Preprints
There are 2569 Preprints listed.
Sexual system variation in legumes (Leguminosae): underpinning genomic study with new tools to describe inflorescence morphology
Published: 2024-02-02
Subjects: Biology, Botany, Plant Biology, Plant Breeding and Genetics Life Sciences, Plant Sciences
Although the great majority of legume species are cosexual with hermaphrodite flowers, a variety of sexual systems are observed in the family, including monoecy, andromonoecy, androdioecy and dioecy. Such broad terms conceal much variation, details that may be of importance in understanding the evolutionary and ecological basis of reproductive systems. This variation is often inadequately [...]
Selection versus Transmission: Quantitative and Organismic Biology in Antibiotic Resistance
Published: 2024-02-02
Subjects: Life Sciences, Medicine and Health Sciences
We aimed to determine the importance of selection (mostly dependent on the anthropogenic use of antimicrobials) and transmission (mostly dependent on hygiene and sanitation) as drivers of the spread of antibiotic-resistant bacterial populations. The first obstacle to estimating the relative weight of both independent variables is the lack of detailed quantitative data concerning the number of [...]
What is the evidence that counter-wildlife crime interventions are effective for conserving African, Asian, and Latin American wildlife directly threatened by exploitation? A Systematic Map
Published: 2024-02-01
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
1. Counter-wildlife crime interventions ̶ those that directly protect target wildlife from illegal harvest/persecution, detect and sanction rule-breakers, and interdict and control illegal wildlife commodities ̶ are widely applied to address biodiversity loss. This systematic map provides an overview of the literature on the effectiveness of counter-wildlife crime interventions for conserving [...]
How bottlenecks shape adaptive potential: from theory and microbiology to conservation biology
Published: 2024-02-01
Subjects: Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Evolution, Life Sciences
Wild populations frequently undergo demographic changes that can destabilize their persistence and, thus, the equilibrium of ecosystems. For instance, habitat loss due to human activities leads to a drastic population size reduction, a process called a bottleneck. By reducing genetic diversity, a bottleneck may prevent a population from adapting to subsequent environmental changes. In the context [...]
Adult telomere length is positively correlated with survival and lifetime reproductive success in a wild passerine
Published: 2024-02-01
Subjects: Evolution
Explaining variation in individual fitness is a key goal in evolutionary biology. Recently, telomeres, repeating DNA sequences capping the ends of chromosomes, have gained attention as a biomarker for body state, individual quality, and ageing. However, existing research has provided mixed evidence for whether telomere length correlates with fitness components, including survival and reproductive [...]
The relative contribution of acoustic signals versus movement cues in group coordination and collective decision-making
Published: 2024-01-31
Subjects: Behavior and Ethology, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences
To benefit from group living, individuals need to maintain cohesion and coordinate their activities. Effective communication thus becomes critical, facilitating rapid coordination of behaviours and reducing consensus costs when group members have differing needs and information. In many bird and mammal species, collective decisions rely on acoustic signals in some contexts but on movement cues in [...]
Satellite Observations Reveal a Positive Relationship Between Trait-Based Diversity and Drought Response in Temperate Forests
Published: 2024-01-31
Subjects: Life Sciences
Climate extremes such as droughts are expected to increase in frequency and intensity with global change. Therefore, it is important to map and predict ecosystem responses to such extreme events to maintain ecosystem functions and services. Alongside abiotic factors, biotic factors such as the proportion of needle and broadleaf trees were found to affect forest drought responses, corroborating [...]
The distraction function of extrafloral nectaries: keeping ants away from flowers and preventing interaction with pollinators
Published: 2024-01-31
Subjects: Desert Ecology, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Life Sciences, Other Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Ants protect plants from herbivores in exchange for extrafloral nectar, but they can also disrupt pollination by visiting flowers and deterring pollinators, thereby reducing plant fitness. The Distraction Hypothesis suggests that extrafloral nectaries (EFNs) attract ants away from flowers to mitigate pollination disruption. In the present study, we tested this hypothesis by conducting an ant [...]
Multiple habitat graphs: how connectivity brings forth landscape ecological processes
Published: 2024-01-31
Subjects: Other Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Population Biology, Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology
Purpose: Habitat connectivity is integral to current biodiversity science and conservation strategies. Originally, the connectivity concept stressed the role of individual movements for landscape-scale processes. Connectivity determines whether populations can survive in sub-optimal patches (i.e., source-sink effects), complete life cycles relying on different habitat types (i.e., landscape [...]
The genetic basis of a regionally isolated sexual dimorphism involves cortex
Published: 2024-01-30
Subjects: Biology, Evolution, Genetics and Genomics, Other Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Population Biology
Sexual dimorphisms represent a source of phenotypic variation and result from differences in how natural and sexual selection act on males and females within a species. Identifying the genetic basis of dimorphism can be challenging, especially once it is fixed within a species. However, studying polymorphisms, even when fixed within a population, can provide insights into the genetic basis of [...]
Evolutionary outcomes arising from bistability in ecosystem dynamics
Published: 2024-01-30
Subjects: Life Sciences
While it is known that shallow lakes ecosystems may experience abrupt shifts (ie tipping points) from one state to a contrasting degraded alternative state as a result of gradual envi- ronmental changes, the role of evolutionary processes and the impact of trait variation in this context remain largely unexplored. It is crucial to elucidate how eco-evolutionary feedbacks affect abrupt ecological [...]
Thresholds and prediction models to support the sustainable management of herbivorous insects in wheat. A review
Published: 2024-01-30
Subjects: Agriculture, Entomology
daily calorific intake for countries across the globe. Wheat crops are attacked by a diverse range of herbivorous invertebrates (pests) that cause significant yield loss. It is anticipated that yield loss caused by pests will increase in response to a changing climate. Currently, these pests are primarily controlled using pesticides, however there is an increased need for more sustainable pest [...]
Impacts of Changing Winters on Lake Ecosystems will Increase with Latitude
Published: 2024-01-30
Subjects: Life Sciences
Climate warming is especially pronounced in winter and at high latitudes. Warming winters are leading to loss of lake ice and changing snow cover on seasonally freezing lakes. Past neglect of the ice cover period by lake scientists has resulted in critical data and theory gaps about the role of winter conditions in lake ecosystem function and the effects of changing winters on aquatic systems. [...]
Comparing conservation land acquisition strategies using agent-based models
Published: 2024-01-30
Subjects: Biodiversity, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Most unprotected biodiversity is found outside state-owned protected areas, so developing effective conservation initiatives on privately and communally-owned land is critical. Conservationists have a long history of working with these landowners and their actions can be divided into two broad categories. The first is where they agree to take over responsibility for management, either by buying [...]
A non-invasive approach to measuring body dimensions of wildlife with camera-traps: a felid field trial
Published: 2024-01-30
Subjects: Life Sciences
Dimensions of body size are an important measurement in animal ecology, though they can be difficult to obtain due to the effort and cost associated with the invasive nature of these measurements. We avoid these limitations by using camera-trap images to derive dimensions of animal size. To obtain measurements of object dimensions using this method, the size of the object in pixels, the focal [...]