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225 results for “Environmental variability”
Habitats and environmental variables investigated in a diversity survey on Polynucleobacter bacteria revealed by amplicon sequencing of priB genes
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Environmentally triggered variability in the genetic variance-covariance of herbivory resistance of an exotic plant Solidago altissima
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Evolutionary history and environmental variability structure contemporary tropical vertebrate communities
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Data from: Environmental and climate variability drive population size of annual penaeid shrimp in a large lagoonal estuary
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Distinctive, fine-scale distribution of Eastern Caribbean sperm whale vocal clans reflects island fidelity rather than environmental variables
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Atlantic bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) presence and pseudoabsence locations with 13 remotely sensed environmental variables
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Data from: Experimental assessment of downstream environmental DNA patterns under variable fish biomass and river discharge rates
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A matter of scale: Identifying the best spatial and temporal scale of environmental variables to model the distribution of a small cetacean
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Functional traits and related environmental variables of 28 populations of Nuphar lutea
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Temporal instability of lake charr phenotypes: Synchronicity of growth rates and morphology linked to environmental variables?
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Lack of synchronized breeding success in a seabird community: extreme events, niche separation, and environmental variability
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Data from: Environmental variables associated with Nothophaeocryptopus gaeumannii population structure and Swiss needle cast severity in Western Oregon and Washington
The environment has a strong influence on the abundance and distribution of plant pathogenic organisms, and plays a major role in the causation of plant disease. Climatological factors may also alter the dynamics of the interactions between plant pathogens and their hosts. Nothophaeocryptopus (=Phaeocryptopus) gaeumannii, the causal agent of Swiss needle cast (SNC) of Douglas-fir, is endemic to western North America where it exists as two sympatric, reproductively isolated lineages. The abundance of this fungus and the severity of SNC are strongly influenced by climate. We used statistical and population genetic analyses to examine relationships between environment, pathogen population structure, and SNC severity. Although N. gaeumannii Lineage 2 in western Oregon and Washington was most abundant where SNC symptoms were most severe, we did not detect a significant relationship between Lineage 2 and disease severity. Warmer winter temperatures were inversely correlated with foliage retention (AFR) and positively correlated with the relative abundance of Lineage 2 (PL2). However when distance inland, which was strongly correlated with both AFR and PL2, was included in the model, there was no significant relationship between Lineage 2 and AFR. Spring/early summer dew point temperatures also were positively associated with total N. gaeumannii abundance (colonization index (CI)), and inversely correlated with AFR. Warmer summer mean temperatures were associated with lower CI and higher AFR. Our results suggest that the two lineages have overlapping environmental optima, but slightly different tolerance ranges. Lineage 2 was absent from more inland sites where winters are colder and summers are warm and dry, while Lineage 1 occurred at most sites across an environmental gradient suggesting broader environmental tolerance. These relationships suggest that climate influences the abundance and distribution of this ecologically important plant pathogen, and may have played a role in the evolutionary divergence of these two cryptic fungal lineages.
Local and landscape environmental variables from 86 Neotropical streams, Upper Paraná River basin, Brazil
<p>The dataset comprise environmental characterization for 86 streams in the Turvo-Grande and São José dos Dourados basins, Upper Paraná River basin, northwestern of São Paulo State, Brazil. We selected those streams considering the environmental gradient in the region (i.e., pasture-sugarcane transition). In each stream we quantified 31 local descriptors related with marginal vegetation (e.g., marginal grasses, roots, shrubs), water properties (e.g., water temperature, pH), instream structures (e.g., litter, wood debris), stream channel morphology (e.g., width, depth, flow), habitat composition and heterogeneity (e.g., mesohabitat, substrate composition). In addition, for each stream catchment (i.e., catchment area delimited upstream from the sampled stream reach), we measured 30 descriptors related with land-use composition and heterogeneity quantified through (i) the number of the land-use classes (i.e., richness), (ii) diversity of land-use classes (i.e., Shannon index), and (iii) the relative proportion of each land-use class. For a detailed description of how variables were obtained see Molina et al. (2017); Roa-Fuentes & Casatti (2017); Roa-Fuentes et al. (2019, 2020).</p> <p>A data matrix is provided in txt extension and a script with exploratory data analysis in R software (R Development Core Team 2020).</p> <p><strong>References</strong></p> <p><em>- Molina, M. C., C.A. Roa-Fuentes, J.O. Zeni & L. Casatti, 2017. The effects of land use at different spatial scales on instream features in agricultural streams. Limnologica 65: 14–21. </em></p> <p><em>- R Development Core Team, 2020. R: A language and environment for statistical computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria. URL http://www.R-project.org/</em></p> <p><em>- Roa-Fuentes, C. A. & L. Casatti, 2017. Influence of environmental features at multiple scales and spatial structure on stream fish communities in a tropical agricultural region. Journal of Freshwater Ecology 32: 281–295.</em></p> <p><em>- Roa-Fuentes, C. A., J. Heino, M. V. Cianciaruso, S. Ferraz, J. O. Zeni & L. Casatti, 2019. Taxonomic, phylogenetic and functional β-diversity patterns of stream fish in tropical agroecosystems. Freshwater Biology 64: 447–460. </em></p> <p>- <em> Roa-Fuentes, C.A., Heino, J., Zeni, J.O. et al. Importance of local and landscape variables on multiple facets of stream fish biodiversity in a Neotropical agroecosystem. Hydrobiologia (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-020-04396-7 </em></p>
Data from: Spatial scaling of environmental variables improves species-habitat models of fishes in a small, sand-bed lowland river
Habitat suitability and the distinct mobility of species depict fundamental keys for explaining and understanding the distribution of river fishes. In recent years, comprehensive data on river hydromorphology has been mapped at spatial scales down to 100 m, potentially serving high resolution species-habitat models, e.g., for fish. However, the relative importance of specific hydromorphological and in-stream habitat variables and their spatial scales of influence is poorly understood. Applying boosted regression trees, we developed species-habitat models for 13 fish species in a sand-bed lowland river based on river morphological and in-stream habitat data. First, we calculated mean values for the predictor variables in five distance classes (from the sampling site up to 4000 m up- and downstream) to identify the spatial scale that best predicts the presence of fish species. Second, we compared the suitability of measured variables and assessment scores related to natural reference conditions. Third, we identified variables which best explained the presence of fish species. The mean model quality (AUC = 0.78, area under the receiver operating characteristic curve) significantly increased when information on the habitat conditions up- and downstream of a sampling site (maximum AUC at 2500 m distance class, +0.049) and topological variables (e.g., stream order) were included (AUC = +0.014). Both measured and assessed variables were similarly well suited to predict species' presence. Stream order variables and measured cross section features (e.g., width, depth, velocity) were best-suited predictors. In addition, measured channel-bed characteristics (e.g., substrate types) and assessed longitudinal channel features (e.g., naturalness of river planform) were also good predictors. These findings demonstrate (i) the applicability of high resolution river morphological and instream-habitat data (measured and assessed variables) to predict fish presence, (ii) the importance of considering habitat at spatial scales larger than the sampling site, and (iii) that the importance of (river morphological) habitat characteristics differs depending on the spatial scale.
Data from: Fish functional traits correlated with environmental variables in a temperate biodiversity hotspot
The global biodiversity crisis has invigorated the search for generalized patterns in most disciplines within the natural sciences. Studies based on organismal functional traits attempt to broaden implications of results by identifying the response of functional traits, instead of taxonomic units, to environmental variables. Determining the functional trait responses enables more direct comparisons with, or predictions for, communities of different taxonomic composition. The North American freshwater fish fauna is both diverse and increasingly imperiled through human mediated disturbances, including climate change. The Tennessee River, USA, contains one of the most diverse assemblages of freshwater fish in North America and has more imperiled species than other rivers, but there has been no trait-based study of community structure in the system. We identified 211 localities in the upper Tennessee River that were sampled by the Tennessee Valley Authority between 2009 and 2011 and compiled fish functional traits for the observed species and environmental variables for each locality. Using fourth corner analysis, we identified significant correlations between many fish functional traits and environmental variables. Functional traits associated with an opportunistic life history strategy were correlated with localities subject to greater land use disturbance and less flow regulation, while functional traits associated with a periodic life history strategy were correlated with localities subject to regular disturbance and regulated flow. These are patterns observed at the continental scale highlighting the generalizability of trait-based methods. Contrary to studies that found no community structure differences when considering riparian buffer zones, we found that fish functional traits were correlated with different environmental variables between analyses with buffer zones vs. entire catchment area land cover proportions. Using existing databases and fourth corner analysis, our results support the broad application potential for trait-based methods and indicate trait-based methods can detect environmental filtering by riparian zone land cover.
Data from:Intraspecific variability improves environmental matching, but does not increase ecological breadth along a wet-to-dry ecotone
It is widely assumed that higher levels of intraspecific variability in one or more traits should allow species to persist under a wider range of environmental conditions. However, few studies have examined whether species that exhibit high variability are found in a wider range of environmental conditions, and whether variability increases the ability of a species to adapt to prevailing ecological gradients. We used four plant functional traits, specific leaf area (SLA), leaf dry matter content (LDMC), leaf carbon to nitrogen ratio (C:N) and maximum plant height in 49 species across a strong environmental gradient to answer three questions: 1) is there evidence for 'high-variability' species (that is, species which show high variability in multiple traits, simultaneously)? 2) are species with more variable traits present across a wider range of environmental conditions than less variable species? And 3) whether more variable species show better trait-environment matching to the prevailing abiotic (soil moisture) gradient at the site? We found little evidence for a 'high-variability' species. Variability was correlated for two leaf traits, SLA and LDMC, while variability in leaf traits and plant height were not correlated. We found little evidence that more variable species were present in more diverse conditions: only variation in SLA was correlated with a wider ecological niche breadth. For plant traits along the soil-moisture gradient, higher variability led to better trait-environment matching in half of measured traits. Overall, we found little support for the existence of 'high-variability' species, but that variability in SLA is correlated with a wider ecological breadth. We also found evidence that variation in traits can improve trait-environment matching, a relationship which may facilitate our understanding ecological breadth along prevailing gradients, and community assembly on the basis of traits.
Data from: Fine scale spatial variability in the influence of environmental cycles on the occurrence of dolphins at coastal sites
Environmental cycles often influence the presence of animals, creating patterns at different temporal scales, which may mean that their effects overlap and/or interact. Interactions between diel and seasonal cycles have been reported to influence fish behaviour but little is known about such interactions in marine top predators. Here, we studied the combined effect of seasonal, tidal and diel cycles on the occurrence of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) within a Marine Protected Area in Scotland. Our analyses were based on echolocation detections from passive acoustic devices (CPODs) deployed at three coastal sites between 2010 and 2016. We described patterns of dolphins' occurrence using circular statistics and then used generalised additive mixed models to explore the relative importance of each cycle and any interactions between them. We found site-specific cyclical patterns of presence that remained constant across years. There was a highly significant interaction between seasonal and diel cycles at two sites around deep channels, where occurrence was diurnal in summer but became nocturnal in autumn. The study demonstrates the highly plastic behaviour of bottlenose dolphins and shows a previously unreported behaviour that has management implications for this and other marine protected areas.
Data from: Evidence of local adaptation to fine- and coarse-grained environmental variability in Poa alpina in the Swiss Alps
In the alpine landscape, characterized by high spatiotemporal heterogeneity and barriers, divergent selection is likely to lead to local adaptation of plant populations either through adaptive genetic differentiation or through phenotypic plasticity. The relative importance of these processes has rarely been investigated in relation to the spatial scale of environmental heterogeneity. In this study, we used reciprocal transplantation experiments of populations across nearby and distant field sites to shed light on these complementary processes. We reciprocally transplanted populations of the widespread alpine grass, Poa alpina, within and across regions in the Swiss Alps. We inferred local adaptation at the metapopulation level by comparing fitness of plants transplanted to their site of origin and to nearby or distant novel sites. Additionally, we measured specific leaf area (SLA) and performed selection analyses to investigate directional selection on mean trait value at each field site and on the degree of plasticity of this trait to assess whether plastic responses were adaptive. In parallel, all populations were genotyped with microsatellite markers to assess neutral molecular differentiation. Molecular differentiation was high among populations within and among regions, indicating restricted gene flow among P. alpina populations. Reproductive biomass was highest in individuals grown in their region of origin, revealing local adaptation to coarse-grained environmental variability. Similarly, inflorescence height, associated with reproductive biomass, reflected adaptation to fine- and coarse-grained environmental variability. Furthermore, we found evidence that plasticity in SLA across coarse-grained habitats was correlated with plant fitness, suggesting that plasticity in this trait is adaptive. Synthesis. Our results revealed adaptive genetic differentiation between P. alpina populations in the Swiss Alps reflecting local adaptation. Furthermore, high phenotypic plasticity in SLA contributed to the maintenance of fitness homoeostasis across habitats. Hence, adaptive genetic differentiation and phenotypic plasticity play a complementary role for adaption of P. alpina to environmental heterogeneity in the Swiss Alps and both may be critical to mitigate local extinction risk under rapid climate change.
Data from: Selective increases in inter-individual variability in response to environmental enrichment in female mice
One manifestation of individualization is a progressively differential response of individuals to the non-shared components of the same environment. Individualization has practical implications in the clinical setting, where subtle differences between patients are often decisive for the success of an intervention, yet there has been no suitable animal model to study its underlying biological mechanisms. Here we show that enriched environment (ENR) can serve as a model of brain individualization. We kept 40 isogenic female C57BL/6JRj mice for 3 months in ENR and compared these mice to an equally sized group of standard-housed control animals, looking at the effects on a wide range of phenotypes in terms of both means and variances. Although ENR influenced multiple parameters and restructured correlation patterns between them, it only increased differences among individuals in traits related to brain and behavior (adult hippocampal neurogenesis, motor cortex thickness, open field and object exploration), in agreement with the hypothesis of a specific activity-dependent development of brain individuality.
Data from: The response of amphibian larvae to environmental change is both consistent and variable
Many environments are undergoing rapid environmental change and there is a need to understand the mechanisms by which species can persist in altered environments. Model systems, such as amphibian metamorphosis, which can be generalized across many types of environmental change and across many species, are a powerful tool for understanding mechanisms that facilitate persistence in altered and disturbed environments. Amphibian larvae respond to environmental change by varying age at metamorphosis, or size at metamorphosis. Differential selection pressures on age or size at metamorphosis may result in a differential response among taxa to environmental change. Using a meta-analysis, we investigated whether age at metamorphosis, size at metamorphosis, and larval growth rate vary within and among taxonomic families of amphibians in experiments that modified the environmental temperature, density of individuals, food, hydroperiod and the presence of predators. For all environmental factors except predators, the direction of the response was consistent across most of the studied taxa. However, there was considerable variation in effect size both within and among families. Results demonstrate that amphibian metamorphosis is a valuable model system for studying the effects of environmental change. Yet, we stress the need for caution in making generalizations about how individuals respond to environmental factors that have an indirect effect on physiology and require the perception of an environmental cue, such as the presence of predators.
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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.
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.