City lights, moonlit nights: examining bat responses to urbanization and lunar cycles Claysson de Aguiar Silva & Ludmilla M. S. Aguiar Abstract Urbanization is one of the most abrupt mechanisms of land use change. This process can generate significant impacts on biodiversity, and its effects on bat activity patterns need further exploration due to the importance... Continue Reading →
New Lit Alert: Body size and survival of urban and rural populations of a common wolf spider are not influenced by lifelong exposure to lead pollution
Body size and survival of urban and rural populations of a common wolf spider are not influenced by lifelong exposure to lead pollution Lucy Guarnieri, Leo Taylor, P. Larry Phelan & Mary Margaret Gardiner Abstract Heavy metal pollution is pervasive in urban soils, and it can negatively impact the fitness of arthropods. Arthropod populations can evolve to... Continue Reading →
New Lit Alert: Signatures of local adaptation and maladaptation to future climate in wild Zizania latifolia
Signatures of local adaptation and maladaptation to future climate in wild Zizania latifolia Yang Zou, Weidong Yang, Ruxue Zhang & Xinwei Xu Abstract Global climate change poses challenges to agricultural production and food security. Assessing the adaptive capacity of crop wild relatives to future climate is important for protecting key germplasm resources and breeding new crops. We performed population genomics,... Continue Reading →
New Lit Alert: Big cities, big bodies: urbanisation correlates with large body sizes and enhanced body condition in African dwarf chameleons (Genus: Bradypodion)
Big cities, big bodies: urbanisation correlates with large body sizes and enhanced body condition in African dwarf chameleons (Genus: Bradypodion) Jody M. Barends & Krystal A. Tolley Abstract Urbanisation is a major driver of habitat transformation that alters the environmental conditions and selective regimes of the habitats where it occurs. For species inhabiting urban habitats, such... Continue Reading →
New Lit Alert: Continent-wide parallel urban evolution of increased heat tolerance in a common moth
Continent-wide parallel urban evolution of increased heat tolerance in a common moth Thomas Merckx, Matthew E. Nielsen, Tuomas Kankaanpää, Tomáš Kadlec, Mahtab Yazdanian, Sami M. Kivelä Abstract Urbanization and its urban-heat-island effect (UHI) have expanding footprints worldwide. The UHI means that urban habitats experience a higher mean and more frequent extreme high temperatures than rural... Continue Reading →
New Lit Alert: How does urbanization affect natural selection?
How does urbanization affect natural selection? Anne Charmantier, Tracy Burkhard, Laura Gervais, Charles Perrier, Albrecht I. Schulte-Hostedde & Megan J. Thompson Abstract Urbanisation is one of the most significant contributors to the Anthropocene, and urban evolutionary ecology has become an important field of research. While it is commonly assumed that cities impose new and/or stronger... Continue Reading →
New Lit Alert: Urban Life Affects Differentiation and Phenotypic Variation but not Asymmetry in a Fully Terrestrial Salamander
Urban Life Affects Differentiation and Phenotypic Variation but not Asymmetry in a Fully Terrestrial Salamander Lucía Alarcón-Ríos, Antigoni Kaliontzopoulou, David Álvarez & Guillermo Velo-Antón Abstract The environmental transformations associated with cities are expected to affect organisms at the demographic, phenotypic, and evolutionary level, often negatively. The prompt detection of stressed populations before their viability is compromised is essential to... Continue Reading →
New Lit Alert: Urban environment determines population genetics in the green toad, Bufotes viridis
Urban environment determines population genetics in the green toad, Bufotes viridis Viktória Vargová, Damiána Gužiová, Monika Balogová, Natália Pipová, Marcel Uhrin & Peter Kaňuch Abstract Heavily urbanized areas can hinder dispersal and gene flow between amphibian populations. Given the growth potential of urbanization, it is important to examine how this specific environment shapes their genetic... Continue Reading →
New Lit Alert: Metabolic adjustment in urban birds: glycometabolic enzyme activities in urban and rural tree sparrows (passer montanus)
Metabolic adjustment in urban birds: glycometabolic enzyme activities in urban and rural tree sparrows (passer montanus) J Shang, S Cun, S Zhang, W Liang Abstract Urbanization is rapidly changing habitats of wild birds around the world. Food availability is one of the important factors leading to phenotypic differences between urban and rural bird populations. Comparing... Continue Reading →
New Lit Alert: Variation in Pheidole nodus (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) functional morphology across urban parks
Variation in Pheidole nodus (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) functional morphology across urban parks Y Luo, QM Wei, C Newman, XQ Huang, XY Luo, ZM Zhou Abstract Background Habitat fragmentation and consequent population isolation in urban areas can impose significant selection pressures on individuals and species confined to urban islands, such as parks. Despite many comparative studies on... Continue Reading →
New Lit Alert: Habitat Use, Terrestriality and Feeding Behaviour of Javan Slow Lorises in Urban Areas of a Multi-Use Landscape in Indonesia
Habitat Use, Terrestriality and Feeding Behaviour of Javan Slow Lorises in Urban Areas of a Multi-Use Landscape in Indonesia L Karimloo, M Campera, M.A. Imron, S Rakholia, A Mehta, K Hedger, K.A.I. Nekaris Abstract Urban areas are rapidly expanding into natural habitats worldwide. When species are threatened with habitat loss, it is vital to understand... Continue Reading →
New Lit Alert: The influence of road networks on brown bear spatial distribution and habitat suitability in a human-modified landscape
The influence of road networks on brown bear spatial distribution and habitat suitability in a human-modified landscape E Gonzalez-Bernardo, MDM Delgado, DGG Matos, A Zarzo-Arias, A Morales-Gonzalez, H Ruiz-Villar, M Skuban, L Maiorano, P Ciucci, J Balbontin, V Penteriani Abstract Roads are human infrastructure that heavily affect wildlife, often with marked impacts on carnivores, including... Continue Reading →
New Lit Alert: Plasticity in resource use explains the persistence of the largest living rodent in anthropized environments
Plasticity in resource use explains the persistence of the largest living rodent in anthropized environments M Magioli, HR Luz, FB Costa, HR Benatti, U Piovezan, FBP Nunes, B Lopes, MZ Moreira, MB Labruna, KMPMB Ferraz Abstract How organisms search for and obtain food is a determinant of their survival. It has been hypothesized that organisms... Continue Reading →
New Lit Alert: Do urban habitats induce physiological changes in Mediterranean lizards?
Do urban habitats induce physiological changes in Mediterranean lizards? R Vardi, S Dubiner, R Ben Bezalel, S Meiri, E Levin Abstract Urban environments offer dramatically different habitats for wildlife compared with natural environments. They provide, for example, different levels of resource availability, anthropogenic night light, and microclimates (e.g., urban heat islands). For reptiles, increased temperatures... Continue Reading →
New Lit Alert: Urban colonies are less aggressive but forage more than their forest counterparts in the ant Temnothorax nylanderi
Urban colonies are less aggressive but forage more than their forest counterparts in the ant Temnothorax nylanderi L Jacquier, M Molet, C Doums Abstract Urbanization imposes new constraints on organisms, leading to changes in various traits including behaviour. In particular, foraging and aggressive behaviours are often affected by urbanization. In eusocial species, behaviour can be defined at the... Continue Reading →