Preprints
Filtering by Subject: Life Sciences
Invasion dynamics of quagga mussels (Dreissena rostriformis bugensis) within a reservoir and its spatially intermittent watershed: Lake Piru and the Santa Clara River, California, USA
Published: 2022-09-29
Subjects: Biology, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences, Other Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology
Since its discovery in Lake Mead in 2007, the invasive quagga mussel (Dreissena rostriformis bugensis) has rapidly spread throughout the lower Colorado River drainage. However, the invasion in California remained confined to the Colorado and water systems throughout southern California that receive water from the Colorado River until December 2013, when quagga mussels were first observed in Lake [...]
Distribution and Variability of Cistanthe philhershkovitziana Hershk. (Cistanthe sect. Cistanthe; Montiaceae)
Published: 2022-09-29
Subjects: Biodiversity, Life Sciences
The present work exploits internet resources to update previously reported data for the distributional range and ecology of Cistanthe philhershkovitziana Hershk. (Cistanthe Spach sect. Cistanthe; Montiaceae), a conspicuous and not uncommon species of central and north-central Chile. The latitudinal range documented here is at least 4.8° greater than previously reported, extending from ca. 29°S [...]
Best practices in designing, sequencing and identifying random DNA barcodes
Published: 2022-09-28
Subjects: Bioinformatics, Biotechnology, Cell and Developmental Biology, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Evolution, Life Sciences
Random DNA barcodes are a versatile tool for tracking cell lineages, with applications ranging from development to cancer to evolution. Here we review and critically evaluate barcode designs as well as methods of barcode sequencing and initial processing of barcode data. We first demonstrate how various barcode design decisions affect data quality and propose a new optimal design that balances [...]
Individual-based eco-evolutionary framework: towards unifying ecology and evolution
Published: 2022-09-28
Subjects: Biodiversity, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences
Evolution is increasingly found to be rapid and entangled with ecological processes in complex eco-evolutionary dynamics, calling for a common conceptual framework. Yet, ecological and evolutionary theory remain largely separated, which constrains the development of integrative research. To overcome this separation, I argue for treating the entangled dynamics as a single eco-evolutionary process [...]
Stable laws in a changing world The structure of evolutionary theories over the centuries
Published: 2022-09-27
Subjects: Biodiversity, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences, Other Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Successful fundamental theories are built on verifiable principles that include measurable variables. This paper shows that Darwin’s inclusive theory is built on such principles and follows their rocky road into modern operational theories. Besides reproduction, variation, and heredity, Darwin’s conditions of diversification also include the potential for exponential (geometric) population growth [...]
Using integrated multispecies occupancy models to map co-occurrence between bottlenose dolphins and fisheries in the Gulf of Lion, French Mediterranean Sea
Published: 2022-09-27
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences, Population Biology
In the Mediterranean Sea, interactions between marine species and human activities are prevalent. The coastal distribution of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) and the predation pressure they put on fishing stocks lead to regular interactions with fisheries. Multispecies occupancy models are a relevant framework to estimate co-occurrence between two (or more) species while accounting for [...]
Evaluation of DNA Extracted from Timber Rattlesnake (Cotalus horridus) Cloacal and Blood Swabs for Microsatellite Genotyping
Published: 2022-09-26
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences, Other Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology
Genetic research is a key component to modern wildlife conservation, but it is contingent on the collection of reliable and high-quality genetic samples. Invasive genetic sampling techniques have potential to negatively impact individuals, which may be prohibitive when working with threatened and endangered species. Prior to sample collection, project managers must try to balance the negative [...]
Open access research infrastructures are critical for sustained citizen science growth: a case study of Australia’s national biodiversity platform, the Atlas of Living Australia (ALA)
Published: 2022-09-23
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences
Citizen science continues to make a substantial contribution to a wide variety of scientific disciplines by allowing the public to be involved in activities like idea generation, study design, data collection and analysis. Although the pace of citizen science has exploded in recent decades, there remains untapped potential for scientific output through investment in research infrastructure that [...]
Individual identity information persists in learned calls of introduced parrot populations
Published: 2022-09-23
Subjects: Behavior and Ethology, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences
Animals can actively encode different types of identity information in learned communication signals, such as group membership or individual identity. The social environments in which animals interact may favor different types of information, but whether identity information conveyed in learned signals is resilient or responsive to social disruption over short evolutionary timescales is not well [...]
Experimental mosaic brain evolution improves main executive function abilities in the guppy
Published: 2022-09-21
Subjects: Behavioral Neurobiology, Cognitive Neuroscience, Life Sciences, Neuroscience and Neurobiology
Executive functions are a set of cognitive control processes required for optimizing goal- directed behaviour. Despite more than two centuries of research on executive functions, both in humans and nonhuman animal species, there is still a knowledge gap of what constitutes the mechanistic basis of evolutionary variation in executive function abilities. Here we show experimentally that changes in [...]
Causal inference and large-scale expert validation shed light on the drivers of SDM accuracy and variance
Published: 2022-09-21
Subjects: Biodiversity, Life Sciences
1. The literature is awash with studies purporting to show how various species and data characteristics affect the performances of Species Distribution Models (SDMs). Many of these studies follow a similar template: they fit SDMs for several species, or the same species using different datasets; assess the accuracy of those SDMs using skill statistics; and then identify correlates thereof. [...]
Linking Predator Responses to Alkaloid Variability in Poison Frogs
Published: 2022-09-21
Subjects: Animal Sciences, Behavior and Ethology, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Evolution, Life Sciences, Zoology
Many chemically-defended/aposematic species rely on diet for sequestering the toxins with which they defend themselves. This dietary acquisition can lead to variable chemical defenses across space, as the community composition of chemical sources is likely to vary across the range of (an aposematic) species. We characterized the alkaloid content of two populations of the Dyeing Poison Frog [...]
Inferring the identifying features underlying association preferences in wild mixed species parrot groups
Published: 2022-09-16
Subjects: Biology, Integrative Biology, Life Sciences
Many animals participate in mixed-species aggregations for a variety of reasons, leading to species specific differences in benefits and costs, resulting in a variety of community assemblage patterns and dynamics based on what information individuals use to make joining decisions. Current research tends to focus specifically on "species" as a defining factor affecting joining decisions. However, [...]
Little transparency and equity in scientific awards for early and mid-career researchers in ecology and evolution
Published: 2022-09-16
Subjects: Biology, Life Sciences
Scientific awards can shape scientific careers, helping secure jobs and grants. Awards also have a potential to reinforce the “Matthew Effect” and the quest for “novelty” in science when eligibility and assessment criteria give preference to nominees with traditional careers and to “excellent” research. As such, recognition awards for early and mid-career researchers can contribute to the lack of [...]
New Global Species Biodiversity: Soil soars, Ocean flounders
Published: 2022-09-16
Subjects: Biodiversity, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences, Population Biology
Based on topographic field data, an argument is advanced that Soil houses ~2.1 x 10^24 taxa and supports >99.9% of global species biodiversity, mostly Bacteria or other microbes. Contradictory claims that Soil is home to only a quarter of biota while Ocean harbours 80-99% of Life on Earth are both dismissed. Earlier guesstimates of ~8.8 million taxa (~2.2 million or 25% marine), of 1-6 [...]