Article
Ornithology
Anders Pape Moller, Dorota Czeszczewik, Einar Flensted-Jensen, Johannes Erritzoe, Indrikis Krams, Karsten Laursen, Wei Liang, Wieslaw Walankiewicz
Summary: Over the past few decades, there has been a significant decrease in insect abundance, with the use of fertilizers and pesticides being one of the contributing factors. The reduction in insect populations due to the use of fertilizers and pesticides has negative impacts on insectivorous bird species.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Marina Veseli, Marko Rozman, Marina Vilenica, Mira Petrovic, Ana Previsic
Summary: The environmental fate of emerging contaminants at the aquatic terrestrial boundary is not well understood. This study focused on the bioaccumulation and bioamplification of pharmaceuticals and endocrine disrupting compounds in aquatic insects. The results showed variations in accumulation and amplification at different taxonomic levels. The study highlights the importance of taxonomy in understanding contaminant exchange between aquatic and terrestrial food webs. Predicting these processes with simple linear models was not successful.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Carmen Kowarik, Dominik Martin-Creuzburg, Kate L. Mathers, Christine Weber, Christopher T. Robinson
Summary: This study found that the EPA content in aquatic insects did not differ with different degrees of habitat degradation, but crawling emergence significantly altered the contribution to total biomass export in spring under degraded conditions. The EPA content in ground-dwelling spiders was correlated with emergent stonefly biomass, and reduced crawling emergence might impact spider fitness. Functional traits, such as emergence mode and nutritional quality, should be considered when assessing the effects of stream degradation on terrestrial ecosystems.
SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Alexis P. Roodt, Nina Roeder, Sebastian Pietz, Sara Kolbenschlag, Alessandro Manfrin, Klaus Schwenk, Mirco Bundschuh, Ralf Schulz
Summary: Emerging aquatic insects have the potential to retain and transfer aquatic contaminants into terrestrial food webs. This study found that nonbiting midge larvae exposed to a mixture of fungicides and herbicides retained the pesticides through metamorphosis, with higher concentrations in females. The results suggest a potential dietary exposure to these pesticides for tree swallow nestlings and insectivorous bats.
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Johanna M. Kraus, Kristin Skrabis, Serena Ciparis, John Isanhart, Aleshia Kenney, Jo Ellen Hinck
Summary: Contamination of aquatic ecosystems can have indirect effects on terrestrial consumers by affecting aquatic insect prey. To assess these effects, an aquatic-terrestrial assessment tool (AT2) is proposed, which incorporates ecological and economic decision trees. The tool is designed to aid practitioners and researchers in studying the impacts of contaminants on linked aquatic-terrestrial food webs, particularly for legal claims and restoration programs. The tool considers ecological endpoints and economic modeling to improve the relevance and cost-effectiveness of studies.
ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY AND CHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Environmental Sciences
Johanna M. Kraus, Kathryn M. Kuivila, Michelle L. Hladik, Neil Shook, David M. Mushet, Kelen Dowdy, Rachel Harrington
Summary: The study found that adult aquatic insects could act as vectors for the transfer of pesticides to terrestrial food webs, affecting the foraging behavior of insectivores. Newly emerged aquatic insects contained current-use pesticides, with similar pesticide detections in insects emerging from both agricultural and grassland wetlands.
ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY AND CHEMISTRY
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Cornelia W. Twining, Tarn Preet Parmar, Margaux Mathieu-Resuge, Martin J. Kainz, Jeremy Ryan Shipley, Dominik Martin-Creuzburg
Summary: This study investigated how generalist insectivores varied in their reliance on dietary n-3 LC-PUFA from emergent aquatic insects depending on factors such as dietary flexibility and distance from a lake. Results showed that riparian spiders took advantage of aquatic subsidies, while nestling birds relied on terrestrial resources, including PUFA.
FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Review
Environmental Sciences
Kyla M. Dahlin, Phoebe L. Zarnetske, Quentin D. Read, Laura A. Twardochleb, Aaron G. Kamoske, Kendra Spence Cheruvelil, Patricia A. Soranno
Summary: Global declines in biodiversity can impact ecosystem function, and more research is needed to explore the biodiversity-ecosystem function connections across different ecological realms. Various linkages include cross-system subsidies, ecosystem engineering, and hydrology.
FRONTIERS IN ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Agriculture, Multidisciplinary
N. Perez-Mendez, M. Martinez-Eixarch, R. Llevat, D. Mateu, H. J. Marrero, N. Cid, M. Catala-Forner
Summary: Organic farming is considered as the main alternative to reduce the environmental impact of intensive agriculture by banning synthetic inputs and enhancing ecological functions like biological pest control. However, the potential effects of farming management on natural enemy communities, pest control, and crop performance have not been well investigated. This study compared conventional and organic rice farming in terms of diversity and abundance of aquatic macroinvertebrate predators, pest infestation levels, biological pest control efficiency, and rice seed germination.
AGRICULTURE ECOSYSTEMS & ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Gea H. van der Lee, J. Arie Vonk, Ralf C. M. Verdonschot, Michiel H. S. Kraak, Piet F. M. Verdonschot, Jef Huisman
Summary: The study found that with increasing eutrophication, the trophic position of some omnivores and the generalist predator Notonecta decreased, while the trophic position of most other consumers remained constant. This suggests that changes in the diets of aquatic invertebrates induced by eutrophication may impact species interactions and food web structure in aquatic ecosystems.
Article
Ecology
Corrine S. V. Genier, Christopher G. G. Guglielmo, Keith A. A. Hobson
Summary: Aerial insectivorous songbirds such as swallows and martins have declined substantially in North America in recent decades. This study compared the diet quality of different species of aerial insectivores, purple martins, tree swallows, and barn swallows, through analyzing stable hydrogen isotope values and blood plasma fatty acids. The results showed that diet quality differed between inland and lakeshore nesting habitats, with purple martins and tree swallows having a more aquatic-emergent diet, while barn swallows primarily consumed terrestrial insects. The study highlights the impact of access to aquatic-emergent insects on the diet and nutritional needs of aerial insectivores.
FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Margaux Mathieu-Resuge, Matthias Pilecky, Cornelia W. Twining, Dominik Martin-Creuzburg, Tarn Preet Parmar, Simon Vitecek, Martin J. Kainz
Summary: The study revealed that spiders at the lake riparian area obtained lipids and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) from emergent aquatic and terrestrial insects, and the transfer of these nutrients varied depending on the distance of the spiders from the shoreline. Spiders in different habitats showed differences in the dietary sources and metabolic pathways used to fulfill their EPA demand, indicating the flexibility of spiders in adapting to their habitat and dietary availability.
Article
Ecology
Ariana M. Chiapella, Martin J. Kainz, Angela L. Strecker
Summary: Tracing the flow of dietary energy sources, especially in systems with high omnivory, is a persistent challenge in ecology. Differentiating between autochthonous and allochthonous energy sources in aquatic systems can be difficult, as bulk carbon stable isotope values of prey often overlap. Fatty acid stable isotopes may not completely overcome the challenges of bulk stable isotopes in distinguishing between diet items and treatments in aquatic consumers.
Article
Ecology
Christie D. Lavallee, Saeedeh Bani Assadi, Alicia M. Korpach, James D. Ray, Jason D. Fischer, Joe Siegrist, Kevin C. Fraser
Summary: The study found that most purple martins engage in nighttime flights during their spring migration, crossing large open-water areas to save time and energy. Night flights do not necessarily occur with supporting winds, but they help reduce travel distances and offer advantages for diurnal birds.
Review
Plant Sciences
Phillip M. Chalk, Hang-Wei Hu
Summary: The study aimed to assess the relative importance of different nitrogen sources for carnivorous plants and to better understand their ecology. It was found that plant physiology and habitat were the main determinants of nitrogen source importance. Additionally, some protocarnivorous plants that didn't fit the exact definition for carnivory were classified as carnivorous, and it was discovered that some carnivorous plants can outsource prey capture and digestion to mutualistic animal partners.
AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF BOTANY
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Margaux Mathieu-Resuge, Matthias Pilecky, Cornelia W. Twining, Dominik Martin-Creuzburg, Tarn Preet Parmar, Simon Vitecek, Martin J. Kainz
Summary: The study revealed that spiders at the lake riparian area obtained lipids and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) from emergent aquatic and terrestrial insects, and the transfer of these nutrients varied depending on the distance of the spiders from the shoreline. Spiders in different habitats showed differences in the dietary sources and metabolic pathways used to fulfill their EPA demand, indicating the flexibility of spiders in adapting to their habitat and dietary availability.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Alexander S. Flecker, Qinru Shi, Rafael M. Almeida, Hector Angarita, Jonathan M. Gomes-Selman, Roosevelt Garcia-Villacorta, Suresh A. Sethi, Steven A. Thomas, N. LeRoy Poff, Bruce R. Forsberg, Sebastian A. Heilpern, Stephen K. Hamilton, Jorge D. Abad, Elizabeth P. Anderson, Nathan Barros, Isabel Carolina Bernal, Richard Bernstein, Carlos M. Canas, Olivier Dangles, Andrea C. Encalada, Ayan S. Fleischmann, Michael Goulding, Jonathan Higgins, Celine Jezequel, Erin Larson, Peter B. McIntyre, John M. Melack, Mariana Montoya, Thierry Oberdorff, Rodrigo Paiva, Guillaume Perez, Brendan H. Rappazzo, Scott Steinschneider, Sandra Torres, Mariana Varese, M. Todd Walter, Xiaojian Wu, Yexiang Xue, Xavier E. Zapata-Rios, Carla P. Gomes
Summary: The proposed hydropower dams in the Amazon region require strategic evaluation due to the various ecosystem services provided by the river basin. Using multiobjective optimization, this study identifies portfolios of sites that minimize impacts on different aspects while achieving energy production goals. The uncoordinated dam-by-dam expansion has led to the loss of ecosystem service benefits, highlighting the importance of considering diverse environmental impacts and cooperation among Amazonian nations.
Article
Ecology
Lindsey K. Albertson, Michelle A. Briggs, Zachary Maguire, Sophia Swart, Wyatt F. Cross, Cornelia W. Twining, Jeff S. Wesner, Colden Baxter, David M. Walters
Summary: Many aquatic invertebrates are experiencing decline or extinction due to stressors, impacting their physiology, resource consumption, reproduction, and phenology. A field study on Pteronarcys californica revealed that this species primarily consumes allochthonous detritus and relies on algae as an important source of fatty acids.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Michael A. Crawford, Yiqun Wang, David E. Marsh, Mark R. Johnson, Enitan Ogundipe, Ahamed Ibrahim, Hemalatha Rajkumar, S. Kowsalya, Kumar S. D. Kothapalli, J. T. Brenna
Summary: This article highlights the progress made in nutrition knowledge over the past century and the major gaps in implementing that knowledge, with a focus on the celebration of the centenary of the National Institute of Nutrition in India. It points out the global issue of brain famine and the neglect of neurocognitive health in food policies. The importance of proper nutrition for mothers before conception and during pregnancy in ensuring intellectual development is emphasized. The article calls for placing the nutritional requirements for the brain at the top of the list in nutrition education and food policy.
PROSTAGLANDINS LEUKOTRIENES AND ESSENTIAL FATTY ACIDS
(2022)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Alla Y. Molchanova, Svetlana N. Rjabceva, Tigran B. Melik-Kasumov, Nikolay B. Pestov, Plamena R. Angelova, Vadim V. Shmanai, Olga L. Sharko, Andrei Bekish, Genevieve James, Hui Gyu Park, Irina A. Udalova, J. Thomas Brenna, Mikhail S. Shchepinov
Summary: Arachidonic acid (ARA) is easily oxidized and its oxidation products induce inflammatory responses. This study found that deuterated ARA (D-ARA) can protect lungs from adverse effects of inflammation and reduce lung damage caused by acute lung injury, suggesting a potential therapeutic avenue for severe infections and inflammatory diseases.
Article
Limnology
Justin C. Havird, Pamela M. Brannock, Reyn M. Yoshioka, Rebecca C. Vaught, Kaile'a Carlson, Collin Edwards, Allison Tracy, Cornelia W. Twining, Yun Zheng, David Chai, Alan E. Wilson, Nelson G. Hairston, Scott R. Santos
Summary: This study explores how an endemic shrimp species in the Hawaiian anchialine ecosystem shapes microbial communities and whether the shrimp gut microbiome is influenced by the environmental microbial communities. The study reveals that shrimp grazing significantly reduces benthic microbial biomass and that shrimp harbor a distinct and relatively stable gut microbiome.
LIMNOLOGY AND OCEANOGRAPHY
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Tarn Preet Parmar, Alina L. Kindinger, Margaux Mathieu-Resuge, Cornelia W. Twining, Jeremy Ryan Shipley, Martin J. Kainz, Dominik Martin-Creuzburg
Summary: Emergent insects play a crucial role in transferring aquatic nutrients to terrestrial food webs. The differences in fatty acid profiles between aquatic and terrestrial insects have not been sufficiently explored. This study examined the fatty acid profiles of aquatic and terrestrial insects over a growing season and found distinct differences between the two groups regardless of season. Aquatic insects had high proportions of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), while terrestrial insects had high proportions of linoleic acid. These findings highlight the importance of aquatic emergence as essential subsidies for riparian predators, especially during the breeding season.
FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Marine & Freshwater Biology
Lena Fehlinger, Margaux Mathieu-Resuge, Matthias Pilecky, Tarn Preet Parmar, Cornelia W. Twining, Dominik Martin-Creuzburg, Martin J. Kainz
Summary: Fishponds play an important ecological role by providing essential nutrients to terrestrial ecosystems through emergent insects. This study found that Chlorophyll-a concentrations affect the biomass and lipid content of emergent insects, and the PUFA composition of the insects differs from their dietary algae.
Review
Ecology
Libor Zavorka, Andreu Blanco, Fernando Chaguaceda, Julien Cucherousset, Shaun S. Killen, Camilla Lienart, Margaux Mathieu-Resuge, Pavel Nemec, Matthias Pilecky, Kristin Scharnweber, Cornelia W. Twining, Martin J. Kainz
Summary: The physiological dependence of animals on dietary intake of vitamins, amino acids, and fatty acids is crucial. The differences in availability of these biomolecules across resources drive variations in phenotype and fitness of consumers, with potential impacts on ecosystem functioning. Focusing on vital dietary biomolecules in eco-eco-devo dynamics can enhance our understanding of anthropogenic changes at different biological levels.
TRENDS IN ECOLOGY & EVOLUTION
(2023)
Editorial Material
Ecology
Cornelia W. Twining, J. Ryan Shipley, Blake Matthews
Summary: Climate change is causing an increase in phenological and nutritional mismatches between consumers and their resources.
TRENDS IN ECOLOGY & EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Environmental Sciences
J. Ryan Shipley, Cornelia W. Twining, Conor C. Taff, Maren N. Vitousek, David W. Winkler
Summary: Body-size reductions in male and female tree swallows are observed under climate change, driven by warmer overwintering conditions and climate conditions during spring migration.
NATURE CLIMATE CHANGE
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Ian R. McFadden, Agnieszka Sendek, Morgane Brosse, Peter M. Bach, Marco Baity-Jesi, Janine Bolliger, Kurt Bollmann, Eckehard G. Brockerhoff, Giulia Donati, Friederike Gebert, Shyamolina Ghosh, Hsi-Cheng Ho, Imran Khaliq, J. Jelle Lever, Ivana Logar, Helen Moor, Daniel Odermatt, Loiec Pellissier, Luiz Jardim de Queiroz, Christian Rixen, Nele Schuwirth, J. Ryan Shipley, Cornelia W. Twining, Yann Vitasse, Christoph Vorburger, Mark K. L. Wong, Niklaus E. Zimmermann, Ole Seehausen, Martin M. Gossner, Blake Matthews, Catherine H. Graham, Florian Altermatt, Anita Narwani
Summary: Human impacts such as habitat loss, climate change, and biological invasions are drastically changing biodiversity. We propose an integrative approach to explain the differences in impacts between terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems by linking them to four fundamental processes that structure communities. Through this approach, we aim to provide insights into why human impacts and responses to them may differ across ecosystem types, using a mechanistic, eco-evolutionary framework.
Article
Food Science & Technology
Genevieve James, Kevin Stephenson, Meghan Callaghan-Gillespie, Mohamed Tabita Kamara, Hui Gyu Park, J. Thomas Brenna, Mark J. J. Manary
Summary: This study aimed to prepare RUTF formulations with DHA and measure its retention. The results showed that most of the DHA was retained in the final product, and adding DHA at the latest manufacturing stage achieved the best retention rate.
Article
Physics, Multidisciplinary
Michael A. Crawford, Andrew J. Sinclair, Yiqun Wang, Walter F. Schmidt, C. Leigh Broadhurst, Simon C. Dyall, Larry Horn, J. Thomas Brenna, Mark R. Johnson
Summary: In George Wald's Nobel Prize acceptance speech, he proposed a hypothesis that docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) traps the energy released during the visual process and carries it to the brain, explaining the previously unresolved issues of information transfer speed and photon wavelength conservation.
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
J. Thomas Brenna, Marina G. Sergeeva, Nikolay B. Pestov, Tatyana V. Korneenko, Mikhail S. Shchepinov
Summary: This article discusses a new approach, using oxidation-resistant hexadeuterated arachidonic acid (D-ARA), to attenuate pathological inflammatory reactions by buffering the eicosanoid pathways. Enzymatic processing of released arachidonic acid by phospholipase A2 yields bioactive eicosanoids, some of which have pro-inflammatory, pro-angiogenesis, and pro-thrombosis effects. D-ARA, resistant to both enzymatic and non-enzymatic oxidation pathways, may play a role in mitigating inflammation-related disorders.
FREE RADICAL RESEARCH
(2023)