A proposed mechanism for enhanced water-conservation in egg clutches of the Mexican Kingsnake, Lampropeltis mexicana (Serpentes: Colubridae)

A postura de ovos em um substrato úmido minimiza o estresse hídrico de ovos de répteis com casca coriácea, pois permite que absorvam água através da casca permeável. Esse ganho de água contribui para a redução da perda de água em ovos agregados. Demostramos aqui essa característica de conservação de água em ovos da serpente Lampropeltis mexicana em um experimento de balanco hídrico investigando tanto desovas naturais como ovos arranjados experimentalmente em grupos. As taxas de perda de água dos ovos continuam a diminuir à medida que mais ovos são adicionados ao agregado, com um limiar de aproximadamente 15 ovos. Não há redução adicional da taxa de perda de água em um agregado de 20 ovos, número maior que o tamanho típico máximo da desova natural dessa espécie. Correntes de ar seco dirigidas sobre a desova provocam o desaparecimento dessa característica de conservação de água, mas esta reaparece quando o ar está imóvel (desligando-se a corrente de ar). Essa é a primeira vez que um aumento na pressão de vapor de água em um agregado de ovos é demonstrado experimentalmente; os resultados sugerem que a postura de ovos agregados pode beneficiar o desenvolvimento por meio da conservação de umidade.Laying eggs on a wet substrate minimizes water stress for flexible-shelled reptile eggs because they absorb water through the permeable shell. This water gain contributes to reduced water-loss in aggregated eggs. This water-conserving feature is demonstrated in eggs of Lampropeltis mexicana in a water-balance experiment investigating both naturally laid clutches and eggs in arranged clusters. Water-loss rates of eggs decrease as more eggs are added to the aggregation, with a threshold at approximately 15 eggs. There is no further reduction in water-loss rate for eggs in an aggregation of 20, which exceeds the typical maximum for natural clutch size in this species. Blowing dry air over the egg clutch causes this water-conserving feature to disappear, but it re-appears when the air is still (air current turned off). This is the first time that an increase in water-vapor pressure in an aggregation of eggs has been demonstrated experimentally; the results suggest that laying aggregations of eggs may benefit development through moisture conservation

A modern coastal ocean observing system using data from advanced satellite and in situ sensors – an example

Report of the Ocean Observation Research Coordination Network In-situ-Satellite Observation Working GroupThis report is intended to illustrate and provide recommendations for how ocean observing systems of the next decade could focus on coastal environments using combined satellite and in situ measurements. Until recently, space-based observations have had surface footprints typically spanning hundreds of meters to kilometers. These provide excellent synoptic views for a wide variety of ocean characteristics. In situ observations are instead generally point or linear measurements. The interrelation between space-based and in-situ observations can be challenging. Both are necessary and as sensors and platforms evolve during the next decade, the trend to facilitate interfacing space and in-situ observations must continue and be expanded. In this report, we use coastal observation and analyses to illustrate an observing system concept that combines in situ and satellite observing technologies with numerical models to quantify subseasonal time scale transport of freshwater and its constituents from terrestrial water storage bodies across and along continental shelves, as well as the impacts on some key biological/biogeochemical properties of coastal waters.Ocean Research Coordination Network and the National Science Foundatio

SUSCEPTIBILITY OF WINTER TICK LARVAE AND EGGS TO ENTOMOPATHOGENIC FUNGI - BEAUVERIA BASSIANA, BEAUVERIA CALEDONICA, METARHIZIUM ANISOPLIAE, AND SCOPULARIOPSIS BREVICAULIS

An isolate of the soil fungus Scopulariopsis brevicaulis was identified from the surface of female winter ticks (Dermacentor albipictus) collected from recently dead moose (Alces alces) calves in New Hampshire in the northeastern United States. It was the sole isolate, and it matched with 98% nucITS similarity (molecular systematics Blast match) to S. brevicaulis species from soil and other tick species. Inoculation of tick larvae and eggs with 108 spores/mL + 0.05% Tween (aqueous inoculum) resulted in mortality, reduced survival time, and recovery of S. brevicaulis from within tick tissues. Rapid water loss and death from dehydration were the pathogenic consequences of the fungal infection. Three entomopathogenic fungal isolates from laboratory culture (Beauveria bassiana, B. caledonica,and Metarhizium anisopliae) inoculated concurrently at the same dose, were slightly less pathogenic to eggs than larvae of winter ticks. We conclude that S. brevicaulis imposes a limitation on the free-living stages of the winter tick population in specific environmental conditions, but commercial fungal treatments as used in local situations to control ticks, are impractical as a means of controlling winter tick density across moose habitats

ENTOMOPATHOGENIC FUNGI OF THE WINTER TICK IN MOOSE WALLOWS: A POSSIBLE BIO-CONTROL FOR ADULT MOOSE?

Soil fungi were cultured from 24 wallows and proximal control sites in Maine and New Hampshire, USA during the autumn moose (Alces alces) breeding season of 2016 to investigate the presence of soil fungi pathogenic to winter tick larvae (Dermacentor albipictus). Twenty genera of fungi were isolated, and all are considered common in a forested ecosystem. The predominant genera isolated in wallows were pathogenic to winter tick larvae and included Aspergillus spp. (in particular A. flavus), Beauveria bassiana, Mortierella spp., Mucor spp., Paecilomyces spp., Penicillium spp., and Trichoderma spp. Wallow soils had specific characteristics and differed from proximal control sites by having: 1) lower fungal diversity, 2) a higher frequency of primary colonizers including Mortierella spp., Mucor spp., Penicillium spp., and Trichoderma spp., and 3) a more variable total amount of fungi indicative of changing (disturbed) soil conditions. We conclude that wallows are sites of soil disturbance that concentrate fungi known to be pathogenic to larval winter ticks. Fungi acquired by breeding moose using wallows might subsequently act as an on-host mechanism of tick control

The Pheromone of the Cave Cricket, Hadenoecus cumberlandicus, Causes Cricket Aggregation but Does Not Attract the Co-Distributed Predatory Spider, Meta ovalis

Food input by the cave cricket, Hadenoecus cumberlandicus Hubble & Norton (Orthoptera: Rhaphidophoridae), is vital to the cave community, making this cricket a true keystone species. Bioassays conducted on cave walls and in the laboratory show that clustering in H. cumberlandicus is guided by a pheromone, presumably excreta. This aggregation pheromone was demonstrated by using filter paper discs that had previous adult H. cumberlandicus exposure, resulting in > 70% response by either nymphs or adults, prompting attraction (thus, active component is a volatile), followed by reduced mobility (arrestment) on treated surfaces. Adults were similarly responsive to pheromone from nymphs, agreeing with mixed stage composition of clusters in the cave. Effects of [0.001M – 0.1M] uric acid (insect excreta's principle component) on H. cumberlandicus behavior were inconsistent. This pheromone is not a host cue (kairomone) and is not used as a repellent (allomone) as noted through lack of responses to natural H. cumberlandicus pheromone and uric acid concentrations by a co-occurring predatory cave orb weaver spider, Meta ovalis Gertsch (Araneae: Tetragnathidae). This pheromone is not serving as a sex pheromone because nymphs were affected by it and because this population of H. cumberlandicus is parthenogenic. The conclusion of this study is that the biological value of the aggregation pheromone is to concentrate H. cumberlandicus in sheltered sites in the cave conducive for minimizing water stress. Rather than signaling H. cumberlandicus presence and quality, the reduced mobility expressed as a result of contacting this pheromone conceivably may act as a defense tactic (antipredator behavior) against M. ovalis, which shares this favored habitat site

Evolutionary potential and adaptation of Banksia attenuata (Proteaceae) to climate and fire regime in southwestern Australia, a global biodiversity hotspot

Substantial climate changes are evident across Australia, with declining rainfall and rising temperature in conjunction with frequent fires. Considerable species loss and range contractions have been predicted; however, our understanding of how genetic variation may promote adaptation in response to climate change remains uncertain. Here we characterized candidate genes associated with rainfall gradients, temperatures, and fire intervals through environmental association analysis. We found that overall population adaptive genetic variation was significantly affected by shortened fire intervals, whereas declining rainfall and rising temperature did not have a detectable influence. Candidate SNPs associated with rainfall and high temperature were diverse, whereas SNPs associated with specific fire intervals were mainly fixed in one allele. Gene annotation further revealed four genes with functions in stress tolerance, the regulation of stomatal opening and closure, energy use, and morphogenesis with adaptation to climate and fire intervals. B. attenuata may tolerate further changes in rainfall and temperature through evolutionary adaptations based on their adaptive genetic variation. However, the capacity to survive future climate change may be compromised by changes in the fire regime

The SUN Protein Mps3 Is Required for Spindle Pole Body Insertion into the Nuclear Membrane and Nuclear Envelope Homeostasis

The budding yeast spindle pole body (SPB) is anchored in the nuclear envelope so that it can simultaneously nucleate both nuclear and cytoplasmic microtubules. During SPB duplication, the newly formed SPB is inserted into the nuclear membrane. The mechanism of SPB insertion is poorly understood but likely involves the action of integral membrane proteins to mediate changes in the nuclear envelope itself, such as fusion of the inner and outer nuclear membranes. Analysis of the functional domains of the budding yeast SUN protein and SPB component Mps3 revealed that most regions are not essential for growth or SPB duplication under wild-type conditions. However, a novel dominant allele in the P-loop region, MPS3-G186K, displays defects in multiple steps in SPB duplication, including SPB insertion, indicating a previously unknown role for Mps3 in this step of SPB assembly. Characterization of the MPS3-G186K mutant by electron microscopy revealed severe over-proliferation of the inner nuclear membrane, which could be rescued by altering the characteristics of the nuclear envelope using both chemical and genetic methods. Lipid profiling revealed that cells lacking MPS3 contain abnormal amounts of certain types of polar and neutral lipids, and deletion or mutation of MPS3 can suppress growth defects associated with inhibition of sterol biosynthesis, suggesting that Mps3 directly affects lipid homeostasis. Therefore, we propose that Mps3 facilitates insertion of SPBs in the nuclear membrane by modulating nuclear envelope composition

A proposed mechanism for enhanced water-conservation in egg clutches of the Mexican Kingsnake, Lampropeltis mexicana (Serpentes: Colubridae)

Laying eggs on a wet substrate minimizes water stress for flexible-shelled reptile eggs because they absorb water through the permeable shell. This water gain contributes to reduced water-loss in aggregated eggs. This water-conserving feature is demonstrated in eggs of Lampropeltis mexicana in a water-balance experiment investigating both naturally laid clutches and eggs in arranged clusters. Water-loss rates of eggs decrease as more eggs are added to the aggregation, with a threshold at approximately 15 eggs. There is no further reduction in water-loss rate for eggs in an aggregation of 20, which exceeds the typical maximum for natural clutch size in this species. Blowing dry air over the egg clutch causes this waterconserving feature to disappear, but it re-appears when the air is still (air current turned off). This is the first time that an increase in water-vapor pressure in an aggregation of eggs has been demonstrated experimentally; the results suggest that laying aggregations of eggs may benefit development through moisture conservation

Vertical transmission of the entomopathogenic soil fungus Scopulariopsis brevicaulis as a contaminant of eggs in the winter tick, Dermacentor albipictus, collected from calf moose (New Hampshire, USA)

Moose naturally acquire soil fungi on their fur that are entomopathogenic to the winter tick, Dermacentor albipictus. Presumed to provide a measure of on-host tick control, it is unknown whether these soil fungi impact subsequent off-host stages of the tick. Eggs and resultant larvae originating from engorged, adult female winter ticks collected from dead calf moose (Alces alces) were used to investigate the presence and extent of fungal infection. Approximately 40% of eggs and larvae were infected, almost exclusively by the fungus Scopulariopsis brevicaulis (teleomorph Microascus brevicaulis: Microascaceae, Ascomycota). Eggs analysed on the day of oviposition and day of hatching had high frequency (40%) of S. brevicaulis, whereas the frequency in eggs harvested in utero was minimal (7%); therefore, exposure occurs pre-oviposition in the female’s genital chamber, not by transovarial transmission. At hatching, larvae emerge containing S. brevicaulis indicating transstadial transmission. Artificial infection by topical application of eggs and larvae with a large inoculum of S. brevicaulis spores caused rapid dehydration, marked mortality; pathogenicity was confirmed by Koch’s postulates. The high hatching success (>90%) and multi-month survival of larvae imply that S. brevicaulis is maintained as a natural pathobiont in winter ticks