UV-Deprived Coloration Reduces Success in Mate Acquisition in Male Sand Lizards (Lacerta agilis)

Background: Recent work on animal signals has revealed a wide occurrence of UV signals in tetrapods, in particular birds, but also in lizards (and perhaps other Squamate reptiles). Our previous work on the Swedish sand lizard (Lacerta agilis) has verified, both in correlative selection analyses in the wild and with laboratory and field experiments, the importance of the green ‘badge ’ on the body sides of adult males for securing mating opportunities, probably mostly through deterring rival males rather than attracting females. The role of UV in communication has, however, never been examined. Methodology/Principal Findings: Here we show that when measured immediately after spring skin shedding, there is also signaling in the UV. By UV-depriving the signal (reflectance) with sun block chemicals fixated with permeable, harmless spray dressing, we show that males in the control group (spray dressing only) had significantly higher success in mate acquisition than UV-deprived males. Conclusions/Significance: These results suggest that at least two colour traits in sand lizards, badge area and UV, contribute to rival deterrence and/or female choice on UV characters, which elevates success in mate acquisition in UV intact male sand lizards

An exploration of solutions for improving access to affordable fresh food with disadvantaged Welsh communities

Our research is rooted in community operational research (community OR) and adopts a qualitative problem structuring approach to exploring potential solutions for addressing inequality in access to affordable healthy food in disadvantaged communities in Wales, UK. Existing food provisions are synthesised and barriers to their effectiveness are identified. A portfolio of actions and commitment packages is co-developed with multiple stakeholders in order to bring about desired changes. Although these solutions address concerns specific to local Welsh communities, they can be generalised and applied in similar settings where food desert problems prevail. We draw upon insights from the literature on inequality, food deserts, and social capital to conceptualise the solutions around both material (providing and accessing) and social (reconnecting and strengthening) aspects. By addressing both material and social aspects simultaneously, we show how community-driven intervention can contribute to reducing inequality in disadvantaged communities. Our research experience reveals that COR is particularly effective in tackling a ‘wicked’ problem such as food deserts, and allows researchers to engage with communities, gain an understanding about the problematic situation and guide intervention efforts in a sustainable and systemic manner. A number of methodological reflections are offered as a way to contribute to the development of the field as a whole

Ecological and geographical overlap drive plumage evolution and mimicry in woodpeckers.

Organismal appearances are shaped by selection from both biotic and abiotic drivers. For example, Gloger's rule describes the pervasive pattern that more pigmented populations are found in more humid areas. However, species may also converge on nearly identical colours and patterns in sympatry, often to avoid predation by mimicking noxious species. Here we leverage a massive global citizen-science database to determine how biotic and abiotic factors act in concert to shape plumage in the world's 230 species of woodpeckers. We find that habitat and climate profoundly influence woodpecker plumage, and we recover support for the generality of Gloger's rule. However, many species exhibit remarkable convergence explained neither by these factors nor by shared ancestry. Instead, this convergence is associated with geographic overlap between species, suggesting occasional strong selection for interspecific mimicry

Vakkali: A New Interpretation of His Suicide [with Errata]

11000731935

Wordlists for Libraries and Closely Related Phenomena in Different Manuscript Cultures from Asia, Africa and Europe

Occasional Paper No. 2 Wordlists for Libraries and Closely Related Phenomena in Different Manuscript Cultures from Asia, Africa and Europe Martin Delhey, Vito Lorusso et al. In the present paper, we are collecting indigenous terms that are more or less equivalent to the English word “library.” With the word “library” we have mainly in mind the most usual way in which the English term is used, namely library as a collection of books and as a designation for the place that contains these books. We are taking into consideration institutionalized libraries as well as those that are not institutionalized (for instance, collections for private personal use). From the perspective of use, the quantity of books collected does not matter (Richardson 1914: 8), either. In scholarly publications, the meaning of the word “library” is sometimes also extended to a multitude of texts collected into one volume (“one-volume library,” i.e. MTM). Moreover, Too (2010: 84), for instance, also speaks of types of libraries in which no physical objects are involved (“walking libraries” or “memory libraries”). In all these cases, we do not collect systematically indigenous equivalents. However, if in a specific culture a term for library can also be used in such a metaphorical way, this will be noted. For the time being, general terms for the actors involved, e.g. “librarian,” are only taken into consideration in the case of some manuscript cultures. Similarly, other terms for physical places where written documents are stored such as “archive” and “chests” are not systematically collected. It is obviously far from easy to find a definition of the term “library,” which works equally well for all manuscript cultures. Rather than forcing all related phenomena into the Procrustean bed of a common definition, it seems to be more advisable to use other tools for a systematic comparison of all cultures. One possible way to approach this task is to collect indigenous terms for the sake of understanding how the manuscript cultures themselves conceptualise(d) book collections. CSMC's Occasional Papers The Centre for the Study of Manuscript Cultures regularly hosts meetings to discuss the theory, terminology and other issues in manuscriptology. Several of its members – philologists, historians, art historians, linguists and others – collectively engage in contributing to the systematic and historical study of manuscript cultures. The documents are individual contributions and drafts reflecting some of the provisional results of the Centre’s activities

Conference Report: Ordering knowledge: listing, shelving, structuring manuscripts (Hamburg, 30-31 January 2015)

Conference Report: Ordering knowledge: listing, shelving, structuring manuscripts (Hamburg, 30-31 January 2015