Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Gianluca Lombardo, Nicola Rambaldi Migliore, Giulia Colombo, Marco Rosario Capodiferro, Giulio Formenti, Manuela Caprioli, Elisabetta Moroni, Leonardo Caporali, Hovirag Lancioni, Simona Secomandi, Guido Roberto Gallo, Alessandra Costanzo, Andrea Romano, Maria Garofalo, Cristina Cereda, Valerio Carelli, Lauren Gillespie, Yang Liu, Yosef Kiat, Alfonso Marzal, Cosme Lopez-Calderon, Javier Balbontin, Timothy A. Mousseau, Piotr Matyjasiak, Anders Pape Moller, Ornella Semino, Roberto Ambrosini, Andrea Bonisoli-Alquati, Diego Rubolini, Luca Ferretti, Alessandro Achilli, Luca Gianfranceschi, Anna Olivieri, Antonio Torroni
Summary: The study investigates the taxonomic status and geographical spread of the barn swallow by analyzing the sequence variation of mitochondrial genomes. It identifies subspecies-specific haplogroups and proposes a model for the worldwide spread of the species. The research also highlights the close link between the barn swallow, climate fluctuations, and human activities, suggesting its importance as an indicator for monitoring the impact of global changes on wildlife.
MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Masaru Hasegawa
Summary: The study investigates the function of nestling-like male courtship calls in male-male interactions, indicating that males attract females by mimicking immature individuals while avoiding interference from neighboring males.
FRONTIERS IN ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Zoology
Alessandra Costanzo, Roberto Ambrosini, Marco Parolini, Manuela Caprioli, Simona Secomandi, Diego Rubolini, Leonida Fusani, Virginie Canoine
Summary: The study found that there was no significant change in adult erythrocyte telomere length between consecutive breeding seasons in barn swallows. Second-year individuals showed the highest increase in circulating CORT concentrations following restraint, and female stress response declined during the breeding season. Additionally, telomere shortening was associated with the stress response, suggesting that individual variation in stress response may affect telomere dynamics.
Article
Ornithology
Yu Liu, Li Tian, Zhuoya Zhou, Kai Gao, De Chen, Donglai Li, Yong Wang, Zhengwang Zhang
Summary: In this study, the Barn Swallow population in East Asia used the tolerance strategy, rather than resistance, to defend against nest mites. We found that males with more extravagant sexually selected traits had weaker resistance to the parasites. Overall, the Barn Swallow population showed strong tolerance against the parasite and it did not significantly affect reproductive success.
Article
Ecology
Zbyszek Boratynski, Timothy A. Mousseau, Anders Pape Moller
Summary: The study found that the body temperature of wild barn swallows inhabiting areas with radioactive contamination varies with exposure levels; individual characteristics and phenology modulate the radiosensitivity of body temperature; birds with low body condition, high capture risk, and those captured late during the day but early in the season showed increased radiosensitivity and up-regulation of body temperature.
ECOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Ornithology
Cosme Lopez-Calderon, Sergio Magallanes, Alfonso Marzal, Javier Balbontin
Summary: This study used light-level geolocators to describe the migration system of Barn Swallows breeding in southwestern Spain and wintering across west Africa. The swallows were found to spend pre-migration time in southern Spain and northern Morocco during summer, and to start their autumn migration in August. They refueled in northwestern Morocco and southern Mali before arriving at their wintering areas across Ivory Coast. After wintering, they started their spring migration in late January, stopping over in Senegal and Mauritania before returning to Spain in February. One individual even traveled to England during autumn migration before spending a short wintering period in northwestern Spain.
ARDEOLA-INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ORNITHOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Ornithology
Ava-Rose F. Beech, Mattheus C. Santos, Emily B. Smith, Ben W. Berejka, Yujie Liu, Toshi Tsunekage, Iris I. Levin
Summary: Ecological and life-history factors, as well as brood parasitism, contribute to variation in egg phenotype within a species. Barn Swallows laid eggs with high intraclutch repeatability in size, shape, and maculation, although last-laid eggs had fewer spots on the eggshell. The study used direct measurements and custom software to examine interclutch and intraclutch variation, and found that low intraclutch variation in maculation may allow females to recognize their clutch, which is adaptive for colonial nesting species.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Lucie Schmiedova, Oldrich Tomasek, Hana Pinkasova, Tomas Albrecht, Jakub Kreisinger
Summary: The quality and quantity of food have significant effects on phenotypes, and diet can indirectly affect phenotype by altering gut microbiota. Most of our knowledge in this area is based on mammalian species, and little is known about these effects in other vertebrates.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Mattia Pancerasa, Roberto Ambrosini, Andrea Romano, Diego Rubolini, David W. Winkler, Renato Casagrandi
Summary: Barn swallows migrating from south-central Europe mainly stay in the Congo basin during non-breeding period, showing a clockwise loop migration pattern. Migration speed and route are influenced by previous migration events, with limited sex-related variability.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Alessandra Costanzo, Michela Sturini, Federica Maraschi, Manuela Caprioli, Andrea Romano, Simone Vanni, Marco Parolini, Antonella Profumo, Diego Rubolini, Roberto Ambrosini, Luca Canova
Summary: Bird feathers can be used as bioindicators to assess the presence of contaminants in the environment, and the concentrations of trace elements in the feathers of barn swallow nestlings can indicate the local level of contamination. The study found differences in trace element concentrations between nestlings grown in areas amended or not amended with sewage sludge, suggesting that barn swallow nestlings can be reliable sentinels for monitoring local variation in the environmental occurrence of trace elements.
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Masaru Hasegawa, Emi Arai, Masahiko Nakamura
Summary: The study found that male barn swallows with shorter tarsi started breeding earlier than those with longer tarsi when controlling for body size. This selective advantage of short-legged males explains the reversed sexual dimorphism in tarsus length in this short-legged species.
JOURNAL OF ETHOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Ornithology
J. F. Altenburg, B. van den Brink, T. J. Boudewijn, J. Drop, J. M. van Muiswinkel, P. van Horssen
Summary: This study examines the breeding patterns of Barn Swallows in the Netherlands over a 27-year period and finds that the laying date of first and second broods has advanced over time. However, the number of fledglings per successful breeding attempt remained constant. Surprisingly, neither large scale nor local weather parameters could explain these changes. The study highlights the importance of long-term and large-scale research on key species to understand the potential effects of climate change.
Article
Parasitology
Michelle L. Michalski, Emily Kadolph, Constance L. Roderick, Julia S. Lankton, Rebecca A. Cole
Summary: Several mortality events involving barn swallows and cliff swallows occurred in the Upper Midwestern states in 2017 and 2018, with barn swallows primarily dying from emaciation and air sac nematodiasis, while cliff swallows had lesions consistent with blunt force trauma from suspected car impacts. Sequence analysis of the partial 18S rRNA gene indicated a link between morphological specimens and DNA sequence data for D. obtusa.
JOURNAL OF PARASITOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Ecology
Ryan P. Bourbour, Breanna L. Martinico, Emily M. Phillips, Jessica N. Schlarbaum, Michelle G. Hawkins, Joshua M. Hull, Sara M. Kross
Summary: This study aimed to describe the breeding season of barn owls in California using nestling records. The results showed that barn owls typically begin to lay eggs in winter, and suggested that nest box maintenance should be conducted in fall to minimize nest disturbance.
JOURNAL OF WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT
(2022)
Article
Evolutionary Biology
Roxane Lassis, Marco Festa-Bianchet, Joanie Van de Walle, Fanie Pelletier
Summary: In terrestrial and marine ecosystems, migrants from protected areas may mitigate the evolutionary consequences of selective harvest in exploited populations. Understanding the mechanisms favoring genetic rescue through migration is important for sustainable harvest and conservation of genetic diversity.
EVOLUTIONARY APPLICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Zoology
Piotr Matyjasiak, Cosme Lopez-Calderon, Roberto Ambrosini, Javier Balbontin, Alessandra Costanzo, Yosef Kiat, Andrea Romano, Diego Rubolini
Summary: This study found that Eurasian barn swallows with longer migration distances have longer and more pointed wings, which favor energetically efficient flight.
Article
Zoology
Camilla Soravia, Angelo Bisazza, Jacopo G. Cecere, Diego Rubolini
Summary: The costs and benefits of brain lateralization may be influenced by environmental conditions. This study investigated the effects of early food availability on lateralization in a population of lesser kestrels. The results showed that extra food provisioning improved nestling growth but did not significantly affect the strength or direction of nestling lateralization. Additionally, the direction of lateralization differed between male and female nestlings.
Review
Ecology
Andrea Romano, Laszlo Zsolt Garamszegi, Diego Rubolini, Roberto Ambrosini
Summary: A comprehensive meta-analysis of avian phenological responses to climate change revealed that prebreeding migration and breeding have been advancing by 2-3 days per decade, while timing of postbreeding migration has remained relatively stable. The extent of advancement varied based on migratory behavior, diet specialization, body size, and hemisphere. The study highlights the importance of considering specific life-history and ecological traits in understanding avian responses to climate change.
ECOLOGICAL MONOGRAPHS
(2023)
Review
Biology
Louis-Stephane Le Clercq, Gaia Bazzi, Jacopo G. Cecere, Luca Gianfranceschi, Johannes Paul Grobler, Antoinette Kotze, Diego Rubolini, Miriam Liedvogel, Desire Lee Dalton
Summary: Timing is crucial for survival and reproduction in seasonal environments. Birds may use circadian clock genes, such as Clock and Adcyap1, to track time and anticipate seasonal changes. This study found a tentative association between Clock gene variation and autumn migration, and Adcyap1 gene variation and spring migration in migratory birds. These candidate genes are not diagnostic markers for distinguishing migratory from sedentary birds, and their variability may be influenced by ancestral inheritance rather than contemporary selection.
BIOLOGICAL REVIEWS
(2023)
Review
Biochemical Research Methods
Francesca Pittino, Jakub Buda, Roberto Ambrosini, Marco Parolini, Arianna Crosta, Krzysztof Zawierucha, Andrea Franzetti
Summary: Glaciers are ecosystems that contain active biological communities. They act as condensers where pollutants are deposited due to high precipitation rates and cold temperatures. This review aims to provide an overview of the studies on the effects of pollutants on glacier ecosystems, particularly the supraglacial ecosystem. Despite discussions on the distribution of pollutants in glacier environments, no review paper has summarized the current knowledge on the effects of these substances on the ecological communities living in glaciers.
CURRENT OPINION IN BIOTECHNOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Biodiversity Conservation
Marco Parolini, Matteo Stucchi, Roberto Ambrosini, Andrea Romano
Summary: Microplastic (MP) contamination in marine ecosystems is a global environmental concern. This systematic review summarizes extensive research on the bioaccumulation of MPs in marine organisms, revealing that MP body burden varies significantly among trophic levels and taxonomic groups, but not geographically or temporally. While all marine organisms can ingest and accumulate MPs, the wide variability in body burden prevents the identification of global contamination patterns.
ECOLOGICAL INDICATORS
(2023)
Article
Ecology
Niccolo Fattorini, Alessandra Costanzo, Andrea Romano, Diego Rubolini, Stephen Baillie, Franz Bairlein, Fernando Spina, Roberto Ambrosini
Summary: Migratory connectivity in birds is influenced by geographical proxies of migration costs, with weak effects from biological traits and phylogeny. The variability in avian migration strategies leads to significant connectivity between distinct migratory populations. Understanding the determinants of migratory connectivity can enhance conservation and management strategies for avian migrants.
Article
Microbiology
Francesca Pittino, Krzysztof Zawierucha, Ewa Poniecka, Jakub Buda, Asia Rosatelli, Simone Zordan, Roberto S. Azzoni, Guglielmina Diolaiuti, Roberto Ambrosini, Andrea Franzetti
Summary: Recent evidence has revealed the presence of a potential niche for anaerobic microorganisms and processes in supraglacial sediments. This study used rRNA and mRNA sequencing to demonstrate that anaerobes are actively involved in these environments and play a significant role in ecosystem functions.
MICROBIOLOGY SPECTRUM
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Louis-Stephane Le Clercq, Gaia Bazzi, Joan Ferrer Obiol, Jacopo G. Cecere, Luca Gianfranceschi, J. Paul Grobler, Antoinette Kotze, Marta Riutort Leon, Jacob Gonzalez-Solis, Diego Rubolini, Miriam Liedvogel, Desire Lee Dalton
Summary: Birds in seasonal habitats rely on complex strategies for optimal timing of migrations, which are influenced by genetic factors and environmental cues. This study provides a systematic review and phylogenetic reanalysis to clarify the evidence and improves our understanding of the genetic basis of seasonal bird migrations.
