Article
Ecology
Helena Hauss, Laura Schwabe, Myron A. Peck
Summary: In a warming world, the metabolic rates of ectotherm predators and the phenology of their prey organisms may change. Understanding how intrinsic and extrinsic factors govern predator-prey interactions is crucial for grasping how the environment regulates consumer vital rates. However, controlled experiments testing both behavioural and growth responses of fish larvae and other ectotherm organisms in different feeding regimes are rare. This study is the first to directly quantify the costs and trade-offs of optimal foraging in marine fish larvae.
JOURNAL OF ANIMAL ECOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Rohan Sarkar, Anirban Bhowmick, Debsruti Dasgupta, Rounak Banerjee, Poushali Chakraborty, Abhijit Nayek, R. Sreelekshmi, Aritra Roy, Rituparna Sonowal, Amartya Baran Mondal, Anindita Bhadra
Summary: Dogs prioritize nutritionally valuable food while foraging alone, but also scavenge less valuable food. In the presence of intra-group competition, dogs transition from random to systematic foraging and eat first before sampling in groups. They adjust their behavior based on the patch quality and show reduced individual vigilance. These decisions support the optimal foraging theory and highlight the cognitive abilities and adaptability of dogs, which may have influenced domestication.
FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2023)
Article
Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science
Nils Kreuter, Nele Christofzik, Carolin Niederbremer, Janik Bolle, Vera Schluessel
Summary: This study investigated the quantitative discrimination abilities of a shark and a stingray species, finding that they were able to successfully master training tasks and transfer tests involving numerical information alone. The results suggest that these elasmobranch species have the ability to discriminate quantities based on numerical information, with similar magnitudes and limits for quantity discrimination as in other animals. However, intraspecific variation and low success rates indicate that this ability may not be as important to these species compared to other tested vertebrates and invertebrates.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Nicholas A. Delzoppo, Karleah Berris, Daniella Teixeira, Berndt van Rensburg
Summary: The Kangaroo Island glossy black-cockatoo is an endangered subspecies that heavily relies on the kernels of drooping sheoak for food, making it vulnerable to changes in the quantity and quality of this plant species. Research has shown that the time since the last fire significantly impacts the cone quality of sheoak trees, with longer intervals resulting in lower quality cones. This has important implications for the management of critical habitat for this endangered subspecies, especially considering the majority of unimpacted sheoak woodlands are of similar age and have not experienced fire for over 60 years.
GLOBAL ECOLOGY AND CONSERVATION
(2021)
Review
Ecology
Christina M. Prokopenko, Tal Avgar, Adam Ford, Eric Vander Wal
Summary: Foragers must consider the costs and gains in their pursuit of food. By integrating foraging costs into functional responses, we added mechanism and precision to foundational ideas. Through a model system, we found that the density and antipredator traits of costly prey can influence the energy gain rate of predators, leading to a stabilizing Type III functional response. We provide testable predictions and guidance for applying optimal foraging theory to scenarios with varying predator foraging costs.
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Luis E. Robledo-Ospina, Nathan Morehouse, Federico Escobar, Armando Falcon-Brindis, Maria Luisa Jimenez, Dinesh Rao
Summary: In the wild, predators need to detect and recognize their prey quickly to optimize energy gain. Prey can utilize low-cost energy strategies such as crypsis and immobility to avoid detection. Mud-dauber wasps may have color biases when hunting spiders, preferring those with higher color contrast with their background.
Article
Ecology
Emil F. Frolich, Uffe H. Thygesen, Ken H. Andersen
Summary: This study explores the impact of individual behavior on population and ecosystem dynamics. By modeling behavior in a three-trophic chain, it is found that optimal behavior eliminates the effect of top-down forcing on the population, while bottom-up forcing increases populations at all trophic levels.
ECOLOGICAL COMPLEXITY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Nelle Meyers, Cassie N. Speakman, Nicole A. S-Y Dorville, Mark A. Hindell, Jayson M. Semmens, Jacquomo Monk, Alistair M. M. Baylis, Daniel Ierodiaconou, Andrew J. Hoskins, Greg J. Marshall, Kyler Abernathy, John P. Y. Arnould
Summary: In this study, the foraging behavior of female Australian fur seals was investigated using animal-borne video data loggers. The study found substantial differences in pursuit and handling times, energy gain, and expenditure between different prey types, but overall profitability did not significantly differ between prey types, except for elasmobranchs. The study highlights the benefits of using animal-borne video data loggers for understanding the factors influencing foraging decisions in predators.
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Dennis D. U. Heinrich, Charlie Huveneers, Thomas M. Houslay, Felicie Dhellemmes, Culum Brown
Summary: Learning is a process that enables animals to develop adaptive behaviors in response to novel situations. Habituation, the simplest form of learning, allows animals to ignore irrelevant recurring stimuli and conserve resources. This study investigates habituation in sharks and finds that they learn to avoid wasting time and energy on inaccessible food sources. However, the use of olfactory cues alone may have limitations in attracting sharks for tourism purposes.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Ildiko Benedek, Tamas Molnar
Summary: The study investigates the prey size preference of wild pikeperch and suggests using a predator-prey length ratio (PPR) of 0.11-0.22 in foraging training, which is smaller than the optimal PPR for wild individuals.
APPLIED SCIENCES-BASEL
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Gen Iwashita, Akira Yamawo, Michio Kondoh
Summary: The predator discrimination of prey can affect prey coexistence and the density dependence of predators. Prey species perceived as the same by a predator have a harder time coexisting compared to species recognized as different prey. Prey species that are not discriminated by a predator may coexist in the presence of an alternative predator that does discriminate.
ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Bianca Dumitrascu, Soledad Villar, Dustin G. Mixon, Barbara E. Engelhardt
Summary: Single-cell technologies allow for characterization of complex cell populations at unprecedented scale and resolution. The method proposed in this study uses linear programming for supervised genetic marker selection and provides a Python package scGeneFit for implementation.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science
Francesca Romana Reinero, Emilio Sperone, Gianni Giglio, Antonio Pacifico, Makenna Mahrer, Primo Micarelli
Summary: The predator-prey interactions of white sharks in Gansbaai are influenced by environmental factors, with visual ability playing a crucial role in their prey choice.
Article
Anthropology
Brian M. Griffiths, Mark Bowler, Joseph Kolowski, Jared Stabach, Elizabeth L. Benson, Michael P. Gilmore
Summary: This study examines the behavior and game meat use of hunters in an indigenous Amazonian community and finds that their decision-making and prey selection generally follow the framework of optimal foraging theory (OFT). The decision-making of individuals who hunt for economic gain and subsistence is influenced by their skills, patch choice, and characteristics of the prey encountered. The study also reveals that hunters prefer certain species, such as paca, collared peccary, and brocket deer, but only partially prefer tapir and large-bodied primates, which can be attributed to economic influences.
Article
Anthropology
Allison L. Wolfe, Jack M. Broughton
Summary: The Associational Critique suggests that extinct megafauna are not as rare in North American late Pleistocene archaeological settings as previously believed due to the overkill hypothesis. An analysis focusing on the overlap period between humans and megafauna found no underrepresentation of extinct species in kill/scavenging sites. Contrary to previous assumptions, a positive correlation was actually found between paleontological and archaeological occurrences for all megafauna taxa, supporting the prey model of foraging theory.
JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Fisheries
Fahmi, Wanwan Kurniawan, Ian R. Tibbetts, Selvia Oktaviyani, Christine L. Dudgeon, Michael B. Bennett
Summary: The study found that the brown-banded bamboo shark from Indonesian waters is a fast-growing species that can reach up to 18 cm per year, with an estimated maximum total length of 1 m, reaching maturity at around 6.5 years and living up to 14 years.
JOURNAL OF FISH BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Fisheries
Fahmi, I. R. Tibbetts, M. B. Bennett, A. Ali, T. Krajangdara, C. L. Dudgeon
Summary: The brown-banded bamboo shark is one of the most common shark species caught in coastal fisheries in the Indo-Malay region. Population structure analysis revealed at least four genetically distinct regional groups. Different management approaches may be required for each stock based on the scale and types of fishing pressure in different regions.
FISHERIES RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Isabel Haro-Bilbao, Cynthia Riginos, John D. Baldwin, Mitchell Zischke, Ian R. Tibbetts, Joshua A. Thia
Summary: The study provides a comprehensive genetic investigation of globally distributed pelagic fish wahoo, revealing low genetic differentiation among populations but subtle regional structure between the Indo-Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. Migration appears to play a significant role in the evolutionary history of wahoo populations.
JOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY
(2021)
Article
Anatomy & Morphology
Lennert Minelli, Rory George Charles Bown, Erica Wung Hwa Mu, Darryl Lane Whitehead, Tania Helen Henderson, Felicity Lawrence, Ian Mellor, Matthew Ian Wissemann, Cameron Peter Brown, Berend van der Lei, Bryan Christopher Mendelson
Summary: The safety and effectiveness of facial cosmetic surgery procedures rely on a detailed understanding of the complex surgical anatomy of the face. Traditional anatomical dissection studies have limitations in providing clarity about the facial fascial layers and their relationship with the facial nerve. To overcome these limitations, researchers modified conventional histology techniques to handle large tissue samples, enabling them to visualize the broader architectural structure of facial tissues.
Article
Marine & Freshwater Biology
Melissa N. Staines, Caitlin E. Smith, Christine A. Madden Hof, David T. Booth, Ian R. Tibbetts, Graeme C. Hays
Summary: Rising sand temperatures may cause 'feminization' of sea turtle populations. This study assessed the operational sex ratio of green turtles in the Great Barrier Reef and found that despite a female-biased hatchling sex ratio, the population has a fairly balanced sex ratio likely due to males breeding more frequently than females.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Melissa N. Staines, Hayley Versace, Jacques-Olivier Laloe, Caitlin E. Smith, Christine A. Madden Hof, David T. Booth, Ian R. Tibbetts, Graeme C. Hays
Summary: Projection models were used to analyze the trends in sand temperatures and hatchling sex ratios at an equatorial nesting site for green turtles and hawksbill turtles. The study found that this nesting site in Papua New Guinea is less threatened by climate-induced feminisation compared to another nesting site in the Coral Sea. However, future interventions may be needed to increase male production.
GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Fisheries
Matthew J. Campbell, Jaimee E. Joiner, Mark F. McLennan, Ian R. Tibbetts
Summary: Pearl perch in the east coast of Australia are facing unsustainable fishing mortality, and our study on their reproductive biology and gonad development will contribute to the management strategy for stock recovery. The length- and age-at-maturity of females were determined to be 353 mm (fork length, FL) and 4.42 years, respectively, while batch fecundity was correlated with FL. Our findings will address gaps in our understanding and inform the management of pearl perch stock.
JOURNAL OF APPLIED ICHTHYOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Fisheries
Max L. Giaroli, Craig A. Chargulaf, Ben L. Gilby, Ian R. Tibbetts
Summary: This study investigated the connectivity between lower and upper shore habitats for juvenile whiting in Moreton Bay. It was found that smaller juveniles prefer sandy upper-shore habitats, while larger juveniles move into mangroves. Given the wide distribution of smelt whiting, the protection of such habitats is important for fish species with similar early nursery requirements.
MARINE AND FRESHWATER RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Food Science & Technology
Soni Maria Jacob Peter, Simone P. Blomberg, Matthew H. Holden, Louwrens C. Hoffman, Ian R. Tibbetts
Summary: Reducing food loss and waste is crucial for a sustainable global food system. A survey of the tuna industry revealed the prevalence of Mushy Tuna Syndrome (MTS), which leads to soft and unfit tuna flesh, causing high levels of waste. The survey highlights the need to minimize loss and maximize resource efficiency by identifying strategies to address MTS.
Article
Fisheries
Brenton Bodley, Bonnie J. Holmes, Samuel M. Williams, Ian R. Tibbetts, Dana D. Burfeind, Carmel McDougall
Summary: This study determined the thermal and salinity ranges of two introduced freshwater snail species in Australia, Pomacea sp. and Anentome sp., in order to predict their potential geographic range. The results showed that both snail species are capable of surviving temperatures and salinities that would allow invasion into subtropical and warm-temperate Australian aquatic systems.
MARINE AND FRESHWATER RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Environmental Studies
Sheridan Rabbitt, Ian R. Tibbetts, Simon Albert, Ian Lilley
Summary: The study adapted a participation model to assess women's involvement in community-based fisheries management (CBFM) in three communities in Marovo Lagoon, Solomon Islands. The model defined six levels of women's participation and highlighted the importance of engaging with gender power structures. The findings demonstrate that gender parity is not a reliable indicator of gender equity. The study contributes to the literature on gender, small-scale fisheries, and community-based management by evaluating women's participation and providing recommendations for assessing gender equity in CBFM structures.
Article
Biology
Melissa N. Staines, David T. Booth, Jacques-Oliver Laloe, Ian R. Tibbetts, Graeme C. Hays
Summary: The accuracy and precision of three widely used temperature data loggers in ecological studies were assessed in this study. The results showed that TinyTags had the highest accuracy and precision, while HOBOs and iButtons had lower accuracy and precision. It was also found that the accuracy of the loggers could significantly affect the estimates of temperature-related variables in ecological models.
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Samuel M. Williams, Ian R. Tibbetts, Bonnie J. Holmes
Summary: The health of fish and fisheries in Australia is crucial, with climate change, resource over-exploitation, invasive species, diseases, and habitat degradation as major threats. This study identified the key research priorities across seven thematic areas and provided guidance for further research and development in the field.
PACIFIC CONSERVATION BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Fahmi, Ian R. Tibbetts, Michael B. Bennett, Christine L. Dudgeon
Summary: Delimiting cryptic species in elasmobranchs is a significant challenge in taxonomy due to lack of phenotypic features, and using genetics alone for this purpose may not be sufficient. This study examined mtDNA and SNP data of the brown-banded bambooshark to identify potential cryptic species and population boundaries within the group. SNP analysis was found to be more reliable than mtDNA in determining population and cryptic species boundaries, and it is recommended to consider supportive morphological characters for designating new species. Comprehensive sampling across the species complex is also recommended to improve the accuracy of identifying operational taxonomic units.
BMC ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Fisheries
Fahmi, Selvia Oktaviyani, Michael B. Bennett, Christine L. Dudgeon, Ian R. Tibbetts
Summary: The brown-banded bamboo shark is a common but often overlooked species in the coastal fisheries of Southeast Asia. A study on its reproductive biology in Indonesia revealed that females have fully functional uteri but asymmetric ovaries, with the right ovary being functional and the left ovary atrophied. The species is reproductively active throughout the year, with males having an optimum mating period from June to August and females having an optimum egg-laying period from July to January. Females mature at a larger size than males, and it is recommended that fishers release brown-banded bamboo sharks larger than 700 mm in total length to ensure continuous population recruitment.
MARINE AND FRESHWATER RESEARCH
(2021)