Appraisal of Different Wheat Genotypes Against Angoumois Grain Moth, Sitotroga cerealella (Oliv.)

Abstract.-Wheat is one of the most important cultivated crops in all almost all countries of the world. Hybrids have significantly increased the productivity and quality of this major crop. The aim of this study was to evaluate wheat genotype resistance to Angoumois grain moth, Sitotroga cerealella (Oliv.) (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae). Twelve wheat genotypes were tested against Sitotroga cerealella at 28±2°C, relative humidity 65±5% and photoperiod L: D 12: 12 hours in the laboratory. The results, evaluated on the basis of percent weight loss, damage, grain size and chemical composition of the grains, revealed that none of the genotypes was completely resistant to the infestation by this pest. However, their response varied significantly. Genotype IBW -97103 (weight loss, 12.19%) had significant resistance followed by IBW-97083 (17.43%), Bakhtawar-92 (19.48%), F-Sarhad (19.66%), , IBW-97114 (27.32%), IBW-97259 (29.40%), IBW-97110 (29.70%), IBW-96405 (30.94%), IBW-97366 (31.02%), IBW-97112 (36.14%) and WS-94194 (40.93%). The coefficient of correlation between percent weight loss and other parameters was significant, except for grain size. The coefficient of correlation between weight loss and chemical constituents was also significant, except for ash content. From the study it was concluded that prolonged storage of the most susceptible genotypes to S. cerealella should be avoided and the most resistant varieties, namely BW-97103< IBW-97083< Bakhtawar-92, should be cultivated

Chromosomal rearrangements and karyotype evolution in carnivores revealed by chromosome painting

Chromosomal evolution in carnivores has been revisited extensively using cross-species chromosome painting. Painting probes derived from flow-sorted chromosomes of the domestic dog, which has one of the most rearranged karyotypes in mammals and the highest dipoid number (2n=78) in carnivores, are a powerful tool in detecting both evolutionary intra- and inter-chromosomal rearrangements. However, only a few comparative maps have been established between dog and other non-Canidae species. Here, we extended cross-species painting with dog probes to seven more species representing six carnivore families: Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx), the stone marten (Martes foina), the small Indian civet (Viverricula indica), the Asian palm civet (Paradoxurus hermaphrodites), Javan mongoose (Hepestes javanicas), the raccoon (Procyon lotor) and the giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca). The numbers and positions of intra-chromosomal rearrangements were found to differ among these carnivore species. A comparative map between human and stone marten, and a map among the Yangtze finless porpoise (Neophocaena phocaenoides asiaeorientalis), stone marten and human were also established to facilitate outgroup comparison and to integrate comparative maps between stone marten and other carnivores with such maps between human and other species. These comparative maps give further insight into genome evolution and karyotype phylogenetic relationships among carnivores, and will facilitate the transfer of gene mapping data from human, domestic dog and cat to other species

The Zoological Society of London Printed in the United Kingdom

Abstract It is believed that the resemblance of many hoverflies to stinging hymenopterans is a case of Batesian mimicry, though there is little experimental evidence that it is effective in protecting them from predators. In this study the effectiveness of hoverfly mimicry was investigated for humans by presenting groups of university students and schoolchildren with a questionnaire which included pictures of stinging hymenopterans, mimetic hoverflies and dipteran controls. More people thought that the mimics would sting than either of the control flies, though fewer than those who thought that the mimics' hymenopteran models would sting. This showed that the hoverflies' mimicry worked but was not 100% effective. More people thought that the good mimics would sting than poor mimics which were black and yellow, showing that the reaction was not just due to their warning coloration. Students' identification skills were poor; only 77%, 66% and 50% were able to correctly identify wasps, bumblebees and honeybees, respectively, but even knowledgeable students were confused by mimetic hoverflies. Significantly more of the students who had been stung thought that the Hymenoptera would sting and identified Hymenoptera correctly. Students who thought a hymenopteran would sting were in turn more likely to think that its mimic would sting. This suggests that the mimicry is partly mediated by experience. However, even students who had never been stung showed the same pattern of discrimination as those who had, suggesting that information is also passed on culturally. These results suggest that mimicry is effective and might help hoverflies avoid predation by birds but, as many of the subjects said they would kill a stinging insect, this would actually increase their chances of being killed by humans

The Zoological Society of London Printed in the United Kingdom

Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in DRO • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full DRO policy for further details. Abstract Linear enamel hypoplasia (LEH), a deficiency in enamel formation visible on mammal tooth crowns, can be used as a retrospective indicator of physiological stress and developmental health in humans and animals. In this first study, for north-western Europe, the condition has been recorded from prehistoric (mesolithic) and recent populations of wild boar, and from domestic pigs belonging to early farming (neolithic) communities. It was possible to show that LEH occurs in recent and ancient populations of wild boar from north-west Europe, and that the occurrence of the condition can be explained by the same events within the animal's life (birth, weaning, winter starvation) as has been previously suggested for archaeological domestic pig samples. The frequency of LEH is consistently low within all ancient and recent populations of wild boar studied, a remarkable observation given the pronounced differences in the living conditions of these two diachronically well-separated groups, mainly linked with the increasing human pressure on recent populations of wild animals. Early domestic samples generally show high LEH frequencies, although considerable variation exists between the samples. It is suggested that these high frequencies are, in general, the result of domestication, while the variation could be related to differences in early husbandry. The observation of LEH, therefore, provides a valuable tool for studying the history of animal domestication

The Zoological Society of London Printed in the United Kingdom

Abstract Limited resources will inevitably lead to trade-offs between traits. However, trade-offs are not always observed, for a variety of reasons. For example, failure to take into account covariates, and high variation in resource acquisition relative to variation in resource allocation, can obscure the underlying trade-off. In the present paper, the trade-off between offspring size and number was examined in the common lizard Lacerta vivipara. Size-number tradeoffs can arise for two different reasons, limited food resources or space constraints. There was no significant trade-off between size and number of young under natural conditions, whereas females captured before ovulation and provided with excess food under laboratory conditions showed a negative correlation between clutch size and offspring size. Food supplementation did not significantly increase reproductive output compared to natural conditions and, thus, the presence of a trade-off under ad libitum conditions was not the result of space limitation in the female reproductive tract. The variance ratio between allocation to investment, however, was twice as high for females ovulating in the laboratory, suggesting that the existence of a trade-off under ad libitum conditions could be a result of less variation among females in resource allocation