The Cole Museum of Zoology: a brief history as it faces a new beginning

The Cole Museum of Zoology (REDCZ) at the University of Reading was founded in the early 20th century by Professor Francis Joseph Cole. Comparative animal anatomy is the principal scientific focus of the collection, represented by taxidermy, skeletons, histological preparations, fluid-preserved dissections, fossil material, casts, and some superb models of developmental stages. Overall, the collection contains over 3,200 fluid-preserved and dry specimens in addition to many hundreds of specimens in satellite collections used for teaching (approximately 38,000 specimens in total). More than 50% of the specimens are vertebrates, which reflects both Professor Cole’s research interests and the need to illustrate a curriculum that was heavily focused on vertebrates. Cole was an important figure in early 20th century zoology and became a Fellow of the Royal Society of London. He was the driving force behind zoology at the University of Reading, and it is a testament to his vision that we still teach BSc Zoology using his collection. The museum is currently housed in its third home, but after just under 50 years in one spot, 2019 will see it moved to a new Health and Life Sciences building as an integral part of the entrance foyer. It is hoped that 2019 will herald a new era for the museum, beginning on the journey towards a 200 year history at the University

Variation in the susceptibility of Anopheles gambiae to botanicals across a metropolitan region of Nigeria

Pesticide resistance is normally associated with genetic changes, resulting in varied responses to insecticides between different populations. There is little evidence of resistance to plant allelochemicals; it is likely that their efficacy varies between genetically diverse populations, which may lead to the development of resistance in the future. This study evaluated the response of Anopheles gambiae (larvae and adults) from spatially different populations to acetone extracts of two botanicals, Piper guineense and Eugenia aromatica. Mosquito samples from 10 locations within Akure metropolis in Southwest Nigeria were tested for variation in susceptibility to the toxic effect of botanical extracts. The spatial distribution of the tolerance magnitude (T.M.) of the mosquito populations to the botanicals was also mapped. The populations of An. gambiae manifested significant differences in their level of tolerance to the botanicals. The centre of the metropolis was the hot spot of tolerance to the botanicals. There was a significant positive correlation between the adulticidal activities of both botanicals and initial knockdown. Hence, knockdown by these botanicals could be a predictor of their subsequent mortality. In revealing variation in response to botanical pesticides, our work has demonstrated that any future use of botanicals as alternative environmentally friendly vector control chemicals needs to be closely monitored to ensure that resistance does not develop

New distributional record of Anthrenus dorsatus Mulsant & Rey, 1868 (Coleoptera, Dermestidae) on the island of Mallorca, Spain

The carpet beetle Anthrenus dorsatus has previously been recorded from North Africa and Malta. During a recent visit to the island of Mallorca several Anthrenus species were collected which included a number of Anthrenus dorsatusspecimens. This record adds a new species both to the island of Mallorca and to the Spanish checklist. These records extend our knowledge of the distribution of A. dorsatus and provide more evidence of range expansion in the pimpinel-lae species group across Europe, possibly because of global climate change

Examining the effects of ontogenic microplastic transference on Culex mosquito mortality and adult weight

Microplastics (MPs) continue to proliferate and pollute aquatic and terrestrial environments globally. The impacts of MP pollution on ecosystems and their functioning remain poorly quantified, with most research hitherto focusing on marine ecosystems. There is a paucity of information on the impacts of MPs in freshwater ecosystems, despite the broad range of pathways through which MPs can proliferate and the extensive range of species which actively ingest MPs in these systems. Of particular interest are organisms that bridge aquatic and terrestrial habitats. The present study thus examines the uptake, ontogenic transference and effect of different concentrations (0, 50, 100 and 200 MPs mL-1) and sizes (2 and 15 µm) concentrations and sizes of polystyrene MPs between aquatic and terrestrial life stages of Culex pipiens complex mosquitoes. Both 2 and 15 µm MPs transferred from the aquatic larval to terrestrial adult stage of Culex mosquitoes, and uptake correlated tightly with initial exposure concentration. However, neither concentration nor size of MPs significantly influenced mortality rates between the aquatic larval and terrestrial adult stage. There was also no impact of MPs on the weight of emerging mosquito adults. We thus demonstrate that MPs can be transferred ontogenically through organisms with complex life histories, presenting a potential pathway for dispersal of MPs into terrestrial environments. We also show that MPs exposure does not affect mortality rates between life stages of freshwater Culex populations. This suggests that MPs do not impact nutritional uptakes, with unhampered development to adulthood facilitating subsequent dispersal of MPs aerially and between freshwater and terrestrial habitats

BMI Superior to Fat-Free Mass Index and Fat Mass Index for Predicting Arterial Stiffness in College Students

Arterial stiffness is a significant predictor of cardiovascular disease and mortality. Body mass index (BMI) has been used to predict cardiovascular disease outcomes but does not consider fat and lean mass. Fat mass index (FMI) and fat-free mass index (FFMI) may be superior to BMI in predicting arterial stiffness because it considers body composition. PURPOSE: This study aims to determine if FFMI and FMI are superior to BMI at predicting arterial stiffness in college students. METHODS: Participants came into the exercise physiology lab, signed consent, and then had anthropometric measurements of height and weight taken, as well as a body fat assessment (BOD POD, COSMED). Carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (cfPWV), pulse wave analysis, and brachial and central blood pressure (BP) were then measured. Linear regression was used to determine if BMI, FFMI, and FMI predict BP and arterial stiffness. RESULTS: 237 college-aged (20.1 ± 3.3 yr.) participants (n = 122 males, n = 115 females) with an average BMI of 25.4 ± 4.1 kg/m2 completed this study. Results did not differ based on biological sex; thus, male and female data were aggregated. BMI significantly predicted brachial systolic BP (SBP) (r = .324), diastolic BP (DBP) (r = .223), central SBP (r =.374), DBP (r =.270), Augmentation pressure (AP) (r = .282), Augmentation index (AIX) (r = .213), and cfPWV (r = .258) (all P \u3c .05). FFMI significantly predicted brachial SBP (r = .395), central SBP (r = .320), and cfPWV (r = .224) (all P \u3c .05), but did not predict brachial or central DBP, AP or AIX. FMI significantly predicted central SBP (r = .143), brachial and central DBP (r =.329, r = .318, respectively), AP, (r = .275), and AIX (r = .328) (all P \u3c .05), but did not predict brachial SBP, or cfPWV. CONCLUSION: BMI appears to be a superior predictor of BP and arterial stiffness than FFMI and FMI in healthy college-aged adults

The effect of the alternative prey, Paramecium caudatum (Peniculida: Parameciidae), on the predation of Culex pipiens (Diptera: Culicidae) by the copepods Macrocyclops albidus and Megacyclops viridis (Cyclopoida: Cyclopidae)

Biological control can be an effective tool to combat public health risks associated with mosquito-borne disease. However, target impacts of biological control agents may be reduced by biotic contexts such as the presence of alternative prey. In turn, this can impede our ability to realistically assess biocontrol agent efficacy. Here, we examine the effects of alternative ciliate prey on the predation potential of two cyclopoid copepods, Macrocyclops albidus Jurine (Cyclopoida: Cyclopidae) and Megacyclops viridis Jurine (Cyclopoida: Cyclopidae), towards larvae of the West Nile virus vector mosquito Culex pipiens Linnaeus (Diptera: Culicidae). Using functional responses (FRs; resource use under different resource densities), we demonstrate that both copepods exhibit potentially destabilising Type II FRs towards mosquito prey. However, where the alternative prey was present, we observed species-specific modulations to FR form and magnitude. For M. albidus, FRs remained Type II where ciliate prey were present, however, maximum feeding rates on mosquito larvae were reduced. Conversely, for M. viridis, FRs moved towards more stabilising Type III, whilst maximum feeding rates on mosquito larvae were not significantly reduced. Whilst both species of cyclopoid copepod were able to effectively target and consume larval mosquitoes in the presence of alternative prey, we demonstrate that overall efficacies may be reduced in aquatic habitats which contain multiple prey types. We thus advocate that biotic contexts such as prey selectivity should be integrated into predatory biocontrol agent examinations for mosquitoes which vector pathogens and parasites, to more holistically assess their efficacy

Differential interaction strengths and prey preferences across larval mosquito ontogeny by a cohabiting predatory midge

Abstract Understandings of natural enemy efficacy are reliant on robust quantifications of interaction strengths under context-dependencies. For medically important mosquitoes, rapid growth during aquatic larval stages could impede natural enemy impacts through size refuge effects. The identification of biocontrol agents which are unimpeded by ontogenic size variability of prey is therefore vital. We use functional response and prey preference experiments to examine the interaction strengths and selectivity traits of larvae of the cohabiting predatory midge Chaoborus flavicans (Meigen 1830) (Diptera: Chaoboridae) towards larval stages of the Culex pipiens (Diptera: Culicidae) mosquito complex. Moreover, we examine the influence of search area variation on selectivity traits, given its importance in consumer-resource interactions. Chaoborids were able to capture and consume mosquito prey across their larval ontogeny. When prey types were available individually, a destabilizing Type II functional response was exhibited towards late instar mosquito prey, whereas a more stabilizing Type III functional response was displayed towards early instars. Accordingly, search efficiencies were lowest towards early instar prey, whereas, conversely, maximum feeding rates were highest towards this smaller prey type. However, when the prey types were present simultaneously, C. flavicans exhibited a significant positive preference for late instar prey, irrespective of water volume. Our results identify larval chaoborids as efficacious natural enemies of mosquito prey, with which they frequently coexist in aquatic environments. In particular, an ability to prey on mosquitoes across their larval stages, coupled with a preference for late instar prey, could enable high population-level offtake rates and negate compensatory reductions in intraspecific competition through size refuge

What the fluff is this? - Gammarus pulex prefer food sources without plastic microfibers

Investigations into the impact of micro plastics (MP) and microfibers (MFs) upon the freshwater aquatic environment are still in their infancy despite our growing awareness of their importance. Gammarus pulex have long been used as a study organism for ecotoxicology and several studies have already used them to investigate the impact of MFs. One area of research which has not been exploited is the extent to which G. pulex can detect MFs and whether or not they avoid eating them. To answer this question we developed a reliable and accurate method of exposing Gammarus to known amounts of MF embedded in algal wafers. Here we show that when given the choice between control wafers and those contaminated with 2% or 3% MF Gammarus ingest fewer MF than would be expected if a random choice was made (2% W = 7 P = 0.01698, 3% W = 13 P = 0.03397). Their feeding behaviour also changes, with a significant reduction in time feeding (F1,18 = 21.3 P = 0.0002) as well as significantly fewer visits to contaminated wafers (F1,18 = 5.312 P = 0.0333). This suggests that G. pulex are able to detect MF in the 200-500 μm range and are partially repelled by them

Microplastic and organic fibres in feeding, growth and mortality of Gammarus pulex

Microplastic fibres (MPFs) are a major source of microplastic pollution, most are released during domestic washing of synthetic clothing. Organic microfibres (OMF) are also released into the environment by the same means, with cotton and wool being the most common in the UK. There is little empirical evidence to demonstrate that plastic fibres are more harmful than organic fibres if ingested by freshwater animals such as Gammarus pulex. Using our method of feeding Gammarus MPFs embedded in algal wafers, we compared the ingestion, feeding behaviour and growth of Gammarus exposed to 70 µm sheep wool, 20 µm cotton, 30 µm acrylic wool, and 50 µm or 100 µm human hair, and 30 µm cat hair at a concentration of 3% fibre by mass. Gammarus would not ingest wafers containing human hair, or sheep wool fibres. Given the choice between control wafers and those contaminated with MPF, cat hair or cotton, Gammarus spent less time feeding on MPF but there was no difference in the time spent feeding on OMFs compared to the control. Given a choice between contaminated wafers, Gammarus preferred the OMF to the MPF. There were no significant differences in growth or mortality among any of the treatments. These results conclude that MPFs are less likely to be ingested by Gammarus if alternative food is available and are not more harmful than OMFs

Up and away: ontogenic transference as a pathway for aerial dispersal of microplastics

Microplastics (MPs) are ubiquitous pollutants found in marine, freshwater and terrestrial ecosystems. With so many MPs in aquatic systems it is inevitable that they will be ingested by aquatic organisms, and be transferred up through the food chain. However, to date, no study has considered whether MPs can be transmitted by means of ontogenic transference i.e. between life stages that utilise different habitats. Here, we determine whether fluorescent polystyrene beads could transfer between Culex mosquito life stages and, particularly, could move into the flying adult stage. We show for the first time that MPs can be transferred ontogenically from a feeding (larva) into a non-feeding (pupa) life stage and subsequently into the adult terrestrial life stage. However, transference is dependent on particle size, with smaller 2 µm MPs transferring readily into pupae and adult stages, whilst 15 µm MPs transferred at a significantly reduced rate. Microplastics appear to accumulate in the Malpighian tubule renal excretion system. The transfer of MPs to the adults represents a potential aerial pathway to contamination of new environments. Thus, any organism that feeds on terrestrial life phases of freshwater insects could be impacted by MPs found in aquatic ecosystems