecific nesting association
The costs and benefits of interactions among species can vary spatially or temporally, making them context-dependent. For example, benefits associated with nesting near species that deter predators may give way to costs if the association increases the risk of predation during other stages of reproduction. We examined the extent to which the costs and benefits of heterospecific aggregations between a declining shorebird, the Hudsonian Godwit (Limosa haemastica), and a potential protector and predator, the Mew Gull (Larus canus), varied with breeding stage. Specifically, we assessed the spatial distribution and fate of 43 godwit and 262 gull nests in Beluga, Alaska, from 2014 – 2016. We then evaluated the effect of habitat and proximity to gulls on daily survival rates of 120 godwit nests from 2009 – 2016. We also examined the relationship between the proximity to gulls and survival of godwit chicks to five days old, the period when they are vulnerable to gull predation. Nests of godwits and gulls were significantly clustered across the landscape, a pattern that habitat heterogeneity failed to explain. Hatching success of godwit nests improved with proximity to the gull colony and increasing numbers of gull nests within 200m. In contrast, survival of godwit chicks to five days improved with increasing distance to the gull colony. The costs and benefits that godwits derived from associating with Mew Gulls were thus context-dependent, with benefits pre-hatch and costs post-hatch. Our results show how spatiotemporal variation in species interactions preclude simple generalizations about the nature of their outcomes.
Data from: Quantifying predator dependence in the functional response of generalist predators
A long-standing debate concerns how functional responses are best described. Theory suggests that ratio dependence is consistent with many food web patterns left unexplained by the simplest prey-dependent models. However, for logistical reasons, ratio dependence and predator dependence more generally have seen infrequent empirical evaluation and then only so in specialist predators, which are rare in nature. Here we develop an approach to simultaneously estimate the prey-specific attack rates and predator-specific interference (facilitation) rates of predators interacting with arbitrary numbers of prey and predator species in the field. We apply the approach to surveys and experiments involving two intertidal whelks and their full suite of potential prey. Our study provides strong evidence for predator dependence that is poorly described by the ratio dependent model over manipulated and natural ranges of species abundances. It also indicates how, for generalist predators, even the qualitative nature of predator dependence can be prey-specific.
Data from: Response to joint selection on germination and flowering phenology depends on the direction of selection
Background and Aims. Flowering and germination time are components of phenology, a complex phenotype that incorporates a number of traits. In natural populations, selection is likely to occur on multiple components of phenology at once. However, we have little knowledge of how joint selection on several phenological traits influences evolutionary response. Methods. We conducted one generation of artificial selection for all combinations of early and late germination and flowering on replicated lines within two independent base populations in the herb Campanula americana. We then measured response to selection and realized heritability for each trait. Results. Response to selection and heritability were greater for flowering time than germination time, indicating greater evolutionary potential of this trait. Selection for earlier phenology, both flowering and germination, did not depend on the direction of selection on the other trait. Whereas response to selection to delay germination and flowering was greater when selection on the other trait was in the opposite direction (e.g. early germination, late flowering), indicating a negative genetic correlation between the traits. Conclusions. The extent to which correlations shaped response to selection depended on the direction of selection. Therefore the genetic correlation between timing of germination and flowering varies across the trait distributions. The negative correlation between germination and flowering time found when selecting for delayed phenology follows theoretical predictions of constraint for traits that jointly determine life history schedule. Whereas the lack of constraint found when selecting for an accelerated phenology suggests a reduction of the covariance due to strong selection favoring earlier flowering and a shorter life cycle. This genetic architecture, in turn, will facilitate further evolution of the early phenology often favored in warming climates.
Data from: Frequency dependence limits divergent evolution by favouring rare immigrants over residents
Two distinct forms of natural selection promote adaptive biological diversity. Divergent selection occurs when different environments favour different phenotypes, leading to increased differences between populations. Negative frequency-dependent selection occurs when rare variants within a population are favoured over common ones, increasing diversity within populations. These two diversifying forces promote genetic variation at different spatial scales, and may act in opposition, but their relative effects remain unclear because they are rarely measured concurrently. Here we show that negative frequency-dependent selection within populations can favor rare immigrants over locally adapted residents. We reciprocally transplanted lake and stream ecotypes of threespine stickleback into lake and stream habitats, while manipulating the relative abundance of residents versus immigrants. We found negative frequency-dependence: survival was highest for the locally rare ecotype, rather than natives. Also, individuals with locally rare major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class IIb genotypes were infected by fewer parasites. This negative frequency-dependent selection will tend to favour rare immigrants over common residents, amplifying the effect of migration and undermining the efficacy of divergent natural selection to drive population differences. The only signal of divergent selection was a tendency for foreign fish to have higher parasite loads than residents, after controlling for MHC genotype rarity. Frequency-dependent ecological interactions have long been thought to promote speciation. Our results suggest a more nuanced view in which negative frequency dependence alters the fate of migrants to promote or constrain evolutionary divergence between populations.
Data from: Acceleration or deceleration of litter decomposition by herbivory depends on nutrient availability through intraspecific differences in induced plant resistance traits
1. Herbivores often induce changes in plant defensive chemistry or nutrient content that may respectively inhibit or promote microbial decomposition of senesced litter. Often the directional impact of herbivores on decomposition is considered to be a property of a species or ecosystem. While rarely explored, intraspecific plasticity in the induction of defensive strategies across environmental gradients may also result in divergent impacts of herbivores on decomposition (deceleration vs. acceleration). 2. Here, we examined how soil nutrient conditions determine after-life effects of herbivory, using nine goldenrod (Solidago altissima) genotypes grown across four levels of nutrient supply and with or without grasshopper herbivory. In this species, herbivory induces defensive traits in genotypes grown in high soil nutrient conditions but induces tolerance (compensatory growth) in low nutrient conditions. We combined senesced litter from each treatment with a common soil inoculum in experimental microcosms and measured soil respiration and litter mass loss over 100 days as estimates of decomposition. 3. Plant genotype, nutrient environment, and herbivory all had significant effects on decomposition. The legacy effect of herbivory overwhelmed the positive effects of high soil nutrient supply on decomposition. This significant herbivory nutrient environment interaction meant that herbivore-induced plants grown in high nutrient environments produced litter that was more resistant to microbial breakdown than litter from the same genotype not exposed to herbivory. But the opposite occurred at low nutrient levels where litter from herbivore-induced plants was most readily decomposed. Further we mechanistically tie nutrient and herbivory legacy treatments to decomposition rates through predictable changes in leaf trait expression. Lastly, we demonstrate a significant correlation among herbivore growth rates on the living tissue and decomposition efficiencies by the microbial community of the senesced tissue, suggesting that herbivores and microbes perceive the "quality" of the induced substrate similarly. 4. Synthesis: Herbivore-induced changes in leaf palatability and trait expression due to defense induction or compensatory growth can cascade through to either promote or inhibit the decomposability of leaf litter within a single species. These findings offer mechanistic understanding of how spatial heterogeneity in ecosystem process rates can be generated by spatial variation in herbivory and nutrient availability.
Data from: Context-dependent scaling of kinematics and energetics during contests and feeding in mantis shrimp
Measurements of energy use, and its scaling with size, are critical to understanding how organisms accomplish myriad tasks. For example, energy budgets are central to game theory models of assessment during contests and underlie patterns of feeding behavior. Clear tests connecting energy to behavioral theory require measurements of the energy use of single individuals for particular behaviors. Many species of mantis shrimp (Stomatopoda: Crustacea) use elastic energy storage to power high-speed strikes that they deliver to opponents during territorial contests and to hard-shelled prey while feeding. We compared the scaling of strike kinematics and energetics between feeding and contests in the mantis shrimp Neogonodactylus bredini. We filmed strikes with high-speed video, measured strike velocity, and used a mathematical model to calculate strike energy. During contests, strike velocity did not scale with body size but strike energy scaled positively with size. Conversely, while feeding, strike velocity decreased with increasing size and strike energy did not vary according to body size. Individuals most likely achieved this strike variation through differential compression of their exoskeletal spring prior to the strike. Post-hoc analyses found that N. bredini used greater velocity and energy when striking larger opponents, yet variation in prey size was not accompanied by varying strike velocity or energetics. Our estimates of energetics inform prior tests of contest and feeding behavior in this species. More broadly, our findings elucidate the role behavioral context plays in measurements of animal performance.
Data from: Context-dependent costs and benefits of tuberculosis resistance traits in a wild mammalian host
Disease acts as a powerful driver of evolution in natural host populations, yet individuals in a population often vary in their susceptibility to infection. Energetic trade-offs between immune and reproductive investment lead to the evolution of distinct life-history strategies, driven by the relative fitness costs and benefits of resisting infection. However, examples quantifying the cost of resistance outside of the laboratory are rare. Here, we observe two distinct forms of resistance to bovine tuberculosis (bTB), an important zoonotic pathogen, in a free-ranging African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) population. We characterize these phenotypes as 'infection resistance', in which hosts delay or prevent infection, and 'proliferation resistance', in which the host limits the spread of lesions caused by the pathogen after infection has occurred. We found weak evidence that infection resistance to bTB may be heritable in this buffalo population (h2=0.10) and comes at the cost of reduced body condition and marginally reduced survival once infected, but also associates with an overall higher reproductive rate. Infection resistant animals thus appear to follow a 'fast' pace of life syndrome, in that they reproduce more quickly but die upon infection. In contrast, proliferation resistance had no apparent costs and was associated with measures of positive host health- such as having a higher body condition and reproductive rate. This study quantifies striking phenotypic variation in pathogen resistance and provides evidence for a link between life history variation and a disease resistance trait in a wild mammalian host population.
Dataset: Thermal tides in the upper cloud layer of Venus as deduced from the emission angle dependence of the brightness temperature by Akatsuki/LIR
<p>The LIR images (Level 2c) used in the figures in the paper "Thermal tides in the upper cloud layer of Venus as deduced from the emission angle dependence of the brightness temperature by Akatsuki/LIR" by Akiba et al. (J. Geophys. Res)</p> <p>The description of Akatsuki/LIR and level definition are in <a href="https://darts.isas.jaxa.jp/planet/project/akatsuki/lir.html.en">https://darts.isas.jaxa.jp/planet/project/akatsuki/lir.html.en</a></p>
Data from: Age‐dependent leaf physiology and consequences for crown‐scale carbon uptake during the dry season in an Amazon evergreen forest
* Satellite and tower-based metrics of forest-scale photosynthesis generally increase with dry season progression across central Amazônia, but the underlying mechanisms lack consensus. * We conducted demographic surveys of leaf age composition, and measured age-dependence of leaf physiology in broadleaf canopy trees of abundant species at a central eastern Amazon site. Using a novel leaf-to-branch scaling approach, we used this data to independently test the much-debated hypothesis—arising from satellite and tower-based observations—that leaf phenology could explain the forest-scale pattern of dry season photosynthesis. * Stomatal conductance and biochemical parameters of photosynthesis were higher for recently mature leaves than for old leaves. Most branches had multiple leaf age categories simultaneously present, and the number of recently mature leaves increased as the dry season progressed because old leaves were exchanged for new leaves. * These findings provide the first direct field evidence that branch-scale photosynthetic capacity increases during the dry season, with a magnitude consistent with increases in ecosystem-scale photosynthetic capacity derived from flux towers. Interaction between leaf age-dependent physiology and shifting leaf age-demographic composition are sufficient to explain the dry season photosynthetic capacity pattern at this site, and should be considered in vegetation models of tropical evergreen forests.
Data from: Human commercial models' eye colour shows negative frequency-dependent selection
In this study we investigated the eye colour of human commercial models registered in the UK (400 female and 400 male) and Brazil (400 female and 400 male) to test the hypothesis that model eye colour frequency was the result of negative frequency-dependent selection. The eye colours of the models were classified as: blue, brown or intermediate. Chi-square analyses of data for countries separated by sex showed that in the United Kingdom brown eyes and intermediate colours were significantly more frequent than expected in comparison to the general United Kingdom population (P<0.001). In Brazil, the most frequent eye colour brown was significantly less frequent than expected in comparison to the general Brazilian population. These results support the hypothesis that model eye colour is the result of negative frequency-dependent selection. This could be the result of people using eye colour as a marker of genetic diversity and finding rarer eye colours more attractive because of the potential advantage more genetically diverse offspring that could result from such a choice. Eye colour may be important because in comparison to many other physical traits (e.g., hair colour) it is hard to modify, hide or disguise, and it is highly polymorphic.
The contribution of semi-natural habitats to biological control is dependent on sentinel prey type
<ol> <li>It is widely recognized that landscape factors affect the biological control of weed seeds and insect pests in arable crops, but landscape effects have been found to be inconsistent between studies.</li> <li>Here, we compare six different types of sentinels (s<span>urrogate prey that was either live insects or seeds) to measure the effects of semi-natural habitats at field to landscape scales on levels of biological control in winter wheat in the UK. Sentinels were located in fields adjacent to three boundary types: grassy margin, hedgerows or woodland to study local scale effects and in landscapes of varying heterogeneity in study areas of 1 km radius. </span> </li> <li> <span>Overall mean levels of predation were higher for most insect prey (60.8%) located on the ground compared to the crop (12.2%) and was lower for seeds (5.8%). Predation of sentinels on the ground was attributed to generalist predators. <a name="_Hlk24705886">Semi-natural habitats had both positive and negative effects at field and landscape scales, but the response varied with the sentinel type.</a><a name="_Hlk12869057"> Herbaceous linear semi-natural habitats had positive effects at local scales for <i>Calliphora vomitoria </i>and <i>Sitobion avenae </i>sentinels and provides </a></span><span>evidence that farmers can introduce linear herbaceous features to benefit biological control. In contrast o</span><span>ur distance weighted kernel models identified a positive relationship between woody habitats and the predation of <i>Caliphora vomitoria </i>and<i> Chenopodium album</i>. Natural aphid infestations were lower in landscapes with more semi-natural habitat. </span> </li> <li> <i><span>Synthesis and applications. </span></i><span>Sentinels may be sensitive enough to detect variation in levels of biological control influenced by semi-natural habitats, but this study confirms that landscape effects differ for different types of sentinel prey. This implies that it may not be possible to categorize landscapes as pest suppressive using a single sentinel type. Future studies should therefore consider </span>using multiple sentinels to give a better perspective on predation intensity. The resulting recommendations for farm management include <span>planting woodland adjacent wheat fields infested with seed predators and positioning herbaceous linear habitats adjacent wheat fields infested with <i>Sitobion Avenae</i>, particularly if fields are bordered by woody liner habitats due to their association with decreased <i>Sitobion Avenae </i>predation.</span> </li> </ol>
Phenology-dependent cold exposure and thermal performance of Ostrinia nubilalis ecotypes
<p>Background: Understanding adaptation involves establishing connections between selective agents and beneficial population responses. However, relatively little attention has been paid to seasonal adaptation, in part, because it requires complex and integrative knowledge about seasonally fluctuating environmental factors, the effects of variable phenology on exposure to those factors, and evidence for temporal specialization. In the European corn borer moth, Ostrinia nubilalis , sympatric pheromone strains exploit the same host plant ( Zea mays ) but may genetically differ in phenology and be reproductively "isolated by time." Z strain populations in eastern North America have been shown to have a prolonged larval diapause and produce one annual mating flight (July), whereas E strain populations complete an earlier (June) and a later (August) mating flight by shortening diapause duration. Here, we find evidence consistent with seasonal "adaptation by time" between these ecotypes.</p> <p>Results: We use 12 years of field observation of adult seasonal abundance to estimate phenology of ecotype life cycles and to quantify life-stage specific climatic conditions. We find that the observed reduction of diapause duration in the E strain leads their non-diapausing, active life stages to experience a ~4˚C colder environment compared to the equivalent life stages in the Z strain. For a representative pair of populations under controlled laboratory conditions, we compare life-stage specific cold tolerance and find non-diapausing, active life stages in the E strain have as much as a 60% greater capacity to survive rapid cold shock. Enhanced cold hardiness appears unrelated to life-stage specific changes in the temperature at which tissues freeze.</p> <p>Conclusions: Our results suggest that isolation by time and adaptation by time may both contribute to population divergence, and they argue for expanded study in this species of allochronic populations in nature experiencing the full spectrum of seasonal environments. Cyclical selective pressures are inherent properties of seasonal habitats. Diverse fluctuating selective agents across each year (temperature, predation, competition, precipitation, etc.) may therefore be underappreciated drivers of biological diversity.</p>
ScienceDex guides
Understand access before you commit
These curated guides explain access requirements, typical timelines, costs, and reuse considerations for widely used research datasets.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.