Female benefit,male risk: Polyandry in the true armyworm Pseudaletia unipuncta

In Lepidoptera polyandry is common and females may increase their lifetime reproductive output through repeated matings if they acquire essential resources from male ejaculates. However, the paternity of males mating with previously-mated females is far from assured unless sperm precedence is absolute. In this study on the polyandrous armyworm, Pseudaletia unipuncta, we used two strains of male (the black-eyed wild type and a red-eyed homozygous, recessive mutant), mated with red-eyed females, to determine (i) whether male investment has any impact on female reproductive output, and (ii) if females do benefit from multiple matings, to what extent males fertilize the eggs to which they contributed. Multiple mating resulted in a significant increase in both the fecundity and longevity of females. However, the degree of sperm precedence (those eggs fertilized by the second male) varied from 0–100%, but was not affected by either male size or age, or by the duration of copulation. In cases where sperm precedence was <50% (x = 12%) females produced significantly more eggs (1384 versus 940) prior to the second mating than females where sperm precedence was >50% (x = 89%), indicating that the quality of the first mating influenced the fertilization success of the female's second mate.     

Terpenes and phenolics in response to nitrogen fertilization: A test of the carbon/nutrient balance hypothesis

Nitrogen fertilization resulted in a linear increase in the growth ofAbies grandis seedlings, but linear decrease in foliage concentrations of phenolic compounds. These data are consistent with the inverse relationship between growth and production of carbonbased secondary chemicals predicted by the carbon/nutrient balance (CNB) hypothesis. However, in contrast to predictions of the CNB hypothesis, nitrogen fertilization had no effect on foliage terpene concentrations. The results suggest that not all carbon-based chemicals respond in the same manner to environmental variation, and that the carbon/nutrient balance hypothesis does not adequately explain all patterns of environmentally-induced variation in secondary metabolism.     

A test of reproductive skew models in a field population of a multiple-queen ant

Determining the evolutionary basis of variation in reproductive skew (degree of sharing of reproduction among coexisting individuals) is an important task both because skew varies widely across social taxa and because testing models of skew evolution permits tests of kin selection theory. Using parentage analyses based on microsatellite markers, we measured skew among female eggs (n=32.3 eggs per colony, range=20–68) in 17 polygynous colonies from a UK field population of the ant Leptothorax acervorum. We used skew among eggs as our principal measure of skew because of the high degree of queen turnover in the study population. Queens within colonies did not make significantly unequal contributions to queen and worker adult or pupal offspring, indicating that skew among female eggs reflected skew among daughter queens. On average, both skew among female eggs (measured by the B index) and queen–queen relatedness proved to be low (means±SE=0.06±0.02 and 0.28±0.08, respectively). However, contrary to current skew models, there was no significant association of skew with either relatedness or worker number (used as a measure of productivity). In L. acervorum, predictions of the concession model of skew may hold between but not within populations because queens are unable to assess their relatedness to other queens within colonies. Additional phenomena that may help maintain low skew in the study population include indiscriminate infanticide in the form of egg cannibalism and split sex ratios that penalize reproductive monopoly by single queens within polygynous colonies.     

Selection on social traits in greater spear-nosed bats, Phyllostomus hastatus

Many studies assume that selection molds social traits and have investigated the manner in which this occurs, yet very few studies have measured the strength of selection on social traits in natural populations. In this paper, I report results of phenotypic selection analyses on two social traits – the size of social groups and the frequency of group foraging – in Phyllostomus hastatus, the greater spear-nosed bat. I found significant positive directional selection on individual group foraging frequency, but no directional selection on individuals in different-sized social groups. These results have implications for the structure of social groups, cooperative behavior among group mates, and maternal investment strategies. I argue that combining studies of natural selection on wild populations with experiments to identify the agents and mechanisms of selection can do much to increase our understanding of social evolution.     

鼎湖山针阔叶混交林土壤酸度与土壤养分的季节动态

研究了鼎湖山南亚热带森林演替系列中处于中间阶段的针阔叶混交林土壤的pH值、水解氮、速效磷、钾、交换性钙、镁等几种营养元素的含量现状及季节动态。结果表明：混交林土壤为强酸性土壤，表层(0--20cm)土壤酸度高于中(20--40cm)、下(40-60cm)层土壤，0～40cm土壤pH值具有明显的季节波动性。降雨、温度、凋落物、植物根系以及微生物的活动等因素可能是鼎湖山混交林土壤pH值季节动态变化的主要因素。除Ca外，在同一剖面内，表层土壤养分的含量明显高于中下层，而中下层之间相差不大，养分大多在冬季较高，随着季节变动(1，4，7，10月)呈下降趋势。     

The two reindeer parasites,Hypoderma tarandi andCephenemyia trompe (Oestridae), have evolved similar olfactory receptor abilities to volatiles from their common host

Summary Using the linked gas chromatographical/electroantennogram (GC/EAG) technique it was revealed that the reindeer warble fly (H. tarandi) was specifically able to sense the same components from reindeer interdigital pheromone gland as the reindeer nose bot fly (C. trompe) another reindeer endoparasite. These two species belong to the same family (Oestridae), but different subfamilies, and the evolution towards an endoparasitic life cycle is thought to have been independent. The development of olfactory abilities to find reindeer from long distances is hypothesized to have taken place through convergent evolution or exists because of their common ancestry.     

水分和氮素供应对菠菜硝酸盐累积和钾素吸收的影响

研究了水分和氮素供应对露地秋菠菜的硝酸盐累积和钾、氮吸收的影响。结果表明：与传统的水氮管理措施相比，采用水分平衡法和氮素专家系统进行的水氮供应并没有造成作物减产，但对钾、氮元素的吸收却有明显的影响，同氮素吸收相比，作物对钾素的吸收数量更高；并且作物对钾、氮的吸收比例随氮素供应水平的增加而降低，试验还动态监测了菠菜最新展开叶的叶柄汁液中的硝酸盐和K^ 浓度在一天内的变化情况。结果表明，不同水氮处理的菠菜叶柄汁液的硝酸盐浓度在白天均没有发生显著变化；叶柄汁液中的K^ 浓度和NO3^-／K^ 的浓度比在白天受氮素供应水平的影响很大，供氮量高，K^ 浓度和NO3^-／K^ 浓度比的变化也大，但受灌水量影响不大。图3表2参17。     

马尾松纯林及其与阔叶树混交林的凋落量与养分通量

在25a生马尾松林下分别套种1a生火力楠、闽粤栲、苦槠、格氏栲、青栲和拉氏栲等阔叶树种的幼苗,16a后形成郁闭的针阔混交异龄林.通过定位监测和化学分析,对上述6种混交林类型及林下未套种阔叶树的马尾松纯林的森林凋落量及养分通量进行了研究.统计结果显示,6个混交群落的年凋落量分别为7137.3kghm-2、6741.1kghm-2、8041.7kghm-2、7151.3kghm-2、7533.2kghm-2和6149.1kghm-2,而马尾松纯林的年凋落量仅3442.8kghm-2.在所有林分的凋落物组成中,枯叶占绝对优势,占凋落物总量的49.7%~71.5%,其余依次为枯枝(5.7%~26.1%)、其它组分(5.5%~17.1%)、树皮(7.7%~18.9%)和果实(0.7%~2.0%).各混交林分中来自马尾松的凋落物占50.4%~58.0%,而来自阔叶树的凋落物占42.0%~49.6%,且两者的组成存在明显差异.各林分总凋落量的季节动态呈双峰型,第1次峰值出现在2~4月份,第2次峰值出现在8、9月份.凋落物中主要养分元素的含量依林分类型、凋落物组分和凋落时间不同而异,N、P、K、Ca和Mg的含量范围依次为3.25~12.98gkg-1、0.23~0.97gkg-1、0.42~4.02gkg-1、7.34~32.57gkg-1和1.34~5.58gkg-1.不同的林分类型,凋落物中各养分元素的年通量大小均为:Ca>N>Mg>K>P.马尾松纯林中,通过凋落物的5种养分元素的年流通量为142.01kghm-2;而在林下分别套种上述6种阔叶树后,其养分年流通量依次增加到204.95kghm-2、223.93kghm-2、304.12kghm-2、288.46kghm-2、213.77kghm-2、238.05kghm-2.图3表4参13     

接种孢囊线虫对大豆生长的影响

在温室条件下,研究了不同品种大豆接种大豆孢囊线虫对其根系生长、根瘤及几种矿质元素吸收总量、转移量的影响。结果表明,接种线虫后易感病品种绥农１４根瘤数减少,根瘤活性降低,与不接种处理差异显著;感病品种合丰２５总根长减少２,与不接种处理差异显著。易感病品种绥农１４接种线虫后Ｐ元素的吸收总量降低,与不接种处理差异显著。易感病品种绥农１４接种线虫后Ｐ元素的吸收总量降低,与不接种处理差异显著。感病品种合丰２     

嗜盐光合细菌的分离鉴定及其营养成分分析

从大连海岸的海泥中分离到 4株海洋光合细菌 :菌株C4 10、菌株DS2、菌株E3 和E4,它们都能在厌氧光照下营光异养生长 ,菌株C4 10还能够利用还原性硫化物营光自养生长 .依菌对NaCl的需求 ,菌株C4 10、DS2归属于嗜盐光合细菌 ,菌株E3 和E4属于耐盐光合细菌 .根据形态和培养特征、生理生化特征、光合作用内膜结构、泛醌组成、(G +C)的摩尔百分比等指标 ,菌株C4 10鉴定为Rhodovulumsulfidophilus (嗜硫小红卵菌 )、菌株DS2鉴定为Rhodobiummarinum (海红菌 )、菌株E3 和E4鉴定为Rhodobacterazotoformans.4株菌的营养成分分析表明 ,它们的细胞的最大生长量为 4× 10 9mL-1.粗蛋白含量占细胞干重的 5 5 %左右 ,菌株DS2高达 6 4 .2 % .4菌株所含氨基酸种类齐全 ,特别具备人和动物所必需的氨基酸 .4株菌均含有辅酶Q10和类胡萝卜素 .其中菌株C4 10的类葫萝卜素含量最高 .图 1表 6参 14