Small mammals as indicators of cryptic plant species diversity in the central Chilean plant endemicity hotspot

AbstractIndicator species could help to compensate for a shortfall of knowledge about the diversity and distributions of undersampled and cryptic species. This paper provides background knowledge about the ecological interactions that affect and are affected by herbaceous diversity in central Chile, as part of the indicator species selection process. We focus on the ecosystem engineering role of small mammals, primarily the degu Octodon degus. We also consider the interacting effects of shrubs, trees, avian activity, livestock, slope, and soil quality on herbaceous communities in central Chile. We sampled herbaceous diversity on a private landholding characterized by a mosaic of savanna, grassland and matorral, across a range of degu disturbance intensities. We find that the strongest factors affecting endemic herbaceous diversity are density of degu runways, shrub cover and avian activity. Our results show that the degu, a charismatic and easily identifiable and countable species, could be used as an indicator species to aid potential conservation actions such as private protected area uptake. We map areas in central Chile where degus may indicate endemic plant diversity. This area is larger than expected, and suggests that significant areas of endemic plant communities may still exist, and should be identified and protected

Toward an integrative understanding of social behavior: new models and new opportunities.

Social interactions among conspecifics are a fundamental and adaptively significant component of the biology of numerous species. Such interactions give rise to group living as well as many of the complex forms of cooperation and conflict that occur within animal groups. Although previous conceptual models have focused on the ecological causes and fitness consequences of variation in social interactions, recent developments in endocrinology, neuroscience, and molecular genetics offer exciting opportunities to develop more integrated research programs that will facilitate new insights into the physiological causes and consequences of social variation. Here, we propose an integrative framework of social behavior that emphasizes relationships between ultimate-level function and proximate-level mechanism, thereby providing a foundation for exploring the full diversity of factors that underlie variation in social interactions, and ultimately sociality. In addition to identifying new model systems for the study of human psychopathologies, this framework provides a mechanistic basis for predicting how social behavior will change in response to environmental variation. We argue that the study of non-model organisms is essential for implementing this integrative model of social behavior because such species can be studied simultaneously in the lab and field, thereby allowing integration of rigorously controlled experimental manipulations with detailed observations of the ecological contexts in which interactions among conspecifics occur

Data from: Multiple mating is linked to social setting, and benefits the males in a communally rearing mammal

Individuals in social species may mate with multiple opposite sex individuals, including members of the same or different social groups. This variation may be linked to genetic benefits, where multiple mating decreases risk of inbreeding. Multiple mating also may be constrained by the socio-spatial setting through its effect on availability of mates. Since multiple mating with individuals from same or different groups may determine sex-specific fitness effects, we also examined how multiple mating modulates social benefits of females and males. We used 7 years of data on demography, social organization, and genetics of a natural population of the group-living and colonial rodent, Octodon degus, to determine how kin and sex composition within social groups, and spatial relations between these groups (i.e., colonial habits) influence multiple mating and its fitness consequences. 81.3% of males and 64.9% of females produced offspring with multiple opposite sex individuals within groups and with individuals of neighboring groups. Thus, polygynandry was the dominant mating system in the degu population examined. Multiple mating in degus was high when compared with estimates reported in other social mammals. Variation in female and male multiple mating was better explained by social setting through its effect on availability of potential mates rather than by benefits derived from decreasing risk of inbreeding. Finally, our study revealed how multiple mating enhances male, but not female reproductive success

Data base Ebensperger et al

Full field collected data bas

Medición "in situ" de la permeabilidad al aire del hormigón: status quo Concrete air permeability "in situ "test status quo

Los autores han estado involucrados en la creación y primeros ensayos y desarrollos del llamado "Método Torrent" para medir la permeabilidad al aire del hormigón. Transcurridos más de 15 años de ese trabajo fundacional, el artículo presenta una revisión de la evolución y estado de situación del método, incluido como Norma Oficial Suiza en 2003. Se presentan ejemplos de su aplicación en laboratorio y en obras (puentes, túneles, etc.), con datos de valores medidos, provenientes de distintos países del mundo. Se presentan correlaciones entre el coeficiente de permeabilidad al aire kT y otros indicadores de durabilidad, tales como la migración de cloruros (ASTM C1202) y la penetración de agua a presión (EN 12390-8) o por capilaridad. Finalmente se discuten sus perspectivas de uso futuro, como herramienta de control de calidad de estructuras nuevas, con las importantes implicancias que ello acarreará, así como de diagnóstico de estructuras existentes.<br>The authors have been involved in the creation, preliminary tests and development of the "Torrent Method", which is intended to test air permeability in concrete. It's been more than 15 years since such foundational research and, now, this paper presents a review of the evolution and current situation of the Method, included in the Switzerland standards in 2003. Application examples conducted in laboratory and civil works (bridges, tunnels, and so on) are introduced, including data from different countries worldwide. Correlations between the air permeability coefficient kT and other durability indicators, such as chloride migration (ASTM C1202), penetration of water under pressure (EN 12390-8) or capillary action are presented. Finally the future prospective uses are discussed, as quality control tool for new structures, considering relevant implications they would lead to, as well as the diagnosis on existing structures