How specialised must natural enemies be to facilitate coexistence among plants?

The Janzen‐Connell hypothesis proposes that plant interactions with host‐specific antagonists can impair the fitness of locally abundant species and thereby facilitate coexistence. However, insects and pathogens that associate with multiple hosts may mediate exclusion rather than coexistence. We employ a simulation model to examine the effect of enemy host breadth on plant species richness and defence community structure, and to assess expected diversity maintenance in example systems. Only models in which plant enemy similarity declines rapidly with defence similarity support greater species richness than models of neutral drift. In contrast, a wide range of enemy host breadths result in spatial dispersion of defence traits, at both landscape and local scales, indicating that enemy‐mediated competition may increase defence‐trait diversity without enhancing species richness. Nevertheless, insect and pathogen host associations in Panama and Papua New Guinea demonstrate a potential to enhance plant species richness and defence‐trait diversity comparable to strictly specialised enemies.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/99082/1/ele12130.pd

The Effectiveness of LED Light Spectrum Exposure on Growth and Color Performance of Orange Clownfish, Amphiprion Percula (Lacèpède, 1802) Juvenile

Ikan badut Amphiprion percula merupakan ikan hias air laut yang diminati pasar global ikan hias karena memiliki daya tarik tersendiri pada warna jingga yang dimilikinya. Ikan badut hasil budi daya memiliki kualitas warna jingga yang cenderung memudar. Penggunaan manipulasi spektrum cahaya dalam sistem budi daya dapat memengaruhi Perubahan jumlah kromatofor yang dapat meningkatkan warna ikan menjadi terang. Tujuan penelitian ini adalah menentukan spektrum cahaya lampu LED yang tepat terhadap pertumbuhan dan kualitas warna yuwana ikan badut. Penelitian ini menggunakan Rancangan Acak Lengkap pada lima perlakuan dan tiga ulangan. Perlakuan terdiri atas empat jenis spektrum cahaya lampu LED dengan panjang gelombang berbeda yakni putih (P), merah (M), hijau (H) dan biru (B) dengan lama penyinaran 12 jam dan kontrol. Rerata panjang total awal ikan uji adalah 3,28±0,24 cm dan bobot 0,91±0,19 g. Hasil penelitian selama 60 hari pemeliharaan menunjukkan bahwa parameter respons fisiologis dan pertumbuhan terbaik adalah pada perlakuan lampu LED biru dengan kadar glukosa sebesar 40,00±2,65 mg dL-1, kadar malondialdehyde (MDA) sebesar 9,30±0,29 nmol mL-1, laju pertumbuhan spesifik (LPS) sebesar 1,71±0,05% dan efisiensi pakan (EP) sebesar 78,23±1,97%. Parameter kualitas warna terbaik pada perlakuan lampu LED biru dengan skor dalam Toca color finder (TCF) mencapai warna jingga pada bagian dorsal, caudal dan anal, red,green and blue (RGB) ratio pada warna bagian dorsal, caudal dan anal masing-masing sebesar 64,59±1,00%, 68,12±0,74%, dan 72,56±0,20% serta jumlah kromatofor sebesar 346±10 sel/ 0,1 mm-2. Spektrum cahaya lampu LED biru menghasilkan pertumbuhan dan kualitas warna terbaik pada yuwana ikan badut Amphiprion percula

Analisis Stakeholder Pengelolaan Taman Nasional Bantimurung Bulusaraung, Propvinsi Sulawesi Selatan (Stakeholder Analysis of Bantimurung Bulusaraung National Park Management, South Sulawesi Province)

Stakeholders involved in management of the Babul National Park have diverse interest and power that must be managed well in achieving Babul National Park management objectives. This study aims to identify the stakeholders in Babul National Park management, an explanation of the intersest and power of each stakeholder, and the role of stakeholders in accommodating the interests of communities around Babul National Park. The research was conducted in Maros Regency in Babul National Park, South Sulawesi Province. Data collected through observation and interviews to a number key informants. Data were analyzed with qualitative descriptive analysis. The results showed that primary stakeholders in the Babul National Park management consist of Babul National Park Agency, Communities around National Park, PDAM Maros, Tourism Office, water management institutions in the village. While the secondary stakeholders consist of the Forestry and Plantation Office, Agriculture Office, village and district government, Information and Food Security Agency, the National Land Agency, PNPM Mandiri, local NGOs, universities and research institutions. The existence of these stakeholders can provide positive and negative effects of Babul National Park. The role that can be done of stakeholders in accommodating the interests of society can be a control function, physical assistance, technical assistance, and research support. Collaborative management can be an alternative management model in accommodating the diverse interests of stakeholders

Properties of Contextual Memory Formed in the Absence of αCaMKII Autophosphorylation

The alpha-isoform of calcium/calmodulin-dependent kinase II (αCaMKII) is a major synaptic kinase that undergoes autophosphorylation after NMDA receptor activation, switching the kinase into a calcium-independent activity state. This αCaMKII autophosphorylation is essential for NMDA receptor-dependent long-term potentiation (LTP), induced by a single tetanus, in hippocampal area CA1 and in neocortex. Furthermore, the αCaMKII autophosphorylation is essential for contextual long-term memory (LTM) formation after a single training trial but not after a massed training session. Here, we show that in the absence of αCaMKII autophosphorylation contextual fear conditioning is hippocampus dependent and that multi-tetanus-dependent late-LTP cannot be induced in hippocampal area CA1. Furthermore, we show that in the absence of αCaMKII autophosphorylation contextual LTM persists for 30 days, the latest time point tested. Additionally, contextual, but not cued, LTM formation in the absence of αCaMKII autophosphorylation appears to be impaired in 18 month-old mice. Taken together, our findings suggest that αCaMKII autophosphorylation-independent plasticity in the hippocampus is sufficient for contextual LTM formation and that αCaMKII autophosphorylation may be important for delaying age-related impairments in hippocampal memory formation. Furthermore, they propose that NMDA receptor-dependent LTP in hippocampal area CA1 is essential for contextual LTM formation after a single trial but not after massed training. Finally, our results challenge the proposal that NMDA receptor-dependent LTP in neocortex is required for remote contextual LTM