Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Fanrong Xiao, Zhixue Lin, Jichao Wang, Hai-Tao Shi
Summary: This study investigates the ecomorphological variation of turtle shell shape by analyzing the body size and shell dimensions of 6664 adult individuals from different habitats. The results show that shell shape becomes flatter with increasing body size in aquatic turtles, while the opposite trend is observed in male mainland tortoises. Additionally, there is a gradual increase in the domed shape of turtle shells from sea to freshwater habitats, from freshwater to mainland terrestrial habitats, and from mainland to island terrestrial habitats. Therefore, conservation strategies for turtles should consider both their shell shape and habitat characteristics.
GLOBAL ECOLOGY AND CONSERVATION
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Dalmiro Borzone Mas, Scarabotti Pablo, Patricio Alvarenga, Matias Arim
Summary: Ecological networks play a crucial role in shaping biodiversity and ecosystem dynamics. In this study, the authors focused on piscivorous fishes in the Parana River floodplain and analyzed their roles in both food webs and occurrence networks. They found a significant modular organization in feeding links and species occurrences, with larger species connecting modules in food webs and smaller species connecting spatial aggregations. Furthermore, they discovered that body size and eco-morphological traits were key factors in determining the connectivity within and between modules. These findings emphasize the importance of understanding the connections between species in different networks for better management and conservation of ecosystems.
JOURNAL OF ANIMAL ECOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science
Jordan Hernandez, Amado Villalobos-Leiva, Adriana Bermudez, Daniela Ahumada-C, Manuel J. Suazo, Margarita Correa, Angie Diaz, Hugo A. Benitez
Summary: This study analyzes the morphological variability of Caquetaia kraussii and finds that environmental stress influences about 10% of its body shape, while the majority of the variability is not directly influenced by environmental parameters, suggesting a possible effect from sexual dimorphism. Additionally, there is shape variation among populations of different localities, which may be subject to environmental and sexual stresses.
Article
Biology
Charlene Gaillard, Ross D. E. MacPhee, Analia M. Forasiepi
Summary: The unique orientation of the orbits in the extinct sabertooth Thylacosmilus atrox allowed for binocular depth perception, despite its cranium evolving for enlarged canines. The study of mammalian vision is difficult due to the lack of preserved eyes in the fossil record. However, orbital orientation and size can provide insights on ocular function. In Thylacosmilus, the bony orbits were divergent, unlike any other known mammalian predator, but frontation and verticality of the orbits compensated for limited convergence in orbital orientation and favored some degree of stereopsis.
COMMUNICATIONS BIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Public, Environmental & Occupational Health
Stefania Toselli, Alessia Grigoletto, Luciana Zaccagni, Natascia Rinaldo, Georgian Badicu, Wilhelm Robert Grosz, Francesco Campa
Summary: Adolescence is a sensitive period of life characterized by physical and psychological changes. This study aimed to evaluate longitudinal changes in body composition and weight status in Italian adolescents over 3 years of middle school, and to analyze the influence of these parameters on body image perception and satisfaction. The results showed differences in body composition changes between males and females, with associations found between body image perception, BMI, and sex. Monitoring body image perception in young adolescents, especially in females and those who are overweight or obese, is crucial for preventing nutritional disorders.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Charles R. Marshall, Daniel Latorre, Connor J. Wilson, Tanner M. Frank, Katherine M. Magoulick, Joshua B. Zimmt, Ashley W. Poust
Summary: Estimating population variables and preservation rates of postjuvenile T. rex involves using data from living species and the relationship between population density and body mass. The uncertainties in these estimations primarily stem from the variance in the density-body mass relationship, resulting in a wide range spanning two orders of magnitude.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Magdalena Gornicka, Kacper Szewczyk, Agnieszka Bialkowska, Kristina Jancichova, Marta Habanova, Krzysztof Gornicki, Jadwiga Hamulka
Summary: This study aimed to evaluate the comparative classification capabilities of different anthropometric indices and BIA results in determining obesity. The results highlighted the need to change current diagnostic criteria for obesity and suggested that body fat content measurement could be an effective indicator for diagnosis and screening of obesity.
APPLIED SCIENCES-BASEL
(2022)
Editorial Material
Environmental Sciences
Sara Ryding, Alexandra McQueen
Summary: Climate change affects tree swallows in various ways, with impacts on adults, juveniles, males, and females, rather than just affecting chick growth.
NATURE CLIMATE CHANGE
(2022)
Letter
Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging
Feray Karademir, Cigdem Ayhan Kuru, Ruhi Soylu
Summary: This article discusses the correlation between ultrasonographic examination of the nondominant thenar musculature and total body lean mass in healthy subjects, showing a good relationship with body composition, hand grip strength, and arm muscular area. The authors are commended for highlighting the use of ultrasound for assessing total body fat-free mass.
ACADEMIC RADIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Tate J. Linden, Abigail E. Burtner, Johannah Rickman, Annika McFeely, Sharlene E. Santana, Chris J. Law
Summary: We examined the relationship between body shape, body size, and limb lengths in 87 squirrel species, and found that body shape and its components scale allometrically with body size, with different patterns among ecological groups. Ground squirrels exhibited more robust bodies with increasing size, while chipmunks and gliding squirrels had more elongate bodies. Only ground squirrels showed a correlation between forelimb length and body shape, with elongate species having relatively shorter forelimbs. Rib length and thoracic region elongation or shortening had the greatest impact on body shape evolution in squirrels.
Article
Zoology
Ester Premate, Tinkara Kepic, Cene Fiser
Summary: Body size is an important characteristic that influences various aspects of an organism's biology. In animal ecology, it is a key functional trait that can be quantified and used as a proxy for different organismal functions. This study explored the relationship between body length and body mass in the freshwater amphipod genus Niphargus, and evaluated whether using these measures leads to different conclusions in an ecological study of species coexistence. The results showed that using body length or body mass can yield different results, and caution should be exercised when transforming between the two measures in ecological studies.
Article
Ecology
Manuela Gonzalez-Suarez, Alejandro Gonzalez-Voyer, Achaz von Hardenberg, Luca Santini
Summary: The local abundance or population density of different organisms varies widely and is influenced by factors such as body size, diet, and brain size. This study suggests that brain size may be an overlooked driver of mammalian population densities, with larger brains potentially leading to lower population densities due to energetic demands, or higher population densities due to greater ability to exploit resources. Results show that brain mass can explain variation in species' average population density, but the relationship may vary across taxonomic groups. Further research is needed to determine if the role of brain mass in population density varies based on environmental and biotic conditions.
JOURNAL OF ANIMAL ECOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Medicine, General & Internal
Martina Recalde, Veronica Davila-Batista, Yesika Diaz, Michael Leitzmann, Isabelle Romieu, Heinz Freisling, Talita Duarte-Salles
Summary: A large prospective cohort study from Catalonia, Spain, revealed that a higher BMI is associated with an increased risk of multiple cancers, with comparable estimates of cancer risk between BMI and waist circumference.
Article
Sport Sciences
Bert H. H. Jacobson, Jay Dawes, Doug Smith, Quincy Johnson
Summary: This study compares the kinanthropometric characteristics of NCAA Division I offensive and defensive linemen in college football over the past eight decades, finding significant increases in body mass, height, and speed. These findings may have profound implications for player safety.
JOURNAL OF STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Amlan Das, Dipsikha Ghosh, Balaram Manna, Avishek Dolai, Anshuman Pati, Sumit Mandal, Krishnendu Mukherjee
Summary: The study shows that grasshoppers have a multidimensional mortality mode at different densities, with a sigmoidal correlation between density and mortality. Mortality is not necessarily correlated with the body mass of the insects, indicating density as a key factor. A utility chart provided based on the research results facilitates estimating the space required for captive grasshoppers.
Article
Biology
Raul Ignacio Vezzosi, Ernesto Brunetto, David Flores
HISTORICAL BIOLOGY
(2019)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Raul I. Vezzosi, Leonardo Kerber
JOURNAL OF SOUTH AMERICAN EARTH SCIENCES
(2018)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Raul I. Vezzosi, Diego Brandoni, Ernesto Brunetto, Maria Cecilia Zalazar
JOURNAL OF SOUTH AMERICAN EARTH SCIENCES
(2019)
Article
Geography, Physical
Diego Brandoni, Raul I. Vezzosi
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Aldo Manzuetti, Martin Ubilla, Daniel Perea, Raul Vezzosi, Andres Rinderknecht, Martin Ghizzoni, Washington Jones
JOURNAL OF SOUTH AMERICAN EARTH SCIENCES
(2020)
Article
Geography, Physical
R. Soledad Ramos, Silvina A. Contreras, Raul Vezzosi, D. Catriel Leon, Juan C. Tasso
QUATERNARY INTERNATIONAL
(2020)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
W. W. Jones, A. Rinderknecht, R. I. Vezzosi, F. Montenegro, M. Ubilla
Summary: This study presents the first fossil records of South American cathartids from Uruguay, with specimens associated with megafaunal fossil remains. It discusses the systematic assignation and paleobiological implications of these scavenger birds.
JOURNAL OF SOUTH AMERICAN EARTH SCIENCES
(2021)
Editorial Material
Paleontology
Raul Ignacio Vezzosi, Alline Rotti, Leonardo Dos Santos Avilla
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Alline Rotti, Raul Ignacio Vezzosi, Dimila Mothe, Leonardo dos Santos Avilla
Summary: The tragic fire at the National Museum in Brazil in September 2018 caused significant losses to South American natural and cultural heritage. However, previous visits to the paleontological collection allowed for the redescribing and revising of Cervidae fossils from two important sites, revealing a new diversity of Cervidae and identifying the fossils as belonging to the extinct deer Morenelaphus.
JOURNAL OF SOUTH AMERICAN EARTH SCIENCES
(2021)
Article
Geosciences, Multidisciplinary
Raul Vezzosi, A. Itati Olivares
Summary: The study reports the fossil record of a myocastorine lower deciduous premolar (dp4) from central Argentina, confirming the presence of myocastorine species in the late Miocene and Pleistocene in this region. Based on stratigraphic studies and new dating techniques, the specimen is assigned to the Middle Pleistocene age, marking the first vertebrate recorded in that period in Santa Fe Province.
JOURNAL OF SOUTH AMERICAN EARTH SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Paleontology
Raul Ignacio Vezzosi, Washington Jones, Pablo J. Gaudioso, Ruben M. Barquez
Summary: A new material of a Quaternary waterfowl from Santiago del Estero Province, Argentina, has been described and identified as Coscoroba coscoroba. This finding sheds light on the environmental interpretations associated with wetlands in South America and will be further explored through future multi-proxy studies in the region.
REVISTA BRASILEIRA DE PALEONTOLOGIA
(2021)
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Daniel Perea, Pablo Torino, Natalia Rego, Raul Vezzosi, Felipe Montenegro
Summary: This article describes a fossilized skull of an extinct adult euphractine armadillo, which is smaller and has distinct differences compared to its living relatives. The finding confirms the presence of this species in Uruguay during the Late Pleistocene and suggests a colder and drier climate in the southern part of the country during that time period.
JOURNAL OF MAMMALIAN EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Luciano Varela, P. Sebastian Tambusso, H. Gregory McDonald, Raul I. Vezzosi, Richard A. Farina
Summary: Sloths are a successful South American clade that migrated to North America during the Great American Biotic Interchange. Four families of sloths have been identified in the Pleistocene of North America, including Nothrotheriidae. Recent findings in Argentina and Uruguay have expanded the geographic distribution of the genus Nothrotheriops. Stable isotope analysis indicates that this taxon mainly consumed C-3 plants.
JOURNAL OF MAMMALIAN EVOLUTION
(2023)
Article
Paleontology
Jorge. D. D. Carrillo-Briceno, Raul I. Vezzosi, Keesha. M. M. Ming, Zoe. M. M. Christen, Dimila Mothe, Damian Ruiz-Ramoni, Marcelo. R. R. Sanchez-Villagra
Summary: This study describes and examines a collection of Nearctic ungulates from Pleistocene deposits in the Pampean region of Argentina. These fossils were collected in the nineteenth century by Santiago Roth and brought to Europe, where they are currently housed in the paleontological collections of the University of Zurich and the Natural History Museum of Geneva. Although the exact stratigraphic position of these fossils is often uncertain due to their age, this historical collection still holds value for taxonomic, palaeobiogeographical, and palaeobiological studies of the region's Pleistocene mammalian fauna.
SWISS JOURNAL OF PALAEONTOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Paleontology
Marcos Cenizo, Jorge Noriega, Raul Vezzosi, Daniel Tassara, Rodrigo Tomassini
Summary: This study describes the unequivocal records of teratornithid birds from the Pleistocene of South America, adding a new member and updating the taxonomy of the family. The contrasting latest Pleistocene record of teratorns between North and South America may be influenced by as-yet undetermined paleoclimatic-paleoecological factors or different species specializations.
JOURNAL OF VERTEBRATE PALEONTOLOGY
(2021)
