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Data from: The effect of keystone individuals on collective outcomes can be mediated through interactions or behavioral persistence
Collective behavior emerges from interactions among group members who often vary in their behavior. The presence of just one or a few keystone individuals, such as leaders or tutors, may have a large effect on collective outcomes. These individuals can catalyze behavioral changes in other group members, thus altering group composition and collective behavior. The influence of keystone individuals on group function may lead to trade-offs between ecological situations, because the behavioral composition they facilitate may be suitable in one situation but not another. We use computer simulations to examine various mechanisms that allow keystone individuals to exert their influence on group members. We further discuss a trade-off between two potentially conflicting collective outcomes, cooperative prey attack and disease dynamics. Our simulations match empirical data from a social spider system and produce testable predictions for the causes and consequences of the influence of keystone individuals on group composition and collective outcomes. We find that a group's behavioral composition can be impacted by the keystone individual through changes to interaction patterns or behavioral persistence over time. Group behavioral composition and the mechanisms that drive the distribution of phenotypes influence collective outcomes and lead to trade-offs between disease dynamics and cooperative prey attack.
Complex relationship between tunneling patterns and individual behaviors in termites
<p>The nests built by social insects are complex group-level structures that emerge from interactions among individuals following simple behavioral rules. Nest patterns vary among species, and the theory of complex systems predicts that there is no simple one-to-one relationship between variations in collective patterns and variation in individual behaviors. Therefore, a species-by-sp<span>ecies comparison of the actual building process is essential to understand the mechanism producing diverse nest patterns. </span><span><span>Here we compare tunnel formation of three termite species, and reveal two mechanisms producing interspecific variation: in one, a common behavioral rule yields distinct patterns via parameter-tuning; in the other, distinct rules produce similar patterns. </span></span><span>We found that two related species </span><span><span>transport sand in the same way using mandibles</span></span><span> but build tunnels with different degree of branching. The variation arises from different probabilities of choosing between two behavioral options at crowded tunnel faces: excavating the sidewall to make a new branch or waiting for clearance to extend the current tunnel. We further discovered that a third species independently evolved low-branched patterns using different building rules; namely a bucket-brigade that can excavate a crowded tunnel</span><span><span>. Our findings emphasize the importance of direct comparative study of collective behaviors at both individual- and group-levels</span></span><span>. </span></p>
Supplementary material (individual data set): Egeler, G.-A. & Baur, P. (2020). Menüwahl in der Hochschulmensa: Fleisch oder Vegi? Ergebnisse eines 12-wöchigen Feldexperiments (NOVANIMAL Working Paper No. 5). ZHAW. https://doi.org/10.21256/zhaw-1405
<p><strong>Meal choice at two university canteens in a field experiment during 12 weeks: anonymised individual menu sales data</strong></p> <p>How do canteen visitors respond to a revised offer of meat-based and plant-based meals? Selected innovations were simultaneously implemented and tested in a trans­disciplinary field experiment in two university canteens over a 12-week period in the autumn semester 2017. Throughout this time, the meat dishes and ‘veg-meals’ (ovo-lacto-vegetarian and vegan meals) were randomly distributed among the three menu lines, the veg-meals were not marketed and advertised as such and the previous vegetarian menu line was abolished. Weeks where the usual number of meat dishes were on offer (the ‘base weeks’) alternated with weeks where the share of veg-meals was increased (the ‘intervention weeks’). </p> <p>The field experiment did not have a negative impact on the number of meals sold or the turnover compared to the two previous years. Women choose meat dishes less often than men. This connection applies in the base weeks and intervention weeks, in all age groups, among both students and among staff. Remarkably, the share of (non-labelled) vegan dishes is comparable for women and men over all age groups, independent of university affiliation (student, staff). Authentic vegan dishes were particularly welcome. Veg-meals could also be sold on the more expensive menu line. There was a better correlation between meal choice, eating habits and attitudes (health, environment, animal welfare, social aspects) than expected. </p> <p><strong>The dataset the dataset contains over <em>21'000</em> anonymised individual menu sales. The analyses and results are summarized in the working paper No. 5 <a href="https://doi.org/10.21256/zhaw-1405">https://doi.org/10.21256/zhaw-1405</a></strong></p> <p>The corresponding scripts are: </p> <p>- <a href="http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4034686">10.5281/zenodo.4034686</a></p> <p>- <a href="http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4034698">10.5281/zenodo.4034698</a></p> <p>- <a href="http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4244258">10.5281/zenodo.4244258</a> (newer Version)</p> <p>For more information visit the <a href="http://novanimal.ch">novanimal.ch</a> website.</p>
Supporting Data: Monitoring spring phenology of individual tree crowns using drone-acquired NDVI data
<p>This data supports the RSEC publication: "Monitoring spring phenology of individual tree crowns using drone-acquired NDVI data"</p> <p>GeoTIFF:</p> <p>NDVI and green band orthomosaics from data acquired using a Parrot Sequoia camera mounted on a 3DR Solo quadcopter drone. Filename indicates data capture date (YYYY-MM-DD).</p> <p>Shapefiles:</p> <p>Shapefiles with tree ROIs and corresponding species class, described in ReadMe file.</p>
Context-dependent variability in the population prevalence and individual fitness effects of plant-fungal symbiosis
<p>1. Heritable symbionts, found within a diverse array of flora and fauna, are often observed at intermediate prevalence within host populations, despite expectations that positive fitness feedbacks should drive beneficial symbionts to fixation. Intermediate prevalence may reflect neutral dynamics of symbionts with weak fitness effects, transient dynamics of symbionts trending toward fixation (or elimination), or a stable intermediate outcome determined by the balance of fitness effects and failed symbiont transmission. Theory suggests these outcomes should depend on symbiont-conferred effects and vertical transmission efficiency, which may both depend on environmental context.</p> <p>2. We tested these alternatives by tracking temporal change in population-level symbiont prevalence in a three-year field experiment with grasses and vertically transmitted fungal endophytes under the context of manipulated precipitation. Precipitation can mediate endophyte effects on host grasses, and is a relevant context, as global climate models predict changes in precipitation amount and seasonal distribution.</p> <p>3. We found evidence for each of the three proposed mechanisms for intermediate symbiont prevalence, but the outcome differed qualitatively across years and precipitation treatments. Specifically, within the first study year, all populations under ambient precipitation trended toward symbiont fixation, whereas elevated precipitation literally neutralized the interaction resulting in no long-run equilibrium. The second study year yielded a different result with long-run equilibria at an intermediate prevalence for both ambient and elevated precipitation treatments. We linked these population-level outcomes with individual-level symbiont effects on grasses and showed that the benefits of symbiosis were concentrated at the seedling stage, especially under drought stress during the time period coinciding with recruitment. The drought stress evident during the first year of the study was not present in the second year due to greater ambient precipitation during this time period. Together, these findings provide the first experimental evidence that population-level outcomes of host-symbiont interactions, which arise from the composite outcome of demographic vital rates and transmission, can be dynamically stable and can fluctuate in response to shifts in spatio-temporal context.</p> <p>4. Synthesis: Overall, these results indicate that intermediate prevalence of heritable microbial symbionts likely reflects a combination of neutral, transient, and stable mechanisms, and context-dependent fluctuations among them.</p>
Are leaf, stem and hydraulic traits good predictors of individual tree growth? (FUN2FUN project)
<ol> <li>A major foundation of trait-based ecology is that traits have an impact on individual performance. However, trait-growth relationships have not been extensively tested in trees, especially outside tropical ecosystems. In addition, measuring traits directly related to physiological processes ('hard traits') remains difficult and the differences between inter- and intraspecific relationships are seldom explored.</li> <li> <span>Here, we use individual-level data on a set of hydraulic, leaf and stem traits to explore which traits are the best predictors of basal area increment (BAI) and growth efficiency (BAI per unit of tree leaf area, GE) among and within species for six dominant tree species along a water availability gradient under Mediterranean climate (Catalonia, NE Spain). Measured traits include: </span>leaf mass per area (LMA), leaf nitrogen concentration (N), leaf C isotopic composition (d<sup>13</sup>C), stem wood density (WD), branch-level estimates of the Huber value (Hv), the sapwood-specific hydraulic conductivity (K<sub>S</sub>), the leaf-specific hydraulic conductivity (K<sub>L</sub>) and resistance to xylem embolism (P<sub>50</sub>), and the leaf water potential at turgor loss (P<sub>tlp</sub>).</li> <li>Traits were better predictors of GE than BAI and significant relationships were largely driven by differences among species means. Contrary to our initial hypotheses, high values of both growth metrics<span> were associated with 'conservative' leaf and hydraulic traits. In particular, BAI was negatively associated with wood density and hydraulic efficiency per unit leaf area (</span>K<sub>L</sub><span>), while GE increased with LMA, allocation to sapwood relative to leaves (Hv) and resistance to xylem embolism </span>(P<sub>50</sub>)<span>. </span>Climate effects on BAI and GE were indirectly mediated by changes in traits, stand structure and tree size. Overall, these results suggest that maintaining functionality over extended periods of time may be more important that maximum gas exchange or hydraulic capacity to achieve high radial growth under Mediterranean climates.</li> <li>Our study reveals that the relationships between 'functional' traits and tree performance along environmental gradients are complex and do not necessarily conform to simple hypotheses based on our understanding of organ-level processes. Trait integration along common axes of variation together with a revaluation of the variables that better reflect whole-tree performance can greatly improve our understanding of trait-growth relationships.</li> </ol>
Autoantibodies against the prion protein in individuals with PRNP mutations
<p><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><i>Objective. </i>To determine whether naturally occurring autoantibodies against the prion protein are present in individuals with genetic prion disease mutations and controls, and if so, whether they are protective against prion disease. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></p> <p><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><i>Methods. </i>In this case-control study, we collected 124 blood samples from individuals with a variety of pathogenic<i>PRNP</i>mutations and 78 control individuals with a positive family history of genetic prion disease but lacking disease-associated<i>PRNP</i>mutations. Antibody reactivity was measured using an indirect ELISA for the detection of human IgG<sub>1-4 </sub>antibodies against wild-type human prion protein. Multivariate linear regression models were constructed to analyze differences in autoantibody reactivity between a) <i>PRNP</i>mutation carriers versus controls and b) asymptomatic versus symptomatic <i>PRNP</i>mutation carriers. Robustness of results was examined in matched cohorts.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></p> <p><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><i>Results. </i>We found that antibody reactivity was present in a subset of both <i>PRNP</i>mutation carriers and controls. Autoantibody levels were not influenced by <i>PRNP </i>mutation status nor clinical manifestation of prion disease. <i>Post hoc</i>analyses showed anti-PrP<sup>C</sup>autoantibody titers to be independent of personal history of autoimmune disease and other immunological disorders, as well as <i>PRNP</i>codon 129 polymorphism. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></p> <p><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><i>Conclusions.</i>Pathogenic <i>PRNP</i>variants do not notably stimulate antibody-mediated anti-PrP<sup>C</sup>immunity. Anti-PrP<sup>C</sup>IgG autoantibodies are not associated with the onset of prion disease. The presence of anti-PrP<sup>C</sup>autoantibodies in the general population without any disease-specific association suggests that relatively high titers of naturally occurring antibodies are well tolerated. Clinicaltrials.gov identifier NCT02837705. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></p>
Datasets used for the publication: State-dependence explains individual variation in nest defence behaviour in a long-lived bird
<p>The uploaded datasets were used to test if variation in states predicts nest defence behaviour (a 'risky' behaviour) in a long-lived species, the barnacle goose (<em>Branta leucopsis</em>). Repeated measures of nest defence towards a human intruder (flight initiation distance or FID) of females of known age were collected during 15 breeding seasons. Increasing values of FID represent increasing shyness. Adaptive models have predicted that an individual's residual reproductive value or 'asset' is an important state variable underlying variation in such risk-taking behaviour. Hence, we used this data to investigate how nest defence varies as a function of time of the season and individual age, two state variables that can vary between and within individuals and determine asset.<br> <br> </p>
Data from: Identifying 'useful' fitness models: balancing the benefits of added complexity with realistic data requirements in models of individual plant fitness
<p>Direct species interactions are commonly included in individual fitness models used for coexistence and local-diversity modeling. Though widely considered important for such models, direct interactions alone are often insufficient for accurately predicting fitness, coexistence or diversity outcomes. Incorporating higher-order interactions (HOIs) can lead to more accurate individual fitness models, but also adds many model terms, which can quickly result in model over-fitting. We explore approaches for balancing the trade-off between tractability and model accuracy that occurs when HOIs are added to individual fitness models. To do this, we compare models parameterized with data from annual plant communities in Australia and Spain, varying in the extent of information included about the focal and neighbor species. The best performing models for both datasets were those that grouped neighbors based on origin status and life form, a grouping approach that reduced the number of model parameters substantially while retaining important ecological information about direct interactions and HOIs. Results suggest that specific focal- or neighbor-species identity is not necessary for building well-performing fitness models that include HOIs. In fact, grouping neighbors by even basic functional information seems sufficient to maximize model accuracy, an important outcome for the practical use of HOI-inclusive fitness models.</p>
Age-related reproductive performance of the Adélie Penguin, a long-lived seabird exhibiting similar outcomes regardless of individual life-history strategy
<p>1. Age-related variation in reproductive performance in long-lived iteroparous vertebrate species is common, with performance being influenced by within-individual processes, such as improvement and senescence, in combination with among-individual processes, such as selective appearance and disappearance. Few studies of age-related reproductive performance have compared the role of these drivers within a metapopulation, subject to varying degrees of resource competition.</p> <p>2. We accounted for within- and among-individuals changes among known-aged Adélie penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae) during 17 years (1997 to 2013), at three clustered colonies of disparate size, to understand patterns in age-related reproductive success during early and late adulthood.</p> <p>3. Age at first reproduction (AFR) was lowest, and number of breeding attempts highest, at the largest colony. Regardless of AFR, success improved with early post-recruitment experience. For both oldest and youngest recruitment groups, peak performance occurred at the end of their reproductive lifespan indicating a possible cost of reproduction. Intermediate recruitment groups reached peak performance in their mid-reproductive lifespan and with intermediate breeding experience, before decreasing. Breeding success was lowest for the initial breeding attempt regardless of AFR, but we observed subsequent variation relative to recruitment age. Gaining experience by delaying recruitment positively influenced reproductive performance early in the reproductive lifespan, and was most evident for the youngest breeders. Oldest recruits had the highest initial and peak breeding success. Differences in AFR resulted in tradeoffs in reproductive lifespan or timing of senescence but not in the overall number of breeding attempts.</p> <p>4. Patterns differed as a function of colony size, and thus competition for resources. Early life improvement in performance at the larger colonies was primarily due to within-individual factors and at the largest colony, AFR. Regardless of colony size late-life performance was positively related to the age at last reproduction, indicating selective disappearance of lower performing individuals.</p> <p>5. These results highlight that different life-history strategies were equally successful, indicating that individuals can overcome potential tradeoffs associated with early- and late-life performance. These results have important implications for understanding the evolution of life-history strategies responsible for driving population change.</p>
FIGURE 3. Principal Component Analysis for male individuals using 31 in Phenotypic divergence in large sized cricket frog species that crossed the geographical barriers within peninsular India
FIGURE 3. Principal Component Analysis for male individuals using 31 morphometric characters (Table 1) transformed to their ratio to SVL for F. kalinga from the Eastern Ghats and the Western Ghats.
Data for: Little parental response to anthropogenic noise in an urban songbird, but evidence for individual differences in sensitivity
<p><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span>Anthropogenic<b> </b>noise exposure has well-documented behavioral, physiological and fitness effects on organisms. However, whether different noise regimes evoke distinct responses has rarely been investigated, despite implications for tailoring noise mitigation policies. Urban animals might display low responsiveness to certain anthropogenic noise regimes, especially consistent noise (e.g. freeway noise), but might remain more sensitive to more diverse noise regimes. Additionally, whether individuals differ in noise sensitivity is a rarely explored issue, which is important to fully understand organismal responses to noise. To address these knowledge gaps, we used a field experiment to measure how urban great tits (<i>Parus major</i>) altered parental behaviors in response to two noise regimes: consistent freeway noise, and a diverse anthropogenic noise regime that incorporated variability in noise type and temporal occurrence. We also evaluated whether sex, age, or a well-described personality trait, novel environment exploration behavior, were associated with responses to noise, although our power to assess individual differences in responses was somewhat limited. We found no evidence for mean population-level changes in nestling provisioning behaviors during either noise treatment. However, despite this overall canalization of behavior, there was evidence for individual differences in noise sensitivity, particularly during the diverse noise treatment. Females and birds that explored a novel environment more rapidly (fast explorers) reduced nestling provisioning rate more relative to baseline levels than males and slow explorers during the diverse urban noise, but not during the consistent freeway noise. Furthermore, first year breeders and fast explorers displayed larger increases in latency to return to the nest box relative to baseline conditions during the diverse noise only. Results suggest that urban animal populations might become overall tolerant to anthropogenic noise, but that certain individuals within these populations nonetheless remain sensitive to certain types of noise exposure.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></p>
Data from: Seed quality and seed quantity in red maple depends on weather and individual tree characteristics
<p>Under future climate change, plant species are expected to shift their ranges in response to increasing temperatures and altered precipitation patterns. As seeds represent the single opportunity for plants to move, it is critical to quantify the factors that influence reproduction. While total seed production is clearly important, seed quality is equally as critical and often overlooked. Thus, to quantify how environmental and tree-level characteristics affect seed quality and quantity, the reproductive output of red maple (<i>Acer rubrum</i>) was measured along an elevation gradient in the Monongahela National Forest, WV. A variety of individual-level characteristics were measured (i.e., DBH, canopy area, tree cores), and seed traps were placed under seed-bearing trees to collect samaras and quantify total seed production. A random subsample of collected seeds from each tree were micro-CT scanned to determine embryo volume, photographed for morphology measurements, and used for germination trials. The number of seeds produced was negatively affected by frost events during flowering, and stand density. The trees with the most seeds also showed reduced growth in recent years. Only 63% of scanned seeds showed embryo development, and of those seeds – only 23% germinated. The likelihood of embryo presence increased as growth rate decreased, while embryo size increased with tree height, smaller DBH, and in areas dominated by hemlock. Both larger embryo volume and larger overall seed size increased the likelihood of germination. The results highlight the importance of including seed quality in addition to seed quantity for a more complete representation of reproductive output.</p>
Data from: Higher songs of city birds may not be an individual response to noise
It has been observed in many songbird species that populations in noisy urban areas sing with a higher minimum frequency than do matched populations in quieter, less developed areas. However, why and how this divergence occurs is not yet understood. We experimentally tested whether chronic noise exposure during vocal learning results in songs with higher minimum frequencies in great tits (Parus major), the first species for which a correlation between anthropogenic noise and song frequency was observed. We also tested vocal plasticity of adult great tits in response to changing background noise levels by measuring song frequency and amplitude as we changed noise conditions. We show that noise exposure during ontogeny did not result in songs with higher minimum frequencies. In addition, we found that adult birds did not make any frequency or song usage adjustments when their background noise conditions were changed after song crystallization. These results challenge the common view of vocal adjustments by city birds, as they suggest that either noise itself is not the causal force driving the divergence of song frequency between urban and forest populations, or that noise induces population-wide changes over a time scale of several generations rather than causing changes in individual behaviour.
Data from: Better stay together: pair bond duration increases individual fitness independent of age-related variation
Prolonged pair bonds have the potential to improve reproductive performance of socially monogamous animals by increasing pair familiarity and enhancing coordination and cooperation between pair members. However, this has proved very difficult to test robustly because of important confounds such as age and reproductive experience. Here, we address limitations of previous studies and provide a rigorous test of the mate familiarity effect in the socially monogamous blue-footed booby, Sula nebouxii, a long-lived marine bird with a high divorce rate. Taking advantage of a natural disassociation between age and pair bond duration in this species, and applying a novel analytical approach to a 24 year database, we found that those pairs which have been together for longer establish their clutches five weeks earlier in the season, hatch more of their eggs and produce 35% more fledglings, regardless of age and reproductive experience. Our results demonstrate that pair bond duration increases individual fitness and further suggest that synergistic effects between a male and female's behaviour are likely to be involved in generating a mate familiarity effect. These findings help to explain the age- and experience-independent benefits of remating and their role in life-history evolution.
Data from: Assessing individual patterns of Echinococcus multilocularis infection in urban coyotes: non-invasive genetic sampling as epidemiological tool
1. In epidemiological studies of wildlife parasites, faecal genotyping has been introduced to prevent bias in estimates of parasite prevalence from faecal samples collected in the field. Such an approach could be particularly relevant in the study of Echinococcus multilocularis transmission in urban settings, where estimates of prevalence and patterns of infection in wild canid hosts are key parameters used in zoonotic risk assessment and management. However, no previous study has evaluated the reliability of E. multilocularis faecal prevalence, and individual patterns of infection in definitive hosts remain poorly understood. 2. We evaluated faecal genotyping as an epidemiological tool, using E. multilocularis in urban coyotes Canis latrans as our study system. Combining parasitological analysis and multilocus individual genotyping of coyote faeces, we compared faecal parasite prevalence with the prevalence obtained from genotyped faecal samples. Furthermore, we assessed patterns of individual infection, such as re-infection rates and phenology of parasite egg excretion. 3. Of 425 feces collected in five urban sites, we genotyped 142 samples (33.4%) corresponding to 60 unique individual coyotes. Number of genotyped samples per coyote ranged between 1 and 10 (mean = 2.3). Genotypes were obtained at 4–6 microsatellite loci and had a mean reliability of 0.9975. 4. Faecal prevalence of E. multilocularis in genotyped coyotes was 25.0%, and similar to results previously obtained from non-genotyped faeces. Faecal genotyping allowed estimating a re-infection rate of individual coyotes of 57.1%, and to observe temporal patterns of parasite infection that were not detected using non-genotyped faeces. 5. Synthesis and applications. If compared to independent data obtained through coyote post-mortem examination, our results suggest that reliable estimates of overall parasite prevalence in definitive host populations can be efficiently obtained through well-designed field collection and traditional faecal parasitological analysis. However, faecal genotyping allows assessing the dynamics of individual infections, which could otherwise only be estimated by using invasive techniques. Combining faecal genotyping with parasitology has a great potential in assessing zoonotic risk transmission in urban areas, as well as advancing the field of wildlife ecology, disease ecology and conservation.
Data from: Heterogeneity in individual quality in birds: overall patterns and insights from a study on common terns
While life-history theory predicts a trade-off between reproduction and survival, positive covariance, indicative of heterogeneity in individual quality, is often reported among individuals from natural populations. We review longitudinal studies of wild bird populations that test the relationship between annual reproductive success and lifespan and find the majority to report a positive correlation, while none reports a negative correlation. Heterogeneity in individual quality in resource acquisition, masking resource-based trade-offs, therefore appears to be common in birds. Considering that there is little evidence for heritable variation in fitness, heterogeneity in individual quality among adults may be due to life-long effects of developmental conditions. In a 20-year case study on common terns (Sterna hirundo), we test for life-long effects of cohort quality and within-cohort nest quality, but find no significant effects on long-term proxies of quality. Since other studies do find strong life-long effects of developmental conditions, we suggest that the brood reduction strategy adopted by common terns, causing the majority of offspring to die rapidly after hatching, efficiently reduces variation in offspring quality at independence. As such, a brood reduction strategy may contribute to reduced heterogeneity in adult survival in stochastic environments, both suggested to be more common and adaptive in long-lived species. Further study is required to assess heterogeneity in individual reproduction, especially in relation to environmental stochasticity and species' life-history strategies, in order to assess whether the relative strength of selection in early and late life may indeed affect the magnitude of heterogeneity in individual quality over life, and how this is mediated by parent-offspring conflict.
Data from: Mental health in individuals with spinal cord injury: the role of socioeconomic conditions and social relationships
Objectives: To evaluate socioeconomic inequalities in social relationships, and to assess whether socioeconomic conditions and social relationships are independently related to mental health problems in individuals with a physical disability due to spinal cord injury (SCI). Methods: We analyzed cross-sectional data from 511 individuals with SCI aged over 16 years who participated in the community survey of the Swiss SCI Cohort Study. Indicators for socioeconomic conditions included years of formal education, household income, and financial strain. Social relationships were operationalized by three structural (partner status, social contact frequency, number of supportive relationships) and four functional aspects (satisfaction with: overall social support, family relationships, contacts to friends, partner relationship). General mental health was assessed by the Mental Health Inventory (MHI-5) of SF-36 and depressive symptoms were measured by the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (depression subscale, HADS-D). Established cut-offs for general mental health problems (MHI-5 ≤56) and depressive symptomatology (HADS-D ≥8) were used to dichotomize outcomes. Associations were assessed using logistic regressions. Results: Lower household income was predominately associated with poor structural social relationships, whereas financial strain was robustly linked to poor functional social relationships. Financial strain was associated with general mental health problems and depressive symptomatology, even after controlling for social relationships. Education and household income were not linked to mental health. Poor structural and functional social relationships were related to general mental health problems and depressive symptomatology. Notably, trends remained stable after accounting for socioeconomic conditions. Conclusion: This study provides evidence for socioeconomic inequalities in social relationships as well as for independent associations of financial strain and poor social relationships with mental health problems in individuals with SCI. Further research may develop strategies to improve mental health in SCI by strengthening social relationships. Such interventions may be especially beneficial for individuals in unfavorable socioeconomic conditions.
Data from: Neighbour species richness and local structural variability modulate aboveground allocation patterns and crown morphology of individual trees
<p>Local neighbourhood interactions are considered a main driver for biodiversity–productivity relationships in forests. Yet, the structural responses of individual trees in species mixtures and their relation to crown complementarity remain poorly understood. Using a large‐scale forest experiment, we studied the impact of local tree species richness and structural variability on above‐ground wood volume allocation patterns and crown morphology. We applied terrestrial laser scanning to capture the three‐dimensional structure of trees and their temporal dynamics. We found that crown complementarity and crown plasticity increased with species richness. Trees growing in species‐rich neighbourhoods showed enhanced aboveground wood volume both in trunks and branches. Over time, neighbourhood diversity induced shifts in wood volume allocation in favour of branches, in particular for morphologically flexible species. Our results demonstrate that diversity‐mediated shifts in allocation pattern and crown morphology are a fundamental mechanism for crown complementarity and may be an important driver of overyielding.</p> <p> </p>
Data from: Adding landscape genetics and individual traits to the ecosystem function paradigm reveals the importance of species functional breadth
Animal pollination mediates both reproduction and gene flow for the majority of plant species across the globe. However, past functional studies have focused largely on seed production; although useful, this focus on seed set does not provide information regarding species-specific contributions to pollen-mediated gene flow. Here we quantify pollen dispersal for individual pollinator species across more than 690 ha of tropical forest. Specifically, we examine visitation, seed production, and pollen-dispersal ability for the entire pollinator community of a common tropical tree using a series of individual-based pollinator-exclusion experiments followed by molecular-based fractional paternity analyses. We investigate the effects of pollinator body size, plant size (as a proxy of floral display), local plant density, and local plant kinship on seed production and pollen-dispersal distance. Our results show that while large-bodied pollinators set more seeds per visit, small-bodied bees visited flowers more frequently and were responsible for more than 49% of all long distance (beyond 1 km) pollen-dispersal events. Thus, despite their size, small-bodied bees play a critical role in facilitating long-distance pollen-mediated gene flow. We also found that both plant size and local plant kinship negatively impact pollen dispersal and seed production. By incorporating genetic and trait-based data into the quantification of pollination services, we highlight the diversity in ecological function mediated by pollinators, the influential role that plant and population attributes play in driving service provision, and the unexpected importance of small-bodied pollinators in the recruitment of plant genetic diversity.
ScienceDex guides
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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.